episode_0145

– Crumbling.

Scratching cries that were not thought to belong to animals echoed from all directions. The thing that was stomping towards was a troll, classified as a large monster.

Contrary to their stupid appearance, these guys, about the size of giant gods, were swinging large wooden bats back and forth.

Even though the tree must have weighed hundreds of kilograms, it looked as light as if it had been lifted from a carriage.

[Get ready.]

Just before the sortie, Commander Seraphina began measuring the timing in a hushed voice through the broken communication magic network. The beginning of every battle is important.

If we could win with just one attack, we might be able to defeat them all without suffering too much damage.

-Kerukkeuk.

Trolls and other medium-sized monsters were coming down the forest to avoid the eyes of large monsters. Although they were only half the size of large monsters, they were incomparably larger than humans.

[Notify all subjugation team members. Destroy all monsters in front of you!]

As soon as the monsters arrived at the foot of the mountain, the waiting units of Giant God Soldiers began their assault. They poured everything they had learned at the academy and began dealing with monsters.

– Kyaaa!

The monsters, surprised by the sudden appearance of a group of giant soldiers, unleashed their ferocious wildness as the punitive force began hunting their own people. Those whose instinct was to kill and destroy rather than fear death fearlessly charged at the giant soldier like moths into a fire.

– Quang!

The magical weapons mounted on the giant soldier spewed fire. The enchanted multiple fireballs began to crush medium-sized monsters.

– KEEP!

Quite a few monsters were torn apart by the armed force pouring down from the numerous giant god soldiers, but their momentum showed no signs of abating. Rather, he must have been excited by the smell of blood and clung to the giant bottle with his eyes wide open.

[You bastards!]

The medium-sized monster’s attack was not fatal to the giant soldier wearing a magical barrier. Although medium-sized monsters were sensitive to mana, they could not handle mana, so it was impossible to break through the magic barrier.

However, the magic barrier could not be sustained indefinitely. Even if the medium-sized monster’s attack was not fatal, it was steadily cutting down the magic barrier.

In addition, it was possible to attack large monsters with magical power, albeit clumsily. This was a case where the mana accumulated in the body was naturally expressed as a result of eating any creature that contained mana.

This tendency was especially noticeable in the large monsters that appeared here in Mt. Njord.

It was still like that now.

Unfortunately for the subjugation team, many of the large monsters that came out were swinging bats coated in magic.

– Quang!

[evil! Monster bastard!]

Even though it was blocked with a magic barrier, the giant soldier was blown away by the club strike, which was a mixture of magic and external power. It was just one swing, but the remaining magic barrier was cut into pieces.

The subjugation team had to admit that they had been complacent until now.

I was implicitly thinking that if I was riding a giant god soldier, it wouldn’t be a big deal even if there were a bunch of monsters.

But the reality was different.

They could manipulate mana, and their ferocious nature was beyond understanding.

Even when death was just around the corner, they screamed and rushed forward.

Even if the flesh cracked and the bones broke, they bared their teeth.

Although I had received training at the academy, this was something beyond that.

It was only then that the subjugation team realized what it was like to deal with monsters.

This wasn’t war.

It was not about any interests, gains or losses, but simply a struggle and a struggle to survive and not die.

– Sigh!

[1st Platoon, wake up!]

As the fight against the monster lost momentum, Gilbert stepped forward.

Holding an iron sword and unleashing golden magic, he cut down monsters in all directions.

There was no hesitation in his sword. No matter how the monster in front of me charged at me, I swung my sword without hesitation and deployed my magical weapons to deal with them steadily.

The subjugation team straightened out their shriveled bodies when their commander stepped forward in person. Gilbert, who could be said to be their superior, took the lead, but they couldn’t show him running away.

Among them were some nobles and some commoners, but now they were students at the proud Demeia Academy. He was also a first-class cadet who was selected as the best in his grade.

Their pride and self-esteem did not allow them to curl their tails and run away in fear.

They raised their iron swords and immediately followed Gilbert.

[1st platoon, raise your sword. I open the way!]

[insect!]

The golden magic took the lead, followed by the 1st Platoon subjugation team.

Battle of the Njord Mountains.

first day

Complete victory.

