Chapter 248 : Chapter 248
Chapter 248. Overloading (3)
"But how exactly are you going to do it?"
April, wearing an expression of utter bewilderment, shook her head and glanced at the urban sprawl.
"To command all those people, you'd need ten bodies. Even as Direct Lineage, you can't physically be at every battle, can you?"
"I've thought of something for that."
April made a startled sound, then averted her gaze and cautiously edged back.
"E, even so. Even if the freelancers rallied under you, Direct Lineage, would they really sit still for you micromanaging their combat……?"
"It doesn't matter."
That April was voicing this much concern surely came from understanding freelancers that well.
But Enoch shook his head and glanced below.
"This isn't the time to worry about that. The battlefield conditions are already deteriorating."
He didn't have to look far — even the main road right in front of them proved it.
On the road, a freelancer projected a spinning magic circle from his staff aimed forward, pulling up boulders and firing them straight ahead.
But when two or three beasts surged toward him, kicking off the ground and walls to change direction in rapid succession, he calmly erected a wall of stone before him.
He held the enemy at bay and slowly retreated, but then a shout came over the comm.
[Are you insane — move! Fire support's incoming on those coordinates!]
"What?!"
The freelancer reacted, hands on his ear, and hurled himself clear with everything he had. Immediately after, massive lances of ice plummeted from directly above, driving into the ground in dense clusters.
Sheets of frost-spewing ice wedges hammered down, forming a bed of thorns. In midair, an ice lance punched through the freelancer's left arm, and he lost his balance.
"Gaaahk!!"
Spraying blood, he was flung into a wall.
A female freelancer with a crossbow, who had been using a nearby wall as cover, quickly approached while scanning for threats.
"Hey, are you alright?!"
The man, an ice spike embedded in his arm, ground his teeth to powder and rose, clutching his abdomen with one arm.
"Hemorrhaging, through-and-through wound. Not good."
"Fall back! Cover fi——!!"
But just after she screamed that, something caught her eye and she looked up, shouting.
"No — look out!!"
CRAAAAAASH!!
A beast smashed through the stone paving directly before them, roared once upon landing, then charged at them, its footfalls shaking the earth.
Simultaneously, another flying-type glided in over the opposite rooftop, dropping yet another ground-type to the surface, adding to the onslaught.
But just then, lances of pallid lightning streaked in from the side, tearing into the ground-type beasts closing in on the road.
CRACKLE-CRACKLE!!
A storm of blue lightning crashed from the sky, scattering crimson sparks on impact.
Wreathed in that lightning, a freelancer with a bandana around his head made a great leap and landed on the battlefield.
"Tch, I'll take you on!"
Sliding into a landing with both hands braced on the ground, pale tendrils of lightning surging from the earth converged and condensed around him.
He thrust out an arm brimming with crackling electricity and projected a lightning-condensed bolt straight ahead.
BZZZZZZZT!!
Blue light and thunderclaps ripped through the air in every direction.
The pulsing waves of raging blue lightning alone were enough to send stone fragments and dust exploding outward around him.
But the whirlwind of electricity only swept away the beasts charging from the front.
Another beast, dropped from a flying-type on the flank, emerged with carapace lances crossed, weathering the lightning's windblast, then wall-jumped its way toward him at speed.
"Gah, when did——?!"
The lightning-user spotted it and tried to leap back, but the beast pursued relentlessly and drove its lance clean through his abdomen.
"Nnnghhh!"
He flew dozens of meters and slammed into the wall, painting it with a torrent of blood.
But the very next instant, a stray mana round tore through the side of his face and ear, sending blood spraying.
"Damn it, cease fire! That's friendly!!"
"Move! Get out of the way!! Lines of fire are crossing — clear out!"
Freelancers who couldn't control their own firepower and were utterly unable to adapt to group combat — the resulting chaos was playing out across the entire city center.
A gust of wind swept across the battlefield — across the din of gunfire, swirling mana, and the frenzy of spilled blood.
The wind passed through every scene of battle and at last gusted toward the building where Enoch stood.
Enoch closed his eyes slowly, feeling the wind in his hair. The radio chatter of those in combat kept flowing into his ears.
[Interim combat-ineffective. Evacuating wounded — I'm alone! Requesting reorganization!]
[Ammo depleted, reloading! Cover me!]
[Shit, some maniac collapsed the building behind us. Retreat route blocked — help!]
The situation over the comm was pure chaos.
"No, everyone……"
April, gripping her sniper rifle, murmured in a thin voice and looked up at him. Her eyes shone with desperate appeal.
"Direct Lineage. Can you really do this?"
