Chapter 712: Each Person's Fight (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 712: Each Person's Fight (2)
Flash!
Every time Julian loosed an arrow from his Lightning Bow Harmila, a fruit from the Colossal Divine Tree came crashing down. Valkas snatched the fruits from mid-air, delivering them safely to the designated gathering point. Unlike the fruits that had already hit the ground, most of the prisoners trapped within these were still alive.
The rescue pace was accelerating. Enya pulled the survivors from the fruits, while those who managed to reach Hedo’s position collapsed, utterly spent. The prisoners felt a momentary surge of relief at having survived, but it was short-lived.
“Aaaargh...!”
“My arm! My arm!”
“Mage, my daughter is still inside the castle! Please... please save her. I beg of you!”
Panic is a contagion. Those consumed by terror are impossible to reason with. Some had families still trapped in the trees, others were delirious with pain, some had shattered minds and wandered aimlessly, while others clung to Enya, begging for mercy. Even those who leaned recklessly against Quaul’s machinery added to the chaos.
Sobs, groans, and shrill screams filled the air. As the number of rescued grew, the gathering point guarded by Hedo devolved into a scene of absolute pandemonium. Too many had lost their families, been maimed, or fallen into deep despair. Those who retained their sanity tried to restrain the others, but at this rate, it threatened to interfere with Valeria and Quaul’s analysis.
Enya was a brilliant mage—her comrades had stationed her here specifically for her defensive prowess—but she was too kind-hearted. She lacked the ruthless edge required to bring order to such a desperate crowd. Hedo, Valeria, and Quaul would have handled it, but they were currently too preoccupied to spare a thought for the prisoners.
“Stay still! Everyone, maintain the formation! If you don't follow instructions now, it will be difficult to help you!”
Enya shouted, but few listened. Some even screamed back at her, questioning the point of it all.
‘I can’t be indecisive. No matter how much I pity them, if I can’t control them now, my allies will be in danger. If Sir Hedo has to step in for me, the comrades and other prisoners who lose his protection might die!’
Finally, Enya gritted her teeth and raised her staff, gathering mana toward the prisoners who were trying to break rank. Even if it was cruel, she had to suppress them with force. Her staff trembled slightly. She had never expected to aim her magic at the very people she was trying to save.
“If you continue to cause a disturbance, I will have no choice. Return to the formation immediately. This is your final warning.”
“Fine, kill me! Who asked to be saved? I’ve already lost my entire family. I have no reason to live, so I’d rather—urk!”
Enya’s eyes widened as the prisoner suddenly collapsed. She hadn't struck; someone else had. A magic officer had acted before she could.
“You crazy bastards, you don't even know how to be grateful.”
The speaker was a prisoner who had just arrived at the gathering point—a man with a complicated history with Enya.
“I am Pascal Chip, a magic officer of the Imperial Guard. From this moment on, anyone who does not follow orders will be dealt with under military law. Do those who risked their lives to charge into this hell to save strangers look like a joke to you? You would make such a person point their staff at you instead of the enemy?”
“Pascal...!?”
Pascal Chip—the former leader of the cadets who had bullied Enya back at Viment Academy.
He had become a completely different person after the operation to wipe out the Dark Magic Association, which Jin had carried out during his time as a reserve flagbearer. He had become a respectable officer of the Imperial Guard. Taken prisoner while protecting civilians during Dipus’s invasion, he now sought to fulfill his duty.
— One day... I will... surely... repay this debt...
Those were the words Pascal had spoken after the Dark Magic Association was dismantled.
“I said back then that I would repay the favor one day, somehow. I didn't know I’d be able to help in a moment like this. There are members of the Imperial Guard mixed among the rescued prisoners, so I will take charge of them and control the crowd. Chief Mage of Tikan, please focus on your task.”
As Chip suppressed a few more rioting prisoners, the commotion quickly died down. The result might have been the same if Enya had done it, but it would have certainly left her with a psychological scar. Enya nodded, relieved.
“I understand, Sir Pascal. I’ll leave it to you.”
The chaos at the gathering point was settled. Enya poured her full strength back into rear defense, and Hedo, who had been briefly mindful of the disturbance behind him, swung his sword without looking back again.
The sun did not rise, hidden by the energy of chaos, but the time was passing 6:00 AM. Three hours after the rescue operation began, nearly three thousand prisoners had gathered. Compared to the estimated total of nearly a hundred thousand, it was a drop in the bucket, but these were lives that could never be called small.
The prisoners were now looking after each other's wounds and tending to those who had ultimately failed to hold on and died. Fortunately, no serious casualties had occurred among the members of the Barmul Alliance yet. Most were running across the fields with minor injuries, snatching fruits from the Colossal Divine Trees.
However, they weren't without physical strain. Having run through this hellscape for hours, it was impossible not to be exhausted. Hedo and Mary were the ones consuming the most stamina. A puddle of sweat had formed where Hedo stood, and Mary was repeatedly approaching Ricalton Castle and being pushed back, her breath coming in ragged gasps.
