Saturday evening.
Choi Kangjoong opened a gate and headed to his family home.
The living room was filled with delicious aromas. Choi Yunseo, who had been in her room, sensed the gate, opened her door, and stepped out.
“How are you later than me when you have such a cheat-like way of traveling?”
“It’s a universal rule that the person who can get there the fastest arrives the latest.”
“Universal rule, my foot. You’re just lazy.”
Kangjoong and Yunseo bickered as they sat down at the dining table.
The table was covered with the siblings’ favorite foods.
Since becoming an Outer Mind, Kangjoong hadn’t really had food preferences, but eating at home felt more delicious due to the rose-tinted glasses of memory.
“I heard you’re going off to another big fight?”
Choi Jooyoung asked after taking a large bite of glass noodles.
“Two Demon Dukes want to fight me.”
“How strong is a Demon Duke?”
“In a one-on-one, no one but me can beat them.”
“Wow. They must have a lot of subordinates then?”
“They’re pulling them in from all over the place.”
“Will it be okay? You’re sure you can win, right?”
“Of course.”
Jooyoung studied Kangjoong’s expression closely. There wasn’t a hint of darkness. He felt relieved seeing that his son didn’t seem to be forcing himself into a fight he couldn’t handle.
“When are you going to retire?” Yoo Haein asked.
“I need to clean up my surroundings first.”
“By surroundings, do you mean the demons?”
“Yes.”
Kangjoong kept the details about the Prince and Silvius a secret. He didn’t want to make his parents worry any more than necessary.
“Just clear them all out, save up a lot of money, and go on a relaxing trip. I heard many Hunters retire in their thirties these days.”
“You should retire too, Mother.”
“That’s right. There’s an order to things; Mom should retire first!” Yunseo shouted while gnawing on a rib.
“What fun is there in life if I just stay home all day?”
“Resting is the fun part. Since both I and my brother are earning money, just take a good rest.”
“Forget it. Thanks to the Healing Stick Kangjoong gave me, I’ve been full of energy lately, so working is actually fun.”
“How is that fun?”
“Well, you enjoy your magic training.”
“That’s not a job.”
“Work is similar.”
Throughout dinner, Kangjoong projected confidence to reassure his parents.
After eating, he sat in the living room and cracked open a can of beer. He took a sip and turned on the TV, just as Iselin appeared to explain the Demon Expedition Fleet.
—The Expedition Fleet will strike demon-occupied territories to show them we are not merely taking hits. We will engrave the might of the Enterprise Union—comprising Elves, Humans, and Metra—into the very souls of the demons. To achieve this, we will cooperate closely with the Union’s greatest hero, the Outer, to minimize casualties and maximize achievements, bringing death and terror to the demons.
“Wow. The Princess… no, she’s the Queen now. The Queen mentioned our son. He really is something.”
Jooyoung patted Kangjoong on the shoulder.
“I still can’t believe it. The Queen really was talking about Kangjoong, right?” Haein said with a dazed expression.
“The Queen just said it. The Union’s greatest hero, the Outer!”
Haein tightly held Kangjoong’s hand.
It felt like only yesterday they were suffering because of the Gate Incident, and now it was pride-inducing to see him fighting for the fate of the world alongside a High Elf like Iselin.
“Be careful, and if it looks dangerous, run away immediately. The Dimensional Sea is vast; you can just settle down in another dimension.”
“There you go again. That won’t happen. I’m telling you, the demons will be the ones running away this time.”
“Alright. Take good care of Yunseo, too. Yunseo, stay close to your brother.”
“That’s really hard. Do you have any idea how much he zips around?”
“Mom will pack plenty of side dishes for you, so use that energy then.”
“I think I could follow him well if you gave me all the marinated crabs.”
“I’ll give them all to you. Kangjoong, that’s okay, right?”
“It’s fine.”
Relieved, Haein didn’t mention the battle again.
They shared the kind of ordinary conversations families have while drinking beer and watching variety shows and movies.
Kangjoong and Yunseo also felt at ease. Jooyoung and Haein hung out with them until past midnight before heading to the master bedroom.
Kangjoong and Yunseo drank a bit more together before falling asleep in the early hours of the morning.
Waking up late in the afternoon, they headed back home carrying the side dishes Haein had packed.
“She even gave us the marinated crabs.”
The crabs she had promised to give all to Yunseo were packed into a container. Kangjoong took one out and crunched down on it, shell and all.
“Mother’s marinated crabs really are the best.”
Kangjoong neatly tucked the side dishes into the refrigerator.
“Ki-ik!”
Kai, who was hiding on Archduke Ventresca’s flagship, informed him that the two Archdukes’ fleets had begun to move.
‘They’re coming now.’
The fleets gathered by Archduke Ventresca and Archduke Luderlock had merged and were heading toward the sea area where the Apocalid was feeding. There were approximately 2,000 dimension ships, nearly a million demons, and over ten million magic beasts.
‘That really is a massive amount.’
Even facing such a vast demonic force, Kangjoong wasn’t afraid. He was simply looking forward to the nutrients and Evolution Points that would increase after he devoured them all.
‘I should tell Iselin and Dielka too.’
When he contacted Iselin, she asked to meet in her office in an hour. He spent the time snacking on the marinated crabs he had just put in the fridge, then moved to Iselin’s office.
The space was now as comfortable as his own room. Iselin and Dielka were sitting there.
“Outer! I saw how you handled the demons. It was so cathartic.”
“A million more are coming, so let’s go hunt them together.”
