[Arc 2] Chapter 36: Civil War for Velantas: Knights of Might

"Wha-ha-ha-ha! Take that, damn reptile-bastard!" - Gust

"I know you don't like him, but remember: Virt and the others are also a type of reptile." - Garami

"UGH! I didn't think of that..." - Gust

Gust stopped his belittling of the hydra and started to think of a new nickname for it. I mean, is there any need for that? It's already dead...

The battle's been leaning towards us now for the last half-hour since the hydra got crushed. The troll-army has been retreating towards their island since the loss of two of their star players and our men's morale is at its peak. I'm fearing that they will fall for some trap sooner or later, so I've been giving instructions for them to watch their steps.

"Can I go home now?" - Garami

"NO, YOU CAN'T! However, I get your feeling..." - Gust

The battle's proceeding pretty much on its own now. I'm reduced to only giving advice now, as the Officers are capable of taking their own actions.

The only reason for me to stay here is my Leadership Skills. They're gaining levels at a great pace... but it's still boring. Even if [Tactics] also evolved into [Strategem]. And even if the newly acquired skills I got for this war are probably not gonna be far from meeting the same fate...

It's still boring...

Stifling a yawn, I took another look at the war map. The two Land Divisions have divided the fan-shaped land into three areas, with the left-most A-Area being taken care of by the golem.

The 1st Division is charging at B-Area, the middle-most one. With those guys being led by the knight captains, and even having miss Russel among their ranks, it's a question of time before they reach the ring-leader behind this monster army.

The 2nd Division is doing the same to the right-most Area-C. The Artillery- and Mobile Divisions are doing their job whenever they have the opportunity.

Yeah, there's nothing for me to do. As for the secret plan... oh?

Guess the next notable event will be a tag battle... guess this isn't the time to take a break.

---

Mira's PoV

The Magmanoids are coming! Everyone, get the fire-extinguishers ready!

Due to this being the place that's the least exposed to the golem's wave-attacks, all the Magmanoids converged at this area while the goblins and trolls are trying to get rid of the 1st Division and the golem. Good luck with that~. 

In any case, it means that we're stuck with the various magmatic creatures from Iron Isle. Not only the C-ranked Magmanoids, which ain't that different from "burning skeletons" according to Iron, there are also Flare Dogs and Killerheat Centipedes, who're E-ranks and D-ranks respectively.  

The adventurers are relying on a special type of items that the Transport Division brought to us, which is a type of foam that reduces the heat generated from the Fire- and Magma attribute creatures when they are covered with it. It's made the fight so easy that even the wimpy guys scared of the Magmanoids have started to take more heads than a cabbage farmer when it's harvest time!

Iron is sticking to his thing and defends the other adventurers so they get a chance to scum the monsters. I didn't expect that he could withstand the heat so well. Even the other adventurers are calling him "brother" or "chief" and such now. 

I'll not lose to him! 

"Come and get some!" I shouted at the Magmanoids while swinging my spear on top of the Pale Horse. The Magmanoids got smashed by the spear enveloped by the power of the Water Spirits and said their final farewell when I added Mana Burst and Lightforce.

The horse is Garami's idea. She said it will "let me save my stamina and let me direct the idiots better", or something. An Officer on a horse sure packs more impact than what I would have on foot, I agree with that~. Even if she said the main goal is for her to earn enough proficiency for that Sub Class of hers...

I ignored the feeling of being used and kept on defeating the Magmanoids, leaving the weaker subordinates to the other adventurers. Only a handful of us can defeat them, foam or no foam, including me and Iron, and the group led by Brak, the guys that take over for us in escorting that Raven Goblin when we're out of town.

Brak sent sword-shaped Wind Magic at the Magmanoids to skewer them from a distance. Grubble the Hobgoblin Thief is throwing bombs and whatever at them, while the elven magician and Scholar, Lester, is using Water Magic to protect them from long-range attacks.

The Forest Orc Terd is protecting the group from invaders along with Iron, and Siris the Priestess is backing them up with healing spells. She is careful enough to use spells that do not harm Iron, an impressive feat for someone using faith-based magic.

