episode_0265

“By the Throne of Monad, good heavens.”

The mental shock it received was similar to the frustration that washes over a man who, thinking no one was around, was immersed in a private pleasure, only to realize that his entire family had been watching him the whole time.

“Could they possibly…” A comrade’s shriek echoed. “Aaaargh! They’re forcing their way into my head, into my thoughts! To think they’d follow the network! It’s dangerous! Argh!”

They had thought they escaped. But that alien monster, not content with merely restraining its comrade’s consciousness, had even tracked the connection, forcing its way in and creating a rift. As a result, a peeking hole had been drilled into a corner of the Apostle’s consciousness space.

From beyond the hole, a bright girl’s voice could be heard. “Wow! So this is what an alien’s mind looks like!”

What Violet saw was an incomprehensible, chaotic mist. From within, a faint taste of confusion and fear emanated. Violet did not attempt to enter directly. The hole was too small, and strictly speaking, it was an act of piggybacking on an existing mental network, using another Apostle as an intermediary.

Even Violet’s unsophisticated brain could understand. Her propaganda was a miracle achieved only because it was based on the home ground of the Violet Network. There were plenty of better options than venturing directly into enemy territory.

So, while the regimental soldiers used up their very last bullet, Violet pointed her finger and shot a single blast toward the rat hole beyond the void.

“Take this!” What she fired was a single, intense will. And simultaneously, countless Violet aerial bombs flew in.

The Apostle’s sixth sense detected the danger. Swarms of wing-suited figures fluttered, flying in to evade anti-air fire.

“Long live Violet!” “We’ll kill you!”

The Apostle’s gaze turned toward the crude wing-suited suicide squad. Its race’s inherent coldness and highly developed thought-partitioning ability pushed it to do what needed to be done even amidst the chaos. A portion of its consciousness, which had been effortlessly ignoring the rain of bullets, commanding its forces, and slicing through the yellow-haired insects, was allocated to target the incoming threat. The power of Aether, beyond human imitation, operated with precision, calculating a miracle.

It would be intercepted. Just like all previous long-range strike attempts from Violet Command. Aether energy blasts would intercept them in mid-air, strange phenomena would neutralize the bombardment itself, or an incomprehensible defense system would block them.

“…!” But the moment it witnessed the bombs, a thrill akin to pouring soda directly into its brain coursed through it. Violet’s will, which had plunged through the network, wasn’t particularly large, but the Apostle became distracted for the first time in its life. It was akin to being completely intoxicated for a human.

“Evade! Evade!” “We have to hit them for sure! This is our only bomb vest!”

Black wing-suited figures were felt through its sensitive senses. Its thoughts twisted. Its aim went astray. Guided bombs turned to dust in mid-air.

“Magnificent!” Three Violets survived. Seconds before reaching their target, the Violets struggled against air resistance, extending their lightning spears. Red magic flowed along the spearheads.

“Pierce through and explode!” One shot was dodged. The sight-distortion surrounding its body interfered with Violet’s aim.

–Boom! One shot was parried by a sword in its right hand. The last remaining shot. Just as it was about to parry with another sword in its left hand, another Violet rushed out and blocked it.

“Just take it!” Its judgment was slow. In an instant, the aerial cavalry spear charge was upon it.

–Boom! Through its hazy silhouette, the Apostle reeled from the sudden impact. It had withstood countless barrages of artillery, magic, and attacks, but why this? It hurts. Is this pain? The shriek of an unidentifiable entity echoed through the streets.

“■■■■-!!!” At the chilling, bone-rattling scream, both monsters and Violets flinched. After a brief moment of surprise, Violet Command cheered, realizing the diversion tactic had worked.

“We landed a hit!” Ammunition was scarce, and explosives were running out, but Violet still had many options. Therefore, Violet Command launched a relentless assault on the Apostle and the monsters. Ammunition might be depleted, but there was no reason to retreat. Victory and defeat were clear.

“Chaaarge!” “Push them back!”

The hordes of monsters were still numerous, but the Violets clung on desperately. The complex cityscape was now becoming a disadvantage for the Apostle itself. Taking advantage of the opportunity, tens, hundreds of Violets clung to the Apostle like ants.

“Kill them! Slice them! Rip them!” Sinister weapons glowed red. Swords, spears, axes, hammers, all sorts of melee weapons reappeared. Whenever the surrounding space distorted and otherworldly monsters began to appear for a counterattack, Violet fired mental waves through the mental network.

“Not so fast! No!” “Damn it!”

