Dozens of magicians unleashed a combined magic of different elements at once, exuding an incredible force as they surged forward.
The swarm of flies charging toward the human side's defense line was almost instantly annihilated, and the magic, without losing any momentum, poured toward the King of Flies's true body.
Currently, the King of Flies had lost its magical defenses due to [Elemental Disassembly].
In such a situation, taking a direct hit from a combined magic of this scale would inevitably cause tremendous damage.
'This is going to work!'
Junior was confident. That gigantic monster would surely fall with a terrible scream...
However.
Peeeeeeeng!
The mythical creature responded.
Above the King of Flies's head, the two remaining halos began to spin furiously, and the outer halo started to shine brightly.
The King of Flies then stretched hundreds of legs in all directions and,
Crack-!
Clasped its front legs together as if in prayer.
Craaaash!
Immediately, a tremendous shockwave burst forth from the King of Flies.
The invisible shockwave collided directly with the magic unleashed by the human magicians.
And then,
Craaaaackle!
Clang...! Clank...!
The spells dissipated as if they were being disassembled.
The ferocious flames, the endless high tides, the landslides that seemed to overturn the world, the tornadoes that tore through the sky, and the lightning that was as dazzling as the first light of creation, all...
Dissipated into nothingness.
"...This is..."
Junior stuttered, his mouth agape at the phenomenon.
"This isn't just a simple Dispel, this is...!"
The shattered magical particles scattered into the atmosphere, shining brightly with hundreds of rainbows.
In the center of those rainbows, the King of Flies slowly stretched its hundreds of legs around, calmly hovering in mid-air.
Within the clear, prism-filtered light, the King of Flies appeared almost holy.
Yet, at the same time, it was incomparably blasphemous.
Sssssssss-
The halo above the King of Flies's head turned to dust and disappeared. Now, only one halo remained.
In the next moment, the King of Flies stretched all hundreds of its arms forward.
Booooooom-
Swwwwwwwwwwsh!
An enormous number of flies, incomparable to the previous swarm, emerged from the King of Flies's entire body.
Seeing the swarm rushing in, Junior intuitively knew.
They must retreat.
Otherwise, they die here.
"Everyone, retreat-! Retreat!"
A retreat drill had been practiced before. Junior shouted at the top of his lungs, leading the magicians to the teleport gate.
"Everyone, to Crossroad! Retreat-!"
Dingdingdingdingding-!
The retreat alarm sounded, and the magicians and soldiers hurriedly jumped into the teleport gate.
The area in front of the teleport gate was chaotic. Forces belatedly coming to support, forces screaming and trying to run away... everything was a mess.
Fortunately, everyone was well-trained. Since the defense operation was planned with a one-strike retreat in mind, the retreat was executed swiftly.
Soon, Crossroad was also aware of the retreat situation, and no more forces came out. The chaotic formation on this side gradually calmed down, and everyone was able to enter the gate in an orderly manner.
The problem was, the flies were still approaching.
Crack-!
The flies hit the temporarily erected barrier magic circle and protective artifacts.
The barrier and protective artifacts, focused on physical defense, were not items that could be broken by mere body slamming of the flies.
However, the number of flies was beyond normal. Far beyond.
Crack, crackle...!
As countless numbers of flies pressed and pushed, the barrier began to crack instantly...
Clang-!
And eventually broke.
The barrier magic set up in the base, though layered in dozens, was torn from the outside to the inside in an instant like paper.
People screamed and rushed into the teleport gate.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck! This is fucking scary!"
Desperately creating legs with dark magic to run to the teleport gate, Chain, a black mage bound in chains, cursed.
"If I ever again procrastinate on taking out the trash, let piles of fruit peels build up, or do anything that might help flies breed, may I break my arm! Fuck!"
Chain reached the front of the teleport gate and sighed in relief, then turned back.
He had just seen the terrifying sight of the last barrier being torn apart.
Swwwwwwwwwwsh!
Flies squeezing through the torn gap, pushing their legs forward like skeletons, invaded. It was a horrifying sight that could haunt dreams.
Chain quickly turned around to jump into the teleport gate.
And then,
"...?"
He caught sight of something.
Startled, Chain quickly looked back and saw Candler, crouched behind the fallen outer wall, shivering.
"Candler?!"
Chain shouted in alarm.
"What are you doing there, woman! Hurry up-!"
"..."
But Candler, as if she couldn't hear Chain, just shivered, huddled up.
Her fear of monsters, ingrained during the battle against the Gorgon sisters, had completely paralyzed her in front of this overwhelming swarm of fly legion.
"Damn!"
Chain gritted his teeth and dashed towards her.
Junior, checking the last of the personnel next to the teleport gate, was shocked.
"Chain?! What are you doing-"
"Candler's over there! We have to save her!"
Chain shot off, and Junior clenched his teeth and looked up to the sky. The insect monsters were swarming like boiling tar.
"This is really... not easy...!"
Junior's [Lord of Crimson] flashed with a bloody glow, unleashing the attack magic he had pre-cast in all directions.
Flash-!
A giant lightning bolt streaked across the sky, turning all encountered monsters to ashes.
While Junior bought time, Chain quickly reached Candler's side. Chain shouted.
"Candler! Snap out of it, you idiot! Do you want to die here?!"
"Ah, uh...?"
"Ah, forget it, just stay still!"
Chain then grabbed Candler by the scruff of her neck, lifted her, and sprinted towards the teleport gate.
Black magic uses stored life force as fuel.