They are a well-oiled machine. Despite being theoretically weaker than the Magmanoids, they compensate for the lack of stats with their teamwork. Grubble is probably happier here than having to fight the other goblins, even if they are Fiend Goblins and Evil Goblins instead of the normal kind like him.

Hmm, there's a lot of Magmanoids right there...

"Everyone that knows Water Magic! Aim at the group over there!" - Mira

The various magicians including Lester started to aim at the large group of magmatic creatures with blue-colored spells, which shone with a greater glow than normal, probably thanks to that Ultimate Goddess that got our back.

Other monsters such as the Flare Dogs tried to stop the magicians from firing their spells, only to be stopped by Iron and Terd on each side. Brak and other non-Water magic users started to pepper the incoming enemies while I rode on the Pale Horse and butchered the monsters with my spear. 

Then, the magic spells were ready. I ran out of the way, and just when the Magmanoid group had readied their defenses... the magicians turned away from them and fired their spells at the Flare Dogs that had tried to flank us. 

The dogs didn't see the blasts of water coming and were flushed away. The Magmanoid group looked flabbergasted at the scene before they removed the walls of magma they had taken a painful time to make and started to charge at our group in anger.

Of course, as globs of magma, the Magmanoids weren't the fastest creatures out there. That's the reason they opted for defense in the first place. However, now that the magicians have already used their spells, the Magmanoids must have concluded that we need more time to prepare the second volley.

Unfortunately for them, the Artillery Division had received the same orders as us, and it rained magic spells over the Magmanoids who were defenseless at that moment. The Magmanoids were slaughtered as their bodies turned to rock from the water and got crushed by the weight of it.

That Garami, making me say out a fake order while she directed the others through the World System so that the monsters would get the wrong idea... I'm glad I'm on her side-

-- Heads up! Bosses incoming!!

All of us snapped to action when we heard the order from Garami. From the steam-like fog generated when the magic spells hit the Magmanoid group, a metallic hand flew towards the magician group.

Iron, the fastest one of us to react, ran, or rather, teleported to the magician group through some [Blink]-like skill and received the punch with his greatshield and the "Grand Guard" Art. The sound from the shield was nasty though!

Wait... I've been talking about it for a while, but a hand flying towards someone is strange, right? 

The metallic hand was repelled of Iron's shield and returned to its owner that exited the fog. A humanoid, silver body, made solely from metal, walked towards us with confident steps. While it looks a little like Iron, it feels more to be a comrade of those two comic reliefs that were with the Black Baron. A Machinerz...

The Machinerz's body looked like a fancy silver armor, with a blue sphere in the middle of its chest, a black streak of glass where the eyes should be, and an abnormally large left wrist, almost as if a wine barrel had been added to it. The hand that just got re-attached after flying back is its right hand. It also has a backpack-like device with wings on its back.

"TARGETS CONFIRMED. PROCEEDING TO ELIMINATION OF FLIES." - Assault

And with that, the Machinerz rose its left arm... crap!?

A large number of shots were heard from the barrel-like arm, all of them aimed at Iron. Damn, no wonder that feeling was so familiar! It's the same feeling I have when Garami's toying around with that "gun" of hers!

Cheers to Iron for keeping his guard up despite not having seen this kind of opponent before either. I created a phantom sword and threw it towards the Machinerz... hey, why're you being repelled like that, sword!? And you, doggy, stay dead! 

*Slash!* *whimper*

Alright, the sword's not the faulty one here. The other adventurers released various types of magic at the Machinerz, but nothing worked. What is that guy made of anyway!?

Damn, if that guy had opened fire at anyone else than Iron, then the numbers of casualties wouldn't be a joke... why's he not doing it? Firing at the others?

...He can't move his arm. Rather, it looks like the Machinerz himself is in a predicament here. He's pulling and dragging his own left arm, almost as if it's frozen in place. What can... ah. The [Taunting] skill. It did have such an effect... wait, Iron's keeping on taunting that guy despite that hailstorm of bullets? That's no longer about having guts of steel, he has a death wish!

Crap, I have to help him somehow... I jumped off the Pale Horse and replaced the spear with my trusty partner, the Tyrant Fang. Yes, this one is more for me~. Now, drop dead and die-!

-- Step back!

