#268
Defense Game (2)
The outskirts of Tarak Castle had become a battlefield.
Kwaaaaang—!
Shwaaaak!
All across that battlefield, black mana, divine power, aura, blood mana, and all manner of energies tangled together, bursting into thunderous explosions.
Clatter— clatter!
[Kreeeek—!]
Like an unending wave, the army of the undead advanced under the command of its undead officers, orderly yet savage, rushing toward Tarak’s walls.
And those who had come to face the giant joined the walls, struggling desperately to defend the city.
“In the name of the Lord God, we shall purify these unclean beings!”
“Eternal rest to the dead!”
There was the support force from the Order of the Lord God, led by Cardinal Donovan, who scattered divine power that blazed like flame, and including one paladin and two archbishops.
“Move, move!”
“Don’t overdo it! Reducing casualties comes first!”
There was the master-class knight hastily dispatched by the royal family, rushing about as he urged on the defenders atop the wall, along with the elite order of knights under his command.
“As expected, undead have no blood, so they’re horribly inefficient to deal with.”
“...Leaving the giant aside, do we really need to involve ourselves in the city’s defense as well? This isn’t even our land.”
“The High Lord must have his reasons. Perhaps he intends to increase his influence over the neighboring kingdoms.”
And on top of that, there were even the vampires of Hybrid, the strongest small elite force, including none other than the Sacred Blood Heinz II and Briki, as well as five True Bloods.
Every one of the reinforcements was extraordinary, but trying to stop an undead army numbering over ten thousand head-on would have been foolish.
That was why those who had been outside only blunted the spearhead of the invasion to a suitable degree before immediately joining the walls.
It was to fight what would become a prolonged battle as efficiently as possible.
And naturally.
Among those defending the walls, the vampires from the Kingdom of Thalia stood out in particular.
After all, in truth, they had been little different from enemies until now.
[“Have you made up your mind for certain? To side with the humans and actively oppose the Immortal King?”]
In the midst of all that frantic busyness, with subtle gazes pouring in from around them.
Briki, who had been dealing with the undead in moderation, quietly approached Heinz and spoke to him through thought.
The respectful speech she had used in front of others had, at some point, reverted back to casual speech, but that was about as much as he had expected from her from the beginning anyway.
He nodded calmly and answered.
At the same time, he lightly drew a line through the air, erasing a mass of approaching undead in a single stroke.
[“Yes. In any case, the Immortal King and we cannot coexist. And now that we have participated in the summit and stepped to the forefront of the world, there is a limit to taking the same passive stance as before if we want to expand our influence across the continent.”]
In addition, by bestowing a favor on the Tulk Kingdom first in this way, they could also keep them in check from forming solidarity with other kingdoms, making it a good strategy in many ways.
In the process, he would likely be able to give the Hubert Company a subtle push as well.
And most important of all was—
‘Mm, at this level... they should be able to hold out by a suitably narrow margin.’
It went without saying, but from the start, he had never truly intended to let Tarak fall.
Even when fighting the giant, he had worked so hard to avoid damaging the city as much as possible. There was no way he would now go and ruin his own foothold with his own hands.
The reason he was creating a crisis to this extent was to heighten the sense of continental tension a bit more as he advanced the scenario.
‘Besides, the karma I’ve been earning lately has been decreasing, as if the effect is starting to wear off.’
Of course, the damage known to have been caused by the Immortal King was still far too great to ignore.
That was only natural, since it included not only direct undead invasions, but also the monster outbreaks occurring everywhere and the appearances of giants.
The problem was that, separate from that, people had grown too accustomed to this repeated situation.
‘Because of that, even when the Hero’s party and Heinrich make an impact, people are starting to take it for granted. It’s time for some clear change.’
It did not matter what form that change took.
As long as he could move beyond the current state and create an atmosphere in which everyone joined forces and worked to overcome the crisis.
And then, with the strength of humanity gathered as one, the Immortal King and the Hero would settle everything in a decisive battle.
That was the finale planned in advance.
The climax for the audience watching from home.
