第130掘:作戦説明
作戦説明
side:ユキ
皆の視線が集まったな。
「よし、じゃ俺の作戦を説明するぞ。問題点があったら言ってくれ」
地図を中心に集まっている皆を正面のホワイトボードに集めて、いつものモニターを出す。
どの会議室にも、この仕掛けがつけられている。
もっとも、俺達にしか使えないが。物理的にも、操作的にも。
「これは机の上に置いてある地図と変わりはない。まあ、拡大縮小はできるが」
そう言ってウィードを拡大して外側の村の一つ一つの家の並びが確認できるぐらいにする。
それを見たリリアーナさんは顔を青ざめさせている。
まあ、現代の地球では衛星で常にお互い監視状態だしな。
一方的に監視されるのは面白くないだろう。
「さて、俺の作戦はこうだ」
モニターの地図のウィードを授業用の棒で指して、そのまま先ほど言った、ロシュールからラスト、魔王の居城、ラストの城を指す。
教えてもらった最短ルートをなぞっていく。
「ここは、さっきの話の通り軍の進軍路だ。他のルートを開拓しようとなると、それだけで問題になるのは分かるな?」
「しかし、この作戦は使えない。軍の被害は少なくなるだろうが、戦なく城を落としても色々と評判が悪い。箝口令を敷いても、今回の作戦がどこからか必ず漏れる。そうすると、いきなり道を簡単に作ってしまったウィードがとても危ぶまれることになる」
「えーと、どういう事かな?」
リエルが首をかしげながら質問をしてくる。
いつもながら、分からないことは素直に聞く良い子だ。
「つまりだ、魔王を倒すまではいいが、その後、各国でこう囁かれるわけだ。「ウィードは敵対国にはそのダンジョンの力を存分に使って容赦なく叩きのめす」と」
「それの何が問題なの?」
「これは後々の反発につながるってことだよ。今はウィードと結ぶ利益が多いから、問題点を気にしないでいるが、あからさまに、一般人、いや兵士とはいえ、ダンジョンの力を見せると恐怖を呼ぶわけだ。ウィードは倒さないといけないと、いや違うな、敵に回る前に倒してしまおうと」
俺がそう言うと皆が一様に沈黙する。
「なるほどね。確かに力を誇示するのは大事だけど、こうも簡単に、他国の領土をどうにでもできると触れ回るようなことをすれば、確実に反発してくる相手が出てくるわね」
セラリアは理解が早い。
確かにチートは便利だ。
しかし、チートを持っていない相手にとっては脅威にしかならない。
何事もバランスが大事というわけだ。
「じゃあ、軍隊を直接魔王城に送り込むのは無理なんですね」
トーリがしゅんと犬耳を垂れる。
「そうだな、地下ルートでも同様だ。いや地下ルートの方が深刻だろうな、何時のまにか侵略されてましたってことだしな」
「ユキさんの言う通りだと思います。私もガルツのゲート敷設会議には参加しましたが、何処に地下を作ってもらうか、随分揉めましたから」
それが勝手にポンポン作れると言われれば、各国はいい顔をしないだろう。
3国は勝手に作れると王達のみ知っているが、それ以外には頼んでダンジョンを作ってもらったというスタンスをとっている。
「別の理由もある。今後魔族が他の種族と手を取り合う上で、今回は必ず連合軍と共闘する必要がある。俺達だけで魔王を倒して、手を結べば軍隊はいらないし、やる気を出した兵に不満が溜まる。さらに、魔族の人となりを知る機会が少なくなって和平への道が難航する」
「ああ、分かるよ。共闘すれば仲良くなれるよね。仲が悪くてもそんな時に一緒に頑張ると、あとでお酒飲んで騒げるんだよね」
リエルの言う通り。
共闘でやればすくなからず、連携が生まれて、お互い死線を潜り抜けた戦友という、他の形とはちがう関係が生まれる。
それに各国の精鋭が関われば、他へ及ぼす影響は計り知れない。
「そういう事ですか、それで精鋭を頼んだのですね」
ルルアが俺の意図に気が付いたのか、確認を取ってくる。
「ルルアの言う通りだ。精鋭が魔族はいい人達だと庇えば、下手な王の宣言より、確実に国民に伝わる」
そう言って確認を取るようにリリアーナさんを見る。
「私が、皆さんに手伝ってもらって魔王城を開放して、軍隊を迎え入れても......駄目なんですね」
「俺達だけで解放するのは、問題が多すぎます。ましてや、自分の配下に噛みつかれて魔王の座を追われた貴女の、その作戦を受け入れる余裕はないです」