***

Gilbert got off the giant soldier and took a long breath. Leading the platoon members and subduing monsters was not an easy task.

Cadets with little practical experience had outstanding skills, but were unable to properly show their true abilities due to nervousness. As a result, it was a battle in which excessive magical energy was used unnecessarily.

[road. Unlike usual, it was an inefficient battle.]

“There was nothing to do. This method was the best to boost the morale of the unit members.”

[Positive. Although it was an ineffective battle, it was a method that raised the unit’s morale by more than 80%. I will learn.]

Because the subjugation battle was not related to academy grades, linking was allowed.

The ideal was for the subjugation war to end without causing any damage. Allowing Gilbert, who was growing into a fully-fledged Giant God Knight, to use high-performance artificial spirits was one of the good ways to minimize the damage.

In fact, he killed more than half of the large monsters with CT-777 and the members of the 1st Platoon. Inspired by their performance, other subjugation members also safely overcame the pressure of their first real battle and finished the battle without a single injury.

This is why it was necessary to have excellent giant knights in war. Their presence alone was enough to turn the tide of the war.

[The twist index of Seraphina, one of the seekers of twisted possessiveness, increases.] Did you stimulate possessiveness again?

Gilbert opened the cockpit and nervously turned off the message window blocking his way out.

I was expecting it. Her twist index was a number that came from her possessive desire to have Gilbert.

Since she performed so well in the subjugation battle, it was quite possible to infer that her possessive desires would be stimulated. Being as inconspicuous as possible was the way to avoid the destruction ending, but there was a high possibility that the punitive force would suffer damage.

If the twist value did not reach 100%, I thought the destruction ending would not come, so I moved, but no, it would be different. The numbers have risen. Fortunately, the number did not increase much. It was only a 3% increase from the figure confirmed yesterday, so it was still stable.

“Umhuhu! Have you seen Gilbert?”

When he got off the giant soldier and joined the troops, Camilla, who had been waiting, came out to meet him with her arms folded. Gilbert, with his usual smug smile, responded appropriately.

– Pow!

“Ugh! My head is split!”

Gilbert, who hit the top of his head with a scalpel, passed by Camilla, who was holding her head, saying it hurt. It was nice that her previous moodiness was gone, but she seemed a little too bright and I had to calm her down with a tap on the top of her head every now and then.

Gilbert looked back at the troops standing in line. Although it was not a perfect battle, it was worthy of being evaluated as excellent in that the mission was performed flawlessly with no injuries.

“Thank you all for your hard work.”

There was no need to say much. They had already become united in camaraderie, and their feelings became even stronger as they faced monsters rather than humans.

In essence, the war against humans often involved not being able to shake off the feelings of self-reproach and self-destruction for killing people like themselves. In their country, they could be husbands, wives, or children. Ending such people with one’s own hands comes with psychological pressure.

It was never easy for humans to kill humans.

But now it was a matter of subduing a monster that had no sense. If they didn’t kill them, their family or acquaintances might die. In that respect, the cadets did not feel any aversion to killing monsters.

Gilbert felt fortunate in that he did not pay special attention to the mental management of his unit members. Taking care of their mentality during a long-lasting subjugation war required considerable effort.

“Commander. The commander told everyone to gather at the commander level. It looks like we are planning to provide feedback on today’s battle.”

“I understand. Deputy Angelina.”

Meeting Seraphina under the current circumstances was something I was reluctant to do, but it was unavoidable. Because the feedback from the first day of the subjugation war was important.

Gilbert headed straight to Serafina’s command barracks.

“Gilbert…”

I ran into Ian in front of Serafina’s command barracks. For a moment, Ian’s eyes burned with hostility, but it soon faded. He seemed to have realized that now was not the time to show off his emotions and cause discord.

Did you have any sense of maturity?

They say that secondary school illness is incurable, but I wondered if something could have been done since I had Precia. That’s how capable the superhuman spirit was.

The two entered Seraphina’s barracks without exchanging any words.

There were some commanders who had not yet arrived, but most commanders were sitting in their seats.

The two also went to their assigned seats and sat down.

For about a minute, all the commanders gathered together.

“First of all, I would like to praise all the commanders gathered here. It is to the commanders’ credit that the first day passed safely without any damage.”

