Ch.218Episode 11 – All Quiet on the Northern Front

The battle had been going on for quite a while, but there was no major problem.

Thanks to the strengthened defenses against demon attacks, the unit defending the rift possessed tremendous firepower, and the swarm of corpse spiders attacking the rift were experiencing that firepower firsthand as they absorbed bullets and shells with their bodies.

-Ratatatatata! Ratata! Bang! Ratatata! Bang!

– ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶! ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶!

From rifles to mortars, grenade launchers, tank cannons, and armored vehicle machine guns.

The Imperial Army poured immense firepower into defending the rift, and thanks to that, the swarm of corpse spiders that had been advancing with momentum after smashing through the perimeter positions were being cut down one after another.

I watched the rain of artillery fire that seemed to tear through the fog and poured water over my head.

“Phew…”

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, Camilla. Go inside and get some rest. I noticed you were staggering earlier.”

After handing Camilla some food and drink, I sent her into an empty building. I might be fine without eating or sleeping for days, but Camilla and Francesca weren’t accustomed to combat. The two of them needed to rest as much as possible.

As I watched Camilla hesitantly disappear, seemingly self-conscious about going to rest alone, I leaned against the wall and observed the defense line. The Imperial Army was still killing any corpse spiders that poked their heads in, and the defense line, backed by solid firepower, was incredibly sturdy.

If they could just hold out like this, reinforcements from below would soon reach the defense line. Then it would all be over.

When the Imperial troops who had broken through the monsters opened an escape route, they would first evacuate the wounded down the mountain. We could blend in and go down with them. Along with those academy kids hiding in the barracks, trembling with fear.

So holding out would solve everything. We just needed to maintain the defense line until reinforcements arrived.

At least, that’s what I thought.

I was wrong.

“The defense line has been surrounded.”

“Ah, hell no.”

Episode 11 – All Quiet on the Northern Front

Life is full of unexpected turns, and fortune and misfortune are intertwined.

Suddenly, I recalled something the Intelligence Command Director told me long ago when he came to recruit me.

The old saying that future fortune and misfortune are hard to predict, and that misfortune and blessing come together—it turns out there wasn’t a single false word in it.

“What do you mean we’re surrounded?”

“Exactly as I said.”

It hadn’t been long since the Imperial bastards had returned to the rift after enduring hell holding off the spider swarms while tending to the wounded, and now they’re saying we’re surrounded by monsters.

What kind of nonsense is this?

I stared at the Imperial officer with a look that conveyed that sentiment, and apparently feeling uncomfortable under my gaze, he nudged Senior Lyudmila who was interpreting.

Senior Lyudmila spoke.

“As the officer explained earlier, monsters have surrounded the rift, Sir.”

“How exactly do monsters surround a unit that has tanks?”

“Uh, well, that’s…”

Senior Lyudmila hesitated slightly and trailed off.

“The attacking monsters retreated and encircled the defense line. They seem to have determined it was difficult to break through.”

“You’re saying the corpse spiders that were attacking the defense line suddenly pulled back and formed an encirclement?”

“Yes.”

I stared at the defense line with a blank expression.

I could certainly see something strange, just as described. The men who had been fiercely pouring firepower until just a short while ago had stopped firing, as if they’d run out of ammunition.

I leaned my head against the wall for a moment to think.

“I’m asking just in case, but has the unit already run out of the ammunition they prepared? The defense line has been quiet for a while.”

The Imperial officer, after hearing Senior Lyudmila’s translation, shook his head firmly.

“No. We still have plenty of supplies.”

“I see…”

If that’s true, then the troops at the defense line aren’t out of bullets. In other words, they’re not conserving ammunition—there are simply no corpse spiders to shoot at.

“The creatures that were advancing with enough momentum to break through the defense line at any moment suddenly started spreading out widely. A report came in from the platoon stationed in the east.”

“The monsters in the north must have high intelligence.”

“I’m not sure about that, but this has happened a few times before. Officers who have served in the north for a long time have dealt with occasional monster appearances.”

“Well, well…”

Monsters bypassing encirclements or slipping through surveillance networks happens from time to time. If monsters were that dumb, advanced nations would have used their armies to wipe them out from uninhabited areas.