‘By dealing with the revolutionary, I’ve also cut off at the source the variable that kept annoying me at every turn, so there shouldn’t be any major problem with proceeding from here. Of course, even if I pick up the pace, it won’t end all that quickly.’
In truth, even if he began the final work, quite a bit of time would still be needed before reaching the ending.
Even if he started heightening the sense of crisis from now on, this was supposedly the climax of the drama. He could not wrap it up sloppily.
‘Gradually building things up, gathering everyone’s strength into one, opening a path all the way to the north where the Immortal Castle is, and confronting Hans... Would that take about half a year?’
If he truly set his mind to it, he could drag this chaos out even longer and squeeze out every last bit of value, but he was beginning to feel self-conscious about rampaging endlessly like that and ruining the world.
The ones up there.
The sponsors who had supported him in many ways until now.
[“Is that so? Then should I be a bit more proactive too?”]
While Heinz was sorting out his thoughts.
Briki, who was beside him, nodded firmly as though convinced, then moved a few steps away from him again.
And immediately after that.
The moment he sensed her thought moving.
Woooo—
At the same time as her figure vanished, a massive blood-red current swirled in front of them, where the undead were flooding in.
Skakakakak—!
It swept through the enemy forces just like that, turning hundreds of them into powder in an instant.
A passage was blasted wide open through the undead army.
Briki was a vampire, and vampires did not have particularly good compatibility against undead, but to a being who was a Sacred Blood, such trivial matters were not a significant problem.
“Whoa! Wh-what is this?”
“Mmm, to think she was this strong.”
Perhaps they were quite startled by that divine might, for the tense gazes of the others who had been dealing with the undead on the walls turned this way.
Even if they were allies at the moment, the prejudice that had taken root over long years could not be helped.
Moreover, was there not another Sacred Blood present here?
“Hooh, impressive indeed.”
But not everyone reacted that way.
There were those who, instead, showed a blazing fighting spirit at the vampires’ performance—
“It is a welcome thing that the vampires have repented and decided to cooperate, but as representatives of the Order of the Lord God, we cannot allow ourselves to fall behind like this.”
“You are absolutely right. And are our opponents not undead, of all things?”
“We cannot simply stand idle either. We will prepare the altar.”
They were none other than the members of the Order who, until Saint Heinrich’s mediation, had opposed vampires for many long years.
They were the finest elites who had crossed over from the Great Temple of Pikaol with Cardinal Donovan.
In an instant, they came together in purpose and immediately gathered in one place to construct a temporary altar for a divine spell.
And before long, as they began chanting prayers in unison under the cardinal’s lead.
Wooooong— Kwaaaa—!
A miracle unfolded in the middle of the battlefield.
A pillar of radiant light fell from the sky, erasing the undead in the area all at once, and the aftermath spread in every direction, putting a brake on the death energy that had been encroaching upon space.
An overwhelming spectacle unfolded one after another.
“Waaaaaa—!”
“We’re saved! We can win!”
At that, the morale of the soldiers, who had been forcing their pale, stiff bodies to move, slowly began to soar.
They had been terrified by the advance of corpses with horrific appearances, but at last, they could see hope that they might survive.
‘Though it won’t be that easy.’
The death energy that had been briefly scattered once again surged fiercely and quickly spread along the rising military aura.
The high-ranking undead placed throughout the battlefield, such as death knights and liches, as well as the officers at the rear, had begun taking action directly.
‘And...’
Even as he diligently disposed of the charging enemies, Heinz II, who had been keenly grasping the battle situation, turned his gaze deep into the undead army.
It was where the blood-red current that had been rampaging wildly through the enemy formation had come to a halt.
‘If even I leave my position now, the wall may be in danger. ...For now, shall I watch a little?’
Naturally, the army of the undead was not simply taking it lying down.
Even if the forces present here were only an extremely small portion, were they not, in name and truth, the strongest and worst armed group fighting against the entire world?
[A vampire, is it.]
[Well now, you’ve crawled out nicely instead of hiding like you did three hundred years ago.]
[Kehehe— a Sacred Blood vampire! What a rare material has rolled right in!]
