C708 One of the biggest concerns before carrying out the operation with the temporary alliance was the involvement of the Evil God.
[Of course, we cannot exclude the possibility of changes in the state of the Evil God during the operation in Rikalton. However, since it has already suffered an attack once, it will need some time to stabilize. In my opinion, we don't need to worry too much unless we plan to fight in Rikalton for several days.]
As Orgal said, as long as Rosa did not directly participate, the success rate of the operation would significantly increase.
Dyfus had received some of the powers of the Evil God, granting him transcendent strength, but due to the Eternal Flames, he was injured.
Even in perfect condition, no one believed he alone could withstand the combined forces of the high-level temporary alliance.
Of course, there were other powerful individuals like Padler and Lionel, as well as armies of chaos, but it seemed they would not be a match without the Evil God.
Gradually, the steel door began to descend.
The steel door touched the surface of the sea and split into two. One side led to the Hufester Sea, where the rescue forces, including Cosmos, would head, while the other led to the central area of Rikalton, where the pubescent ship would dock.
“Cosmos, pull yourself together.”
“Don't worry, Captain Mary. This fleet led by Cosmos has never been captured. So focus on yourself, as you haven't fully recovered from your injuries.”“My lord, we will return.”
[I can't believe I'm in a position to escort this pirate scum...], said Valkas and Bale.
Their role was to escort Cosmos's fleet until it landed safely in Rikalton and then join the main forces.
“They are not mere pirates, but the most important personnel for the transportation of prisoners. Protect them so that not a single ship is destroyed until the allies open the way to Rikalton's port.”
[Very well, I got it.]
“And join us safely. Bale, you too, Sir Valkas.”
The pubescent ship turned its bow to the right.
After exchanging words of good fortune for a while, the ships advanced toward their respective gates.
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4:15 AM, Northern Frontier of Rikalton.
Approximately an hour had passed since the beginning of the temporary alliance's operation.
The Zipple fleet advanced smoothly, passing through the air defenses.
Although they had not yet shown their full power against Ram, the Zipple fleet was undoubtedly the most powerful force humanity had.
The chaos dragons and black ships that attacked them relentlessly were mere moths that turned to ashes upon touching the flames.
To penetrate the fleet's defensive barrier, they needed transcendent individuals like Padler.
“As Orgal said, it must be due to the rampage of the Evil God. That's why Runcandel is only trying to buy time by weakening our forces...,” said Beradin as he spread out a map with magic.
The desperate situation in Rikalton showed no significant changes so far.
“Dante Hairan, what do you think? Do you believe they are buying time or laying a trap?” Dante turned his head to look at Beradin.
Under normal circumstances, Dante might have been momentarily entranced by Beradin's unfamiliar appearance, but now was not the time for that.
“I think it's the latter. It's just a hunch, but that's what it seems like,” Dante replied.
“I think so too. At this rate, in 30 minutes, Orgal and Zephyrin will reach the first prisoner of war camp they discovered. Will they have already relocated the prisoners?”
“Should we increase our speed to confirm it? Even if it's a trap, we must advance toward the center of Rikalton beyond the prisoner of war camp. Our mission, as Zipple and us, is to rescue the prisoners from the first and second camps and support Jin and Vamel's alliance,” suggested Dante.
“Right, if everything goes according to plan, Jin and Tikan's forces should already be advancing toward the center of Rikalton. Your suggestion seems sound. It's a situation where we can't afford to wait and cautiously respond to any kind of trap. Besides, if it's not a trap, it means the Fourth Flagbearer is still focused on recovering, which could be an opportunity,” Beradin nodded.
At Beradin's order, the fleet increased its speed.
Kieeek...!
The fragments of the black ships and the corpses of the chaos dragons shattered upon colliding with the defensive barrier, constantly darkening the view.
About 10 minutes later, the Zipple fleet could confirm the first prisoner of war camp hidden behind the chaos barrier.
Now, the number of chaos dragons and black ships advancing had decreased significantly, reaching a level where they no longer posed a threat.
“I'm curious whether the grotesque appearance of the prison is due to the will of the Evil God or the personal taste of the Fourth Flagbearer. I should ask him when I meet him,” Beradin commented.
Looking down from above, the interior of the prison did not resemble a typical detention center at all.
First of all, in the center of the inner side of the barrier, there was a huge tree that looked like a fortress.
The tree was filled with translucent black fruits, each of which seemed to contain about fifty prisoners.
Giant monsters could be seen plucking the fruits one by one, and they didn't even react when the fleet appeared.
The only ones who reacted vehemently to the fleet's arrival were the prisoners trapped in the fruits.
Although their voices couldn't be heard, the prisoners frantically pounded and scratched the inside of the fruits with their fists upon seeing the fleet.
As a result, the fruits quickly turned red, looking like blood flowing inside them.
While Beradin watched this scene without much emotion, Dante's fist trembled.
Most of them were prisoners from the Empire.