Countless voices burrowed into the Apostle’s mind. The Violets focused all their network’s capabilities on disrupting and confusing the Apostle’s thoughts. Little by little, all the powers bestowed by the great monarch began to be obstructed. The horrifying humiliation transformed into a painful reality.

The Apostle’s two arms swept around, sending dozens of Violets tumbling and crashing into walls. But the places of those who fell were immediately filled by new Violets. A desperate struggle unfolded between the two sides.

Amidst this, Violet Command pulled out a new card. “As you said, I’m here now. I’m not late, am I?” “No! Not at all! You’re perfect!”

A presence faster and more intense than anyone else appeared on the battlefield. A wolf-like woman with black hair streaming behind her, charging toward the colossal Apostle. Another scholar from the future.

“Sophieel Unnie is here!” The sword in Sophieel’s hand gleamed. As if to slice the Apostle’s colossal body, she swung her sword with terrifying speed. The Apostle recognized her identity.

“Indeed, it was that human from before.” The most powerful human it had seen here. One of the few who survived being swept away by the transfer.

However, the Apostle was not to be underestimated either. Its body, which had suffered minor scratches from Violet, had healed as if nothing had happened, and the power and speed emanating from its massive form were overwhelming.

Sophieel launched a fierce attack on the Apostle. Her two greatswords, larger than any human, split the air with menacing energy. An unstable fluctuation.

–Clang! The next moment, the Apostle’s weapon was repelled. Raix Haiburn’s counter-attack system returned even attacks imbued with great force. Large and small scars were repeatedly etched onto the Apostle’s body. The flying sword slashes mutilated the Apostle’s form. The enraged monster focused its mind, but Sophieel’s body vanished in an instant. Her new position was directly in front of the Apostle’s neck.

–Screech! It was dangerous. The otherworldly minion let out a sigh once more. It hadn’t known there would be another human this powerful. The human woman’s high-speed movement ability was difficult even for its own abilities to track, and she poured out a continuous barrage of attacks as if to ensnare the Apostle.

“Kuaaaargh!” Another slash was carved, and a grotesque scream burst from the Apostle’s mouth. Simultaneously, the surrounding space warped, and reality twisted. It was the moment when space itself seemed to open its maw to swallow Sophieel.

“You! Don’t use reality manipulation!” In a flash, Violet’s interference came through the network. The Apostle’s concentration wavered, and Sophieel kicked off the air. The moment space crumpled, she had already rotated her body and slipped out.

The offensive continued. “■■■!”

The Apostle shrieked in pain but did not fall easily. The monster army was being held back by those yellow-haired monsters. And among those humans, that black-haired woman, one of the few, fought equally against its true form with overwhelming close-combat ability. How could such humans gather in one place at the same time? It was unreasonable. The powers bestowed upon it could not be properly utilized and were constantly disrupted.

“Unnie! Don’t die! Kyaaaak!” “Ugyaah!”

Otherwise, they would be blocked by reckless physical defense. Whenever the Apostle tried to attack Sophieel in any way, dozens of Violets would throw their bodies to block it. Even amidst physiological discomfort, Sophieel cleverly used the Violets as a shield to strike the Apostle and cleverly disengage. This scenario was akin to a pack of wild dogs confronting a giant elephant. Sophieel was a great black wolf confronting the elephant that was the Apostle. Though she couldn’t deliver a killing blow to the Apostle, the injuries she inflicted were by no means light. The Violets were a swarm of hundreds of yellow puppies surrounding and rushing the elephant. Though weak, they diverted the Apostle’s strength and disturbed its concentration.

The comrade tormented in reality was, at least, better off. Another Apostle was trapped in an inescapable swamp, forced into a terrible war of attrition.

“Kuaaaargh!” The Apostle trapped in the mental space howled in agony. Its mind was constantly bombarded by Violet’s attacks. Sharp blows, like countless needles pricking it. Each time its consciousness was eroded, its thoughts became a little hazier.

“No… I’m being read…!” The Apostle realized that its memories and plans were slowly being exposed to Violet. With each injury, it felt itself losing its original form more and more. But it refused to admit that fact. It desperately held on, trying to protect its remaining mental strength.

However, the more it resisted, the deeper Violet delved into its inner self. “Th-that guy! So that was its scheme!” “A gate! It’s creating an interdimensional gate!!”

And finally, the secret place the Apostle had tried so hard to hide was discovered. “No! Don’t look!” The Apostle’s scream of despair echoed in the mental space.

