Helios Orb Chronicle – Chapter 277

Ten days have passed since the march began. Due to frequent monster attacks and the proximity of the desert, our advance has been slow, and we finally feel like we’re about halfway to Deseo.

Monster attacks have become sporadic since the large-scale attack by the Worm species the other day, but with the desert so close, we’ve had to cut through it on occasion, meaning we’ve encountered quite a few high-ranking monsters without realizing it.

We also fought Antlion, demi-humans that inhabit the desert. They looked like ants that had taken human form, yet were subtly closer to human females. I heard that Antlion don’t abduct human males, and that they are a species solely composed of females. How do they reproduce?

The reason for the massive attack by the Worm species, including Grand Deathwurm, seems to be the presence of an un-conquered labyrinth nearby. Most of Solemne’s labyrinths, except for the ones near Deseo that have already been conquered, are rarely entered by people, making them constantly prone to labyrinth floods. Thus, the conclusion was reached that by expelling the Grand Deathwurm, the labyrinth itself was suppressing the labyrinth flood.

Today, we once again had to cut through the desert. It wasn’t until past noon that we finally made contact with the Solemne Army. What’s more, there were ten Steam Battleships on the sea side and an army of over 2,000 soldiers in the desert.

“Finally, after coming this far. Well, judging by the other towns, they seem to have been imposing quite a heavy tyranny, so it’s likely difficult for them to send word,” I agreed with Faris, who sounded weary.

We passed through several towns and villages, but all of them were dominated by the occupying forces, so there was no semblance of order. Yet, when the Allied Forces approached, they tried to flee one after another, making the occupying forces utterly pointless. Of course, we had no intention of letting them escape, so we annihilated them.

“To attempt to invade the prosperous Solemne Empire, know your place!” The enemy commander spouted such nonsense, leaving us with nothing but bewilderment.

“To say that while ignoring your own faults,” I couldn’t agree more with Mako’s opinion.

“I am Rex Fallheight, General of the Amister-Torencia Allied Forces Order. This march is to protect Torencia and Libertà from your repeated invasions. I have no reason to be told such things by disrespectful invaders.”

“It’s fine to boast, but speak according to the situation. Our forces consist of ten iron Steam Battleships equipped with new weapons, and 2,000 elite ground troops. On the other hand, your Allied Forces, by all appearances, do not even number a thousand. To attack our country with such a meager force is laughable!” The Solemne commander laughed, followed by the Solemne Army standing behind him.

Indeed, in terms of sheer numbers, they were more than three times our ground troops, and with the addition of the Steam Battleships, the overall disparity might be close to tenfold. However, we possessed the strength to overcome such a difference. After all, with sixteen Ancient Classes, such a disparity in strength was as good as nonexistent.

“Steam Battleships, you say? Your fancy name and self-admiration are understandable, but such things are nothing more than scrap metal to us.”

“Hahaha! You seem to have gathered High Classes, but with such forces, how do you intend to sink the Steam Battleships floating on the sea?”

“Then tell me, what became of the fifty-four ships dispatched to Torencia, the sixty ships that advanced into Valentia and Bacion, and the forty-six ships that occupied Libertà?”

“…What did you say?” The commander retorted Rex’s mockery, but his laughter stopped the moment Rex brought up the already sunk Steam Battleships.

“Let me say it again. Such scrap metal is of no use as a military force before us. Our objective is singular: the head of your wicked emperor.”

The commander was unsure of Rex’s words, but he likely had some idea of the numbers involved. We had sunk exactly 200 ships, yet here they were with ten more, so our estimate of their total numbers was a bit off. The commander drew his sword and raised it high into the sky. At his signal, fire-attribute magic was unleashed into the sky, and simultaneously, the cannons of the Steam Battleships began firing.

“Well, well. To launch a surprise attack in the middle of a conversation. Someone called them barbarians, and I’m beginning to understand why,” Rex said.

