"A prophetic dream?! How the hell could we believe something like that?!"
Just as I expected, Cyclone shouted with a furious grimace.
"But it's the truth. If things continue like this, every last one of us will be slaughtered."
Despite my plea, another voice piped up.
"It's not that I doubt Mr. Gil or Mr. Kiji, but even I'm against blindly abandoning this city to evacuate purely on the basis of a dream."
Even the young lizardman, who usually took my side, strongly objected.
"That's right. Even if we run, the sheer cliffs will block our path, leaving us trapped in a hopeless corner. If that's the case, our chances of survival would be far higher if we make full use of this city's defenses to fight back."
"It's useless. This city's defense system can't stop the advance of the Demon King Army."
In the dream, we had sprung into action the moment the lookouts spotted their attack. Even then, we couldn't even assemble to formulate a plan before they wiped us out. If they reach this city, it's game over. That is the reality we must accept.
"That's why I'm telling you, I can't believe the dream in the first place!"
Cyclone surged to his feet in a fury. Spurred by his outburst, protests erupted one after another from the assembled monsters. Well, had I been in their shoes, I wouldn't have believed it either; it was only natural for them to react this way.
Orgo, who had kept silent with his arms crossed until now, opened his eyes.
"When are they coming?"
He posed the unexpected question.
"Orgo! Do you actually believe such an absurd story?!"
To Cyclone's completely understandable question, Orgo replied without missing a beat.
"Well, yeah. I heard it from Kiji and Chato, so it must be the truth."
"It's a prophetic dream! I've never even heard of such an ability!"
"That's hardly surprising. Gil is from the human race, after all. He possesses abilities we know nothing about. More than anything, we've already witnessed plenty of Gil's unbelievable powers up until now. And we were already told beforehand that foresight was among them. If anything, I don't understand why the rest of you doubt him."
"But if it's false, we'll be placing ourselves at a severe disadvantage!"
"If that prophetic dream is real, we'll be annihilated. Just as Gil said, without a single one of us left alive. In short, we have to make a choice."
Orgo paused, his gaze sweeping over the monsters in the room.
"Orgo, stop beating around the bush. What choice are you talking about?"
Crocodus, who had remained quiet until now, asked in an uncharacteristically calm voice.
"Whether we believe Gil and carry out the evacuation, or doubt Gil and remain in this city."
A heavy silence fell over the room.
"That's... true. I'll put my trust in Mr. Gil. The one who built this city up to what it is and united all of us monsters is Mr. Gil. If Mr. Gil says we shouldn't stay here, then we ought to believe him."
"That's right. If both options carry risks, I'd rather choose to trust Gil."
Voices declaring their faith in me rose from the gathered monsters.
To be honest, I never dreamed they would accept my words so readily. Perhaps that was why I felt a sudden warmth welling behind my eyes.
"I'm sure you all realize this already, but this evacuation is merely a way to buy time. After all, if they catch up to us, we lose. And our retreat is blocked by the sheer cliffs."
I pressed forward with the discussion.
"Gil, how do you propose we handle this dire situation?"
"While evacuating, we search for two specific individuals and ask for their help."
"Is Lord Lou one of them?" Cyclone asked to confirm.
"At the very least, Mr. Lou is stronger than I am. So finding him is essential. But that alone won't be enough."
I gave an immediate, firm nod.
"You mean the being who appeared at the very end of the dream you mentioned earlier, right?"
"Yeah. In that dream, he slaughtered Aldebaran and the others as easily as crushing bugs underfoot. If we can secure his cooperation, everything can be resolved."
Our true enemies were the entities standing behind Aldebaran. To guarantee our victory, the help of that supreme powerhouse was indispensable.
To clear this monumental hurdle, three conditions had to be met.
First, whether we could track him down. Second, assuming we found him, whether we could persuade him. Third, ensuring every monster in the New City of Ket Nya stayed safe until we located him.
Of course, securing Mr. Lou's cooperation alongside his would bring us that much closer to victory. Only then could we escape this living hell.
"Is this so-called ultimate power a monster, a human, one of the demon race, or... a god? What's your take on him?"
"Judging strictly by strength, the closest description would be... a god, I suppose. But I'm fairly certain that's not right, either."
If he were a true god, he wouldn't wear such a sorrowful expression over the death of a mere human like me. Full of emotion, arrogant and audacious, yet deeply compassionate. If absolute perfection defined a deity, then that very imperfection made him something else entirely—
"Relyin' on someone else once in a while ain't the end of the world. I'm all for Gil's plan!"
An ape-headed monster slapped both palms against his thighs and stood up with gusto.
"I was on board from the start!"
Chato leaped up as well, and one by one, the others rose to their feet and shouted their agreement.
"All right, then we'll split into a search party to find our allies and a team to oversee the monsters' evacuation immediately. Everyone, move out as swiftly as possible!"
"Yeah!"
With a collective roar, our operation was underway.