Chapter 84

Granada lines.
A stronghold leading to the capital Magnu and several neighboring estates. Trenches were set in the snow-covered fields. Behind the defenses roamed bivouacked soldiers.
“The princess did better than expected.”
“Yeah, it must have been hard to convince the military.”
“By the looks on their faces, they look like pigs being led to the slaughter.”
Chelsea squatted on the hill and looked down at the soldiers. Her trademark bored gaze was still there, but there was a tension she couldn’t hide.
“Where are you, I don’t expect you to be skilled.”
There are fewer than a hundred agents assembled in Bastitera. Not nearly enough to wage war. We need soldiers to hold the line.
They are a separate force from the capital and border defense. An army sent by Ainoa, comprised of private soldiers from the purged Mountain Clan nobility.
“We just need you up front. We’ll play shortstop.”
“The meat room, so to speak…….”
“Don’t talk, you crazy woman.”
“Hmm. Is that a bad way to put it?”
But they weren’t entirely wrong. Their masters, the nobles of the Mountain Clan, labeled them traitors. Soldiers who were too much to absorb into the regular army.
They are also a problem for the military if you consider their armaments.
“Well, the commanders seem motivated.
Kim glanced toward the command tent. Even if she didn’t listen, she could hear voices arguing. It was obvious what was being said.
– I didn’t say we don’t need help from outsiders!
– Yes, sir. Isn’t the Legion a terrorist organization? We, the Knights of the Silverlance, are more than capable of dealing with them. We don’t need your help.
– No, we, the Knights of Iron Mountain, are here to help……!
Articles. This was where the articles were.
‘It’s always been a bizarre country.
There are many anachronistic cultures that remain in Bastitera. The Templars are a prime example.
An old-fashioned feudal system. Pecatum soldiers who are individually physically strong, even if they don’t carry firearms. The worship of the warrior. It was an imbalance born of many factors.
It’s doubtful that will change in the next decade or two, but for those on the left and right, it was a chance to redeem their tarnished reputations and even earn their way into the regular army.
“…… article.
The image of Snowfield flashed through his mind. What would have happened if she had been there, could the inexperienced Knights of Pecatum have stopped her?
“Good thing I took care of that ahead of time.
I could easily imagine myself breaking through defenses by myself. It’s no different in MetroCity, where I’ve nearly wiped out a police force by myself.
‘Although in terms of risk, the godmother is far worse.
You have to try to exploit it somehow. There’s no shortage of good hands here. At the very least, you know the spells of the agents in the game.
I was reviewing the strategy in my head.
“Uh, I guess it’s over?”
The Professor and Ghost emerged from the command tent. Kim had left early from a meeting where they were both self-serving, but they were sticking together.
You’ve finally come to a conclusion.
Just as she was thinking about it, the professor looked around impatiently, and then she took the radio from Ghost.
Chirp, chirp.
The radio call reached Kim.
– Hyun, we have a problem.
* * *
– There was a terrorist attack at Magnou Station.
Ainoa’s voice drifted into the tent over the loudspeaker. Leila interrupted with a serious face at the unexpected news.
“What do you mean, terrorism, can you elaborate?”
– ……I don’t know, from what I’ve heard, the citizens are attacking each other. They’re getting green spots on their skin and biting people like maniacs.
“What the hell is that. Are you some kind of zombie?”
Rosetta said it half-jokingly, but no one laughed. “Sorry,” she apologized briefly, as some of the agents gave her a cold stare, and then shut up.
– We sent in the security forces first, but we lost contact, and now we’re mobilizing the standing army to seal off as much of the station as we can, to keep the people out.
The citizens are locked up,” he said, his tone faltering slightly. It was a difficult decision, though there was no other option after the initial suppression failed.
Ghost sighed heavily.
“This is bad timing. Do you need any help?”
– …No, I thought it was a Legion sabotage, so I passed it on to you. I’ll take care of it, and you can do your thing.
“Be careful, Mr. Ainoa. Something might be happening on King’s Castle, too.”
– Thank you for your concern, we’ve got Carmen, we’ll be fine.
The story is moving toward self-handling.
Kim’s expression was unusually stiff.
Of the three, only Kim correctly recognized the severity of the situation.
‘There’s no doubt. Camelia, it’s her.’
A person who is authorized to refuse orders and act autonomously despite not being in a leadership position. An outlier who does not have a single subordinate and has not participated in any operations up to a certain point.
A follower of Snowfield and the main protagonist of Episode 14.
“Sending in the army will backfire.
Camellia’s own power is not great. She’s far behind even Shadow and Mithril, let alone Snowfield. But what makes her special is not her combat power, but her contagiousness.
Camellia can single-handedly bring down a nation.
The station had already been taken over, he said, meaning Camelia had hundreds of Pekatum soldiers in her possession. Even the guards brought in to suppress it.
I had to use my hands before the numbers swelled beyond that. An enemy that’s not an army, but a handful of people. You have to send in elite agents to stop them.
“At this point?
