Chapter 1214: Adamant Thunder Annihilation Campaign (5)
A quiet night descended, cloaked in darkness.
A colossal assault battleship flew through the hazy gloom.
Whoosh–!!!
The indistinct ground scenery, swallowed by darkness, sped past at incredible velocity.
Despite the surrounding movement, a desolate stillness reigned, with clear moonlight pouring in through the window.
Someone sat with their back turned in the room, where no presence could be felt whatsoever.
“……”
A faint, yet erratic, breathing.
An unsettling sensation, as if multiple people were simultaneously inhaling, then exhaling at different timings.
The shadow of the person sitting with their back turned split into several, then slowly merged repeatedly.
Just as he watched the flickering shadows for a long time, someone knocked on the door from outside.
Knock, knock.
A slow but heavy and powerful gesture.
The person who had been sitting in silence finally spoke.
“It’s open, you can come in.”
Bang!!!
Only then did the door open, and a powerfully built middle-aged man walked into the room.
The man, with his characteristic thick eyebrows, looked down at the figure in the room and knelt.
Thump!!
With a loud thud, an illusion momentarily arose that the room shook violently.
The giant, who created a vibration merely by pressing his weight, spoke in a deep voice.
“Robert Loveride of the 3rd Legion greets Commander Song-ha.”
“You’re awake? You look surprisingly well.”
Song-ha, who had been sitting alone in the room, glanced over.
Turning from the bed, Song-ha, clad in a pure white robe, asked.
“I heard you were in a coma for a long time. Are you feeling better?”
“……Thanks to your concern.”
Robert Loveride replied in a heavy tone.
“If Commander Miloze hadn’t negotiated with Kundara to send a Life Spellcaster, I would have died.”
“Your way of speaking has changed a bit? Doesn’t really matter, though.”
Song-ha tilted his head and said.
“I heard from the Staff Office that Cheonbeon was present during your treatment? Must have been a strange feeling, huh.”
“……”
“Reviving while the guy who killed you watches – that feeling must be quite fresh. What’s your take?”
“……I’m not sure.”
Robert Loveride shook his head with a wry smile.
An informal attitude and manner of speech that didn’t suit the organization of a Legion.
Spontaneous, not deeply thought out, and at first glance, even appearing half-hearted in his temperament.
But no one ever questioned this man’s presence as a Deadrise Commander.
A talent with unusually special potential among the hundreds of thousands of Legion members, personally noticed and brought in by Ethan Bajour.
Because the generals knew that this man, whose nature was as free and unpretentious as the wind, had done his best for the Legion for the sake of an old friend.
They knew he had long carried out duties unsuited to his aptitude to fill the void left by the Marshal and the other Commanders.
Everyone respected his transcendent combat power and his easygoing nature.
“The Annihilation Campaign?”
“Currently, the main ground forces, under the command of the 3rd Command, are moving towards Vulcan.”
Robert Loveride replied.
“The 7th Legion and 11th Legion have reached the vicinity of Vulcan’s satellite cities. Considering the remaining distance, they’ll arrive and regroup in two days… or even one, if they’re fast.”
“Already? That’s surprisingly fast, isn’t it?”
“Lieutenant General Deimus’s 7th Legion possesses the best mobility across the continent, so it’s only natural.”
The Legion Commander looked up.
“Special forces from the Blaiver Magic Tower and the Ability Awakening Warband have joined, and it seems the Guido Cult and the Mechanized Legion have also agreed to dispatch troops. This must be the result of the 7th Legion exerting its full strength.”
The 3rd Legion’s assault, the 5th Legion’s concentrated fire, the 7th Legion’s mobility.
Each of Deadrise’s Legions, true to their scale, specialized in different operations and combat capabilities.
This was proof that the Legion had not just grown in size across the continent, but had steadily undergone specialization.
“I heard the 7th Legion left many fronts they were responsible for in the Central Front vacant for this operation. Since there was an order from the 1st Command, the 1st Legion will cover that gap.”
“Ah, right. Did they say Ultima Alert intervened?”
Song-ha scratched his head.
“The 1st Command moving at this point must be Gileon’s will. Sending the Ghost Squadron at the end of the Legion Parade, too—he still has good ‘eyes’.”
“……”
“But Gileon should be preoccupied, dedicating himself to the Pilgrimage Path. Is it really okay for him to get involved like this?”
“Commander Miloze always makes wise judgments, so we need not worry on that front.”
Robert Loveride, bowing deeply, asked in a heavy voice.
“I heard Commander Song-ha also engaged Cheonbeon in combat. Are you feeling alright?”
“Not really. Not so good.”
Song-ha shrugged.
His shadow, illuminated by moonlight, flickered and detached from this moment.
“It’s been too long since I’ve recalled all my projections, so I can’t control them well. They keep trying to break free from my will.”
