Game Opportunities Become Reality, Episode 159
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Game Opportunities Become Reality, Episode 159
38. A New Era (5)
For someone on the level of Adrian, it was only natural to expect that he would pull some kind of trick to reduce allied casualties.
That was why the Croysen Empire had kept various possibilities open and prepared accordingly, but who could have predicted he would actually invade the Imperial Palace?
It was true that the defenses had weakened due to the successive deaths of elite forces, but the Imperial Palace itself was hardly a pushover.
"Not a bad situation. No, should I call it an opportunity?"
This was both a crisis and an opportunity for the Empire.
The Imperial Palace of the Croysen Empire, which had maintained its status as a superpower for ages, was practically a dungeon for any intruder.
If the core forces of the Kingdom of Rhinehearts, including Adrian, were eliminated here, the tide of the war would clearly swing back in Croysen's favor.
Though the intruders included two Grandmasters and a Grand Mage who overpowered Aura Masters, weren't they still humans made of flesh and blood?
No matter how close to omnipotent their abilities were, a human dies if their head is pierced.
"You intend to use that?"
"Yes, I cannot afford to miss this chance."
The Intelligence Chief, having caught on to the Emperor's thoughts, asked, and when the Emperor affirmed it, the ministers who were not familiar with the Imperial Palace's secrets tilted their heads in confusion.
To them, the current situation seemed like the worst crisis imaginable.
But watching the Emperor smile, they could realize there was no need to be purely afraid.
"Currently, our Empire has no 8th Circle mage, but looking back at the past, weren't over ten 8th Circle Grand Mages born? This Imperial Palace has been reinforced again and again by those great mages."
The Emperor said this while manipulating his terminal.
[Please set the intruder response level.]
[Mortal Mode]
-When Mortal Mode is activated, the Imperial Palace may be destroyed, and some functions may be permanently lost. Additionally, the lives of personnel who fail to evacuate to safe zones cannot be guaranteed.
A dreadful message etched onto the terminal.
Leaving aside the destruction of the Imperial Palace and loss of functions, the fact that lives outside the safe zones could not be guaranteed meant that his own wife and children his family could lose their lives.
But the Emperor activated the function without hesitation.
[Mortal Mode is now activating.]
-For your safety, it is recommended that you do not leave your current location.
The Emperor flashed a cold smile and spoke to the ministers.
"If you do not wish to experience the hellfire that burns even the soul, stay here quietly, all of you."
Then the Emperor projected a hologram into the center of the great hall.
It was to watch the suffering of the intruders who had been troubling him all this time.
* * *
Right about now, our army's Vice Commander, Taylor, must have his heart pounding wonderfully tense.
Until now, he only had to play a supporting role behind me, but now he had to command the entire army with the main commanders of each unit including myself absent.
The order I gave to Vice Commander Taylor, who was currently facing the Croysen Empire's main force, was just one thing.
'Just pretend to fight.'
My order was to avoid doing anything rash and only prevent casualties.
The Croysen Empire's main force, having suffered consecutive defeats and even lost their commander to a duel, would be thoroughly demoralized, so it wasn't a difficult order.
Vice Commander Taylor and the main force buy time, and in the meantime, the Kingdom's elite strike force, including myself, attacks the Imperial Palace.
Cutting off the Emperor's head would be the best outcome, but even just forcing him to flee would throw the Empire's main force into panic, which would count as achieving the objective.
"Is it alright to move this abruptly?"
Marquis Trenton, a 7th Circle Grand Mage, expressed concern over the unplanned assault on the Imperial Palace.
To that, I answered firmly.
"There's nothing to gain from stalling. Even if we have to push ourselves, we need to end the war quickly. That way, we can enjoy the status of victors while keeping our forces intact."
"But isn't this too impulsive?"
Originally, I intended to crush the enemy forces in a conventional manner and completely stamp out the embers of war.
But that was no longer possible.
That was because Gregory had relayed a piece of intelligence from Blue Moon.
[The Imperial Crown Prince of the Croysen Empire appears to be leading the Imperial Guard Knight Division toward Dragonland.]
The Imperial Crown Prince, in this situation, leads his precious Imperial Guard Knight Division to Dragonland?
