Chapter 448 - 436: Our War
Chapter 448: Chapter 436: Our War
The surface of the sea churned violently, like boiling molten iron.
A black line stretching across the horizon surged forward at an astonishing speed.
One hundred and twenty thousand low-level Heart-eaters formed this vanguard of death.
The "Purgatory" launch platforms were the first to open fire. Red Lotus-II missiles turned into a meteor shower of death, precisely saturating the most densely packed areas of the Beast Tide.
Immediately after, the Spider Slayer and Peacekeeper formations on the coastline lit up their muzzles simultaneously.
Thousands of Magic Beams interwove into a web of light with no blind spots, instantly piercing and vaporizing the stragglers that had broken through the sea of fire.
In the sky, Storm Falcon squadrons swept past, their high-explosive bombs clearing out scattered clusters with surgical precision.
Everything was proceeding according to plan.
But this battle was different from any before. The Aiselan Kingdom’s spirit-comms network was currently broadcasting the war live to tens of millions of citizens across the nation.
This "coming-of-age ceremony" for the Aiselan Kingdom was destined to be remembered in history.
For the first time, countless ordinary people came face-to-face with a Beast Tide capable of making a regular army collapse in an instant.
And then, they saw how the Wizard’s Steel Legion efficiently wiped that black tide of fear and despair from the sea, piece by enormous piece.
There was no brutal struggle, no heroic sacrifice—only absolute power, absolute domination.
Inside the cockpits of the six Steel Knights, six teams of pilots quietly watched this opening act.
Their hearts were racing, their blood heating up.
They knew this grand fireworks display was clearing the dueling arena for them.
Forty minutes later, the fodder tide had been reduced by seventy percent, and the momentum of the remaining Heart-eaters had sharply declined.
Just then, a piercing alarm blared across all channels.
[WARNING! Three oversized Magic Sources have breached the 10,000-meter deep-sea zone! Estimated to make landfall simultaneously in Defense Sectors Two, Five, and Nine in 90 seconds!]
"They’re here!" William shot to his feet in the royal palace, his eyes glued to the spirit-comms screen.
Allen’s voice came over the all-channel broadcast, calm and clear. "Golem Legion, clear the field."
At the command, the Golem Legion’s firepower, which had been conducting saturation strikes, abruptly shifted. Their goal was no longer to kill, but to use the shockwaves from explosions and the deterrence of their beams to forcibly drive away and isolate all low-level Heart-eaters within a two-kilometer radius of the three designated landing points.
Three circular stages were forcefully carved out of the chaotic battlefield.
"Steel Knights, proceed to the battlefield as per the established operational plan."
"I wish you... a swift victory."
「Defense Sector Nine.」
Gale Red and the Zaku Prototype, one on the left and one on the right, faced the King of Heart-eaters stepping out of the sea.
"Mo, this guy looks kinda dumb," the left-side pilot said in surprise.
"Don’t get careless. The bigger the waves, the more expensive the fish!" the right-side pilot, Maurice, said in a deep voice. "Stick to the plan! Zaku, hold the line!"
"Roger!" The Zaku’s pilot, a Level 3 Spirit Mage, roared and braced the three-meter-thick Tower Shield firmly in front of him, meeting the King of Heart-eaters’ charge head-on!
BOOM—!!!
With a tremendous crash, the Zaku was thrown back dozens of meters by the immense force, its feet plowing two deep trenches in the sand. But the Tower Shield held firm!
’Now’s the chance!’
"Mo!"
"On it!"
Gale Red moved. In that instant, its three uncanny arms transformed into a crimson whirlwind of death.
THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD!
Like the most frenzied drumbeat, three house-sized iron fists, carrying the immense power of hydraulic impact hammers, slammed into the King of Heart-eaters’ head and chest, all in under two seconds!
Its hard scales shattered instantly as blood and shredded flesh splattered everywhere.
The King of Heart-eaters let out a pained roar. It didn’t even have time to see where the attack came from before it was dazed by the unprecedentedly ferocious combo.
"Grab it!" Maurice yelled.
The three giant arms clamped down like iron pincers, tightly locking onto the King of Heart-eaters’ limbs and neck, forcibly slamming its massive body to the ground.
"Zaku! Cut!"
The Zaku pilot tossed aside the deformed Tower Shield and raised the enormous Thermic Axe with both hands. Its blade glowing a blinding red, he aimed for the pinned King’s neck and brought it down with all his might!
KRA—CHUNK!
The enormous head flew into the air, tumbling before it splashed into the sea.
From start to finish, the battle lasted only one minute and forty-seven seconds. It was clean and decisive.
First blood!
After a moment of dead silence, everyone in Aiselan watching the live broadcast erupted in a tsunami of cheers!
...