そう、今回の問題、よくよく考えればリリアーナさんが部下を抑えていれば何もなかったのだ。
俺としてもこっそりラストと繋げて、四天王の二人を通じて交易をしようと思っていた。
つまり、リリアーナさんには既に和平を推す思いはあっても、既に信頼が崩れているのだ。
簡単にいえば、一度起業に失敗して、それでもまた起業するからお金貸してって言う話。
「......わかりました。で、作戦は? 今までのは問題点の洗い出しですよね?」
「はい、その通りです。したがって、この問題点をクリアしつつ、魔王城を攻略しないといけない」
「ふむふむ、さっきのお話からすると......」
ラッツがホワイトボードに歩いていって書き出していく。
・陸路により、魔王城に向かう連合軍の損害を抑える事
・連合軍の障害は、道のりに出る野生の魔物と関の問題
・どうやって魔族と共闘を謀るのか
・魔王城の攻略方法
・時間制限があること、ルーメルが現在侵攻している魔王の軍を壊滅ないし敗走させる前に決着をつけないといけない
「ラッツが書いてくれたけど、これは......」
「無理難題ね」
エリスとミリーがホワイトボードに書かれている問題をみて呆れている。
「とりあえず、一つ一つ解決方法を言おう」
そう言って、皆の目をホワイトボードから俺に集める。
「まず前提にこの道のりは土地を掌握して、情報を集める。掌握してまえば何処に何がどれだけいるのかはっきりわかるからな」
何事も情報が一番である。
ルーメル国の件は、まだまだ手を出すのは先だったので放っておいた。
無駄に情報量が増えても混乱するだけだしな。
まだウィードも落ち着いてないし、ある意味、絶妙な動きだよな。
タナカの奴が裏で手を引いているなら納得だが、メリットもクソも、ルーメルの最前線で今戦ってるし、タナカ自身がそこで足止めくらってるから裏があることはありえんだろう。
向こうも落ち着くまで俺の事は知らないふりを決め込むだろうから、俺もそうさせてもらう。
お互い状況がわからんから、下手に顔を合わせるわけにもいかん。
「次に、道のりに出る野生の魔物だが、ここはスライムとゴブリンの2個小隊を使って数を減らす。殲滅してしまったら、流石に不思議がったり、罠と勘違いして進軍が遅くなる可能性がある。ここの指揮はスラきちさんに任せるから、魔物にやられる様なことはないだろう。こっちからの情報提供もあるしな」
「そりゃのう。妾がいまだにダンジョンでは勝てんからのう」
なんだ、まだ負けてたのか。
「関に関してはリリアーナさんを使って内応、反乱を起こさせる。これでその中から連合軍へ伝令を出して『援軍無用、力を温存してください。関は私達が何とかします。どうか魔族の皆を頼みます』と言えばどうなるかな?」
そういう事。
セリフは同じでなくてもいいが、連合軍を奮起させる内容にすればいい。
「ちょっと待ってください。私はラストでは手配中の身。確かに私に協力してくれる人達はいるでしょうが、勝てるかもわからない、本当かどうかもわからないことに手を貸してくれるとは......」
リリアーナさんは自分の価値は今ではほとんどないと自分で言って悔しそうだ。
でも、手を貸してくれというのは実は間違いだったりする。
「ああ、大丈夫。リリアーナさんは魔王の首をもって内応してくれる人を集めるんだから、言う事は絶対に聞くと思うよ」
「つまり、関の攻略が俺達は一番最後になるわけだ。軍は一番最初だけど」
流石にまだわからないか。
「いいか皆、この関を魔族と共闘して落とせたなら、魔王城攻略は楽になるのはわかるな?」
「だから、関の共闘を得る為に、俺達だけは、地下ルートを作って魔王城を先に攻略して魔王の首を取る。それをリリアーナさんに渡して、内応を持ちかけてもらう」
「な、なるほど。ユキさんは関の攻略、魔王城の攻略は演技にするわけですね」
エリスが俺の作戦に気が付いて、口をひくつかせている。
「ま、演技と言ってもちゃんと死人は出てもらうけどな双方」
「そこまでする必要があるの、ですか?」
今まで黙っていたエルジュが口を開く。
前みたいに頭ごなしに否定するよりはマシか。
俺が答えようとすると、リリアーナさんが進み出て、エルジュに説明をする。
「私が魔王の首を持って行けば無血開城もできるでしょう。しかし、それでは私を裏切った、魔族以外を滅ぼすべしと詠った愚か者も見逃す事になるのです。内応はその為の選別ですね?」
