[State of Rondônia, Porto Velho — The Crusaders]
Hundreds of enthusiastically cheering Brezilian citizens awaited the Crusaders at the Oliveira International Airport. The Crusaders had accepted the direct order of His Holiness the Pope. To Catholics all over the world, they were a symbol of hope. It was only natural for the citizens of Porto Velho to see them as true heroes in these dire times with the Legion marching on them.
“We’re getting the welcome the hero’s party usually gets in stories, huh?”
“I think I heard girls’ voices. Should I go say hello?”
“Marco! We’re the Crusaders! How can you be thinking about hitting on girls after coming all the way here?! Are you trying to stain the Vatican’s reputation? Should I just castrate you myself?”
After exiting the airport, Rolf Schabel couldn’t help but feel somewhat restless and decided to direct his steps to the nearest Catholic Church. He wanted to put himself together before the fight and began by offering a prayer to the Lord.
“O God, please cast your mercy upon us and grant us strength as we cower in the face of your trial. Please give us the courage to stand up to evil,” he said, kneeling in front of the cross and hands brought together.
✦ ✦ ✦
The strange uneasiness he felt slowly disappeared and was replaced by courage. The six of them were far from being pious Catholics, but after clearing so many dungeons and praying every time, their faith had been born anew. They now held their faith dear as they stood up to the dungeons. They had become true Crusaders, worthy of the title of the warriors who had preceded them more than a thousand years ago.
“O God, please watch over each of them. I believe You will become their strength in their fight against the Demon King. I can only pray as such, but please... Keep them safe,” the priest prayed before blessing them.
After nodding respectfully, the Dungeon Crusaders started their operation. Strangely enough, Joker left Manaus the very same day.
✦ ✦ ✦
[A Certain Place in the State of Rondônia]
To reach the State of Rondônia from the State of Amazonas, you had to go south down the BR-319. Although it was a federal highway, the BR-319 was a narrow one-lane paved road. Most Japanese people would have trouble imagining just how large Brezil was. Gigantic trees filled the areas on both sides of the road as far as the eye could see, with that straight path continuing for hundreds of kilometers. A supermarket or a used tire shop popped into view every once in a while, but these stores were barely the size of a kiosk and didn’t sell much besides beer and snacks. The virgin forest, farmland, and pasture areas were essentially empty despite the state capital being densely populated.
Naturally, the scale of any travel was also completely different in Brezil. Going from Manaus, in the State of Amazonas, to the neighboring state of Rondônia might sound similar to moving from one prefecture to the next in Japan, but the distance between Manaus and Porto Velho was no less than nine hundred kilometers. A close equivalent in Japan would be the distance between Sapporo and Tokyo. This is what going to the neighboring city meant in Brezil. Most large cities had an airport for this reason, and airlines worked on connecting cities by the shortest possible airway. This particular environment had played a role in Brezil becoming the third largest producer of passenger planes in the world.
Of course, the Legion could not very well use commercial flights. They made their way down to Porto Velho in several old buses, casually listening to Latin Gamerican music as they rode.
<Don’t judge me. I know that I was wrong. I can only ask you to trust me. Don’t look at the monster hiding in my shadow. Oh, please, don’t blame me. I know you’re right, I know you’re rich. Oh, what’s a single meal to you?>
“HYA HA HA!”
Inside one of the buses, a man and a woman—a prostitute he’d hired in Manaus—sang, beer in hand. Lured by the appeal of cash and precious metals, she had decided to accompany him to Porto Velho. As long as the men of the Legion abided by Joker’s rules, they were relatively free to do whatever they liked. Paying for the company of women was all right, and so was consuming drugs and alcohol. Most of his subordinates were former outlaws. Big dreams and ideals wouldn’t move them. Hence, he used the carrot-and-stick method: keep them afraid and bestow great benefits upon them when they listened.
The two-day trip to Porto Velho was so calm and peaceful that no one could have guessed these men were headed to the battlefield. Although they had to camp, they could use dungeon items to bathe, and every tent was complete with comfortable beds. Joker’s men slept soundly, a girl on each arm, while the monsters stood guard, patrolling the area. Joker made use of the night’s calm to look over detailed maps of Porto Velho’s surroundings and keep thinking about his next move.
“The Crusaders were most likely sent to kill me... The Brezilian army set up their line of defense at the intersection of the BR-319 and the BR-230. There’s good visibility there, making it easier for them to deploy their men.”
The BR-319, which continued on to Manaus, was surrounded by trees on both sides most of the time. There would be dense forest until the intersection with the BR-230, which meant the buses would suddenly go from a single-lane road with poor visibility to a very open intersection. They would set up heavy weapons all around the exit of the BR-319 and shoot at every monster that emerged. This was the only place where such a plan could work.
“If I deploy the wyverns first, I’ll be able to secure control of the air. Orcs will easily withstand tank guns if they’re given some shields. The real pain is the Crusaders. They’ll likely hide in the forest. Should I get Chico to look for them with his Detection?”
The Crusaders were fine-tuning their plan at the same time. As fate had it, their strategy was exactly what Joker had predicted. Rolf Schabel, their leader, was about to explain the plan to his teammates in their tent.
“They were able to intercept Tomahawks before, meaning one of Joker’s men must be able to use some sort of reconnaissance ability. If we try to hide and attack him by surprise, we’ll get found out. However, there’s an item we can use.”
✦ ✦ ✦
Name: Invisibility Cloak
Rarity: Rare
Description: A cloak that allows you to become invisible once you put it on. However, your presence will not disappear. Sharp people may just notice you. Who knows?