“Did you really think that a noble empire like ours would be understood by mere barbarians? Rather, why don’t you worry about yourself?” Rex was approaching the Solemne Army alone to identify himself. The Solemne commander was doing the same, but he had guards, and more importantly, the vanguard had surrounded Rex the moment the signal was given, making it difficult to see what was happening from our side. However, it wasn’t of much concern.

“Worry? Such forces are nothing to me. Since you attacked first, I shall return the favor.” Rex drew his sword, imbued it with ice-attribute magic, lightning-attribute magic, and the affinity he gained from evolving into an Ancient Human, light-attribute magic, transforming it into a giant sword of light, and raised it to the sky, just like the commander had done. Seeing this, we immediately shot down their cannonballs and dispatched Gracious Lynx, Falcon’s Beak, and Black Army towards the Steam Battleships.

“Wh-what… what is that!?”

“Didn’t I tell you? Such things are nothing to me. You see, I am an O-Rank Order, an Ancient Human.” With that, a word of astonishment to the Solemne Army, Rex swung his sword down. The Solemne soldiers who were directly hit by the sword were instantly killed, but the fate of the surrounding Solemne soldiers was more gruesome. The aftermath of the attack left them dismembered and paralyzed by lightning, rendering them unable to move.

“Behold. As I said before, Steam Battleships are nothing more than scrap metal, and that is proof.”

“Im-impossible…” The Steam Battleships were swiftly sunk by Slay and Caesar, two ships each, El took down three, and one ship a piece by each Raid. El sank the most because, as an Ancient Harpy, she could fly, and by combining it with Scaffolding, she was able to reach the Steam Battleships the fastest.

“Like I said. Oh, before you die, let me tell you something. Our Allied Forces have fifteen other Ancient Classes besides myself. We also have two Dragonians, and if you knew that and still came, then you are truly brave. No, ‘foolhardy’ would be a more fitting description, don’t you think?”

“!? ” The commander was speechless, but one of those Dragonians was also an Ancient Dragonian, making them a nightmare for Solemne.

“Since you attacked first, I will assume you will not surrender.” Rex, stating this to the stunned Solemne commander, imbued his sword with attribute magic again and swept it horizontally this time. The Solemne commander and his guards fell apart, split in half from the torso. Simultaneously, Rex raised his voice and issued an order.

“The battle begins! Allied Forces, attack!”

” ” “Oooohhhhhh!!” ” With battle cries, the Allied Forces advanced towards the Solemne Army.

” “W-wahhhhhh!!?” ” Conversely, the Solemne Army’s morale had completely plummeted. All their Steam Battleships had been sunk, and their commander had been bisected in one blow along with his guards. Therefore, many soldiers in the rear were trying to escape, but this was within our expectations. Yamato and Mako activated Wing Burst and Accelerating Magic respectively, flying to the rear simultaneously, and Yamato activated Nibelheim while Mako activated Vanaheim, forming a layered barrier. This prevented any of the Solemne Army from escaping.

“Gyaaaaaaah!!”

“Wh-what… what is this!!”

“No… Nooooo!!” The light from Vanaheim attacked and engulfed the Solemne soldiers who were trying to escape. Mako, who was adjusting the size of the laser to match the opponent, was truly amazing. Such fine control was impossible for me…

“This is a roadblock.”

“Still, you can’t escape anywhere,” I added. Currently, I can deploy wide-area attacks within a radius of 250 meters, but if I had been a little slower, I might have let a few people slip through. Mako can deploy over twice that range, so even then, escape wouldn’t be possible. Yamato and I, casting Nibelheim and Vanaheim in a layered formation, knocked down the Solemne soldiers while carefully avoiding friendly fire by reflecting the light beams with ice mirrors created by Nibelheim. It was quite exhausting, I must say. I vaguely recall having such a weapon in some game, but I never thought it would be me using it. What I’m doing is adjusting the angle of the ice mirror, and it’s truly tough. Multi Edge can’t handle this fine control, and Mirror Ring is also marginal, so I’m barely managing with Ice Sphere and Accelerating Magic, which means I can’t move an inch.

