The Bombardment Begins
The airplane carrying a hundred royal knights soared through the sky.
A hundred knights rode in the squadron, dyed crimson by the glow of sunset.
Kim Hwang-je, a man who had never owned even a single private car, had become a man with his own fleet of aircraft.
“Life really can turn on a dime.”
Kim Hwang-je had been staring blankly at his status window before he suddenly snapped back to reality.
This was no time to be lost in admiration.
Up ahead, a supporter sat fidgeting his fingers with visible anxiety.
He still didn’t know the man’s name.
He was one of Cho Jong-hyun’s subordinates—a hulking brute of a man.
“Supporter.”
“Yes, Your Majesty Kim Hwang-je.”
“Everything ready?”
“Yes, sir. Right this way.”
The supporter led Kim Hwang-je to the yard.
There, dozens of 40-foot containers, each over twelve meters long, were stacked high.
Some time ago, Kim Hwang-je had demanded special weapons designed to counter silicon-based lifeforms.
He had told them to gather as many as humanly possible.
“It took a tremendous amount of effort. We scraped together every last bit of inventory the group had.”
“Excellent.”
Kim Hwang-je clicked his tongue in awe at the sight of the towering stack of 40-foot containers.
Clang.
He stepped forward and opened one of the containers.
Inside the box that stretched well over twelve meters in length were wooden crates packed tightly together, each stamped with the word DNAGER in red letters.
When he pried open one of the wooden crates, it was filled to the brim with black orbs slightly larger than grenades—each about the size of two fists.
“These are the mines?”
“Correct. Anti-silicon monster mines.”
Technically they were mines because they detonated in the sea, but when dropped from the sky they were simply bombs.
“What’s inside them and how do they work?”
“They have a detonator. When impacted, they explode. The explosion itself isn’t particularly powerful, but the fine particles seep into the skin and react with the alcohol in silicon lifeforms’ blood to produce hydrogen gas.”
“So then…”
“Yes. The hydrogen concentration in their bloodstream skyrockets, leading to total annihilation.”
Chilling.
Kim Hwang-je closed the container door again and transferred one entire unit into his trade window to test it.
The whole container vanished with a whoosh.
Having seen the sight many times before, the supporter didn’t seem particularly surprised.
“Alright. Let’s start the fireworks show.”
Finally, the sun had set.
Instead of the beautiful sunset, a cold moonlight now blanketed the world.
The royal castle was no longer visible.
All that remained were the stars embroidered across the pitch-black night and a lonely island standing defiant against the crashing waves.
Beyond that lay an endless, abyssal forest, and past the forest, lurking in the darkness…
Nothing but the detestable enemy fortress.
“Dear passenger. Engines shutting down. Proceeding with inertial glide.”
Yangcheol the golem spoke, then cut the engines.
Rattle.
Click.
The propellers stopped spinning.
Only the soft sound of wind remained.
“We’re almost there.”
Gemini wiped her sweat-slicked hands on her robe as she stared out the window.
The AN-2 had completely shut off its engines and begun gliding.
Just like the tactics used by North Korean special forces, the fifty biplanes carrying the knight order drifted silently through the air.
Every engine had been killed.
Yet only Dave’s heart pounded as if it might burst.
“Your scent is growing stronger. Are you afraid?”
In the dark cabin, a pair of glowing reptilian eyes scanned Dave and Gemini.
Gemini gripped her staff tightly without answering, but Dave’s eyes shone with intensity.
“Afraid? No. My heart races with joy. The time has come to drive a sword into the enemy’s heart. How could I not be delighted?”
“Heh heh… One day, when the opportunity arises, I’d like to hear your story as well.”
“Very well. Though I doubt today’s events will require much explanation.”
Dave smiled.
At that moment, a glowing scroll appeared before him.
Several wooden crates stamped with DNAGER spilled out onto the floor.
“It has finally arrived.”
Dave twisted the lid off one of the crates with raw strength.
Shards of splintered wood flew everywhere and dust rose into the air, but no one complained.
