章節 548: CHAPTER 706
[T.L: punisher87]
[My ko-fi link:- https://ko-fi.com/punisher87 ]
"...Are the Empire's losses really that severe?"
Kashmir spoke with a trembling voice. He had just received a report from Jet.
Even Jet found it hard to believe the numbers written in the report.
Approximately 30,000 military personnel, including knights and mages, were dead.
The civilian casualties had already reached nearly 800,000, with over 50,000 commoners and nobles captured as prisoners...
Jin and his companions also touched their foreheads while examining the report.
It had been only three days since the chaos army led by Diphus attacked the temporary alliance's territory.
In just three days, so many innocent people were injured or captured as hostages.
The numbers written in the report didn't feel real at all.
"It seems that we were able to partially mitigate the situation thanks to the technology support and equipment of Dr. Qwaul and Lady Amelia. Without them... it would have been even more serious, Your Highness."
Jet spoke with a heavy voice.
Three days ago.
It wasn't just Diphus and Joshua who attacked the Lutero Magic Federation and the Empire.
Lionel, Stam, as well as the unidentified knights of the 'Mausoleum' were also attacking the human world at the same time.
The same was true for the territory of Kinzelo, the Land of the Beastmen.
Although they had relatively better defenses due to Orgal's dimensional movement through the steel gate, Cold Joe was captured along with more than 5,000 beastmen.
"We're the only ones who weren't attacked... Is it unknown why?"
Just like Lata said, among the alliance members, only Tikan wasn't attacked.
"It could be a scheme to undermine the temporary alliance."
"Attacking Tikan might have been too burdensome. When they attacked Drakka's main base in the Federation, they only lurked nearby. If their purpose is to create despair and obtain hostages, this place is not suitable."
Unlike the small island nation of Tikan, the territories of other alliance members were vast.
That was the reason why they couldn't properly respond to the sudden invasion by the evil god. They would attack near Drakka's main base, then suddenly appear in Milkun Kingdom, attacking the area near Yuka Yuka Market, and then moving to the other side of the Great Desert of Mitra in an instant.
"...Or perhaps they simply see us as the last meal to savor."
As Jin spoke, all eyes focused on him.
"Empire, Zipfel, Kinzelo. The number of prisoners captured from the territories of the temporary alliance alone exceeds 80,000. And since our Vamel alliance has no choice but to go to Huphester to rescue them, Rosa may be trying to supply despair by watching us suffer. That's what I'm thinking."
Within the magical map created by Veradin, the spots of despair were growing larger.
The content wasn't limited to the areas directly struck by the chaos army.
The fear of ordinary people that had been suppressed since the Glyek War had become uncontrollable due to this incident, spreading worldwide.
Refugees were emerging from everywhere. Even the commoners who had considered Drakka's main base the safest land were leaving, not to mention other regions.
The land they sought was Tikan.
The terrified crowds didn't believe that Tikan was a safe area, despite explanations to the contrary.
"If it's as Young master Jin predicted... then the evil god and the 4th flagbearer are likely laying an unavoidable trap for us."
The world order is crumbling.
The alliance now had to show people the fact that they had enough power to resist the evil god.
They had to go to Huphester, rescue the captives, and eliminate the invaders.
Otherwise, the fear and despair engulfing the world would continue to grow, and all of it would be used to complete the evil god.
"Oh, isn't that Zephyrin?"
"She came with Zipfel's young patriarch."
Lata pointed outside the window.
In the distant sky, a massive steel gate formed, and from within, Zephyrin and Veradin emerged. They went straight into the conference room.
While Veradin maintained his usual calm expression, Zephyrin seemed extremely fatigued.
She had been assisting Orgal throughout, protecting the entire land of the Beastmen and scouting near Rikalton until she arrived at Tikan.
"Ah, you're making a big fuss as soon as my master regains some strength... You're definitely going to hell, Sir Jin."