「そういうこと」
「それと、魔族と多種族が手を取り合う切っ掛けになるのです。裏切り者の為にその機会をつぶす気はありません」
リリアーナさんにそう言われて、エルジュはまだ納得はいかないみたいだが引き下がる。
「と言う事は、後の問題は、私達が先んじていく魔王城攻略と、どうやってその後から来る連合軍を迎え入れるかですね」
ラッツが残る問題を言う。
「それはまず魔王城をダンジョン化して掌握する。適当に魔物を召喚して、敵対勢力を排除。上手くいくのであれば、魔王本人も魔物に倒してもらおう」
「うげー、お兄さん本当にやり方があくどいですね......」
「リリアーナさんに協力している勢力はすでに地下牢にいるだろうし、使用人たちは逃げ惑うだけだろうし、抵抗してくる奴らを徹底的に倒せばいいだけだ。無理に俺達が出て危険な目に遭う必要はないけど、万が一で近場で動けるようにしとかないといけない」
「確かにそうですね」
その説明で皆納得して頷く。
魔王さん、悪いけどどこかの物語みたいに勇者と華々しい一騎打ちをやれると思うなよ。
くっくっく......。
俺、悪者に見える気がするんだが?
Hisshou Dungeon Unei Houhou Chapter 130
Chapter 130 - Explanations of the strategy.
Side: Yuki
Everyone's eyes are gathered on me.
(Yuki)[Yosh, I'll explain my strategy. If you notice anything off, just let me know. ] 
After I drew everyone's attention to the map, I brought my whiteboard to the front and started up the usual monitor.
The conference rooms device appears out of nowhere.
But only we are able to use it. Both physically and visually.
(Yuki)[This is the not just a simple map like on the desk. Using this you can zoom in. ] 
To demonstrate my explanation, I zoom in on Weed to the point where the arrangement of houses at the village's rim are visible.
Liliana is startled, her face is turning pale.1)Face: I love this little bit of info
Well, in modern-day Earth, the same thing is always done with the satellites. They constantly keeping watch over one another.
Being one-sidedly watched without consent isn't something funny.
(Yuki)[Then, my strategy is as follows. ] 
On the Monitor, with a stick, I point to the now displayed Weed, Roch.e.l.le and the castle of Last where the Demon King resides.
I traced and explained the shortest route.
(Yuki)[This is the army's marching path, as I said earlier. You all know that when you try to open another route, it'll just cause problems and make things an organisasional nightmare, right?] 
