Chapter 162
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 162
In other words, the Teleportation Hub on the Annun Plains was a device built to transport an immense amount of supplies. True to its purpose, the sheer volume of mana it contained defied common sense.
Without exaggeration, it held enough to teleport tens of thousands of people.
“…Let’s hurry,” a soldier said.
At his words, the squad backed away to a safe distance. It was a necessary precaution; a machine so densely packed with mana could cause a catastrophic explosion when destroyed.
“The Orc army must have realized what’s happening by now. We can’t afford to wait until the last second. The enemy has Phantom Beasts faster than any horse, so we need a head start.”
Measuring the distance, the soldier raised his bow. As he drew back the string and chanted a brief spell, lightning crackled to life around the arrowhead.
“…”
Originally, several layers of protective magic had guarded the mana crystal. They had already dealt with those. All that was left was to shatter the crystal with a single arrow, and their mission would be complete.
Creeak…
The bowstring, drawn to its absolute limit, groaned under the tension.
Just as he was about to release his grip—
Clang!
A dagger flew silently through the air and struck the soldier in the back. The sudden impact threw him off balance, causing him to stumble.
Thanks to his high-quality armor, the dagger failed to penetrate and simply bounced off, but the arrow had already left the string, burying itself uselessly in the ground.
The ten members of the cleanup squad whipped their heads toward the direction the dagger had come from.
Standing there was the Paladin Order.
“It would be troublesome if you broke that.”
Perhaps deciding there was no longer a need to hide, the Holy Knights were clad in the symbolic armor of their order. Their silver plate gleamed so brilliantly it could be seen from afar.
Though there were only eight of them—fewer than the cleanup squad—their faces were masks of calm. It was the easy confidence of those who were certain of their own strength and assured of victory.
The Holy Knight at the front narrowed his eyes.
“No matter how greedy you are, isn't it a bit much to destroy it just because you’re done with it?”
While their leader spoke, another Holy Knight beside him cast a spell. A new layer of magic enveloped the Teleportation Hub, whose defensive wards had just been painstakingly dismantled.
Intermediate Magic: 〈Exclusion Wall〉.
They were blatantly reclaiming the Teleportation Hub.
Phase 6
‘A theatrical play.’
The Orcs wage war. The Empire rallies its forces but, due to the Imperial Family’s incompetence, fails to respond effectively, suffering one defeat after another.
The Imperial army fighting on the Annun Plains is eventually pushed all the way back to Riaze.
But their retreat is sloppy. The Orc army uses the undestroyed Teleportation Hub to appear inside the inner castle of Riaze.
Even in such a crisis, the royals continue their power struggles and internal divisions, leading to a bloodbath within the Imperial Palace. The citizens’ distrust of the Imperial Family deepens by the day. At the same time, they tremble in terror as the Orc army stands at their doorstep.
Just when everyone is desperate for salvation…
The Pope appears before the citizens of the Empire and cries out:
“May God’s grace look down upon you!”
The messengers of God’s will—the Holy Knights—fend off the Orcs’ assault. Then, a holy army dispatched by the Holy Kingdom annihilates the Orc horde. The Empire barely regains its peace, and the citizens cheer wildly for their new leader.
For their new leader, the Pope.
…So far, the play had gone off without a hitch. With Ar, the one the Pope was most wary of, out of commission, not a single variable had arisen. Now, once they killed these soldiers and seized the Teleportation Hub, all preparations would be complete. The rest would fall into place as long as they followed the script.
—Everything was going according to plan.
“Ahaha.”
The lead Holy Knight chuckled softly. Every soldier before him was staring at him.
As if enjoying the attention, he slowly took off his helmet.
He had dark blue hair and a pure, noble face, as if he’d lived a life far removed from the smell of iron. Yet, his expression held a cruelty that would put an assassin to shame.
“You’re all very quiet,” the Holy Knight said.
The soldiers didn’t reply. Instead, the one who had been struck by the dagger silently nocked another arrow.
But in that brief moment, a faint mana had already spread around the Teleportation Hub. Another Holy Knight was layering multiple protective spells over it.
