Catastrophe of the Imperial Palace (3)
A little while earlier, right after the explosion rocked Creim Palace. Outside the palace.
“Cough.”
The moment Wolrang was reverse-summoned, Tiny snapped awake. As soon as his senses returned to normal, he tried to charge straight into the palace. He had already pushed himself too far, but...
Inside that barrier, the only ones who can properly wield their power are me, the Sword Emperor, and Jenas. I have to go.
He figured the Sword Emperor was thinking the same thing and started looking for him—only to be met with an unexpected sight.
“If you’re awake, go to your father. He told us to guard you while you stood there blankly with your eyes closed.”
The Valentia knights and the triplet brothers surrounding him protectively made sense enough. But...
“Are you all insane!?”
The Sword Emperor bellowing in fury, blocked by knights ahead of him. Tiny’s irritation boiled over the instant he saw them—knights clad in golden dragon-emblazoned armor, the imperial symbol, barring the Sword Emperor’s path.
“Guarding the imperial palace is our duty!”
“The Valentia family, stand down for now!”
“Even Duke Valentia himself can’t enter!”
The imperial palace knights spouting nonsense, blocking the Sword Emperor and Valentia knights. And even more absurd: the Sword Emperor was actually held back by their ridiculous words.
Why the hell are you just standing there, old man?
Red aura rippled menacingly along his drawn sword, threatening the knights, but he couldn’t bring himself to swing. The trembling blade revealed his inner turmoil, but Tiny could only grimace.
As expected... he’s different.
The Sword Emperor he knew wouldn’t hesitate in a situation like this. That cool-headed, decisive man agonizing now? The Valentia knights floundering in confusion were the same.
“...What the hell is this?”
Tiny scowled, drawing his Stamp as he approached them. The link had strained him, but this much is fine. He’d endured multiple overbounds back in Carun—he knew his limits. And right now...
Wooong.
His Mana Body was voraciously absorbing mana, recharging his strength at a breakneck pace.
“Huuuup.”
Tiny took a deep breath, checked his body’s condition, and gripped the Stamp tightly.
“...Sir Toren?”
“Wh-what are you...?”
“You can’t step in now!”
The knights beside the Sword Emperor paled as Tiny headed straight for him, but he ignored them. Focusing solely on recovery, he thought: He’d been different from the start compared to what he remembered, but this was a real letdown. A younger Sword Emperor from his past life, yet even more passive?
Well, he had a hunch why.
That whole ‘honor and justification’ bullshit again.
He got called an idiot for it constantly, but of all the smart noble crap he couldn’t wrap his head around, the old man’s obsession with ‘upholding principles’ took the cake.
—It might seem foolish now, but from a broader view, upholding justification is right.
All the sages he’d met in his past life said as much, so it was probably true. And with his own experience now, he saw new angles. He could guess how things going wrong here might brand it rebellion, wiping out House Valentia entirely.
But.
That’s looking too far ahead.
The classic smart-guy mistake: obsessing over consequences and botching the immediate problem.
In that sense, the past-life Sword Emperor was definitely different...
The current one seemed immature not just in power, but mentally too.
Yeah, we need to talk about this.
Even from his ignorant perspective, one thing was clear. Sometimes—at least sometimes—
“You gotta ignore that justification crap in emergencies.”
Muttering his resolve, Tiny approached the Sword Emperor amid the knights’ scuffle.
“...If you’re gonna protect her, get inside the palace now! What are you doing h— Tiny?”
Tiny brushed past the excited Sword Emperor—who’d forgotten his alias—and stepped closer to the imperial knight staring at him.
“What? Didn’t you hear me? Stand down, Valentia knight!”
Shring.
The knight drew his sword convincingly enough, but it lacked substance.
Captain’s just an Expert? Imperial knights are pathetic. Wait, blocking an Aura User... not total trash?
Tiny smirked inwardly at the absurdity, and the knight leveled his blade.
“I said stand down!”
“Bullshit.”
