Chapter 59

It was a time when airplanes were rare. An international treaty signed just as the threat of flying monsters, sudden weather events, and catastrophes began in earnest.
The modern era has also seen a decline in interaction between nations. Airplanes have become a maintenance hippopotamus in a time when their greatest utility has faded, and land is hard to preserve.
But not now.
The wind picked up, accompanied by the intense sound of the rotors. As the helicopter neared, the commander shouted.
“What are you looking at, shoot!”
Ignoring the bullets, he leaps over the barricade. The helicopter quickly reached the top of the smoke screen. As it gradually lost altitude, the hatch opened.
The shadow of the man on the rope began to descend. An absurdly reckless rappel, with no regard for safety. It was a horse rappel, not a rappel, simply grabbing the rope and jumping.
Thump!
The impact of the landing hit the asphalt. Kim’s legs almost gave out as he watched. If not for her natural athleticism, she would have broken a bone.
By now, the smoke was halfway blown away, and they could see each other without a problem. As Kim lowered his stance in preparation for the shot, his eyes met those of the jumper.
The corners of Asterike’s eyes curved upward.
“String.”
It was a welcome sight.
In-game, Ast is actually a blunt character. He’s a man of few words, and even when he’s not in an emergency, he’s serious, which is why his side story is a gap in his characterization that resonates so strongly with players.
“But I never thought I’d get used to this look.
There was no hint of wariness or seriousness in her unstained smile. Asterike always smiled like that. It made me stand on end.
“Chelsea?”
“Up there! They don’t want to come down, even if they’re dead!”
I had to turn up the volume to avoid being drowned out by the rotor noise, but Asterike’s voice is always catchy to begin with.
“Well, I guess so.”
Kim glanced up. Chelsea and Asterique’s roles are different. Given her traits, it’s better to let her provide fire support from the helicopter.
There were three things that Kim specifically instructed us to do.
1. 24/7 surveillance of the Atlanta border. Of course, the safe houses are staffed. I was able to report back to them quickly via cell phone.
2. to provide support in the event of a major movement at the border checkpoint. So even as the soldiers began to set up the barricades, the lab was preparing to fly.
And finally, the third.
Asterique to Repel, Chelsea to get used to flying, was…….
“Don’t get your hopes up.
It’s easy to imagine yourself holding a gun and freaking out. No one should suffer if they can overcome their phobia in a matter of days. Asterike’s repel was just as bad.
To be honest, the reason I left Chelsea was for Asterique’s mental care. I couldn’t afford to leave him alone after what I’ve seen.
“But why only Chelsea?”
A voice sounded in the distance. I dropped my head, and Asterique was looming over me. Within breathing distance. She looked slightly, but deeply, annoyed.
“You don’t see him, so you look for him, right?”
“Do you have anything to say to me? It’s been a while.”
“It’s been less than a week.”
I couldn’t believe it, even as I said it to myself. It had only been five days at most. Does that mean life in Atlanta sucks as much as five days seems like a long time?
“So, you didn’t want to see it?”
“I missed you.”
Asterike smiles when I answer.
“Yep. Good job.”
……How are you doing?
Kim froze for a moment. A look of pride crossed her face. He seems satisfied that he got the words he wanted out.
Maybe hanging out with Chelsea had done something to him. As he reasoned in his head, Asterique’s gaze shifted forward.
“I’m sorry I’ve been talking nonsense. Any instructions?”
The sequence of events was baffling, like a pre-planned script. But it was pointless, so Kim focused on the situation again.
“Forward. Do not break ranks!”
The Legion was just coming out of their perimeter, hoping to pressure them into the chopper and prevent them from escaping.
Slow to close the gap. Clearly wary despite the large gap in numbers. Mithril must have received separate orders, including information on Kim.
This is how I envisioned it. From the beginning, I didn’t think about escaping with the enemy in front of me. Ismail can’t even move himself. There’s no way I’m going to leave him alone until he’s mounted.
There’s only one plan.
“We’re going to break through. And cut the power while we’re at it.”
Two swords were forged in Kim’s hands. [The Vibranium Composite Sword and Karys were given to Asterique and Westcreek, respectively.
“Drill.”
His words were a signal.
Leading the way was Asterike. She charged, dragging her heavy sword across the floor.
The panic was nowhere to be seen on the faces of the soldiers. Their eyes gauged the distance between them, their heads calmly assessed the power differential.
There is currently only one confirmed reinforcement. Even for Pekatum, they’re poorly armed. No body armor, just a raggedy jumper. Their weapons, neither blunt nor knife, look ridiculous.
All judgments are overturned in an instant.
Boom!
The blunt tip of the blade slammed into the asphalt, followed by a surge of heat. A shaped flame, resembling lava, raced down the road. A crimson swamp began to approach.
“……Shoot!”
The muzzle of the gun spewed fire before you were in effective range. He sensed danger and became impatient.
But the focus was sharp. Dozens of rounds rained down on Asterique in precise trajectories.
And then it was gone.
The fire that engulfed Asterike’s entire body melted her copper armor and swallowed the bullets. Unscathed, the distance of hundreds of meters closed with each passing second.
A world where guns are a thing. It’s a game, but you can’t ignore the setting. In Polaris, the question of how well you can handle guns is a key one when discussing who is the strongest.
“In Asterike’s case… we can apply that insane offense.
