Now Entering the Third Year—But Even I Don't Know the Future History
Now entering the third year. But the future history... even I don't know it.
The plains before Crete Fortress were littered with the corpses of Lil Spiders. We'd mobilized our entire force and equipment to clear them out, but we could only manage the areas near the coast and the fortress itself. The rest had to be left as is. There was no way we could process over three hundred thousand monster corpses in less than two days.
So we just extracted the Chaos Pieces and did a rough cleanup. We couldn't afford to focus solely on disposal—not when another horde of hundreds of thousands of Lil Spiders was due to swarm this way soon.
And the battles continued the next day, and the day after that.
We no longer had even those brief moments of respite after the first fight. The Spider Queen seemed dead set on Crete Fortress, relentlessly sending wave after wave of Lil Spiders.
But we were fully prepared. With ample Essence on hand, we faced no mana depletion in our equipment, and our other combat supplies were well-stocked.
Plus, the longer the battles dragged on, the more Chaos Pieces we harvested. Meaning our Essence reserves kept growing to match.
The only issue was the fatigue building up from the nonstop fighting. We'd rotated shifts as much as possible, but the constant tension and exhaustion wore on the soldiers inevitably.
But that wouldn't last long. Limits aren't unique to humans, after all.
In the end, on the eighth day after the initial battle, the Lil Spider horde gave up on assaulting Crete Fortress and retreated.
It was only natural. They couldn't choose self-extinction just to take us out.
But that retreat was also their path to doom. I had no intention of letting a single Lil Spider survive. I kept launching Levitation Boats to methodically wipe out their remnants, and the moment we cleared the corpses in front of Crete Fortress, we marched straight for Zabol Fortress.
"Isn't this a bit too reckless?"
From a hill overlooking Zabol Fortress, I scowled at Najir's troops hopping from rooftop to rooftop, waging guerrilla warfare. Even if the Lil Spiders holding the fortress had been thinned out and we had air support from the Levitation Boats, fighting out in the open like that looked risky.
Of course, they had the upper hand, so it wasn't a real problem—but there was no need to court danger. They could've just hunkered down inside the buildings and still cleared every last Lil Spider eventually.
"Bayan! Adan!"
At my call, Bayan and Adan stepped forward.
"Yes, sir."
"We're advancing into Zabol Fortress right now. Prepare to move."
"Understood."
I led Bayan and Adan's units straight into Zabol Fortress. The first force to breach the walls was the Armored Magic Car platoon. They rumbled through the fortress on their eight wheels, scouring every corner with a roar.
Following behind, the cavalry and Magic Car units mopped up any Lil Spiders the armored cars missed, systematically seizing control of the fortress.
"Hey! Come on in, everyone!"
Najir's men popped out from buildings to greet us. Having been cooped up underground for months, they must've been starved for company.
Soon enough, the Lil Spiders inside were eradicated, and all the gates were sealed tight. It was the moment we reclaimed Zabol Fortress after it'd been in enemy hands for over two months.
The soldiers erupted in cheers, celebrating the day's victory.
"My lord!"
Najir emerged from the underground shelter and approached me. I fixed him with a stern glare.
"Najir. Didn't I tell you before to fight safely from inside the buildings?"
He scratched his head sheepishly.
"Sorry. My men had been stuck underground and indoors for so long—they were dying to get outside."
"Even so. A commander should always aim for maximum efficiency with minimum casualties. You could've waited it out and cleared the monsters safely. No need to take unnecessary risks."
Najir slumped, deflated.
"Sorry."
"Still, overall, you did well. Thanks to you, we got detailed intel on the main Lil Spider horde's movements, and your intercepts eased our numerical burden considerably. That's a major contribution, so expect rewards once this is wrapped up."
I ended on a note of praise.
Najir's unit had racked up kills via guerrilla strikes through underground passages while holding Zabol Fortress, and they'd relayed real-time updates on the horde passing through. They'd earned their commendation.
"Thank you, sir."
"Alright, let's head inside. We need to talk."
"Yes, sir."
After that, I took only Bayan and Najir into the fortress command building for a quick strategy session.
Najir posed the question.
"By the way, where are the foreign allied forces and the Central Church reinforcements?"
"They're holding Crete Fortress right now."
I was still keeping a large garrison at Crete Fortress.
We'd taken out roughly 1.2 to 1.3 million in this battle. By my estimate, the Lil Spiders still had nearly half their strength left.
That's why I couldn't bring my entire army here to Zabol Fortress.
Gathering everything in a supply-strapped Zabol only to get hit by a massive Lil Spider assault would be disastrous.
And Crete Fortress was our rear base for Zabol. Leaving it empty could sever our supply lines if they struck there.
"So what's the plan going forward, sir?"
"Hmm. Why don't you two figure it out? What do you think we should do next?"
They looked a bit flustered at my question.
"Pardon?"
"You two handle the rest. How long are you gonna lean on me?"
"But there are still tons of Lil Spiders left, right?"
"They're just dogs with their tails between their legs now. Once they retreat, they won't launch the same all-out assaults. You can manage without me."
Najir and Bayan widened their eyes.
"Just us? Then what about you, my lord?"
"I've put out the urgent fires. Time for me to head back—I'm a busy guy, you know."
I planned to leave the cleanup to Bayan and Najir. It was their job anyway, and we'd finished testing the new anti-monster weapons.
Besides, they needed to grow as commanders. When the age of ruin hit, they'd have to lead on the front lines too. Everyone would need to fight together then.
"So, what's your call?"
Bayan rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"For now, I'd say we play defense."
Najir nodded in agreement.
"Agreed. With so many still out there, better to whittle them down steadily with Levitation Boats than risk an overambitious offensive."