“What?”
Right then, his strength fully recovered. Muscles bulging, he gripped the Stamp’s handle tight—and swung the hammer like lightning.
Kwaaaaaang!
The imperial captain scattered into chunks without a scream. As everyone froze, time seemingly halted, staring in shock—
“What are you waiting for!? Save the lady!! Kill anyone in the way!!”
With Tiny’s roar, the Valentia knights’ mood shifted.
“Waaaaah!”
“Save Lady Cloi!”
“Kill!”
While the Sword Emperor and his sons stood stunned, the knights surged first.
“B-block them!”
“Don’t let them in!”
“Captain’s orders! Hold the line!”
The two sides clashed fiercely, weapons drawn.
Then, someone’s frozen time thawed late.
“Hah... am I getting old...?”
Shring.
The Sword Emperor finally moved, staring blankly at Tiny wildly swinging his hammer.
And soon—
Paaaaang.
His sword swung, red aura whirling to bisect the blocking imperial knights in an instant.
“Kill them all! Save my daughter!”
“Waaaaah!”
Valentia morale soared, crushing the imperial knights one-sidedly—
“Rear flank!”
“Something’s coming!”
Valentia knights in the back suddenly shouted. Tiny, smashing imperial knights upfront, glanced back to see countless black shadows blotting the sky.
Familiar forms he’d seen before.
“...Demonic beasts!?”
Humanoid monsters with bat wings, like those during Carun’s holy barrier defense. Over a thousand swarming toward the palace.
Even inside Carun’s barrier, they’d spawned from black orbs before taking hits. Undetectable to Tiny or Wolrang before forming.
Even if lacking souls let them evade Wolrang’s senses...
Their fearsome combat power was the real issue. A thousand at that level? Catastrophic.
His face hardened in despair—
“Kieeeek!”
Dozens leading the swarm melted entering 500m of him.
“...Close call.”
Weaker than Carun’s, apparently. Melting against relic barriers meant the palace’s stronger one would—
“Huh?!”
—Aaack!
—Monsters!
Screams rang out. Outside his relic barrier, beasts slaughtered knights freely. His brow furrowed.
The palace barrier? Just a rumor?
Whatever’s going on...
If those things were inside now? Trusting Jenas aside, urgency gripped him.
“Damn it, old man! No time to kill these—break the wall first!”
“Who’re you calling old—damn it!!”
The Sword Emperor, irked mid-massacre, paled at Tiny’s pointed direction.
“Valentia knights, finish the imperial ones! Tiny, you...!”
Forgetting aliases in panic, he bellowed. But Tiny was already at the palace wall before he finished. Upper section shattered, light leaking through. And beyond, the relic barrier reacting repeatedly to someone.
Cloi...! Close!
So he’d smash in. The moment he resolved—
“The palace barrier’s intact—no way you break it alone! Don’t waste strength, wait! This commotion’ll bring Grid soon!”
The Sword Emperor shouted, slicing clinging knights like paper.
Weapon Master... yeah, he’ll come for our deal. But...
Tiny ignored him, swarmed by knights. No need to wait.
“Huuuup!”
Muscles swelled, maxing physical power.
Kuuung. Craaaack.
Max gravity made his heavy frame 16x heavier, cracking the ground.
“Hah!”
Roaring, shrunken muscles contracted. Now 1/16th gravity launched his ultra-light body like a spring, hammer swinging.
Sunset aura blazed on the head like flames. In a microsecond, gravity maxed again.
Tiny-style combat form 1: Thunderbolt Drop.
Kwaaaaaang!!
True to form, it pulverized the wall in massive explosion.
“Kuhahaha! How’s that, old man!!”
Grinning cockily at the Sword Emperor, Tiny entered—facing two beasts glaring with clear hostility. Stronger than the city swarm, sensing near Challenger-grade.
Stunned by the unimaginable foes, but Cloi beyond was safe.
Good.