The fact that the Abas or Kien armies couldn’t do that means monsters possess considerable intelligence.

This isn’t special or surprising. Just as stray cats adapt to urban environments, monsters in rear areas also evolve to survive.

However,

“…Tsk.”

Perhaps because of what I heard earlier, something feels off.

“Are there no reinforcements coming? If there’s artillery nearby, they could easily eliminate the monsters while advancing under covering fire.”

“The thick fog is limiting troop deployment. Given that even infantry have difficulty climbing the terrain, we believe immediate support won’t be possible.”

“What about fire support?”

“We can receive plenty of that anytime, but poor visibility makes it difficult to operate observation teams. However, combat mages should arrive soon.”

“Hmm…”

I glanced around, lifting my head slightly.

Due to the thickening fog, it certainly looks difficult to lead troops up the mountain or guide firepower from a distance.

I sighed softly, picked up the rifle I had leaned against the wall, and entered the building.

*

“…And that’s the situation.”

By the time I finished explaining, Camilla and Francesca were sitting around the table with peculiar expressions.

After meeting with Senior Lyudmila, I immediately explained the current situation to Camilla and Francesca. The two, who had been resting in the makeshift room, listened attentively with serious faces.

“So the monsters that attacked the rift suddenly retreated and formed an encirclement…”

Francesca spoke first.

“Stories about monsters surrounding people or bypassing defense networks can be heard until your ears fall off at the Adventurer’s Guild, but this isn’t something we can easily dismiss.”

“Because these aren’t ordinary monsters.”

“Exactly.”

She nodded with her arms crossed.

“First, corpse spiders—small monsters that normally don’t attack humans—are attacking the military, and after charging at the defense line knowing they would die, they’ve now pulled back… It’s definitely an abnormal phenomenon. Nothing like this has been reported in the Adventurer’s Guild or academic circles.”

“……”

“Why would something like this happen?”

Camilla, who had been listening, suddenly raised her hand.

“Could there be a villain controlling the monsters? Like, controlling them with pheromones or magic signals.”

“Hmm… Someone controlling monsters… There are certainly people who specialize in handling and breeding monsters, but such individuals are usually well-identified or under government surveillance, Hero.”

“Oh… Then could there be an unregistered mage here?”

Camilla cautiously offered her speculation.

After briefly looking outside, I joined the conversation between the two who were putting their heads together.

“Such assumptions are meaningless. We’re stranded here, and we’ve been in the Empire for less than a month. What could we possibly know?”

“The official is right. Speculation without evidence just leads us in circles.”

Nothing is certain. Even I, who served in the Empire for three years, don’t know what’s happening, so how could Camilla and Francesca know?

We need to focus on what we can do.

I pulled up a chair and sat facing the two.

“What’s certain is that we’re isolated at the rift and it’s difficult to receive external support right now.”

Combat mages are coming from nearby units, but that might not be enough.

To drive away the monsters attacking the rift, we need at least large-scale reinforcements.

Things might be fine for now since the corpse spiders aren’t attacking, but no one knows when something might happen.

We didn’t even anticipate that the rift would be attacked while we were stuck here.

“Let’s set aside the Imperial Army since that’s beyond our control. They’ve already reported the situation and requested support. Administrator, are there any people around who could help us?”

“Hmm…”

Francesca pondered for a moment, rolling her eyes.

“There are mages from the Magic Tower operating near the rift. Of course, they’re not many in number, and it would take quite some time for them to arrive.”

“Good. If you can contact them, please request support now.”

“I already did that. As soon as we got inside the defense line.”

“Oh, you did?”

I looked at Francesca with surprise.

I thought she would have been too preoccupied dealing with the corpse spiders, but she had already done what needed to be done before I even asked.

Francesca began explaining with a composed face as she sat in her chair.

“Who else did you contact for support?”

“Everyone I could reach. Lord Evangelos, Martinez, the mages from the Magic Tower, and northern mages who are acquainted with them.”

Francesca had requested support from everyone she could contact.

