Chapter 94: Disaster (1)
by fnovelpia
The Republic
On the Gargantua Plains, south of the capital, soldiers of the Republic were assembled in dense formations, meticulously preparing their cannons.
Although they were not at war with any nation, an air of solemnity hung over them.
“Hurry up with the preparations. They’re not far away.”
Schnitzel, the Republic’s enforcer, stood at the front, commanding the army.
With all the artillery, the symbol of the Republic’s firepower, gathered here, every enforcer had arrived.
This signaled just how seriously the Republic viewed the current situation—on par with the Great War of the past.
Bzzzzzzzz!
As the tense soldiers hurried to prepare the cannons, the sound of wings began to echo from afar—a chilling sound, unlike anything that belonged to this world.
Schnitzel’s expression hardened as he took to the skies.
Following his orders, hundreds of cannons were aimed upward.
Gulp.
A storm, dark and thick like a mass of storm clouds, approached from the distance.
Even the elite soldiers of the Republic couldn’t help but swallow nervously as they struggled to steel their hearts against the advancing swarm of insects.
“Do not be afraid! We are the proud, free citizens of the Republic! The glorious freedom of the Republic shall never fall!”
With a whoosh, a magnificent sword engulfed in flames appeared in Schnitzel’s grasp.
Though he tried his best not to show fear as a commander, even he was drenched in sweat.
A swarm of insects so shocking that he had never seen anything like it before.
Schnitzel couldn’t help but wonder if the Republic’s might alone could stop this calamity.
‘No. I am the enforcer of the Republic. If I waver here, what hope is left? We will stop this calamity here and save the Republic!’
Boom! Boom!
Schnitzel thrust his sword forward and shouted.
At his signal, hundreds of cannons roared to life.
Magical shells, the culmination of the Republic’s arcane engineering, streaked across the sky.
Bzzzzzz!
Hundreds of magical projectiles reached the swarm of insects.
Boom!
The sky exploded with bursts of color, as the magic shells detonated, incinerating the insects in mid-air.
The burnt remains of the insects rained down like ash.
‘We did it!’
Schnitzel clenched his fist in triumph as he saw the swarm that had darkened the sky annihilated.
“Waaaaaaaah!”
The soldiers, witnessing the death of the insects, erupted in cheers.
Some hugged each other, shouting in victory, while others wept with relief, clutching their chests.
A few silently pulled their hats down, hiding their emotions.
But their moment of joy was short-lived.
Bzzzzzzzzzz!
The terrifying sound once again filled the plains.
“Impossible…”
Schnitzel’s arms fell limply to his sides.
Beyond his line of sight, an even larger swarm of insects took to the sky, far surpassing the number that had just been destroyed.
“We can’t win this…”
He stood there, dazed, forgetting even his role as commander.
The artillery soldiers, too, could only stare blankly at the sky.
“…Huh?”
At that moment, another enforcer’s voice called out from behind.
“Leighton…”
The junior enforcer he once dismissed snapped him back to his senses.
“…Right.”
Schnitzel straightened his sword.
Fwoosh!
His entire body became engulfed in searing flames.
“Prepare to fire! We hold the line here! We will not surrender another inch of our land!”
The swarm of insects began to descend toward the plains, closing the distance.
The soldiers, following Schnitzel’s orders, hurried to reload the cannons.
“Fire!”
Boom!
Countless cannonballs shot through the storm of calamity, leaving scars upon the swarm.
Bzzzz!
Yet, more and more insects filled the gaps left by the fallen.
“Our freedom will never fall! Brace for impact!”
Schnitzel shouted, charging toward the swarm of insects.
Bzzzzzz!
The swarm descended upon their formation.
The calamity that consumed everything in its path—everything except humans.
“Arghhhh!”
“Save us!”
The cannons, bullets, grass, wheat—everything was devoured by the insects.
“Haahhhh!”
Every swing of Schnitzel’s sword killed thousands of insects, but it wasn’t enough to turn the tide of battle.
Boom!
Boom!
“We’ve come to reinforce you, Commander!”
“You lot!”
The enforcers landed beside him, swiftly cutting down the swarm of insects. In the brief moment of reprieve created by the massacre, the soldiers quickly reformed their lines.
“The Republic will prevail!”
Beyond the Gargantua Plains, much of the land had already been devastated by the insects. If they reached the capital, the Republic would lose all its food supplies, and the nation would collapse.
“They must not take a single step beyond this point!”
They were prepared to sacrifice their lives.
For the Republic.
Though they were vastly outnumbered, Schnitzel summoned all his strength, determined to do everything he could for his country.
Woooooooom.
A divine presence spread across the plains.
“…This…”
It was the same power he had witnessed at the opening ceremony of the duel tournament—a power displayed by the ruler of Rudera.
The power of a god.
“Commander! The insects!”
“What?”
Following the soldiers’ gazes upward, Schnitzel’s eyes widened in disbelief.
The swarm of insects that had darkened the sky was disintegrating, turning into golden dust and scattering across the plains.
Golden rain filled the air.
High above in the skies, dozens of dragons, the guardians of the middle realm, soared above the clouds.
“Lord! This is impossible!”
Though they had been clearing the insects with their breath attacks, the endless swarm seemed unkillable.
A great dragon cried out to Dragon Lord Iosif, unable to hold on any longer.
“What do you mean, impossible? Are you suggesting we let these insects devour the entire middle realm?”
Iosif roared, unleashing another breath of magic upon the swarm.
“We are the guardians of the middle realm! If we give up, then the middle realm will be finished!”
Even the dragons, the lords of magic and all living things, couldn’t find a solution.
The calamity could not be stopped.
The end of the middle realm was imminent.
One dragon was about to suggest separating the demonic realm from the middle realm and evacuating the intelligent species there when—
Woooooooom.
Golden light blanketed the sky.
“…How… how is this possible?”
Even the dragons struggled to believe what was happening.
“Your Majesty! You must evacuate immediately!”
The emperor brushed aside the attendant who tried to lead him to safety.
“Where would the Supreme Ruler run to in the face of this?”
The emperor stepped out onto the high balcony of the imperial palace.
From there, he could see countless people preparing for war, ready to confront the calamity that approached from outside the palace.
His second son, now acting as the interim commander, was using his abilities to summon numerous creatures, leading the defense from the front lines.
“And where has that child gone?”
The first king, the apostle of the gods.
A ruler even the beastmen acknowledged.
The most proud and dependable child, the one who had been marked as the next emperor—where had he vanished to?
Why had he disappeared when his people needed him most?
The emperor sighed heavily.
Most of the empire had already been wiped out by the calamity.
Even if they could stop the calamity here, he wondered if it was possible for the empire to recover.
They needed divine intervention.
Bzzzzzzzz!
“…They’ve arrived.”
Far in the distance, the swarm filled the skies above the mountain range.
The emperor felt a cold shiver run down his spine.
It didn’t matter if it was Deus or Alia.
Even a GM would suffice.
May the blessings of the gods be with the empire.
As he closed his eyes tightly—
A miracle filled the sky.
“See? It works.”
Albus smiled, holding a capsule in one hand as he glanced back at [Guide].
“We’ll stop the calamity and fix everything that went wrong. We can do this. We can overcome it.”
He met her gaze, as her eyes wavered with uncertainty.
0 Comments