I shared their view.
The Lil Spiders were still numerous. Better to fortify the fortress and defend than push aggressively.
Sure, it'd delay Jores Island development a bit, but nothing major.
This southwest region of Jores Island was relatively safe from the aerial monster swarms of the ruinous age anyway. Our plans so far were just building a monster-hunting stronghold and a small port for construction materials.
"And?"
Bayan spoke up.
"We need to hunt down the Spider Queen."
"Right on. Taking her out ends this extermination op. As long as she lives, Lil Spiders will keep spawning."
Najir added,
"And we have to make sure no Chaos Pieces or Essence fall into their hands."
Monsters pop up indiscriminately across the world, but once established, they need Chaos Pieces or Essence from their origins to multiply.
Block that at the source, and Lil Spiders can't breed.
"How?"
"Hunt down any other monsters we spot, and be extra careful not to let our Essence get to them."
Bayan nodded too.
We had massive Essence reserves. If those went to the Lil Spiders, their numbers would explode geometrically.
It'd take time to rebuild to full strength, but caution cost us nothing.
"Exactly. So don't lose if you can help it. And if defeat looks likely, fall back to the underground shelters fast. That way, our Essence stays out of their claws."
"Yes, sir."
I summed up.
"Anyway, snag the Spider Queen, and it's over. The rest can't reproduce."
"Understood."
I glanced between Najir and Bayan.
"Oh, and one more thing. Learn to drive when you get downtime."
"Magic Cars, sir?"
"Yeah. Turns out Armored Magic Cars are pretty damn useful. I'm reorganizing your units into mechanized infantry soon, so practice driving between defenses here at Zabol. Train your men too. Got it?"
"Yes, sir!"
An Armored Magic Car seats ten including the driver and is hefty with all that iron plating.
Each needs six top-grade Essence.
To mount Bayan and Najir's combined six thousand-plus troops would require over six hundred vehicles—about four thousand top-grade Essence, roughly.
A massive investment, but worth it. Mechanized infantry would shine in the age of ruin.
"Hey! What took you so long?!"
Hubeo burst into the meeting room, fuming. He was trembling with rage, snorting like a bull even with me right there.
"What's your deal now?"
"The... graduation..."
"Huh?"
"Graduation's over! The Imperial Noble Academy ceremony!"
I rolled my eyes.
The Imperial Noble Academy graduation is early spring. By the date, it'd been about two weeks. Meaning Hubeo's crush had graduated, returned to her estate, and their chances of meeting were now remote.
Needless to say, he'd missed his prime confession window.
Yeah, I'd screwed over my one friend, but my mind jumped elsewhere first.
"Shit, I forgot!"
Hubeo glared daggers.
"Tch. At least you're sorry?"
I waved it off, rubbing my forehead.
"Not that."
"Then what?"
"The third anniversary."
My stomach started cramping. The neuralgia that hit every year around this time since my regression three years ago.
Five years until the age of ruin.
"Huh? Third anniversary of what? Our graduation?"
"Urk. Yeah, something like that... or not?"
Mid-yell, a thought flashed through my mind. I blinked rapidly. The cramps vanished, energy surged.
On second thought, no need to dread the ruinous age in five years.
Why? History was likely changing.
'Yeah, as long as Sis's friend stays safe, we're good for a while.'
If Sabondia doesn't get caught, her huge Essence stash won't go to Chronos, delaying God's Descent massively. If her plan succeeds, the world-ending god won't arrive for decades.
No need for annual gut aches anymore. I was living in a future even I, who'd seen it, didn't know.
"Ah, right. Even I don't know what's next."
Hubeo sidled closer.
"Dude, what's with you?"
Grinning ear-to-ear, I slung an arm around his shoulders.
"You'll see. Good news for me, you, and all humanity."
"Huh?"
"Don't worry about it. Heh. Anyway, no need to mope over missing graduation. Plenty of other chances."
"Other chances? When?"
I beamed.
"Saint Prosia Day."
"Oh! Right!"
Hubeo finally got it and clapped delightedly.
Saint Prosia Day draws all newly adult noble kids across Prosia Continent to Divinum Cathedral. To become Guardians.
And Hubeo's girl had just turned adult with graduation. High odds she'd show at the cathedral for Saint Prosia Day.
I patted his back.
"I'll tag along and cheer you on. Give it your best shot."
His gaze turned wary, radiating doubt.
"Why would you come?"
"Just 'cause."
My sly look made him protest vehemently.
"No way! Don't come. You absolutely can't."
"Why not?"
"You gotta exterminate Lil Spiders here! How dare you ditch?"
"It's fine. I was gonna hand off to Najir and Bayan here and head back to Kara anyway."
"Then go to Kara."
I shook my head.
"Nah. Got sudden business at Divinum Cathedral."
"What business do you have there?"
"Gotta see Lord Izenberg. Thank the Central Church for sending troops, discuss parts of the Jores Island plan. Come to think of it, tons to cover."
Hubeo scowled fiercely.
"You bastard!"
"Official duties. Not personal."
Unable to argue, he just grimaced. Fair enough—no grounds to block me if it was "official."
"But promise no funny business?"
"Hey, buddy. I'm swamped. Barely enough time for work as is."
"For real?"
"Yup."
Hubeo relaxed.
"Fine. I trust you then."
"Yeah. Trust me. I won't do a thing."
I gave anxious Hubeo a warm smile.
Did he have any idea? My noble sacrifice, volunteering gratis to support my friend's love from the shadows. I'd back Hubeo's romance logistically this time.
'Hubeo, you punk. Don't cry thanking me later.'
Now entering the third year. But the future history... even I don't know it.