Thanks to the explosive movement granted by his dark magic, Chain's face was rapidly aging from that of a young boy back to its original, elderly form. Even with all his strength poured into the effort, he couldn't make it in time.
Monsters fell like a waterfall as they were intercepted by Junior's magic.
Chain felt death looming right above him. The black mage muttered bitterly.
"Damn, my luck is really terrible today..."
Then, using a hand formed from dark magic, Chain threw Candler into the teleport gate with all his might.
Candler finally snapped back to reality.
Inside the gate, Candler and Chain's eyes met.
Chain cursed, his face now wrinkled with age.
"Get your act together, you-"
Boom!
In the next moment, Chain was swallowed by a countless swarm of flies without even a chance to scream.
Flash! Flash!
Junior, trying to cast spells to save Chain, realized she couldn't hold on any longer and attempted to throw himself into the teleport gate.
At that moment, a swarm of flies crushed the teleport gate with their bodies.
Crack!
The teleport gate was destroyed in an instant under their mass. Junior closed her eyes in despair as she saw the magical door closing hopelessly.
"This..."
That murmur was the last thing Junior left behind.
Thud!
Boom!
The teleport gate was completely destroyed.
On the other side, in Crossroad, Candler, thrown through the gate, picked herself up off the ground, trembling.
Clack, clatter...
A few rocks that had passed through with her rolled to her feet. Then, the magic stones that made up the gate crumbled down.
Junior and Chain hadn't made it out.
"..."
Candler was speechless, her mouth agape behind her hands.
Due to her foolishness,
What had just happened?
***
"..."
In my room at the lord's mansion.
I was silent, my hands on my forehead.
Just a moment ago, two magicians failed to return from the second line of defense battle.
Junior and Chain.
Two awakened magicians from the front lines.
Though not confirmed dead... in such circumstances, one must be ruthlessly realistic.
Missing In Action against monsters is as good as dead.
Candler, who had fallen behind during the construction of the defense line, was the reason the two magicians didn't make it back as they went to rescue her.
Candler, blaming herself, was taken to the temple after fainting from her cries.
Many heroes looked at her accusingly... but whose fault could this situation be?
With the enemy's advance at our doorstep, even civilians were drafted for construction out of desperation.
The monsters increased their pace and attacked by surprise.
It wasn't unusual for ordinary workers or retired mercenaries to be terrified in front of the King of Flies, whose mere presence could demoralize even the heroes on the field.
And so, the goodwill of Chain and Junior, who risked themselves to rescue a panicked old comrade, was not at fault.
Kellison, who sortied to add firepower to the front line hastily, and Kellibey, who took risks to save his fallen son...
None had ill intentions. They were all just fighting their best.
Yet, the situation was slipping into a quagmire.
'Reminds me of the Goblin God-King.'
Desperate to save each other, yet the situation worsened.
Though one might get used to the irony of the battlefield, it was always painful.
'How much did we lose today?'
I wrote down with trembling hands the lives and materials lost today.
'Kellibey, Kellison, 50 dwarf craftsmen and crew, two airships, and now Junior and Chain...'
Thinking of Junior made my head go numb.
She was among the finest of heroes, a great help as my magician. The numerous battles and adventures we had together flashed through my mind.
To lose her here, so meaninglessly...
"My lord."
Lucas entered my room and reported in a businesslike tone.
"The advance of the King of Flies has stopped."
"..."
"It's halted in the air above the fallen second defense line. As you know, it's a day's ride to Crossroad."
As I listened silently, head in hands, Lucas said calmly.
"My lord, don't blame yourself. It's not your fault."
"What are you talking about? It's all my fault."
"You ordered a strategy that allowed for a safe return after engagement. The airship fleet, the magicians, it was all feasible."
"..."
"You can't command every soldier on the field. Don't take responsibility for losses due to the mistakes of field commanders and soldiers."
"There are always variables on the battlefield."
I pressed my fingertips to my forehead.
"Even with those variables, it's my role to issue orders that ensure safe operation execution."
"..."
"For me to not know the strategy against a monster and for the operation to be shaken this much, I..."
"My lord."
Lucas looked straight at me with sharp eyes.
"The enemy was a monster that nearly brought the world to ruin. And the monsters we will face in the future are of the same caliber."
"..."
"There's no safe and perfect strategy against such powerful enemies. We must be prepared for losses."
I know that.
Now, and in the future.
This frontline will be a wall built upon death to stop the enemy. But.
The feeling as if I'm about to vomit blood, I can't help it...
"In a day, the King of Flies will reach the monster front. Our priority now is to find a way to beat it."
I nodded.
Yes, the end of the world is near.
Even this time of mourning for my fallen subordinates is a luxury.
"You're right, Lucas."
I took a deep breath and stood up. Then, I opened the drawer of the desk where I was sitting.
"There's no such thing as a safe and perfect operation. We just search for the option with the highest possibility... doing our best to find it."
Even though the operation is imperfect and risky.
Now, we have no choice but to bet on this one.
"We have to embrace the risk."
What I pulled out from the drawer was...
A device that looked remarkably similar to a tablet PC on Earth.
***
Beep.
With a startup sound, the device powered on.
The next moment,
"Huh?!"
A data image of a white skull appeared on the screen, and she gasped for air.
"Huh, huh... What is this...? What's happening to me...?"
"It's been a while, brain in a jar."
I immediately corrected myself with the entity's name.
"No... White Night."
Facing the data mass of a lich trembling before me, I coldly asked.
"How's purgatory treating you, is it bearable?"
--TL Notes--
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