Chapter 33
Chapter 33
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: Armored Swordmaster (2)
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When I played the game, there were a total of twelve [Fallen Earth Dragon's nth Fangs].
The thirteenth entity vanished alongside Arcana, so no one could craft the bikini armor.
"Professor, it looks like that monster is twelve entities fused together as one, splitting apart after some time."
"Then the one we caught in the Karbalon Mountains was originally attached but broke off?"
"Nah, that's not it. Judging by the name 'Fallen Earth Dragon's nth Fang,' it seems like true dragon fangs fell off and evolved."
"Ah, so the twelve fangs were together from the start, and the thirteenth fang separately fell into the Karbalon Mountains."
The field boss, sensing the vibrations from Canelian's ground rolls, began to move.
Crack! Rumble!
The frozen Hailpen River flipped over.
"It's just like a fault rupture."
"What's that?"
"When an underground fault breaks and releases that energy... We should put more distance between us too."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Even sharing the warmth-providing magic circle cloak, it was still freezing.
This is the real northern chill.
I pulled the elf Object even closer into my embrace.
So soft and squishy.
"Your Highness, if you hold me too tight..."
"It's cold."
"Ah, I understand."
'We absolutely cannot let it surround us.'
Canelian moved vigorously to keep the distance.
With a deafening roar, the ground split open, and the field boss chased after her.
Just its movements alone were crumbling the earth.
She finally understood with her own body why that massive basin had formed in the highlands of the Karbalon Mountains.
Hiss! Hiiiiss!
The twelve heads spewed green breath all at once.
'Corrosive rotten breath that melts anything it touches!'
Canelian dodged the breath with swift mobility, just as the Prince had instructed.
'He told me not to waste stamina.'
The goal was to lure it into Baron Caron's territory.
Devastate the borderlands to erase traces of their passage and sow chaos in the Empire.
"Over here! I'm right here, you monster!"
Canelian maintained an appropriate distance, repeatedly shouting and rolling on the ground to make her presence known.
'Your Highness, am I doing well?'
She glanced up at the sky, only for her face to crumple.
"What are you doing?! I'm down here busting my ass underground!"
Inside the cloak, the Prince was hugging Silvret from behind, rubbing his cheek against hers.
Canelian scowled, then accelerated again as the thumping vibrations resumed.
The massive earthquakes caused by the field boss [Fallen Earth Dragon's 12 Fangs] spread out hundreds of kilometers away.
Count Pendrel's territory, adjacent to Caron Territory, went into high alert.
The urgent report from the wyvern scout squadron turned the count's castle upside down.
"Edelmarkr Ducal Castle! It's been utterly destroyed—no trace left!"
"What? Is that true?"
Count Pendrel could hardly believe the report.
The wyvern scouts were practically sobbing as they spoke.
"A colossal monster we've never seen before! It has twelve heads, and each fang is as big as a cow!"
"Most of its body is submerged underground, but the exposed length alone exceeds 150 meters!"
"Just its movement is splitting the ground, causing collapses! The ducal castle vanished the same way!"
"If that thing enters, the Empire is finished!"
Having confirmed the playback from the image orb, Count Pendrel's legs shook.
The scouts' report wasn't exaggerated—it hadn't captured everything.
"Report to the Imperial Palace! Prepare the teleportation magic circle!"
"Yes, Your Excellency!"
The count grabbed the scout captain and the crystal orb, teleporting straight to the capital.
The imperial capital erupted in chaos.
The Emperor confirmed it multiple times.
"So Lowen is dead?"
"To our deepest regret, Your Majesty, everywhere that monster passes causes collapses over dozens of meters deep."
"So you're saying he's dead?"
"The scouts heard no cries for rescue."
Bam!
The Emperor slammed the armrest, his entire body trembling.
He touched the scar on his face out of habit, grinding his teeth.
"Gather every knight and mage in the Empire. No regular troops."
"Yes! Your Majesty!"
"Demand support from every kingdom upholding the Empire. Emphasize that if we fail to slay that monster, the entire continent is doomed."
"Understood!"
"And Foreign Minister, have you sent the protest envoy to Arcana?"
The Foreign Minister quickly caught on and replied.
"We'll change the protest letter to a subjugation request and send it."
"Sometimes delays in handling things turn out helpful."
The Foreign Minister paled.
The Emperor was subtly rebuking him.
He'd only taken appropriate time to craft diplomatic rhetoric, yet the blame fell on the minister.
"We cannot let that thing advance further south! Mobilize everything the Empire has to stop it!"
Caron Territory was left in ruins.
Though vast, human settlements were concentrated, so Canelian's luring maneuver proceeded smoothly.
"Much more bearable now."
"Your Highness, we've left the cold region, so now..."
She must have felt stifled from being held so tightly.
I loosened my arms around her.
Hiss! Hiiiiss!
Rumble! Rumbliiing!
Canelian hadn't taken a single hit from the field boss yet.
I was curious about its attack power, but I had no intention of testing it with my heroine's life.
Canelian had been wearing the stamina-boosting boots I'd given her since departure.
They didn't increase speed, but turned a 5km run into over 50km.
A Swordmaster wearing them could run indefinitely.
"Your Highness, should I call down lightning with weather magic like before to attack?"
"Not yet. We're aiming for the killing blow."
"Ah, the finisher, got it."
"The Empire's knights and mages should be arriving soon."
I scanned the horizon beyond with Discernment Eye activated.
