Chapter 270: From Beyond the Horizon
At last, the Great Demon God appeared from beyond the sea.
Its mere presence left everyone speechless, their eyes fixed on this harbinger of destruction.
General Mainz, an old veteran, dismounted from his horse, squinting at the sight before him before muttering in disbelief.
「So, that’s the Great Demon God… I never thought I’d see such a thing in my lifetime.」
The sheer size of the Great Demon God was overwhelming, to the point where awe overtook any surprise. Even from this distance, it looked as large as a regular human.
「Yeah, it’s… just swimming normally.」
「Hoho, King General remains calm in the face of such a spectacle. A coward like me can’t stop trembling.」
Some of the younger soldiers had collapsed in shock. Considering Mainz was still standing tall with the help of his cane, I’d say he was handling it pretty well.
「I’ve seen enough of this kind of thing. Honestly, it’s probably good to be a bit scared of something that big.」
「I see. Well then, I’ll make the necessary preparations for the defense.」 「Mainz, I’m counting on you.」
Mainz was the only one with enough experience to provide proper support for Eleonora, who was practically ready to charge in, and Sarah-chan, who would need backup. After nodding in acknowledgement, the seasoned general began issuing orders, his voice carrying authority as he moved his troops into action.
As expected, Mainz’s forces were well-disciplined. With him securing the rear, I could focus on moving forward without worry.
-0-
Now that the enemy was in sight, the battlefield began to stir. From the hill where I was watching, I could see the tentacle oneesan’s lower body submerged in the sea. From this distance, she looked like an oversized oneesan casually doing some breaststroke.
It was almost like an optical illusion. Given that the sea was far deeper than her 100-meter length, it made sense she had to swim, but at this scale, it was bizarre to witness.
Around her, tiny black and white dots were swarming, representing the masses of monsters and our fleet trying to stop them. The sight was almost comical, but for those too close to the Great Demon God, her swimming could cause waves powerful enough to capsize their ships.
Though she hadn’t attacked yet, her sheer size was a threat on its own. Eventually, the Great Demon God stopped swimming and began to walk.
No, not walking—her tentacles had reached the sea floor. The fleet surrounding her was locked in fierce combat, struggling to fend off the monsters she summoned.
Before we could finish the fight with the continent-wide cannon, we needed to deal with the monsters around her.
「This is exactly what I’d expect from a final boss fight.」
Despite standing before the apocalyptic arrival of the Great Demon God, I didn’t feel any fear. We’d faced dangers of this magnitude many times before.
「The demon beast squad is ready!」
Hydra approached me, awaiting orders. First, we needed to handle the monsters.
「Alright, let’s give Hydra and her team their chance to shine. We’ll head out to support the navy. Oracle, we’re going with them.」
「Understood.」
After her previous failure, Hydra wasn’t foolish enough to think about taming the Great Demon God itself. Her job was to distract and deal with the surrounding monsters.
At Hydra’s command, her team launched into action, riding on the back of the Metal Dragon. They flew alongside wyverns and fire-breathing salamanders, although the heavily armored dragon moved a bit slower.
It was strange to see a dragon made of metal able to fly, but the Metal Dragon’s defense was likely as tough as it looked. Hydra’s plan was to draw the attention of the enemy monsters and tame as many as possible.
「Oracle, let’s back up Hydra.」
「Got it.」
We flew from the port out over the sea, nearing the Great Demon God’s position. The scene before us was pure chaos—a massive tidal wave of monstrous destruction.
Normally, sea dragons of boss-class status were swimming in droves, reduced to mere cannon fodder in this battle.
In comparison, regular monsters like sea serpents now looked no more threatening than worms.
The enemy forces, composed entirely of powerful monsters, slowly pushed the fleet back. The defenders fought valiantly, but human power was no match for the beasts. One ship after another was smashed and sent sinking into the ocean.
「Hydra!」
「Yes, I’ll tame them right away! Come now, be good and submit to me.」
With a playful wink and a sweet tone, Hydra instantly tamed not one, but two massive dragons—one a jet-black sea dragon, the other a fiery red one.
「You’re Kuro, and you’re Aka. Now, protect me!」
The two dragons swept aside smaller monsters, opening a path through the enemy ranks.
「Impressive, Hydra.」
Her choice of targets to tame was spot on. In this battle, Hydra’s monster-taming skills were proving invaluable.
While supporting Hydra, we continued cutting through the monster horde. Just as we began to break their formation—
「King General-sama, this time I’ll tame the Great Demon God for sure!」
「Wait, you really shouldn’t—」
「It’ll be fine. If I can control the Great Demon God, we’ll win this battle, right? I’ll be the top hero! From this distance… Medusa! You remember me, don’t you? Be a good girl and stop!」
Hydra had casually named the Great Demon God oneesan ‘Medusa’ and called out to her. To my surprise, the enormous demon stopped in its tracks.
「See? I did it!」
「Uh… no…」
Yeah, this isn’t going to work, is it?
「Eeeeeek!」
And there it was—the inevitable failure. The massive tentacles reared up and lunged at Hydra.
