I Became a Raid Boss-Chapter 209: Know your enemy and know yourself (1)

If we were to view Earth as a large ship, Edel's position would definitely not be that of the captain.

Above Edel, there was the supreme authority—the manager of Earth, who firmly stood in charge.

However, if something were to happen to the captain, Edel would be in a position to inherit that power.

In other words, the second-in-command.

In real life, there have been instances where crew members, aiming to take over, intentionally caused harm to the captain—what you’d call a mutiny.

But at least Edel had no intention of doing that.

The world Edel created was subjugated to Earth, and during that process, Edel herself had to step down a level from her previous equal position alongside the manager.

In fact, Edel couldn’t even complain about being treated slightly beneath or on par with the manager—it was all thanks to the manager’s favor.

Of course, among those who had attempted mutiny, there were those who betrayed the favors and goodwill granted to them, but...

As I mentioned earlier, Edel wasn’t one of those people.

The hesitation or incredibly low success rate in repaying kindness with betrayal was another matter.

Even if the mutiny succeeded like some miracle, gaining power would still be meaningless.

The ship would be floating in the heart of a violent storm, surrounded by a pack of sharks circling, waiting for prey to fall into the sea. What would a mutiny accomplish?

If they acted foolishly and were swept away by the towering waves, they would become shark food along with their ambitions for power.

So, rather than obsessing over trivial matters, it was far more rational to discuss how to escape the storm or repair the ship.

Even though she’d lost much, Edel wasn’t foolish, and she chose the latter.

Thanks to that, the ship led by both the manager and Edel had been sailing smoothly. However...

“I told you. If you don’t take risks, you’ll just be swayed by them.”

Recently, the ship they were aboard had been creaking a little.

It hadn’t caused any problems so far.

However, it couldn’t be denied that the creaking was there.

“...Again with that? Do you know how many times you’ve said that?”

“Exactly one hundred and thirty-four times.”

“If you know that, you must know what I’m going to say.”

“On the contrary, you know what I’ll say in response?”

“Hmph.”

The manager shrugged.

Conflicts due to differing views weren’t uncommon, nor were they something that never happened. Especially when something significant was at stake, the opinions naturally became more divided.

“As a result, nothing major happened, right? We can just be more thorough with our precautions moving forward.”

“...Nothing major happened?”

Edel didn’t hide her disbelief.

“They snuck in and left this behind, and while we didn’t notice, they did something as cute as separating the factions?”

“So, what harm was done? In the end, we discovered one of their methods, and the separated factions came back together.”

“If that kid hadn’t been there at the time, there might have been real harm.”

Edel’s point was that they were lucky, and that luck resulted in a positive outcome.

“Luck, huh. Well, I wonder where the coincidence ends and the inevitability begins. Isn’t that curious?”

“Stop talking nonsense.”

Edel cut off the manager’s words sharply.

Although her words were dismissed like scrap paper, the manager’s expression didn’t show any signs of irritation.

“There’s no guarantee we can keep blocking things just by luck. We need to act now.”

“And that action would be you, as always, insisting on sending scouts outside the walls, right?”

“Exactly.”

“The risks associated with that are enough to—”

“Are you going to keep nagging? I’ve already said it over a hundred times.”

“....”

The end of the conversation always involved following the manager’s will.

As the manager had said, Edel was fully aware of the risks that came with the actions she proposed.

“But things are different now.”

“....”

At Edel’s calm words, the manager didn’t speak.

Maybe he couldn’t argue anymore.

“...Hoo.”

The manager still thought that Edel’s approach was far too risky.

However, he had once said that if they could perfectly block any attacks without prior information, he didn’t care.

Having said that so confidently, it was undeniable that he felt embarrassed for not noticing when the enemy secretly infiltrated and tampered with things.

“...Do you have a concrete plan?”

“...!”

It was clearly a different attitude than before.

The manager’s positive response made Edel lift her head sharply.

After being taken aback by the sudden change, Edel quickly composed herself.

“Yes.”

“How? The child you’ve prepared isn’t mature enough to take on this task yet. And if you send angels...”

“They’d be torn apart by the dimensional whirlpool.”

The souls of angels are far stronger and more durable than those of humans or other life forms.