They were all holding their breath at the sight of the black orbs packed inside the box.
“So… these are the…”
Dave picked up one of the orbs.
“Open the door.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
When the knight opened the door, a ferocious wind rushed inside.
One knight stood at the doorway holding a heavy crate while another prepared to deliver the next.
Dave stood beside him and looked down.
“Sir Mir. Can you see that fortress?”
The Demon King’s stronghold.
Look at that towering citadel wrapped in the ominous glow of green quartz.
The walls and ceilings were adorned with grotesque, hideous statues of monsters so horrific that no human could bear to look at them for long.
Quartz monsters from another realm stood everywhere—whether sleeping or dead, it was impossible to tell.
“Yes, Your Highness. Those are quartz gargoyles and flame devils of the green blaze. They appear to be dormant…”
“Devils of the green flame, indeed.”
Though they slept for now, they would soon rise with green fire pouring from their cracked bodies, letting out terrifying shrieks.
“Gemini. Relay my voice.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Gemini held her staff to Dave’s throat like a microphone.
“My soldiers. You too must be seeing the same sight as I. The enemy base is asleep… and they cannot even imagine that lowly humans would dare attack them.”
This was the Demon Realm.
A stronghold the Adel Kingdom had never once assaulted.
The cold wind carried a pungent stench that tickled Dave’s nose.
The metallic smell of blood.
When Dave looked down, he saw countless prisoners bound and left to die.
It was a familiar scene of the apocalypse, common no matter where one went.
Dave stood beside Sir Mir, leaning one arm against the doorframe.
“Knights. I now stand beside Sir Mir. His son Hans died protecting me during the evacuation of the Batipher territory.”
Sir Mir, standing at his side, replied.
“My son would consider it an honor, Your Highness. How could a father and son not rejoice at the chance to die serving the same king?”
“I’m grateful you see it that way. But I cannot forget that day. I still remember the exact number of sighs I let out that night.”
Thud.
Dave gently rapped the airplane wall with his gauntlet.
“However, my knights. My memory is not born of regret. I do not feel shame for your sacrifices. You fought and died for me, and I shall fight and die for the people. That is the code of chivalry we have upheld. Is it not?”
“It is, Your Highness.”
“Well spoken, Your Highness.”
Communications poured in from all directions.
“But we have one joy today! The master of the fortress we are about to attack is none other than Hans’s mortal enemy—the demon Zakturus! The hour of vengeance has come!”
“Uwooo! Uwooo! Uwooo!”
“The moment we pass over the enemy fortress, wait for my signal and unload everything! Show them the taste of His Majesty’s wrath!”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
“Long live the Adel Kingdom!”
“Long live His Imperial Majesty!”
“Death to the demon race!”
Amid the rising fervor of the communications, the AN-2 squadron finally drew dangerously close to the enemy citadel.
“Open the doors!”
Rattle—!
Not only here, but every one of the fifty-plus AN-2s opened their doors simultaneously.
One knight stood at each doorway holding a crate while another prepared to deliver the next load.
“Do not wait for my signal! His Majesty will soon cut off the enemy’s escape route!”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
Kiiiiiiing!
A magical alarm rang out.
“Uwooooooo!”
“Awaken! Rise! The enemy has come!”
The entire citadel woke with a clamor.
Magical eyes seeped out from the walls and opened. Gargoyles awakened. Blue-black flames ignited across the bodies of the sleeping quartz giants.
“We’ve been spotted! Should we fire?!”
The knights shouted.
“No! Wait for His Majesty’s signal!”
The gargoyles woke first and began flapping their wings.
As they rose into the air,
Green flame giants poured out from every corner of the base, seizing enormous bows and weapons.
Their bows were the size of zelkova trees, and the arrows they fired were larger than well-forged spears.
When they loosed flaming magical arrows into the sky, the entire citadel’s airspace lit up at once.
“Evasive maneuvers! Evasive maneuvers!”
Yangcheol screamed.
Several AN-2s were grazed by arrows and caught fire.
