kvmb Chapter 629
Chapter 629
Chapter 629
That day, Dantal never showed himself to the very end.
Perhaps he had seen that Zeon was there and left. But Zeon did not think that was likely.
Even without seeing Dantal’s eyes directly, he could clearly feel the terrifying hostility and killing intent directed at him.
There was no way someone harboring such emotions would simply leave Zeon behind and go away.
Most likely, he was hiding somewhere, waiting for Zeon to expose an opening.
Like a hunter stalking prey.
“How persistent.”
At this point, Zeon could no longer join the battle even more so.
He had no idea what kind of scheme Dantal might be plotting.
It was a war between El Harun and Neo Seoul, but at the same time, it was also a battle between Dantal and Zeon.
After returning to the Steel Fortress, Zeon immediately sought out Levin and told him about Dantal.
“Huh? That guy’s targeting you, hyung?”
Naturally, Levin was shocked.
He had never fought Dantal himself, but he had heard from Zeon just how powerful he was.
Even Levin, who had become an S-rank powerhouse, could not even imagine challenging Dantal, the strongest of the strong.
“Wasn’t he hiding after losing to you?”
“Seems that wasn’t the case.”
“He’s persistent.”
“In any case, I have to keep him in check, so it looks like I still won’t be able to participate in battle.”
“Don’t worry, hyung! I’ll do my best to help everyone.”
“Be careful. Dantal might target you instead of me.”
“No way?”
“I mean there’s no telling what he’ll do to create the situation he wants.”
“Got it, hyung! I’ll be extra careful.”
“Good.”
Zeon nodded at Levin’s firm answer.
At that moment, Brielle approached the two of them.
“What are you two talking about so seriously?”
“Huh? It’s not that serious. Did you finish making the potions?”
Levin awkwardly changed the subject.
Handing Levin a potion bottle, Brielle said,
“Keep this with you.”
“What is it?”
“A healing potion. It’ll heal most ordinary wounds quickly. Though deep wounds are harder.”
“Thanks!”
“Don’t go overboard just because you have that.”
“Of course not. By the way, these—”
“I made five hundred today. We’re going to distribute them first to those fighting on the front lines.”
“You worked hard.”
“Whew! Even with all the alchemists working together, the speed isn’t enough. Tomorrow I need to make even more and hand them out to more people.”
To supply more healing potions, Brielle had revealed her own special recipe.
Healing potions had already existed before, but their effects were too weak, and the quantities too limited to make much difference.
So Brielle revealed the recipe she had developed through her research, and many alchemists were learning from her and producing healing potions.
But the method for making healing potions was so complicated that even with many alchemists working together, they still could not produce the quantity they wanted.
As Levin tucked the potion bottle into his clothes, he asked,
“But is it really okay to reveal the recipe like that?”
“It’s fine. I developed an even better recipe.”
“Really?”
“Yeah! It’s at least twice as effective as the old one. But the ingredients and recipe are complicated, so even if I teach it, it won’t be easy to make. And I have no intention of revealing it.”
“Good call. You should keep the truly important things to yourself.”
Levin smiled as he patted Brielle’s head.
Blushing slightly, Brielle said,
“The one I gave you is the special healing potion. Use it if you feel like you’re going to die.”
“I will.”
“And don’t act reckless just because you have a special potion. If it really feels dangerous, run to wherever Zeon is.”
“Got it.”
Levin answered without the slightest displeased expression.
Because he knew Brielle was genuinely worried about him.
Zeon said to Brielle,
“You should get some sleep too. You’ll use up a lot of stamina making potions again tomorrow.”
—Brielle’s fine because she has me.
At that moment, a translucent being appeared above Brielle’s head.
It was Lily, Brielle’s spirit.
Lily circled around Brielle, scattering particles of light.
As the light touched her body, Brielle’s complexion visibly improved.
Levin asked in surprise,
“What’s that?”
—Spirits have the power to restore their contractor’s condition.
“Do all spirits have that ability?”
—Not all of them. Only spirits that fulfill special conditions.
“What special conditions?”
—That’s a secret among spirits. Sorry!
At Lily’s apology, Levin instead looked embarrassed.
“I’m the one who should apologize for asking something unnecessary.”
—No, it’s okay!
Lily replied with a bright smile.
After evolving to the next stage, Lily had become naturally capable of communicating with humans.
She talked and smiled just like a real human.
It was something rarely seen among other spirits.
Yuri, the first spirit born in the Primordial Forest, and Lily, who had been born under the influence of Yuri and Gaia.
These two spirits possessed something special that other spirits did not.
Perhaps because of that, their growth speed was incomparably faster than that of other spirits, and their abilities were also unique.
Zeon said to Lily,
“Help Brielle a lot so she doesn’t overwork herself.”
—Okay! Don’t worry.
“And be careful not to attract other people’s attention.”
—I will!
Lily winked like a human before hiding herself again.
After that, the three chatted together for quite a while.
---
Boom!
The battle began with magical bombardment.
At dawn, enormous fireballs flew in and slammed into the Steel Fortress. But the fortress suffered almost no damage.
Because a defensive barrier activated just before the magic struck.
“Fuck!”
“The attack’s started.”
The awakened inside the Steel Fortress rushed toward the entrance in alarm.