If the Empire's forces were coming, I'd see their mana clusters, but no signs yet...
"Empire bastards incoming. Professor! Canelian!"
"Yes, Your Highness."
"Got it!"
Canelian replied loudly and accelerated sharply to pull away.
Object flew low to the ground with me in tow, closing the gap with Canelian.
"Your Highness!"
"Duchess, grab my hand."
Canelian leaped with all her might, grasping my hand, and the three of us soared back into the sky.
Rooooar!
The twelve pairs of serpentine eyes chased us.
Object activated the pre-prepared stealth magic, and the field boss lost us in confusion.
I wrapped my free arm tightly around Canelian's waist.
The hard armor made it less than satisfying to the touch...
"Good work, Duchess."
"These boots are amazing. I've run all day, yet I feel more energized."
"They're not legendary artifacts for nothing."
"Just how many artifacts do you have, Your Highness?"
"Enough to buy the entire continent if I sold them all?"
"...You're too much of a joker."
"I'm serious."
We watched from high in the sky.
Hundreds of wyvern squadrons carried knights and mages flying in.
The nearsighted field boss hadn't noticed the Empire's approach yet.
"That's an impressive scale."
"Your Highness, you can see that? Even I, a Swordmaster, can only make out the wyvern squadrons."
Canelian strained to see farther.
"It's not people I'm seeing. It's clusters of mana."
"Ah, that eye... So it wasn't an emotion skill after all."
"Something even better."
The wyvern squadrons attacked the field boss at high speed.
They were doing everything to pin it down and stop it from moving further.
Boom! Booooom!
Roaring flames!
Fireballs and all sorts of spells bombarded the field boss, sending explosions and flashes everywhere.
"Damn it! The spells aren't working at all!"
"Get closer! I'll hurl my spear!"
One wyvern knight attempted a risky maneuver.
But...
Hiiiiss!
"Gaaaaah!"
Hit by the corrosive breath, he screamed in agony as his body melted alive, plummeting with his wyvern.
"Professor."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Object cast Feather Fall on the falling knight and wyvern.
Their descent slowed instantly, landing safely, where another wyvern knight swiftly scooped them up.
"But Your Highness, is this okay? In a way, they're suffering meaningless sacrifices because of us."
Neither looked pleased.
Seeing the fallen knight stirred their consciences.
I couldn't let a cruel tyrant image take root.
"Don't forget—the Emperor deliberately awakened the thirteenth fang in the Karbalon Mountains. He intended to destroy Arcana."
"...You're right."
"This is righteous retribution."
"And every time that thing stirs underground, the Empire suffers volcanic eruptions and earthquakes.
Those disasters ramp up monster attacks, and the Emperor will eventually redirect internal dissent outward."
"War?"
"He'd start a continental war without batting an eye."
It was the actual story progression too.
Later, unexplained earthquakes and eruptions caused massive damage repeatedly.
Players undertook an origin investigation quest and learned of the [Fallen Earth Dragon's 1st Fang].
'The Empire NPCs screw players over by reneging on promised rewards.'
Come to think of it, amid eleven great catastrophes—rescues, investigations, various quests spawned.
The twelve had torn apart and burrowed underground, causing those calamities.
The death toll in the process...
"If we left that thing alone, at least ten million would die going forward."
"T-Ten million? That many?"
"Slaying it here before it splits and scatters across the continent is best."
It prevented damage to continental kingdoms too.
Retribution for the Emperor's Karbalon stunt.
And completed the bikini armor.
"We're exacting revenge on the Empire, protecting its innocent citizens, and preventing continental disaster all at once.
So no need for self-reproach."
"...Got it. Sorry for showing a weak side."
"I'll steel my resolve, Your Highness."
Still, a dilemma.
Canelian would refuse to wear the bikini armor.
How to convince her...
Both of the Empire's Swordmasters appeared on the battlefield.
Hundreds of knights and mages backed them.
The two Swordmasters formed a pincer formation, dodging attacks and charging fiercely.
"Sir Windler! Now!"
"Got it, Sir Trafford!"
With all sorts of magic support, the two finally severed one head.
Hiss! Hiiiiss!
Four heads spewed green corrosive breath at them, and the pair retreated behind an Aura Blade barrier.
"We got it...! What the—?!"
"No way!"
The fallen head writhed and melted, transforming into a small earth dragon.
A new head immediately regrew from the stump, throwing the Swordmasters into panic.
"This just keeps spawning more small clones!"
"Don't cut the heads!"
"Then where do we attack? It barely takes damage from spells!"
That was when it happened.
A brilliant bolt of lightning struck a small clone (10 meters long) lunging at a Swordmaster.
Kieeeek!
The electrified clone convulsed, screaming as its rocky scales charred black.
"Now!"
Windler charged without missing a beat, slicing it with his Aura Blade. The small clone shattered entirely, crumbling to dust.
"Who cast that lightning spell? Good job anyway! Huh? Gone?"
Trafford quickly scanned the sky, but nothing was there.
Windler bellowed orders to the wyvern squadrons.
"Lightning spells work! Put the lightning mages up front!"
"Sir! We prioritized fire and ice mages, knights—no lightning mages here!"
It was standard to lead with powerful fire and ice mages.
"Then who cast that lightning spell just now?!"
I'd hoped otherwise, but these idiots brought zero lightning mages.
Frustrated, I gave them a hint with Thunder Chain.