Chapter 217

Posted by Kuze, ? Views, Released on January 22, 2025

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“Things got crazier than I thought.”

After the footage saved in the crystal was released, the attendees of the meeting were all pale-faced and fumbled with their words.

“Th-there are so many monsters…”

“So all the monsters from the Eastern Jungle came out at once?”

But it was still too early to freak out.

As the magic barrier that had cracked for some time finally fell, a myriad of arms suddenly shot up from the ground.

「Grrrk! Grrrgh!」

「KAAAAAAAH!」

Rotting arms and legs.

Wails filled with pain.

There were enemies beyond the monsters Luca mentioned.

Indeed, they were the undead. With an army of over a thousand immortals, they used the monsters as a shield and rushed toward the fortress, breaching the walls in no time.

「AAAHHH!」

「Damn it! Lambert got bitten!」

「Fall back! Quickly!」

In the chaotic battlefield filled with screams and curses.

Soon after, the curse spread, and the casualties turned into undead, darkening the situation drastically.

Just as even the last line of defense was about to collapse.

Someone called out Luca’s name.

「Sergeant Cedric!」

It was the commander, a captain in charge of the border fortress and leader of the magic battalion.

「Take this to Plume!」

「C-Commander?!」

「This place is already lost. Inform them that monsters and undead have mixed at Plume, and tell them to fight outside the city if possible!」

「But…!」

「You are the only messenger suited for this! Use acceleration magic until your magic runs dry and head to Plume. Hurry!」

Luca’s magic was attuned to wind and earth.

Among them, he showed exceptional talent in acceleration and flight magic. That’s why he was picked as a messenger, and soon he rode out of the fortress.

「Rebuild the magic barrier!」

「We must buy time before they reach Plume at all costs!」

As Luca left the fortress, a thunderous roar echoed, and the magic barrier encircled the entire area of the fortress, trying to trap the monsters and undead inside.

However, not all could be trapped, and the monsters outside the barrier chased after the fleeing Luca, heading south.

After the recorded footage ended, a heavy silence enveloped the conference room.

It was clear that the current situation was more serious than originally thought.

“They’re moving in tandem, the monsters and the undead.”

“Is it really the work of the Desert Order?”

With the Gate of the Abyss not yet opened, only the Desert Order could control both monsters and undead at the same time. But what mattered now wasn’t guessing the enemy’s identity.

“As you can see, fighting near the city carries risk. Therefore, we must forget this point and fight outside the city!”

Luca shouted earnestly.

However, fighting outside the city was also an issue.

They would have to face thousands of monsters and undead without the protection of the walls.

Just then, Delia offered a suggestion.

“How about we abandon the city?”

“What? Plume?”

“Yes, fighting against that number is madness, no matter how you look at it.”

She couldn’t even imagine the enemy being that large. Not to mention, the undead had formidable resistance to magic, making them the worst kind of monster.

So rather than taking on risks, she suggested abandoning the city and moving to the rear to join forces with reinforcements.

“But the refugees amount to thousands.”

“How could we possibly…?”

Even if they abandoned the city and moved to the rear, they would soon be caught up by the enemy. Then Ulan spoke up, looking puzzled.

“Can’t we use the train?”

There was a magic-powered train here.

So, if they loaded the frail elderly, children, and ordinary citizens onto the train and sent them to the rear, wouldn’t that resolve things?

That’s what Ulan thought.

However, Professor Melt shook his head.

“Unfortunately, that’s impossible.”

“Why?”

“There’s no track going to the rear.”

He sighed heavily.

The train tracks were currently set up only near the border, centered around Plume. In other words, there was no track at all in the rear areas.

“Of course, it is possible to lay down magic tracks to advance, but that would require an enormous amount of magic power, making it practically impossible.”

“So there’s only one way left.”

“One way?”

“Leave this place and fight the enemy.”

It was a simple and clear solution.

Ulan drew his axe. But once again, Professor Melt provided a negative response.

“Ugh, that method is also a bit tough.”

“Why?”

“Even if we leave the city, the battle would take place on the plains, and we wouldn’t be able to overcome the numerical disadvantage.”

Plume’s forces numbered only a few hundred.

Meanwhile, the enemy was over a thousand strong. No matter how many masters and high mages were present, the odds of victory were slim.

That’s what Professor Melt thought.

Ulan immediately rebutted.

“The battlefield isn’t the plains.”

“Huh? What do you mean by that…?”

“We fight here.”

Ulan strode confidently, pointing to a map set on one wall of the conference room. The area he indicated was the northern canyon, situated between Plume and the border.

He had discovered this location while coming here on the train and looking at the map.

“Well, if we fight in the canyon…”

“It has a geographical advantage. Unless the monsters use acceleration or flight magic, they would have to climb up through the canyon.”

“But we might not have enough time.”

Suddenly, Owen interjected.

He spoke with a dark expression.

“Though the soldiers at the border fortress are buying time with the magic barrier, it would take more than half a day just to ride to the canyon.”

“Even if we took the train, it would be cutting it really close. How are we going to…?”

As Professor Melt was about to join in, Noa, who had been silent, spoke up.

“I think it’s possible.”

“Huh?”

“As long as we can reach it somehow, there’s no need to move the entire train, right?”

“…!”

As soon as Professor Melt heard those words, he understood what Noa was getting at.

Shortly thereafter, Noa smiled brightly and continued.

“If we combine the first two cars, including the engine room, with three passenger cars to carry the troops, we should just barely arrive on time.”

Summarizing Noa’s suggestion, it would be to lighten the weight of the train as much as possible and conserve magic power used for safety devices to invest all power into speed.

‘Then we can arrive on time.’

