AN: Thank you to AHAD123 for another Fav. This should be the last of the two chapters I promised to JoshHCA.
Historia Shoukan Chapter 16
Might of the Alliance
Date: December 15th, HS 2069/CC 1639
Location: Tormeus, Topa Kingdom, Zeroth Civilization Area
It was a chilly morning.
As the atmosphere rapidly cooled due to radiative cooling, the temperature of the air went lower than that of the surrounding bodies of water, causing large amounts of fog to appear.
Through a slight clearing in the fog, the soldiers on lookout spotted a man shrouded in a dark cloud. Those that had good eyes immediately recognized who it was.
"I-It's the Demon Lord! The Demon Lord is coming! And both the Red Ogre and Blue Ogre are with him!"
One of them screamed on to the manacomm.
Knight Avon, the commander on duty of the rapid-response unit, immediately got up and put on his armor as he trembled with excitement. He has had a bad hunch since last night when he was up on duty. However, this was no time to complain.
"They didn't seem to take well to our operation yesterday. Where are they?"
His vice commander replied.
"At the time of discovery, they were 1.5km away, at the square at the end of the great road. Right now, they're walking towards us! We expect them to reach the gates in ten minutes! I think we should wake up the rest of the soldiers and then enter into battle once our formations are set!"
"No... Even if they're indeed the Demon Lord, Red Ogre, and Blue Ogre, they're only few individuals. We in the rapid-response unit are 200 strong and we also have several magic swordsmen with us. Let's go. We must not let them reach and destroy the castle gates!"
The vice commander's face became gloomy.
"But even the warriors of old could only beat the trolls and giant ogres. Even then, it took them all their power to just seal the Demon Lord away. He is much more powerful than we could imagine if we can't even beat the ogres!"
"We don't know his defensive capabilities. If we spread out and attack him, we may find a weakness. This is no longer the mythic era as we have the numbers and our tactics have gotten better. Not only are we 200 in number, but we'll also be coming at him with multiple swords at once. It'll be the same even with 2,000 men, no?"
"Uh... Indeed, but..."
"If so, then we'll sacrifice ourselves so that we could give the others a clue as to how to do it. What we need right now is to buy time to probe for a weakness. Ready yourself for the sake of humanity!"
The vice commander understood that Avon was motivated by the choice of having a meaningful death. Satisfied to perish together with such a commander, the rapid-response unit prepared to set out.
Place: Topa Paradox Engine
The leaders of Yatagarasu Brigade has been assembled.
Topa Kingdom is located at Northern Hemisphere of this world, so the temperature outside is low. Fortunately, GUF already have a Paradox Engine stationed there, so there is no worries. Just as the leaders were about to start a new day, they got a report that the Demon Lord Nosgorath had appeared alongside the Red Ogre and Blue Ogre on the main street between Minaisa's town square and the castle gate.
Checking the time, Yasei realized that it was still early in the morning, not late enough for the sun to start poking out.
"Report! The Demon Lord Nosgorath has emerged into Minaisa's square alongside the Red Ogre and Blue Ogre! It appears that the Topan army unit on duty is about to make contact! They requested us to dispatch immediately!"
"So he came... Guess we managed to piss him off by eliminating the giant ogres and trolls."
"That is still within our expectations. Still, I can't help but feel that there's more to this."
"... Did someone just said that the Red Ogre and Blue Ogre are present? If that's true, then the Topans wouldn't stand a chance."
"Let's not forgot what IJA 10th Army and IJN Eastern Fleet experienced back in 1943 to 1945."
After discussing it a little longer, it's decided that the Manticore will be unleashed.
"Iseya, deploy the Manticore immediately. Reimu, you and me will go as well. It's time to end Ravernal's incursion in this region once and for all!"
"Roger."
"Got it."
Just when the three of them about to depart, a loud war cry and the earth-shaking stomping of hundreds of soldiers shook Castle Tormeus.
"LET'S GO!"