Evangelos Risidike, commander of the Magic Battalion, Juan Pablo Martinez, head of the Secretariat, mages from the Magic Tower who repair railways and roads, and mages from the Empire.

She essentially used most of her connections.

“Well done.”

“Oh, and there’s one more person. Lord Ferretti.”

“Ferretti?”

That Holy Knight Commander?

“You’re in contact with someone like him?”

“Connections are important. There’s no harm in knowing each other, right? We happen to have things we can help each other with.”

“Ah, the investigation of black magic items.”

I sighed softly.

If we hadn’t been stuck here, I would have already taken Francesca to Petrograd to search for smuggling routes.

“What a bolt from the blue…”

“Don’t think too negatively. It’s not like demons are invading.”

“Maybe demons are attacking this place.”

“Then we should pray the Holy Knight Order arrives quickly.”

I looked with exasperation at Francesca as she joked about who a mage—considered heretical for hundreds of years—should pray to.

“By the way, Camilla, what have you been looking at? Is there something outside?”

“Ah…”

Camilla, who had been standing by the window, turned to look at me. She had gotten up from her seat at some point and was gazing beyond the thick fog.

“It’s nothing. I just felt a bit queasy…”

Camilla’s complexion darkened slightly.

“Are you okay? If you’re uncomfortable, don’t stand there—come over here.”

“It’s not that bad. I just remembered the department store incident for a moment…”

“Department store?”

Why is she bringing that up suddenly?

I looked at Camilla with a puzzled expression, but she shook her head as if it was nothing and spoke.

“It’s nothing serious, so don’t worry. I’ve just had a bad feeling since earlier… Anyway, I’ve been thinking about something.”

“What is it?”

“A way to eliminate the monsters surrounding this place.”

Camilla looked out the window again.

Then she turned her back to the window and looked at me.

“Maybe if we gather the monsters and—”

At that moment, the world outside the window suddenly darkened.

Camilla, with her back to the window, was about to continue speaking, unaware of what was happening, while Francesca half-rose from her seat, trying to shout.

“Get down!”

“Huh…?”

Only then did Camilla realize what was happening and turned to look at the window.

I pulled Camilla and Francesca toward the inner part of the room, shielding them.

– ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶!

And then the dust that rose with a thunderous roar engulfed us.

*

The first thought that came to mind when I regained consciousness was that I was bleeding.

Through my hazy consciousness, I felt a burning pain in my forehead. My temples and cheekbones also felt warm.

I wiped my trembling cheek and saw blood on my palm.

“……”

I stared blankly at the blood soaking my hand, unable to distinguish whether this was a dream or reality.

What brought me back to my senses was the sound of coughing from below.

Camilla, covered in grayish dust, was coughing violently.

“Cough…! Cough, cough…!”

“…Camilla.”

“I’m, I’m fi— Cough…!”

Amidst the coughing, a familiar voice reached my ears. It was Francesca’s voice.

“Sir…”

“Ah, Francesca…”

Francesca wasn’t much different from Camilla. She was covered in dust, and with one sleeve covering her nose and mouth, she was shaking my shoulder.

“Don’t move…”

“No,”

“I said don’t move.”

Her firm voice stopped me.

Francesca, holding my shoulders with both hands, sat me down on the floor, then rummaged through her pocket and pulled out a potion.

“Drink this.”

“This is… now…”

“You have a concussion. You could really die, so drink it immediately.”

I had no energy to argue.

Not understanding what was happening, I repeatedly tried to push away the vial Francesca offered, but she ignored my resistance and forcibly put the bottle to my lips.

Only after drinking the entire potion did I feel my foggy mind gradually becoming clearer.

Things I couldn’t see before started to become visible.

Camilla, covered in dust and in a disheveled state, and Francesca handing her a potion.

The fire that had started to spread to the wood and curtains, possibly from an explosion.

The completely collapsed outer wall on one side and the thick fog slowly filling what used to be the interior of the building.

And,

“What is that…”

In the distance,

Beyond the thick fog,

The shadow of a giant spider slowly approaching.

Dozens of blood-red eyes emitting crimson light were coming toward us.

“……”

For reference, we were on the third floor of the building.