Chapter 220

(2)

4.

Ulan’s special Magic Armor.

The moment everyone was shocked at its size, more than double what we saw last time, the Henness team explained the situation.

“What you’re seeing right now is a newly modified model.”

They also shared the reason for the modification.

Basically, Ulan had requested for it to be even bigger. His reasoning was pretty simple.

‘The bigger it is, the easier it’ll be to fight.’

Especially when facing giant monsters.

Plus, if the Magic Armor got huge, there wouldn’t be a need to deal with the Undead Soldiers one by one.

Just stamping on them would suffice.

‘It would’ve been impossible in my past life…but…’

Now, thanks to his contract with Fertisha, Ulan could relatively command spirits freely.

This meant he could fight while completely wrapped in spirits.

‘If the Magic Armor gets bigger, just the impact alone would be enough to crush even the average Undead into dust.’

That’s why he asked for it to be bigger.

After wrapping up his memories.

Ulan looked around the changed Magic Armor. Then, as if remembering something he had forgotten, he asked.

“What about my additional request?”

Just before leaving the flute.

Ulan had approached the Henness team and asked for another two-handed axe to add to his existing one.

This was also for a straightforward reason.

He had gotten used to fighting with an axe in each hand rather than just one.

“Oh, you mean the weapon?”

“We brought it just as you requested.”

Another two-handed axe was prepared behind the Magic Armor. When Ulan noticed it and nodded, a few engineers voiced their concerns.

“But are you sure about this?”

“What do you mean?”

“That weapon.”

“Just one two-handed axe would be quite heavy, and swinging both at the same time…”

His body might not be able to handle it.

That’s because those axes were made while considering Ulan wearing the Magic Armor.

On the other hand, Ulan shook his head.

“I’m fine.”

“We’re just worried.”

“In that case, let me show you.”

“Huh? Show you what…?”

The magic engineers looked puzzled.

Moments later, their faces turned pale as Ulan boldly grabbed both two-handed axes.

“…!?”

“Wait a minute! That’s dangerous!”

“If you lift them without wearing the Magic Armor, you’ll collapse under the weight…”

The engineers hurriedly reached out.

Trying to stop Ulan. But their worries turned out to be unfounded.

“Not bad.”

Ulan moved around holding both two-handed axes. The confined space of the guest room made swinging them impossible, but there wasn’t really a need.

Ulan looked incredibly relaxed.

“Did, did he really lift that?”

“The combined weight of those axes must be close to that of the Magic Armor…”

“What on earth did he do?”

The engineers, dumbfounded, barraged him with questions. Meanwhile, Ulan casually replied.

“I just lifted them.”

“No, how?!”

“Does lifting things require a method?”

Ulan shot back.

As if asking why they were even asking something so obvious.

At this reaction, the engineers sat in silence like they had eaten honey. Just then, Ulan’s muttering made them even more crazy.

“Just a little disappointing.”

“Huh? Disappointing?”

“I wish it were a bit heavier here.”

“…….”

Now, they had no energy left to be surprised.

The engineers laughed in exasperation.

It seemed they just realized how unnaturally strong Ulan was.

After a speedily accepted revelation, some of the engineers excitedly asked in response to Ulan’s muttering.

“Shall we do as you wish?”

“Can you?”

“Yep, we brought extra materials just in case the Magic Armor or weapons got damaged.”

“If it’s just about increasing the weight, we can finish the work before the battle starts.”

“Kindly do so.”

A little while after that.

Once they got news that the work was completed, Ulan and his party returned to the last carriage of the train.

“Please do a final check!”

With the engineers’ words, Ulan, Delia, and Ivella each equipped their Magic Armors.

And the result was.

There wasn’t really any significant issue.

Delia and Ivella were satisfied with their respective Magic Armors, and Ulan’s reaction was not bad either.

“What do you think about the weight of the axe?”

“Just right.”

“Aha, that’s a relief.”

The engineers smiled awkwardly watching Ulan respond casually to the weight, which had increased by more than 1.5 times.

“Still, be careful.”

“Just the weight of the axes alone is already much heavier than the Magic Armor you’re currently wearing.”

“Understood. I’ll keep that in mind.”

