Episode 124 [ Absolute Firepower – 4 ]
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“…The Minister of Defense contacted me a few hours ago and told me an interesting story.”
The person who was saying that was ‘Hurricane’ Kodo Koshiro, the second ranked Japanese player.
He was currently sitting with the guild executives gathered in the conference room of the [AEN] guild headquarters.
“It looks like the Black Orcs will invade Korea soon, so they asked if I would send troops. They said Korea had requested that they be sent first… Anyway, what they were going to get as compensation was ‘Laputa.’”
Kojiro Kodo grinned as he said that, and the room couldn’t help but be filled with exclamations.
“Wow—Laputa!”
“Is that real?”
Now, this means that the Japanese government directly claimed that it would use this opportunity to obtain permission to use Laputa. In other words, if it participated in the deployment, it would be a huge loss. A very big loss at that… Even if it was Laputa, it would be a huge loss at the moment
. “ Isn’t it the most valuable item, excluding the World Tree?
” So, will we also be able to use Laputa’s features? Wow…”
“No, but is that possible? “Isn’t this just a defensive bluff?”
“That’s right! There’s no way the Korean side would be willing to offer to share Laputa, right?”
Seeing the guild executives’ admiration and suspicion, Kodo Koshiro grinned.
“The country seems to be in ruin, so what’s the big deal about Laputa? “We should sell everything and prepare for war.”
Then, some of them nodded and muttered, “Huh—”.
“And even if it’s not just the Laputa ticket, it will definitely be a huge benefit for us, right?”
“Oh— what else is there?”
“Isn’t history like that? That was decades ago. Is it… the Korean War? Anyway, it seems like our country was able to develop greatly at that time. “This time too, we have a good opportunity.” At that
time,
the screen in front of the conference room came down, turned on, and a satellite image appeared. It seemed to be a gathering place for Black Orcs… The number gathered in one place was estimated at a whopping 13,111.
This time, an exclamation with a different meaning erupts. It was a lament mixed with fear. I couldn’t help but be worried because if the AEN Guild were to send troops, it would mean that I would eventually have to face them.
“No matter who wins this war, Korea will be devastated and the Black Orc Kingdom will also suffer a great blow.”
In response to Kodo Koshiro’s words, a man wearing glasses stepped forward and said,
“Yes, that will happen. Even if Korea has managed to block the 4th wave and a new talent named Lee Hyun-wook has appeared, if we engage in an all-out war with the Black Orcs, the entire country will inevitably be reduced to ruins.”
So, no matter how the war progresses, Korea will inevitably fall.
Additionally, the Black Orc Kingdom, the biggest threat, will also enter hibernation for a while.
In other words, looking at it comprehensively… Japan has an opportunity to seize hegemony in Northeast Asia.
“They’ve been so lucky lately… I guess they’ve been using bad luck. Haha—”
Kodo Koshiro spoke freely about Korea.
In fact, he had no feelings of antipathy at all until recently. ‘ No,
I wasn’t even interested in that country…’
But Lee Hyun-wook… seemed to have changed quite a bit since I met that man.
‘When I think of Lee Hyun-wook’s unlucky face… I can’t sleep. .’
He did not forget the humiliation from the last [Okinawa Unlucky Event].
This time, he planned to return the humiliation several times over.
He stood up and spread his arms.
“Everyone, every ‘war event’ is accompanied by multiple quests. . In other words, the rewards are enormous.”
Kodo Koshiro was already excited about the idea of causing a hurricane to his heart’s content in downtown Seoul.
“-ruler! Please prepare to earn a lot of experience points and items at this national opportunity!”
Like this, there were people all over the world who looked forward to the invasion of Korea by the Black Orc Kingdom.
It was the same across the Pacific Ocean and on the American continent.
Detroit, Michigan, was once developed as an automobile industry, but when the automobile industry collapsed, it was a city that faded and collapsed together. However, recently it was once again thriving as an ‘item military base’.
In addition, the future of Detroit was turning pink as an air-process production plant for [Bluetree Air], a magic mobility company run by Gordon Price, was scheduled to be built.
Still, a limousine was passing through this rough neighborhood where security was still poor.
“Ha… I hope war breaks out in Korea quickly.”
There were two large men in the backseat.
“Are you saying you’re bored because this city isn’t the same anymore? “It’s not good to be too clean.”
When the big guy with short hair and sunglasses complained, the big guy with a beard next to him laughed.