Shattering the hub in a single blow was now impossible. And if they tried to destroy it with multiple attacks, the Holy Knights would never give them the opening.
“A futile effort.”
“Tch.”
This time, the soldier aimed his bow at the Holy Knight’s head. The seven soldiers at the front drew their weapons and assumed battle stances.
“That, too, is futile.”
The blue-haired Paladin, that cruel expression still on his face, tossed a small object to the ground.
It was a decorative fragment from the Fire Dragon Armor, the symbol of Kart, captain of the Nixir Red Dragon Subjugation Squad.
“Do you know why Rubhem, where the Nixir Red Dragon Subjugation Squad was stationed, fell in a single day?”
The Holy Knight tapped the ground with his shield. Clang! Clang! He shook his head leisurely in time with the sound.
No matter how strong these soldiers were, they were no match for Kart. And compared to the Holy Knight’s own strength, they were nothing.
“Well, if you insist on trying, I will gladly face you with all my might.”
“…”
“But I didn’t come here to hurt you. Besides, I’m in an exceptionally good mood today. I’m willing to show you some mercy.”
The Holy Knight’s gaze drifted to the Teleportation Hub behind the soldiers. He narrowed his eyes and murmured, “If you run now, I won’t kill you.”
“…”
“You know that the longer you take to decide, the worse it will be for you, right?”
From the distance, the thundering sound of a massive army on the move echoed. It was the Orc army, marching now that they had realized the Imperial forces were retreating.
For the soldiers, who had to destroy the hub before the Orcs arrived, the sound of their advance was an immense pressure.
“Let me ask just two things.”
Amidst the tense silence, one of the soldiers stepped forward.
Though all of them wore robes with hoods pulled low, this particular soldier’s was noticeably too large, hanging loosely on her frame. Her voice was raspy and indistinct, clearly disguised.
“I’ve already heard about the plan you’re plotting.”
“I wonder what makes you so confident you know anything at all.”
“Because of what you did, countless Imperial soldiers have died. The citizens inside the castle have died. If we don’t destroy this Teleportation Hub, even more will die.”
At the soldier’s words, the Holy Knight shrugged.
“And?”
“Why did they have to die?”
“Ah, if it’s about that…”
What a cliché, he thought. Worrying about the Empire’s citizens when she can’t even see her own predicament?
The Holy Knight, who was about to snicker, decided that giving an answer would be more amusing. He slowly opened his mouth.
“I’ve prayed for all of them to be happy in their next lives, so you don’t need to worry about a thing.”
“…”
Silence fell.
The soldier’s expression remained hidden beneath her hood, but her breath plumed in the cold air. She was likely gaping in disbelief. The Holy Knight sneered.
“Didn’t you say you had two questions?”
At his prompting, the second question finally came.
“…When you fought Kart in Rubhem, you told Rainmay to pass on a message.”
“Oh? How did you know that?”
“To tell the Deputy to await divine judgment. And to tell the Hero that you have high expectations of her.”
The Holy Knight’s expression shifted dramatically.
If his smile before had been fake, he was now grinning with genuine, unrestrained amusement.
“Ha, no way!”
With one hand, the soldier ripped open the buttons of her robe. As the brass fasteners tore free, the wind swept the garment away.
“Saying something like that must mean you’re confident you can defeat the Hero, too, right?”
—The Hero, Uin, was standing there.
As if no more words were needed, she kicked off the ground and lunged forward the moment she revealed her identity. The blue-haired Paladin threw his head back and laughed, a manic sound, as he raised his sword and shield. On both sides, the Holy Knights and soldiers charged at each other’s ranks.
The first clash was between Uin and the blue-haired Paladin.
He swung his sword horizontally, unleashing a massive wave of sword energy that shot out in a straight line. Uin immediately ducked, and the energy passed harmlessly overhead. Only the very tips of her sky-blue hair fluttered to the ground, neatly snipped off.
The Paladin’s eyes widened, surprised by her unexpected speed.
