Chapter 262 |
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[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]
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Control Tower
The heart of the academy, known as the Control Tower, is a facility that supplies magic to the numerous magical devices and infrastructure owned by Rosenstark.
Consequently, the tower boasts the most stringent security of all the academy buildings, with a structure so complex it is nearly impenetrable.
For security reasons, the entrance is located solely at the front.
Once past the entrance, guarded by numerous troops and artifacts, visitors are greeted by interconnected polygonal spaces resembling an ant nest.
These include control rooms managing various academy facilities, security offices, storage rooms, administrative offices, communication rooms, and accommodations and rest facilities for staff.
‘…Infamously complex structure.’
Newcomers unfamiliar with the layout often found themselves lost all day.
However, during this invasion, the children managed to barely hold off the relentless onslaught of undead thanks to the tower’s labyrinthine structure.
The children were as much in the dark about the tower’s layout as anyone else, but…
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As of this moment, Rosenstark’s secret, the ‘Astera Vision,’ is fully accessible to individuals recorded in the artifact, ‘Iris of Laplace.’
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Would you like to view the overview of the Astera Vision?”
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The moment they broke through the encirclement and entered the tower, a strange magic enveloped them.
The entire field of vision turned blue with a loud vibration.
What appeared was a map of the entire Control Tower, with blue and red dots blinking intermittently.
Astera Vision is one of Rosenstark’s mysteries, created for the purpose of ensuring the safety of internal personnel and guarding against external intrusions and sabotage.
By precisely analyzing the reflected patterns of magic waves sent out, it detects targets.
It is a ‘mystery’ that allows for real-time identification of the positions of allies and enemies.
The children utilized this to its fullest extent.
“Damn, they’re diverting to another route! Lead them this way!”
“Luke!”
At the sound of his name, Luke snapped his head up.
At the edge of his dust-clouded vision, Evergreen was running, luring the undead towards a straight corridor.
“Now!”
Swoosh—!
Luke’s magic cut through the waist of the undead rushing down the corridor.
Immediately after, Gerald’s spear tip exploded with magic, pulverizing the staggering undead.
“Nice work, Evergreen! Perfectly lured them in!”
The undead, fundamentally mindless corpses, were inevitably drawn to the sight of living humans, despite Yol’s strong control over them.
Therefore, the children desperately tried to draw the undead away from the ‘Ark Room.’
Luke looked at the rear corridor and the ‘Astera Vision’ with sinking eyes.
“We’re gradually getting pushed back. It’s almost the Ark Room.”
The Ark Room, one of the deepest chambers in the tower, housed the large-scale magic stone melting furnace known as the ‘Ark.’
It was also where the Astera Vision was hidden.
‘We have to protect it at all costs.’
The tower staff were currently melting all reserved magic stones there and sending them to control rooms in various facilities.
If the defense line were pushed back to the Ark Room, it would practically mean the fall of Rosenstark.
‘…How much longer can we hold out?’
It had been over two exhausting hours of ceaseless maneuvering within the tower.
His friends had fought valiantly, but even they had their limits.
Some had already…
Luke clenched his fists tightly, grinding his teeth.
If he showed any sign of wavering, it would only further unsettle the others.
What was needed now was hope.
“…Everyone!”
The boy’s face, now looking up again, was as steadfast as ever.
The children looked at Luke with trusting eyes, waiting for his next words.
“You’re doing great! The enemy’s main force is concentrated on the tower right now, just hold on a little longer, and everyone outside will come to help us!”
…It was merely a hopeful statement.
In truth, Luke had no idea about the situation outside.
He could only hope things were getting under control as he said.
Otherwise, perhaps the entire Rosenstark had already been swept away, leaving only those in the tower holding out.
Yet, despite all this fear and anxiety, Luke had no choice but to lie with unwavering confidence.
“Just a bit longer, a bit longer…”
Just as Luke was about to continue his encouragement, a thunderous explosion rocked the tower.
He broke off mid-sentence and dashed to a window overlooking the outside.
‘Could it be…?’
Amid the swarm of undead, a swirl of blue energy was forming.
Thunderous chants and shouts followed.
“They’re still resisting inside the tower!”
“Concentrate all firepower!”
“Break through!”
Boom—!
Fireballs, lightning, ice storms, and earthquakes shattered the siege outside the tower.
Beside him, Gerald, with a cracked voice, stared at the person standing at the forefront of the mages.
“…Ban. That crazy guy.”
It was Ban.
He had rallied the students, who now fought like a shield around the mages, battling the undead.
Thanks to them, the professors and students from the Department of Mysticism were unleashing their magic without restraint.
In large-scale battles like this, it is usually the mages who shine more than the warriors.
The number of undead was rapidly dwindling.
Seeing this, Luke felt hope for the first time.
“Just a bit longer….”
It was then that Evergreen, standing beside him, tilted her head.
Her eyesight, far superior to that of the others, allowed her to notice something they could not.
“But what is that?”
* * *
“Break through!”
“We must reclaim the tower first!”