Unless he intends to commit suicide, there has to be something behind this.
And I judged that something to be the Empire's hidden card.
If it were just some scheme brewing within the Empire, I wouldn't be this concerned, but the fact that it was a hidden card stashed away in Dragonland sent a danger signal through my mind.
'If it were a half-baked scheme, they wouldn't risk sending the Imperial Crown Prince with the Imperial Guard Knight Division to a perilous place like Dragonland at this particular time. In other words, it means it's worth the risk. Could there be a scheme powerful enough to overturn the tide of war in one stroke?'
So I made a somewhat reckless choice.
"Don't worry. Backstabbing and taking the head of the leader is my specialty."
It was the same during the Prius Republic and the same during the Kingdom of Roberto.
At my answer, Marquis Trenton nodded, but he still couldn't shake off his unease.
It was probably due to the reputation of the Croysen Imperial Palace, which was called the Tomb of Intruders.
The elite forces of our kingdom's army, assembled to strike this Imperial Palace, were as follows.
Grandmasters: Arcia, Duke James
Aura Masters: Gregory, Marquis Ackers, former Marquis Vincent, former Margrave Ignis
Grand Mages: Me, Marquis Trenton
Other: one 'pet'
Even just this roster alone is enough strength to devour thousands of Vanguards if thrown into battle.
For a hastily assembled force, isn't this one with plenty of chance for success?
-Beeeep! Beep!
As we entered the Imperial Palace, a jarring alarm welcomed us intruders.
Duke James picked up where Marquis Trenton left off and made a negative remark.
"It's not too late even now. I have no choice but to recommend a retreat."
"It's not like we charged in with nothing but sheer nerve and no preparation."
"I... I have no doubt in your abilities, but..."
It was because of the accomplishments I'd shown so far that everyone was obediently following along; if not for that, this plan wouldn't even have been set in motion.
"You don't need to worry. Trust me."
After all, I have the best item for avoiding traps and a shield to block even the most overwhelming attacks.
I took in the Imperial Palace, which had begun radiating powerful mana along with the warning sounds.
[8th Circle Hellfire]
[8th Circle Mind Collapse]
[8th Circle Perception Reduction]
[8th Circle Labyrinth]
[8th Circle Inferno]
[8th Circle Blizzard]
Even a brief glance through Myriad Mirror revealed that the intruder-response systems laid throughout the palace were anything but ordinary.
'This is basically hell itself. I suppose this is what you'd expect from an empire with such deep history.'
I let out a deep admiration looking at the Imperial Palace, which was incomparable to Rhinehearts Royal Palace.
But for me, who can perceive the fundamental nature of things, each one showed a way to counter it.
"From now on, you must follow my orders precisely."
Everyone nodded as if they had no choice, and I, under Arcia's protection, pointed my finger here and there along the Imperial Palace's wide, long corridors.
"First, destroy that spot, that spot, and that spot with Sword Aura."
Arcia and Duke James launched their Sword Aura according to my directions.
At that, the hellish flames (8th Circle Hellfire) laid throughout the palace's entrance were destroyed without ever being activated.
[Recording in progress]
Having cleared the nearby threats, I grinned and waved at the artifact that was recording this situation.
The Emperor was probably watching all of this right now.
"Let's go."
I strode forward.
Then I picked up speed and began to run.
"There."
-Boom!
"There."
-Crash!
"There, there."
Boom boom crash!
Even while moving, I kept pointing here and there, ordering the destruction of walls that looked perfectly fine, and the two Grandmasters' Sword Aura responded as swiftly as if they were my own limbs.
"From a rough look, the Imperial Palace has a five-stage intruder elimination system in place."
The Imperial Palace was designed so that no matter which path an intruder took, they would have to endure all five trials.
And as the situation shows, the first zone, the entrance, is the Hellfire zone.
There were over a hundred 8th Circle spells laid out, enough to bring down an ordinary castle in a single blow.
A number so absurd that even with the Imperial Palace's sturdy construction, one couldn't help but wonder if it could hold.
It meant the system gave no thought whatsoever to preserving the Imperial Palace itself.
"With that, stage one of five is cleared."
"Al, already?"