Dun dun dun dun dun dun
"Demon extermination on Sunday... Dang..." (Yasei)
"Let's just get this over with." (Reimu)
"May the Topans' valiant efforts be rewarded." (Iseya)
(AN: Yep, I checked. December 15th 2069 is indeed Sunday.)
It appears that the 200 soldiers of the rapid-response unit have set out from the castle gates.
Place: Nearby the Castle Gate
"Let's goooooo!"
A noble hailing from the north, knight Avon sprinted with his 200 men towards the Demon Lord, Red Ogre and Blue Ogre 500m away from the castle gate. The rivets of their horses' horseshoes kicked up the compacted snow on the ground which flew across the dark of the early morning. Their opponent stood alone. With enough luck, they should be able to overwhelm them with numbers.
The Demon Lord, Nosgorath, was radiating dark magic, as if he was filled to the brim with black energy. He truly was a beast to be reckoned with–one that not even the legendary brave warriors of old could defeat. With him radiating an unbelievably immense presence, if Avon doesn't continue to encourage his men, they'd all be overcome with terror and freeze on the spot.
However, suddenly, as if to rile up those fears, a huge number of goblins, orcs and ogres appeared from behind the buildings that lined the great road and formed a wall behind the Topan knights.
"W-What the?!"
"An ambush... Maybe a double envelopment?! How could magical beasts possibly use such tactics?!"
Avon was surprised.
There were hardly any instances of magical beasts forming groups on their own. It was certain that the Demon Lord controlled them, but it usually came with the idea that the demons would just follow him around and them, who are not really intelligent, being used to effectively carry out tactics was unheard of. There were naturally no precedents of this where magical beasts would act like they do right now and the mythologies were devoid of such instances.
But then they should have noticed that the Demon Lord was intelligent, especially way back when he would take his time eating the civilians as he treated them like hostages.
"Grrrrrr!"
"Hissssss!"
There were more than 150 ogres, orcs and goblins hurling unpleasant war cries at them as they surrounded the 200-strong rapid-response unit. This was no doubt an envelopment tactic.
While all of this is happening, the Red Ogre and Blue Ogre move behind the Demon Lord.
"We can't go back anymore! We still have the upper hand in numbers! Let's break past this wall and let the Demon Lord have it!"
"YEAAAAAHHH!"
The cries of the knights made the magical beasts waver a bit from intimidation.
Then, the knights and the beasts clashed.
As the blunt sounds continued to ring out, some of the knights mowed down the beasts on horseback, while some were taken down from their steeds and killed. Others meanwhile were thrown off, but continued to fight the beasts on foot. Swords clashed all around as screams could be heard coming from both sides. The fight between the knights and the beasts have devolved into a free for all.
The vice commander, who was a magic swordsman, cut down an orc that had been troubling his troops, slicing through its body like a hot knife through butter. His sword was engulfed in magical embers, which glowed bright orange both from the flames and red-hot steel blade, allowing it to easily cut through the flesh of a sturdy beast like an orc. Everybody recognized his duty to be the one to slay the comparatively strong beasts that are difficult for a regular knight to deal with.
Seeing a Topan knight slay orcs and ogres one after the other, the Demon Lord smiled. He unleashed tremendous amounts of magical power, letting forth an attack with which not even Malastras's attacks could compare to.
"Powerless lower races... How pitiful."
He reached his hand out towards the unfolding struggle between the Topan knights and the beasts. Dark flames emerged from the tip of his pitch-black hand, flying around him in a serpentine swirl as it amassed into a fireball above his head.
I open this verse, welcoming the dead silence. By the time thou hast heard this gospel, ashes will dance on the earth. Be devoured by the darkness, thou must cast thine shadows! Shine forth, my envoy, for the skies ahead are still dark!
The dark fireball took the form of a bird as the Demon Lord chanted.
"Be embraced by the darkness of hell and let the flames seep into your soul!"
At what sounded like an ending verse, the massive bird clad in dark flames flew off from the Demon Lord.
"What the?!"
By the time the vice commander reacted, it was already too late.
"GAAAAAA!"
"EEEEKKKK!"