Additionally, fighting the undead required a small elite force rather than a large number.

So loading only medium knights and medium mages to go to the battlefield would suffice.

‘Also, there’s magic armor here that’s perfect for facing undead.’

Plume Workshop’s magic armor.

If Ulan donned this and rampaged through the battlefield, the risk of being cursed by the immortals would disappear.

With Laurea not around, it would be the best armor to protect Ulan.

‘And……’

The footage recorded by Luca did not show the Lord of the Immortals and his minions. This meant it was fine to just deal with the monsters and undead.

That would most definitely be enough to secure the odds of victory.

Meanwhile, Melt’s brief moment of hesitation appeared in response to Noa’s answer.

“I-I’m afraid the train might be overstrained! In the worst-case scenario, it might break!”

There was only one magic-powered train.

If it were to break down, it would take a lot of time and resources to restore. Hence, Professor Melt couldn’t make a decision easily.

Just then.

“Professor Melt.”

Noa stared intently at him.

With unwavering blue eyes, she recalled what he had said earlier that morning during the tour.

“This morning, during the train tour, you said that a tool is only as good as the person using it.”

“…!”

Noa’s reminder of Melt’s words regarding the train being used for war struck a chord with him. He seemed to come to a realization and widened his eyes.

After a while.

He slapped his cheeks vigorously.

“…My apologies. I lost my composure for a moment thinking the train could break.”

His cheeks were flushed red.

Professor Melt adjusted his horn-rimmed glasses and then threw an encouraging look.

“Understood. Following Noa’s suggestion, I will utilize only the minimum required passenger cars to transport troops to the canyon.”

“Thank you for making the tough decision.”

Noa politely bowed her head.

After that, the participants of the meeting quickly agreed with Noa’s opinion and began preparations. They were gearing up to move to the canyon and face the army of the immortals.

Meanwhile, at that moment.

In the outskirts of the Seron Kingdom, in the commercial city of Murka.

True to its reputation as a bustling trade city, two shabby-looking men made their way in.

They were equipped with appropriately sized backpacks and swords.

As they waited for their turn to enter the city, finally their chance came.

“Next!”

“I need to check your identification documents.”

Upon the guards’ request, the two men willingly handed over their identification badges. As the guard received them, his eyes widened in surprise.

“This is…”

An identification badge carved from ivory-colored mineral.

It looked distinctly different from ordinary identification badges. But the reason for his shock was something else altogether.

The two men’s identities were none other than knights from the Holy Nation. Specifically, Ian Marcus and Kadel Dun Shanktus, operating under a secret mission.

“Yes, I’ve verified it.”

“Welcome to Murka.”

After confirming their identities, the guards greeted them politely. Then, they delivered a rather significant message.

“The mayor is waiting for you two.”

“…What?”

Ian asked back, his expression in disbelief.

It was only natural. There was absolutely no reason for the mayor of Murka to be waiting for him and Kadel. Moreover, they hadn’t even notified anyone of their visit.

Kadel also questioned with a puzzled look.

“You knew we were coming?”

“Yes. Your companions came ahead and informed us.”

It was true that they had companions who were here to recover the remains of the priests who lost their lives in the territory of the Endrak Kingdom. However, they had never agreed to meet at the city hall.

As the situation unfolded unexpectedly, the guards continued.

“We’ve brought someone to guide you to the city hall.”

“Just follow this person.”

It seemed that the guide had already arrived.

Ian and Kadel exchanged brief looks and quickly made the same judgment.

For now, they would follow what they said.

“Then please wait a moment.”

Shortly thereafter.

Upon reaching their destination, the guide immediately left the reception room. After a while, a new presence was felt.

Then came the sound of a door opening, followed by a boisterous laugh that filled their ears.

“Ha ha, welcome.”

A middle-aged man of large stature.

Clad in luxurious silks, he introduced himself as the mayor of Murka. He then continued speaking with a polite tone.

“Thank you for coming such a long way. You must be tired, so we’ll first get you settled in a room to rest…”

“But I would like to see my companions first.”

“Ah, you needn’t worry about that. I’ve already informed them of your arrival, so they’ll be here soon.”

The mayor was incredibly cooperative.

He was also rather kind. In fact, he was almost excessively bright-eyed.

Why the sudden friendliness?

Feeling bewildered, Ian pondered this when the mayor continued speaking.

“By the way, I was quite surprised.”

The mayor chuckled and laughed.

At that moment, the reason for the mayor’s overly friendly demeanor was revealed.

“I never imagined that the Holy Nation would send a subjugation team, especially since monsters have been rampant in the border regions.”

“…A subjugation team?”

“I’ve heard the situation in Shulfern has not been good lately, but with your arrival, I can finally breathe a sigh of relief.”

The mayor’s expression melted with relief.

Meanwhile, Ian and Kadel were bewildered.

It was only natural.

After all, they were supposed to meet mere personnel to recover the remains and the soldiers who would escort them.

“Ah, I’ve heard that your companions have arrived. They are on their way here now.”

As the mayor spoke, a multitude of presences could be felt coming from the corridor beyond the reception room. Ian and Kadel narrowed their eyes, looking toward the entrance.

They wanted to see who was coming.

Moments later, the door opened.

「…!」

At the same time, Kadel’s eyes widened.

It was not just him.

Ian’s eyes also went wide with shock as unexpected figures appeared one after another.

“Greetings, Lord Shanktus.”

“Have you been well?”

The first to appear were two men.

Knights clad in white armor. And in stark contrast, a man dressed in black priest’s robes.

Kadel asked, astonished, “Wait, why are you here…?”

Their identities were the respective leaders of the Eloden First Knight Division and the Inquisition Officer.