“Target location identified!” “Mobile squad, move to that location immediately! Prepare to call Helios too!”

Violet’s operational orders were swift. Immediately, dozens of Violet units converged rapidly on the Apostle’s hideout via an underground passage.

“Monster horde detected! Breakthrough!” “Enemy resistance is fierce! Requesting reinforcements!”

A fierce battle began in the underground passage. A desperate massacre between Violets and monsters. But the Violets could not stop. The Apostle’s hideout, projected on the tactical map, was clear. Its location was somewhat to the rear.

“Call Irene!” Command decided to deploy Helios’s elite forces. Now, only one card remained. Violet Command decided not to hold back. After all, with too many eyes watching, retrieval was out of the question.

“Armored unit, sortie!” At Violet Commander’s shout, everyone’s gaze turned to one spot. In the distance, passenger cars and armed trucks loaded with explosives, along with two light tanks, appeared.

“Charge, all units!” Engines roared in unison as the armored unit charged forward.

“Distract it so it doesn’t notice!” From both mental and physical sides, the Violets focused all their efforts to disrupt the Apostle. Sophieel took advantage of the opening to engage the Apostle in fierce close combat.

“Ugh!” Sophieel staggered from the Apostle’s fierce counterattack. The overall size difference was certainly threatening. However, instead of counterattacking, she retreated. Following this, a volley of magic poured out. A barrage of melting beams flew in. When it barely activated its power, the incoming beams twisted like taffy, and the Apostle grabbed them, whipping them like a lash.

“Kyaaaah!!” Violets were incinerated by the beams they themselves had fired. However, as the Apostle seized its chance to counterattack, a swarm of trucks rushing madly came into its view.

“Take this!” With a mighty shout, a truck loaded with explosives charged toward the Apostle. Without time to dodge, the truck collided with the Apostle’s body, and at that moment, a massive explosion erupted.

–Boom! A deafening roar echoed, turning the surroundings into chaos. The explosion did not fell the Apostle, but it was enough to inflict a shock.

Greeting the monster, which stumbled out of the explosion, was the might of civilization. A tank’s cannon pointed at the beast.

“Fire!” A hyper-accelerated shell flew towards the Apostle. The injured Apostle was still sturdy. It swung its sword, deflecting the shell, and immediately ordered nearby monsters to distract the tank.

“Just some crude hunk of scrap metal!” “Oh, no! Number 2 tank!”

As the tank hesitated, the Apostle fired a magic beam, instantly destroying the second tank. The tank, engulfed in flames, exploded terribly.

“Revenge for Number 2 tank!” Just as a sense of defeat began to creep in, another light tank appeared, having flanked through an alley. The tank, rushing madly, unleashed a rapid-fire electromagnetic cannon at the Apostle.

“This is democracy!” There was no time to dodge the monstrous charge. The 20-ton behemoth rammed the Apostle, finally pinning it against a wall. And then, concentrated fire aimed at its chest.

–Bang! Bang! Bang! “Ruzilin’s Iron Fist isn’t just for show!” Ruzilin’s Iron Fist proved its worth. Though it was pushed back by a kick, and its armor was severely dented, it succeeded in dealing significant damage to the foe. With a flash, the Apostle vanished. Turning its head this way and that, the monster could be seen recovering and catching its breath in the distance. Large and small holes could be seen cratered in its chest.

“Stubborn, so stubborn!” The Apostle did not die. Its wounds were healing slowly, or perhaps quickly. It would have been faster if its powers hadn’t been disrupted. But Violet was certain.

“We can win!” With Sophieel’s combined efforts, there was enough of a way to deal with the Apostle on the scene. All that remained was the hidden, scheming Apostle. Its location was already identified. Its mind was caught in the network. A small Violet strike team and Helios hunters would hunt it down helplessly.

“If we just fight like this…!” A spark of hope ignited in Violet’s heart. If things continued this way, victory would be theirs.

Violet’s prediction was wrong. Violet did not win.

**

Unfortunately, no one could have predicted that this battle would end this way. Who would have known that the most violent and rude individuals in the Academy City would silently observe and then suddenly intervene?

The uninvited guests abruptly intruded into the fiercely contested battlefield. There were no referees or guards to stop them, and the knight did not care what they were thinking or what they intended to do. After all, the terrorist group and the monsters were of the same rank in their mental scales.

So, instead of choosing fair play, Restraid gladly overturned the table and picked up the chessboard, violently striking both players on the head. The aftermath of their rudeness was immense.