A sudden order came from Garami. It was so sudden, I did as I was told without thinking about it... just in time as the volcanic ground returned to a lava-state.

Everyone made themselves scarce as more of the ground started to turn back to lava. Even Iron had to stop the taunting and escape, which released the Machinerz from his hold. Right when that guy had run empty for bullets!

And to make matters worse, a large figure started to appear from the lava. Long tentacles that looked like they were made of lava, and a large head in red colors...

"Who ordered the damn octopus!?" - Grubble

Damn, he stole my line...

"People, stay clear of the ground. That thing's the culprit for the piece of land we're standing on, so he can make it turn hot and bothersome at will." - Mira

To prove my point, the octopus is making sure the Machinerz is standing on solid ground despite the evergrowing sea of lava around it... 

"Shouldn't we make takoyaki out of that thing before there is no ground left for us?" - Lester

"...You heard the elf. Get the foam foaming!" - Mira

The many adventurers used the special equipment at the octopus, but as one could have expected, it didn't do much against something that is practically living lava. It did irritate it, so we used the foam to lure it away from the Machinerz so that Iron and the other guys could focus on it.

Through repeated [Blinks], I closed in at the octopus without touching the lava and gave it a solid slash with Tyrant Fang covered with the power given by the Water Spirits... why didn't that do any damage!?

I dodged the tentacles and the long-range attacks from the adventurers while trying to figure out the lack of wounds on the octopus. Ugh, this constant [Blink]-ing is starting to tear on me...-crap!? 

A tentacle came at me while I was distracted. Since there was no time for me to dodge it, I used [Lightforce Shield] to block the blow-ugh!?

Owch... think this is one of the few times I used that skill for its original purpose. 

The blow had knocked me quite the distance from the octopus, and it would have been longer if this boulder wasn't in the way. Thanks to that, I had the opportunity to watch the battle from a distance and could identify the identity of the wounds on that octopus.

"Stop using Water! Focus on Wind or Earth, just not Water or Fire!" - Mira

The one who had damaged the octopus was Bark with his sword-like Wind spells. I dismissed the power of the Water Spirits and tried to enlist the help of the Wind ones instead.

Then, my [Presence Perception] noticed something coming at me. I made the Wind Spirits generate a wall of wind instead and used it as a cover to dodge the attack from the sidelines. 

It's the Machinerz from before. It slashed at me with a blade that extended from its right arm while flying towards me... flying!? 

The backpack-like equipment had started to generate flames and propelled the Machinerz forward. It seems to be of the same technique the hand from before used to fly around with.

I ran away from the Machinerz who proceeded to chase me down. Taking out the leader first, eh? Bring it on!

We started to slash at each other while running across the field at high speed. The Machinerz lacks decent swordsmanship, but all his strikes are heavy and strong enough to break boulders, while I have to attack while running away. I don't want to taste the tackle of something that moves around that fast.

This deadly game of chase lasted for a while until a set of chains suddenly appearing from the ground and caught the Machinerz after I parried one of his attacks. The chains grabbed onto the Machinerz's left wrist, and due to the backpack still propelling him forward even then, it made the Machinerz take a steep U-swing, right into one of the boulders decorating the volcanic wasteland. Ah, it collapsed. That gives us a little time to think through some strategy. Not expecting that he's dead from just that.

"...I want to say I could have taken that guy down on my own, but I can't, so I'll be painfully honest: thank you." - Mira

I said so to Iron, the one who had thrown the Machinerz of its charge. 

"Requesting assistance?" - Iron

"As if! ...Is what I want to say again, but honestly, I need some help with this guy." - Mira

"Then-" - Iron

"Ah, not from you. Rather, I have some questions of my own..." - Mira

---

"...Confirmed. Will start the operation." - Iron

He's truly a man... an armor of few words.

Iron left for the octopus while I prepared myself for round 2 against the Machinerz. With a loud noise, the rocks that had covered the mechanical monstrosity flew up in the air like a geyser, and the machine of mayhem appeared from the crater it had created.

After some lights in that black, visor-like opening on his face blinked a little, he looked towards me.

"Come on!" - Mira

With a shout, I used the new skill, [Coercion], at him. Not that I probably didn't need to, but the taunting-type skill seemed to piss him off a little as he focused solely on me.

