Ch.203203. Infection War (1)

Age of Darkness.

In this era where evil gods had completely seized control of the world, local conflicts were breaking out almost hourly somewhere along border regions.

For example, the Pleasure Cult, which had moved its headquarters from the west to the Far East, occupied the Yamato Archipelago—the easternmost region of the Far East—and regularly invaded, plundering the peninsula inhabited by the nearby Beastman Alliance.

For instance, the Forces of Conspiracy, which had conquered the southeastern archipelago region, had plunged the islands into endless civil wars by sowing division among them.

Meanwhile, the Ravens of Panima—”Despair”—who occupied the central Imperial territories, roamed in all directions, enthusiastically enjoying their warlord lifestyle of plunder and exploitation.

These evil gods acted on their whims without any thought for the future. Some strategic border points changed hands several times in a single day during the worst periods.

However, even as they deployed their elite forces and fought fiercely against each other, there were two territories these evil gods generally refrained from touching: the domain of “Vengeance” and the realm ruled by the evil god of “Plague.”

First, regarding Marduk, the evil god of “Vengeance” considered the most powerful among them. His overwhelming military might combined with excessive retribution made any attack against his followers something any sane being would avoid.

Of course, there were still many who didn’t care about such concerns, keeping the border regions chaotic, but the followers of the god of vengeance would stop at nothing for revenge, true to their name.

For example, when followers of a minor evil god killed three people from the Dawn Empire, a legion of 3,000 Avengers swarmed their territory, ransacked the entire region, and only returned after killing everyone involved, including the cult leader.

Furthermore, if someone killed even one civilian from the Dawn Empire, an entire city would be razed to the ground. Ultimately, others became too disgusted to even contemplate touching their territory.

Similarly, the realm of “Plague” also deterred invasions at the psychological level.

The secret was, naturally, the diseases swarming throughout the Plague’s domain. These diseases—epidemics—served as natural barriers preventing invaders from approaching.

Beyond simply becoming infected with plague, falling gravely ill, and dying, the territory of “Plague” was so formidable that no ordinary military force would dare invade.

Wild animals and plants were naturally infected with various diseases.

The soil where these creatures lived and the water flowing through it were no exception.

Water so polluted that it would make radioactive waste seem tame by comparison supplied moisture to the entire ecosystem of the region.

Cholera, a representative waterborne disease, was considered child’s play compared to the countless disgusting and filthy diseases lurking in the water.

All living beings in this place were fundamentally infected with the zombie-plague.

This plague, true to its name, transformed the infected host’s body into something zombie-like, leaving them alive but gradually rotting.

It also numbed their minds, making them easier for the plague-spreaders to control, and as a finishing touch, bestowed a semi-forced blessing of extremely enhanced regenerative abilities.

Thus were born plague-zombies, aptly described as living corpses that regenerated faster than they could be damaged by half-hearted attacks.

Ah, of course, this zombie-plague that had spread through nature weakened in its symptoms over time, so the overall condition was milder compared to the original zombie-plague….

However, since they were infected with other plagues as well, their appearance was no less horrifying than typical plague-zombies.

Plants infected with metal-corroding plagues that rusted on the outside, or sparrows whose intestines had mutated into legs allowing them to walk around were among the milder cases.

In such an environment, invaders would be attacked by mutated wildlife and, beyond that, could experience the mystical phenomenon of the environment itself rejecting them.

Additionally, to avoid plague infection, supplies would need to be brought from outside, but all food would rot or become contaminated within days or even hours.

Naturally, food procurement within the “Plague” domain was virtually impossible, and the same applied to drinking water.

With the environment itself effectively implementing guerrilla and scorched earth tactics, invaders would either starve to death within days or become slaves to the plague.

Particularly, some plagues allowed the Plague God to exert influence just through infection, naturally enabling the plague domain to avoid invasion and accumulate power.

And the power that Plague began to amass was beyond imagination.

The fertile western continent, though infected with plague, retained its inherent abundance, ensuring a constant supply of food, albeit plague-contaminated.

While outsiders not infected with the plague would die from eating these plague-crops, the natives already pickled in plague could consume them without issue.

…Though the taste was too horrific to imagine.

Anyway, setting quality aside, the endless supply of food that wouldn’t kill you upon consumption, combined with the food situation of this era, meant population growth.

Especially for the Rat Beastmen who worshipped the god of plague, sufficient food supply meant a population explosion.

Thus, the population in the plague domain began to increase like the Chinese.

The (former) Imperial west, which already had an enormous population, saw an explosion in numbers—meaning the Plague’s military forces were growing.

With countless potential plague-zombies plus a steady supply of plague soldiers, the large population meant an even greater number of intermediate and higher-level talents.

With at least 6 million humans alone, and a total population of at least 20 million.

In this ancient era where population was already low and further reduced by the evil gods’ interference, the number 20 million itself was an act of violence.

Moreover, since all 20 million were potential plague-zombies infected with the plague, it was essentially equivalent to having 20 million troops.

Thus, Marus Area, the evil god of plague, began preparing for an expedition.

He conscripted useless middle-aged and elderly people as plague-zombies and mass-produced military supplies in living plague-forges mutated by the evil god’s power.

He also successfully created plague minions from native creatures of this world, raising giant plague-mosquitoes and training mosquito cavalry to ride them.

Additionally, he produced numerous high-class military units from among the rat beastmen, focusing particularly on increasing the number of plague soldiers.

After all, sending mediocre troops against the Avenger Legion, renowned as the finest soldiers of this era, would only result in their helpless dissolution.

But such turmoil in the plague realm could not go unnoticed.

Naturally, neighboring countries realized that the plague realm was preparing for an invasion war and began their own preparations to face the plague’s military forces.

The nomadic tribes of the northwest—essentially Viking-like raiders—received a stern warning from the great tribal chief Bjorn Wolfson.

By his grace, they either evacuated with their livestock to the safer southern regions or fled to the City of Red Revolution in the endlessly barren lands of the far north.

The Raven Raiders led by Panima, the evil god of despair in the central continent, utilized their mountainous terrain to form natural barriers against invasion.

These raiders built towers called “raven nests” throughout the region, taking advantage of their flight capabilities to move freely between them.

The change in behavior from these typically vicious raiders was so dramatic that even the suffering populace momentarily came to regard them as trustworthy.

And the preparations made by the god of vengeance overshadowed them all.

Concerned about plague potentially entering the Dawn Empire, he consumed considerable faith to create an entire mountain range along the border.

This mountain range was difficult to invade from outside but easy to ascend from within, making it an ideal natural border and fortress.

Additionally, these mountains were suitable for growing grain fruits and meat fruits, with abundant water sources at the peaks, making self-sufficiency possible.

The Great Wall built along this mountain range at the Dawn Empire’s border was an insane barrier that made one wonder how it could ever be breached.

The foundation was composed of extremely sturdy granite, and during the wall’s construction, numerous dwarf master builders were hired at great expense.

They even purchased their techniques for enormous sums of gold and established contracts for additional payments based on performance.

The dwarves, who loved money and precious metals almost as much as dragons, maintained uncharacteristically gentle attitudes and worked with smiles on their faces.

The special beer with hops, recently developed by the Dawn Empire and supplied in unlimited quantities, was another factor boosting the craftsmen’s work enthusiasm.

Thus, as each prepared in their own way…

《March forth!》

Finally, following the directive of Marus Area, the evil god of plague, the plague’s military forces began to advance.

The War of Infection had begun.