Rikalton's scouting was Jin's idea. Orghal had the best mobility among the alliance, possessing knowledge and power to adapt to variables, so it was only natural for him to take charge of the scouting.
"Why didn't Orgal himself come?"
"You're asking that now? He must have sent me because he was exhausted from his recent hard work, and also to ensure that Zipfel's travel time wouldn't be wasted. So, be grateful that I even brought Veradin along."
"Do convey my thanks to Orgal when you go back."
When Jin expressed his gratitude willingly, Zephyrin blinked her eyes for a moment. It seemed she expected him to respond sarcastically, thinking it wasn't something he should help with anyway.
"The sun will rise from the west."
"Did the Rikalton scouting yield any results?"
"Well, as expected, all the captured humans were gathered in Rikalton."
"How are the captives being treated?"
"Nothing out of the ordinary. They're being whipped and dragged somewhere. My master said they seem to undergo some sort of torture one by one."
"Torture... I see."
"The captives weren't all subjected to torture at the same time. The forces of Chaos took around thirty to a hundred people and went into some buildings. After a couple of hours, they took the next group."
"So, during that time, they torture and kill around thirty to a hundred people, increasing the despair factor?"
"I'm not sure about that. However, Sir Veradin seemed to pick up on something when he heard about it."
As Zephyrin finished speaking, Veradin unfolded the map.
In Tikan, it seemed that he couldn't fully harness the residual energy of the Sun God, and the map was much fainter and more unstable than when they saw it in Drakka.
"Let's all take a look at Rikalton."
Veradin pointed at Rikalton with his finger.
"Jin, I've been observing the map since that day. Especially focusing on Rikalton… As everyone can see now, the marks of despair are actually becoming smaller."
Jin and Veradin had naturally expected the marks of despair in Rikalton to grow larger and darker after the incident.
However, the initial findings by Veradin were quite the opposite. Each time the captives arrived in Rikalton, the marks actually became lighter.
"But this phenomenon changes on a daily basis. It diminishes during one day and then increases the next day, always denser than the previous day. Do you understand what this means?"
"It means they give hope and then crush it again."
"Yes. The Garden of Swords takes groups of thirty to a hundred captives every couple of hours and engages in some kind of mind manipulation. They give hope first and then break it. That's how they maximize the despair they can extract from the captives."
"Zephyrin, are the suspected locations of the torture you and Orgal discovered limited to Rikalton?"
"Yes, there were no captives taken anywhere outside of Rikalton."
"Even on my map, there was no area where the total amount of chaos suddenly increased except for Rikalton. There was an overall increase, but nothing exceptional."
"It's becoming more certain. We need to quickly gather the alliance's forces and head to Rikalton."
"That's what we have to do. But when you speak quickly, when are you thinking?"
"Within two days. No, if possible, even tomorrow."
Veradin and Zephyrin both shrugged their shoulders at Jin's response.
"Two days or tomorrow? That's too fast. We need to observe a little longer. We should also prepare for traps. Even if they're predictable and obvious traps."
"I agree, Sir Jin. For now, the army of chaos has stopped the onslaught, but we don't know when they will appear again."
"Of course, as we can't predict when the Chaos army will launch a large-scale instant assault on the human world with large-scale teleportation, we can't wait indefinitely. But it seems wise to monitor the situation for at least two weeks."
Jin looked at the two of them and shook his head.
"No, the reason why the evil god stopped the invasion was confirmed right before you arrived. While you were scouting and examining the map, we weren't just sitting around..."
* * *
The top floor of Rikalton Castle.
Ilina was drenched in sweat, pressing her hands against various parts of Diphus's body as if forcibly trying to stop the bleeding.
[Damn it! What am I supposed to do if you're like this? Things are overflowing just with Joshua, that idiot.]
Ilina's angry voice made Diphus chuckle.
[Don't blame it on me, prophet. If you had known the information about this fire in advance, this disruption wouldn't have happened.]
Fire.
