Steel and Mana

Chapter 205 – Spiders (3)

"If we survive this... I am going to kick your butt, Son!"

"Dad, if we do, then I am going to stick it out for you to have a clear shot at it!"

When I answered, I wasn't joking. The situation was dire, and we were close to being overrun. Right at the moment, even the Princess was equipped with flamethrower weapons instead of spears while the soldiers had retreated back to the castle and onto its walls, leaving the snow-covered valley of the Pass entirely. I don't know how many soldiers we have lost so far... Still, I knew that there were casualties amongst our elite forces, too, including two howitzers that were now nothing but craters in the ground after stuffing them with CC and setting them to blow up as we retreated.

Sometimes, I need to learn to shut the fuck up and not jinx ourselves...

The current spiral started two days ago. There came two of the same nasty fuckers, just as before. We acted the same way, letting them get closer before bombarding the bastards and mopping up the rest. We even did rotations, giving soldiers enough opportunity to gain fighting experience. The problem started arising when another two appeared only a few hours later. Then, two more... and two more four hours later.

As for the current moment? I lost count and didn't sleep for the past 48 hours... I think. I was mostly stuck in the Princess, fighting and trying to eliminate the constantly arriving spiderfucking bastards. The whole Pass was filled with their dead bodies, even with the Lion and the Princess standing before the castle's walls; there were so many little headcrabs that they were skittering past our legs, climbing up the walls, trying to get through. Even if we burned a hundred at every minute, two dozen still got through. Luckily, they were indeed brainless because even if they tried to attack the mechs, they never figured out where to bite, so they never went for the critical parts that made them work.

The howitzers that survived, those we managed to drive back behind the walls, were constantly firing, just like the cannons on the walls, making the latest, massive one finally fall over, releasing its miniature versions from its insides. The difficulty of killing it didn't come from just because it was bigger than the previous ones but because the latest variants came armored and ready to fuck. I don't know if it was because of our constant attacks that did it, but in the end, they were coming in, their disc-shaped bodies covered in some kind of chitin-like armor. They managed to shake off multiple shots and direct hits before it finally broke, giving way and letting us penetrate its flesh.

"Fuck." Father groaned, and I didn't need to ask why; I could see it, too. In the distance, four more appeared, not even giving us a chance to catch our breath.

"Well... This sucks." I panted, feeling the exhaustion wanting to take over, forcing me to push it back down, wishing I had invented panzerschokolade instead of soap...

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"I can't believe that the trip that took me weeks can be done in only a few hours..." Elena sighed, standing on the bridge of the Judgement.

"The shortest path between two points is a straight line." Mirian chuckled, standing next to her, looking out the panoramic windows. She watched as the ship slowly cut through the thick, snow-filled clouds and began descending, ready to appear above Avalon.

"What was that?" Elena asked, feeling the ship suddenly shake. She couldn't see what was happening because they were in the midst of thick clouds, but the previously smooth experience of being disturbed was very jarring. "We didn't hit the mountains, did we?"

"No, we shouldn't have done anything like that." Mirian answered, her eyebrows furrowing, waving at one of the shipslaves that was connected to the navigation systems. "Report."

"Magical fluctuations are filling the air." The gaunt machine-like man answered, his voice emotionless, cold, and calculated. "97.5% probability of a large-scale assault happening down below. Our calculations affirm the suggestion of a beast invasion as certain wavelengths correspond with our samples gathered from prior events of beast incursions."

"Start accelerating and prepare the main weapons!" Mirian yelled, and the ship immediately responded as it shook once again, speeding up. A few minutes later, coming out from the clouds, blowing it apart before its bow, they finally had visual confirmation. They appeared about a hundred meters from the castle, built into the entrance of the Pass, and their view quickly zoomed forth, revealing to them what was happening there.

The image that appeared before the two was that of a desperate battlefield set ablaze while a horde of monsters was doing their best to break through the only thing standing between them and Ishillia. They saw how the two mechs were continuously blowing fire at them, soldiers fighting on the walls and down in the castle's courtyards while cannons constantly roared, aiming at the approaching four 20—to 30-meter-tall versions of the same type of beasts.

"Full speed ahead! Open fire the moment we are in range; aim at the big ones!" Mirian yelled, just as Milan arrived at the bridge, coming to see what the disturbance was, throwing him out of his bed, waking him up in a scare.

"Gods above..." He whispered in fear, witnessing the carnage and the ship's weapons come to life, emitting a low, buzzing sound.