Although it probably wouldn’t happen.

Even so, Ulan quietly nodded, feeling their genuine concern in their voices.

At last, when all the checks on the Magic Armor were perfectly wrapped up, a familiar voice suddenly echoed.

“Attention all passengers!”

The voice rang loudly through the carriage.

It was none other than Professor Melt’s shout. He continued his announcement along with the engineers.

“The train will soon arrive at its destination.”

“Please prepare for battle!”

It seemed they had already reached near the canyon.

At the same time, Delia, figuring out their current location, didn’t hesitate to use magic.

“I’ll check it out.”

The 8-star Stellar Magic, Eye of the Star.

This magic boasts the best performance among observation spells.

Creating a giant eye in the sky, it could find any desired being or object in its field of vision.

“Ah, really. We’re almost there.”

With one eye closed, Delia blinked the other. At her words, Ulan curiously asked.

“Where are the enemies? Have they crossed the canyon?”

“No, it seems they haven’t gotten out of the canyon yet. However…”

“But what?”

Delia hesitated for a moment.

Her eyes narrowed.

“…The numbers are low.”

“What does that mean?”

“There aren’t as many as I saw in the footage. Maybe half, or at most, about 30%.”

During the emergency meeting, Sergeant Cedric had shown crystal balls depicting thousands of troops attacking the Northern Border Fortress.

But now, the enemy forces observed through the Eye of the Star didn’t even amount to half that.

“Did they possibly split their forces?”

“But to get to Flute, they would have to cross the canyon anyway.”

Ivella and Noa also added their speculations.

However, they couldn’t just keep on guessing.

The engineers, peering through the front of the train at the scenery beyond the tracks, urgently relayed the situation.

“Monsters and Undead spotted ahead!”

“They’re climbing up onto the tracks!”

“With this, a collision is imminent!”

Currently, the train had no safety devices.

There were also no defense measures in place.

They had removed all equipment they could to keep the weight as light as possible.

But if they collided with a throng of Undead and larger monsters in this situation? It would surely be a disaster.

“Let’s discuss the details later.”

Ulan donned his helmet.

Soon, the crimson glow appeared in his eyes, and Ulan immediately kicked off from the train, jumping outside.

The battle had begun.

5.

Meanwhile, at that moment.

The place where the fight broke out was not just the canyon.

The border city of Shulfern in the Serenth Kingdom was also in the midst of a sudden assault.

“Never back down!”

“Reinforcements will be here soon!”

“Just hold out until then!”

In the battleground turned frenzy, soldiers swung their weapons like crazy. They were up against the uninvited guests who had come under the cover of the Darkness of the Night.

“Ahhh! Save me!”

“Cough! Why are there Undead…!”

The identity of the uninvited guests was the army of Undead.

Emerging from beyond the borders of the Endrak Kingdom alongside monsters, they boasted numbers in the thousands.

Overwhelmed by a scale they had never experienced before, the soldiers couldn’t help but feel the pressure. But the real problem wasn’t the numbers.

“They’re coming back to life!”

“Damn it! Regular weapons don’t work!”

Even smashing their heads and chopping off limbs only made them hesitate momentarily; they never truly fell.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The pitch-black smoke rising from the ground immediately reattached the bodies that had been torn apart.

“Shoot the fire arrows!”

“Burn their whole bodies down!”

The archers on the castle walls lit their arrow tips soaked in oil and shot at them, but unfortunately, the situation didn’t change.

Once again, the black smoke rising extinguished the flames embracing the Undead.

“…!?”

The moment they realized that their actions were like pouring water into a broken jar, the soldiers’ morale plummeted even further.

The prospect of victory was becoming increasingly obscure.

At that moment, one soldier still desperately fighting in the dismal battlefield shouted out.

“Damn it! Where’s Sven when you need him?!”

The elite mercenary and beast hunter, Sven.

If he were here, they would’ve at least had a breath of relief, but sadly, Sven was currently not around.

He had gone to the Eastern Jungle last night for reconnaissance and hadn’t returned since.

At the thought of this, Milena Armadin, the defense captain fighting on the front lines, bit her lips tight.

‘…Sven.’

