Earth Dungeon 48.2

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Chapter 48.2. Recruitment

"Ultimately, it means you're trying to take over my territory!"

"Your attacks are with bows and arrows. They won't affect us. No chance, right?"

"Shut up! My [Martial Arts] will blow you away!"

The enemy boss throws punches and shadows. Great, the people in this ruined city are impatient, and there are so many fools.

"Yes, yes. [Weapon Tiger]!"

I summoned a new type of tiger, Mike with magic. A jet-black tiger with a metallic sheen appears, reflecting the sunlight as it does so.

"Mike, have some fun."

"Nyan."

[Yes, your majesty of the universe!]

Mike leaps and bounds over walls about five meters tall, and for some reason, Shizuku-san tenses up and smirks.

Gracefully, Mike moves to the front of the enemy boss, showing its fangs and bracing its limbs.

The boss, who had gotten shadowed, stops moving in response, gazing intently at Mike.

"What's this?"

"Nya!"

"Fight to your heart's content. I think you'll play cutely with my cat punches."

Looking up at the wall, I tell him to enjoy a boxing match with a cat. I'm so kind.

The boss casually extends his hand, and Mike swiftly makes a slashing sound as it swipes through the air.

"...I surrender."

"Well, thank you."

It seems the playful interaction with the cat was a no-go. I guess he's more of a dog person.

People begin to leave the conquered base, carrying their belongings. They don't seem to have much to carry. I guess there's no need to put them on horses to carry.

As I watch from inside the school, my expression becomes subtle. That's because a sorrowful scene unfolds.

"Mommy, where are we going now?"

"To a place with delicious food..."

"Are you sure it's okay?"

"Are we going to be enslaved?"

Beside the worried people are armed Shadow Tigers and my subordinates acting as escorts. For some reason, I feel guilty looking at the scene.

"It's kind of like a villain taking over an enemy base and enslaving the people, isn't it?"

We're even picking up things the boss had. We look like thieves or something.

"That's true, big brother. They're wearing dirty clothes and look exhausted, bowing their heads."

"Ooki-kun, is it alright if I attach iron balls to your feet? I'll even give you striped clothes as a present."

"They're people aiming for a new promised land full of hope. That's what I think."

Ooki-kun easily changes his opinion, so I snort in response. Even I understand that. But you know, there's no choice but to forcibly move them.

"Well, there are monsters along the way. If we don't move them all at once here, they won't make it to the market anytime soon."

Crossing his arms, Shingen gives a wry smile. It's true, not many people can come near this area. It's because monsters and thieves are lurking around. Weaklings wouldn't even consider coming here. Moving with their families is a life-risking endeavor.

"If we gather them all, should we have a welcome party? But we don't have enough food for that."

Amatsugahara Corporation is currently facing financial difficulties. It's operating on a shoestring budget. Money comes in from the right and flows out from the left, leaving nothing in hand. 

If I hadn't received 30 million yen from the boss in the outer city the other day, things would have been dangerous.

"We got about 80,000 yen from this boss. Around 30 ration tickets. A few canned goods and 2 bottles of alcohol."

I sigh upon hearing the report from a subordinate who entered the room. Well, that's how it goes, I guess...

"Give it back, give it all back!"

I gesture with my hand, indicating to return what we took. It's rather depressing. Seeing the subordinates nod and leave, I spread a map on the table. It's an old map, but it should do. The buildings in the abandoned town either rot or burn down. No new shops have opened.

"We'll capture the remaining small bases."

There are several red circles on the map, indicating the locations of the bases. All of them house a few hundred residents. The plan is to conquer them and gather the people. Around 3,000 people would be nice. With that number, we can employ them for various tasks.

"Well then, how about we split up? Even this time, it would have been enough with your new Shadow Tiger. If you give us one each, the other bases will surrender easily."

I agree with Shingen's proposal. Small bases don't even have guns. The bows and arrows belong to the Goblin Archers. Their equipment is quite shabby.

"Alright, let's do that. Shingen, Katsuyori, and Daiki will each lead a unit to conquer three bases. Give them 2 Armed Shadow Tigers, 4 Shadow Tigers, and about 10 Shadow Snakes. Each unit will have about 30 soldiers. If you sense danger, come back immediately."

"Sure, leave it to us."

"Yes, we'll conquer them thoroughly."

"Huh? M-me too?"

Ooki-kun is skilled, so I trust him with this task.

"What will you do during that time?"

"I'll conquer the dungeons between the captured bases. They are mostly Goblin Dungeons. I want to level up the crafting skills of my subordinates. I believe the leader of the children and his girlfriend have useful skills. I'll have them level up to level 1. We'll need production in the future, I think."

Also, Shingen is not allowed to reveal his identity.