–Boom! “Wha—what the—” The thoughts of the Violets fighting on the front lines against the Apostle were cut off as if by a knife. The Violets who had been waiting at a slight distance for redeployment immediately detected the abnormal situation.

“Kyaaak! What is that?!” Mushroom clouds rose ceaselessly. The explosions were small but very hot and intense. “U-uwaaaargh—” Tactical nuclear shells poured down one after another onto the ruined city within the contaminated zone. Blinding light and a storm of fire covered the ground. Astellia’s defensive line was set ablaze.

**

Astellia City was engulfed in nuclear fire. The burned and melted land looked as if all life had vanished. However, even amidst that destruction, the Violets survived.

Near the epicenter, a section of a collapsed building trembled, and the stone wall covering the cratered ground lifted halfway.

“Ugh, ugh-eh-eh-ek…” A small, scorched girl crawled out, staggering. The completely blackened Violet created a new Violet, then slumped, never moving again.

“Everything’s gone!” Next to the startled Violet, the ground lifted with a rattling sound. Sophieel emerged, panting. Thanks to Violet’s sacrifice, she had barely managed to get into the underground passage. As Sophieel came out, Violets who had hidden in time poured out behind her. From alleys, from among the debris, Violets crawled out one by one. Fortunately, losses were minimal. At this rate, they could generate more and quickly replenish their numbers.

But it felt hollow. “What… what is all that…” “It looks like a nuclear weapon.”

Thanks to the distinct mushroom cloud, Violet understood what had happened. To achieve this level of destructive power with conventional weapons, not magic, there was no answer other than nuclear. The surroundings were scorched. A weapon that was ambiguously positioned between the overwhelming power of strategic weapons and the precision of conventional weapons. Dozens of ruthless bombardments were enough to collapse all the scattered buildings, leaving a desolate landscape. Violet looked around, on guard.

Radiation was not terrifying. While individual differences existed, an Awakened’s superior physical abilities meant a shower of fallout would only make them suffer a bit. However, the advantages possessed by Awakened also applied to other awakened beings, namely monsters. Many monsters were capable of withstanding a direct hit.

“It survived.” And, in the distance where most of the attacks had concentrated, the Apostle stood majestically as if daring them to strike, completely unharmed. The Apostle lightly traced its sword through the air. Then, the bodies of the dead monsters regenerated and regained flesh as if time were flowing backward. The Apostle’s tattered body also instantly became pristine. The Apostle nodded as if showing off, and once again, a wave of monsters slowly approached.

“Aish! We’re back to square one!” Violet’s anger flared. Who in the world dared to bomb them from above? There’s a limit to ruining something that’s already done. They were doing something important! Even so, the regiment regrouped, preparing to fight again on the radiation-filled ground. Because the monsters were still there.

Then, a voice mixed with mechanical sounds echoed from behind. –Attention, Ariel Group. Violet, boiling with rage, yelled at the garbled noise.

“Hey! Who are you to interfere?! Why are you stopping us?! Do you know what happens if we don’t kill them here?!” –We have come to uphold peace. Retreat, terrorists. Your sacrifice is respected. However, Code Omega will be handled by us.

“You’re ridiculous! Get lost, you useless meddlers—” “Violet.”

A gentle hand grabbed her shoulder and pulled her aside. Violet, who had been turning around with a tearful expression, paused. Sophieel’s stern face was looking behind Violet. Covering her face hastily with a cloth, she muttered.

“Let’s withdraw.” The moment she looked up, Violet understood why Sophieel Unnie had said that.

What met her eyes was a vast squadron of airships covering the sky. Airships reminiscent of whales began to descend onto the ground one by one. As the ramps opened, a wave of gleaming metal armor approached, followed by lines of heavily armored vehicles, whose size was incomparable to military specifications.

The clanking sound. The hiss of sub-motors and cylinders in the joints. The strange tremor of artificial muscles contracting and expanding. The ground shook slightly with each step taken by the rumbling masses of metal.

“You’ve worked hard, youngsters.” The armored knight closest to the marching column casually tossed a remark as he passed. The Violet regiment was wary of the unexpected pressure, but the other armored knights passed by, ignoring the Violets. It was unexpected. It was neither goodwill nor ill will. It was indifference, as if dealing with pebbles.

Feeling the oppressive presence, the regiment briefly retreated. Giants of iron and fire confronted the monsters.

Cutting across the monster-filled path where storms raged and death’s ash fell, the knights came. No, those who were filled with stubbornness and had forgotten how to bow. No, the most steadfast and undefeated war machines came. Restraid came.