Chapter 171

Chapter 171 - The Conquerors of the Sky and…

When Julia was wounded by Lambda’s scheme and retreated from the front line, the troops guarding the frontline gate were greatly disturbed. However, in order to fill the gap that Julia had created, the damage to the main gate was minimal due to Reus’ efforts fighting like a monster. On the other hand, the damage to us who were fighting on the wall was considerable. This was because the number of injured people was increasing as they were unable to cope with simultaneous attacks from the sky and monsters climbing the wall.

Nevertheless, we managed to rebuild with the support of the surroundings. The monster retreated in the evening and we were able to survive the assault today. However, no one was raising a cheering voice. No matter how active Reus played his role, he couldn’t decrease the effect of Julia’s withdraw since she was the symbol to everyone.

The overall atmosphere was heavy, and I was participating in the strategy meeting in the conference room as the injured were treated while the wall and weapons were repaired.

“Sirius-dono, how’s Julia-sama?” (Cayenne)

“It was a serious injury that burned the whole body, but her life was saved by Reese’s treatment. However, it will be hard for a while to fight like before.” (Sirius)

I diagnosed Julia before the strategy meeting, but miraculously, there was no aftereffects. However, even though the burns healed by Reese’s magic, she would need a few days of rest for complete recovery. That might due to how she moved beyond her limit. When I told everyone the result of diagnosis, Cayenne and other unit leaders gathered here let out a deep breath of relief.

“Is that so? Still, it was really fortunate that Julia-sama was able to come back alive. I can’t you enough Reus-dono and Reese-dono.” (Cayenne)

“Julia-sama was lucky as well. The goddess of luck must be smiling since Julia-sama survived in that explosion.” (??)

“…” (??)

Just to be safe, the manastone of the pendant emitted a huge amount of mana… In other words, her body might have been blown away without a trace, unless I carved a magic formation that would release a shock wave in response to an explosion. Nonetheless, the magic stoned activated well. If the explosion was more powerful than the shock wave, I didn’t know what would happen. I was sure that she was lucky. By the way, only the Beast King had a certain sort of convinced gaze towards me, but I shook my head slowly, asking her to keep silent. It was a bit confusing to explain things, and it wasn’t good to let people know about my skill unnecessarily.

“Now that we know Julia-sama is safe, let’s sort out our situation. All units, report.” (Cayenne)

“We, the Second unit, were pretty much done. However, I think that we will be able to recover to the extent that there is no problem tomorrow.” (??)

“There aren’t many who can fight satisfactorily in the Fourth unit. I’m sorry to say this, but I wonder if we can survive tomorrow if this battle keeps up…” (??)

“The Eight unit is not that bad, but the waste of supplies is more than expected. We will replenish it immediately.” (??)

The damage situation and requests were communicated from each unit, and Cayenne set up countermeasures while quickly summarized the contents. Units with a reduced number of people were integrated with other units or relocated to a certain extent. Then, the unit leaders tried to change the mood by speaking in a bright tone.

“I had a lot of regrets, but it was great to defeat that Lambda traitor.” (??)

“Hmm, there’s no way he can survive in such an explosion. This will change the battle a little bit.” (??)

“No… I don’t really want to tell this, but Lambda isn’t dead yet.” (Sirius)

The ones who knew that Lambda were four people. That included me, Julia and the escorts who faced him directly. After all, I was listening to their conversation through the magic tool. And Cayenne heard the report from Ian. When Cayenne explained to the leaders that it was a clump of plants covered in human skin but also a creature with a certain intelligence, they all tilted their head.

“While it’s Lambda, it’s not Lambda? What does that mean?” (??)

“I also don’t understand. However, according to Julia, she seemed to be talking to Lambda. I don’t think she got it wrong…” (??)

“In other words, there were two Lambdas? No, if the body was a plant, was it a monster?” (??)

There was a lot of speculation, but I judged that it was his clone. It might not be exactly the same, but it was similar since it could act with similar intelligence of the original person. However, even in a world where magic existed, I wondered if cloning technology, which was a crystal of science and technology, could be realized in this other world, But I was confident that it was possible depending on the method.

