I Obtained the Final Boss' Power

Chapter 24 : State of Emergency (1)

State of Emergency (1)

Upon the emergency alert, Silia hurriedly swallowed her meal.

She quickly paid the bill at the inn and boarded the carriage with Louis.

As she bustled about, clearly intent on returning to the fortress as quickly as possible, Louis asked,

"Is that 'emergency' thing really such a big deal?"

"It's a crisis that concerns the entire fortress. I'll explain now, so listen carefully."

Silia explained with a deeply serious expression.

According to her, the instant an 'emergency' was declared, any officer outside the fortress had to return as soon as possible.

If not, it meant immediate execution for disobeying orders.

A situation serious enough to warrant such a decision had erupted in the fortress.

"What in the world happened for them to call it an emergency?"

"I'll only know for sure when I get there myself. But for this matter, even you should tense up."

In truth, Silia herself was very much on edge.

Ever since seeing that emergency alert, her heart had been beating wildly.

That sound resonated delicately, picked up by Louis's superhuman hearing.

"It's likely to be a stampede."

"A stampede?"

Silia added some explanation.

"It's a situation where monsters overflow by several times more than usual. The monsters bulk themselves up to fight over territory and launch full-scale battles. Any other creatures caught up in that disaster lose their homes."

The ones to lose their homes were, of course, humans.

The 7th Legion stationed in the demon realm were just the sort to get swept up in such conflicts.

"If it's a dispute among monsters, of course the bosses will get involved."

"Higher-rank monsters?"

"That's right. The moment even one of those bastards appears, the fortress won't be able to maintain its form."

If the fortress were at risk of destruction, it was reason enough to cancel outings.

It felt like missiles being launched from the north, and Louis felt a peculiar sense of discomfort.

"And what happens if the fortress disappears?"

"You're asking because you don't know?"

Actually, Louis was already pretty sure, but he asked to confirm.

"If the fortress—the wall that blocks monsters—is gone, they'll settle there. Eventually, their territory will expand until it swallows up the empire."

The 7th Legion existed to prevent the monsters of the demon realm from overflowing.

But carrying out that duty meant few would survive.

Occasionally, powerful monsters appeared in the empire, and most of those had drifted in from the demon realm.

"If it wasn't for the 7th Legion, the empire would've been eaten up by the demon realm long ago."

"Then why do people look at the 7th Legion with such disgust?"

"Who would look kindly on a place filled only with criminals? No matter how horrible it is, there are times when it's necessary."

You couldn't send innocent people to a role that cost so many lives.

That's why it was the damned who were sent to fill the ranks.

"So it's something you need, even if you don't like it?"

"Exactly."

Silia replied with a bitter look.

Just thinking that someone like Louis was among those criminals only made her feel more bitter.

"If it were any other soldier, they'd be throwing a fit to avoid returning, but you're surprisingly obedient."

"What's the point in kicking up a fuss? There's a torture spell for that."

No matter how rebellious a soldier, when faced with the torture spell, they'd settle down.

If you didn't want even worse torture, you had to comply when ordered.

"There's a survival instinct in people. That's why, even with torture spells, most still try to resist."

For a soldier, Louis was obedient.

Even though he was just a kid, he wasn't whimpering either.

He was different in many ways from the other soldiers.

"I doubt you're so calm for no reason. Is there something in it for you if you go back?"

"It's not that there isn't."

The 7th Legion was somewhere Louis needed right now.

If it disappeared, there would be nowhere he could so easily receive the spell.

"And there are those I have to take care of."

His reason for returning to the fortress wasn't just the spell.

While any 7th Legion personnel would have the spell, 'those ones' existed only at the 5th Fortress.

****

Before long, the carriage entered the demon realm. As always, ominous energy filled the demon realm, and the carriage pushed in even deeper.

Familiar scenery began to appear more and more.

Normally, it's not a place you should ever get used to, but those marked with the stigma had no choice but to adjust.

Soon enough, a familiar building entered view. Surrounded by towering walls, it was none other than the 5th Fortress, Paruzan.

The carriage had to pause, stopped by the soldiers guarding the fortress entrance.

Only after Silia got off, confirmed her identity, and paid was the gate opened.

The interior of the fortress spread out before them—a place Louis was now familiar with. But even he could see the clear differences compared to before he'd left.

Wounded soldiers were everywhere, and others dashed about in a hurry.

It felt like a battlefield within, but Silia was neither surprised nor unprepared.

"Thankfully, we made it back in time."

"Commander."

Leading knights through the fortress, Kelian spotted the returning Silia. As soon as she saw him, Silia asked,

"What happened here?"

"It's exactly what you guessed."

"A stampede..."

As Silia muttered, Kelian nodded. Only then did her tension solidify, and she swallowed hard.

"The signs have already begun."

Just as Kelian said, the inside of the fortress was almost in chaos.

Beyond the nervous soldiers, even the corpses of both soldiers and monsters caught Louis's eye.

"Have you only just returned, deputy-commander?"