The eternal flame clinging to Diphus's body was still burning, corroding his flesh.
Ilina had come from the Garden of Swords to this place three days ago in an attempt to extinguish it.
But Ilina couldn't extinguish it no matter what she did.
[And besides, you came here saying you would put out the fire, but you've been futilely working for days now.]
[Hey, Diphus Runcandel. It's impossible to extinguish this fire unless the matriarch herself intervenes...]
Rosa was currently in a state where she couldn't move due to absorbing despair.
[Well, fine. Fighting with you would only be disrespecting the matriarch. Anyway, the fire is calming down a bit now, so it will be resolved soon. It's because of this that the invasion has stopped... Be more careful from now on. The despair that should have been directed to the matriarch has become smaller than expected.]
[The parasite clinging to my mother is crawling up until the end. Do you know that Hister checked the dimensional portal that remained in feudal state Shol earlier?]
Ilina's eyes widened at Diphus' words.
[What...…?]
[Hister must have found out the reason why we stopped the invasion and returned. You were completely oblivious to it... Think carefully about whether you have the right to call Joshua incompetent.]
[T/L: You can read more chapters and support me here: https://ko-fi.com/punisher87 & https://bmc.link/punisher87 ]
[T/L: Join $29 membership on my "buymeacoffee" page and read 55 chapters ahead and daily 1 new chapter update. I have introduced new memberships, and you can read upto 75 or 85 chapters ahead.]
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babayaga01
babayaga01 You can read more chapters and support me here: https://ko-fi.com/punisher87 & https://bmc.link/punisher87
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章節 549: CHAPTER 707
[T.L: punisher87]
[My ko-fi link:- https://ko-fi.com/punisher87 ]
[How did you know that Hister had been there?]
[You're talking nonsense again. Do you think we can only find out if a mosquito bites our back? I am part of my mother. And Huphester's chaos is all composed of my mother's power.]
The power that Diphus received from Rosa was surpassing Ilina's expectations.
'Rather give it to me. Why to the 4th flagbearer... Is it because the bloodline of Runcandel takes priority? Too late now?'
Diphus contained a smirk as if he could clearly see Ilina's thoughts.
[You still have a lot in common with Joshua. You're full of greed, desiring only what you have and wavering whenever things don't go as planned.]
[Hmph, it's amusing how you, who received power from Mother, mock me.]
[Amusing indeed. You're still only thinking about reviving Helluram through my mother... You revere my mother, but you're not loyal. Your loyalty still lies with Helluram.]
"Yes, yes. Think as you please."
[But Prophet, Helluram will not awaken. Does my mother really desire the end of the world?]
[The end, that's just an inevitable event that will occur as a perfect evil god reincarnates...-]
Ilina's pupils widened.
[Could it be that the matriarch doesn't plan to attain complete divinity?]
[Yes, that's right. In order for the name Runcandel to not disappear, there needs to be people who remember and worship. A world that is only ashes and dust is not worth ruling. You may believe that my mother's instincts as a evil god will eventually desire the end, but if you continue like that, you will end up like Joshua, a miserable existence.]
Slowly, Diphus rose from his seat.
The eternal flame attached to his upper body was still not extinguished.
[If you understand, stop wasting time holding onto an uncontrollable flame and go do your work. The youngest will come soon. That kid never misses an opportunity.]
[...Because of the flame attached to you, we paused our invasion, but it's not an opportunity for the 12th flagbearer. Even if they come here to attack, we would still be overwhelmingly superior.]
[Now it's getting frustrating. That's why you and Joshua always end up being at the mercy of the youngest. This is a bigger crisis than ever before. My mother cannot operate at full power, and there is a high probability that the flame attached to me will not be extinguished until the youngest arrives. If a battle occurs, it means that I might be pushed back by the youngest.]
[You, you could be defeated?]
[Yes. That's why we need to devise a plan. Even if I were to be defeated, Runcandel will not fall.]