“Will, you bastard! Didn’t I tell you that you can become bigger if you get rid of that brat mentality?”
“Hyung, do you find this boring neighborhood fun? “There was a troll walking in that alley not long ago!”
These were the best tank players in the eastern United States, also known as the ‘Pitbull Brothers.’
Among them, the older brother Harry Bernard was widely known by the nickname ‘Red Berserker’.
“Look, it looks like you’re demolishing a building that you half-destroyed while drinking and wrestling with trolls.”
“Oh, another one of my memories is disappearing… I wonder why time passes so quickly…”
At that time, a woman’s voice came out from the speaker mounted in the car.
– Chairman Harry confirmed the schedule. The next 52 hours. Later, a ‘war’ will begin.
The ‘war’ referred to here was the Black Orc Kingdom’s invasion of Korea.
But what was somewhat strange was that the time when the war would start was talked about with certainty.
“Oh, there are only two days left? “I was sore, but it worked out well!”
“Thanks Hailey, then when can we go to Korea?”
– If all goes according to the current plan, the airship fleet supported by our company is scheduled to depart from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio at 8 a.m. on the 19th in 84 hours, so please take note and prepare. “Well, then, it will take about three days.
” Are you there? Then, in the meantime, do some maintenance—”
“But Chairman Hayley said he would give me a new item. Where is it?”
“Hey, can you please act like a gentleman? “Are you going to drive around in such an expensive car and beg for a gift box?”
“Brother, I assure you that there will not be a single drop of noble blood in our veins.”
At that time, the back seat of the limousine popped open. It was a secret safe mounted in the car.
– Check that suitcase. It was a gift from the Chairman for this operation.
“Oh—!”
Clap—
William Bernard opened the suitcase and put his hand into the subspace pocket inside.
Then he suddenly pulled out something, and it was a huge axe.
Even though it was a limousine, I had no choice but to hit the seat when I took it out of the car.
Jiik—
– Please use the company’s assets sparingly.
“I’m sorry Hayley, but a hero-grade axe… It must be quite useful, right?”
They received a gift from their superiors in preparation for this war and smiled.
“Who was that guy, the troublemaker of Korea… was it Steele Rain?”
“Yes, I heard that that bastard suffered a lot of damage, so we will meet again soon.”
“But you said you wanted that damn big sword he has, right?”
At that, Harry Bernard nodded.
“Yes, I looked into it, but was it a Mogley? I’m somehow attracted to that giant sword.”
“Ugh—did you know you just looked like you were thinking about that Mexican bitch?”
“This bastard… Yeah, honestly, I think I feel almost the same way.”
Harry Bernard usually used a greatsword the size of a human body as his main weapon.
However, the moment he saw Lee Hyun-wook handling ‘Mogley’ on the news, he fell in love.
“When the moment of Order 66 comes, that Big Dick is in his brother’s hands. “You will be able to get in.”
Even otherwise, Harry Bernard intended to glare at Mowglei.
By the way, Order 66… He shook his head as if he couldn’t stop him.
“Don’t call this operation with such a ridiculous nickname. Someone might notice, right?”
“Then that person becomes Obi-Wan Kenobi! Ugh— wouldn’t that be pretty fun too?”
Like this, the whole world was waiting for the war to break out in Korea with different intentions.
***
At this moment, the world’s attention was focused on China’s media outlets. The reason was simple. It was because they had been invited by the Black Orc Kingdom and were broadcasting the ‘Army Gathering Point’ live.
In other words, the Black Orc Kingdom was using human media for propaganda purposes.
– [Breaking News] Black Oak Kingdom Troop Departure Ceremony to be broadcast through Chinese public broadcasting (1st report)
– Black Oak Kingdom uses Chinese public media to promote war with Korea. What is the purpose?
It was bound to be a pretty shocking event for mankind.
This meant that the monsters that were considered barbaric had begun carrying out political maneuvers…
Anyway, Chinese media officials were broadcasting among the Black Orcs.
For them, it would have been too great an opportunity to pass up due to humanity’s antipathy towards monsters.
“Everyone, if you look down from here, you can see the Black Orc army at a glance!”
Liu Yuan, a Chinese Internet broadcaster, went up to the rooftop of a building with his broadcasting team.
Meanwhile, Black Orc warriors were standing to their left and right, holding weapons, as guides and guards.
Perhaps familiar with their murderous gazes, Liu Yuan slyly smiled. The broadcast was in progress.
“Huh… look at that. “To be honest, I think I’m really tired.”
