Chapter 171: The Holy Land War (1)

Some compared the sight of soldiers falling in battle to that of falling flower petals. I was certain that the people who used that description had never been in the middle of a battlefield.

“Push at the gate! Push them back!”

Krrrrrr, krrr!

Heads went flying. Right next to me, someone with a huge ax crushed a soldier in armor. Flesh tore apart and the metal armor cracked. On the battlefield, the boiling fighting spirit was omnipresent, like bubbles rising on the surface of hot swamp water.

“Wait, what’s going on?” the Black Witch asked, confused. She wasn’t flustered by the horrors of the battle. She simply didn’t expect to be teleported in the middle of a battlefield. “Princess, how did this happen...? Wait, she’s not here. Has anyone seen a quest window pop up?”

“Not me.”

“I haven’t seen anything.”

The Black Witch clicked her tongue. “That’s harsh. Does she want us to figure out what to do on our own? Although the Indoor Librarian was strange, he was a kind Constellation...

Phew.

Everyone, let’s fly up and check the battle status that way. That will give us some ideas at least.”

The Black Witch put her foot forward, but she couldn’t fly. Her brow furrowed. “

Huh

? What? I can’t fly.”

She was right. We were able to fly freely up to the thirty-first and thirty-second floors, as well as observe beyond the horizon. It was as if we transcended everything.

I understood the hidden meaning behind what was going on.

It’s really on now. Actually, this is better. If a Hunter becomes too comfortable with their Skill or any other ability, their senses become dull. Besides, even if the worst happens, I can turn back time.

I looked around. My colleagues and I were non-existent to the people on the battlefield, so flying heads and bursts of blood passed right through us. It wasn’t a pleasant experience to have someone’s organs passing through me.

However, if I just focused, it was easy to observe the situation around me.

“This isn’t a battle between two species. There are many. Purens, Sylvans, Skians... It’s a multi-species alliance. Although at first glance it seemed that they were fighting each other, they’re on the same side. Each species has a role. Purens form barriers as infantry soldiers. While Sylvans play the role of archers, Skians form the cavalry.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Bloodborns are flying in the air.

Hmm.

I can’t see the Fingills, but it looks like all the species that were slaves in Slimepolis have formed an alliance.”

“Then the enemy is...”

I nodded. “Yes. Shellmounts, most likely.”

The allied forces let out battle cries and went backward little by little in their formation. The soldiers were surrounding us, so it was difficult to see how the battle was progressing, but I could feel a change in the air.

“That’s pretty much it. If we stay here, we won’t be able to do anything except become buddies with the corpses,” the Black Witch said, taking my hand in hers. “I’ll do some reconnaissance with the Death King. If we all scatter, it’ll be difficult to meet up again, so you guys wait here. Are you okay with that, Death King?”

I realized what the Black Witch was trying to do. She was trying to scout the battlefield using her

Teleportation

, which could be used to teleport not only herself but also other people, but she always had to ask for the consent from whoever was teleporting with her.

“Yes, I’m okay with it.”

“Good.” The Black Witch released her black aura and grabbed my wrist. “

Teleportation

!”

The next moment, we were in the air. When we looked down at the ground, we spotted thousands of soldiers swarming around like insects. When gravity tried to pull us down, the Black Witch used her Skill once again. For a brief moment, we stopped falling.

“Are you going to use

Teleportation

to stay in the air every time we’re about to fall?”

“I can’t fly, so what else can I do?

Teleportation.

What I realized after a long experience as a Hunter,

Teleportation,

is that the more you weasel your Skill, the more convenient it becomes.

Teleportation.

”

“Wow, this is really not cool...”

“Being cool doesn’t put food on your plate.

Teleportation.

I’m busy using my Skill, so you take a look at the ground.”

“Understood.”

We used a cheat to achieve Aerial Step and carefully grasp the situation. A strange sense of deja vu struck me. “Oh, the terrain seems familiar... ”

“Yeah, I also find it familiar for some reason.”