I thought so because I once fought it in the land of the Beast King, who sat next to me. I fought against a being who entered a human body and manipulated the host. It was a small manastone that I extracted out of the body with my magic. There was also an idea that the magic stone was alive, but it might be an ego embedded in the manastone. Although the siblings destroyed it immediately, I felt like that manastone had a complex magic formation that I had never seen before.

In other words, if someone had the ability of Lambda to manipulate plants or to carve ego in the manastone, it was possible to create a clone. However, this was just a theory that came to me because of my special birth and experience. There would be no end if I had to explain in detail. So, when I thought about whether to convey the information or not, Cayenne interrupted the unit leaders, telling them to be silent.

“There are many things that we don’t know about, but I’m sure that there are many people who are similar to Lambda. Not only he knows about the truth of the country, he also have the wisdom to be called a hero.” (Cayenne)

“In other words, the fake will come out again?” (??)

“Damn it, we’re just going to be at a disadvantage. How much power is hidden on the other side!” (??)

“Even so, we can’t afford to give up. Even if he appears infinitely.” (Cayenne)

“I don’t think it’s infinite.” (Sirius)

Everyone’s gaze was directed at me due to the interruption. Some of them displayed an unpleasant expression, but Cayenne, the frontline base commander, didn’t say anything, so I continued to talk.

“If he can increase the number of the alter ego easily or have a number, you should be able to see them more often. If you think about it, you only see it for the first time on the fourth day, and it only aimed for Julia-sama. If I were him, I would at least target her with at least two clones, but not one.” (Sirius)

Although the thoroughness of using manastone in the body was tremendous, he should have prepared something if he knew Julia’s ability. Even though they were fighting one-on-one at that time, there was a possibility that some of the escorts she took were forced to fight together.

“For starters, if there are many people who have the same power as Lambda, I think Sandor has already been destroyed long ago. I don’t think he needs to take the time to weaken the country from the inside.” (Sirius)

“…You got a point there. Especially if the number is limited.” (Cayenne)

“If we know that the fake is a lump of plants, can we think of a countermeasure?” (??)

“Hmm, that’s what I was thinking about. Please select a few who are good at flame magic in each unit Is it possible to have someone familiar with plants to make poisons?” (Sirius)

It seemed that they were considering my guess positively probably because I had gained their trust with my achievements so far. The meeting continued as it was, and it was dismissed when the decisions were put together. However, there was a little noise in the dining hall when I joined the disciples.

In front of the table where everyone was sitting, Ian, who was Julia’s guard, and several young men and women were approaching Reus with threatening attitude while he was still eating.

“Why are you so angry?” (Reus)

“Obviously! That’s because you’re the man chosen by Julia-sama!” (??)

While thinking about what was going on, Emilia greeted me when I approached her. So, I sat on the chair where I was led, and I asked her about the details.

“Although Julia-sama hasn’t awakened yet, they seem unable to forgive Reus since he is eating with Marina instead of taking care of her.” (Emilia)

“Well, if you look from the side, it does seem that seem like he is disrespecting women, but Reus isn’t like that, right?” (Sirius)

“Yes. He was eating quietly, and Marina also didn’t talk too much.” (Emilia)

Reus concentrated on eating because he was concentrating on recovering physical strength, but Ian and others, who have lost their patient, didn’t seem to see it. In addition to the current circumstance where they were being driven by the enemies, they might be emotionally unstable due to the regret and frustration since they couldn’t protect Julia. That was why Reus let Julia sleeping and tried not to quarrel with them, but it seemed that he was almost venting his anger. It was hard to control emotions because all of these young guys were involved.

“We had a lot of regrets since she fell into the enemy’s scheme. Regrettably, you were the one who rescued and could heal her spirit the most. So, we’re asking you to take care of Julia more!” (Ian)

“…Tell me, did you hear from the person herself that she was depressed?” (Reus)

“That…” (Ian)

“She is sleeping, so it’s impossible for me to do anything, right? And just so you know, Julia isn’t that weak. Shouldn’t you guys know that better than me?” (Reus)

“““…””” (Ian/Shane/Dyna)

It seemed the imperial guards couldn’t say rebutted when Reus pointed that out. After confirming the other side had become somewhat calmed, Reus looked straight at Ian with a toothy grin.

