Chapter 64: The Gaea’s Eye Deception and the Dark United Council

He answered almost every question, and since he had only served in an auxiliary role throughout the experiment, I finally grasped the general nature of this so-called Gaea’s Eye experiment.

The sequence of events was, in fact, quite similar to what Blanche had previously described. The experiment’s initial objective was to alter the front-line situation by deploying troops from the rear for a surprise assault, but unfortunately, it was discovered too early, rendering all their efforts futile.

Fortunately, despite Bog the caveman being a rear-echelon employee, primarily handling auxiliary and logistical tasks throughout the experiment, his specific duties were surprisingly intricate, encompassing the coordination of food, accommodation, and sanitation. This meant he interacted extensively with the core monsters involved, allowing me to glean significant insider information.

“So, after your surprise assault force was encircled and annihilated by the Royal Army in Atlur Canyon, you decided to go all out and march south directly to the Royal Capital for a retaliatory strike?”

Hovering in the sky, I addressed Bog. If I detected even the slightest prevarication from him, I wouldn’t hesitate to let him experience my newly invented accelerated free-fall ride once more.

I was certain the sensation would be… unforgettable.

“Yes, yes!”

Bog responded with extreme obsequiousness.

“Actually, I was against this course of action. No, I’ve always been against it. Such an invasion is simply inhumane!”

“Oh, come on…”

I curled my lips, finding his performance utterly theatrical.

“Then why did you proceed so ostentatiously, teleporting so many monsters before even reaching your destination, even provoking clashes with the town guards along the route?”

This was precisely the question Sally had posed earlier. Back then, Amos and Alfred, among others, couldn’t fathom the reason for such self-exposure, even suspecting a deeper conspiracy.

“Well…”

Upon hearing this, Bog paused in thought before replying.

“Apparently, very few remained on the other side at that time; only a handful of wolf-headed men and lizardmen managed to evade the encirclement. Consequently, the higher-ups, fearing insufficient manpower and the artifact falling into the Royal Army’s hands, dispatched a small contingent specifically for its protection. This, however, only drew a larger Royal Army encirclement…”

So, it was all a colossal misunderstanding? It seemed Amos and his companions had truly overanalyzed the situation.

“So, they didn’t send any more reinforcements later?”

I deduced this based on the subsequent events in Tedles Town.

“Yes, the higher-ups later deemed enhanced concealment to be paramount. Consequently, they assigned a 6th-tier lamia and a 5th-tier wolf-headed man to handle the artifact’s transport, withdrawing the stationed guards from the other side. No further troops were teleported until the destination was reached.”

A 6th-tier lamia and a 5th-tier wolf-headed man?

I was startled; this was a rather formidable deployment!

“Why didn’t you use flying monsters? Couldn’t you just fly the artifact to the Royal Capital? Why bother walking through the mountains?”

The revelation that they could change transporters suddenly sparked this thought.

“Reportedly, due to its spatial nature, the artifact generates extremely turbulent air currents around it, which would impede flight.”

Bog, being an original member of the project, had likely witnessed the artifact firsthand. He thus provided a swift explanation.

“Furthermore, the higher-ups explicitly stated that concealment is impossible in the sky, and the Royal Army possesses numerous flying units. Discovery and interception in the air would be far more disastrous, hence land transport remains the sole viable option.”

“What happened next?” I asked with concern.

Given this, I wondered what calamity befell them on land. How could such high-tier monsters possibly be defeated by a mere 3rd-tier mountain bumpkin? Moreover, it was rumored that Kane only encountered a single monster, wasn’t it? I couldn’t discern if it was the lamia or the wolf-headed man.

“After one particular exchange, the caveman lizardman assigned to liaison duty outside the teleportation zone reported that the transporters from the Kingdom’s side had failed to establish contact…”

According to Bog, they weren’t overly concerned at the time, given the vastness of the exchange zone and the mountainous jungle terrain on the other side. It was not unheard of for a liaison to be untraceable within the designated exchange period.

However, when the next exchange occurred several days later, they discovered the artifact remained stationary. Realizing something was amiss, they dispatched search parties into the zone. Yet, aside from locating a small town within the exchange radius, they found no trace of the artifact or its transporters.

That small town was undoubtedly Tedles Town, precisely where Sally and I had been teleported on that fateful day.

As Tedles Town was not excessively far from the Royal Capital, and with the artifact temporarily lost, they resolved to alter their strategy: to launch an attack on the Asante Kingdom directly from Tedles Town.

“What did you do to the people of that town?”

Upon hearing this, my heart immediately sank, and I demanded sharply. After all, by his own account, they had thoroughly ransacked the entire town, making it impossible not to have alarmed its inhabitants.

“I didn’t kill them! It wasn’t me! I was merely an auxiliary staff member, and I was exchanged to the Kingdom’s side at that very time. There’s no way I could have encountered the townspeople!”

