Chapter 724

One minute ago...

“Let’s go, owner punk!

Kyuuu!”

Hamchi was perched on Siegfried’s shoulder as they zipped through the air like an arrow.

Shwooooong!

The Black Crow Wingsuit was operating at maximum power. It was devouring Siegfried’s mana like an insatiable beast, but it allowed him to fly at astonishing speeds.

Perhaps it was a stroke of luck, but the wind was coming from his back, allowing him to fly even faster. Flying right behind him were the elite knights of Elondel, the Firebirds of the Guardians, and the new fighter planes of the Proatine Kingdom led by Cork.

“Enemy fleet spotted ahead!” Siegfried shouted as he pointed into the distance.

The Iron Fleet of the Zavalan Kingdom was flying imposingly right at the border.

“Everyone! Spread out!”

The allied air forces scattered wide at Siegfried’s command, making it harder for the Iron Fleet’s cannons to focus fire them.

Meanwhile, the Iron Fleet’s radar detected Siegfried’s forces, and its cannons swiveled, locking onto them.

Whiiiing...!

“The enemy cannons have locked onto us! Full speed ahead!” Siegfried shouted, pushing himself even harder.

The g-force pressing down on him was brutal, but he gnashed his teeth and endured, waiting for the cannons to turn completely.

‘Just a bit more! Here it comes!’

Before the cannons could spit fire and begin their salvo...

“All units, dive!” Siegfried yelled.

The allied air forces plummeted in unison at his signal.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The Iron Fleet unleashed hundreds of shells and ammunition immediately afterward.

‘

Gotcha!’

Siegfried exclaimed inwardly as his eyes gleamed, realizing that their plan had worked.

They managed to dodge the first salvo unharmed. The key to this mission was avoiding the Iron Fleet’s first salvo, as the larger the warship, the slower it maneuvered, making its most vulnerable spots wide open.

Siegfried and his allies had successfully exploited the Iron Fleet’s weakness.

“All units! ATTACK!” Siegfried screamed, giving the order to strike as soon as they positioned themselves into the Iron Fleet’s blind spots.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The Knights of Elondel, the Guardian’s Firebirds, and the Proatine Kingdom’s new fighter planes unleashed a furious assault on the Iron Fleet.

“Hamchi!”

“

Kyuuu!

Leave it to me, owner punk!”

“Three! Two! One!”

“

Kyuuuuuu!”

Hamchi opened his mouth wide and fired a laser beam directly at the flagship of the fleet.

Siegfried wasn't just giving out commands and sitting idly by. He thrust his hips out and unleashed a powerful energy beam using the Great Champion’s Belt. He concealed the yellow beam right behind Hamchi’s attack.

The two laser beams merged into one and struck the flagship.

Zzzzzzaaap!

Their combined beams relentlessly heated the flagship’s armor until it shone red.

‘

Now!’

Siegfried hurled his +13 Vanquisher’s Grasp at the red-hot armor.

Shwiiiiik!

The +13 Vanquisher’s Grasp shot through the air, smashing into the weakened armor with devastating force.

Baaaam!

The armor shattered, creating a gaping hole in the flagship’s hull that left its interior wide exposed.

“Let’s go!”

“

Kyu!”

Siegfried and Hamchi flew straight into the heart of the flagship through the hole.

“Intruders!”

“Kill them!”

“Enemy onboard!”

The crew of the Iron Fleet charged at Siegfried and Hamchi, but it was already too late.

Bam! Pukeok!

Siegfried crushed the skulls of every crew member who dared to come at him with his +13 Vanquisher’s Grasp.

More and more crew members rushed at him, but he released Eraser Swarm, sending radioactive energy throughout the ship.

Ssseuuuu...!

“

Ugh!”

“Argh!”

“Gaaah!”

The crew members collapsed one by one as they succumbed to the unexpected wave of radioactive energy.

“Let’s go!”

“

Kyu!”

As the radioactive energy spread throughout the vessel, Siegfried and Hamchi ventured deeper into the ship. Their destination was where they expected the commander of the ship would be.

***

“W-What in the world?!”