「In Defense Sector Five, however, the battle had reached a stalemate.」
The second King of Heart-eaters was incredibly cunning. It was smaller and faster, constantly spitting ice spears from its mouth that were cold enough to freeze steel.
"Peram! Harass it!"
"Understood!"
The Unicorn unfolded its back-mounted thruster wings, turning into a white streak of light. It maneuvered at high speed in mid-air, continuously firing bursts from its beam rifle to attract the King’s attention.
"Damn it, this thing can predict my moves!" Peram yanked the controls. The Unicorn performed an extreme barrel roll, narrowly dodging an ice spear coming from a tricky angle, but the edge of its wing was still grazed, creating a shower of blinding sparks.
"That’s our chance!" inside the Eureka Striker, one of the Alchemy University students roared. "Now! Fire!"
The three-person team worked in perfect sync. The large-caliber Plasma Cannon thundered, and a searing Energy Ball accurately struck the King of Heart-eaters’ right shoulder, blowing open a massive, bloody hole.
"Dorne!!" Peram’s roar came through the command channel.
"For Aiselan!!"
Inside the cockpit, the miner Dorne’s eyes were bloodshot. He pushed the domestically-produced Zaku’s engine to its limit.
This Steel Giant, its edges slightly rough, tossed aside its Tower Shield and charged the wounded King with unstoppable momentum.
He had only one thought—to bring the Thermic Axe in his hands down on that monster!
He did it.
The Thermic Axe sank deep into flesh and blood. The intense heat seared its nerves, and the King of Heart-eaters let out a piercing shriek.
The next second, its furious counterattack came.
A massive claw, striking with the force of a thunderbolt, slammed viciously into the Zaku’s chest.
On the live broadcast, everyone saw it: the Mecha painted with the royal flag, *their* Mecha, was sent flying over a hundred meters before crashing heavily to the ground.
Its left leg was twisted, its chest plate completely caved in.
"NO—!!"
Countless citizens cried out in shock.
Inside the cockpit, the alarms were deafening. Dorne felt a sweet taste in his throat as he coughed up a mouthful of blood onto the observation screen.
[WARNING! Left leg drive system at 87% damage!]
[WARNING! Pilot’s vital signs are dropping rapidly!]
Through his blurry vision, he seemed to see the Royal Army standing ready in the distance. He saw the corner of the spirit-comms feed, showing his hometown, the small mining town, where the townsfolk were gathered in the square, their eyes glued to the screen.
’I can’t fall...’
’This is the Mecha we built ourselves... every single screw is our own...’
Dorne grit his teeth so hard they could have shattered. With his last ounce of strength, he gripped the controls and drove the Thermic Axe into the ground beneath him.
"GET... ME... UP!!!"
Under the disbelieving gaze of the entire nation, the half-wrecked, domestically-produced Zaku, using its Thermic Axe for support, struggled, inch by inch, to rise from the ground... into a half-kneeling position!
It raised its head, its single eye still burning with red light, staring defiantly at the enemy before it.
Battered, but not broken!
This scene, like the hottest branding iron, was seared deep into the soul of every single Aiselan.
"KILL!!!"
Peram and the three-person team from the Eureka went berserk. They unleashed all their ammunition and fury upon the King of Heart-eaters.
Finally, at the cost of one heavily damaged Zaku, the second King fell with a thunderous crash.
...
「Defense Sector Two. The Central Battlefield.」
The atmosphere was oppressive to the extreme.
The third King of Heart-eaters was the largest ever recorded, standing nearly fifty meters tall. The pressure of its Magic Power was so immense it made the very air feel thick and viscous.
The moment it made landfall, it kicked up a monstrous, thirty-meter-high wave, attempting to swallow its enemy whole.
However, when the colossal wave crashed against Gipsy Danger, it barely reached past its thighs.
The seventy-nine-meter Steel Giant stood motionless in the tsunami, like an ancient, immovable mountain range.
This shocking reversal of scale, where the Mecha dwarfed the monster, electrified all who watched.
Inside the cockpit.
Rein and Leia’s breathing, heartbeats, and mental waves achieved perfect synchronization in that moment.
[Spirit Core Synchronization Rate: 99.8%]
An unprecedented value flashed across the screen.
The brother and sister felt each other’s resolve, feeling the bond forged in the depths of the mines, where they had relied on each other to survive.
They didn’t exchange a word. They simply raised their eyes in unison and looked at the monster before them, the source of so much fear.
A single, unified will, neither male nor female, echoed within the cockpit.
"Go."
Gipsy Danger took its first step.
BOOM!
The earth groaned in protest, a footprint several meters deep materializing in its wake.
As it advanced, it raised its right arm. Its massive palm opened, and the enhanced "Titan’s Roar" in its center began to gather light.