Death Spores have rendered most flying-type magical beasts and monsters incapable of combat.
However, when it comes to high-level monsters classified as Grade-1, the situation changes drastically.
[Beeeep....]
Grade-1 Named Insectoid-type, Hailac of the Thornclaws.
He began to quietly encircle me with his swarm.
'A Grade-1 Insectoid swarm, huh…'
Even at a glance, the sheer aura and menace they exuded were beyond ordinary.
If they stormed into the Ark like this, the damage would be unimaginable.
'Might as well consider this fortunate.'
If Hailac of the Thornclaws and his swarm had bypassed me and headed straight for the Ark, it would've been a disaster. But if they were coming for me, that changed everything.
Right now, to me, this Grade-1 Named Insectoid and his swarm were nothing more than appetizing prey.
Rustle rustle──!
Centered around Hailac of the Thornclaws, the Grade-1 Insectoids began to surround me, preparing to charge.
I, too, raised the bone tendrils of Janus and prepared for close combat.
At that moment—
["I… will protect… kin…"]
The Turncoat Knight, who had been guarding my rear behind Horus, leaped forward and spread wings made of bone.
At first, I thought they were Wings of Ankelenth, but they were slightly smaller, suggesting a different ability.
'Must be a power gained through nutrient exchange with Janus.'
It felt like a mass-produced version of Wings of Ankelenth, perhaps?
Since Janus hadn't fully assimilated Ankelenth's Fang, it seemed even the exchanged abilities weren't being conveyed completely.
'Well, in time that'll probably change, so no big deal.'
What mattered now was that the Turncoat Knight could now engage in aerial combat.
Proving that fact, the Turncoat Knight with his wings unfurled blocked the path of Hailac of the Thornclaws.
["You… fight… me."]
Then he drew a grayish spear that resembled Janus' Spear of Ankelenth.
'With the Turncoat Knight now, he could even stand toe-to-toe with a Shadow Order member like the Turncoat Rook.'
That's how strong the Turncoat Knight had become.
Meaning he was now more than capable of taking on the Grade-1 Named Insectoid, Hailac of the Thornclaws.
'The only variable now… is that this battlefield isn't on land, but in the air.'
But that thought quickly changed with the Turncoat Knight's first wingbeat.
Flap──!
With a motion as fluid as a bird of prey, the Turncoat Knight's spear surged toward Hailac of the Thornclaws.
ScreeeeEEEEEECH───!
Hailac didn't stay still either.
[BEEEEEEEEEEP───!]
As if it were a signal flare, the Grade-1 Insectoids all charged at the Turncoat Knight at once.
'Let's do this.'
I gripped the Ark-34 Automatic Conversion Rifle tightly.
Click-
With the pull of the trigger, A-985 Explosive Rounds scattered in every direction.
BOOM!
BOOM BOOM──!
Thick explosions filled the air.
But soon, the Grade-1 Insectoids emerged through the smoke, proving they were still very much intact.
'Tch.'
Grade-1 Insectoids.
As expected, even A-985 Explosive Rounds weren't enough to deal significant damage to those armored beasts.
'At this point, the only effective ranged weapons are… the Ark-34 Railgun, the BLT-47 Plasma Launcher, and the ICE-54 Plasma Cooler.'
Unfortunately, none of those were available at the moment.
Which meant there was only one choice left—to engage in close combat to pierce through those sturdy exoskeletons.
'No reason to hesitate.'
I extended both hands.
['Spear of Ankelenth' has been summoned!]
['Spear of Ankelenth' has been summoned!]
In an instant, two Spear of Ankelenth extended from my hands, now firmly gripped.
With them in hand, I spread Wings of Ankelenth and launched myself off of Horus.
From this point on, it was individual combat.
[Gigit!]
Janus let out a guttural growl and launched bone tendrils in all directions.
Perhaps due to rapid regeneration, the tendril-firing speed had noticeably increases from before.
Clang!
With a metallic crash, one of Janus' bone tendrils was deflected.
Unfortunately, in their current state, they couldn't pierce the Grade-1 Insectoids' exoskeletons.
'Hmm…'
But there was no need to dwell on it.
If it was impossible in this state, I'd simply strengthen the bone tendrils.
['Hardening' has been activated.]
['Steelization' has been activated.]
Janus' bone tendrils, now jet-black, surged once again toward the Grade-1 Insectoids.
Shunk!
Shunk shunk—!
The bone tendrils pierced the bodies of the charging Insectoids.
There was no time for leisurely feeding, so instead of absorbing their blood and flesh, Janus tore their bodies apart with the tendrils.
Rrrrip───!
Stab! Crunch, crackle!
No matter how tough the exoskeletons of these Grade-1 Insectoids, they couldn't stop the tendrils rampaging from within.
[SKREEEEEEE!]
[KIEEEEEK!]
The Grade-1 Insectoids shrieked in agony and thrashed wildly, but Janus wasn't about to let go.
I too swung the Spear of Ankelenth gripped in both hands, slashing down the Insectoids that charged at me.
SLAASH───!
[BEEEEEEEEP───!]
A Grade-1 Insectoid, the Winged Mantis, let out a piercing scream as it swung its foreblades at me.
Whoosh!
CLAAANG──!
But it was effortlessly blocked by a bone shield extended from Janus.
As formidable as Grade-1 Insectoids were, they were no match for Janus, who had now reached near-classless monster status.
[Beep! Beeeep!]
Their attacks couldn't penetrate me.
But my attacks were a different story.
'Esther.'
["Yes."]
