novelraw Chapter 125 : Clash (2)
Chapter 125 : Clash (2)
Chapter 125: Clash (2)
Kwaaang!
Kwaaaang!
Explosions echoed one after another from every direction, making it impossible to think straight.
Smoke was so thick from the constant bombardment on the same spot that it clouded my vision.
‘This is insane.’
Even so, the murderous intent directed at me felt as sharp as ever.
I lightly wiped the bloodstains off Lukezax with a piece of cloth and scanned my surroundings.
The battle in the plaza had only just begun, yet the contrast between the two sides was already clear.
The Mallet forces were in a frenzy from their unexpectedly strong resistance,
while the Dellowell side seemed quite flustered by our flawless counterattack.
Especially the enemy’s command unit and the First-Rank Believers, who quickly grasped the situation—their reactions weren’t good.
‘They must’ve figured it out by now. What our strategy was.’
To charge forward under the protection of Holy Armor, create an opening, and through merciless slaughter, crush the enemy’s morale before they even had the chance to fight back and force them into surrender.
…That was the “judgment” Dellowell had always carried out against their own people.
But if we filled all possible gaps with barriers, turrets, and golems, while guerrilla forces stirred the battlefield from every direction to shatter the enemy’s concentration—
Then even those Dellowell fanatics—who could endure most attacks without injury, and heal whatever wounds they did sustain—would be forced to falter, if only for a moment.
‘They must’ve thought they could crush us easily. After all, they had both individual superiority and numerical advantage.’
Unfortunately for them, that’s not how this goes.
If we’re outnumbered, the turrets and golems can cover that.
If we lack power, my tactics can cover that too.
And that’s what led us here.
Those so-called invincible killing machines, who shouldn’t have any reason to lose ground, were now in chaos.
“…What should we do, Saint?”
“Should we break through and charge? Or retreat? Please, give us orders!”
“……”
Even amidst the explosions and smoke, the First-Rank Believers in command exchanged quick eye contact.
Then one of them raised his hand and spun it in a circle.
A signal known only to their own ranks—one Mallet members wouldn’t recognize.
…But I did.
“As if I’d let you!”
I leapt onto a golem and sent a slash toward the enemy.
But they narrowly dodged it.
And as the seven First-Rank Believers gathered in one place,
a translucent veil spread wide above their heads.
How kind of them to group up on their own.
As if waiting for that, the golems converged near the veil.
The turrets began bombarding them as well, intent on crushing the veil entirely.
However—
The barrier easily withstood both waves of attacks.
I muttered to myself as I watched it.
“…Divine Veil.”
Andrea, the First-Rank Believer I’d been facing, looked surprised.
“You actually know this miracle, Eugene Carter.”
“How could I not?”
It was a technique symbolic of holy magic, alongside Holy Armor and Divine Immunity.
But what surprised me wasn’t the veil itself—it was its defense power.
‘Now I understand why MAGA’s extreme faith is classified as mental contamination.’
Divine Veil was originally a technique meant to sense malice and murderous intent, technically categorized as a type of Barrier Magic.
It wasn’t without defensive capabilities, but compared to a standard barrier spell, it was somewhat weaker.
To think they could raise the defense of such a veil to this level…
Boom! Boom!
Since the Mallet members were directly controlling the turrets, they could minimize unnecessary fire, but the golems couldn’t do the same.
Being animated by evil spirits’ souls, they were naturally more sensitive to holy magic.
As six golems focused their attacks on the veil,
the remaining believers suddenly dispersed in all directions.
12th Floor, Command and Control Room.
Gustav, the Master of the Magic Tower and overall commander of Mallet, was analyzing the current situation as objectively as possible through a stream of reports.
It had been three hours since the clash began.
Their performance was far better than expected, but it was too early to be optimistic.
‘I had estimated six hours before they reached the main gate.’
Of course, it wasn’t breached yet—and even if it were, the internal defense systems were more than enough to handle it.
Guarding the main gate was none other than his second-in-command, Agent Meriel, while the renowned war hero Eugene Carter continued to make progress on the front lines.
There was no need to worry.
The situation on the turret front wasn’t bad either.
― “Turrets 1 and 9 are half-destroyed! Preparing to withdraw!”
― “Positions for Turrets 2 and 10 have been readjusted! Ready to engage at any time!”
― “Nine injured within the turrets! Three combatants down!”
― “Artifacts have been transferred to Turrets 3 and 11! Supply troops, rotate immediately!”
While blocking the enemy’s advance as much as possible, they had also laid the groundwork for a hit-and-run strategy.
The two outermost turrets had already taken heavy damage from the enemy’s assault.
The internal defensive magic was still holding, but not for long—thirty minutes at best.
When that happened, the pre-set explosive magic would bring the entire turret down.
Since the explosions were on a timer, all members had to retreat to their assigned turrets before detonation.
As each turret was disabled one by one, the bombardment on the plaza would lessen—but attacking the next turret would become that much harder.
The dispersed members would begin to converge into a single point.
Once all interception turrets fell, every member would gather inside the tower to prepare for the final defense.
Eugene Carter had estimated that moment to be sixteen hours after the battle began.
In other words, the defense inside the Magic Tower itself would last for at least eight straight hours.
And that would only be against the advance unit—the enemy’s main force hadn’t even arrived yet.
“There’s not a shred of room for error…”
Whether or not they understood his grim mood, the observers continued to report updates.
