Sword Art Online Volume 16 – Alicization Exploding Chapter 18 – War of the Underworld 35 * * * In the end, the chiefs of the plains goblins and of the giants underestimated the existences known as integrity knights. However, the chief of the mountain goblins, Kosogi, who led the invading army’s vanguards’ right flank was different. He had paid a high price to study the tremendous military might the integrity knights possessed not long ago. The excavation of the buried cave at the northern end of the mountain range at the edge and the invasion of Rulid Village, by that large force of goblins and orcs, were planned by Kosogi. Though he stayed put at Obsidia Palace himself, he had granted troops to three of his brothers whom he shared blood with, instigated those of the orc race, and carried out the invasion strategy. However, it ended as a tragedy. The few soldiers who barely escaped alive unanimously cried out unbelievable stories in front of Kosogi who was astonished over the information that the force was utterly annihilated, his brothers killed in battle. According to them, the joint invasion force of over two hundred goblins and orcs were made to flee by a single human knight and a flying dragon. However hard he found that to believe, Kosogi was no fool to abandon for nothing a lesson learnt at the cost of many sacrifices. He decided to never again commit the foolishness of challenging the integrity knights of the Human Empire to a frontal assault. However, in this particular major invasion, the role ordered of the mountain goblins by Emperor Vector was precisely that. The dark arts users’ chief, Dee Ai El must be well aware of those dreadful integrity knights. That would be exactly why she offered this strategy up to the emperor.