Gradually, ether began to flow into the Spear of Ankelenth in my hands.
['Ether Imbuement' has been activated.]
Now infused with ether, the spears swung with a force that couldn't be compared to before.
SLAASH!────
With that, the head of the Winged Mantis at the front was cleanly severed.
[You have slain Grade-1 Insectoid, Winged Mantis.]
[Damage bonus against Grade-1 Insectoid, Winged Mantis, increases by 0.05%.]
I didn't stop there.
Regripping the ether-infused Spear of Ankelenth, I hurled it without hesitation.
['Bone Javelin' has been activated.]
BOOOOOOOOM────!
The Spear of Ankelenth tore through the air, so fast it stirred a gale in its wake, and in a single strike, impaled three of the Winged Mantises.
[You have slain Grade-1 Insectoid, Winged Mantis eliminated.]
[Damage bonus against Grade-1 Insectoid, Winged Mantis increases by 0.05%.]
[You have slain Grade-1 Insectoid, Winged Mantis eliminated.]
[Damage bonus against Grade-1 Insectoid, Winged Mantis increases by 0.05%.]
[You have slain Grade-1 Insectoid, Winged Mantis eliminated.]
[Damage bonus against Grade-1 Insectoid, Winged Mantis increases by 0.05%.]
Seeing this, the remaining Winged Mantises surrounding me sensed the threat and began shifting formation.
Rather than surrounding me poorly, they chose to spread out and employ tactical maneuvers.
'Not that it'll help them.'
I gripped the Spear of Ankelenth tightly.
Meanwhile—
The Turncoat Knight and Hailac of the Thornclaws were locked in fierce aerial combat.
CLANG!───
CLANG! BAM BAM──!
Each clash between the Turncoat Knight's bone spear and Hailac's swinging claws echoed with a deafening boom.
["Kill… all."]
The Turncoat Knight growled from beneath his mask, bristling with bone tendrils like a porcupine.
KAANG!────
The bone tendrils slammed into Hailac's claws with a tremendous crash, sparks flying with every strike. Undeterred, the Turncoat Knight pressed forward, extending even more tendrils to overwhelm Hailac.
[BEEP!]
The battle between the Turncoat Knight and Hailac intensified as their movements accelerated, each blow exchanged with terrifying speed.
CLANG!
CLANK! KAANG─!
Each time the bone spear met clawed forelegs, sparks scattered across the air.
Several Winged Mantises attempted to intervene, only to be sliced apart by the ferocious crossfire.
[KREEEEEK!]
That's how brutal the exchange between the Turncoat Knight and Hailac was.
Even I knew stepping in recklessly could lead to disastrous consequences.
Soon, the duel reached its turning point.
The bone spear wielded by the Turncoat Knight severed one of Hailac's left legs.
[BEEEEE—!]
And without missing a beat, the Turncoat Knight devoured the severed limb.
CRUNCH, CRUNCH, CRAAAACK──
The Turncoat Knight grew stronger, while Hailac weakened.
[BEEEEEEEEEP!───]
Perhaps enraged at witnessing his own leg being eaten, Hailac lifted his forelimbs and charged at the Turncoat Knight in fury.
It was a foolish choice.
["Die…"]
The Turncoat Knight's cold, metallic voice rang out.
SLAASH───!
His bone spear pierced through Hailac's skull.
* * *
Dark clouds swarmed from all directions.
Not just in the sky, but on the ground as well.
Had they been ordinary storm clouds, flooding would've been the only concern. Unfortunately, these weren't clouds formed of water vapor.
"..."
Hildegard silently tightened her grip on the Ark-15 Anti-Materiel Sniper Rifle.
It had been quite some time since the official order to open fire had been given, and yet, the number of incoming clouds didn't seem to have diminished at all.
No—this wasn't just her imagination.
The scale of the demonic beast legion couldn't be dented by mere sniper fire.
'…Can we stop this?'
Hildegard's Insight Eye trembled.
It had never shaken like this when facing wave after wave of beasts in the past.
The Ark had always faced great dangers—but they were dangers they could survive.
This time, however, it was different.
The threat looming on the horizon was so immense that her Insight Eye screamed of imminent doom.
"Fire!"
The order was given once more.
Rather than succumb to fear, Hildegard steadied the Ark-15 Anti-Materiel Sniper Rifle and set her sights on the dark clouds.
BANG!────
A round was fired.
The bullet vanished into the mass of clouds, as if swallowed whole by darkness itself.
It had likely hit something.
But it hardly mattered—the darkness was too vast and dense to be hindered.
Trigger after trigger was pulled.
Despite the coordinated sniper volleys from all forces stationed at the Ark, the dark tide did not waver.
ROOOOOOOOOAR───!
The darkness had now reached the very edge of the Ark's visible perimeter.
Close enough to discern that it was not made of vapor, but of something else entirely.
The Ark buzzed with urgent activity.
The wave had now entered the effective strike zone.
WHOOOOOOOSH────!
Missiles launched in volleys from the Ark.
TW-742 Thermobaric Bombs, RDX-14, TOLMAN15, TNT Type 778, NA-44 Napalm Warheads, and Type-88 Incendiary Bombs—all unleashed the Ark's might.
BOOOOOOM───!
BOOM! BOOOOOOM!
A chain of mushroom clouds erupted beyond the Ark's perimeter.
Even the dark clouds, which had until now shown no sign of yielding, trembled under this onslaught.
RRROOOOOAAAAAAAR───!
A monstrous wail—or perhaps an explosion—resounded across the battlefield.
The meaning was clear.
The war had truly begun.