There's a saying called the "Cat Liquid Theory." It's a somewhat joking theory that cats can change their bodies to fit into any container they enter.
Cats are basically agile creatures. They only appear sluggish because their fur makes them look bulkier than their actual size. Most importantly, cats have so much cartilage in their bones that their flexibility is on a completely different level from other animals. This is why they can go anywhere as long as there's space for their head to squeeze through.
Of course, cats aren't actually liquid. They're just flexible enough to appear that way.
However, Diolan was different.
Puss in Boots is not an ordinary cat. It was one of the masterpieces created by the great witch Mother Goose from cat-related folklore.
That's exactly how it looked as it transformed into a giant sticky mass and clung to the escort ship's glass window.
"What the hell! What is that thing!"
"Get it off!"
The captain shouted, but the windshield wipers on the front glass weren't capable of shaking off such an opponent.
Diolan's smile, filling the glass window, deepened. A white mouth was drawn like a crescent moon beyond the pitch-black front window.
Crack. Crackle.
Cracks began to form in the reinforced glass. The jet-black fur moved like awls, boring into the reinforced glass.
"D-damn! Request support!"
A nearby escort ship aimed its gun barrel. What was fired wasn't bullets, but blazing flames being radiated.
While bullets could just pass through with a graze, a flamethrower that burns surface area is different. Diolan erased its smile and clicked its tongue. Its body bounced like a spring, breaking away from the glass window and ascending. Diolan stood on top of the escort airship. Below the gas bag's outer skin were gas chambers.
Riiiiip! Diolan's claws tore through the gas bag's outer skin. The outer skin, made quite thick and tough to prepare for external impacts, tore with pathetic ease.
Whoooosh!
High-pressure gas mixed with ether water gushed out. The airship's altitude dropped by one level. Just as Diolan was about to tear the gas bag even longer.
Bang!
A bullet flew toward Diolan. At first, it tried to just ignore it, but instinctively sensed that it shouldn't get hit. Diolan leaped up as if doing a tumble. Electric current crackled through the bullet that grazed past.
[It dodged this.]
Soldiers climbing up ladders came into view. They weren't just ordinary battleship crew members. They were special combat unit members that existed on each ship to deal with enemies that clung to escort ships.
[Everyone load special ammunition. Regular bullets don't work on that thing. Focus on area rather than point attacks. Use explosives primarily. We can't let it continue tearing the gas bag's outer skin.]
The commander wearing an oxygen mask gave instructions in one breath.
Diolan bristled all the fur on its body. Its vertically slit pupils contracted with tension. Special combat members could be seen climbing onto other escort ships as well.
"That's a shame. I was going to handle this alone and show off a bit."
The moment the soldiers couldn't understand what Diolan meant and looked puzzled. A massive fog engulfed the entire escort ship. It was fog that even special goggles couldn't penetrate.
[This isn't ordinary fog. The density is quite high. And there's even an energy reaction.]
[This is, ether water?]
The fog was like pure ether water sprayed very finely. To make this possible, there would need to be quite a large mechanical device. But how?
It was then that one person revealed themselves in the fog.
[Fire!]
They immediately pulled their triggers, but the special ammunition couldn't travel more than 1 meter before dropping with a thud. This was due to the resistance of the high-density fog made of ether water.
Mist, wearing a mask and pulling down a hood, extended her hand. Following her gesture, the fog moved and engulfed the soldiers.
The soldiers fighting Diolan were sniped down by ultra-precise magic stone bullets that flew from somewhere. Diolan immediately swung its claws and completely tore through one airship's gas bag.
"Ship 13! We're crashing! Emergency engine activation! Withdrawing from the operation zone!"
"Ship 14! Can't see anything because of the fog! Damn it, this isn't ordinary fog!"
"Ship 15 engine hit! Son of a bitch! How with just one bullet!"
Terrible commotion could be heard from everywhere. The supreme commander frowned. He didn't know where these guys suddenly appeared from, but their counterattack was quite fierce.