Even though there was no prospect of victory in the fight, she was more worried about Sven, who hadn’t returned despite things turning out this way.

‘It’s okay. Nothing bad will happen.’

If he encountered something dangerous, he would have shot a signal flare. In other words, no news meant Sven was still safe.

That’s what Milena thought.

Just then, the urgent cries from the archers on the castle walls reached her ears.

“C-Captain Milena!”

“They’re climbing up the castle walls!”

“Ugh! There are too many of them!”

Before they knew it, the Undead reached the castle gate, trampling over the monsters as they began to ascend the walls.

If it were just a few of them, they could quickly dispose of them, but with hundreds flooding in, they couldn’t even fathom a way to deal with them.

‘If this keeps up…!’

If they were surrounded by the Undead climbing over the walls, it would only put them in danger.

Quickly assessing the situation, Milena clenched her teeth and made a final decision.

“…Fall back to the inner fortress!”

Abandoning the outer fortress with a wide defense perimeter to concentrate their defense in the relatively denser inner fortress.

It was literally a last-ditch effort.

If they retreated any further, there would only be close-quarters combat left, and there would be countless casualties.

“Abandon the gate and pull back!”

“Move while maintaining the defensive line!”

The one fortunate thing was that she had explained the last resort to her subordinates beforehand. As such, the soldiers moved toward the inner fortress while keeping formations.

However, a new problem arose.

“Hey, Hent turned into an Undead!”

Among those retreating, someone had been bitten by the Undead. As these individuals turned into Undead, their formations crumbled instantly.

“Damn it! Push them out quickly!”

“If we keep going like this, we’re finished!”

“Watch out so you don’t get bitten by them!”

Of course, the soldiers weren’t going down without a fight either.

Being veterans accustomed to repeated battles, they promptly ousted the soldiers who had turned into Undead from the ranks and tried to regroup.

But it was already too late.

“They’re coming towards us!”

Seizing the openings created by a crumbling formation, the Undead charged forward.

In a sudden ambush, the defensive line was easily breached, and the army of the dead surged toward the inner fortress like a raging tide.

“Damn it! The enemy is invading the inner fortress…”

“No! Aaaah!”

The defensive line crumbled in an instant.

Although Milena and the soldiers gritted their teeth to resist, they were soon encircled by the Undead. It had happened right before they reached the inner fortress.

[GRRRRR!]

[AAAAAAGH!]

Once-fellow soldiers turned into Undead were now advancing toward Milena. Meeting them, she let out a hollow laugh.

“Hahaha.”

It was a laugh filled with despair.

The battle they had struggled so hard in turned meaningless in an instant, and Milena, with a resigned expression, let her sword droop.

At that moment, a thought suddenly crossed her mind.

‘If Sven were here…’

Would the situation have turned even slightly different?

She pondered for a moment, but her answer was ‘no.’ Unless armed with silver weapons or blessed by Divine Power, even having Sven wouldn’t change much.

‘Yeah, it might be better if he’s not here.’

At least that way, Sven would be safe.

With this thought in mind, she stared blankly at the approaching death.

Then, KRAAAANG!

With a sudden thunderous sound, the Undead attempting to enter the inner fortress were violently thrown away.

“…Huh?”

An unexpected turn of events.

Milena and the soldiers looked around in confusion, and soon they spotted a group of soldiers appearing from the south.

“What’s that…!”

A unit of just over a hundred soldiers.

Riding horses, they were equipped with pure white armor and shields, clearly resembling a knight order.

Following them, figures dressed in black priest robes were spotted next. The moment she recognized them, Milena’s face lit up.

“W-What? The Eloden Knight Order?”

“Why are the knights here…?”

The soldiers showed clear signs of panic.

Yet, they couldn’t just continue to be flustered.

After finishing a brief prayer, the knights dashed towards the battleground.

And upon witnessing this.

Milena and the soldiers, who had half-given up, realized what they needed to do right away.

“Raise your shields! Don’t let a single one through!”

“Not a single one gets inside!”

An unexpected appearance of reinforcements.

With the knights joining, the battlefield of Shulfern turned to a new chapter.

Chapter 51. Unexpected Reinforcements