“Huff, huff...!”
The reason Mary hadn't been able to infiltrate the castle yet was simple. The Colossal Divine Trees were focusing their interference on her whenever she reached a certain distance. Thanks to that, the trees couldn't advance as they pleased, and Hedo’s burden was lightened somewhat, so it wasn't without gain.
“Sister!”
Daytona leaped in front of Mary, swinging his greatsword. The fist of a Colossal Divine Tree aiming for Mary was knocked off course, and in that opening, Heitona struck away a boulder flying toward Mary’s back.
“Are you alright!”
“Whew, you punks, what are you doing here? Don't worry about me, go save the prisoners! Did you think I couldn't even deflect something like that?”
“Sister, you’re too exhausted.”
“If you keep trying to break through alone and drain your stamina further, you’ll be overwhelmed when something happens inside Ricalton Castle. This is the sector Daytona and I were assigned to anyway. As you can see... there are no surviving prisoners left in this area.”
Mary was so exhausted she hadn't even realized she had been pushed back exactly into the Tona brothers' sector.
“Ha, damn it.”
“We will escort you at least to the vicinity of the outer castle. There are prisoners who fell near there as well, so we were about to move that way anyway.”
“I won't say we’ll enter Ricalton Castle with you. We want to, desperately, but we know that’s not our role. So, please allow this.”
Mary met her brothers' eyes. Seeing those firm gazes filled with determination, she wondered if these were truly the Tona brothers she knew.
“...I thought you were nothing but fools, but it seems you’ve finally learned how to be useful.”
“Isn't it all thanks to you and the youngest?”
“‘Try to have a bit of a reliable side’—we’re trying to follow the advice you gave us last time.”
Though her words were blunt, Mary remembered that the Tona brothers had been there with her and Dipus when they resisted Rosa before Jin’s return. Perhaps since then, the Tona brothers had already become quite reliable younger brothers. No, they certainly had.
“Fine, I’ll lean on you a bit. You can make sure I don't have to clear away your corpses on my way, right?”
“Of course, Sister.”
“Let’s go!”
As they began to break through again, Mary felt the path opening far more easily than before.
“Get lost, you monsters! The Madwoman of the Southern Continent and the Darlings of Hell are coming through!”
“Kahahaha! Move, move!”
“Crazy bastards...”
The Colossal Divine Trees, which had grown accustomed to focusing only on Mary, were losing their rhythm. The siblings achieved the feat of reaching the vicinity of the outer castle in just twenty minutes. Mary was able to save at least a little stamina, and the Tona brothers still had enough energy to return the way they came.
“This is far enough. Your shouting was trashy and cringeworthy, but you’ve gotten considerably stronger.”
“Huff, huff! Thank you!”
“Now go back. I’ll move alone from here. I think I can get in without being pushed back now. I’ve bypassed most of the trees.”
“Whew, Sister!”
“What?”
“We wish you good for—”
Just as the Tona brothers were about to bow while holding Mary’s hand, Mary suddenly raised her Viper and scanned the surroundings. She had felt killing intent. It was a distinct, hateful malice, entirely different from that of the Colossal Divine Trees.
When they identified the source of the killing intent, the Tona brothers couldn't help but scream, their faces contorting.
“Those... those wretched bitches are here?”
“I heard they were literally turned to dust during the total assault on the Garden of Swords. Have they been resurrected!?”
Myu and Anne.
They were looking down at the three siblings from the outer castle wall.
[Oh, my. What a touching scene. ‘Wishing you good fortune’? Since when were you all so close?]
[Hey, former 7th Flagbearer. You used to act so high and mighty, but have you fallen so far that you need the help of those leftovers? It’s so pathetic I’m almost wondering if I should even bother killing you.]
The siblings didn't answer, only glaring at Myu and Anne.
“If you’re dead, you should stay buried in the ground. Are you cockroaches? I don't know why there are so many bugs coming back to life lately. But, come to think of it, it’s only right that we finish you off with our own hands. Come down, let’s settle this. You won't be coming back this time.”
“It’s the day we settle a long-standing grudge. All the persecution, contempt, and humiliation we’ve endured... I’ll pay it all back today with interest, you bitches!”
While Myu and Anne sneered at the Tona brothers' words, Heitona quietly whispered to Mary.
‘Sister, we’ll handle those two, so take the chance to go inside.’
‘They aren't at a level you two can handle right now. You barely have enough stamina to make it back.’
‘No, Sister. There’s no point in running away anyway. And we have a trump card of our own. We have no intention of dying in your place, so go, quickly. Even if we’re pushed back in the fight, Heitona and I just need to hold out until the temporary allies arrive. Now, good fortune!’
Though they had never discussed how to handle such a situation beforehand, the Tona brothers were already leaping toward Myu and Anne before Mary even had time to think.