“Aaaargh! We’re burning!”
“Gemini!”
“Yes, Your Majesty. I’ll retrieve them with teleportation.”
Gemini teleported into the falling aircraft and rescued her subordinates.
Oooooooong—!
Then, without the slightest warning, an enormous scroll appeared beneath the flight formation.
It was the largest scroll Dave had ever seen.
“It’s His Majesty’s signal! Drop them!”
Dave roared at the top of his lungs.
“Taste the sand!”
Kim Hwang-je also shouted.
He stood before the Bone Mountain.
With both hands thrust forward like a human rock crusher, he hurled every rock, clump of dirt, and tree he could grab toward the enemy fortress.
“Haaaaap!”
Several thousand tons per second.
Kim Hwang-je was literally dumping an entire mountain onto the enemy stronghold.
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwaaang!
The arrows and magic fired by the enemy exploded in midair as they collided with the falling rocks and sand.
The descending boulders tore through the wings and heads of gargoyles desperately trying to flap away.
The corpses of gargoyles, shattered rocks, and broken arrows tumbled down together in a chaotic storm.
When rock fragments slammed into the citadel’s magical barrier, white sparks burst forth and shockwaves lit up the ground.
“Uwaaaaaaaaaah!”
Kim Hwang-je screamed as he read the message [The weight limit of the Trade Window has been exceeded. 100 million won is being consumed per second.].
But the effect was tremendous.
Massive boulders were crashing directly onto the fortress!
For a moment the pure white magical barrier seemed to hold, but it ultimately could not withstand the sheer mass and shattered.
Crash!
Watching the incredible roar, Nax burst into loud laughter.
“Puhahahahaha! The barrier is breaking. Good. Very good! Prince! Your power is truly astonishing! King, you have seized the perfect opportunity!”
At that moment, the squadron finally broke through above the citadel!
“The barrier has been destroyed!”
“Unload everything!”
“Pour it all out! Dump it all!”
Rumble-rumble-rumble-rumble!
Into the pitch-black night sky that flowed like dark silk, countless bean-sized black objects poured down like snow.
They fell silently onto the citadel and finally detonated.
Kwa-kwaang!
The explosions were nothing compared to the rocks and boulders.
In fact, the citadel was so engulfed by the storm of falling stones that the blasts were barely audible.
The buildings didn’t even have a scratch, and naturally the demons didn’t feel the slightest itch.
But from within those explosions, an unidentified white powder burst out.
Before long, it looked as if a blizzard had completely covered the entire citadel.
“Grrrrk!”
“Uwaaaaaaaaaaagh!”
The quartz demons burning with green flames began screaming from every direction.
Those who had ignored boulders smashing into their heads now stared in horror at the white vapor leaking from every pore of their bodies.
“This can’t be…!”
The ones holding bows were the first to drop their weapons as their arms began to split apart with loud cracking sounds.
Other demons watched in terror as the hands that had been gripping their weapons slowly split open and fell off.
“The effect is excellent!”
“Keep throwing them!”
The knights cheered.
Thanks to Kim Hwang-je having loaded each plane to the brim, there were still plenty of mines left.
“You filthy, worthless inferior species!”
Finally, unable to endure any longer, the enemy monarch revealed himself.
A storm of wind and flames erupted as the castle split apart.
A colossal demon emerged from within the fortress.
Its skull head burned with red flames.
A barrier of fire poured from its head and wrapped around its entire body.
Thanks to that, no chemical substance could penetrate its form.
“Zakturus!”
Dave trembled.
“Krrrrrruhuhuhahaha!”
Zakturus swung a whip of flame forged from burning souls.
The whip stretched freely and swept across several AN-2s in the air.
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwaang!
Multiple planes exploded and plummeted.
Amid the hellish chaos, Dave shouted loudly.
“Retreat for now! Once the poison settles, we will reform ranks and begin the raid!”
Zakturus’s overwhelming gaze looked up at Dave.
In the battlefield where flames and boulders rained down, the eyes of two monarchs met.