Chapter 197
Chapter 197
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 197
Chapter Title: Even Thirteen Regressions is Bullshit
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The fourth camera eye embedded in the helmet of the Holy Sword Machine God Orlando turned toward the sky.
Click—click—
As it zoomed in on the designated coordinates, a clear image of Copernicus came into view.
[Orbital strike, huh.]
He watched as Copernicus, having deployed its solar panels and finished charging energy, fired its next volley.
Kwarung-kwarung-kwarak!
Four Dreadnought-class combatants who couldn't evade in time vanished beneath the surface.
Photon communications raced back and forth hundreds of times per second.
[Power loss from bombardment: 14 percent.]
[Countermeasures underway, interception simulations updated!]
[Available Machine Gods now: 10/11!]
[073rd Machine God Holy Sword's Orlando, 111th Machine God Thousand Transformations' Ilangjin-gun, 138th Machine God Sovereign Slayer's Baibars, 139th Machine God Wind Shredder's Saladin, 277th Machine God Swift Steed's Red Hare, 342nd Machine God Terror's Ivan, 355th Machine God City Breaker's Basilica······.]
[Virtual interception simulation complete!]
[Interception probability down to 1.74 percent.]
Orlando didn't need to hear the results to predict them.
Including himself, none of the Machine Gods deployed to this battlefield were designed for space combat.
From their armaments to their very origins, they were built for ground and air battles.
Space combat wasn't impossible, but they were leagues below the 「Satellite Machine God Copernicus」.
Baibars's transmission came through.
[None of us can beat Copernicus from satellite orbit.]
[Our acceleration and space maneuvering are inferior.]
[If Copernicus flees, we can't pursue. We'll fail to close the distance and get shot down within 12 minutes.]
[Even units with better mid-range bombardment than Copernicus will be shot down before reaching orbit.]
[Only one viable counter: Complete the mission quickly before we're wiped out.]
[Agreed.]
[Agreed.]
[Agreed.]
In that fleeting instant, the Machine Gods ended their comms and intensified their assault.
“Hosiiiiiiin!”
A clear rooster crow echoed across the battlefield.
The Northern Rooster Clan, the Cock tribe, let out furious cries as they tore through the enemy lines toward Hoshin.
The lead Cock God raised its bloodstained comb and glared at Hoshin.
“Serpent God! Where's that rat bastard?! Why's there a goat-headed devil over there! And what's falling from the sky?!”
“I don't know either! Cock comb! And······.”
Pajik!
Orlando, the Machine God battling Hoshin, took a meteor strike and got buried underground.
“This isn't the enemy's attack!”
“If it's not the enemy, then···.”
“Third force!”
Hoshen cleaved the falling meteor in two and shouted.
“It's not our side, not the metal bastards' side—it's some completely different force's attack!”
A narrow cliffside the Machine Gods couldn't easily access.
Humans and beastkin clashed fiercely there.
“Monkey God, we can't get through easily.”
The 'monkey tail' clinging to the cliff spoke to Monkey God Ukou.
Monkey God scowled too.
“Yeah, no kidding! Damn it, that human's a monster too.”
Black mist blanketing spots along the cliff pursued the beastkin.
Beastkin engulfed in the black mist screamed as they met their end.
No matter how tough beastkin were, surviving thousands of holes punched through their bodies was impossible.
The mist's droplets 'erased' everything in their path through space.
“They say the Dragon God handles that thing like it's breakfast?”
Ukou gritted his teeth and looked down at the woman below the cliff.
The mist was the power of 「World-Ending Poison」, Christina's avatar 『Destroyer God Shiva (SSS+)』.
“No way to break through?!”
Fuming and bristling his fur didn't help.
The Bull God who dove to crush her head lost only his hammer-head and fled.
They lacked the forces to commit multiple chiefs.
“Where are you looking?”
A heavy voice.
A glowing red Vajra Staff grazed Monkey God's ear.
“Kyaa!”
Monkey God roared and thrust his staff.
In one strike, it shifted nine times, smashing the enemy's bald head and collarbone.
A blow that would've shattered a normal beastkin's skull and caved in its chest, but his opponent—packed with steel-like muscles—stood unscathed.
Monkey God realized from the staff's feedback.
'No impact at all. Feels like fighting one of the Northern Continent's pigs.'
His foe was the 'Iron Wall' Vajra Guardian, Soma Sangai.
Soma's assault team blocked Monkey God and the heirs.
Sheep God, Snake God, Cat God, and the other chiefs led their heirs against Hero Alphard's assault team, Kirin Child Kim Jintae, Voltechino's Blade Wolves, and more.
Humanity's strongest assault units.
Monkey God glanced down at Christina, who was spreading the mist.
'I have to find an opening on that woman somehow.'
Monkey God's opponents were Soma's sturdy, defense-focused assault team.
It gave him some breathing room, and he figured he—the only one with leeway—had to create the breakthrough.
As Monkey God grew anxious, his opponents were just as tense.
“Kaaaah!”
Boom!
Ben-Hur blocked a charging wild boar, Pig Clan warrior, and yelled.
“How long has Mother been using her power?!”
“Twenty-one minutes in!”
Holy Mother Christina trembled, eyes closed, face deathly pale.
Destroyer God Shiva's power was overwhelmingly strong, but a human body couldn't sustain it long.
「World-Ending Poison」 eroded Christina's mana, will, and mind simultaneously as a malevolent force corrupting the world.
'Even dispersed as much as possible. Still reaching her limit.'
Ben-Hur steeled himself to protect Christina, who was on the verge of collapse.
Then, a rock fell from the sky.