「Are you okay!?」
「Hiiii!」
This was bad. The Great Demon God was furious.
The Metal Dragon Hydra had been riding was snatched up by the tentacles and dragged beneath the sea in seconds. At this rate, Hydra would be next!
「Noooo!」
… Or so I thought. Oddly enough, instead of being crushed, Hydra was left dangling in mid-air, getting repeatedly smacked by smaller tentacles.
What was this, a punishment?
「Once again, these creatures of chaos make no sense…」
「King General-sama! Stop watching and help me! Ahhh!」
「Oh, right. Oracle, can you fly us over there?」
「Leave it to me.」
Both Oracle and I had been momentarily stunned by the absurdity of the scene. But we had to act quickly. I sliced through the tentacles with a sword of light, freeing Hydra—though in the process, her clothes were torn off by the retreating tentacles.
Was that necessary? It felt like they were messing with her on purpose.
「Eeeek!」
It was unfortunate, but… well, Hydra’s outfit—some kind of bondage-style gear that resembled a swimsuit—was practically designed to fall off easily.
「Here, Hydra, cover yourself with this.」
「Th-thank you…」
I quickly removed my cloak and threw it over her. It was soaked in the slime from the tentacles, but there wasn’t much else I could do. Hydra’s Metal Dragon had been swallowed up, and we had no choice but to retreat for the time being.
-0-
We made our way to a nearby Black Cedar military ship. Hydra had done remarkably well, but the sheer number of monsters pouring out was overwhelming. In the end, there was no way around dealing with the Great Demon God itself.
Even with Hydra’s impressive taming skills, controlling the Great Demon God was out of the question. It seemed the only solution left was to use the continent-wide cannon, the Continent Cannon.
The Black Cedar navy had been putting up a good fight against the massive monsters, but it was clear we couldn’t hold out much longer.
「King General, retreating to this ship, are you?」
It was Admiral Drake, the fleet admiral, who called out to me. By chance, it seemed we had ended up on the flagship.
「Drake!」
Standing beside him, as always, was his wife, Asatte, one of the dragon maids, who gave me a polite nod. As long as Asatte was here, I knew Drake was safe. Even if the flagship were to sink, as long as the admiral lived, he could still command the fleet. Though I couldn’t help but feel sorry for Drake, with Asatte glued to his back. This time, however, her protection was invaluable.
The elite Dragon Maid Corps, led by Are and Queen Dareda, was present, but even they lacked the strength to hold back the Great Demon God. And with so many monsters swarming us, their aid to the fleet, while appreciated, wasn’t turning the tide decisively.
Amidst the relentless cannon fire, Drake spoke proudly.
「The new breech-loading cannons are proving their worth. Easier to load, and much faster to fire. I’m grateful to whoever designed these.」
That would be Sarah-chan. The approaching monsters were being blown to pieces by the explosive shells from these new cannons. Unlike the old iron balls, these rounds were packed with explosives. They even had a few Gatling guns positioned for close combat, which was impressive. I was amazed at how well-equipped the ship had become.
Though it was less about Sarah-chan’s individual talent and more about her knack for surrounding herself with capable ministers. She knew how to put skilled people in the right places.
I thought it would be better if Sarah-chan, rather than playing the general, handled logistics like Marquis Danavan, who had quietly but steadily sent supplies. She was more suited to managing the rear lines than the front.
「A lot of our ships are taking hits, too.」
The Silesien fleet, with its new weapons, was doing well, but other nations’ ships still relied on outdated mortars firing stones. They were no match for the beasts, and many were being smashed to bits and sunk.
Even the Black Cedar warships couldn’t hold out forever. Every ship that went to battle risked becoming a casualty.
「No need to worry. We’re close to the harbor, and there are plenty of lifeboats. Even if we fall into the sea, as long as we survive, we’ll make it.」
Ships could be rebuilt, but losing the experienced sailors who manned them would be irreplaceable. Lifeboats had been prepared, but beyond that, survival was in the hands of fate. I just hoped as many as possible would make it.
「But the fleet can only hold them back for so long. Look, King General, the monsters have started landing at the harbor.」
「They’ve made it ashore…」
The sky over the evacuated city of Lisbon darkened, and meteors rained down upon the advancing monsters.
Kaara had unleashed a Meteor Strike. Yet even that massive spell couldn’t fully destroy the overwhelming horde.
The monsters that survived landed and began ravaging the city in an instant. The attempt to hold them at the water’s edge had failed, and now the battle would shift to the land.
The question now was whether the artillery could hold out until the Continent Cannon was ready to fire. All we could do was trust in everyone’s efforts.
「Drake, I’ll leave Hydra and the others in your hands. I’m going to help defend the artillery. Oracle, let’s go.」
「As you command!」
Oracle lifted me into the air as I gave the order. Hydra and her monster battalion would stay behind to support the fleet.
「Leave the sea to me! Off already, eh? You’re always busy, King General!」
With a wave from Drake on the flagship, we soared after the monsters that had made it to land. Far below, I could see our allied knight forces forming ranks, ready to face the approaching monsters.