Shortly thereafter, an emergency meeting was held in the large conference room of the Hollow Bottom Fortress.

　On the far side of the table arranged in a rectangle, Felix and the commander class of both Silverwing and Golden Fang Knights, including Felix, were on the far side of the table.

　To the left were several knights of the Silverwing Knights, and to the right were several knights of the Golden Fang Knights.

　And on the front side of the room are the non-knights - the town's mayor, guild house administrator Malcolm, and A-ranked adventurer Travis, with me in attendance as one of them.

　Furthermore, the residents who couldn't sit at the table behind us were sitting on additional chairs provided to watch the outcome of the meeting.

　Incidentally, Garnett was in the back chair-only area, but he still kept the closest spot to me.

''I don't think the people of Green Hollow know anything about the Demon King's Castle and its army. Therefore, I will first give you a brief explanation.

　Felix, the moderator, begins to explain to the residents before exchanging ideas.

　-- A group of dark elves led by the Demon King Gandalf is more like an army than a nation.

　The underground city where the dwarves lived has been taken over by an army of dark elves from a deeper level, and is now under their control.

　In short, they are a garrison of the occupied territory.

　Therefore, there are no 'dark elf civilians' in the Demon King's Castle, they are all considered to be soldiers or non-combatants serving the Demon King's army.

'The main forces of the Demon King's army are the dark elf soldiers and golems. Although dwarves were used as a slave labor force, they were rarely used as soldiers.

　Felix instructed his soldiers to hold up a large map of the area around the Demon King's Castle on the wall behind them.

''At present, the Demon King's army is ready for a siege after defeating the dwarven city that stretches a little further away, and then withdrawing all of its forces inside the city walls.
'Excuse me!　What do demons do for a living?　I don't see any fields or anything on the map.

　One of the residents in the audience asked a simple question.

'That's a good question. It is said that the dwarves produced plants and mushrooms for food in their underground farms. Perhaps the dark elves also own food production facilities underneath the castle. It would be difficult to attack them with food.

　The dwarves' underground farm has been destroyed along with the town, Felix added.

　With their food supply cut off and the buildings taken away to keep them out of the cold nights, it was no wonder the dwarves were desperate.

It's time to get to the point. Give us your proposed plan of action for dealing with the group of dwarves seeking protection, and the problems with it.

　The Knight of the Golden Fang, appointed by Felix, stands up and announces his first proposal, papers in hand.

'The simplest option is to defeat them as a hostile race. The dwarves have a record of betraying the brave Falcon and failing to defeat the Demon King. There is a lot of uncertainty about making a pact.

　In the first place, the brave Falcon was sent to defeat the Demon King Gandalf when the dwarves, who were controlled by the Demon King, sent a request for help.

　However, the plan was detected by the Demon King, and the dwarf representatives, in order to protect themselves, returned their palms and acted to present the Falcon to the Demon King.

''What are the supposed problems with that plan?''
"It's a lot of work to take down and dispose of the bodies. The disposal of corpses is especially problematic. It would be unbearable if it became the source of an unknown plague or a feeding ground for dragons.

　In some dungeons - such as "Sundial Forest" and "Thousand Year Corridor of the Abyss" - plants and mosses can decompose corpses at high speed and turn them into nutrients.

　However, the 'Demon King's Castle Realm' is remarkably green and such effects are unlikely.

　Another Golden Fang Knight stood up and presented a different plan to defeat them.

''Simply silencing the request for help is an option. However, if the dwarves don't give up, there will eventually be a battle, and even if they give up, there is a risk that it will lead to an increase in the Demon King's army's strength.''
What do you mean?
'Dwarves have no loyalty to the Demon King. But it is possible that after we refuse to rescue them, they can live on ...... in exchange for becoming loyal soldiers of the Demon King's army.

　I see, so that's a possibility.

　Dare to drive the dwarves who are not completely submissive out into the wilderness, make them experience the despair of hanging on to the humanity side but being rejected, and then break their hearts and give in - considering the viciousness of the Demon King's army, it's impossible to deny it.

''Of course this is hypothetical. Unless the Demon King's army's food production capacity is ample, they wouldn't bother to pick up the dwarves.''
Thank you. Next time.

　Felix shifted his gaze to the opposite side of the table, this time urging the Knight of the Silverwing Order to speak up.

'If you accept the request and give them protection and support, we can avoid the risks mentioned so far.

　And, of course, the risks of protecting the dwarves present themselves.

''But of course it would consume a large amount of supplies, and there's a risk of agents being mixed in with the dwarves. Also, to be honest, support for the dwarves would be difficult to gain the understanding of the nobles and other knights.
...... "...... I still don't see how the betrayal of the brave Falcon can be defended. There doesn't seem to be any disagreement that total trust is hard to come by.

　Funds and supplies don't spring up infinitely out of nowhere.

　The amount of funds and supplies that would have been originally available to the Knights would be lost for the amount of money they spent on the dwarves.

　If you want to add to the amount of the increased consumption, you need to persuade the other party to provide it, but this is where the dwarves' 'criminal record' comes into question.

　If you ask someone else to send you supplies because such people asked for help, you can't help but get an immediate "screw you" from them.

　So far, no sympathetic opinions about the dwarves have been expressed, and this may have had an impact on the situation.

　Even the opinion to accept the request for help is only a passive one, because leaving it alone and cleaning it up would be troublesome in its own way.

'Lord Mayor. Is there any request from the Green Hollow Town side?

　The old man, the mayor of the town, stood up, flustered when Felix suddenly spoke to him.

'I don't know about technicalities, but ...... but I'd like you to stop bringing the demons to earth. If it is absolutely necessary, I can help you with supplies and personnel. But we can't accept demons.

　One by one, the residents behind them also voiced their approval.

　Demons basically live only inside dungeons, and almost all of the ordinary people who don't hide in dungeons end their lives without ever coming face-to-face with demons.

　Fear, anxiety and disgust is a perfectly natural reaction.

''It's unavoidable. But even if you have to pass through Green Hollow, for example, in order to keep a few hostages in King's Landing, would you still allow it?
Then I thought you'd have no problem with .......
Thank you. Now let's move on to .......

　At that moment, the Golden Fang commander quickly raised his hand.

''Sir Felix. For one thing, I'd like to get an opinion from Lord Luke of the White Wolf Forest as well, if that's alright with you?