“……”
“Sensory misalignment isn’t a problem, but the mental images and Will-thought jumping around are. It was fine when they first merged, but problems arose after fighting Cheonbeon.”
As Song-ha spoke, his breath still split into three streams and scattered in this moment.
His shadow and presence, misaligned and not unified. An ‘inconsistency’ existing within Song-ha, more than what appeared on the surface.
Watching his arms, which left slow afterimages every time he quickly waved them, Song-ha said.
“And the backlash from borrowing Ethan’s blood in a hurry is severe now.”
“Indeed.”
“Perhaps I shouldn’t have used something like Heart-Sword after all. Or, rather, did he anticipate that and deliberately provoke me into using a powerful technique?”
“That man possesses the ability to forcibly drive others’ mental images or Miniature Universes into a rampage.”
Robert Loveride said, looking down at his own hands with a heavy voice.
“I myself suffered greatly from that method. I suspect the technique you endured might have been similar.”
“No, not necessarily.”
Ignoring Robert Loveride who was kneeling, Song-ha sat on the bed, propping his chin and tilting his head.
“It seemed he knew from the beginning that I had recalled all my projections. If he had planned that far ahead even before the fight started…”
“……”
“Indeed, the true purpose of the plasma spellcraft Cheonbeon used back then wasn’t to kill me, but…”
Ever since the Legion Parade ended, he had been constantly replaying that day’s battle.
The short decisive battle with the Grand Mage who turned the command headquarters into an inferno.
Up until the final moment, which ended in a draw with both sides using powerful techniques simultaneously.
He knew that Cheonbeon had intentionally provoked a powerful mental image technique to buy time to recover his mana.
And rather than gambling on the chance of killing Song-ha right there, he aimed to resolve the Curse of Reversing Heaven placed upon himself.
Combining the Will-thought of [New Moon] using plasma flames with the Flame Palace that sends the Miniature Universe into a rampage was likely also to destabilize Song-ha’s projections.
But even as he replayed and reflected on all of it, Song-ha had only one question.
“If I had continued to fight without interruption there, could I have won?”
Even Song-ha, who had carried out countless operations on battlefields, was unsure, as it had been a long time since he fought on the battlefield with his projections recalled.
The more he replayed that battle, the more his certainty faded, and conversely, his interest grew.
Because that Apostle-Slayer, who had learned the truth from Ethan, held a more intense flame than he had imagined—
“Commander Song-ha.”
“……Ah, sorry. What were we talking about?”
Seeing Song-ha awaken from his thoughts, Robert Loveride bowed his head right there.
“I, Robert Loveride, wish to step down from the rank of Lieutenant General and apply for discharge.”
“……”
Song-ha’s movements, deep in thought, paused slightly.
With a blank expression, Song-ha looked down at the top of Robert Loveride’s head.
“With the Marshal currently in slumber, you are the only one who can accept my discharge, Commander.”
Robert Loveride did not respond to Song-ha’s reaction and continued.
“I intend to fully relinquish my position as the 3rd Legion Commander and leave military service.”
“Why?”
“Because I realized that my judgment to bring Cheonbeon into the Legion was a great, irreversible mistake.”
Robert Loveride closed his eyes.
“That man is not a guard dog to be leashed by anyone. Nor is he a flame to burn at another’s will. It’s highly probable that even the rumor of him serving the Lighthouse Keeper isn’t true.”
“……”
“Only after facing Lieutenant General Lenore’s death… did I realize what I had done. Someone must take responsibility for it.”
“Cheonbeon didn’t seem to care about such things.”
Song-ha muttered.
“But I see. Responsibility…”
Slowly rising from his seat, Song-ha stood before Robert Loveride.
“A long time ago, Ethan once told me about how to take responsibility.”
Straightening his pure white robe and adjusting his attire, Song-ha said.
“I don’t quite remember it clearly, but it wasn’t about someone dying in place, or stepping down from a position. Rather, it was about the attitude of striving to fulfill one’s duties until the very end.”
“……”
“That if there’s a task that must be accomplished, even ‘in death,’ what truly matters is one’s resolve.”
Song-ha shook his head.
“So, I’ll decline your offer. Talk to Ethan again when he wakes up.”
“Commander. But…”
“Didn’t you join the Legion after receiving the Will-thought of Cheondun (天遁) in the first place?”
Song-ha chuckled, looking at Robert Loveride.
“If you leave military service like this, that monster will come looking for you. You know what that alligator is doing to tie himself to this world, don’t you?”
“……I am no longer afraid to die.”
Robert Loveride hesitated before speaking.
“But I am afraid of my comrades and subordinates being harmed due to my misguided judgment.”
“Is that so?”
Song-ha smiled.
“But isn’t that the true meaning of taking responsibility?”