“Well, this is really strange. The level of desperation in Rikalton intensifies as soon as we arrive, Dante Hairan.”
Normally, it should have been the opposite.
The emotions the prisoners trapped in the fruits would feel upon seeing the Zipple fleet should be “we are saved.”
However, the desperation indicated on the map continued to deepen, and Dante clenched his fists, suppressing his growing anger.
When he focused his senses, he could faintly hear the voices of the people trapped inside the fruits.
Don't come. Don't get closer.
The voices were too weak to tell if the prisoners were actually saying those words, but their gestures were clear.
In addition to pounding and scratching the fruits, the prisoners waved their hands randomly as if telling them to go back.
“...Ah, now I understand why the desperation has increased. The Fourth Flagbearer informed the prisoners in the first camp in advance, telling them that our arrival would be useless, that we would fall into a trap, or that they had been brainwashed.”
It was the latter.
The Prophet manipulated the minds of the prisoners in the first camp, instilling in them the perception that even if the forces of the temporary alliance arrived, it would be “useless.”
The alliance would fall into a trap and perish before their very eyes.
That was the perception they had been given.
“Young Patriarch! Mana response! Mana is spreading from the prison!”
A magician shouted.
If it were a trap, they would have expected the forces of chaos or an army to attack the fleet.
But unexpectedly, the mana was spreading in all directions from the prison.
“Deploy the maximum defense barrier.”
Fortunately, the fleet was able to reinforce the defense barrier faster than the mana spreading from the prison could turn into magic.
A net?
The mana emerging from the prison formed a massive net that enveloped the entire fleet, but it posed no threat on its own.
The net attached to the defense barrier had no significant binding power to restrict the fleet's movement.
“A chaos energy storm is approaching!”
“It’s not at a level where the defense barrier can't hold.”
According to the reports from the magicians, a chaos energy storm hit the fleet.
Although the fleet shook slightly, it wasn't powerful enough to break the defense barrier like the mana net.
“What do this mana and chaos energy mean?”
Amid the growing intensity of desperation on the map, Beradin looked up as if realizing something.
“Young Patriarch, we can push through enough. Give the order.”
“No, stop the fleet! This is illusion magic.”
“Illusion magic?”
Dante asked Beradin.
“Yes, that's right. I didn't expect to encounter the lost dark illusion magic here. Everyone, listen carefully! To the prisoners' eyes right now, it will seem as if we have been mercilessly annihilated. Even though we are perfectly fine, the level of desperation increases because of that.”
It was true.
At this moment, the prisoners were witnessing the “illusion” that everything had unfolded according to the Prophet's plan.
In their eyes, the entire fleet was already exploding and plummeting.
“In that case, all we have to do is break through the remaining chaos energy and show them that we are unharmed, right? Beradin.”
“It's not that simple, Dante. If we resolve it like that, we won't be able to break the illusions enslaving the prisoners' minds. Even if we rescue them all and assure them they are safe, they will still be trapped by the illusions. And then the desperation will continue to grow.”
“...What should we do, then?”
“We need to unravel the enchantment instead of distorting the magic with greater power. Every magician needs to untangle the net covering the fleet... That's what it means.”
“Is that the only way? I don't know much about magic, but it seems like it would take too long.”
“That's right, it will take at least three hours. If we want to shorten the time, we can simply kill the prisoners. Once they're dead, they will be freed from the illusions, and the level of desperation won't increase anymore.”
“I cannot accept killing the prisoners.”
“I thought you would say that. But you see, this is the trap we've been anticipating all along. The intent is quite clear. It's to buy time. To delay our entry. Perhaps it's due to the Fourth Flagbearer's injuries. We haven't received any information about his recovery until just before the operation began.”
“Then do we rescue the prisoners and move according to the Fourth Flagbearer's plan... or sacrifice the prisoners to reach the Fourth Flagbearer a few hours earlier?”
“That's right. That's why I said we should stop for now, but honestly, I'm undecided. It would be better to kill the prisoners and move on. To eliminate Dyfus.”
“I said it's unacceptable to kill prisoners with our own hands.”
“Then present me with some evidence. Give me a reason why we should continue falling into Dyfus's trap, even though we know it.”
Dante glared at Beradin.
Finally, Dante regained his composure and responded.
“I am an individual, a Guardian of the Empire, and the descendant of the Sword Emperor. I’m embarrassed to say it, but I can be considered a very special existence.”
“I have a feeling I know what you're going to say. I'm getting a bit impatient, but continue.”
“After Jin first guessed why the Evil God was using Joshua, Orgal said that the desperation of a special existence would strongly affect the realization of the Evil God. Therefore, there is a possibility that my desperation is the same. So, if we continue killing the prisoners and move forward, my desperation will be too great.”
Beradin blinked a couple of times while looking at Dante, and then responded.
“Alright, I'll accept that. It makes sense. It's logical. Now let's prepare to quickly unravel the enchantment. All unit commanders and top magicians, gather on the flagship. I’ll give you a demonstration.”
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