55: Plan your strategy carefully and win a battle thousands of miles away (Part 3)
Ito-kun, I've watched your previous two dungeons, and you're actually a decisive person. Whether it was the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in the first one, or the exploitation of Edo Island in the second one… I really like these qualities.
The regrettable thing is, you weren't decisive enough, and your methods weren't ruthless enough,” the Emperor said with a smile.
There's an old saying in Great Harmony, 'A man who is not ruthless is not a true man.' I hope you can remember that as well.”
The Emperor's words left Ito Hidekazu speechless.
Previously, he had exploited the labor of the Edo Island NPCs in the dungeon, making them work 24 hours a day. In his opinion, that was already a very cruel thing.
Now, compared to the Emperor's methods, it was completely insignificant; he was still too soft.
This cruelty and decisiveness were also the Emperor's reliance for advancing to LV4 and firmly holding a spot in the TOP20.
Spared no effort, resorted to any means—everything was for the sake of achieving the final goal!
What the Emperor practiced was the ultimate creed of the Dahe Clan!
“The Emperor is wise!” Ito Hidekazu couldn't help but exclaim, his back bending even further.
…
At the same time, the dungeon live stream once again exploded in shock.
Of course, this time the shock wasn't due to ingenious weapons, nor advanced technology, but because of the Emperor's brutality.
Rather than shock, it was more about condemnation and apprehension.
“Bacterial Unit? These Great Harmony people are truly perverted; how could they come up with such a twisted combat method?”
“That's disgusting. Can this even be considered dungeon technology?”
“But honestly, this kind of thing should indeed be quite effective, especially for a surprise attack.”
“The technical content of this kind of thing shouldn't be high, right? Now that the Emperor has revealed it, everyone will be on guard in the future, and there might even be perverts who imitate it.”
“We can take precautions when designing dungeons outside the dungeon, but Raging Sea has already been completed, making it impossible to guard against these things. It's clear that Emperor-sama has indeed pulled out his trump card to conquer Raging Sea.”
…
The Emperor picked up the phone again and continued to send a message to the second person.
“Leader Iga Ryuji, I order you to take your three hundred ninjas and immediately infiltrate Eagle Country. Investigate Eagle Country's various military intelligence, and it would be best if you could accurately pinpoint the locations of Eagle Country's military bases!”
“If we can steal key defense maps or technical blueprints, it will greatly assist us in conquering the dungeon!”
“Yes, Emperor-sama!”
Iga Ryuji and the ninja group he led were also special Challengers specifically trained by the Great Harmony Settlement, considered a special forces unit skilled in assassination.
Their previous work generally involved organized infiltration into dungeons to assassinate key NPCs within them.
By clearing dungeons in such an unexpected manner, they would then eliminate other excellent Designers of various races in reality.
Now, the Emperor's arrangement for them to act as spies was indeed most suitable.
A look of admiration once again appeared on Ito Hidekazu's face.
Leaving aside the technology and weapons in the Emperor's hands, just this strategic thinking, Ito Hidekazu felt, was the pinnacle of Azure Star!
If it were him, he would never have thought of scouting out enemy forces in advance.
If he had this kind of thinking, then in the previous dungeon, he could have fully understood Eagle Country's specific strength before making a decision.
The outcome might have been completely different…
“Emperor-sama is truly the spiritual pillar of our Dahe Clan!”
“Challenging the dungeon with you, your subordinate has benefited greatly,” Ito Hidekazu couldn't help but flatter him again.
The Emperor smiled and casually patted Ito Hidekazu's shoulder.
“Ito-kun, you don't think our strategic deployment is just this, do you?”
“To deal with Eagle Country, this is definitely far from enough.”
“As my strategist, I have two important things for you to do next.”
Ito Hidekazu immediately bowed and knelt down. “Please instruct me, Emperor-sama!”
“The first thing is for you to relay a message to the leaders of all major military bases on my behalf, telling them not to relax even when there's no combat, but to train and drill their soldiers!”
“After conscription is complete, our million Great Harmony people will be the absolute leaders of Edo Island, and every single person will have the possibility of leading troops into battle!”
“So, starting now, training must begin to adapt to the various conditions of Earth Online as soon as possible.”
Ito Hidekazu nodded repeatedly.
There was a unique messaging mechanism in the dungeon; from the office desk in Songzhi Pavilion, they could communicate with other military bases via fax, and also monitor the situation of twenty military bases in real-time through a light screen, so this task was not troublesome at all.
“And the second thing is for you to convey my order to all residents of Edo, telling them that I will be holding a speech soon! And the content of the speech concerns the future of Edo Island.”
Ito Hidekazu fell into confusion again, wondering what new plan the Emperor had in mind.
Logically, these residents of Edo Island were all NPCs, virtual people created by Genesis Space.
Wouldn't talking to them be like preaching to deaf ears?
“Ito-kun, you must fully learn from your past lessons!” the Emperor said coldly.
“The NPCs in Lin Ye's dungeon are completely different from those in other dungeons. The NPCs in this dungeon have their own independent thinking abilities, as evidenced by your execution by them last time.”
“Don't forget there's also a 'public loyalty' indicator! Whether we forcibly conscript soldiers or compel the populace to manufacture weapons for us, it's highly likely to cause public dissatisfaction and rejection.”
“This, in turn, will lower public loyalty! Leading these natives to resist us!”
“This is extremely detrimental to our dungeon conquest, so we must actively communicate with the people.”
Ito Hidekazu suddenly realized, feeling as if he had a profound epiphany.
“Yes, Emperor-sama!”
He dared not delay any longer and immediately left the Imperial Garden to convey the news of the Emperor's upcoming speech to the people of Edo.
-------------------------------------
Three Earth Online hours later.
The Emperor, clad in armor, stood on the highest pavilion within the Imperial Garden.
And on the street directly below the pavilion, the Edo Island populace stood densely packed.
At this moment, these people looked at the Emperor with a hint of adoration.
The Emperor took a deep breath, then waved his sleeve and looked at the people before him.
He spoke loudly:
“By the grace of Heaven!”
“The Emperor of the Great Japanese Empire, inheriting an unbroken imperial line for ages, proclaims to you, loyal and valiant subjects.”
The Emperor first tried speaking two phrases in the ancient language of Edo Island, which he had just seen in the Imperial Garden's study, somewhat learning on the fly.
This was to bridge the gap with the NPCs of this world.
As soon as these two phrases were spoken, the people of Edo Island knelt down in unison, appearing even more devout than before.
“Greetings, Emperor-sama!”
“Greetings, Emperor-sama!”