Around midday, a four-wheel-drive vehicle pulled up down the street and reached its destination.
It stopped in front of the Artemili Forest. Eden poked his head out of the car while smoking and remarked, "This is where our battle will be."
Cohen and Jelian were with him in the vehicle. Jelian responded, "Will we fight inside the forest?"
"No, out here," Cohen explained, outlining the plan. "We'll ambush them as soon as they come out of the forest and surround them with traps and ambushes."
Eden focused intently on a particular spot for a while, then remarked, "It's bigger than before."
"...it seems so," Cohen echoed.
These comments left Jelian feeling confused and bewildered. To keep him informed, Eden explained that what lay within the forest had once been a city larger than Osiroh, and that next to it was a vast plantation of various types of trees.
In the two years since the great disaster, it grew terrifyingly and very quickly, until it had swallowed up three nearby towns.
It was about to reach Kassel from the east and Corydith from the south, and after that, it would reach Usero and other areas.
Now, Eden took out his phone and showed Jelian a picture.
The picture was of the same forest in front of them; there was no difference, except for a huge, large metal sign that read, "Welcome to Artemili," lying on the ground. It was a sign to warn drivers that the road would turn left.
Jelian was surprised and looked ahead at the forest again, but he hadn't seen the sign since they arrived.
Eden pointed to a spot inside the forest, and when Jelian looked more closely, he found the same sign by the side of the road as in the picture. The difference was that it was covered with branches and twigs, and it was inside the forest, unlike in the picture, where it was outside.
"I took that picture two months ago, and now look where it's gotten. This forest is growing at an insane rate. In just two months, it's expanded by more than 30 meters. What will happen if it continues like this long enough?"
Jelian thought to himself and quickly realized what he meant. If the forest were to expand much longer, it would reach Osirohe and engulf it.
But until then, it was still a long way off, and there was plenty of time to prepare against it.
After confirming the location, they ordered the troops by phone to move in and set up ambushes. The car then moved on, but it didn't return directly to Osiroh. Instead, it went in a different direction because Aiden wanted to show Jelian something.
An hour later, the car pulled over to the side of the road, and Aiden pointed to the right.
Into Jelian's view lay a vast, sprawling city, surrounded by towering white walls and covered by a colossal, thick glass dome. The dome was constructed from several layers of insulating glass panels in a geometric, triangular design. At the front stood a massive gate with a long, wide entrance.
"This is Sunomia's capital, Dorabora, or the Glass Dome, or 'Glassdom,' as it likes to call itself."
Jelian was mesmerized by the awe-inspiring sight before him. He wasn't close, but it was unimaginably large and possessed a futuristic design, as if it had come from the future. He had seen something similar in a cartoon he had watched as a child.
Eden explained what that glass dome was. It was unique, thick, and robust, allowing not a single atom of nuclear energy to enter. It was impervious to any kind of attack and could withstand even small, miniature nuclear bombs with a small explosion, but of course, it couldn't withstand larger ones.
Inside lived completely ordinary people. They weren't "radiators," meaning they didn't carry any nuclear energy in their bodies. In other words, they were completely normal people, just as they had been before the nuclear disaster.
This was because Glassdom, or Dorabura, was one of the safest places against the harmful effects of nuclear energy. Therefore, the people inside lived normally. If even one person were to leave, they would be exposed to an enormous amount of nuclear energy from the atmosphere, leading to death, physical disfigurement, or the onset of very serious illnesses. This meant they were at risk of death if they left, and the dome protected them.
For the inhabitants of Glassdom, there was a deep hatred and resentment towards anyone outside the city, whom they considered to be like savage beasts, contaminating and bringing only death to humanity. In reality, this was perfectly understandable for ordinary people who lacked nuclear power.
They weren't all from the wealthy class or select individuals; they were incredibly diverse in terms of status, age, and nationality. From the inside, it appeared to be a city just like Osiroh, but far more advanced and vibrant.
The reason a significant number of people weren't Radiators was that Dorabora had successfully intercepted the nuclear missile aimed at it, preventing it from becoming an uninhabited wasteland. Before nuclear power could spread to the world and affect humanity, the majority of Dorabora's inhabitants had been sheltered in secure underground bunkers.
Before the great catastrophe, the president of Sunomia, Annas Obisha, planned to build secure shelters for the army and government officials in case of a global or city-wide threat. He wanted to develop the state's military, making it powerful and advanced with the latest equipment and weapons.
Now, the army was many times larger than Calvin's, and all its members were intensively trained, heavily armed, and fully armored from head to toe with advanced and sophisticated technology. This made them a formidable force, and since the Battle of Bagbeer, no one had dared to make the government an enemy.