“I’d love to! How far away are they?”
“It’ll probably take a week for them to reach the place I’ve occupied.”
“Then we should leave right away.”
“How are the preparations coming along?”
“We just need to load the troops and depart. You’ll help us move, right?”
“Of course.”
Arthil set down Elf tea and juice on the table. Iselin took a sip of her tea and spoke.
“Should we handle the Immortal Demons like last time?”
“That would be great.”
“What is the demons’ strategy?”
“Archduke Luderlock will charge, and Archduke Ventresca will provide support. That seemed to be it.”
“Demons can’t control their desires, so they can’t execute complex operations. Even if they plan one, it usually fails. That’s why they rely on their raw power and go with something simple.”
“Seems like it.”
“I will make sure to kill Archduke Luderlock.”
“Me too! Me too!” Dielka chimed in, raising her hand high.
Kangjoong discussed how to play out this battle.
First, they clearly identified the strengths and weaknesses.
The advantage held by the Apocalid and the Demon Expedition Fleet was definitely firepower. While the demons’ Hell Cannons were powerful, their range was short, and their accuracy and rate of fire were terrible.
On the other hand, the Mana Cannons had decent range, accuracy, and fire rate, and the Mana Ballistas were particularly excellent in range and accuracy. Furthermore, most Elves were skilled in long-range attacks.
The clear disadvantage was the numbers. The Apocalid’s population was about 1.14 million, which was only a tenth of the magic beasts’ numbers.
“Since the enemy’s dimension ship power is lacking, they’ll likely try to fight within a dimension.”
“I’d prefer that too. There are far more of them that can’t fly.”
“Separating the armies of Archduke Ventresca and Archduke Luderlock will be the key to victory.”
“Why?” Dielka asked.
“Because the fire support from Archduke Ventresca and the Demons of Chaos is powerful. The persistent Immortal Demons would act as a solid anvil.”
“Aha! If we separate them, Archduke Luderlock is like tough meat, and Archduke Ventresca is like popping candy!”
Iselin barely understood Dielka’s analogy.
“Similar to that. If they combine, the strengths of each demon type are highlighted, but if they separate, their weaknesses increase significantly.”
“Then what should I do?”
“Pretend you’re losing and run away. Then Archduke Luderlock will chase you.”
“Immortal Demons are crazy for Death Spirits!”
“Are you confident in your acting?”
“Who do you take me for? I’ve done everything to survive.”
Kangjoong also visualized Iselin’s strategy in his mind.
Dielka lures Archduke Luderlock away while he holds Archduke Ventresca back.
As the distance between the two Archdukes grows, Archduke Luderlock’s army, lacking fire support, would have very little offensive power.
Archduke Ventresca’s army, primarily composed of Demons of Chaos, would become vulnerable in close-quarters combat.
Since the two Archdukes were also rivals, the probability of Iselin’s plan working was high.
“We are one, but they are two. I hope that day comes quickly.”
Iselin drank her Elf tea with an expectant look. She also craved the mass death of the demons.
The allied forces, which Iselin had envisioned as a strike force and officially named the Demon Expedition Strike Fleet, set out.
Iselin boarded the Life Spirit instead of her original flagship, the Divine Arrow.
This was possible because, although it wasn’t fully completed, its sailing and attacking capabilities were fine.
Since Serad was going to work on the interior during the journey, any problems could be fixed quickly.
The two Archdukes’ fleets approached the dimension where the Apocalid lurked. It was a dimension that had been the capital of a Duchy and was about half-eroded. The Demon Duke who had been preparing for a final stand clapped and cheered as the two Archdukes’ fleets approached and the Apocalid retreated.
“Get down quickly!”
“Send only half the magic beasts into the dimension!”
The dimension ships docked at the pier, and demons and magic beasts poured out. The transport ships carrying the magic beasts landed only five million and then rose back into the Dimensional Sea. This was to attempt a boarding action when fighting Kangjoong’s bio-dimensional ships.
The demons quickly formed ranks and advanced. Archduke Luderlock and the Immortal Demons led the way, followed by Archduke Ventresca and the Demons of Chaos. They intended to push all the way to the other side of the dimension where the Apocalid was.
“There are two Demon Archdukes and five Demon Dukes,” said Iselin, who was sitting on the deck of the Life Spirit.
“The two of you have to face two Archdukes and three Dukes; will you be okay?”
“Please twist my source even more strongly.”
“You might end up like these guys.”
“The Outer will surely bring me back.”
“I told you, I can’t do that.”
“I believe in you. You even revived a creature called a Brutal Lord. Even if I change, my memories and consciousness will remain somewhere within you, so I’ll be able to return.”
“Producing Lutal was originally possible…”
“Please do it. To the point where I am connected to you as much as that unit is.”
Iselin pointed to a Central Command Warrior. It was the same unit Iselin had treated at the 6th Dimension Fortress. Even if it was genetically identical to other units, the scars of battle were unique, making it recognizable.
“If you do that for me, I can definitely defeat Archduke Luderlock,” Iselin said firmly.
Kangjoong was worried, but he also felt that nothing bad would happen. The sparrow, whose source had been almost half-twisted into an Apocalid, was still flying around perfectly fine as a sparrow.
“I’ll do it, so if anything feels even slightly strange, tell me immediately.”
“Yes.”
Iselin closed her eyes. Kangjoong unleashed his source energy and very gradually began changing her source into an Apocalid.
Iselin slowly transformed from an Elf into an Apocalid. Once she passed a certain point, her consciousness suddenly expanded with a burst.