The backpack started to spew out flames again and the Machinerz flew towards me with his blade at ready. I didn't try to run or dodge this time, and instead, I parried the attack and let him slide past me. The Machinerz caught itself before trying another attack, but I parried him again while barely moving from my spot.

The Machinerz is starting to look pissed-off by my constant evasions, even if he has no face muscles to express it. I'm not doing this because I want to either! All those blows are damn hard! My hands have gone numb already! 

Just when these constant clashes, not that different from the bullfights in the Colosseum in Solomar (not that I ever saw one myself), started to take too much toll on both me and Tyrant Fang, a large amount of water struck the Machinerz and forced him back into the crater from before. 

"Mira! We have gathered everyone!" - Lester

"About time!" I shouted back while escaping the sudden flood of water that drenched the Machinerz and the crater. 

The many adventurers kept on using their Water Magic against the Machinerz until the crater was filled up enough. Then, I retrieved the spear again from the Item Pouch, used the new skill I had just bought, and struck the water surface with it. 

Electricity sparked across the water surface and shocked the Machinerz. Ha-ha! Take that... why're you still standing?! And why are you looking over here? Please don't come closer, I'm sorry about that before!

"TASK: COMPLETE ELE-ELE-ELE-ELE-" - Assault

...Is he trying to say "elimination"? There's smoke coming out of his head. Ah, the backpack ignited. He took off. High, high, high into the sky... 

"What was that all about?" asked Lester while watching the Machinerz turn into a star in the sky.

"Comedy relief. Just like his friends." - Mira

Lester and the others looked at me with strange eyes, but what else can I say?

"More importantly, there's still the octopus." - Mira

My words knocked life back into the others and they all went for the octopus... only for around 80% staying behind when they remember their Water Magic is useless against the flabby bastard. Poor fellows.

I asked the Wind Spirits for help again and ran towards the lake of lava that had formed by the octopus. Iron was standing on the front-line and guarded himself against all eight of the octopus' tentacles with his shield. I used the power of Airgetlám, the Wind Spirits, and the Art, Distance Slash, and attacked the octopus from behind.

A large gash appeared on the octopus' "back", and it instantly forgot about Iron and turned my way. I activated [Coercion] to gets its attention, and it did the trick big time. The octopus used its tentacles to lift a large piece of half-melted rock, all for crushing me with it. 

Still, turning one's back to someone who's been charging up their [Counter] skill ever since they were assaulted by a hail of bullets is a foolish move if anything.

Iron didn't let the octopus turn its back unpunished and grabbed it with more of those metal chains from before, rooting it to the spot and making it drop the big boulder onto its own head. The octopus didn't feed much time to break free, but then Iron attacked it with Distance Bash, a shield-variant of the Distance Slash I just used.

The octopus was sent into the air by the gigantic shockwave released by Iron and flew right above me. I sent another full-powered Distance Slash at it and finally bisected the octopus, making it the second boss we had defeated... the comedy relief from before is defeated, right? It's cool to consider him defeated, right?

---

Skill Lists.

Mira:

Achievement Titles:

Hunting Titles:

Iron:

Greydra

Kigal-Note/Warrior Classes: Sentinel

Description:

A Sentinel is a defense-oriented Warrior-line class that puts pressure on detecting danger and defending a specific area.

The requirements for this class is to have a certain amount of ability in the act of defending oneself and others, so the class grants skills to further improve these defensive abilities, such as [Parry] to reflect attacks, [Cover Move] to hurriedly move towards people that need guarding, [Heavy Stance] that increases one's weight and reduces knockback effects, and [Stalwart], which drastically improves one's defensive powers while guarding a designated area.

An interesting fact about this class is that the [Weapon Reinforcement] skill that is normally found in Warrior-line classes is replaced with the [Defense Reinforcement] skill instead.

In addition to these defensive powers. Sentinels also have search-related abilities, such as [Lookout] that make it easier to notice people with hostile intentions, and [Danger Sense] that allows one to notice almost any form of danger beforehand.

Mira's comment: Sorry, I didn't notice the search skills due to how sturdy Iron's turned out to be.