However, the dimensional whirlpool beyond the walls of the world is much more violent, vicious, and sharp.

They would be torn apart, souls and all, with no trace left behind.

It’s no wonder Edel was horrified when she discovered the soul that had flowed into Earth.

Though she pretended to be calm, the manager hadn’t been pleased with the recent events.

It was hard to like the situation when they were struck without warning.

The reason Edel wanted to hear his words again was because of that.

“Realistically, it’s impossible.”

But after hearing Edel’s words again, the manager’s conclusion remained unchanged.

There was no way a reconnaissance could be carried out if they couldn’t even take a step outside the wall.

Thus, once again, the manager shook his head.

“It’s not impossible.”

“You know it’s not a matter of emotion. We’re not allowed to make wrong judgments because we’re swept up in our feelings.”

Mistakes are a privilege only those with little responsibility can afford.

The manager said that.

“Think of what’s at stake.”

Losing the world isn’t something you can compare to losing a coin.

It means the disappearance of all life and all possibilities within it.

“You know that weight, so you made your world subjugate mine. So calm down and think rationally—”

“I’m not agitated.”

The words were cut off again.

Though it could be considered rude, the manager didn’t get angry, instead observing Edel’s expression.

“Neither was I deciding emotionally.”

As he said, Edel’s face was calm, not showing even the slightest hint of disturbance.

She actually looked even colder than usual.

“Why is it impossible? There’s someone who can go outside the wall and still be fine.”

“...Someone like that?”

“Oh, not a person.”

Edel raised the corner of her mouth slightly.

“I’ll go.”

“...What?”

Contrasting with the joyful expression on Edel’s face, the manager’s face crumpled without mercy.

It’s peaceful.

If I had to summarize my recent life, that would be the phrase to use.

Da-eun’s skills have been steadily improving since she started handling mana.

Though her progress was slow, like taking small steps, and it was still limited to manipulating mana...

When I think about the time I was anxious watching Da-eun struggle, it could be said that her progress was remarkable.

That being said, it wasn’t incredibly slow either.

On the other hand, Yuki was the complete opposite of Da-eun.

“No.”

If I say she’s the opposite, it might imply that there’s no progress at all.

So... let’s say her direction is different.

I taught Da-eun how to handle mana, but with Yuki, I mostly taught her how to handle a sword.

When Da-eun was laughing while breaking bricks she found somewhere with her bare hands, I was envious and asked her to teach me.

But I refused Yuki’s request.

There was no need to.

“...Why?”

By the way, Da-eun’s brick-breaking show happened just today.

In fact, it was just a few minutes ago.

I shook my head and turned my gaze away from Da-eun, who was gleefully punching the air.

“Da-eun is still clumsy with physical movement. So she needs to make up for it in other ways.”

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Of course, I didn’t completely disregard physical training.

I’m not a sneaky mage hiding behind people, and if you’re a swordsman, you should be able to handle your body.

“But you’re not like that.”

Yuki might be a little off, but when it comes to physical skills, she has a genius-level talent.

Though, she’s not quite as good as me.

“Ahem.”

“What are you doing, just stopping in the middle of speaking?”

Ah. I didn’t mean to.

I snapped out of it, remembering Yuki’s words, and returned to the topic.

“You’ve already learned how to handle mana in Celia.”

I remembered how Yuki had enhanced her body without relying on skills.

Despite being taught by me throughout our travels, she was the one who managed to do something Da-eun couldn’t, by her own strength.

Well, maybe she learned some things through eavesdropping from Da-eun’s broadcasts, but...

Since I didn’t directly teach her how to awaken her senses, let’s say she learned it on her own.

“...Kana, you’re hinting at something, aren’t you?”

“It’s just in your head.”

I dismissed Da-eun’s suspicion as she came up to me.

“If Edel meant to give you a body like Celia’s, you’d naturally be able to handle it, so there’s no need to teach you now.”

To put it in a metaphor, it’s like locking a door with a strong lock.

Even if you can’t come and go like before, the room behind the door doesn’t disappear.

And once the lock is removed, you can enter again.

Yuki slowly nodded as she listened to my explanation.

“Aha. I understand completely.”

“...Are you sure you understand?”

Somehow, I felt doubtful about it...