“My god... is this what it feels like to be teleported several kilometers at once? It’s terrifying! Ugh...!” Ronald Ironheart’s voice echoed from the side. By then, the group had returned to Duke Rowena’s study.
Aside from Midir, the caster, the other three were in a sorry state upon landing. Ronald fell directly to his knees on the floor, his head swaying back and forth like a drunkard.
Blake, who had only recently regained consciousness, collapsed to the side with an expression that suggested he was about to vomit, his face turning a deep shade of red.
Only Aila, who had been teleported a few times before, was in slightly better shape. She quickly grabbed a nearby chair to steady herself, though she was still panting heavily.
“Seriously, that feeling of being squeezed out of space like toothpaste is just awful! Compared to that... I still prefer griffins!”
Aila finally caught her breath after a short while. She turned to look at Blake, who was lying on the ground. Though weak, he managed to wave a hand at her, weakly signaling his agreement.
“No time to rest! Get up, Blake. Go call your people! We didn’t come here to sleep.”
After resting for a moment, Ronald shakily stood up by leaning against the wall. He shouted at Blake, who was still sprawled on the floor.
“I know... I’m coming!” Hearing the shout, Blake struggled to sit up. He limped over to the Duke’s desk and pressed a hidden button on the side of a drawer.
Before long, the sound of heavy footsteps approached the study. As the door swung open, several armored guards rushed inside.
Seeing the mess in the room and the three people looking unwell, the guards instinctively drew their longswords and pointed them at Midir.
“Wait! Mr. Midir is one of us! Look at this!”
Seeing this, Blake hurried to stop them and showed the medallion Duke Rowena had given him. Only then did the guards sheath their weapons.
“Master Blake, where is His Grace? Why are you all in his study?” the lead guard asked, his voice filled with confusion.
“There was a temporary situation, so they sent us back first! I’ll explain the details later. For now, I will act as the interim Lord in my father’s stead. As for the specifics, I’ll let Mr. Ronald explain!”
Blake didn’t answer the question directly, instead handing the floor over to Ronald.
Seeing everyone’s eyes fixed on him, Ronald cleared his throat and spoke with a serious expression.
“We just received word from the Duke. The Void Demons plan to destroy the entire Azure City-State with overwhelming numbers. That means the enemy force will far exceed the scale we encountered in Loka City—a conservative estimate would be dozens of times larger. If this hypothesis holds, we need to prepare immediately. How many magic crystal cannons do you have in the fortress?”
“Uh... we have approximately four hundred magic crystal cannons in the city right now.”
The guard hesitated for a moment but quickly reported the number after receiving a confirming nod from Blake.
“Four hundred? Push them all onto the walls! I’m going to make some minor modifications to increase their attack range and, ideally, speed up their charging rate... though that will increase the wear and tear on the cannons. That should be fine, right, Blake?”
Ronald pulled a pen from his pocket and began calculating on a piece of paper, glancing up at Blake.
“No problem. If what the Void Demon said is true, then we’ll follow Mr. Ronald’s lead. Oh! Also, bring out the reserve energy for the defensive arrays on the walls, just in case! Furthermore, double the patrol personnel on the walls for the next forty-eight hours!”
Blake nodded and began issuing orders to the guards.
“You should also notify the Church of Light in the city. Have them send people to infuse the cannon shells with light element—as many as possible! Based on previous combat data, the light element is most effective against Void Demons! Also, give me the weather data from the last few years and the biological data from the Wind-Eroded Desert to the south. I need to check something.” Ronald continued.
“Weather data? Right, no problem! I’ll have someone deliver it to you shortly.” Blake was momentarily stunned. Though he didn’t understand Ronald’s reasoning, he agreed immediately.
“Alright, that’s all for now. Assign a few people who understand mechanics to come with me. If I need anything else, I’ll send word.”
After saying that, Ronald nodded to him, grabbed a guard, and quickly headed out.
“Pass the word: the entire armory of the fortress is to fully cooperate with Mr. Ronald’s work. Do not hinder Miss Aila or Mr. Midir! If necessary, they can issue orders in my stead. Understood? Now, move!”
Seeing Ronald leave in a hurry, Blake spoke to the remaining guards.
“Yes, sir!” The guards gave a military salute and immediately left the room.
“Hmph, you actually look the part! If there’s nothing else for me to do, I’ll go bring your father and the others up. Midir, what about you?”
As the sound of the guards’ footsteps faded, the tense atmosphere in the room seemed to dissipate slightly.
Aila’s strained nerves finally relaxed. A smile played on her lips as she turned to tease Blake in a lighthearted tone.
“Go ahead. I won’t be going down. After all, no one knows if Blake might be swapped out a second time. It’s better if I stay by his side.”
Midir glanced at Blake, pulled over a chair, and sat down beside him.
“Fine, I’m off then. You two stay safe.”
After calling out to them, Aila leaped directly out of the study window before Blake’s surprised eyes and quickly vanished from sight.
“Just focus on your work; don’t mind me. You are absolutely safe in this room.”
Once Aila had left, Midir spoke calmly to Blake before closing his eyes to begin recovering.
It would be a lie to say that the battle with the Void Demon and the long-distance teleportation hadn't drained him at all. While he wasn't exhausted to the point of collapse, it was always wise to rest as much as possible to prepare for the coming battle.
Midir specifically used his mana to shroud the entire Lord’s Manor, ensuring he would detect anything that approached immediately.
Time passed quickly during the dull wait. Aila made about ten trips back and forth on Kiteclaw. Finally, after two hours, she had brought back all ten or so people from the base of the mountain.
Back in the secret passage, amidst the fighting and the evacuation, most of the people had been emaciated and covered in black sludge. Blake had only barely been able to recognize his parents and hadn't had the chance to confirm the identities of the others.
It was only now that Blake had the opportunity to carefully observe the rescued hostages. He was shocked to find that every single one of these ten or so people was a high-ranking official of Azure Fortress.
The fact that so many people had been replaced right under his nose without anyone noticing the anomaly was enough to make him break out in a cold sweat.
Blake could only use the Lord’s Manor as a temporary resting place for the wounded, arranging for a large number of guards to surround the entire estate to ensure their safety.
As for Ronald’s side, no other news had come in yet. After all, modifying four hundred magic crystal cannons was no small task, even with assistance.
The anticipated assault did not arrive immediately, but since they couldn't verify the truth of the Void Demon’s words, they had to prepare for the worst.
Consequently, the entire fortress and its subordinate districts were instantly shrouded in a tense and oppressive atmosphere. As this invisible bow was slowly drawn taut, every string was stretched to its limit.
Rate on N.U.