(Yuki)[But we can't use this strategy. Although the damage our army would sustain would be minimized, even if we take over the castle, it'd just be too bad for our reputation, not to mention the need to talk our way out of what we did. Hiding it wouldn't work either, even if we put out a gag order, news would certainly leak, restoring the terrain would be nigh impossible, the enemy would know what we did too. After that's exposed, maybe only as a rumor, either way, Weed which was able to use such a strategie so easily would become untrustworthy and in an extreme case too-dangerous-to-overlook for our neighbors. ] 
(Riel)[Eto, what do you mean?] 
Riel's asking one of her usual questions. She's scratching her head too.
As always, she is a good child that listens honestly.
(Yuki)[In other words, it'd work until we knock down the Demon King, but the method we used would be whispered to the ears of other countries after that. They would say "Weed has used its absolute power to intervene in another country, they have beaten their enemies without mercy. Tell me how we are supposed to trust their preaching words of peace when they are such merciless people who both possess and utilize such destructive power."] 
(Riel)[Why is it a problem of we're strong?] 
(Yuki)[This would lead to problems further down the line. At the moment there is a lot of interests gathering in Weed, so currently this problem wouldn't concern me. However in the future whether it's an ordinary person or a veteran soldier, if they've been shown the power of the Dungeon, they'd fear it. This kind of fear is very unpredictable, some people would want to knock us down and grab Weed before others do, some would move far away just to be far from us and some would simply be more unwilling to make trading agreements with us. ] 
When I said that, everyone remained uniformly silent.
(Seraria)[I see. It is certainly important to show off our strength, but not at the expense of touching the countries around us. That would surely come back to bite us. ] 
Seraria easily understood what I had said.
Certainly, cheats like the dungeon are useful.
But it's only a threat for someone who doesn't have a cheat too.
Balance is important in everything.
(Tori)[Well, it is impossible to send the army directly to the Demon King's castle without the power of the Dungeon. ] 
Tori speaks, her dog's ears drooping off to the side.
(Yuki)[Yeah, it's the same for an underground route. No, I guess an underground route would be even more ridiculous. ] 
[Yuki-san, it is as you say. I also partic.i.p.ated in the construction conference of Galtz's Dungeon Gate. We had a lot of trouble deciding how deep and how st.u.r.dy we should build it. ] 
If it is proven that we can make and use them offensively without permission, the countries wouldn't see them in a positive light, let alone the bringers of trade and peace.
The rulers of the three countries are aware of it, but they take stance with us, asking others to accept our Dungeons. 2)they're troublesome because you have to get permission to make them and you can't let them know you can make it without asking for permission since it will cause a rift in trust.
(Yuki)[There is another reason. It is necessary for the allied forces to struggle a bit when we fight, as a means to a.s.sure that the Demons mix with other races and to make them accept their defeat when it comes. We're also the only ones who can easily and quickly set up the next Demon King after joining hands. Additionally if the joint armies aren't needed, dissatisfaction would appear among those who have invested in the war to gain honor and such. And finally, there wouldn't be another opportunity such as this to get to know the other races during war time. The road to peace bears many hards.h.i.+ps and knowing why wars happen, but more importantly how to stop them before they happen, will be helpful. ] 
(Riel)[Oh right, I got it. If you fight, you can get along with each other. Even if your on bad terms for now, at the end of the battle, we will be able to drink and share stories. ] 
Riel is close enough I guess.
If you do struggle in battle, it would be hard not to recognize the opposition and thus create the groundwork required for a relations.h.i.+p to form. But that can only be the result of making a life and death fight at the frontlines, or after being a commanding officer. However there will inevitably also be grunts on the frontlines who will lose too much in battle and will end up resenting the enemy for it. Realistically though, those sentiments can hardly be worse than their opinion of the Demons now.
If the elites of each country were to recognize the Demons as a people, then the impact would be immense.
(Lulu)[Oh I understand now, is this why you've put in so much effort to engage the elites?] 3)Chill: ref. speech
Lulu guessed what my intentions might be and is eagerly awaiting confirmation.
(Yuki)[It is as you said Lulu. If the elites recognize the demons and declare only their King as unskilful; then persuading the citizens would proceed much more safely and naturally. ] 
I said that and looked at Liliana.