“Julia is fine since Aniki and Reese-ane said so. I’m eating for tomorrow, so don’t bother me too much, alright.” (Reus)

“…Sorry.” (Ian)

“Ouh! I know what you want to say. Make sure come to see her later.” (Reus)

It wasn’t clear whether Reus smiling like a youth soothed their anger, but the guards also bowed in response. When Reus returned to the plate, Albert, who was sitting nearby, spoke to me.

“This is because of the fatigue and anxiety. After all, the mood in the is heavy.” (Albert)

“As I expected, her fall gave a huge impact. If Reus lost his life, I may leave this place immediately.” (Sirius)

“Yes, Reus’ action has save everyone, rather than Julia alone. I’m proud as a friend.” (Albert)

“No, he was able to go there because you and Keith remained at the main gate. Plus, Reus wasn’t the only one. Everyone else also was trying their best.” (Sirius)

Although Reus was conspicuous by all means, the main gate would have collapsed if there wasn’t Keith, who remained on the spot and continued to fight, and Albert, who monitored the surroundings while moving flexibly. When I praised my disciple who underestimated himself due to his personality, he scratched his head to cover the embarrassment.

“By the way, Shishou. What was the sword that Reus to cut the neck of the Gigatients? His sword blade obviously doesn’t look like it can cut its neck into two.” (Albert)

“That looks like… the secret technique of the ‘Single Strike Ultimate Destruction Sword Style’. It’s a technique that Reus has created by himself by having the foundation showed to him.” (Sirius)

A long time ago, just before leaving the house I was born… Reus met Lior-jiisan. At that time, Jii-san showed his technique to Reus. It seemed to be an incomplete technique. Although it just looked like a sword swing from the side, Jii-san said that it was a technique that would eventually lead him to a secret technique. That swordsmanship was the ‘Single Strike Ultimate Destruction Sword Style’ that Reus polished and completed by himself.

“Anyhow, it is a technique that uses a lot of mana as well as stamina. If there are more big monsters tomorrow, I would probably have to take action.” (Sirius)

“Shishou will be busy with the sky, no? If Julia is unable to join us, Keith and I will join the assault unit, so I will rely on Hokuto-san to…” (Albert)

“Hokuto is impossible. He isn’t in the front line base now, and may not even be able to participate in tomorrow’s battle.” (Sirius)

“Eh!?” (Albert)

—

Later, I shared information at the strategy meeting with everyone while having a meal. After taking a break, I came to the top floor of the frontline base with Emilia. I came here not to call Hokuto but it was because I wanted to feel the wind a bit. As I was talking with Emilia while gazing at the night sky and the surrounding scenery, Cayenne suddenly appeared in front of us.

“Uh, please excuse me. I didn’t mean to interrupt the young people’ s tryst…” (Cayenne)

“Don’t worry about it. We’re here because we want to feel the air. By the way, Were you busy reviewing the strategy?” (Sirius)

“I wanted to change the mood a little bit. If there is even a gap in the operation, it will be a situation where everything collapses.” (Cayenne)

He was saying it without reservation, probably because we were the only ones here. Since he was somehow aware of our abilities, he might think that there was no use to hide the fact.

“Is it still hard?” (Sirius)

“I don’t even want to talk about it. Same goes to you. Aren’t you moving the Hundred Wolves because of that?” (Cayenne)

At the moment, Hokuto wasn’t at the frontline base. I had written a letter after today’s battle was over in order to call for reinforcements. That was why I told Albert that Hokuto wouldn’t be here.

I judged that he would come back tomorrow at the earliest. However, when I told in the strategy meeting that he wouldn’t be in time before the battle starts, the meeting was a bit of a stir. There was no explicit behavior that they were relying on him blatantly, but it was an evidence that Hokuto’s strength was emphasized. Some of them yelled at me for not using that precious strength, but there was no reason for Hokuto to be tied up in action since he was my partner to begin with.

When I supplemented that I was relying on him to be a messenger to call for a powerful reinforcement, the unit leaders shut their mouth while showing a complicated expression. The discussion ended when Cayenne told them not to rely too much on that extra support.

“For you to rely on the Hundred Wolves… are they reliable reinforcements?” (Cayenne)

“I can’t expect the number, but they are more powerful than Hokuto. The rest is whether or not the other side would accept, but I believe they will come.” (Sirius)

“Is that so? I don’t doubt you since you have contributed so much, but I can’t hold on to vague hope as a commander. I’m sorry for this behavior.” (Cayenne)

“Yes, I understand.” (Sirius)

In this different world, the enemy had a unique skill such as making clones rather than manipulating monsters. After all, this wasn’t a situation that I was being reluctant to help. Anyhow, I could be allowed to forget one of my trump card. What worried me now was the monsters that flew around the sky as if it was their place.