“This is no random battle. It’s a siege.”

As we expected, the allied forces were fighting the Shellmounts, who were camping at the entrance to a huge cave, which seemed to be the only wall and gate.

“Isn’t that Slimepolis?”

A city steeped with the history of the slaves’ exodus was under attack by the species who had escaped slavery.

***

Every one of us collected information before sharing it with the group.

“They say it has become a holy land,” the Sword Star said. “I heard soldiers chatting back and forth in the Puren barracks, saying they’ll definitely recapture the holy land in this military expedition. Judging from how they’re calling it

this

expedition, it doesn’t seem like this is the first time Slimepolis has been attacked.”

The Viper raised his hand. “

Ah

, that’s what I heard too. This is supposedly their sixth attempt. I’m guessing allied forces were formed several times over hundreds of years to pressure the Slime Empire. Apparently, the entire empire has already been destroyed, and Slimepolis is the last stronghold.”

The Black Witch pressed a palm on her forehead, looking like she was very fed up with what was going on. “Holy land... That is another troublesome term. If I had to choose the three words I hate most in the world, I would choose terrorism, sanctuary, and cult.

Ah...

In the early days of the Tower, all kinds of cult followers flocked in saying ‘This is the true holy land!’, ‘This is the new Babel Tower that God gave us permission to build!’”

“Oh, yeah. I remember them. They were from the Neo-Babylon Church,” the Paladin chimed in, crossing her arms. “Actually, they were nothing in comparison to some other freaks. I remember some weird followers yelling, ‘This is R’lyeh!’”

I tilted my head. “R’lyeh? What is that?”

“I don’t know the details. It’s a city that appears in a novel[1], and is said to have sunk in the deep sea.”

“The Tower isn’t in the deep sea, is it?”

The Tower was both everywhere and nowhere. The building seen from the outside world was close to a mirage. No matter where someone stood and looked from, they could see the Tower’s shadow on the horizon, as if the Tower was tempting people to approach.

The Paladin shrugged. “Those freaks confuse fiction for reality. Don’t expect them to think normally. For your information, some of them are still working in the Pantheon.”

“Is that okay? They’re lunatics.”

“You have to understand why we continue to entrust the Pantheon to the Inquisitor, Death King. Lunatics can only be controlled by people who are crazier than them.”

“I see...”

The Pantheon was more of a pandemonium than I thought.

The Black Witch sighed and looked around. “It would be best to leave this kind of matter to the Inquisitor... Unfortunately, he’s eliminated now. He’s really useful, but he’s never around when I need him.”

The battlefield, which had been fierce during the day, was quiet now that sunset was on the horizon, just as the early summer air slowly cooled at night. Soldiers of the multi-species alliance were cooking dinner now.

“Out of everything it could have been, it had to be a holy land...”

“It’s natural that Slimepolis is considered a holy land,” I said. “It’s where the seven species’ guardian gods descended. It would make no sense if these guys didn’t consider it holy to all the species.”

The Sword Star nodded. “Shellmounts are trying to protect it while the other species are trying to recapture it.”

“On top of that, it’s the last remaining city in the empire... Neither side will back down easily.”

The multi-species allied forces had a history of being oppressed as the Shellmount’s slaves. Their faith, resentment, and politics were now mixed together. This wasn’t something that would be solved easily.

The Black Witch groaned. “

Ugh.

That’s strange. I was afraid this would happen, so I told the Bloodborn over and over before clearing the last stage that there is no such thing as a god in this world, and even if there is one, that isn’t me. Could my teachings have been lost over time...?”

I was intrigued by the Black Witch’s claim. “

Oh

, I did that too. What did you spend your points on, Black Dragon Master?”

“Species Evolution.”

Huh? I thought the Black Witch would hoard her points.

“You made a very big investment. I’m surprised.”

The Black Witch looked at me and sighed, “I overheard what item you wanted to choose.”

“What?”