Thud!
Fallen rocks were common in a fight like this.
But one with someone riding it? Not so much.
“A bit late.”
What he rode wasn't actually a rock.
A square, flat gray tombstone.
Back when Babel was barely past floor 50.
The hero who slew Four Heavenly King 'Collapse's Grandonio'.
「Dark King's Tombstone (SS+)」.
From atop it, Ju Gonghyeok pulled out a purple skull.
“Let's casually build a fortress.”
An ominous glow flickered from Death God Urben's skull.
[Death God Urben's skill 「Tower of the Dead」 activates!]
- Urben's Skull (SS) assists with its unique skill.
- Demon contract item 「Fallen Lucifer's Wings (SS++)」 adjusts skill rank.
- 「Dark King's Tombstone (SS+)」 transforms the Tower of the Dead.
Black energy swirled around the tombstone.
The bones and mortar forming the gray tower were dyed by the black energy from the tombstone.
[Tower of the Dead (S++) reinforcement activated!]
[Skill manifestation 「Dark King's Fortress (SSS)」.]
[Skill activation rate 211%! Deployment height 3,200 meters!]
Rumble-rumble-roar!
A black fortress rose from the cliff base.
“Kuh! What the hell?!”
“Necromancer humans! They can even do this?!”
“It's alive! It's the Necromancer King we heard about!”
“Into the fortress!”
The massive structure appeared out of nowhere.
Beastkin were naturally pushed back by it, while humans entered the fortress.
Ben-Hur behind the fortress hoisted Christina onto his back.
“Necromancer King! Thanks for the help.”
“Get inside the fortress. We're getting out of here.”
“Getting out?”
Ben-Hur glanced at the rear.
The Twilight Dungeon entrance tempted him like a dream.
“Isn't heading into the dungeon better than the fortress? If you hold the enemies back here······.”
“If you don't wanna die, get in.”
“What?”
The Grim Hound mask turned slightly backward.
“Choice is yours. But I can't guarantee what happens if you enter that dungeon now.”
“···.”
It sounded like a threat at first, but the vibe wasn't.
Ben-Hur hesitated, then gave up on the Twilight Dungeon and entered through the fortress's back door.
Gonghyeok climbed to the fortress top and called out to the humans inside.
“Among you, someone's forged an active alliance with the Machine Gods! Who is it!”
“Me, Necromancer King. An honor to meet you.”
Alphard, fresh from battle, stepped forward in greeting.
Gonghyeok frowned beneath his mask.
Alphard, bearer of 「Vessel of the Great Hero (SSS)」, had grown noticeably stronger.
“Appearing right on time in a mask to lend aid—like 'Laplace's Demon' who knows everything.”
Gonghyeok eyed the praising Alphard coolly.
'So it was you after all.'
No way a human allies with Machine Gods this fast without the Future Man's help.
Sure, dungeon entry issues or Machine God internal affairs would've led to an alliance eventually.
“Tell the Machine Gods: We're collapsing the entire gorge.”
“Collapsing it?”
The hunters voiced doubts.
“Collapse it and then what?”
“The gorge is collapsing anyway. Thanks to that satellite rampaging overhead.”
He hadn't dropped those meteor slugs for nothing.
Meteor slugs and photon cannons acted like nails, shattering the foundational rock layer around here.
Machine Gods and beastkin couldn't shoot down the satellite Machine God, so they'd rack up max contributions slaughtering them from space.
Plus, punch holes throughout the gorge to prep for the next phase.
Exactly as Gonghyeok had planned countless times.
“But first, something else. You, Alphard, was it?”
Gonghyeok in the Grim Hound mask pointed at Alphard in his white mask.
“Trust me, do as I say.”
Alphard pondered briefly, then nodded.
“Anyone else, maybe not—but I trust you.”
“···Fine.”
A bizarre united front began.
Gonghyeok quietly called out to the GM.
‘Expand permissions.’
[Understood, Master.]
As the GM smirked sharply, five red coins vanished from his inventory.
* * *
Boom!
“The gorge is collapsing!”
“Warriors! Up we go!”
As the Machine Gods tore into the crust all at once, the gorge crumbled down.
Beastkin below surged upward in unison.
Beastkin could move through dirt like water or air, so burial didn't weaken them—but getting bombarded by satellite fire while encumbered was the issue.
The Twilight Dungeon, goal of all three races, was fully buried in debris.
“Damn it! Can't get in now!”
“What do we do?”
As beastkin stomped in frustration, the ten chiefs gathered.
“Sorry we couldn't break through.”
“Nah. Looks like they knew it was impossible and bailed too.”
“That black fortress is in the way.”
The Dragon God stroked his spear blade.
“Tried scratching it earlier. Tough. Demolishing it fully needs focused time, so······.”
“Better to bypass.”
The ten chiefs eyed the fortress's master with gleaming gazes.
A human in a bizarre wolf mask and ominous black cloak.
“That guy's strong-looking.”
“Ah~~ That guy~ Saw him at the power plant! Traded a few blows······.”
Cat God grinned sheepishly.
“My three-stage kick—he dodged shuk-shuk.”
“Strong, then. Doesn't matter.”
Thud!
Dragon God slammed his spear butt down.
“Bypass the fortress, dig through the ground. Clear everything in the way.”
“Good.”
“One kak (15 minutes). Settle it within.”
Terrifying auras erupted from the chiefs.
The ghostly auras blanketing the sky made beastkin howl.
Even some hunters quaked at their roars.
“Three minutes.”
Ju Gonghyeok looked down at both armies from the fortress top.
“Hold out for three minutes.”