“Master! The outer wall at Sector 19 is critically damaged—it’s about to collapse!”
Gustav let out a deep sigh and walked up to the observer.
“The auto-regeneration spell?”
“It’s not functioning! Presumed damaged!”
“Just flag it for now. Next—status on the main gate!”
“Twenty-seven golem units and twelve automated defense turrets are all operating normally!”
“Good. We’re just getting started—stay sharp!”
“Yes, sir!”
Kwaang!
Kwa-kwang!
Amid the irregular booms that shook the air, the believer Andrea frowned deeply.
“Hoo….”
The golems were an unexpected variable, yes, but that wasn’t nearly enough to make them falter or retreat.
They had faced far worse calamities and survived even more hellish battlefields.
In truth, the confusion they experienced on the battlefield didn’t even last an hour.
The existence of the golems, their seamless coordination and overwhelming response—it had indeed caught them off guard, but they had quickly adapted.
Using Divine Veil for diversion and defense.
Taking advantage of that brief opening, they had successfully advanced their troops all the way to the tower’s main gate.
They were veterans among veterans who had judged and executed countless enemies across endless battlefields.
Unlike Mallet’s members, who were little more than soft-hearted magicians, their physical endurance and mental fortitude were on an entirely different level.
There had been some delay, but two hours should’ve been enough.
At least, according to their expectations.
“Kh…!”
That made eleven.
That was how many had charged at Eugene Carter and been repelled.
They had already analyzed the golems’ movements, the turrets’ attack patterns, and even the defensive forces stationed before the gate.
But that man.
A washed-up soldier with an unimpressive physique and pitifully low mana.
Eugene Carter remained utterly impossible to analyze.
‘Every human has habits—’
After a few exchanges of weapons, one should be able to tell.
An opponent’s habits, mannerisms, breathing during combat, preferred stance, signature move, and finishing style.
That analytical ability was the very reason Andrea had risen to the rank of First-Rank Believer.
‘And yet why….’
He had clashed with him over thirty times personally, and if he counted the ones he’d only observed, it easily exceeded a hundred bouts.
And yet, not once—not once—had Eugene Carter revealed a single habitual pattern.
Because of that, every attack failed, one after another.
Each failed assault caused the formation to fall apart beyond control.
To break through the enemy’s solid defense line, they needed at least thirty minutes of continuous, concentrated assault.
And to maintain that kind of offensive, a perfectly coordinated formation was mandatory.
But the enemy kept breaking that coordination in advance, leaving the remaining believers frustrated to madness.
A reckless charge would only result in them being deflected by turret fire and enemy magic.
“You bastard….”
As Andrea’s hostility became visible, Eugene smirked with contempt—as if looking at a bug.
“What’s this? You done already?”
“……”
Stay calm.
You can’t lose your composure to anger.
The moment you fall into his pace, it’s over.
Andrea struggled to steady his mind.
But Eugene Carter was never one to simply stand by and watch.
“To think that the advance unit you sent out looks this pathetic—how pitiful.”
“……”
“If this is the level of your First-Rank Believers, then your Executors and even your Archbishops probably aren’t much different. This’ll be an easy victory.”
Twitch.
“With skills this laughable, you still went around boasting about being Dellowell’s strongest faction? Tsk.”
If it were me, I’d have killed myself from the shame. Heh.
His laid-back posture, that arrogant grin, and those cutting words that stabbed right into his nerves—
Andrea’s fragile composure snapped in an instant.
“You son of a—!”
He charged forward in a burst of wind and thrust his spear—but the tip never reached its target.
Instead, Eugene’s blade had already pierced straight through Andrea’s heart.
“Khuek…!”
“That’s why fighting humans is easy.”
Not stopping there, Eugene unleashed another slash that split his opponent clean in two.
“Saint Andrea!”
“Saint!”
Splat, splat.
Scattered blood left red stains across the ground.
Eugene wiped the blood off his cheek and wrist, letting out a short exhale.
With eyes gleaming with fierce light, he grinned wickedly.
“Come on, don’t stop now.”
Kugugung…!
The fierce battle sent tremors deep into the inner parts of the tower.
Though morning had long turned to midday, the library—without a single window—remained shrouded in darkness.
A luminescent stone hanging above the central table softly illuminated two figures.
“……”
Francia Brida was left speechless at the miracle that had unfolded before her eyes.
Even though it was her own accomplishment.
The elderly man with a brown beard let out a breath of admiration as red petals scattered through the air.
“To think you could pull it off right after learning how… remarkable.”
His wrinkled face framed a pair of eyes that shone far brighter than his apparent age suggested.
Francia carefully laid down her sword and looked at him warily.
“Who exactly… are you?”
“Well now… what did this old man wish to be remembered as, I wonder?”
A sudden self-question.
When Francia looked puzzled, the old man chuckled softly and raised his left index finger.
“You’ll only be able to use it once in actual combat. Use it in a crucial moment—when your opponent least expects it. That’s when it’ll deal a fatal blow.”
“……”
“The power you hold is both immense and dangerous. If it’s ever revealed on the front lines, you’ll surely become a target.”
So choose carefully.
Whom you will wield that power for.
Having said all he wished to say, the old man turned and began walking out of the library.
“At least tell me your name!”
Francia’s desperate call made him pause briefly. With a gentle smile, he answered softly.
“I’m called Aleph.”
“Aleph….”
“Then I shall see you again soon, Miss Francia Brida, seventeenth Heir of the Sword Saint.”