Instead of answering, Enoch looked at her expressionlessly and nodded.
"I can."
April gave a small gasp, and as her face gradually brightened, Enoch — paying it no mind — raised his hand to the communicator with cold, settled eyes.
"This is Enoch, to all personnel in action. I'm taking command."
Sure enough, pushback came immediately over the comm. Someone shouted as if it were a joke.
[Direct Lineage! Now of all times, you sud——!]
"I know it's sudden. I understand I need to prove my command ability."
[What? What do you——]
"All freelancers who've lost their Interim — cease combat and rally to my position. Coordinates are…"
The moment Enoch transmitted his coordinates and cut the channel, he heard someone approaching from behind.
Glancing over, inside the darkened room strewn with broken glass, someone knocked on a door and opened it. A girl poked her head in and stepped into the room.
"Copy that. Reporting per assembly order."
A somewhat bright but matter-of-fact voice rang in his ears, and Enoch turned around.
The assault rifle caught his eye first — sleek rails on a jet-black handguard, optics mounted.
"……"
Looking up, a girl with long grayish-white hair was approaching.
A freelancer with a holstered pistol strapped to the thigh beneath her blouse-tucked skirt. A neat face that looked a bit older than April — one Enoch already recognized.
"Isabel, was it?"
"Yeah, that's right. Enoch, the Direct Lineage."
Isabel let her assault rifle hang by one hand, tidying her hair with the other, and spoke awkwardly.
"Sorry. I'm in the same Interim as that freelancer, but I want to apologize for the attack before."
She wasn't using honorifics, but the content itself was incomparably calm and mild.
Perhaps her personality wasn't rough by nature, but growing up in the Outsourcing District meant polite speech simply wasn't ingrained. With that thought, Enoch nodded.
"The assembly order was just issued. If you arrived this fast, you've been looking for me from before. Why?"
"Yeah. The one remaining member of my Interim deserted during this battle. He's probably dead — crushed under building debris."
Enoch recalled the freelancer man he had made an example of and nodded.
"Your Interim member — that guy?"
"Yeah. The one you took down with the axe."
He had ordered medical treatment for the man afterward, but if he had recovered only to flee and die, perhaps human nature simply couldn't be changed.
"That's unfortunate."
"Not really. I'm not affiliated with any agency — he was just a teammate I'd formed up with here on a temporary basis."
She seemed to recall the memory, glancing down at her assault rifle and stroking the selector switch with her thumb.
"It's just that once an Interim is formed, convention says you follow your teammates' orders. That's the only reason I opened fire when told to. I have no intention of mourning him."
"So you came to apologize?"
"Yeah. And with the Interim gone, operating solo is obviously too risky. So I was looking for you to request reorganization."
"Straight to the point."
Enoch nodded calmly.
"Reorganization granted. I'll form you up with other stragglers who've lost their Interim, like yourself."
"Understood."
"But there's a condition."
"Sure, let's hear it."
"I command your combat. And if we win, you spread the word to the other freelancers."
Isabel bowed her head as though thinking, then slowly raised it.
"Got it. You want to form us into a test platoon and prove yourself."
"Nothing more convincing than that."
"Yeah, understood. If we win under your command, the other freelancers will buy in. That's just who these people are."
Just as Enoch nodded, certain this approach was the answer, Isabel glanced aside at Sirocco.
"By the way, I'm surprised. Sirocco, was it? I figured as the Direct Lineage's Follower Family, you'd be furious with me."
"Huh? Why?"
Sirocco tilted her head in genuine confusion, and Isabel averted her eyes slightly, head lowered.
"Well, I did attack the Direct Lineage."
"Hmph, there's no need for that."
Sirocco folded her arms and fixed her with a cool stare as if it were the most obvious thing.
"I mean, if a weakling like you so much as tried to attack him, I could blow you away in a heartbeat."
At Sirocco's frigid declaration — as though Isabel were beneath her notice entirely — Isabel went slightly pale and backed up a few steps.
Meanwhile, Enoch couldn't help but crack a smile at Sirocco's words. Given the gap in strength, fair enough.
But even Sirocco couldn't wipe out all the beasts in one go, which meant there was only one thing to be done right now.
Hearing multiple sets of footsteps approaching briskly from beyond the door — other freelancers, seemingly arrived — Enoch turned his gaze that way.
"Looks like the new Interim members are here."
Isabel nodded and looked at Enoch.
"So, are you heading to the field too, Direct Lineage?"
"I'll stay here. Moving around too much isn't ideal for a command role."
"But then you'd be commanding our combat without even watching us fight?"
"No. I have a way."