However,
"Continue the operation. First, don't delay the bombing toward the center. We must keep the most dangerous one tied down. And request support from the aerial combat unit."
Soon, with fierce propeller sounds, a flock of birds appeared cutting through the sky. From a distance, they resembled birds, but up close, they were nothing like that at all.
They were hang gliders made using cutting-edge mechanical engineering and ether water, commonly called [Steel Wings]. Engines made of complex gears and pistons, and massive amounts of steam gushing from small jet propulsion devices added acceleration.
Aerial unit members wearing goggles and masks scattered in all directions from everywhere, targeting Diolan.
Some even aimed at Loraine, who was sniping from the ground.
"What the hell!"
Loraine hastily retrieved her rifle and left her position. A grenade fell where she had been and exploded.
Even while fleeing, Loraine drew her pistol and fired. However, the Steel Wing combat members evaded the bullets through rapid maneuvering. For Loraine, it wasn't easy to hit guys moving like flies in the air while running.
"Over here! Come give me some support!"
"It's not easy here either."
Edgar, Diolan, and Mist were the same. Steel Wing unit members circling around them like sharks kept checking them continuously.
"Hey, you bastards! Won't you protect the sniper!"
"If the sniper's position got identified, that's their own fault."
If bombers were whales and escort ships were sharks, then Steel Wing combat members were piranhas. Their maximum speed could reach 120 km/h, and despite their mobility, their defensive capabilities were also outstanding. This was because they used magical protective equipment.
The commander looked proudly at the rapidly moving Steel Wing combat members.
"It wasn't a card I wanted to play here. But I suppose it's better to be certain."
Tirna's air force is excellent. Among them, the Steel Wing unit, which has outstanding skills, consists only of the best pilots.
Just them moving at high speed and using lightweight machine guns, explosives, and capsules was enough to change the tide of battle.
Using their power just to clean up Area 44, which was full of nothing but vagrants, was a matter of wounded pride. But since he had started, he intended to see it through to the end for certain.
The commander of Ship 1 looked down at Area 44, where flames were rising everywhere, and asked.
"How's the ground situation?"
"Resistance is still severe. There are reports that the gathered people are rapidly evacuating somewhere. Not to shelters, but to underground facilities and other passages we haven't managed to seal yet."
"Those rat bastards. Who knows how many heretics are mixed in among them. We need to clean this up for certain. Make sure to tell the soldiers who sealed off the area as well."
"Commander! There's contact from Area 45. The gang that occupied that area is showing unusual resistance. It seems they're conspiring with Area 44 to extract people!"
The commander's brow furrowed. Some criminals with no pedigree whatsoever were stepping up?
"Tell them to push through. No matter how long they've been operating in the area, they're ultimately just a rabble. They can't beat organized soldiers."
"Urgent reply! Blockade zone 11 has been breached! Field personnel have lost contact! It seems they broke through from outside!"
"Immediately organize follow-up personnel and send them. Don't spare any power. We can't be complacent. This is war!"
"Contact from blockade zone 17! A paladin from the Petra Papal Court is currently confronting soldiers!"
"From the Papal Court?"
The commander frowned. Shouldn't the Petra Papal Court naturally support this side, which was subjugating heretics?
Moreover, if a single paladin was confronting soldiers, it meant the opponent's skills were far from ordinary. Otherwise, such a support request wouldn't have come in.
"What should we do?"
"Their affairs should be left for them to handle themselves."
The commander said this and gave instructions to the soldier. The soldier who received the instructions soon contacted someone through the communicator.
Martinez stood in front, creating a golden barrier to protect the citizens. The soldiers didn't dare think of confronting Martinez. They knew they had to faithfully carry out orders, but they couldn't charge in knowing they would lose.
Then the soldiers all received the same communication and quickly began to retreat.
Martinez narrowed his eyes. The soldiers trying to blockade the area had retreated far too easily.
'They wouldn't give up this easily.'
Seeing the soldiers rapidly retreating beyond the barricade, Martinez raised his head.
Something was approaching rapidly.