“……”
Suddenly, Robert Loveride was speechless.
Seeing Robert Loveride, who had lost his words and remained silent, Song-ha, now standing, said.
“I don’t know what your loyalty to the Legion meant, but I think that’s what a commander is. That’s why Ethan entrusted the Legion’s command to us, not the Lieutenant Generals, wasn’t it?”
“……”
“If you want to take responsibility, do it for your subordinates on the battlefield. Because the assault units led by your Legion will be needed in the coming war.”
“Commander Song-ha…”
Robert Loveride hesitated and said.
“You have long been sharing responsibility with the other Commanders.”
“Aside from Gileon, I don’t want to be treated the same as Baragan.”
Song-ha tilted his head.
“Well, whatever. By the way, if Ophelia is still around, could you call her for me? I’d like some advice from the Great Connector regarding projection integration.”
“Zero Seat Ophelia has left the command headquarters alone and headed for Vulcan.”
Robert Loveride gave a wry smile.
“She seemed to want to look around the city before the main war. She apparently grew quite curious about Vulcan after meeting the Marshal.”
“Huh, suddenly now? She’s truly an unpredictable person.”
“Because she is not human.”
Robert Loveride slowly stood up and said.
“Regarding your projections, it might be best to observe them over time. As everyone knows, you not only sent your projections across the continent to operate but maintained them for several years.”
“……”
“Perhaps it just takes time to integrate the vastly different experiences and senses each projection underwent and absorbed. Don’t unique abilities that ‘divide’ oneself tend to have that very tendency?”
“Robert Loveride. Were you a superhuman? You know a lot about unique abilities.”
“……I think it’s stranger that a Commander with such powerful unique abilities doesn’t know much about them.”
After their serious conversation, he seemed like nothing more than a simple-minded fool. Robert Loveride scratched his cheek with an embarrassed expression and said.
“Anyway, if the integration takes a long time, it means there are many experiences and memories to embody. Wouldn’t that bring a great reward to you once the integration is complete?”
“I’m not interested in things like that. I just want to solve this unpleasant sensation first.”
Song-ha grumbled, clenching and unclenching his hand.
“I can roughly compensate for the sensory misalignment with my own intuition, but I can’t stand it when my Will-thought goes astray. Do you know how unpleasant that sensation is?”
“I would have no way of knowing.”
“I hope it stabilizes before the Annihilation Campaign begins, at least. After all, it’s something I’ll have to step in and handle myself.”
“……”
At that moment. Robert Loveride fell silent.
Robert Loveride, who had stopped mid-stride as he was about to leave the room, slowly turned around and said.
“Regarding that matter, it would be best to inform you in advance, Commander.”
“What do you mean?”
“I originally thought it wasn’t an issue for me, having decided to discharge, to presumptuously report, but…”
Robert Loveride hesitated and said.
“I heard that the supreme commander of the Annihilation Campaign will be replaced from Commander Song-ha to someone else.”
“……What?”
Song-ha, understanding the meaning of those words with his improved intellect, momentarily flinched.
The meaning of replacing the supreme commander in a large-scale operation like the Annihilation Campaign.
Because such a matter could not even be discussed by anyone of a rank lower than Song-ha’s.
And, for another commander to be mentioned as commander instead of Song-ha at this point, meant—
“No matter what forces and strategies are employed, it cannot compare to a general possessing a ‘Strategic-grade Spellcraft’ taking command.”
“Huh, no way…”
Robert Loveride nodded, seeing Song-ha’s frowning expression.
“Commander Baragan has returned to the 1st Command.”
At the same time. The botanical garden in District 31, the mega-city of Vulcan.
Lennok stood in a basement thickly covered in purple mist.
What he once couldn’t even guess the identity of, he could now vaguely understand its essence.
He retraced his steps, recalling memories of hundreds of visits during his freelance days.
Whoosh!!
The purple mist dramatically parted to either side, revealing the sight beyond.
One side of the seemingly endless basement wall was filled with antique-designed wooden shelves.
A pharmacy, storing thousands of types of medicinal herbs and catalysts, by far the largest Lennok had ever seen.
The scenery hadn’t changed for a single moment, from the time he first visited, relying on Jenny’s recommendation without knowing anything, until now.
Even the pungent aroma that stung his nostrils, and the sight of the old man leisurely smoking a long pipe in front of the counter, were the same.
“Aha.”
The old man, who had been staring up at Lennok, grinned, revealing his yellowed teeth.
“Well, well, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen such a regular customer.”
“……”
A massive war, led by Deadrise, that would shake the entire Eastern Continent.
The ‘final’ preparation Lennok had to make while organizing his surroundings before the Annihilation Campaign.
Lennok had come to Plumber’s Orchard again, just like the day he first bought and consumed medicine there.