What was once a vast ecological park has now turned into a muddy clearing, with thousands of barbaric flags fluttering wildly along the mounds at the edge of the so-called ‘troop concentration area.’
Ooh oh oh——!
Below, tens of thousands of killing machines are waving their weapons and yelling.
“As far as I know, I heard that there are currently about 15,000 of them!”
Considering a typical army of 15,000, it could be considered an insignificant number.
However, the average level of Black Orc soldiers is estimated to be a whopping 53.
In other words, it was a division-level force composed of 2-3 tier C players. .
This could be seen as an overwhelming force that does not exist in any country.
After focusing on the scene for a while, Liu Yuan gave a signal to the cameraman to take a picture from above.
Soon, the camera slowly rose into focus and a building turned into ruins a short distance away. The forest is captured.
“Do you see over there? “As I showed you before, wyverns fly around like a flock of crows.”
Hundreds of wyverns sitting in a row on the line of that gray skyscraper…
keuh———keuheh——
It was just like a flock of crows perched on the wall. It’s such an unrealistic scene. However, if you look a little closer… you will soon ‘recognize’ the reality and your stomach will instinctively feel chilled.
“I don’t know if this intimidating feeling of being in a tiger’s cage will be conveyed through the camera.”
He shook his head and opened his mouth again with a solemn expression.
“Once again, I feel amazing about our senior players in China. We’ve waged war against these monsters three times, even by attacking them… Even though the restoration of Shanghai failed, it was a great achievement.”
In fact, China could be said to be between this Black Orc Kingdom and Cheolcheon enemy.
But now, this situation was giving them a strange sense of pride.
China was greatly weakened in the aftermath of the Shanghai Restoration War following the second wave.
It is evaluated as the worst attack strategy, but within China, the whole war is being promoted under the leadership of the Communist Party, saying that it was not a failure, but a noble fight fought on behalf of humanity.
It is even believed that the Black Orcs are afraid of the Chinese due to their experiences at the time, and the rumor that they are attacking Korea instead of targeting China is spreading like an established fact.
It was then.
oh oh oh–!
All the Black Orcs present began to shout and stamp their feet at once.
“…Can you hear me? “Suddenly the orcs started to resonate!”
The cameras placed here and there all moved towards somewhere.
“Look there! Another group of wyverns is flying in and there are black orcs on top of them!”
There in the northern sky, black shadows were flying in groups.
Among them, one of the largest wyverns landed on the ‘podium’ prepared in the center of the troop concentration area.
Boom——!
“The black orc riding over there can’t be… “Is this King ‘Stonox’?”
There were ‘boss monster’ level orcs that boasted their majesty during the last Shanghai restoration war.
King Stonox, warrior general Sumakt, shaman Diable, and others were called the ‘Three Black Orcs.’
“Ah! It’s Diable! The mist created by his magic came to Suzhou City and caused great damage!”
One of the three Black Orcs stood on the podium.
It was a scene with considerable meaning.
“He stood on the podium! Could it be that they are trying to announce the start of a war? When you watch movies, don’t you see a high-ranking person come out and give a morale-boosting speech before the troops go out?”
A large black orc covered in black skin, a necklace made of skulls hung around his neck.
When he raised his hand, the Black Orc army that was making a fuss all fell silent.
“…Now, let’s hear what he has to say.”
On the podium, Diable lifted his hood and slowly opened his mouth.
Thanks to some kind of magic, the voice is amplified very loudly.
“We—across the sea—devour—the small land of the humans—”
That blunt declaration is met with fierce shouts.
“We—take control of the floating city—reclaim the ancestors’ relics—”
This time, there’s even a black wyvern. They spread their wings all at once and let out a scream.
“We will—finally—rule this world—”
That was the end.
At first glance, it was just an ignorant speech without much content.
That’s it!
But thanks to the shouts of the Black Orc army that followed, it became truly intimidating. A scene was completed.
Liu Yuan’s face soon came into focus.
His face turned pale.
He hesitated, as if nervous, and then opened his mouth.
“Aren’t I still ranked 291st in the Chinese player rankings? I dare say…”
At that time, hundreds of wyverns behind him take flight at once, casting a dark shadow.
“…It may not be a good idea to fight against Koreans. “You will lose.”
He shook his head strongly.
“If these troops land on Korean soil, what on earth can we do to stop them?”
He shouted in appeal, as if buried in his own sentiments.