“Our exhaustion is more intense than the personnel and the goods sent from our home country. I didn’t say it clearly at the meeting, but my intuition tells me that our fate will be determined tomorrow.” (Cayenne)

“In other words, there’s a possibility of abandoning this place, right?” (Sirius)

“I’m sorry, but that would be it.. Listen, don’t miss the call. Make sure you bring Julia-sama home.” (Cayenne)

Cayenne entrusted Julia to us meant that he was going to stay to the end and earn time. Finally, he left after telling me not to die before him, but then, Emilia was seeing him off with a complicated expression.

“Will he be alright? That person is completely…” (Emilia)

“He’s not in a hurry to die. He’s going to put everyone together and serves as the commander who takes care of their lives.” (Sirius)

Perhaps, since he realized that he was already old, he thought that it didn’t matter if he died. Just like how I was in the last operation of the previous life. Even though Emilia could understand his resolve, she seemed to feel sad since he was making light of his life. I put my hand on Emilia’s head and smiled to reassure her.

“Well, rather than abandoning this place, he continues to fight. Julia-sama will be reluctant to run away, so don’t you think that it won’t change the number of people who we have to bring out forcibly increase by one or two?” (Sirius)

“Sirius-sama…” (Emilia)

“Everything depends on the situation, but if you can reach it, try to pick up as many as you can. Now, shall we get some rest for tomorrow?” (Sirius)

“Yes!” (Emilia)

Emilia smiled and softly touched my hand as if she was satisfied with the answer. She seemed to think of me most because of her standpoint as an attendant, but I hoped that she didn’t forget the feelings of caring for others.

—

Then… the morning of the fifth day came, and the attack of the monsters began. Julia, woke up early in the morning and she had recovered to a state where she could fight. She decided to return to the front line on the condition that she didn’t overdo it. In that way, the overall morale was considerably improved.

The monsters came when all the units were in place, but there were many people tilting their head as they confirmed the sight in front of them. The number was limited as I imagined. No matter where I looked, there was no Lambda-like appearance. Moreover, since there were only two Gigatients and there was no major change in the types of monsters, there were some soldiers who let out a breath of relief. However, when the battle started, I was able to understand the clear difference from the previous day.

“It’s coming again! Hold your shield!” (??)

“No, don’t get hit by it! Keep attacking while avoiding it!” (??)

“Don’t let your guard down, it’s still alive!” (??)

Until now, large monsters such as Ogre had thrown rocks, but now the ground was filled with moderate-sized rocks, so the threat of long-range attacks was small. However, today, the large monsters began to throw other monsters that ran under their feet. Most of them either didn’t reach the barriers, crashed into the walls, fell into the spot where we were or died because they couldn’t stand the impact. However, some of them survived and went on rampage.

The worst thing was that the large monsters, that threw away the other monsters, stopped their feet completely like fixed turrets. They wouldn’t stop the assault no matter what. So, the only way to stop them was to defeat them where they stopped their feet.

Reus and Keith occasionally led the assault units and destroyed the monsters that became fixed turrets, but they were widespread on the battlefield and it was difficult to kill them. The emergence of long-range attacks with an infinite number of ammunition, major damage began to appear at the early stage. Although it was rare, there were units whose formations were destroyed by the threat of thrown monsters.

“Tsk, they are too many of them!” (Sirius)

Unfortunately, Hokuto hadn’t returned yet, so the burden here was naturally increasing. I continued to shoot bullets without thinking about the mana exhaustion. It was to support the spot that Hokuto had left, but clearly, it wasn’t good enough. That was why this wasn’t a situation that could be overturned if Hokuto was here. All I could do was to continue to attack to earn time. Of course, I always check the surroundings with [Multitask] so as not to misjudge the withdraw from this place.

“I’m going to do it again. Marina, support me!” (Emilia)

“You just did it a while ago… Yes, I’ll do it immediately!” (Marina)

Emilia had shortened the interval to activate large-scale magic, and she continued to fight while taking advantage of the illusions that Marina created. It was a way of fighting that wasn’t suitable for long-term battle, but she was able to keep the soldiers in order, and managed to maintain the front line.

