The orc lancer cavalry and orc archer cavalry charged all at once.

“Go! Don’t retreat even a step!”

Joachim Murat urged them on as he led the charge from the front.

Arrows fired by archers rained down, but he advanced while deflecting them with his sword.

The orc archer cavalry also attacked the knights from behind with their bows.

“Kill them!”

“I’ll take down two—no, three of them!”

“I’ll make sure to earn merit!”

The knights, too, rushed in like fire, disregarding their lives.

Both sides became entangled and began to fight.

Amidst them, Joachim Murat's performance stood out as he rampaged, swinging his sword.

Shu-kak!

Joachim Murat stylishly stabbed his sword into a knight’s neck.

He slipped close to the knights who held long lances and swung his sword. Intertwined with the knights, he made it difficult for the archers in the back to target him with arrows.

Thanks to his efforts, knights fell one by one, and the orc forces seemed to be pushing through the human defensive line.

But then, a knight who couldn’t take it anymore rushed at Joachim Murat.

Kaang!

Joachim Murat deflected the lance that thrust toward him.

‘Hmm?’

He flinched at the heavy force behind the lance.

However, the basic strength of orcs surpasses that of humans. Moreover, the orc lancer cavalryman Ectus whom he had chosen as his Apostle was particularly strong.

Joachim Murat easily parried the attack and closed in to counterattack.

Kaang! Kang!

But the knight was also capable of blocking his swordsmanship.

He looked like a typical European and wielded his lance with finesse.

“Not bad!”

The knight didn’t respond. He just stared at him with a chilling gaze.

Several exchanges followed.

Joachim Murat began to feel perplexed as a single knight continued to block his attacks.

Though Murat was pressing him hard, the knight held him off with precise defense, tying him down.

“What’s your name?”

“I’m not someone to be spoken to so casually.”

“What?”

The knight said no more.

The clash continued.

With Joachim Murat tied up by a single knight, his momentum faltered, and the orc offensive began to stall as well.

The catapults continued to fire rocks, preventing the orcs from maintaining their formation.

The archers, upgraded from the forge’s weapon enhancements, had evolved into crossbowmen and were now firing even more threatening bolts.

Newly summoned orc lancer cavalry kept arriving from the orc camp, but the central canyon defense wouldn’t break easily.

And then, the balance of battle collapsed in an instant.

[You have been attacked by the enemy!]

“What?!”

Joachim Murat was shocked by the sudden notification.

The state of the base was transmitted into his mind.

The catapults, once scattered across the battlefield, had now converged toward Joachim Murat’s base.

Rocks flew in from all directions, pounding the base. They destroyed buildings and killed working orc slaves.

A freshly summoned orc lancer cavalryman was struck squarely by a rock, his neck breaking instantly as he died.

“Damn it, retreat!”

He could’ve succumbed to despair and fought a final hopeless battle.

But Joachim Murat had strong mental fortitude. He didn’t give up until the end.

‘First, I need to eliminate the catapults bombarding the base.’

Joachim Murat swiftly led his cavalry to sweep away the catapults.

In the meantime, Lee Shin finally gave the order to advance.

The knights, crossbowmen, four mages, and catapults all moved forward simultaneously.

It was a tremendous force.

Seeing the enemy come out of the canyon, Joachim Murat initially thought it would be manageable.

But then he was struck speechless.

‘That many?!’

He was stunned by the overwhelming numbers.

The difference in magic stone collection had finally shown itself in the form of an extreme disparity in troop numbers.

Lee Shin had hidden such a force all along, buying time until everything was perfectly in place.

At his opponent’s cunning, Joachim Murat couldn’t help but laugh.

“Ha ha, I’ve lost completely!”

Having been defeated without being able to do anything, he had no choice but to acknowledge the loss. He had to show respect for the perfect skill of his opponent.

But he had no intention of just conceding.

Joachim Murat charged in to go out in a blaze of glory. His cavalry burned up like moths to a flame. Only Joachim Murat continued to dash here and there, fighting wildly.

Meanwhile...

‘So that’s how it was.’

Lee Shin made an incredible discovery.

There was a single knight who had managed to hold off the fearsome Joachim Murat.

Though he had been pushed back, he never allowed a critical hit and stubbornly held his ground.

The strongest man in Europe.

Considering the strength of Joachim Murat—comparable to Lu Bu from Romance of the Three Kingdoms—this was a remarkable feat.

Watching this, Lee Shin realized the limits of a mighty general. It wasn’t just about lacking strategic and tactical prowess.

‘Among those summoned from Hell, there are also brave warriors!’

That’s right.

There’s no need for the Contractor to be good at fighting.

One just needs to appoint someone who fights as well as Joachim Murat as their Apostle!

If he had an Apostle who could match the enemy in combat, then it all came down to who could devise the more meticulous strategy.

‘First, I need to find out that guy’s name.’

Lee Shin summoned the knight separately.

With no more worthy opponent, Joachim Murat rampaged like a madman, but since the battle was already won, he let him do as he pleased.

“You called for me.”

The knight appeared before Lee Shin and respectfully saluted.

“What’s your name?”

“…Gilles de Rais.”

“Gilles de Rais, huh. Never heard of it.”

Lee Shin replied casually.

But then the man who introduced himself as Gilles de Rais spoke.

“If you appoint me as an Apostle, I will prove to be worth far more than 300 mana.”

“You seem to know yourself well?”