Not too late. Feigning calm with a smirk—
“Hammers are best for smashi—.”
“Daughter!!”
“...Guh!?”
A stinging blow to his nape nearly face-planted him.
“Daddy’s here!”
“What the—!?”
Tiny, unwittingly a stepping stone, yelled as—
Craaaaaack.
Red aura filled vision, cleaving both beasts’ waists instantly. No easy feat for a 6th-stage Aura User against such monsters.
But knowing the technique, Tiny gaped mid-yell.
Severing.
Sword Emperor’s most offense-focused secret. Knowing its power made it more absurd.
“Why go that far...”
With unknowns ahead, wasting it on mid-tiers? Must be for Cloi—his daughter.
And he got his reward: Cloi, ever proper publicly, shrieked joyfully and ran. Princes and princesses sighed relief, collapsing.
Pale-faced Sword Emperor spread arms to her—
A black blade protruded from behind.
It grazed his ducked neck.
“Ambush!”
Shouts erupted as shadow blades swarmed.
Ching ching ching!
Multiple ambushers; Sword Emperor vanished in shadow storm.
“Daddy!!!?”
“Get back, Cloi!”
Red aura flared, repelling shadows. A masked figure spewing blood from seven orifices dropped from thin air, silent.
One from that strike!?
Tiny, reflexively charging, widened eyes in shock—then sensed sharp intent behind.
Ducking mid-stride, spinning half-turn, he swung at the rear attacker.
Kwaaaaaang!
Full-force despite surprise. But the flung shadow recovered, vanishing into the storm unscathed.
Stunned, Tiny maxed senses again.
Damn it, this is...
Reassessing, he cursed inwardly. He’d been late spotting the human-formed shadow storm.
“It’s a Combined Strike Formation, old man!”
Bang!
Repelling another, he staggered back. Far stronger than before.
Readjusted power distribution!? Damn!
Not ordinary group tactics. Rare Eastern secret using special mana flows at key spots to amplify multiple fighters exponentially. Tricky conditions, but devastating if pulled off.
Should mean nothing to superhumans dominating mana—but.
Goddamn palace barrier!
The formation manipulated it, pressuring him and Sword Emperor. Useless against beasts, but aiding them.
“You filthy bastards!”
Bang.
Red aura stirred at storm center—not at foes, but outward: knocking blades targeting Cloi, fallen Jenas, Vivian.
Then—
“Hraaap!”
Sword Emperor burst out, repelling shadows, scooped Cloi, dashed to Jenas and Vivian.
Understandable protectiveness, but.
Leave that to me—kill more in the gap!
Exposing weakness to enemies? Flow ruined.
“Rot!!!”
Bang.
With Sword Emperor defensive—
I’ll attack.
Repelling shadows, Tiny amplified senses for formation flaws. Then noticed oddity.
Why ignore the princes?
Absurdly late realization. The barrier-using formation felt familiar.
Bang!
Hammer at one; it parried with dagger, fluidly deflecting. Conviction solidified.
No way... not demon worshipper allies, but...?
Chilling thought flashed; scanning princes amid blocks—
Bang!
“What the—!?”
Behind stunned princes, imperial knights crept closer. Ill-intent clear. Urgency aside, it doused his inspiration.
Aren’t they imperial? What the hell’s going on?
Baffling to Tiny, ignorant of palace intrigue. Chaos mounted.
Then—
Kwaaaaaang!
Massive blast from palace core.
“Damn, central palace!? Tiny! Protect His Majesty just in case! You’re all we’ve got! Goddamn Grid, where—!”
Sword Emperor’s shout shook Tiny’s confused eyes more.
The Emperor? Now!?
He had the relic, saved Cloi. Guarding crown prince too averts worst—
Bang!
“Damn, what the hell...!?”
Too convoluted. Shaking head in turmoil, shadows exploited hesitation.
Kwakwakwang!
“It gives us justification for massacring imperial knights! Go!”
Sword Emperor’s voice boomed from red aura storm.