Chapter 159: Exactly as Calculated

That.

“M-Mana is exploding!”

It was a massive resonance of mana.

CRACKLE

A vibration so strong that even those without mana talent could feel it.

CRACKLE-CRACKLE

It wasn’t a single vibration. Multiple vibrations were occurring simultaneously.

The strategists were in chaos.

‘What is this sudden flow?!’

There had been no omen at all. No way to predict it. All they could do was watch.

The large-scale Mana Flow instantly created a current.

The current formed rules.

Mana moving according to those rules became magic power.

It moved in the way someone had intended.

It wasn’t that House Gisert had no mages.

The problem was that the Magic Power Flow was centered around the Duke’s Household of Jiseoteu. There were mages who had stepped forward to study it, so they did have military power. It was just weak for a ducal house.

They quickly read the Magic Power Flow.

“An explosion! This isn’t just an explosion! Th-This is…”

“Teleport?!”

“What is this?! Recovery… over there!”

The problem was that even if they read it, they couldn’t block it, and they couldn’t understand the situation itself!

The large-scale magic itself was practically Multi Casting. Because you had to understand and unravel multiple concepts at once to cast large-scale magic.

They couldn’t even imagine such a large-scale magic being multi-cast.

“Is a new Magic Legion appearing?!”

“No intel picked it up!? The ones in Machinery Castle are low-level, aren’t they?”

“Did the Enchant Magic Tower get involved?”

“They can’t participate directly!”

They were stunned by the unimaginable events.

Their common sense was being shattered. Under their common sense, something like this only happened in kingdom-level battles.

It was something only the Empire, which was supposedly waging a great war against the Orcs far away, could pull off!

“What?! What is this?!”

It was panic.

Panic created a momentary hesitation. The price of hesitation was immense.

BOOOOOOM—!

An earth-shattering roar echoed.

-7101!?

“Kyaaak!”

It was the left flank of Ofern, where House Gisert’s soldiers had charged out led by the Servant!

*

Arms were crushed. Legs were ground to pulp.

SPLATTER

Those who couldn’t even leave corpses exploded into fragments of flesh.

Weapon shards that had been destroyed became weapons themselves, attacking the surroundings.

Many had their eardrums burst by the massive explosion.

“…Ah…”

“Unbelievable.”

Even those far away were stunned by the deafening roar.

Everyone inside that explosion were House Gisert’s soldiers.

As if calculated with precision, the explosion targeted only House Gisert without a single inch of error.

Even the soldiers on the outskirts who avoided the blast weren’t unscathed.

“…”

“My ears! My ears!”

“Krrrk.”

They were merely not caught in the center of the explosion.

Only those whose bodies were torn apart, whose ears were ripped so they couldn’t hear, who lost their will to fight and collapsed.

Had he foreseen this?

“Is this your doing?!”

“Perhaps.”

BOOM!

Ofern, who had been clashing with Duke Jisert, raised his Momentum and shouted loudly.

“Snap out of it!”

WHOOOOOM—

His resonance spread across the entire battlefield.

It was the voice of their commander. The voice of the man they trusted, the one they always heard.

They say soldiers train so they can move mechanically even in crisis.

This was exactly that.

“Ah…”

“Ad-Advance! Attack!”

The Ofern soldiers, who had been staring blankly along with the Jisert soldiers, began to move.

The Ofern forces, who had struggled to understand Earl Ofern’s orders, started to act.

‘So that’s what this was!’

The strategists, who hadn’t fully grasped the plan but had moved to execute it, were quick to act.

“Fill the left flank!”

“Recovery Magic is coming in from the left flank.”

“If it benefits our allies, don’t worry about it!”

They ignored even minor concerns.

‘Because it’s now!’

Now that they fully understood Ofern’s command, they had no hesitation.

“Won’t there be another explosion?”

“No! Don’t worry!”

According to the plan, there wouldn’t be a second one. One attack had crushed the enemy’s will and cut down a significant portion of their military power. So—

“Attack! I said attack without worry!”

It was pure offense.

“Uwaaah!”

WHEE-SWISH

With every wave of the flag, the assault intensified.

Even those with deafened ears could still attack the enemies in front of them.

Even if the formation crumbled somewhat, it didn’t matter.

Because morale was already on Ofern’s side!

CRACKLE—

“Stab!”

THUD—

Ofern, who had been pushed back, moved again.

WHOOOOOSH—

Recovery Magic was scattering toward the soldiers.

House Ofern charged forward with spirit!

The large-scale Magic Power Flow: Recovery and Explosion.

Two of the three flows had been clearly identified.

One remained.

Teleport!

Someone was watching the battlefield from right above, waiting for the right moment.

“Hmm…”

Who would have thought someone would be floating up there in the air?

It was Rayrn.

Beside him, Ruan and several mages were also floating.

“It’s intense.”

As Ruan said.

It was intense.

The sight of explosions roaring on the battlefield, of people risking their lives to crush the enemy with Momentum—it was inevitably magnificent.

In the midst of it, the way they devoured each other had a ferocity akin to mythical giant beasts consuming one another.

Rayrn captured that scene in his eyes, calculating endlessly.

Wasn’t it the same in myths?

