Chapter 140
The five vampires slowly approached the still-breathing mercenaries of Old Hunters, intending to finish them off.
"Heh, heh heh..."
Yenichi, whose limbs were torn apart by blood magic bombardment, let out a chuckle at the approaching villains.
The other downed tanks joined in the laughter, causing one of the vampires to scowl.
"Why are you laughing, human? Arent you scared of death?"
"Of course, dying is scary. But, you mosquito bastards."
Rumble, rumble...
Thunder echoed in the sky.
Even the vampires were surprised by this and looked up at the sky. Yenichi burst into laughter.
"You should also fear lightning!"
Rumble!
With a vicious thunderclap, a flash of light illuminated the area, and-
"...phew."
At the far end of the rampart, the figure of an old mage was revealed in the light.
Jupiter, the SR-grade Lightning Mage, with her pure white hair flying in the wind, taking a long puff from the cigar in her mouth, emitting a vivid blue glow from her single eye.
Hovering above Jupiters raised fist was a magic orb, crackling with yellow lightning.
"Being a mage is hard."
Jupiter growled, chewing on her cigar.
"No matter how many of our allies die, we cant sortie until the situation allows it. Mages are more valuable than the soldiers maintaining the front line with their lives."
The rain pouring from the dark clouds soaked Jupiters old empire uniform.
Even the cigar clenched in her mouth was quickly extinguished by the rain.
Ptui!
Jupiter, who didnt care about the cigar, spat it out on the ground and raised a sinister smile.
"From a mages perspective, its such a shitty job. Damn."
Blood trickled from Jupiters nose and mouth as she strained to gather mana.
Junior, standing next to her, placed her hand on the old womans shoulder.
"Ill assist you, grandmother."
"Im going all out. Keep up."
Jupiter turned to the side and roared.
"Lily! Activate the mana amplifier, target me!"
Lily, who had been waiting, activated the mana amplification artifact. Immediately, a faint blue light enveloped Jupiters body.
"Hey, you shit-headed bastards."
Raising the magic orb, which was trembling with the mana over its capacity, upwards.
Jupiter thrust her fist forward with a roar.
"Lets see how tough and delicious you are!"
And then, lightning struck.
Crack-boom!
A bright yellow lightning bolt from the sky struck the five vampires accurately.
Jupiters lightning is an area magic. Its hard to precisely target a small number of targets.
But, if silver swords are embedded in their bodies.
If a clear magical catalyst guides it. Especially if that is metal that conducts electricity.
"What cant I do with a precise attack!"
With Jupiters hearty shout, the five vampires were pierced by the lightning.
"Kuh-?!"
"Kuh...?!"
"Kuaaa!"
The five vampires let out hideous screams.
It was an attack they could normally withstand.
But the silver swords.
The silver swords embedded in their bodies acted as catalysts amplifying the magic.
The lightning that struck the silver swords enhanced its power several times within the vampires bodies, burning their insides black.
And moreover.
"One more time-!"
Jupiters second skill, [Bleaching Again], delivers an additional blow to an enemy that has been hit and marked by the first skill!
Crack-boom!
This time, a frosty lightning bolt fell on the vampires.
It was a powerful strike, intending to evaporate the last drop of blood left in the vampires bodies.
As a result, the vampires normally unstable soul cores solidified and clearly appeared in places like their chests or heads.
And the snipers didnt miss it.
"Got it."
Damien, who had been waiting, fired his crossbow.
Whiz! Whiz! Whiz!
The flying arrows accurately penetrated the soul cores of three vampires.
The three vampires, with their soul cores torn apart, instantly died without even letting out a decent scream.
"Ugh, Khh!"
Only cold, dismembered corpses remained.
"This frontline will be able to advance a step further thanks to these kids deaths. But what good is that?"
Jupiter covered her face with her gloved hand.
To Jupiter, the death of the Dion Mercenary Group didnt just seem to belong to them.
All the young people.
And the death of her granddaughter that would inevitably come one day... they all overlapped.
"Whats the point of all this achievement? All their dreams, ambitions... all disappeared for nothing."
"You shouldnt say such things, Jupiter. Were mercenaries, arent we?"
Yenichi grumbled in a fading voice.
"In our hard-earned major, theres value."
"..."
"Isnt the life of moths like us, praying for meaning in the light we barely touched by burning our whole bodies?"
Yenichi could no longer draw on his cigar and coughed.
Jupiter, who took the cigar from his mouth, tried to remain calm.
"May there be meaning in that death. In the death of those young ones and in our death as well."
The chuckling voice of Yenichi faded away.
"Our era, the era of the veterans, is coming to an end. Now, its a new era to be ushered in by those young ones."
"..."
"May there be light in their future..."
Yenichi murmured with his eyes closed.
"Young children, bloom your flowers..."
Soon after, Yenichis breath stopped.
Jupiter didnt agree with everything Yenichi said, but one thing he resonated with deeply.
The era of the veterans was coming to an end.
From now on, the battlefield would belong to the young ones.
Life and death.
Glory and defeat. Victory and disgrace. All would belong to the young ones.
The time they could share the heavy burden together was not much longer.
The remaining mercenaries of the Old Hunters came and stood next to Yenichis body.
All of them were wounded. Arms lost, sides pierced, shoulders blown away.
But they didnt die.
"Those of you still breathing, go get treated by the healer over there and return immediately."
Jupiter turned his gaze. The other mercenaries also looked in the same direction.
Bang! Boom...!
A fierce battle was taking place on the walls.
Two vampire generals and this sides elite heroes were locked in a decisive battle.
"The real battle with the monsters is still far from over."
As if lighting a scent stick, he put a half-smoked cigar in front of a pile of ally bodies.
Jupiter gritted his teeth and turned his body around.
"We old folks cant be a burden, let alone help."
***
N-Rank heroes have to prove themselves.
The opportunity only comes once.
A single moment when theyre thrown into the battlefield. They have to grab that first and last chance.
They must show their worth. Their usefulness. Their value of life.
To step out of the shadows into the light.
To even receive the spotlight on the stage.
...
The Dion Mercenary Group was annihilated.
They couldnt withstand the brutality of the battlefield. They couldnt overcome the pressure of actual combat.
They broke the formation, violated the tactics. As a result, they all died.
But the Dion Mercenary Group accomplished their assigned mission.
They managed to stick a silver sword into the bodies of the vampires, and using this, they could kill all the vampires.
They got the opportunity and proved their usefulness, but they died in the end.
And they could never get a second chance.
The dreams they had harbored cooled down along with their cold corpses.
...
I will never forget their names.
But whats the point of remembering them?
"What are you thinking so deeply about?"
Celendion spoke up. I was startled and looked forward.
The Vampire King was twirling and shaking the wine glass in his hand with a grin.
"Whats the use of counting the number of subordinates who are already dead?"
As if looking right through us, he swept over me with his bright red gaze.
The Vampire King babbled nonchalantly.
"Your really beloved friends, they will start dying now."