The moment they came outside, they saw countless fireballs flying toward the Steel Fortress.
Fireballs as large as houses hurtled in at terrifying speed and continuously crashed into the fortress.
Boom! Boom!
But the fireballs failed to inflict damage on the Steel Fortress.
The barrier was doing its job perfectly.
However, the fortress’s barrier was not an all-powerful shield.
It could block magical attacks, but it was absurdly weak against physical attacks.
That could not be helped.
Even if they established a barrier effective against physical attacks, it still would not surpass the Steel Fortress’s own defensive power.
Fwoooosh!
Even though they had clearly seen that the magical attacks were ineffective, the fireballs kept coming.
“Are they trying to destroy the barrier through sheer numbers?”
Even a barrier had limits to its durability.
Once impact beyond its limit accumulated, no matter how strong the barrier was, it would inevitably shatter.
The magic-type awakened, having grasped the enemy’s intentions, stepped forward.
“Intercept all magic.”
“Ignore the smaller ones and deal with the big ones first.”
The magic-type awakened immediately began launching spells.
Shushushushu!
The sight of countless spells shooting up from the Steel Fortress was truly spectacular.
Boom boom boom!
The magic launched from El Harun and the magic fired from the Steel Fortress collided midair and exploded.
It was as dazzling as thousands upon thousands of fireworks exploding at once across the sky.
But the aftermath was anything but light.
Rumble!
The Steel Fortress, surrounded by thick sandstone, shook as if an earthquake had struck.
The martial-type awakened shouted,
“They’ll charge in soon. Everyone, prepare yourselves.”
“Everyone on the front line, make sure you’ve got your potions.”
“Fuck! We’ve got the Saintess with us. There aren’t any bastards here afraid of getting hurt, right?”
The moment someone mentioned the Saintess, many awakened’s eyes changed.
They were awakened whose lives had been saved by Remura.
Among them was even someone who had suffered fatal injuries and stood at death’s doorstep.
He shouted,
“For the Saintess…!”
It had been half a joke.
But the aftermath was no joke at all.
“For the Saintess…!”
“I’ll fight for the Saintess too.”
A few awakened repeated his words, and before long, it spread among many others like an epidemic.
“A battle for the Saintess. Yeah! This is a holy war.”
“Ooooh! A holy war!”
“Fight! For the Saintess…!”
“Uoooooh!”
The awakened’s voices rang throughout the Steel Fortress.
Of course, they did not truly mean it was a holy war, nor that they were literally fighting for Remura.
They simply needed some kind of trigger or phrase to bolster their courage, and Remura, with her absurd abilities, happened to become that symbol.
Naturally, Remura herself was horrified when she heard the cries from outside.
Rumble rumble!
In the distance, clouds of dust rose into the air.
The other races were charging in again with magical beasts leading the way.
“Let’s go!”
“Uwaaaah!”
The martial-type awakened kicked off from the Steel Fortress with loud battle cries.
Levin also climbed to the top of the Steel Fortress together with the awakened from the West District.
Boom boom boom!
Brilliant explosions were still erupting in the skies above the fortress.
The enemy’s magical bombardment was continuing even now.
And most of the spells were being intercepted by the magic-type awakened.
Levin shouted,
“Everyone get ready. Once the magical bombardment ends, the flying magical beasts will attack again just like yesterday.”
“Don’t worry. We’re already fully prepared.”
The mechanized awakened of the West District had spent the entire night replacing or repairing their parts, keeping themselves in perfect condition.
At their confident response, Levin nodded and said,
“Then shall we begin our holy war too?”
“Uahaha! Holy war sounds good.”
“Khehehe!”
The mechanized awakened burst into laughter at Levin’s joke.
After merging with machines, their expressions had become nearly impossible to read.
That was why many said they had even lost human emotions.
But they were still human.
They had only given up most of their human bodies to become stronger—their minds had not become machines too.
Still, because their faces showed so little emotion, the insult they heard most often was that even their brains had become mechanical.
But after fighting through fierce battles alongside Levin, a deep comradeship had formed.
Thanks to that, they could honestly express their emotions.
—Kieeeek!
—Kraaah!
At that moment, the cries of magical beasts echoed from afar.
The flying magical beasts had appeared.
Ratatatatat!
The mechanized awakened opened fire all at once.
An overwhelming barrage of bullets exploded against the bodies of the flying magical beasts.
Low-level magical beasts like Blade Warship Birds were annihilated by the gunfire.
But even while watching the magical beasts rain down from the sky like falling rain, Levin did not relax.
The low-level magical beasts were merely the vanguard.
The true fighting force had yet to appear.
Kwaaaaah!
At that moment, accompanied by a tremendous roar, a gigantic flying magical beast appeared.
It was an unusually massive Black Wyvern.
A colossal magical beast with wings spread wider than twenty meters.
Countless wyverns followed behind it.
And atop the wyverns’ backs, small shadows could be seen.
Members of the other races were riding on the wyverns.
Boom boom boom!
They unleashed magic toward the mechanized awakened.
“So now the real battle begins.”
Levin hurled himself toward the gigantic Black Wyvern flying at the front.
Riding on the Black Wyvern’s back was Raune, leader of the Ashil race, known as the descendants of fairies.