Instantly closing the distance, Uin thrust her fist toward him.
BOOM!
The explosive sound was loud enough to be heard hundreds of meters away.
The resulting backdraft whipped Uin’s hair wildly. She took a step back.
Something felt wrong.
As the wind cleared, she saw that the Paladin had only been pushed back about a meter.
He looked just as dumbfounded, his bewilderment plain on his face. Once the gale subsided, his eyes scanned his own body. Only after confirming he was completely unharmed did he burst into hysterical laughter.
“Ah, hahahaha! Ahahahaha!”
*
“Even though he fought the Captain, he didn’t suffer any damage at all.”
That’s what Rainmay had said.
“Ar told me that the Papal Faction possesses two Masterpieces.”
Rashumer had told her that when he confessed the truth after Ar collapsed.
Logically, it made no sense to emerge completely unscathed from a fight with Kart. He was a man who fought by setting the entire battlefield ablaze. A serious fight against him would inevitably leave wounds, large or small.
…Yet, the Paladin had reportedly suffered no damage at all.
“A Masterpiece…”
Only after laughing his fill did the Paladin look at Uin. Unable to contain the ecstasy overflowing through him, the corners of his mouth twitched.
“Calling it a ‘Masterpiece’ is far too cliché. This is a holy relic—a holy relic! It is God’s command and blessing to welcome a new leader to this land, and to eliminate you!”
“…”
“Oh, whatever will you do? It seems that precious fist of yours is useless.”
The Paladin’s eyes curved into crescents. Uin glared at him in silence.
Normally, she would have fallen for the provocation, but after everything she had experienced recently, she felt little emotion.
Have I grown numb?
She couldn’t tell if this was a good or bad thing. But one thing was certain: Uin was extremely calm. She analyzed the situation with a cold, rational mind.
No matter how much I rack my brain…
In the end, all she had was her strength.
Rather than overthinking, it was better to act.
Sprinting at full speed, Uin threw another punch. Her fist slammed into the shield, and the air shrieked once more.
Having blocked the attack, the Paladin was pushed back slightly, but he immediately charged at Uin and swung his sword.
Once again, an absurd level of sword energy raged toward her.
“…!”
His form was clumsy, but the power behind the swing was too much for her gauntlets to block.
Uin twisted her body like an acrobat to dodge the attack.
The Paladin’s face still brimmed with ease.
Even in the midst of combat, he kept glancing toward the Teleportation Hub. He was clearly conscious of it.
She could, of course, give up on fighting him and try to destroy the hub right now. In a worst-case scenario, that was exactly what she planned to do.
But.
Casting even that thought aside for now, Uin charged at the Paladin once more.
This time, she slipped behind him in an instant and kicked his legs out from under him. The Paladin, perhaps assuming Uin would only ever use her fists, fell for it completely.
Taking advantage of the opening, Uin clenched her fist. The Paladin instinctively raised his shield to protect his head.
—The shield couldn’t cover his lower body, leaving only his armor for protection.
Could it be…?
This time, Uin didn’t strike the shield. Instead, she kicked the Paladin square in the abdomen. Clang! The sound rang out, and he was pushed back several dozen centimeters. If anything, it was Uin’s own foot that throbbed with pain.
“…There were two,” Uin said.
The two Masterpieces Rashumer had mentioned.
This Paladin was using both of them.
One was the ‘sword and shield.’ A sword that unleashed devastating energy even when swung clumsily, and a shield that easily blocked a Hero’s strike.
—He should have been able to counterattack immediately after blocking, but he hadn’t. There was always a delay between his defense and his offense.
He clearly wasn’t choosing to use them one at a time, which meant they had to be a set. As a single Masterpiece, he probably couldn’t use both simultaneously.
The other Masterpiece, if her guess was correct, was that silver armor.
“And what do you plan to do now that you’ve figured it out?”
The Paladin didn’t deny it. His face still brimmed with confidence, absolutely certain that Uin’s attacks could not reach him.
“We’ll see,” Uin replied curtly, slamming her hands together. A loud clang echoed from her gauntlets.