Kōichi did not climb back onto the round table. Instead, he walked straight to Luna-san's counter, pulled a parchment from his coat that had clearly been prepared at some point and stamped with the Adventurers Guild's official seal, and slapped it hard onto the desk.
"Luna-san, I've already confirmed this with the former General of the Demon King's Army, Wiz. The Destroyer's shield is not invincible. Now, in my capacity as Axel's temporary defense commander, I am issuing the first mobilization order."
Kōichi swept his gaze over the adventurers, whose faces showed doubt, fear, and even greed.
"First! All adventurers who choose to stay and take part in the defense will split every last Eris earned from exchanging the Destroyer's wreckage after the battle! According to Vanir's estimate, that comes to at least two billion Eris!"
The moment the number two billion came out, the entire hall drew in a sharp breath. Even Dust's expression froze for a second.
"Second!" Kōichi's tone shifted, turning cold and merciless. "Any coward who chooses to run now will immediately have their adventurer license revoked by the Adventurers Guild, and all property and savings they own in Axel will be confiscated as wartime supplies! Not only that, I'll have Aqua place a curse of bad luck on every escape route, guaranteeing that you'll run into trouble far worse than the Destroyer on your way out!"
"Huh?! Since when did I learn how to do tha…"
Aqua had just started to ruin the act when Kazuma, quick on the uptake, stuffed a piece of beef jerky he had just swiped from Wiz's shop into her mouth. She instantly let out a satisfied whimper.
"K-Kōichi! This is robbery!"
Dust's face flushed red with anger.
"Call it whatever you want, Dust. Since you think the Destroyer is unbeatable, stay and watch how I lead this pack of lunatics willing to bet everything and tear down that mountain of gold." Kōichi snapped his head toward the adventurers still hesitating. "Rather than starving to death on the road, follow me here and make a fortune! Anyone who wants money, go register with Luna-san! Anyone who wants to save their life, get out that door right now. But don't say I didn't warn you. Out there, there won't be a Kōichi to clean up your mess!"
Kōichi's almost deranged confidence and the blatant temptation of profit instantly set these gambler-like adventurers ablaze.
"Damn it! Two billion! Even my share would be enough to buy a mansion! I'm in!"
"Kōichi-san, count me in! It's just a lump of iron, right? I'm a professional when it comes to demolition!"
As the crowd began surging wildly toward the counter, the corner of Kōichi's mouth lifted slightly.
The mobilization was done, but this was only the beginning.
To turn this rabble into parts capable of coordinating with Aqua and Megumin, they still needed a shield that would make everyone feel absolutely safe.
"Kazuma, let's go. Time to invite our masochist knight out of seclusion. If she hears that she'll be facing a giant monster that can trample her over and over again, maybe even shake the armor right off her body, I guarantee she'll come crawling."
In one corner of the Adventurers Guild hall, Dust was sneaking toward the back door with a large pack on his back, leading several other adventurers who looked just as panicked.
Clearly, that grand promise of "two billion" had been tempting, but faced with the threat of death, these slippery veterans still chose to save their own skins.
"Hey, Dust. Where are you headed on this expedition?"
Kōichi's ghostly voice sounded behind Dust, frightening him so badly that he nearly jumped on the spot.
Kōichi and Satou Kazuma stood side by side, both wearing identical, uncanny smiles filled with the aura of kindred spirits.
"K-Kōichi! Kazuma too! Don't even think about stopping me!" Dust clutched his pack tightly and shouted in a lowered voice. "What good is money if I'm dead? I've made up my mind. I'm going to start over in the next city! The cabbages there might not be as sweet as Axel's, but at least they don't have walking steel monsters!"
Kōichi and Kazuma exchanged a glance. Kazuma immediately understood and stepped forward, his scummy expression making it look like he had just found a long-lost partner in crime.
"Now, now, Dust. Going to the next city does sound nice, but aren't you forgetting something? The next city doesn't have that…"
Dust froze. "That? Which that?"
Kōichi stepped forward and affectionately slung an arm around Dust's shoulders, his tone carrying a pained, persuasive weight.
"You know, that place. The dreamlike shop run by kind succubus ladies, where all you have to do is fill out a form and you can enjoy heaven in your dreams, and the only payment is a tiny bit of life force. If the Destroyer flattens Axel, do you really think those poor, homeless succubi will still be able to keep providing us with such humanitarian care?"
Dust's body went rigid. The pack in his arms let out a crisp clinking sound.
Kazuma started piling on from the side, his tone outrageously persuasive. "Exactly! Think about it. Those painfully proper Adventurers Guilds in the next city would never tolerate an evil shop like that, would they? If you run and Axel is gone, you'll never get to fill out that wish list again for the rest of your life! No more cat-eared maids, no more gentle older ladies. Just the next city's crude muscleheads who only know how to make you haul bricks!"
"No… stop…"
Dust's breathing grew ragged, and his eyes filled with inner conflict.
Kōichi pressed the advantage, lowering his voice as he whispered into Dust's ear. "And I heard that, to thank the heroes who protect the town, the succubus shop has decided to launch a hero-exclusive package after the battle. Anyone who takes part in the defense will get double the dream experience that night, and there's even… a multiplayer free-for-all mode."
"M-Multiplayer free-for-all?!"
Dust and the adventurers behind him all let out warped cries at the same time.
"That's right." Kōichi nodded solemnly. "But only if the shop is still there. If it gets flattened, then all you'll be able to do is huddle with your pack in the slums of the next city and dream about the Destroyer's giant foot."
Silence.
Deathly silence.
Three seconds later, Dust hurled the pack from his back onto the floor and let out an earth-shaking roar.
"Bastards! Anyone who dares touch my succubus shop is dead! Who gives a crap about the Destroyer?! It's just a pile of walking scrap metal! You think I'm letting it cut off my nightly spiritual nourishment? Not a chance!"
"Ooooooh! Defend the succubus shop! Defend our dreams!"
The adventurers behind him also lit up as if they had been injected with adrenaline. Their once-defeated aura instantly turned more ferocious than a berserker's.
Kazuma gave Kōichi a thumbs-up and muttered, "Bro, when it comes to being underhanded, I, Satou Kazuma, acknowledge you as the strongest. Using that as the reason… Still, I absolutely can't let that shop disappear either!"
Kōichi calmly clapped his hands as he watched the men whose fighting spirit had been reignited for the sake of their dreams rush back to the counter to register again.
Now, morale had finally been unified in the most shameless, yet most unshakable way possible.