Moreover, a considerable number of high-ranking officers who had long remained in seclusion had been mobilized for this operation.
Officers such as Doom Knight Drexler, General Spartoi Trev, and Archlich Kellifa surrounded Briki, who had dug into the army, and raised their momentum.
The power of death, made even denser by their subordination to the Immortal King, resonated with the energy encroaching upon the surroundings and connected strongly with it.
And because they were undead, each of them became a medium for the others, explosively amplifying their black mana.
“...Mm, did I get a little too excited?”
Briki, who had trusted in the power strengthened by the “Refined Blood Essence” and confidently dug into the enemy formation only to be blocked, gave an awkward smile.
If it were one-on-one, she was confident she could win against anyone present here, but judging by their momentum, they did not seem to have the slightest intention of giving her that chance.
Kwaaaang—!
Thus, in the middle of the army of the undead, the officers and the Sacred Blood vampire clashed.
On another side, the divine power of the Order of the Lord God and the death energy continued to push back and forth, and the battle at the walls, where they had somehow been holding on, also began to intensify.
Explosions, shouts, screams, spells, monstrous cries...
All kinds of noise mixed together, and the battlefield gradually descended into utter chaos.
And as Heinz II watched all of that in real time, somehow holding the walls alone—
‘This should be about the right time to end it.’
He nodded with a serious expression at the situation that had unfolded exactly as he had intended.
It was a perfectly picturesque mess.
***
A place far from the battlefield formed near Tarak.
Even farther than the location where the colossal giant had fallen, another battle was taking place.
Wooooooo—
Death energy so dense that it could not even be compared to that of other undead blanketed the surroundings.
“Urachacha—!”
A hand filled with monstrous strength, as if it could crush anything, violently tore through space.
“Haaap!”
Between them, a massive blade of light like a pillar pierced through.
Rumble—!
And as if coordinating with it, all manner of magic, spirits, and holy arts continued to pour down.
The sudden clash between the Immortal King and the Hero’s party.
Thanks to Harley, who had gained new power just beforehand, the fight proceeded even more fiercely than before. However, those who had been engaged in a desperate battle against the giant until just moments ago could instinctively understand.
With their current strength, they absolutely could not win.
But they could not simply give up like this, and as they gritted their teeth and wrung out even the last of their strength.
The end suddenly arrived at an unexpected moment.
[Oh my, I originally intended only to exchange greetings before leaving. But I got carried away, and it ended up taking longer than I thought.]
The Immortal King, who had been exuding overwhelming momentum and pressing them from beginning to end, obediently withdrew first.
Even so, the Hero’s party did not let down their guard until the very end, but as if he had no intention of taking further action just as he said, he merely let out a low sneer.
[Kukukuk— Let us leave it at this for today. Since you are not even in perfect condition, it would only be a waste to settle things here.]
“...Ha, you’re saying you’ll just withdraw like this? Immortal King!”
[There is no need to rush. My adversary, Heinrich. I have only just begun a new game, so how could I end it already before properly enjoying it?]
There was still much time left, the Immortal King said arrogantly with an eerie laugh as he slowly flew upward.
Even as they watched him, the Hero’s party, exhausted to the bone from the consecutive battles, could not take any action.
[I look forward to it. How long will you be able to endure? And when, and how, will you be able to reach my castle?]
“...Aah, wait for me, Immortal King! When that time comes, I will surely cast you into the abyssal pit.”
[Kahahak! That, too, will make for enjoyable entertainment!]
Snap—
Before long, fingers filled with black mana snapped, and strange waves once again spread in every direction.
Immediately after that, the officers who received the return signal from the direction of the castle began rapidly leaving the battlefield and returning.
In any case, today was only a taste, combined with a show of force, so there was no need to keep charging in until the end.
[Then I shall wait with pleasure. Hero, Heinrich Saint Landguard.]
Thus, the Immortal King, who had appeared so suddenly, vanished just as suddenly as he had come.
Leaving behind only the undead army that had placed Tarak in peril.
And that was also—
A presentation successfully completed before countless people.