However, because all viewers felt what he felt, few people objected.
In fact, no one but Koreans sympathized with Liu Yuan’s words.
The fear that the apocalypse would sweep away everything they love… Korea could not help but feel it.
It was then.
Piiiiii——
A sharp sound comes from somewhere—
“……!”
Liu Yuan shouted, “What are you doing?”, but his voice was drowned out.
The sky-shattering roar silenced even the Black Orc army.
All living beings in this place instinctively raised their heads.
“…….”
A sharp sound echoing from beyond the dark clouds that covered the sky, quickly getting closer.
——!
A single ray of light—it pierced through the dark clouds and plunged vertically.
Even right on top of the huge podium where Dieble was standing—
blah—uh—uh—uh—uh——!
The ground at the edge of the overwhelming force applied to one point trembles and rises.
Kwa-ah-ah-ah-ah–!
An apocalypse so called an earth wave soars tens of meters high.
And sweep away the Black Orc Corps that were stuck close to each other.
That wasn’t the end.
A powerful shock wave explodes deep in the ground where the flash struck.
Ku—gu—gu—gu—gu——!
It sublimates into an earthquake and shakes everything in the area to the root.
“…uh? “What the hell!”
The moment the storm-like shock wave arrived, Liu Yuan covered his entire body with a magic shield.
“Oops!”
Even so, my body floated up and I rolled on the floor and got up.
“Damn, what kind of sudden lightning is this…”
He shook his head to shake off the beeping tinnitus.
He then helped the cameraman who was staggering right in front of him to his feet.
“Fuck you, come to your senses!”
In order not to lose viewers, the broadcast must continue even under these circumstances.
“Damn it—no, don’t film there!”
“yes?”
“The sky is the sky! I want you to take a picture of that place!”
He intuitively found the scene that needed to be captured on camera at this moment.
The place where the attack originated—there was something in that dark cloudy sky.
“Women, right now…something is flying in the sky!”
His blank eyes peered through the dark clouds that filled the sky.
“So someone preemptively attacked the Black Orc army!”
And that first blow was clearly successful.
“Maybe it killed Dieble!”
It didn’t make sense for such a powerful boss monster to die so pointlessly.
However, after being struck by that unidentified blow, the platform disappeared completely.
All that was left in that place was a huge pit… a meteorite ball.
“I don’t understand either. What’s happening now…”
But the Black Orcs began to respond skillfully.
Even if they didn’t expect the attack at this moment, it wasn’t that they weren’t prepared for it.
“Ugh—it looks like dozens of shamans are casting massive defensive spells!”
There must have been hundreds of shamans present here, and
they all raised their hands and began to chant some kind of spell.
Woo-woo–!
Then, black smoke billowed out and tangled around, creating a huge ‘dome’.
Blah blah blah——!
“Wow! Have you ever seen a defense magic that big?”
In the blink of an eye, that huge dome covered this entire troop concentration area.
It felt like I was entering a domed stadium… no, it was several times bigger than that.
But—
peeeeee——
that sharp sound. It rings again.
That disaster is coming once again.
“Huh!” It’s flying again! And will the dome be able to block it?——”
Liu Yuan shouted at the top of his voice, but his voice was drowned out as expected.
However, only the scenes captured by the camera are effectively conveyed to the viewers.
What seemed like a flash of light at first revealed itself the moment it touched the dome’s shield.
That… surprisingly, was a sword.
Jijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijijiji———
The sword hit the dome—stretching the surface of the dome and digging inward.
It is a scene as if the vinyl film is being pressed down strongly with a finger.
In other words, the moment it reaches a certain critical point… your finger will break through the plastic membrane.
Twa—t——!
Just like this…
“Ah—it breaks!”
Eventually, the huge dome collapses.
“Oh, wait a minute! If this happens, the Black Orc army…”
It was as if they were defenseless exposed to the attacks pouring down from the sky.
Geu uh uh——!
Amid angry shouts that shook the ground, all cameras focused on the dark cloudy sky, and
soon something began to slowly descend from within the dark clouds, as if something was sinking.
“Ah…”
That was the world’s most famous airship…Friedwen.
Then dozens of metal boxes appeared through the dark clouds around it and were embroidered in the sky.
Woo woo woo——
And among the countless war weapons, there is only one human image floating peacefully.
I could tell without zooming in on his face.
Who is the one man who can create this phenomenon?…
“Steel Rain—!”
Immediately afterwards, his left hand reached towards the ground.
