Chapter 206: Bloody Battle
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 206: Bloody Battle
Within the images projected by Teacher Mela, a silent black tide swept toward the outskirts of Shadow City—the dark reflection of Belland, forged from the authority of an Evil God. This unimaginably cruel "war" had already reached its fever pitch.
An eerie, mournful mist hung heavy in the air. Upon the black ocean, hundreds of massive, hideous Moon Beasts advanced slowly but resolutely toward the steel bastion, guided by the ghostly blue moonlight.
In front of those behemoths, countless smaller monsters and mindless, low-level snake-men had launched wave after wave of suicidal charges against the fortifications. They were torn to shreds by repeating crossbows, magic, and siege cannons mounted atop the walls. The flowing blood and mangled flesh had turned the coastal waters a deep, visceral red.
Beneath the ramparts, corpses were piled high, and a stench reached the heavens. A black miasma, so thick it was almost tangible, drifted inward, carried by the faint breeze blowing off the sea.
"Heh, those brainless things actually know how to pull a little trick like that?"
Atop the steel wall, someone gave an irreverent whistle. Suddenly, a violent gale surged forth, scattering the black miasma in an instant.
Professor Glen reached out and snatched a wisp of the smoke into his hand. He brought it to his nose, took a light sniff, and raised an eyebrow.
"This poison... it’s interesting. There’s a hint of a familiar scent in here."
His gaze swept across the pitch-black sea, settling on one particularly hideous, giant Moon Beast.
In that moonlit spot, a snake-man—clearly different from the mere fodder—was perched upon the beast’s head. He was tall and burly, with a snake tail as thick as a barrel. His face still retained the features of a handsome man. Noticing Glen’s gaze, his reptilian pupils flickered as he cast a cold, murderous look back.
"I remember... that’s your senior brother, isn't it?"
Beside him, Professor Prang had also spotted the snake-man. His expression was complicated.
"I heard he sought power and threw himself into the Moon’s embrace of his own accord. I didn't expect him to be transformed into a snake-man as well."
"To throw away one's humanity for power, even going so far as to backstab his own teacher?"
Glen’s irreverent expression vanished, his eyes turning uncharacteristically cold.
"And yet, I don't see how he’s any stronger than me, his 'good-for-nothing' junior brother."
"Do you need my help?"
"No need. You stay here and hold the line. Neither he nor I are suited for frontal combat, but because of that, we both know exactly how much impact we can have on the tide of a war."
Glen flicked his sleeve, tossing several crystalline vials into the piles of corpses beneath the wall.
The vials shattered on impact, and the solution inside splashed and spread.
In an instant, the corpses began to hiss and sizzle as if they had been set ablaze.
However, no flames appeared. Instead, a dense white mist billowed upward!
The white mist collided with the black smoke, the two constantly eroding and contaminating each other. Any living creature caught in the crossfire died a swift, agonizing death, their bodies rotting instantly to become part of the expanding clouds of white and black.
A silent battle unfolded. Within minutes, a dead zone had formed outside the walls where no living thing could survive.
"It seems I don't need to worry about this side. However..."
Professor Prang looked up, the gravity in his eyes not fading in the slightest.
"That Moon has truly emptied its coffers for this."
Atop the steel bastion, countless well-trained knight orders, mage corps, and soldiers hurried back and forth. New weapons from the Royal Research Institute were being rolled out one by one, and even the nobles were sparing no expense, unleashing their private "collections."
Under the overwhelming suppression of firepower, the low-level snake-men and smaller Moon Beasts were ground into mincemeat before they could even get close to the walls.
But anyone could see that these were merely fodder used to draw fire.
"No, this won't do."
Prang’s eyes flickered. In war, it was common sense to match general against general and soldier against soldier, but if one remained that inflexible in a situation like this, they would lose miserably.
He was old-fashioned, but he wasn't stupid.
However...
The fodder was too numerous and too widely dispersed. Attacking randomly was inefficient. He had to find a way to cluster them together.
But how? These brainless monsters didn't exactly have a thing for beautiful women.
"Why?! Why me?! I don't even taste good! Why are you all chasing me?!"
While Prang was pondering, he saw a certain Pink Bear sprinting past him.
Behind the bear, several Moon Beasts—who had painstakingly broken through a weak point in the defenses—had actually abandoned their duty of tearing through the line. Instead, they were deathly focused on the bear's wiggling, ridiculous backside.
Seeing that they had nearly left shameful marks on his "perky buttocks"—which he considered sexy and charming—multiple times, the Pink Bear flew into a rage. He whipped out a mace and pounded the stalking creeps into mush. But before he could catch his breath, he realized Professor Prang was looking at him with glowing eyes.
In Prang's hand was a massive hemp rope he had found from god-knows-where.
"Wait... what are you doing?"
"I’m telling you, I’m your Dean! I’m your superior! Watch out or I’ll dock your pay!"
"Yamete! Help! I'm being molested!"
Despite the Pink Bear’s futile struggles, he was tied up securely and lowered from the wall, dangling back and forth like a sweet piece of bait.
In an instant, ear-piercing screeches rang out. Countless low-level snake-men and small Moon Beasts turned their heads, their eyes locking onto the swaying Pink Bear. Like famished wolves, their eyes flashed with the most primitive, violent desire.
Then, they charged recklessly.
Layer upon layer, trampling over the bodies of their comrades, they formed a skin-crawling tide of flesh like a swarm of locusts.
A faint smile played on Professor Prang’s lips.
He gripped his silver cane and tapped it lightly against the floor.
A Brilliant Crown rose above him, and a massive magical construct unfurled behind his back, surging with awe-inspiring mana.
Then, destruction descended!
A blinding beam of light plummeted down, narrowly grazing the Pink Bear’s wiggling butt. The violent magic far surpassed the combined volley of a dozen next-generation magic cannons, instantly incinerating everything in its path!
Under the overwhelming firepower of a Truth-Tier Grand Magister and a Crown Bearer, a full third of the fodder swarming beneath the wall was wiped out in a heartbeat!
The pressure on the ramparts vanished instantly, and many soldiers let out cheers of excitement.
But at that moment, a sudden sense of alarm flared in Prang’s heart.
In the next second—
The billowing dust was torn asunder as a hideous, gargantuan claw slammed onto the wall!
With a screeching sound of rending metal, the steel-forged bastion actually buckled and dented inward!
Prang flickered, reappearing high in the air.
The Pink Bear would be fine, so there was no need to worry about him. But now...
His expression turned grim as he looked up.
Compared to the fodder, the true monsters had made landfall!