It only took a few seconds for the ship to fly over the castle, enter the battlefield, and pass the Lion and Princess from above. As the mouths of the faces belonging to past emperors opened on the ship's body, what came out of them was not the same cannon fire that Elena expected to see. Instead of the usual explosions, multiple red beams of light fell down from the sky, cutting apart everything it touched. The moment they met with the armored bodies of the massive eight-legged creatures, they were cut into two halves as if made of tofu.

"Circle around and fire again! Watch the mountainside!"

Even if she didn't shout any orders, the ship was already doing just that, going in for a second round. The red beams appeared once more, slicing off the legs of another headcrab as they watched hundreds of smaller ones leap off of it. They were trying to climb the mountain, getting high enough to try and jump over onto the ship. However, before they could react, the ship raised its altitude in answer, and they could only screech as they fell down back into the Pass, missing their mark.

"Continuous fire! Don't stop until all the creatures are dead!"

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"I won't say anything." I groaned, panting, my hands still moving, killing these abominations while watching the gold-plated ship giving us a rave-like light show, decimating the four monsters, and saving our asses.

"Yeah, don't, or another fucked up thing comes and takes us out!" Father answered, still having the mind to joke... but maybe it wasn't a joke. I had the same frightening thought at that moment.

It was still a relief watching the airship do its thing, though. I didn't expect it to have beam weapons, but I wasn't complaining about it because they managed to slice and dice them very quickly.

"Time to push!" I shouted, moving my mech, feeling like I was carrying hundreds of kilos on my back, but it was time to end this exhausting battle.

With Father coming with me, we did the Pass in fire, helped by the Judgment from above, eliminating the enemy and ending the most dangerous battle since my reincarnation. I thought this would be the end for a moment, but I was saved by a girl once again.

"Heh... I love this world's women."

"Agreed." Father chuckled because I was too tired to realize I had said it openly. "That's why we are out here, doing this..."

"Yeah." I nodded my head, smiling, thinking about my wives and kids, "That is right."

When, after multiple scans, there was no more movement within the Pass, we finally had time to rest... For a little. With the Empress here, I had something that could take the mechs' place and stand guard, protecting us from the most significant threats. This is probably why, after I dismounted the Princess, I fell over unconscious the moment I touched the ground.

When I woke up, it was night, and I was inside my old room, moaning as I sat up, feeling weak and experiencing the pain of every muscle in my body being set aflame. It was like thousands of those spidery abominations were now running along my veins, scratching me under my skin. I wanted to throw up...

"Next time, tell your mother not to send for Mikan..."

"Sasha...?" I asked, my mouth dry, watching her sit on the side of our old bed, swiping my hair to the side, looking at me.

"That message scared us! But... you seem fine. Exhausted... but fine!" She sighed in relief, kissing my lips. "I heard and saw the carnage. I didn't know one day I would be happy to see an Ishillian Empress coming to visit us."

"I do feel like shit... and you are right. I also didn't think that would be how I would feel seeing a flying ship! Heh... By the way... How long was I out?" I asked, moving my shoulders and hearing them crack. "How's the battlefield?"

"About sixteen hours. The situation is stable, and there have been no more attacks. Those who had time to rest are dealing with the corpses and damages. Mikan is with the injured, healing everybody she can and saving lives... If she doesn't rest, she will collapse just like you. But, who would dare to suggest it to her when there are this many injured soldiers?"

"What about Dad?"

"He is already back on his feet, inspecting the soldiers, giving orders, overseeing the walls, and devising the new rotation of guard duties. He only spent ten hours in bed before being back on active duty!" She chuckled, shaking her head, "Probably because he doesn't know how to handle the Empress, so he ran back to the mess that makes more sense than Mirian's mind. Your mother and I have been dealing with her until now."

"What... is she angry?"

"No. Curious. Also, she is fired up, pressing me to tell her what we need to build more machines like the Lion and Princess. She wants to pay for it and wants one for herself. I am not going down that route, Leon! It is up to you to decide!"

"Ugh... now I get why you are pushing her onto me..." I mumbled, yawning, making her flick my forehead. "Yeah! She needs to talk to you. While you are at it, I will go and help with repairs; the mechs suffered extensive damage; they need maintenance!"

"Thanks... you are the best." I whispered, leaning in for another kiss, feeling that it alleviated the pain in my muscles.

"I know~!" she giggled, standing up. "I brought all the blacksmith groups over with me. Don't worry; the machines will be back at full force by the time you are~!"

"I just hope, for now, we don't need to go through another incident like before." I nodded, watching her stand up to leave, "Go. I'll come by after I meet with Mirian."

"Take your time." She smiled at me one more time before leaving, making me stretch again, getting ready to move my hurting joints and meet with our savior.