Enoch shook his head. Then he glanced at Nano, standing right beside him with her visor lowered, staring fixedly up at the sky.
"I have eyes."
***
Before the building designated as the operations area by Enoch.
At the entrance of a building with the air of an old mansion, five freelancers carrying an assortment of magic gear approached and halted.
Isabel, too, stood among them, quietly studying the interior of the mansion that served as the operations zone.
A female freelancer carrying a mechanical-design staff on her shoulder leaned toward Isabel and whispered, glancing to the side.
"So, what exactly is that drone?"
She eyed the drone hovering at their head height and grumbled to Isabel.
"Apparently its name is something ridiculous like 'Bzz-Bzz'? What kind of naming sense is that."
Looking at the drone's lens — emanating a blue glow from the center of a cross-shaped metal frame converging inward from the outer ring of a hollow circle — she added gruffly,
"Besides, I've never in my life seen an artifact that flies by some unknowable principle. How does it even work?"
"I don't know either. First time I've seen it. But I do know it's a high-performance drone that told us the positions of enemies and civilians in this mansion in advance."
Isabel left it at that.
The drone's scan showed enemies on the 3rd floor. And the building's civilians appeared to be hiding in silence on the floor above, trying to evade the beasts.
The staff-wielding freelancer hung her head.
"Fair point, but what kind of squad does that Direct Lineage have to possess a drone this ridiculous……"
"That doesn't matter during an operation."
Isabel glanced at the silently hovering drone.
"All you need to know is that this is the eyes of the person commanding us."
The woman beside her sighed deeply.
"I wonder if this command thing's actually going to work. Honestly, fighting our own way sounds better."
"That was the condition for forming us into a new Interim. And fighting solo at this point means a high chance of dying anyway."
"True, but……"
Isabel, apparently done listening, flicked her grayish-white hair aside, pulled the charging handle of her assault rifle back slightly, tilted it to check the round seated in the chamber, and took her stance.
"Enough chatter. Going in."
The woman at the front hesitated briefly, then turned her gaze toward the darkened interior of the mansion.
"Fine. Take point."
Isabel on point, the four freelancers filing in behind her — they fanned out in all directions.
On the earpieces worn by the team beginning their room-clearing of the mansion, a red dial blinked, indicating a constant comm link.
Having cleared up to the 3rd floor as planned and confirmed no enemies, all five freelancers converged at the last door on the 3rd floor.
Meeting in the corridor, the female freelancer raised her staff and Isabel raised her muzzle — a silent signal exchange. Isabel immediately pressed her fingers to her earpiece and whispered.
"Entry ready. Drone-confirmed enemy positions?"
[Straight ahead. No concealed hostiles. Begin entry.]
The instant Enoch's command crackled through her earpiece.
The woman activated her frost-spewing staff and instantly formed a hand of ice in midair.
The white, frost-breathing hand seized the steel door's surface, ripped it free, and forced a breach. Isabel entered swiftly, her jet-black assault rifle leveled forward.
The moment she entered and sighted the enemy through her optical scope, Isabel pulled the trigger — full auto.
Shell casings glinted in the muzzle flash and scattered. A relentless storm of suppressive fire poured over the enemies without so much as a breath between rounds.
RAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!!
The beasts, turning a beat too late, tried to assume a combat stance — but it was already over.
Dozens of 5.56mm armor-piercing rounds, blazing with mana, hammered into the enemies in rapid succession, each impact point generating violent shockwaves.
The devastating power of the rounds themselves wasn't even the half of it — the strikes, converting raw mana into concussive force, shook the entire room and shattered every window outward.
Pummeled by the white shockwaves detonating in succession across their bodies, the enemies were launched through the air dozens of meters.
Immediately, the red dial on the following woman's earpiece flashed and the comm activated.
[Now — enter and suppress.]
The instant Enoch's order came through the comm, the female freelancer who had rushed in behind lunged past Isabel and jumped straight ahead.
She drove the mechanically designed staff she'd raised high overhead into the floor with a heavy thud.
The staff's tip mechanism deployed with a sleek motion, and white frost bloomed.
[Freeze Infection]
Among 14th Rank magic, this ice-type combat spell boasted the fastest deployment speed and now engulfed the floor.
Ice spread as if infecting the surface, racing forward at extreme speed. Scattering white chill into the air, it reached the enemy's legs and began climbing — consuming the beast from the feet up.
— SCREEEEEE!!
The beast screamed and immediately tried to destroy its own legs with its carapace lance to escape, lifting one arm high.
But the moment the arm rose above its head, it realized frost had already climbed white up to the forearm — and the beast let out a roar.