“Ugh! Leave this place to me, you guys go to other places!” (Beast King)

“““Yes!””” (Beast King)

The Beast King joined the battle not only to command, but also to support the troops who were in danger. Although he was a king, he had a high fighting capability and was very reliable. Unfortunately, he was mainly fighting, so he could only deal with monsters that had climbed the walls, or came close to him from the sky.

“Nee-sama, this time, the injured people are over there.” (Reese)

“Leave it to me! Hey, don’t get in our way.” (Lifell)

“Don’t go too far, Hime-sama!” (Melt)

“If you have time to complain, protect them!” (Lifell)

If there was no time to bring the injured people to treatment room, Reese’s group would go out from the room and looked for the injured people. They ran a bit behind from the front line, except in the front of the main gate at treat the injured people at random.

It looked dangerous, but Reese seemed to have managed somehow because there weren’t only spirits, but also Princess Lifell, who was good at flame magic, and her two loyal followers. Plus, Reus and others were guarding the main gate. Compared to us, I supposed they were in a better situation.

“Damn it, we’re overwhelmed here! Hit it again!” (Keith)

“No good. Keith-dono, please withdraw! I will reorganize the unit. Reus, are you ready?” (Julia)

“Ouh, I can go anytime!” (Reus)

Julia wasn’t only good at sword, but she was also a commander. She was excellent as she could fight and gave instructions to Reus and Keith efficiently. However, as far as I could see from above, they seemed to maintain the status quo at best.

“The battle is still going on, and there are many people who haven’t given up on fighting. But…” (Sirius)

As time went on, I felt that the situation was getting worse. Some of them were exhausted, but even if they holding the frontline base as soon as possible, they were exposed to the assault and the numbers that couldn’t be prevented.

Of course, not only me, but also my disciples and those who were experienced in battle would still be able to fight. However, from the point of view of the battle between huge armies, this was already a losing battle. No matter how tenacious we were, half a day would be the limit.

As Cayenne told me last night, he was secretly preparing to abandon the frontline base as we were fighting. It seemed that there were carriages to carry a handful of noncombatants including care workers and cooks, as well as those who were severely injured. The carriages were set to depart for Sandor as soon as it became available. In other words, the only people remained here were the troops who would be the meatshield to earn time for those who run away. Not only Cayenne, many people decided that this place was the place to die.

“Even so, it’s better to have less sacrifice. I need to make the decision to save as many people as possible.” (Cayenne)

If the situation didn’t improve as it was, the order to withdraw all troops would be issued soon. Only those who were ready to die would remain at the base to prevent enemies, and we would forcibly carry away Julia, who definitely wanted to remain until the end. That was why it was necessary to move before troublesome things were likely to increase. I wasn’t going to move immediately when Hokuto came back, but… he didn’t make it in time.

“I wanted to keep fighting with him if possible, but there is no way.” (Sirius)

It wasn’t a way to use in the current situation, but it should be possible to maintain the front line at least. At the same time, the disciples would secure Julia and Cayenne. In addition to the time to withdraw, they could earn time to wait for Hokuto.

When I checked the necessary equipment and held Shishou’s knife…

“Roarrr–!” (??)

[[[Eat this!]]] (??)

Three lights ripped through the sky with a roar that I was used to hear, and many flying monsters over our heads were mowed down. Looking back, I could see three dragons approaching from the sky at a great speed, and there was a figure of Hokuto riding on its back.

“Have you come!? You’ve made me wait for a long time.” (Sirius)

The three bodies, colored in red, green and yellow all over their bodies, were larger than the dragon species we had fought so far. They were the high rank Dragonkins that were protecting Karen’s hometown. There was no mistake. They were Eye, Kuva and Rai.

The three dragons, who passed over our head while letting out breath concentrated with mana, began to rampage against the flying monsters. Of course, the monsters fought back, but Eye and others flew around them and killed the monsters one after another. It seemed that the upper rank Dragon was sometimes called the conqueror of the sky… and they were showing strength worth that title.