The commander of the Iron Fleet, Admiral Ferdinand, was thrown into confusion by the sudden turn of events.

A fierce aerial battle was raging right before his eyes.

“

Neiiigh!”

“Neiiiiiigh!”

“Huff!”

The Knights of Elondel mounted on their Pegasus were mercilessly slaughtering the Wyvern Riders escorting the Iron Fleet.

But that was not all...

Boom! Boom!

The small fighter planes of the allied forces bombarded the other warships. The armor covering their hulls was breached, allowing the allied soldiers to pour into them.

Even worse...

“

Argh!”

“Warship Four is going down!”

The fourth ship of the Iron Fleet was falling from the sky.

“W-What...? What is this...?” Admiral Ferdinand muttered. He was so shocked by what he was witnessing that his mental state seemed to collapse.

This was something beyond his wildest imagination. He couldn't imagine, even in his wildest dreams, that the pride of the Zavala Kingdom, the Iron Fleet, would end up being on the losing end of a war.

To make matters worse, the entire fleet would be annihilated at this rate.

“Order all ships to attempt emergency landings at once! Regroup with our ground forces—”

Baaam!

The door to the bridge was shattered into pieces.

A young man and a giant hamster walked into the bridge.

“Stop them!”

“Kill them!”

The crew inside the bridge tried to block the duo, but it was to no avail.

Thud, thud, thud!

They fell one after another.

“Hey, you’re Admiral Ferdinand, the commander of the Iron Fleet, right?” the young man asked.

“Siegfried van Proa...!” Admiral Ferdinand growled after immediately recognizing the young man.

“I suggest you surrender. The battle is already over,” Siegfried said calmly.

“...”

“Steer your fleet back to your homeland. I’ll spare you if you—”

It was then.

Creak!

Admiral Ferdinand pulled a lever hidden behind him.

Beep! Beep! Beep!

An alarm blared throughout the entire ship, followed by a voiceover announcement.

— Warning! Warning!

— Self-destruct sequence has been initiated!

— All crew members are advised to evacuate immediately!

— Fifty-nine seconds remaining before self-destruction!

— Fifty-eight seconds...

— Fifty-seven seconds...

Siegfried stared at Admiral Ferdinand in confusion at his decision to self-destruct.

“

Hahaha!

Did you honestly think a general of the Great Zavala Kingdom would surrender to you, a mere Adventurer?! Think again! I, and my mighty Iron Fleet, would never surrender to the likes of you! Long live the Great Zavala Kingdom! Long live His Majesty the—!”

Before Admiral Ferdinand could even finish his words.

Pukeok!

Siegfried swung his +13 Vanquisher’s Grasp and smashed his head open, silencing him forever.

“Let’s go, Hamchi.”

“

Kyuuu!”

Siegfried grabbed Hamchi by the scruff of his neck. He smashed through a nearby window and escaped from the flagship barely moments before it self-destructed. He looked around and found his allies evacuating from the other ships upon hearing the alarm.

“Father!” Siegfried shouted, pushing his Black Crow Wingsuit and accelerating to his maximum speed away from the flagship.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Boom! Boom! Boom! Kaboom!

All eight ships of the Iron Fleet exploded one after the other.

“W-Whooooa!

W-What the?!”

Siegfried was hit by the shockwaves from the explosions, and he spiraled down from mid-air and crash-landed in an unfamiliar forest.

“

Ughh...”

“Are you alright, owner punk?!

Kyuuu!”

“Hey, can you move over before asking that?”

Hamchi was sitting comfortably on top of Siegfried as if he was a cushion. Siegfried pushed him to the side and looked up at the sky above them.

Whoosh...!

Siegfried's eyes widened upon seeing the Iron Fleet's debris falling toward the forest.

In other words, the debris was coming down straight for them.

“

Erm...

Hamchi?”

“

Kyu?”

“I think... we have to run...”

“

Kyu?

What did you say?”

“I said... RUUUN!” Siegfried cried out, pointing at the sky and hurrying up to his feet.

Hamchi looked at the sky and jumped in fright, “

K-Kyuuuuu?!”

The two of them ended up running with all of their might in a desperate bid to avoid the falling wreckage.