Beings that shattered common sense, handling giant creatures that seemed untamable, immortal beings.

As if Rayrn were such a being—

‘The right flank is being pushed back. Then—’

He coordinated and controlled the battlefield.

He raised his magic power and moved. Then, at a certain moment, he pulled out the last card he’d saved.

FLAAAAASH—

A massive light illuminated the edge of the battlefield. Within it, figures with thick silhouettes revealed themselves.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes, sir!”

A hundred Iron Fist, led by Gajei, entered the battlefield.

*

“Huff, huff.”

Had he ever set foot on such a battlefield? As a commander responsible for one axis on the battlefield, Gajei couldn’t help but catch his breath.

FLASH—

Light illuminated the surroundings again.

“Captain!”

Another hundred Iron Fist appeared.

CLANK, CLANK.

Heavily armed, they stepped forward with the same tense light as Gajei.

Though they had fought countless real battles against monsters, this battlefield was new to them too.

Yet they did not retreat.

Perhaps it was because of the one word Rayrn had said to them before entering this battlefield.

“I trust you.”

Trust. That one word was enough.

“Hup.”

Gajei took another deep breath of the rough air.

The thick armor. The Momentum of standing together and watching. The moment he saw them, he felt his breathing return to normal.

‘What was he looking at…’

He didn’t know what Rayrn had seen, what he trusted, why he made him the captain.

He still didn’t know if his own vessel was that big. But since Rayrn said he trusted him, that was enough. More than enough.

THUD. THUD.

He stomped his foot.

BANG!!

His massive body shot forward in an instant.

“Ugh!”

CRUNCH—

He swung his sword without mercy at the enemy.

WHOOOOOM—

Soon, the Aura embedded in his sword—

SWOOOOOSH—

Swept through the surroundings. Spreading and spreading, the fragmented Aura—

“Kyaaaah!”

Blew through the area.

A gap was created. Into that gap—

“I’m here too.”

“Don’t overdo it.”

The other Iron Fist filled it.

FLASH— FLASH—

Lights continuously flared. Every time the light flickered, tense Iron Fist entered the battlefield.

Each time, Gajei shouted.

“Charge! Swing as always!”

“…”

Strategy and tactics.

Before overwhelming military power, they became useless. Conversely, overwhelming military power was the best strategy.

Then the Iron Fist—

“Break them!”

CRACKLE—

Weren’t they enough to be the best strategy!

SWOOSH. WHOOOM—

They fought in their own ways. They were Knight-level beings and yet not Knights.

They unfolded stealth—

“…Die.”

“Grrk.”

They cut throats. They did not hesitate to kill their opponents.

Even if they were called cowards for ambushes, they didn’t care. Surviving and growing stronger was the best way for the Iron Fist.

There were also those who endured enemy attacks with their bodies.

BANG.

“Ugh? It didn’t pierce.”

“Pfft.”

BOOM!

The gap closed from the enemy’s attack. Without giving the enemy time to dodge, he swung his hand—

“Guh.”

Crushed its head.

With overwhelmingly trained, hardened bodies. Those who blocked swords with their bodies through External Martial Arts were tyranny itself.

Meanwhile—

“Guh.”

WHEEEK!

Hoden and his squad were swinging their War Swords, charging in all directions.

They were so free-spirited they were chaotic, and the battlefield suited them perfectly.

They were overwhelming.

Also efficient.

With the appearance of the Iron Fist, the battlefield itself changed.

“Uwaaaah!”

The Ofern forces’ spirits soared.

Sudden reinforcements. Nearly a thousand beings surpassing Knight Orders had moved in. They stood at the vanguard and swung their swords for them.

It would be strange if morale didn’t rise.

But on the other side, House Jisert—

“How?!”

Could only panic.

A thousand teleports. Was it easy to teleport a thousand?

Teleporting dozens was done occasionally for noble processions.

But it consumed a significant amount of Magic Stones.

Even with Magic Stones, it was difficult to coordinate that magic power. Moreover—

These had no omen at all.

It was a sudden movement.

‘How? Without a Magic Circle?’

Teleport was possible without Magic Circles on both sides. But to move with a Magic Circle only on one side required twice the effort.

Yet the enemy—

‘They used the magic power here.’

They had used the magic power of this place at the same time as the move.

It was an anomaly. Something impossible was happening.

‘Where did they get the magic power!?’

The source of the magic power was also unknown. As strategists of House Jisert, they had never even dreamed of mobilizing such immense magic power.

It was a sudden change and movement.

But that was just the beginning.

“It’s about time to wrap things up…”

“An omen is occurring.”

“Exactly as calculated. This power was meant to be used this way from the start.”

Rayrn’s planted moves were not for the Explosion, Recovery, or Teleport.

He had used the large-scale magic power without reserve and exerted force in one go for a single purpose. From the center of the battlefield, Rayrn looked at the center.

It was where Duke Jisert and Ofern were constantly exchanging blows.

The most intense spot in the center of the battlefield.

‘He’s holding out longer than expected. But he’s reaching his limit.’

Where Rayrn’s target was. A change was occurring there.

“…”

“Guh…”

Duke Jisert’s movements suddenly slowed.

His face flushed as if he had taken a huge shock.

‘Good.’

It was the moment he had been waiting for.