“Push forward!”
Ban stood at the front, swinging his sword relentlessly.
A densely packed wave of detection magic spread in all directions.
As a result, the undead’s teeth and claws couldn’t even touch the boy.
As Ban repelled all attacks and pushed back the undead lines, the other students gained courage and followed closely behind him.
‘Faster! Stronger!’
Despite fighting continuously, his body was strangely full of energy.
It was because he knew he absolutely couldn’t fall.
His father was facing the most dangerous enemy.
His friends were fighting in the most perilous places.
Ban charged forward madly.
They had broken through half of the encirclement, and the only entrance leading into the tower came into his peripheral vision.
It was then that Ban’s steps halted for the first time.
Having charged so fiercely, there were no enemies around him.
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[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]
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However, he instinctively raised his sword and took a defensive stance.
…Clomp.
…Clomp.
Amidst the battlefield filled with shouts and clashing metal, the sound of those footsteps was distinctly clear.
It wasn’t just Ban who noticed.
The children holding the front lines turned their heads as well.
“…What’s that?”
“What are those?”
The undead, which had been recklessly charging, parted to the sides, clearing a path.
A dense black mist spread across the ground.
Beyond it, two silhouettes holding swords appeared.
‘Human-shaped undead?’
Their movements were different.
The other undead moved fluidly, but these figures were stiff, as if resisting Yol’s magic with their very souls.
Their jaws hung open, a low groan escaping.
The sound grew louder, eventually echoing across the entire battlefield.
Finally, Ban recognized them.
‘…The Twin Swordsmen.’
Sweat trickled down his hand gripping the sword hilt.
The Twin Swordsmen.
They were the most notorious undead of the 1st Legion.
‘They were members of the Dawn Knights.’
They were also senior warriors.
They had admired the hero’s cause and willingly joined the Dawn Knights, but died to Yol’s sword on a dangerous battlefield.
The problem was, they had been such outstanding swordsmen that, excluding the hero, they had no equals.
‘They’re on a different level from the other undead.’
Ban hadn’t even managed to voice a warning when it happened.
“What are you hesitating for! They’re just two of them! Form a siege and charge!”
Some of the front-liners, riding high on their momentum, rushed at the twins.
Swish—!
The Twin Swordsmen’s scimitars traced arcs in the air.
Three of the attackers were cut down at the waist in a single motion.
If Ban hadn’t intervened, the remaining two would have met the same fate.
Covered in their friends’ blood, the students froze like statues.
“…Insane.”
Shock and fear swept through their ranks.
However, the Twin Swordsmen seemed indifferent, one slowly walking forward while the other turned and headed towards the tower.
Ban quickly regained his senses.
“…No.”
He couldn’t let such monsters reach his friends.
Without a second thought, Ban charged.
But….
Clang—!
The other one blocked his path.
The scimitar’s strange trajectory made it difficult for even Ban to counter quickly.
‘Damn it, I can’t be stuck here.’
But the Twin Swordsman seemed to consider Ban as his sole opponent, refusing to let him pass.
Clang—!
As Ban continued the fierce exchange of blows,
“…Unbelievable.”
To make matters worse, another horde of undead appeared behind their lines.
Now, they had to split their forces to protect the mages.
“Argh!”
Whether due to a particularly powerful undead among them, several mages were torn to shreds and sent flying as their barriers shattered.
The once-rising momentum was broken.
“We’re being surrounded!”
“We need to break through the front!”
“Can’t you see that monster ahead?”
On the blood-soaked ground, people retreated helplessly.
Only then did they notice the bodies of their fallen comrades scattered on the ground.
Their eyes shook uncontrollably, and some of the more faint-hearted ones were already mentally retreating from the battle.
“Maintain formation!”
Ban, having barely shaken off the Twin Swordsman, retreated and raised his voice, but it was to no avail.
A faint voice came from beside him.
“Oh, God.”
Ban looked incredulously at his comrade, who was kneeling and praying.
What kind of god was there in this era?
If he had the hands to pray, he should be swinging a sword instead.
Just as he roughly grabbed his comrade by the collar to pull him up, Ban himself couldn’t help but loosen his grip and look to the sky.
The night sky, filled with darkness and an eerie stillness, now had a single ray of light shining through.
It wasn’t time for the sun to rise, yet the light was as bright and warm as a winter dawn.
Everyone on the battlefield, including the undead, looked up at the light.
The undead raised their decayed hands towards the sky as if trying to grasp the light.
Swaaaa—!
The light grew brighter and something descended from the boundary between light and darkness.
Boom!
Amidst the undead turning to ash, a man stood tall.
His face was familiar and nostalgic, yet the emotions Ban felt for the first time shook his heart—reverence and admiration.
Ban looked at the figure with trembling eyes.
Divine power, believed to be nonexistent in this era, shimmered like feathers on the man’s broad back.
A book from the First Age that Ban had read long ago came to mind at that moment.
“…Champion.”
The sword, enveloped in white radiance, was swung as a beacon of hope.
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[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]
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