‘

Ughhh! Why do shit like this happen every time I’m on an airship?! It always ends badly!’

Siegfried cursed inwardly. He had no other choice but to admit that he and airships didn't get along very well for some odd reason.

***

Meanwhile, the army of the Bayerische Kingdom began their march northward. They were determined to reclaim the territories that they had lost, and their morale could only be described as terrifying.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The footsteps of the soldiers boomed in the air and shook the ground. Each and every one of them had cold, hardened faces as if carved from stone, and their eyes were glinting with murderous intent.

The army had one hundred and fifty thousand strong men. Even the aggressive monsters inhabiting the land fled in terror upon sensing the oppressive air of the massive marching army.

This was the wrath of the Bayerische Kingdom.

Just a few days earlier, news of King Longines the Third and the kingdom’s top officials being assassinated by Siegfried van Proa during the peace negotiations spread like wildfire.

The populace seethed with rage, and they rushed to enlist in droves, driven by anger.

They were united with one goal in mind—attack the Proatine Kingdom.

The Proatine Kingdom’s forces were stretched thin due to the Zavala Kingdom’s invasion on their northern front, so their southern front was completely vulnerable.

In other words, they had no need for caution, as all they had to do was smash their forces against the walls of the Proatine Kingdom’s fortresses—no, the Bayerische Kingdom’s former fortresses and take back what was once theirs.

After arriving just outside the lands, the Bayerische Forces regrouped and camped to prepare for their final assault. This was a wise move, as the men were exhausted from marching nonstop for the past two days, and they were already on their limits.

“We will commence an all-out attack tomorrow morning, so make sure the men are rested and prepared,” King Deville said.

The death of King Longines the Third caused the crown prince, Prince Deville, to ascend to the throne. With most of the high-ranking officials gone, he placed his trust in one of his most trusted retainers, Duke Stolk.

King Deville dismissed the other officers and was now left all alone with Duke Stolk.

“Congratulations, sire! Who knew you would ascend the throne so soon?”

“Indeed, even I didn’t expect it. I thought my father would live another thirty years at least. I mean, with his temperament, he would never have stepped down until the day he died. So I guess it’s a blessing in disguise in a way?”

“Fortune has truly been on Your Majesty’s side.”

“Perhaps I should thank King Siegfried van Proa for this? He did save me a great deal of trouble, right?” King Deville said with a chuckle. Then, he grinned and added, “To think that I nearly lost my kingdom to that pathetic kingdom and was almost dragged over there as a hostage...”

Even if Siegfried hadn't caused that uproar, King Deville was prepared to raise a rebellion and overthrow his father, King Longines the Third.

“Fate has smiled upon you, sire. The Proatine Kingdom will soon be under your rule, and you will soon reclaim the Bavarian Workshop! May you reign for an eternity, sire!”

“That’s exactly what I intend to do. And I trust you’ll continue to support me.”

“It will be my and my household’s greatest honor, Your Majesty.”

King Deville waved and dismissed the duke. He wanted some alone time to rest, so the soldiers quickly set up a makeshift bath, filled it with warm water, and left to give him some privacy.

He soaked into the tub and relaxed before calling for one of the servant girls to wash him.

“

Mmm...

” King Deville let out a contented moan as the servant girl’s soft hands massaged his neck and shoulders. Then, he asked, “What’s your name, girl?”

“It is Francoise, Your Majesty.”

“That’s a beautiful name.”

“I am deeply honored, sire.”

“But the rest of my body is rather sore. Could you massage me a bit lower?”

“With all my heart, Your Majesty.”

“

Mmm... Ah,

yes, that’s good... A bit lower... Oh yeah...

Mmm...!

”

King Deville closed his eyes and moaned, enjoying the massage. Thirty minutes later, he suddenly changed his mind.

‘Hmm... No, this won’t do,’

he thought. He opened his eyes and looked at the servant girl with eyes full of lust, intending to take her right there and then.

Before he could do anything, a grotesque noise echoed.

Shwik!

“...!” He felt a cold and painful sensation on his neck. Then, his eyes shot wide open in disbelief.