(Liliana)[If I may interject, I could act as a spy and open a Gate inside the Demon King's castle, allowing the allied forces to rush inside. ] 
(Yuki)[If they're unleashed inside the city in that manner, there would be far too many problems. Not to mention, that would be no simple feat, even if you contact a former subordinate. There's simply no way you can guarantee that you wouldn't be betrayed on your way to your most trusted subordinates. Moreover losing you is simply not an option, given how you need to lead after the current Demon King's removal and all. ] 
Yes, this is the problem. There's no way for Liliana to know what her former subordinates would do.
Even if she manages to reach Last secretly, she would still have to negotiate with the other two members of the big four, who are no doubt under strict surveillance.
In other words, Liliana has already preached her desire for peace and in the eyes of the other demons it didn't work and now the trust the other demons placed in her has already disappeared.
Simply put, it would be the same as asking for another loan of money to restart a business again because you failed to start the business once.
(Liliana)[....... So be it. Then, what is your strategy? We have only discussed problems until now.] 
(Yuki)[Yes, that's true. Then, while clearing the problems mentioned we must capture the Demon King's castle. ] 
(Lutz)[Fumufumu, back to the story from a while ago...... ] 
Lutz walks to the white board and writes everything down.
*Limiting damage to the allied forces as much as possible whilst marching to the Demon King's castle.
*Allied forces may encounter obstacles such as Demons and wild monsters on the roads.
*How do we plan to fight against the Demons whilst encouraging recognition?
*How do we capture the Demon King's castle?
*With time restrictions, as we must settle things before Rumel arrives and destroys the Demons.
(Millie)[Lutz wrote this, but..... ] 
(Ellis)[It looks like an unreasonably difficult math problem, right? ] 
Ellis and Millie are amazed at the problems written on the whiteboard.
(Yuki)[Let's discuss my solutions one by one. ] 
After I said that, everyone's gaze converged on me.
(Yuki)[First of all, since we own the land, we can gather information about the opposition easily. After grasping the situation, we should be able to know exactly what and how many Demons and Monsters are out there. ] 
Information is power.
As for the matter of Rumel, now is not yet the time so I'll ignore that issue for now.
When the information quant.i.ty increases unnecessarily it would only be confusing.
Also, Weed hasn't completely settled yet, so in a sense, not having to deal with an extra country is excellent.
If it really is Tanaka holding Rumels reins from behind the scene, he won't give a d.a.m.n about merits for fighting at Rumel's front, since he already controls the back. However if he is stuck there, he may very well do something irresponsible.
I will pretend that I don't know him until things settle down over there.
Since we don't understand each others circ.u.mstances, I can't show my face yet.
(Yuki)[Next, about the wild monsters that are on the way. We will utilize the information on their whereabouts to use a Search and Destroy strategy. We will use two platoons of Goblins and Slimes to reduce their numbers. However if those platoons get annihilated, there is a possibility that a trap or a fluke we don't understand will pull through, since we lost our forward vanguard. I will leave Surakichi-san in command of those units, so that they won't be killed by monsters. ] 
(Delille)[Excellent. This one hath never been able to match Surakichi-san ever since joining this Dungeon.. ] 
What, you still haven't managed to beat the slime?
(Yuki)[As for Liliansan, she will make way for a rebellion to happen. We will send the moderate Demons a message, explaining the Allied forces goal. {Please do not send reinforcements, please stay your blades. Otherwise we will retaliate with a gate. I'm asking you, as a fellow Demon. } What do you think?]  4)this one I believe the message here about saving power is don't exhaust yourself and if you do we will do something about it arbitrarily
There's that too.
The speech doesn't have to be like that, we should focus on content that inspires the Demons.
(Liliana)[Please wait a minute. I will make arrangements in Last. Though there certainly will be people who would want to cooperate with me, I do not think I would be able to win, or if I would be of any help or..... ] 
Liliansan seems mortified saying that she has so little value on her own and how she regrets it.
