Do Your Own Revolution-Chapter 196

< Final Chapter-010. >

“Damn it… Damn it…!”

“They’re swarming in from all directions!”

“Then, we’ll face all direct– Arghhhh?!”

In the trench zone of Viselgrad’s western plains.

Seeing the monsters flooding in like a tide, the soldiers’ faces turned pale.

Ammunition had run dry, and the red-hot gun barrels were no longer usable.

A desperate situation where the enemy numbers exceeded their bullets.

Just as the soldiers thought it was all over, squeezing their eyes shut—

Boom—!

With a massive explosion, the monsters that had come within arm’s reach turned to ashes and disappeared.

An explosion so powerful that even the fearless monsters hesitated.

When the Republic soldiers finally opened their eyes, they saw mages bearing unfamiliar emblems before them.

“Enemy vanguard’s advance halted. Current defense forces are to retreat to the second defense line after being relieved by the follow-up support units.”

The one speaking was a handsome man with flowing blue hair, Feilun lu Ross Nachtval.

Bearing Duke Nachtval’s seven stroke imprint, he slowly extended his hand as he watched the monsters charging forward, trampling over the corpses of their own kind.

And in the next moment.

Screech–!

Beams of light shot out from countless orbs of light floating around him.

Dozens, hundreds of light beams tangling chaotically.

As those beams pierced through the monsters’ carapaces like tofu, numerous mages appeared one after another behind him.

The Youth Faction, a magical noble faction that had sided with Eugene Lorentz in the previous civil war.

They were the ‘Freedom Knight Order’, a mage organization built around them.

“How’s the situation elsewhere?”

“Colonel Leopold, who joined us on site, is commanding the defense line. Special Magical Power Unit’s reinforcements should arrive soon.”

“They’re fast. Incomparable to when they were in the Knight Order…”

Muttering thus, Feilun turned his gaze to survey various parts of the battlefield.

“To achieve this much with just the Special Magical Power Unit and reserve forces, without the main army.”

Though the unified Kalhyram Army was powerful, the situation wasn’t good.

With troops deployed to prevent chaos in each region, they had to hold back the monster army with only the remaining minimal forces.

In other words, they couldn’t even utilize a tenth of their accumulated military strength.

However…

“This adverse situation might actually be an opportunity for the Supreme Commander.”

With those words, a group of monsters charging from one side collapsed.

Countless insects eating away at their bodies.

It was the magic of Anthony Rose, head of the Westraine provisional government.

“The ability to suppress regional rebellions while handling a national emergency. If he can prove that capability, no one will be able to stand against the Supreme Commander.”

“……”

The ability to suppress regional rebellions while handling a national emergency.

This monster crisis would become the first case proving that ability.

How this situation was resolved would determine whether the system Eugene created could function properly.

“But is that even possible?”

While reorganizing the Republic forces through magical power communication,

Anthony prepared her next spell as she spoke, watching the endlessly advancing monsters.

“Unlike monsters who are tireless war machines, we’re human. If the battle continues, our current forces will collapse from exhaustion, and the monsters will replenish their numbers and break through our defense line entirely.”

“……”

“We can hold out for three days at most. The Supreme Commander must contain the monsters rampaging across the western region within that brief time.”

Could it be possible within such a short time as three days?

To Anthony’s questioning words, Feilun answered without a moment’s hesitation.

“He’ll do it.”

“How can you be so certain—!”

And at that moment.

Boom–!

As a massive explosion occurred in the center of the monster formation, Feilun looked to the sky.

A flower of burning monsters.

And slowly descending toward it, the airship ‘Emperor’s Spear’.

“What, already there…?”

While Anthony stood dumbfounded, unable to continue speaking,

Feilun, seeing that distant sight, gathered magical power into his imprint to its fullest.

Screech–!

Holding this front line until Eugene returned from his mission.

That was his duty, after all.

***

A death notice for my brother arrived from the army.

If you ask if he was a good brother, not particularly.

He’d hit me in the face after fighting over a piece of bread, and whenever something displeased him, he’d torment me.

But if you ask if he was entirely bad, that wasn’t true either.

When his frequently beaten younger brother came home after being beaten by neighborhood kids, he’d go berserk and turn the whole neighborhood upside down.

Always fighting like cats and dogs, then sometimes snickering together in conspiracy. A typical brother you could find anywhere.

The last meeting with such a brother was a death notice written on worn paper.

Just a brief signature from someone called the platoon commander.

Ryle… Ryle…!

Along with mother’s crying, a modest funeral was held.

There weren’t many mourners.

It had been years since father’s business failed.

Brother’s empty coffin, his body never recovered.

Only shabby-looking soldiers who claimed to have fought alongside him came to send him off.

His comrades rendering a final salute with stern expressions.

The eyes of one of them met mine.

Regret, grief, guilt.

A face filled with countless emotions, indecipherable.

The moment I saw that face, I decided to become a soldier.

There was no particular reason.

I just felt that I had to.

***

Rumble-!

“Direct hit on target.”

“Extent of damage?”

“The outer shell’s blown off, internal structure visible. As expected, that structure is incomplete. However…”

Thinking of old times in this situation.

Did I doze off meanwhile?

Shaking off such thoughts and regaining focus, Guille approached Matt, who was deploying detection spells, to examine the flower’s interior.

“Holy hell.”

Looking inside the petals with [Eye of Horus], an expletive escaped involuntarily.

Monster eggs densely packed without gaps.

He had confirmed the sight of monsters just born and writhing there.