“Because there was an order from the commander.”

When Vice President Talisman spoke on behalf of the other commanders, the other commanders also nodded politely.

They were able to achieve good results thanks to Commander Seraphina’s trust in them.

“Even so, your hard work does not disappear. Everyone had a hard time today. However, he decided that an analysis of today’s battle was necessary for the next day. The fatigue accumulated from today’s battle is likely to affect tomorrow’s battle. Therefore, it is necessary to closely monitor the condition of the unit.”

Seraphina began giving the most important feedback she had to give after the battle.

The expressions on the commanders’ faces were serious as they realized that fighting monsters was not easy. All the unfounded confidence that had appeared before the start of the subjugation war had disappeared.

Gilbert was satisfied with the situation. In his judgment, just because the commanders had such feelings, the probability of the cadets being harmed dropped by half.

“This concludes the first day’s feedback. Which commander has something else to say?”

Seraphina looked around at the commanders. No one raised their hand to express an opinion.

“In that case, we will disperse. Pay attention to the placement of security guards.”

After the meeting, the commanders left the command barracks, groaning. Although they were holding on as if nothing had happened, like the other subjugation members, the fatigue of battle still remained on their bodies.

Saying that they needed to wash up quickly and go to sleep, the commanders gathered in groups of twos and threes and left the Jichwi barracks.

So there are two people left.

It was Seraphina and Gilbert.

“I think I have something to say to her.”

Gilbert nodded instead of answering. Originally, I was going to postpone it without encountering it, but since the battle would take place tomorrow and I didn’t know how much the twist index would rise, I needed to put a nail in the door here.

“Okay, tell me. After rejecting her so cruelly yesterday, I can’t believe I have something to say now. Have you changed your mind?”

“What I will say is the same.”

“It’s not fun. Priest Yeo: Let me give you one piece of advice. Trampling on the heart of an innocent woman is not a good hobby.”

“Didn’t you say that you gave up being a woman?”

“One thing to add is that a man without tact is not popular.”

Seraphina, who was smiling, erased her smile as if she wanted to end the joke at this point.

“So what should I say to her?”

“I will not accept your sister-in-law’s offer. As I said from the beginning, my loyalty is only towards the empire.”

“You’re heartless. Don’t you think it’s bad to bring up facts you already know?”

“If you think again about what I said, you will find the answer.”

“What did the priest say?”

Seraphina tapped her lips with her long index finger and repeated Gilbert’s words.

There was one thing that flashed through my head.

“Priest. I’ll ask you later. Did you say that your loyalty is to the empire?”

“Yes.”

“And before, the priest said this to Yeo. I will not follow in the footsteps of the Count of Lithuania. Instead, he said he would become the sword of the empire. Is that feeling still valid?”

“Yes.”

“Ha! The priest was sending a signal from the beginning.”

The corners of Seraphina’s mouth rose. It was only now that I realized what he was talking about.

“It means that a priest will offer his loyalty if he ascends to the position of emperor.”

“Because my loyalty is towards the empire.”

“You’re bold. They say that you cannot serve her unless she becomes emperor. That’s fun. Yes, this is fun, priest.”

Seraphina’s smile deepened and her eyes sparkled. Unlike yesterday, she was not extravagant and seemed like her usual self.

“I understand what the priest means, but it is useless.”

Serafina stood up like yesterday and approached Gilbert. Her fingers skimmed down Gilbert’s chest again.

“Yeo is the person who will succeed His Majesty. So it is right for the priest’s loyalty to be directed to me.”

“Even so, my loyalty is…”

“It will be heading to the empire. good night. What a bold priest. It’s a battle with the ruling party. If she makes you hers before she becomes the Crown Princess, she will win. If not, you lose.”

Gilbert smiled at Seraphina.

It was what I hoped for.

[You have selected the second branch of the sub-scenario: Seekers of Twisted Possession.]

[The twist index of Serafina, one of the seekers of twisted possession, increases.]

The torsion index must be subtracted…

Gilbert had to cry secretly.

***

– The operation begins.

– okay. i get it.

Two people wearing recognition-impairing masks on their faces took out a bottle containing a black sticky liquid from a large box.

Only this time, the writing will be successful.