Well, it is actually not a mistake to try to know your own hand.
(Yuki)[Ah, It'll be fine. Liliansan, we will bring the neck of the current Demon King with us, that way they'll absolutely listen. ] 
(Yuki)[In other words, the Gate is our backup strategy. The main one is our army. ] 
Okay, she still doesn't understand huh?
(Yuki)[Imagine this, we are struggling too much against the Demons. Well without a Gate capturing the Demon King's castle would be harder right?] 
(Yuki)[That's, why the front buys time for us, while we take an underhanded route using the gate, capture the Demon King's castle first and take the head of the Demon King. We then give it to Liliansan, who can in turn show off and ask the Demons to stand down. ] 6)they're going to go behind into the demon king's castle and kill him/her while the army is trying to invade and then have liliana(former demon lord/king) show the head off to get the demons to listen to her
(Ellis)[I s-see. Yuki-san is talking about the Gate strategy, the capture of the Demon King's castle is but an act. ] 
Ellis finally aware of my strategy pulled her mouth.
(Yuki)[Well, we just have to be diligent with our acting, people from both sides will still die though albeit less than otherwise. ] 
(Herge)[Must it be done?] 
Herge who was silent until now opens her mouth.
This way is better that her previous way of denying anything violent or bad without a second thought.
Before I could muster my answer, Liliansan went forward and explained to Herge.
(Liliana)[If we take the neck of the Demon King we can force a bloodless surrender. But you know, we are talking about the guy who betrayed me, the guy who took me for a fool all this time and wants nothing but to kill everything that stands in the Demon's way. Does that act of betrayal clarify the why to kill to you?] 
(Herge)[So it's like that. ] 
(Liliana)[With that, there's a chance for Demons and People to coexist. If I have to kill a traitor for the sake of this opportunity, then I will do so without hesitation. ] 7)Face: no shouldn't you kill a traitor either way? this time it just has a benefit too. im not brutal.
This is how Liliansan tried to convince Herge, she doesn't seem to be convinced yet, but she withdraws.
(Lutz)[The next problem we have to talk about is how we will honor the allied forces afterwards. If we follow that strategy and actually take the castle before they can do much. ] 
Lutz brought the remaining problem to the table.
(Yuki)[First we go to the Demon King's castle and take it over with the Dungeon. Then summon monsters and let them run wild. If it all goes smoothly, the Demon King himself will be eliminated by the monsters. ] 
(Lutz)[Ugee, onii-san really has his way of doing things..... ] 
(Yuki)[The forces cooperating with Liliansan will already be in the Dungeon. The servile ones will escape and the only thing we will need to do is to defeat the resistance thoroughly. It's not necessary for us to meet danger directly, but we will make a move if we have to. ] 
[Seems about right. ] 
With my explanation everyone understands and nod.
Demon King-san, I'm sorry, but I'm not willing to make a spectacular fight like heroes from fairy tales.
Kuhkuhku.....
I'm feeling like the bad guy again?8)Face: No I'm pretty sure you are the bad guy, you're the whole reason this mess is happening by blaming Liliana for killing Herge...
Hisshou Dungeon Unei Houhou
必勝ダンジョン運営方法　相手に合わせる理由がない
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/hisshou-dungeon-unei-houhou/
Adventure Comedy Drama Ecchi Fantasy Harem Mature Psychological Romance Seinen Slice of Life Tragedy
Adapted to Manga Aggressive Characters Aristocracy Beastkin Beautiful Female Lead Clever Protagonist Dungeon Master Dungeons Early Romance F*llatio Game Elements Gore Loli Love Interest Falls in Love First Male Protagonist Management Multiple POV Nudity Obsessive Love Overpowered Protagonist Polygamy Pregnancy R-15 Reverse R*pe S*ave Harem S*aves Strategist Strong Love Interests Succubus Sword And Magic Transported to Another World Yandere
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n7891ca/
雪だるま