Several factors contributed to this: the plan he presented to officials and parties who had previously opposed it, who then became its staunch supporters; foreign relations; the lack of political pressure due to the breakdown of law and order and widespread chaos; and finally, the presence of a team of brilliant scientists who were able to harness nuclear energy and develop equipment, suits, and weapons.
With the power of the media and some control over the digital world, Glassdom promoted itself as the strongest and most dominant force in the realm, consolidating its dominance, which ultimately proved successful.
No sane person would even consider attacking Glassdom, even if they numbered in the thousands, except for two individuals—or rather, two calamities. Even Glassdom, with its advanced army, wasn't certain it could defeat them; they weren't called calamities for nothing.
Now, after Jelian, Aiden, and Cohen had briefly admired the view from the glass dome, they resumed their journey home.
For the next two days, Aiden and his forces focused on preparing for battle against Calvin's army. They went to prepare the battlefield, setting traps and ambushes, and intensively training the volunteer soldiers in weapons use and combat.
Jelian, unlike the others, didn't prioritize training. While he was remarkably carefree, unlike most in the troops, he certainly wouldn't neglect it. After countless battles in Coryth, he had gained considerable experience in combat and strategy.
On a typical day, after checking on his sister's well-being, he would wander around the city, exploring buildings for anything useful: usable food and drink, monsters to slay, electronic devices like handheld gaming consoles, medicines, or encounters with people approaching Coryth—all with malicious intentions. He would either kill them or let them escape. Sometimes, he would practice with weapons and daggers.
When he found medicine, like most people, he didn't understand anything about it. So, Jelian didn't want to bring in any unfamiliar drugs that might cause health problems for Nandy. He would read the labels on the box or the paper inside, trying to understand them as best he could. He often encountered unfamiliar terms, but if he found something that worked as a painkiller, he would try it on himself first. Once he was sure it didn't cause any problems, he would put it in a box, dividing the boxes into those he could use and those he was unsure about.
Therefore, he didn't think he needed training or even worried about the war. Since he wouldn't be fighting on the front lines with the super-powered Radiators, he could conceal his strength among the volunteer soldiers. If anyone discovered his superpowers, even an ally, he wouldn't hesitate to kill them, but he would make it look like a death that wouldn't put them in a difficult position.
He lived with Nandi and Luzia under one roof, and when he grew bored or nostalgic, he would venture out to explore the streets and shops of Osiroh. Instead of taking everything he wanted, he set limits and kept a close eye on the shops.
In one amusing incident, he started frequenting a particular café, always ordering chocolate milkshakes with an unusually high sugar content. The crew was shocked by the excessive amount of sugar, and despite their requests and attempts to persuade him to reduce it, he insisted. He thus became known as a special customer with a voracious appetite for sugar, and they hoped that Osiroh wouldn't run out of sugar altogether.
He spent his days carelessly like this until the appointed time. Late one night, Jelian left the house, leaving the girls asleep in their room. They shared a room and a single bed, and Nandi had grown accustomed to Luzia's presence due to her frequent appearances.
Jelian arrived at Osiroh's only outer gate, where all the troops were gathered.
Jelian stood before them, lightly dressed despite the cold. Rossi, Bianchi, and Tariq greeted him, bringing him armored army uniforms painted in a clay color, along with some weapons. All the uniforms were specially made to suit the troops and their needs; they were lightweight, impervious to standard bullets, and tailored to fit everyone except the volunteers.
As for weaponry, they had automatic assault rifles, two explosive grenades, one smoke grenade, several spare rounds, a bulletproof vest, a sharp military dagger, and protective helmets.
After everyone was ready, they boarded the trucks, and two trucks and three four-wheel-drive armored vehicles emerged from the Osirohe gate.
Jelian, Rossi, and some of the volunteers rode together in one truck, while Bianchi and the rest of the men rode in the other. Tariq, Axel, Alex, Hugh, Eden, and Cohen were distributed among the armored vehicles.
The gate guard unit didn't leave because their presence was crucial in preventing any attack on the city in their absence, and they were even more focused and prepared than before.
The observers also stayed behind; they were more useful at the base than on the battlefield.
Tiani remained with them for the same reason. She would also serve as a liaison between her and Cohen, allowing her to send and receive information and plan without distractions.
Now, all the women and some of the remaining workers at the base stood outside in front of the trucks and armored vehicles.
They were seeing them off, wishing them safety and success. None of them could hide their fear and anxiety.
To avoid unnecessarily increasing the tension and fear among the city's residents, this news wasn't publicized, and even the mayor wasn't informed.
This was because the mayor trusted Aiden completely and had given him full authority over everything related to the troops and external missions. He had been told it was simply a large-scale operation requiring numerous personnel and vehicles.
Now that everything was ready, everyone embarked on a journey that would be anything but pleasant.
The massive iron gates of the city opened, the trucks and armored vehicles moved on, and everyone bid them farewell with well wishes.