***
Jin shared the information Valeria had obtained with Veradin and Zephyrin.
"...So you're saying the reason the Garden of Swords has halted their invasion is because you dealt a blow to the 4th flagbearer? And Hister confirmed it by reading the records of the dimensional gate left in the feudal state of Shol."
"That's right."
"The major forces of the Garden of Swords have shown a quick revival even if they die, but the fact that the 4th flagbearer hasn't been able to recover from his injuries for several days... It's quite an extraordinary story. Their regenerative abilities come from the evil god, so something must be wrong."
"Whether there's a problem or not, it's almost certain that the evil god cannot immediately restore the 4th flagbearer. Now I understand why Jin was so insistent on moving quickly."
Jin nodded in agreement with Veradin and Zephyrin's words.
"We're short on time. Once the 4th flagbearer recovers, they will resume their large-scale instant teleportation invasion. All the factions, except for our Tikan, have already suffered a major blow due to it, and we haven't been able to respond properly. The reason we haven't been attacked is simply because they haven't invaded yet. If we are attacked a few more times like this, the human world may end before we even have a battle with an evil god."
"So in this counterattack, we not only need to rescue the prisoners but also find a way to suppress their large-scale instant teleportation in the future?"
"Exactly, Veradin. If we don't find that this time, there won't be a future."
"It will require mobilizing a considerable force, not just military strength. It's essential to have the fleet forces of each faction in order to bring back the rescued prisoners. In fact, it will be a rehearsal for the upcoming battle with the evil god ..."
"Not only military forces, but special technicians and researchers should also participate on the front lines. We need them to find clues about large-scale instant teleportation."
In Zipfel , the top researchers of Magic tower and Veradin, and since Cold Joe was already captured, so Bubare and Orgal from Kinzelo, and in Tikan, Valeria, Qwaul, and Latrie, were also required to directly participate on the front lines.
"Shall we set it for two days from now, dawn, Jin?"
"That sounds good to me. At least we need that much time for my master, who is one of the major forces in the temporary alliance, to rest and show his true strength befitting of his reputation. He's already tired and sent me to attend the meeting."
Jin nodded his head.
Now, what remained was to finalize the details of the operation and ensure that Diphus would not recover within two days.
***
In the early morning of May 22, 1803, near the forefront of the deck of the puberty ship.
The time for the counterattack had come. Valeria had been continuously inspecting the dimensional portals of the feudal state of Shol, and fortunately, there were no records indicating that the Chaos Dimensional Portal had reopened.
[See? Didn't I tell you? Your flames are special. That Diphus guy must still be suffering from terrible pain.]
Bale spoke.
Jin pondered how to respond to this oblivious former ten great knight and simply remained silent. Mary must have heard Bale's voice as well.
Mary did not react to Bale's words and kept her gaze fixed on the dark sky.
The participating members of Tikan were currently aboard the fleet of Mary and Cosmos, waiting for the arrival of Orgal.
They had decided to use his Steel Gate to swiftly move from the Rikalton center to the nearby Huphester's territorial waters.
"Youngest."
"Yes, elder sister."
"I just want to make sure you understand not to have any careless thoughts about somehow saving Diphus oraboni. It's different from elder sister Luntia; Diphus oraboni has already killed too many people. Even if it wasn't his will."
"...Yes."
Jin shared the same thoughts. At first, he had wanted to save Diphus by any means, just like Luntia. But now it seemed hopeless.
Above all, the current Diphus was not an opponent they could afford to take lightly. If they were to face him with half-hearted determination, their companions aboard the ship would end up dying.
The Vamel alliance had mobilized almost all its forces, just as they had when they went to support Dante at the sword emperor castle.
Starting from the survivors of Runcandel, including Mary and the Tona brothers, to the key figures who had been on standby in Tikan, and even large-scale forces from the nameless and hidden palace and empire, everyone had joined the battle.
In essence, only Kashmir and the Royal Guards remained in the Palace, while all others were en route to the battlefield.