A workshop, so to speak.
It’s an unbalanced monster by design, and it’s limited by the fact that it can’t control spells. We’ve fixed that now.
“It’s not that I don’t have weaknesses.
Unlike the more cautious Ast, the Asterike is particularly vulnerable to assassination. They also have poor fuel economy. She must rest after each spell.
Of course, this isn’t something you need to worry about right now.
Bam, boom!
One binge after another.
The Legion, helplessly, allowed Asterique to approach. The lava on the floor swallowed the soldiers’ feet, Chapter and all. Flames curled from their blades, burning their bodies without leaving a bone.
“Aaaaaaah!”
His short stature breaks the line. The way he charged through the enemy lines without stopping was haunting. From the sidelines, it was hard not to be impressed.
“Did I raise that?
Despite his mixed feelings, Kim’s feet moved well. As he ran through the sticky melt, he aimed his gun at the muzzle.
Bang, bang!
Head and chest, landing squarely on the enemy’s vital points. The Legionnaires did not flee in disarray, even as their comrades lay dying in a heap.
In other words, it was an easy target to hit.
“Thank goodness there are no workers.
Even those zombies would have been a nuisance. Kim took advantage of Asterike’s distraction to cut down the enemies in their path.
You still have a lot of hair. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m conscious of Asterike or what. It’s too cumbersome to process it all.
“I don’t have to.
Escape with a purpose. Ismail is being carried by Turkam. He is defenseless, so you must fight to protect him.
Asterique is the only one who can break through the enemy lines. Westcreek is also in sync with them. It was invaluable to have a teammate who could move without saying a word.
Emptying the magazine, Kim released the gun from his hand.
I endured a headache and forged a new weapon. Tactical Axe [Brutalizer]. A 3-star special weapon that increases damage by 3% for each enemy killed.
“30% is the maximum, and it’s already garbage by the time it needs to warm up.
It is one of the best special weapons up to 3 stars, at least in terms of hand-to-hand combat. This is one of the weapons that newcomers are most likely to be indebted to due to its simplicity of acquisition. It’s a pretty savage weapon for its type, but that’s nothing new.
With his suppressing shield, he reached the enemy soldier’s front. He slammed into him, then drove his axe blade into his side. Almost simultaneously, from the right, Westcreek’s machete stabbed the enemy in the chest.
The commander couldn’t believe his eyes.
“Uh, how could this be….”
It was the scene of a massacre.
Only five enemies. Of those, only three are actually fighting. Despite the nearly twenty-fold power differential, the defense lines were being torn apart.
Of course I know. There are powerful people in the world who can single-handedly turn the tide of battle. Like Mithril’s single-handed annihilation of an entire army in battle against Atlanta’s army.
But it’s not common. In the world’s common sense, a spell is just an unusual handy skill. Like lighting a fire without a lighter. It’s nice to have, but it’s better without.
A grain of sand filtered back through a handful of sand. So scarce, the commander revered Mithril. Anyone who served Mithril would.
But what are they?
“Who the hell is that?”
The muttered voice trembled incoherently. Luckily or unluckily, no one heard it. Only terminals and screams filled the air, one soldier after another dying on their backs.
The commanding officer didn’t know Kim’s affiliation. He had only heard of an unusual research organization that studied spells. He didn’t even know the name of the Cellbrojax Lab, let alone Dustborn.
I thought, cluelessly.
‘Maybe, just maybe, something comparable to Legion…….’
Get it!
His new model collapsed in a heap, pierced through the forehead.
The bullets came from the sky. In the helicopter, which had gained altitude again, the tiny Inyoung was busily wringing his hands.
“Mr. Shit. Uhhhhh…!”
Squatting and aiming downward, Chelsea gagged. Her complexion was pale. Her purplish lips looked like they might throw up at any moment.
Even in his raggedy state, he was as accurate as a shot. Chelsea was a classic ‘if you try, you can do it’ kind of guy. He’s just a little bit flawed personally and physically.
About 5 minutes into the battle.
At this point, only about twenty soldiers remained alive. Many had fallen from friendly fire. There was no sign of a skilled soldier.
The way was easy.
‘I could get on a helicopter as it is, but….’
Kim glanced at the helicopter in flight. We’re defenseless while we’re on board. It would take time to even land and get everyone on board.
“I’d better get to a safe place.
With a wave of his hand, he ordered the operation to proceed. The enemy has already lost half its will. We don’t need to annihilate them, but we also don’t need to give them time to cool their heels.
Westcreek took the lead, breaking the barricade. In the second row were Turkam and Ismail. Kim stayed behind to let them pass, keeping his eyes on the road ahead.
We had a brief conflict.
Maybe it could even handle mithril, I thought, but it was quickly dismissed from my mind without much thought.
“Too risky.
Mithril is not the only problem. Enemy troops are constantly replenished. You’ve been fighting a lot of battles, and your health has been drained. You’ll probably only be able to spell once or twice more.
The moment you lose control of [Vibranium Composite Blade], the game is over. Westcreek’s offense cannot penetrate Mithril. He’s exhausted, too.
“That’s it for now.
All-out war was never part of the plan. It’s a shame, too. We might as well let Mithril sow infighting among the Legion as it is.
But never twice.
“I’ll catch it next time.
Kim crossed the border, looking forward to the future.
Zero casualties among the team, a perfect result.