They don’t know when they’ll be able to return, and there’s a chance that they’ll be used against them. Losing an elite agent is a big blow. Two people, no matter how minimized.
That’s how you use asterisks.
I have to equip the [Vibranium Composite Sword], so naturally Kim Yi-hyun has to go with me. That’s why there are two of us. Asterique’s stamina will surely be low.
You’ll spend your most powerful hand before it even hits the main body.
‘Still, a better arrangement than this is…….’
One thing, there is.
Kim was conscious of her jumper’s pockets. An insurance policy, just in case. Something she carried with her all the time, but hoped she’d never have to use.
But this was an agent’s hesitation. Polaris’s experience and knowledge as a player allowed him to calmly come up with the optimal formation.
I’ve made up my mind.
Kim has always operated according to rationality. The math says it makes the most sense, so there’s no reason not to use it.
Above all, she should be killed as soon as possible.
Definitive, thorough.
“Just lock down, don’t do anything.”
– You can’t do that, because if you’re derailing trains with mutated citizens on board…….
“Never mind, just put them on standby. If we leave right now, we’ll get there before it’s too late.”
– What? What’s that.
He blurted out.
“I’m coming.”
* * *
Sabak.
Chapter’s footprints stamped the snow-covered field. Despite the marching of hundreds of men, there was little unnecessary noise.
There’s no need for stealth. The Legion’s soldiers had already exited the tunnels. The troops have scattered to the surface and are meeting at the objective.
But the mood of an army is often set by its commander. The Godmother’s temper was not so forgiving. She abhorred everything that was not under her control.
Naturally, the soldiers kept quiet. No one inquired about their comrade who hadn’t arrived safely. They simply marched on, as if it were a matter of course.
“Godmother, I’ve also lost contact with the Greybeards.”
“Those kids were unlucky.”
The godmother was dismissive.
Luck. It was literally luck.
Given the circumstances, the enemy would not have been able to locate all the tunnels perfectly. Against Greybeard, they’d have gotten a bad draw.
The loss of troops didn’t move me. What bothered her was the fact that her behavior was being read. For some time now, Daemo had been feeling a strange sensation.
I felt like I was playing chess with someone whose face I couldn’t see.
We know that a man named Hyun was deeply involved in the disappearance of Princess Ainoa, but the godmother doesn’t see him as her match.
I think of them as a distraction. There must be someone who planned and directed the operation, who made it happen.
“A man named Kushan.
Director of the Cellbrosics Lab. I’ve heard the stories. A researcher whose feet have touched every continent, especially when it comes to catastrophes.
There were rumors, of course, but there was also first-hand information. The head of the Legion had brought up the subject of Kushan from time to time since the organization’s inception.
The godmother’s image of Kushan was thus somewhat cemented: he was contemplative, a perfectionist, an idealist, an indecisive hypocrite.
The Godmother wanted to rip Kushan’s mask off, to dump the Celbromics Wrap in a pool of blood, to watch her lofty ideas being discarded like a devotion.
She was a twisted human being, born in a twisted time.
Parses.
That’s when the mineral crystal around the lieutenant’s neck shattered. An object that would interlock when one of its mates was destroyed, regardless of distance. The principle is unknown, but the convenience is clear.
It was a signal from Magnu.
“Looks like you’ve started, Camelia.”
“That’s a quick decision for a kid.”
“That must mean you’re old, because you’ve been following Mr. Snowfield a lot.”
“They are blind because they cling to the dead.”
She laughed through her nose and stepped forward, a sentiment the godmother didn’t understand.
“You’re a little early.”
Granada lines.
In the distance, I could see the trenches of the Bastilians. It would be no exaggeration to say that they carried the fate of the nation on their shoulders, and their hastily constructed defenses were nothing short of shabby.
The Godmother glanced toward the hills beyond.
More than a kilometer away. My eyes locked with the pink-haired woman through the scope. I didn’t miss the way her finger twitched on the trigger.
Procrastination.
The next moment, a black, slimy mass appeared at Godmother’s feet.
The bullet hits the center of the mucus. No penetration. The bullet lost its physical force as soon as it hit the surface and was swallowed by the mucus.
– תסתכל עלי…….
The liquid bubbled and made a sound like a snake hissing.
The lieutenant swallowed dryly. If you were appointed as a lieutenant to the Godmother, you wouldn’t last a month. Rumor had it that all of his predecessors had been eaten by the thing.
The Godmother’s spells were among the most bizarre in the Legion. In terms of danger, Camellia was not far behind, but that was another matter. There was an indescribable sense of otherness.
The godmother stood a dozen paces away from the first row of soldiers, her eyes fixed on the enemy.
A huddled mass of Peccatums. Soldiers from a nation that has not been at war for a long time. Instead of rifles and cannons, they are armed with old-fashioned bayonets and spear swords. Their horns are ragged and they wear no helmets.
A group of knights in shiny armor lead the soldiers in a battle. It was hard to look away from the ridiculousness of their high swords.
They’re tattered relics of a bygone era.
“Here you go.”
The tip of the staff poked deep into the snow.
“Let’s burn Bastitera.”