At that moment, an armored knight approached Silia. Silia seemed to recognize his face and reacted sharply.

"Kadim. You came back too?"

"Yes. While I was out on dispatch, my tracking magitech device started flashing 'emergency'. So I rushed back."

This man, Kadim, was apparently another officer.

Reinforcements returning at such a critical moment was a good thing for the fortress.

But for some reason, Silia's expression remained sour. So Louis asked,

"Who's that?"

"He's an officer here. He was originally supposed to be deputy-commander, before I took the position."

Louis could see why she was wary.

Kadim had lost a place he was meant to rise to, a position now held by Silia.

"To be honest, I'm disappointed. I never imagined that the deputy-commander, who surpassed me, would return later than I did. I was on dispatch, but you were just chaperoning some measly soldier's outing."

Kadim sneered, as if his duties were more important than Silia's.

"Why did you choose to go out at this timing, anyway? You usually put things off."

"This kid insisted on going to Zodiac. Not my idea—Commander's request as well."

Kelian nodded, indicating it was true.

At this, Kadim smirked.

"Zodiac, huh? I think I know. I heard your family's buried at that cemetery. Was that why you went?"

Kadim's words made Silia bristle. It was information she'd told only Kelian, no one else.

"How did you find that out?"

"Does it matter? The real issue is that the so-called deputy-commander is obsessing over family at a time like this. Do you realize how pathetic that is for an officer of the 7th Legion?"

This was a place for people who never knew the 'f' in family.

As deputy-commander here, Kadim believed, you were meant to set an example.

"No matter what kind of person they were in life, dead, they're just trash. Looks to me like you went to a garbage dump to pay respects."

Clang!!—

Almost before Kadim's words finished, Silia drew her sword and swung. Her eyes were aflame with murderous intent.

Kadim reacted in time, drawing his own blade, and despite the sudden assault, seemed almost gleeful.

But the two blades did not clash. Kelian had stepped between them, blocking both their swords.

"What do you think you're doing, in front of me?"

With his left hand, he held off Kadim's sword; with his right, he pressed down Silia's.

With Kelian withstanding attacks from both sides, Kadim grimaced and said:

"And in a crisis like this, you think it's alright to turn on each other?"

"Sorry."

"My apologies."

Silia and Kadim quickly apologized, lowering their swords. After glancing between them, Kelian delivered his judgment.

"During emergencies like this, it's forbidden to point your sword at an ally. If you break that rule, I'll take your head on the spot. Have you already forgotten?"

Both hung their heads in tension. It was clearly a violation of the rules.

"You're both valuable assets we can't lose, so you get one chance. There won't be a next time. Remember that."

"Yes."

"I'll remember."

With that, Kelian left, Kadim trailing after.

As he walked, Kadim looked back at Louis.

'That kid is the survivor from the expedition?'

It was rare for a soldier to earn reward enough to go out. If there was anyone, it would be Bris, from Kadim's squad.

And yet, that brat Louis had pulled it off alone.

No matter how lucky you were, surviving that expedition without a scratch was impossible.

'He doesn't look easy to deal with.'

Kadim smirked as he looked at Louis, then turned his head forward and followed Kelian.

"That disgusting bastard."

Silia spat as she watched Kadim disappear.

At her venomous remark, Louis asked,

"You seem to have a bad relationship."

Louis, a trainee until recently, didn't know every officer.

Especially not one just returned from dispatch.

"Like I said before, the deputy-commander's position was originally his. Though I took it, he's the strongest force in this fortress."

In other words, aside from Silia and Kelian, no one here could stand against him.

"For that reason, Kadim's squad is called the strongest unit in the fortress. It's practically responsible for all the results here."

Thanks to that, Kadim had obtained enormous influence in Paruzan.

Even officers who bullied soldiers became meek before Kadim.

He could treat other officers as his underlings.

"Because of that, even ordinary officers can't mess with Kadim's soldiers easily. Belonging to his squad means you get a certain level of protection. The problem is..."

The soldiers in Kadim's squad abused their status.

Just being part of that unit made everyone else suck up to you.

"I think I get the idea."

The most powerful unit, Kadim's squad, was indispensable.

That's why they enjoyed authority like nobles, at least within this fortress.

Here, power was everything.

"So it means, 'Don't mess with me, I've got backing.' Right?"

"Exactly. That's the kind I hate most."

Silia's younger brother died because of people like that.

Kadim, the ringleader of such, could never look good in Silia's eyes.

Step, step—

At that moment, a carriage entered the fortress gates.

Following immediately after Silia's return carriage, it was one transporting prisoners.

Inside, behind iron bars, the prisoners sat—soon-to-be new recruits.

"So you must dislike his kind, too?"

Louis pointed at one of the prisoners in the cage and asked.

"How... did I end up in a place like this...!"

Rejir, the one Louis singled out, wore a thoroughly aggrieved expression.

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=

I just realized, it seems Louis knew Bisted family is behind his parents death...

【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】