Bog frantically waved his hands in an effort to clarify.

“That small town was simultaneously teleported to this side, to the Dark Continent. So, it must have been the search parties who were stationed on the periphery at the time!”

This implied that Sister Sheila and Parish Priest Simon, along with others, had likely perished, unable to escape the clutches of so many monsters.

Putting aside everything else, I had poured immense effort into saving Gavin and countless other townsfolk. Only for them to be slaughtered by those monsters that very night. How was I meant to stomach such a loss?

“How fare the troops you dispatched to attack the Kingdom over the past two days?”

I inquired in a low, somber tone.

“Reportedly, the battle isn’t going well. They were intercepted along the way, long before reaching the target Royal Capital. I’m not privy to the specific details.”

Understanding this was favorable news for me, he swiftly divulged everything he knew.

“We were initially prepared to send further reinforcements, but the day before yesterday, an order arrived from Val City. It reported an angelic invasion within their walls, suspected to have been exchanged from our location. We were commanded to immediately relocate the experiment site once more, which is why we haven’t had the opportunity to send additional aid.”

“Suspicion? Don’t tell me you have other places conducting the same experiment simultaneously?”

A crucial word caught my attention. Logically, Sally and I were indeed teleported from this very location to the Dark Continent, so why would they still harbor suspicions? Could it be that…

“Because we don’t know if you entered while the experiment was still ongoing in Val City, or only after we relocated it here…”

Upon hearing this, Bog hastily clarified.

“Truly, there’s only one location where this experiment is being conducted! Previously, while the trials were primarily within Val City, we discovered cavemen just like me dead along the edges of the city’s outer pits. We never knew who was responsible, which is why we subsequently relocated to this mountain.”

“Which side?”

A peculiar word in his statement suddenly piqued my interest.

“Are you implying that the Asante Kingdom isn’t the *only* entity opposing Val City?”

“Uh… actually, we dark creatures were once quite unified.”

Bog initially appeared disinclined to discuss the matter, yet under my ‘gentle persuasion,’ he eventually divulged the truth.

“However, ever since the higher powers designated Val City as their favored recipient of full support, it ignited the jealousy of certain factions beyond our walls. Consequently, they frequently dispatched spies to sow discord and obstruct the successful completion of tasks assigned to us by those above.”

“What exactly do you mean by ‘higher-ups’?”

While the internal strife among monsters surprised me, it wasn’t entirely uncommon. It was his repeated use of that particular term, however, that truly ignited my curiosity.

“Naturally, it refers to Lady Migadi, the Goddess of Flame, whom all dark creatures revere, and the Dark United Council she leads.”

Bog gazed towards Val City with profoundly reverent eyes, clearly demonstrating an unwavering faith in this so-called deity.

“Dark United Council?”

As for that term, I was unsure whether to deem it familiar or simply chuunibyo.

To call it chuunibyo might be unfair, as this was, after all, another world. From what I understood of its current geopolitical landscape, such a concept seemed within the realm of possibility.

However, the phrase ‘United Council’ was quite intriguing. Literally, it denoted a national-level joint organization. Even on Earth, before my transmigration, it was a term seldom used outside the United Nations or various science fiction games.

In this world, the Asante Kingdom remained entrenched in a feudal system, and the surrounding nations appeared similarly structured. The sudden emergence of such an advanced term was truly thought-provoking.

“What’s the origin of your Goddess of Flame, Migadi? She’s not another elusive deity, is she, one whose head is seen but never her tail?”

I asked with a dismissive tone. Tiffany’s previous explanations had given me a general understanding of this world’s deities, but now, on this Dark Continent, a Goddess of Flame had suddenly emerged. She was even the leader of their dark creatures, and quite possibly, she was no different from the God of the Church.

“Who said that?! Lady Migadi is nothing like your human gods, who haven’t shown their faces in millennia—who knows if they’re even alive! She presides over Val City even now! This artifact was bestowed upon us by her, and she is fully aware of your actions within the city…”

Ever since the mention of Migadi, the Goddess of Flame, Bog’s eyes had grown increasingly fervent, and he became more restless in my grasp. Eventually, his speech grew impudent, and he even began to challenge me.

‘To be blinded by faith is truly terrifying. Does he not even realize his own predicament?’

I curled my lips and allowed him to enjoy another spin on my self-created rotating, tumbling, high-altitude free-fall ride. By the time I retrieved him again, he had completely rolled his eyes back and passed out.

My interrogation was largely complete, and I doubted I would extract anything further from him for a while. This caveman had lost his utility, but considering his previous cooperation and willingness to answer every question, I found myself unable to simply kill him.

However, I couldn’t let him return to give a warning, though currently, there wasn’t much to warn about. After some thought, I placed Bog by the lake atop the volcano. The angle between the mountain’s summit and the cliff face below formed a nearly vertical ninety-degree drop, making it incredibly difficult for a low-tier caveman like him to descend anytime soon.