-Boom! Boom!
Two beams of light fell in front of Martinez. Where the brilliant golden light had disappeared, two people got to their feet.
One was a woman holding a massive round shield in one hand and a spear in the other. Reddish-brown curly hair flowed down like a lion's mane from beyond a helmet reminiscent of a Valkyrie.
She was half a head taller than most adult men, with broad shoulders and considerable muscle. She was truly the image of a stalwart female warrior.
On the other hand, the other was a male who looked frail and pale just by looking at him. His eyes beyond silver-rimmed glasses were steeped in fatigue, and he seemed like he would easily sway with just a breeze.
However, his pitch-black pupils had something indescribable, and the faint smile he wore somehow caused discomfort in a way unbefitting a clergyman.
Martinez looked at the two and let out a small sigh.
"What business brings you to such a place, members of the 13 Holy Orders?"
One of the 13 Holy Orders, Irenea Belator. People called her the Brilliant Golden Female Warrior. She, who was in charge of combat, answered in a loud, booming voice.
"Purification Judge Martinez. Stop your actions immediately and withdraw! This place is an area tainted by wicked heretics. It must be purified!"
"That's correct."
Julian Laventium, one of the 13 Holy Orders, responded as if in agreement. People called him the Twilight Priest. Though he was a clergyman who rarely appeared in public, rumors were rife that there was no place his hand didn't reach in matters the religious order found difficult to handle.
"Martinez. You're doing this now because you're young and don't know anything. Area 44 is overrun with heretics, and this is the beginning of an irreversible disaster. So before problems arise, we must end this on our terms. Yes, purification is needed."
Julian said with a grin.
"If that's not the case, then you could help us and assist with the purification work. Isn't that what Martinez is best at?"
"Didn't he fail to burn a witch and get exiled here!"
Irenea shouted loudly. It wasn't meant to put Martinez down, but was just stating the facts as they were. It only sounded that way because her manner was too direct without beating around the bush.
"Hehe. Miss Irenea. At times like this especially, we must show greater mercy. Martinez is a lamb who has worked body and soul for the Papal Court. Just because he had one failure, isn't sending him to this place too harsh a measure?"
"I don't know about such things!"
"Yes. So we're giving him an opportunity. His talent is arguably the greatest in our Papal Court's history. So, we're giving him a chance to make up for it now. Don't you think so, Martinez?"
None other than two of the Papal Court's 13 Holy Orders had stepped forward. Martinez's mind raced quickly.
He was no longer blindly faithful and foolish like before. He knew well enough what the political affairs within the religious order were like.
The 13 Holy Orders members who had appeared were those who had joined hands with other archbishop factions that didn't listen to His Holiness the Pope. And their coming to Tirna hadn't been officially reported.
"Have you two joined hands with Tirna?"
At Martinez's words, Julian laughed lowly.
"Hehehe. Martinez. What are you saying? Tirna is a city of sin. We came here to purify this place."
"Enough nonsense. The reason you appeared here, and in front of me, is obvious."
Perhaps sensing something ominous in Martinez's voice, Irenea's expression contorted.
"Martinez! What are you trying to do now!"
"I'm doing what I must do."
-Clang!
A quarterstaff made of divine alchemy appeared in Martinez's right hand. A brilliant halo rose above his head, and golden armor wrapped around his body.
"Because this is right."
"Hah. This is why it's no use speaking nicely to young brats."
Julian sighed and opened his eyes sharply. Golden energy flowed over his body and began creating soldiers around him.
Irenea also struck down hard with the spear in her hand. Light dropped from the sky and settled into the spear and shield. Flutter! Wings made of golden feathers spread behind Irenea's back.
The opponents were a paladin and clergyman of the 13 Holy Orders. Each one was formidable, and now he had to face two simultaneously. But Martinez didn't back down.
"Come at me. If you want to face me, you two will have to combine your full strength."
It wasn't for simple provocation, but spoken in a calm tone as if simply stating facts.
"The current me is much stronger than both of you."