“They’re the flying monsters from the report. Stuck to the inside of the petals like a beehive.”

“Just one petal shows thousands of magical power reactions. If this flower hatches…”

“The entire continent’s sky will be covered in monsters.”

They had already received word of the incident in the Republic’s capital, Viselgrad.

An unidentified object shot from the monster formation the moment the invasion began.

It had pierced through anti-aircraft fire and fallen in the middle of the city, taking Supreme Commander’s wife Mari.

Flight capability unrestricted by altitude.

Range to make round trips between Westraine and Viselgrad.

And speed that left no time to respond, plus durability to penetrate anti-aircraft fire.

The thought of flying creatures possessing all these capabilities covering the Empire’s skies.

It was horrifying just to imagine.

“It’s not like they’re going to be born and take to the sky right this moment. What are you getting scared for?”

The atmosphere mixed with fear and despair.

It was Ortega’s boisterous voice that broke through it.

“We just need to burn them all before they hatch. Am I wrong?”

“…No, you’re not wrong.”

Still acting without thinking things through, same as ever.

Leaving Matt muttering that behind, Guille nodded and ordered the airship operators.

“Drop all shells stored in the airship simultaneously with troop deployment. Ascend immediately after bombardment. If there’s no signal for three hours after the operation, turn around and return to base.”

The crew members nodded with resolute expressions.

After confirming this, Guille looked at Eugene, who had remained silent with a complex expression throughout.

“……”

Eugene just watched him without saying anything.

Though holding the position of Supreme Commander, he had delegated command of these forces to Guille without stepping forward himself.

‘He looks like someone about to leave.’

The ominous thought passed briefly.

Turning his gaze from Eugene, Guille addressed those gathered.

“Everyone, attention.”

Currently, Guille was the overall commander of the Special Magical Power Unit.

At his words, the other two commanders and their high-ranking mages focused their attention.

“We are currently above the Great Rupture, having entered the enemy’s central mass. Our mission is to destroy the flower, the monsters’ primary protected target, and close the rift while our forces on the main front hold back their main army.”

Taking a brief breath, Guille continued.

“Though some forces have headed to the front line, this area is packed with pure-breed monsters and special specimens never reported in previous battles.”

What strategy to use, what formation to take, not even knowing what lay inside.

The only order Guille as commander could give was this:

“Therefore, each member is to respond to enemy attacks using independent judgment. Annihilate the monster collective.”

They would be dropped by airship, and after that, they were on their own.

A simple directive that could hardly be called a strategy.

Hearing these words, the other members smiled wryly.

“The chances of the operation succeeding are small, and our chances of returning alive after being dropped in the middle of enemy territory are even smaller. However.”

Looking around at those gathered, Guille spoke with unprecedented resolution.

“This is something we must do, and something we must succeed at.”

A hellish war. Peace finally arrived after endless hunting of remnants to the point of exhaustion.

No worry about conscription.

A world where there’s no need to worry about receiving news of siblings’ deaths.

A world they thought would never come.

Therefore.

“As commander of the Special Magical Power Unit, as a comrade who has fought alongside you for many years… I ask of you all.”

If we die protecting such a world.

Wouldn’t that death be quite worthwhile?

“Give me your lives.”

Unlike brother Ryle, who died caught up in nobles’ political games.

“…Hah.”

The unit members hearing Guille’s speech.

“Our captain’s gotten quite good at speeches in these five years.”

“To think this guy who was so taciturn when we first met…”

With mischievous curses, they prepared their weapons with smiling faces.

“Shouldn’t we at least give a cheer at times like this? Bunch of stiffs.”

“Who else but Captain Matt would do that?”

The unit members entering combat preparations without a trace of tension.

Hearing that—

“Safe altitude reached-! Opening hatch!”

Clank-!

As comrades who had completed preparations spoke thus, the airship’s hatch opened, revealing a landscape full of monsters and contamination.

“Literally hell.”

“That’s why we came, isn’t it?”

In normal battlefields, they wouldn’t even have shown themselves.

A battlefield trending toward defeat.

Dense contamination that made breathing impossible.

Battle conditions deteriorated beyond recovery.

These were always the only places where they set foot.

So this situation was no different from what they had experienced before.

Just deeper and darker.

“Screech-!”

“Kwok! Kwoooook–!”

While thinking this, interception monsters that had been waiting launched themselves at the airship.

Monsters swarming like bees.

Following those being produced inside the petals, these were specimens capable of short-distance flight.

“What the hell?!”

But just before these monsters could attack the airship,

Boom–!

With a massive explosion, the approaching monsters instantly burst into flames and fell.

Eugene, who was at the very back of the formation.

His magic incinerated all the monsters in an instant.

“The Supreme Commander has opened the way.”

“This is the last time.”

Hearing Eugene speak these words, Guille ordered his unit members.

“All guns open fire. Emperor’s Spear, commence bombardment-!”

With those words, the airship dumped all its shells.

Eugene’s formula imprinted on the shells amplified their firepower dozens of times over, incinerating the monster egg clusters spread across the ground like a beehive and the contamination.

Now was the time.

“All units, commence descent!”

“Let’s go-! Feet first into hell-!”

With Ortega’s battle cry, numerous mages jumped from the airship simultaneously.

“Feet first into hell!”

“Feet first into hell!”

“Feet first into hell!”

As they neared the ground, the horrific landscape became increasingly clear.

Ground dyed red and burning.

Black smoke filling everything and monster screams echoing from within.

The acrid smell of burning flesh and tissue.

It felt nostalgically familiar, like returning home.