“I took note of your choice. I don’t know much about the item itself, but you were the one who chose it. I thought it would be a really good item, so I chose the same thing as you.”

“

Eh

? You copied my strategy?”

“Be quiet. What’s wrong with taking notes on a successful Hunter’s choice?”

“Wow, so shameless... Bloodborns are intelligent bats. I’m a bit curious about how they’ll change after their evolution.”

“I don’t know. Maybe they’ll become vampires?”

“

Sssh.

” The Paladin raised her hand and pointed to one side of the military camp. “I hear something.”

We immediately fell silent. Just like the Paladin said, a commotion occurred in the allied forces’ camp. The soldiers who had been eating dinner until now suddenly hurried off somewhere as soon as they devoured their naans.

“Let’s see what they’re up to.”

We clung to the Black Witch and teleported away.

“I feel like a mother pig... It’s unpleasant,” the Black Witch grumbled.

But this was the fastest method to get to the commotion. Hundreds of soldiers were lined up at the military camp entrance. The guests were warriors of a species that wasn’t Fingill, Bloodborn, Puren, Skian, or Sylvan.

A Puren captain said, “Warriors of mud, what brings you here? This is the camp of the allied forces who formed a sacred covenant to settle an old grudge. Do not invade while holding weapons.”

Terras looked around the camp as they rode their lions. The leader of the warriors bowed slightly. “

Ugor.

Rest assured, our swords have not yet been turned on you. I am Gerkesa, the Seventy-Third Great Warrior of the Fire Water Council and chief vanguard of this expeditionary force. My distant ancestors mined rock salt in Slimepolis.”

“Is this an expeditionary force? Didn’t your people declare that they wouldn’t participate in this war?”

“We only stated that we’ll not join your expedition,” Gerkesa said calmly. “The council resolved to participate in this war, albeit belatedly.”

“What? You’ll join us?”

“

Ugor.

As one of the nobles representing the council, I have come to inform you of this decision. We, Terras, have no intention of ambushing or betraying you.”

It indeed felt like six hundred years had passed.

Their way of speaking has become very quaint.

Until the previous stage, Terras had the distinctive tendency to say “

Goruk

” at the end of every sentence. However, there was no trace of it in the leader warrior’s words. It was now more well-rounded. “

Gor

”

had become “

Ugor.”

—I don’t think their way of speaking matters right now...

Those guys became hella big!

The Guardian was right. The Terras, whose average size was at the level of a dwarf, were nearly double in size.

Species Evolution has been applied properly.

They were bigger than humans but smaller than orcs.

Krrrrrr.

The Terra warriors were even riding lions as big as them. One of the lions sniffed and glared at the Puren captain, who got startled and took a step back.

Gerkesa patted the lion’s mane. “He doesn’t bite. He’s a good friend. Don’t worry.”

“What do you mean when you say you’ll participate in the war? You won’t participate in our expeditionary force but will intervene in the war? Doesn’t that mean you’re going to take the Shellmount’s side? Be clear. Are you a messenger who has come to deliver Terra’s declaration of war?”

“I swear on the name of Kekerukker and Gorke that I am not.”

I would understand why he was mentioning Kekerukker, but Gorke...?

The kid made it big in the end, huh?

“We only joined the war to prevent sins from being committed in the name of gods,” Gerkesa continued.

“Sins...? What sins?”

“You heard me right. You’re in the wrong here. The guardian gods never wanted us to destroy the Shellmounts. When we tried to take revenge on the Shellmounts during the era of exodus, the guardian gods turned away. Their message couldn’t have been clearer.”

Gerkesa bared his fangs.

“Continuing the war is neither honorable nor sacred. Just as it was cruel for Shellmounts to whip us, it’s also cruel to take away Shellmounts’ final sanctuary.”

“What...?”

“I’m saying that you had enough with your revenge, bearer of the same chains,” Gerkesa the Great Warrior of Terra said. “Stop this fight. We are here to end this long war.”

1. the H. P. Lovecraft short story ☜