[Everyone, calm down! The sky dragons that appeared are the reinforcements! Don’t attack them by mistake!] (Cayenne)

Since the details of the reinforcements weren’t known, the soldiers were seen panicking at the appearance of the upper rank Dragonkins. However, Cayenne immediately communicated it, so it didn’t lead to a great deal of confusion. However, it seemed that there were no room for cheering as there were many soldiers who were still in melee battles, but there were some leeway born the burden reduced from the sky. This alone was enough reinforcement, but then, two more upper rank Dragons flew behind the three dragons.

[As the letter says, the number is huge. Surely, it would be too much for humans to handle.] (Z???????)

[It’s been a while to go to the world below. Shall we look how many monsters are there?] (M????)

Those were the light blue and red color upper Dragonkins… So, Zenodora and Mejia were coming… I expected Zenodora would come, but I didn’t think Mejia, who I had a complicated relationship with me, would also come.

To begin with, I only expected two to three upper Dragonkins to come, but it was true, I didn’t imagine that five of them were coming. Since they were only a few upper Dragonkin left, they were busy guarding the Winged People and their territory every day. I would like to thank you for responding to my sudden request. There was no way to keep up with this changing trend.

“Emilia, I’m going to support the ground! You’ll continue to…” (Sirius)

But… the change in circumstances continued. There was a completely unexpected existence came that wouldn’t lose to the upper rank Dragonkin… no, that existence literally came down from their back.

“Nurryaaa!” (L???)

That existence fell to the ground where Reus and others were fighting, and released a tremendous shock wave upon falling. The technique that seemed to blow away the monsters in front of it and building up a pile of rubble, [Break Thrust], had evolved to the extent that it was impossible to compare to the past. When I was wondering how much he had trained, I heard a laugh that I told that I didn’t like it during mock battles.

“Hahaha! Youngsters! I’ve been thinking that it’s been a while, but you’re doing something that looks like you’re having a lot of fun!” (L???)

I see… the reason why the reinforcements were delayed because they were picking up that existence. While being reliable in so many ways, he looked like he was having fun as if he was smiling at unknown souvenirs. So, I activated Echo, so that all the soldiers could hear it.

[Notify all units! The Strongest Sword Lior is in front of the main gate! I repeat, the Strongest Sword Lior has come as a reinforcement!]

—

Extra/Bonus – Tell me, the ‘Single Strike Ultimate Destruction Sword Style’ – Act 1

“Greetings, everyone. I am Emilia, the moderator. This corner will be the time to introduce the techniques of ‘Single Strike Ultimate Destruction Sword Style’. I would like to invite the Strongest Swords Lior-sama, the creator of the sword style.” (Emilia)

“I don’t get it, but I suppose I should be here, yes?” (Lior)

“That’s fine. Now, the technique introduced today is the [Break Thrust].” (Emilia)

“Hmm, it’s a technique to thrust the sword downward!” (Lior)

“Isn’t Lior-Ojiichan techniques are all like that? Uhm… I’m not sure the detail, but when mana is loaded into the sword, it will unleash a shock wave spreading in a fan shape. There is one question. How did you create this technique?” (Emilia)

“Surely, this technique was created when I jumped off a cliff. Since it was higher than expected, I started to slam the sword reflexively. Since then, it has been useful when descending from high places.” (Lior)

“Um… isn’t that a technique created against monsters? It’s like the way to get rid of monsters all together…” (Emilia)

“What are you saying? If that will kill everything, the time to kill the monsters will reduce, right?” (Lior)

“…” (Emilia)

“By the way, Emilia. Would you like to go for tea later? I know where to have a good one.” (Lior)

“Alright, this is it. Everyone, see you again later.” (Emilia)

“Let’s have tea…” (Lior)

The Tell me, the ‘Single Strike Ultimate Destruction Sword Style’ – Act 1… The End.

—

Special Move… [Break Thrust]

Command input (when the character is facing right)

Bottom → Bottom right → Right → Hit button

A shock wave that reaches the edge of the screen and hits the ground.

※The image is from the Gun Rave game. (TLN: ガン○レイブ. I couldn’t come out which fighting game is this. Does anyone know?)

It’s a multi hit technique. Reus could do three consecutive hits. In case of Lior, he could do five consecutive hits.

—

TLN:

• I’m going to stick with the name of [Break Thrust] for now. Changing the name to something else at this late would make it confusing. Thank you for understanding.