“Wrist-worn accessories would be difficult, wouldn’t they?”

“Or rather, Mako, couldn’t you generate Spirit Hexa Dipper and do it alone?”

“I could. I haven’t shown it to you yet, but my other S-rank is like that.”

No way… The Calamity Hexagram, Mako’s unisex S-rank non-elemental magic, which I saw during the Slume Lord subjugation battle, was quite shocking even to me. After the subjugation battle, I asked Mako, and she turns out to be friends with my masters and has fought alongside them. Therefore, she knows not only about my parents but also about my masters’ S-ranks. Even just a glimpse of what she told me revealed a parade of insane magic. While Mist Solution and Ice Mist Explosion were sufficient for me, it was nowhere near enough…

“Besides, Yamato, can’t you do Engraving Fusion Art yet?”

“I’ve been trying various things, but still no luck.”

“If you can make it into a fusion-type Engraving Tool, its processing power will increase dramatically, and you’ll be able to do more.” My father and mother also said the same thing. My father generates armed-type and consumable-type, while my mother generates ornamental-type and portable-type. By fusing them with Engraving Fusion Art, they could create fusion-type Engraving Tools that inherit their respective traits and significantly enhance their abilities. I was supposed to be taught after completing Mist Solution, but unfortunately, I came to Helios Orb before that, so the opportunity to be taught has vanished. Still, it’s something necessary to become stronger, so ever since I transferred to Helios Orb, I’ve been repeatedly experimenting to be able to perform Engraving Fusion Art. There’s no sign of it working, though.

“I heard about it out of curiosity, but what was it called again…?” Please, remember so I can do it. Mostly for my sake.

“We’ll talk about it after the battle is over. It should be soon.”

“About five more minutes, I’d say.” The 2,000 Solemne ground troops are being unbelievably trampled. The fourteen Ancients besides myself and Mako are scattered across the battlefield, each slaughtering hundreds of soldiers single-handedly. The Allied Forces also include non-combatants, so escorting them is also necessary, but even the royalty, who should have top priority for escort, are all High Classes, so they are currently deployed to escort non-combatants. Ah, no, Emperor Reinhardt is fighting on the front lines. Royal Order is escorting him, but as the king of a nation, I wish he’d be a little more prudent.

“That’s it for my side. Good work, Yamato.”

“I’m wiped. I never thought I’d be unable to move an inch.”

“It gets a little better with practice, but you and I don’t have good compatibility, do we?” Yamato and I, after annihilating the Solemne soldiers attempting to escape with the layered technique of Nibelheim and Vanaheim, were truly exhausted. As a swordsman, I have the worst compatibility with this layered technique, which can only be described as a reflective guided beam. A swordsman who can’t move an inch is useless.

“Their side is finished too.”

“Yes.” It took them three minutes, not five, to annihilate the Solemne Army. I say this myself, but Ancient Classes are truly incredible. With a single swing of their weapon, several people were killed, and with sixteen of them, it felt like they could annihilate not just 2,000 but even 20,000 soldiers in about thirty minutes. However, the troublesome part is disposing of the corpses. We don’t intend to retrieve them, so those who can use Telekinetic Magic will gather the bodies, and Prim will turn them into ashes, bone and all, with Flare Tornado or fire-attribute magic. If left unattended, there’s a possibility they might turn into undead, so this is something we can’t slack on.

“I apologize for asking when you’re tired, but we cannot make camp in a place like this. So, we will advance a little further and make camp slightly earlier today. Everyone, please do your best a little longer.” After finishing the disposal of the corpses, Rex ordered us to advance. I also didn’t want to camp at a battlefield ruin, and it seemed the others felt the same, so no one complained.