In the end, unable to resist at all, the beast was flash-frozen in place and solidified like an ice sculpture.
[The two who entered — rescue civilians. The rest — exterminate.]
"Copy, we'll search the upper floor for civilians and evacuate them."
Covering Isabel as she slowly withdrew and swapped magazines, the other freelancers entered and leveled their magic gear forward.
That was where Enoch's view of the situation ended.
The drone's feed was already pulling away from the cleared interior.
Only then did Enoch lift his eyes from the drone footage streaming to his terminal.
"Looks like proof of concept's been achieved."
"Th, that's impossible……"
Beside him, April — who had been monitoring the situation through her scope — turned to stare at him with blank eyes.
"Y, you're really doing it……?"
Enoch didn't reply to her awestruck remark, staring expressionlessly ahead.
Commanding wasn't the problem, so long as he could gauge most of the freelancers' abilities.
Directing mages in combat wasn't that difficult for someone who carried the original story's memories.
And with the freelancers' numbers so drastically reduced, the nature of the urban battle — with engagements breaking out sporadically — meant it was feasible for Enoch to monitor each combat zone and command them.
"This one's done. Nano, next battle!"
Glancing to the side, his eyes met Nano's — her long white-gold hair streaming in the wind.
She had her visor lowered and, clutching her windswept hair, looked back at him with a bright grin.
"Yes, Direct Lineage. Understood-mda!"
The instant she flicked her hand through the air as if commanding the drone, Enoch's terminal screen lurched into rapid motion.
The drone's perspective accelerated like a fighter jet, tearing through the complex urban alleyways before soaring high into the sky and flipping 180 degrees.
From the lofty vantage, the entire intricate cityscape came into view at a glance.
"Marking friendlies-mda!"
The drone initiated a scan, checking and marking every ally wearing the friend-or-foe identification patch distributed before battle. The tagged movements of all friendlies became visible at once.
From there, it was a cascade.
Enoch would select a battlefield, the drone would close in to hand off command, and he would direct the annihilation of the enemies — the cycle repeated.
By the time the screams of the systematically destroyed beasts had dwindled to silence, one by one, the sunset itself had begun to fade.
After confirming yet another battle ended in victory, the departing drone climbed once more.
High above the raging urban battle, allied forces methodically driving the enemy from every alley came into view at a glance.
"As expected, incredible-mda! Direct Lineage!"
Glancing to the side, Nano was clutching her windblown hair and beaming.
"I have no idea how you're doing it-mda! Every single battle you command ends in total victory-mda!!"
Enoch briefly looked up from his terminal and turned silently to Nano.
This result was only possible because he had thorough knowledge of magical affinities and combinations — that much was certain.
The command itself was no different from controlling mages in the original game's squad compositions.
But in reality, not a game — the biggest reason this absurd operation was working was none other than Nano, who served as his eyes.
Without the performance of the drone "Bzz-Bzz" — capable of surveilling the battlefield from high above, and at times inserted through narrow gaps and windows to capture every combat scene — this would have been impossible.
The real-time intelligence the drone streamed to his terminal was serving as an irreplaceable tactical resource for Enoch's command.
"I'm glad it's working out."
"Is there some secret-mka? Winning every engagement through command — that's incredible-mda!"
"It's not that incredible. If anything, it's thanks to you."
"Huh? What do you mean-mka?"
Nano pushed her visor up and looked at him with wide eyes. Meeting her beautiful blue gaze, Enoch spoke plainly.
"Without you, this wouldn't have been possible, Nano."
"……!"
Nano's eyes widened, then she blushed faintly and smiled.
"Getting praised by the Direct Lineage feels great-mda! I'll focus even harder on piloting-mda!"
— Beep.
Just then, Enoch's communicator chirped an incoming signal. Thinking it was a support request, he reached to answer, but Nano tilted her head beside him.
"Huh, that comm channel that just opened — it's not from around here, it's from farther away-mda!"
"Where?"
"Th, the civilian temporary shelter-mda!"
A transmission from the temporary shelter.
It wouldn't be a mistake on Nano's part. Throughout the command, she had been checking channels via her visor and accurately switching connections.
Then why?
In the instant a wave of unease washed over him, a roar of static and shouting burst through the comm.
[This is the temporary shelter! Anyone on this channel — we need support! Hurry!!]
The air around him froze.
"Wait, what?"
Before Enoch could even raise his hand to the communicator and ask, the voice on the other end screamed.
[Five Master Class magical beasts have appeared at the civilian temporary shelter's defensive line! We don't have enough firepower alone. The defense has been breached! Say again — the defense has been breached!!]