Well, in the end, there was no need to worry about the Imperial Palace's sturdiness.
After all, we managed to break through while thoroughly blocking that artifact from activating.
And as if to signal that the first trial was over and the second had begun, just as I'd said, the surrounding scenery shifted and a pure white space with nothing in it appeared.
Having cleared stage one without any crisis, people's faces showed an expression that said, surprisingly, this seemed doable.
"If you think you can't hold out, just pass out."
"What?"
But that lasted only a moment.
The moment the second zone's nature revealed itself, people's faces twisted.
"Kugh! Th-this is "
"It's a Mental Attack."
Stage two was a Mental Attack zone where the entire terrain was enchanted, making it impossible to block the activation in advance.
It was so vicious that even Duke James, a Grandmaster, was clutching his head and rolling on the ground.
If Duke James was in that state, the others were surely worse.
At this rate, if we lingered any longer, everyone would be reduced to wrecks.
But I had a way to destroy this.
And that was
"Arcia, let's go."
"Yes."
A frontal breakthrough.
I levitated my unsteady companions with magic and broke through at speed.
Unlike the others, who screamed and leaked tears, snot, and drool, the Mental Attack did no damage to me and Arcia at all.
It was the same situation as when we first faced August, Blue Moon's Special-rank Member who commands Mental-series spirits.
Since I and Arcia inherited our in-game stats wholesale, we had enough Resistance to endure even Dragon Fear without much trouble, so this was nothing.
"Stage two cleared."
"Khak! Hah, huh-eehk!"
"Hah! Hah!"
Stage two was cleared even more easily than stage one.
All it took was simply leaving the zone, so it didn't take more than five seconds.
But "easy" was by mine and Arcia's standards the others couldn't say the same.
The faces of those who'd looked like they thought it was surprisingly doable had vanished entirely.
I put on a deliberately apologetic expression and fed everyone potions mixed with a few drops of elixir, along with healing magic.
"H-how is it that you two ?"
Grandmaster Duke James looked at me and Arcia with a face haggard from just a few seconds.
To the reaction of "why are you two perfectly fine," I simply shrugged, feeling no need to answer.
"I see. So you have your own methods, then."
Everyone clearly looked like they wanted to rest, but this was a time when every second counted.
After all, we were playing the role of surprise attackers right now.
"Next is the labyrinth zone. Keep catching your breath. I'll move you with magic like before."
"Much appreciated."
"Th-thank you."
The third zone was the labyrinth area.
An abyssal hell where, unless one had enough attack power to destroy the labyrinth or enough analytical ability to find the exit, one would be trapped forever and die inside.
But well...
Do I even need to explain?
"Stage three cleared."
With the artifact possessing the greatest analytical ability in the world seated over my eyes, the labyrinth was nothing more than "a complicated path" and nothing else.
"Hah..."
At this point, my companions' reactions went beyond surprise into sheer bewilderment.
"To think we'd break through the infamous Croisen Imperial Palace this fast."
Of course.
Up until now, every section could be broken through easily with Myriad Mirror's observation and analysis.
But stages four and five were different.
Those were sections that couldn't be broken through with Myriad Mirror's abilities alone.
"From here on is what you'd call the highlight."
In stages four and five, the environment itself annihilated intruders.
Stage four was Inferno, and stage five was Blizzard.
The strongest 8th Circle attack spell is Hellfire, but when it comes to wide-area field spells, Inferno and Blizzard were the top two.
And those two spells, layered over and over, created a field practically equivalent to a quasi 9th-circle.
That was what stages four and five were.
"Arcia."
In stages four and five, what mattered was defense.
Even if I used 8th Circle magic, it was uncertain whether I could break through so an even stronger means of defense was needed.
Fortunately, we had such a means of defense.
After all, wasn't there the strongest shield that had defended against bombardment from hundreds of Heaven-Piercing Fortresses?
At my call, Arcia stepped forward with an utterly serious expression, presenting the strongest shield.
"Huh? Huh? Wh-what are you doing?"
But the shield, which possessed its own will, asked back in bewilderment.
"Please take care of me, shield."
The name of the shield Arcia held was 'Iris Maryagny.'
She was the fox beastkin who served as the highest elder of the Elysian Coalition.