"Ugh, Young Master Jin. Tikan won't be attacked as soon as we arrive in Rikalton, right?"
"For that, we left the Red Owl behind, Enya. Valeria has been reading the records of the dimensional portals until just now."
Cuicantelle replied to Enya's question.
"Phew, I'm still worried. Especially about Euria... Will she be okay? If something happens to her while we're not around, I'll feel terrible. His Majesty has to continue waiting for the situation, so he won't have the capacity to take care of Euria. And my teacher isn't exactly good at comforting people."
"Veris has surprisingly gotten along well with Euria, you've seen that. And there's Pinte and Kou as well. So don't worry too much, just focus on successfully completing the mission and going back safely."
"Yeah, Enya. Don't forget that you're the Commander of Tikan's Magic Corps. If you're not focused, your subordinates will be more anxious."
Ching, Alisa messed up Enya's hair while inspecting her gauntlet.
"Ugh, I understand, Commander of garrison."
"You may not have good memories of the Empire, but most of the Imperial civilians captured in Rikalton are weak and powerless, just like you were at that time. Let's rescue them and send them back to their normal lives."
"Oh, so you think it's a bother for me to rescue Empire people? I was only worried about the garrison commander's daughter. If you saw it that way, I'd be disappointed! Even if there were aristocrats among the prisoners who tormented you, it wouldn't matter to me. Hmph, it's all in the past, thanks to young master Jin."
"It's just something I said, sweetie. I know Enya is the kindest among us."
"Yeah, yeah. I bet some of our club members are mixed in with the prisoners. Since we're the club presidents, we have to rescue them."
"Stop saying strange things, lady Sandra."
"Hey, Hedo, if we happen to be where our members are, you must not address me by my real name. You must call me Nodav Sargent and preserve my aura of mystery."
"Well..."
"By the way, Orgal is late... I hope there hasn't been any disruption to the operation."
Valkas said while looking at the clock.
3:07 AM.
It was only 7 minutes late, but given the scale of the operation, he was growing anxious.
Unlike Tikan, who used Orgal's dimensional portal, Zipfel and Kinzelo were flying directly to Rikalton with their fleets.
Zipfel's fleet (including Imperial forces) reached the northern border of Rikalton, while Kinzelo's fleet (accompanied by nameless and nameless) arrived at the western side. Orgal planned to divide Tikan's forces and move them to the central area of Rikalton and the surrounding waters.
Clank, clank, rumble...!
As the scheduled time continued to be delayed, waves dyed the night sky and crashed relentlessly onto the fleet.
After more than 30 minutes had passed, the uneasiness among the entire fleet grew. But finally, the sight of a massive steel gate forming in the air appeared.
"Orgal!"
As Orgal emerged from the steel gate, he already seemed quite exhausted.
[You must have all been worried because I was late. There's no problem with the operation. In fact, something fortunate happened.]
"Fortunate?"
Jin asked, and Orgal nodded.
[I had a bad feeling, so I conducted another reconnaissance. During that process, there was a surge of evil god's energy. The delay was because the rest of our allies were waiting for the aftermath to settle down before entering.]
"And how is that fortunate?"
[That surge was like the evil god losing control, Jin. Right now, the evil god is probably... unable to manifest due to despair or some other reason. It flinched momentarily at the external stimulus of our intrusion. It means the likelihood of the evil god directly intervening in this battle has significantly diminished.]
[T/L: You can read more chapters and support me here: https://ko-fi.com/punisher87 & https://bmc.link/punisher87 ]
[T/L: Join $29 membership on my "buymeacoffee" page and read 55 chapters ahead and daily 1 new chapter update. I have introduced new memberships, and you can read upto 75 or 85 chapters ahead.]
創作者的想法
babayaga01
babayaga01
You can read more chapters and support me here: https://ko-fi.com/punisher87 & https://bmc.link/punisher87
Your gift is the motivation for my creation. Give me more motivation!
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