When he realized the man even knew that appointing an Apostle cost 300 mana, Lee Shin showed a surprised expression.

The knight Gilles de Rais spoke bitterly.

“I was once a Contractor.”

“What?!”

Lee Shin was startled.

“I was a Contractor of the Demon Lord Eligor, but due to repeated defeats, I was released from the contract. Turns out, my rightful place was Hell.”

“If you were a former Contractor, you must have fought many duels for rank.”

“I’ve fought against a dozen or so high-ranking Demon Lords. I’ll be of great help.”

Lee Shin thought for a moment, but in truth, there was no need to hesitate.

Just the sheer combat power that stood against Joachim Murat was enough to appoint him as an Apostle.

But the fact that he had once been a Contractor made him all the more useful in many ways.

“Very well.”

“Thank you! You won’t regret this!”

Gilles de Rais’s face lit up.

[Contractor Joachim Murat of Demon Lord Belial has declared defeat. Demon Lord Gremory is victorious.] [Demon Lord Gremory has acquired 20,000 mana.] [With a total mana of 119,000, Demon Lord Gremory is now ranked 70th.] [With a total mana of 90,000, Demon Lord Belial is now ranked 71st.]

“Graaaah!”

Belial raged like the wheels of the blazing chariot he rode.

Joachim Murat just scratched his head awkwardly.

Still, unlike Casanova, he didn’t look particularly concerned about his punishment. He had merely made a bad bet—his win rate as a Contractor was still high.

Belial, after venting his rage for a while, glared fiercely at Lee Shin.

“I am Demon Lord Belial. I shall give you a gift or a rank—”

“Mana.”

“……!”

When Lee Shin cut him off, Belial was left speechless.

His terrifying gaze soon bore down on Lee Shin, but Gremory held his hand protectively, so he didn’t feel afraid.

“You damned brat. One day, you’ll taste bitter defeat.”

[You have gained 900 mana.]

“I appoint Gilles de Rais as an Apostle.”

Lee Shin declared.

[Do you wish to appoint Gilles de Rais as an Apostle? 300 mana will be consumed.]

“I will.”

[Gilles de Rais has been appointed as an Apostle. You can say ‘Apostle List’ to view more details.]

And so, another Apostle was added. Unexpectedly, Joachim Murat reacted in surprise upon hearing the name.

“Gilles de Rais? Hey, did you just say Gilles de Rais?”

“Yeah? Do you know him?”

“No Frenchman wouldn’t know Gilles de Rais! Wahaha, so he ended up in Hell too! Then that knight who blocked my attacks earlier was him, huh? Hahaha!”

“What kind of person was he?”

“He’s the one who led France to victory in the Hundred Years’ War. Together with the famous Jeanne d’Arc.”

‘He’s a much bigger figure than I thought.’

A man who saved his country alongside the saint Jeanne d’Arc.

Well, someone of that caliber would indeed have been chosen as a Contractor of a Demon Lord.

Then, with a sly grin, Joachim Murat continued speaking.

“And he was a devil who kidnapped, raped, and murdered countless young boys.”

“…….”

“You’ve got yourself a fine Apostle, haha!”

With that, Joachim Murat disappeared alongside Belial.

Lee Shin remained to continue managing his Apostles.

[Christopher Columbus (Human, Slave) Weapon: None Armor: Leather boots (Movement Speed +5%) Abilities: None]

[Gilles de Rais (Human, Knight) Weapon: None Armor: None Abilities: None]

And so, Gilles de Rais was incorporated as an Apostle of Lee Shin.

‘Good thing I didn’t make that Robin Hood impostor my Apostle.’

Compared to a prominent former Contractor like Gilles de Rais, the bandit leader who pretended to be Robin Hood wasn’t even worth considering.

Of course, according to Joachim Murat, he committed some heinous acts, but Lee Shin judged based on ability and didn’t care about such things.

‘It’s Hell anyway. They’re all villains here.’

Anyway, he now had 660 mana remaining.

Lee Shin considered giving Gilles de Rais a weapon or armor, but shook his head.

‘Better save it. A more capable person might appear later.’

For now, he finished managing the Apostles.

“Is it done now?”

Gremory, who had been waiting, asked. Lee Shin nodded.

“Yes.”

“Sounds like you got a good Apostle?”

“The guy’s name is Gilles de Rais. Apparently, he was once a Contractor.”

“Oh my, that’s great. Gilles de Rais, huh? I’ve definitely heard that name before.”

“He said he was once a Contractor of Eligor.”

“Oh dear, if he was Eligor’s Contractor, he must’ve fought among the top ranks. He must’ve been quite skilled, but just unlucky. The upper ranks are all on a whole different level.”

She clapped her hands and continued.

“Anyway, the fact that he’s a former Contractor is perfect. He’ll be great practice for Kaiser.”

“……Is that possible?”

“Of course it is.”

Lee Shin couldn’t hide his amazement at this new revelation.

Up until now, Gremory had been sparring with him, but her skill level was too low for it to be real preparation.

Now that he had a new training partner, he could better prepare for his next ranked battle.

‘If I gather more talented people like him, I can use them as my strategists when planning operations.’

And if he built up such a team of advisors, even when he achieved 10 wins and requested to be released from the contract, Gremory wouldn’t be able to find a suitable replacement for him easily.

Currently, Lee Shin’s ranked battle record stood at 3 wins and 1 loss.