The bird flew circles around the battlefield, setting those that are in it on fire. This was a wide area-of-effect attack that only the Demon Lord could use. The hellfire not only cleansed the area of Topans, but also the magical beasts that were supposedly under his command. The snow that had fallen to the earth were all vaporized, leaving only ashes littering the earth.
It all happened in a flash.
None of the knights were left as even their horses were vaporized.
"What in the world..."
Those on the walls that have seen what had happened were shocked by the Demon Lord's power.
"Hmph... I have lost so many underlings. At least those two are still with me. Alright. Let's summon someone with a little more sturdiness."
The Demon Lord, without any particular feelings, muttered as he took a look around. This time, he raised both of his hands slowly from his hips up to eye level as he started chanting.
Beside life and death lies the promised word. Stay silent thou must not; laugh in madness! Be born, thou who hast killed the lord! The reason for all creation has come forth!
"Come, Ancient Kaiser Golem!"
The road parted as the very earth itself rose, resulting in a mass of boulder that then raised its head. Before long, it took the form of a man that took slow steps as it stood upright.
"I-It's huge! What the hell?!"
The Topan soldiers on overwatch were beyond amazed.
Even the topmost mage that possesses the highest levels of magical power known to man could only summon a golem that was 2m tall. The Demon Lord, on the other hand, was able to summon a 17m tall golem. When it comes to volume, this was much, much, much more massive. The power of an attack that comes from this gigantic lump of rock is unfathomable.
Place: Topa Paradox Engine
"Hey, Alice. Thoughts?"
"Hm?"
Both Marisa and Alice were looking at the Ancient Kaiser Golem that Nosgorath summoned. All in all, none of the leaders present showed any concern. The dollmaster immediately compares it with her Goliath Alpha.
"That golem, duh. Thoughts?"
"Well, Goliath Alpha can deal with it alone."
"Dang... I need a Super Boss Golem for that..."
"Both you and Patchouli can replace the losses, right?"
"Yeah, I suppose so."
Patchouli merely sighs as she heard their conversation while reading the book she brought with her. She then decided to join in.
"Hypothetically, if each of us are the one being sent to deal with Nosgorath and his ogre lieutenants (Red and Blue) instead, what will you bring with you?"
As expected, each of the Magus Trio have different answers.
"A Super Boss Golem and two Boss Golems for me." (Marisa)
"Maybell, Goliath Alpha, Shanghai Alpha, and Hourai Alpha." (Alice)
"In my case, that would be a Raziel Mech and two Sarakiel Mechs." (Patchouli)
(AN: That Super Boss and Boss golems came from PatchCon, while Raziel and Sarakiel Mechs are hybrids of Mecha Patchouli (Raziel) from Mega Mari and Robo Patchoulis (Sarakiel) from DynaMarisa 3D plus Seraph Mech (Raziel) and Gate Guardian Droids (Sarakiel) from C&C Zero Hour Contra.)
The soldiers on top of the gate began using small cannons given by the Alliance that were mounted on the walls as a substitute for their lack of air power to attack the colossal golem. These were originally meant for the ogres and orcs, as well as magical beasts that have clumped into groups, so their ammunition were mostly iron balls. However, even as these found their marks on the colossal golem, they were only able to chip off rocks on its surface while it continued to advance as if nothing happened.
"Grr... They're not effective!"
"Stop with the complaints! Keep on hitting it!"
The iron balls were successively fired at the golem. Despite the high number of hits, they were useless in stopping the massive, walking figure of rock. Not only is its size and density better than the golems that the best mage could produce, its stone was far harder too.
"Even normal golems should have crumbled under our attacks... So this is the Demon Lord!"
The golem's advance hardly faltered. At this rate, the castle wall will be destroyed, not to mention the entirety of Tormeus. With it comes the fall of the capital and the barriers around it, then the entirety of Philades and then humanity itself.
Then...
"Excuse our tardiness."
A group of ten figures clad in black robes and wearing golden rings on their heads have climbed up onto the walls.
"T-They're-!"
"They're the Royal Battle Mage Force!"
The Royal Battle Mage Force, Topa's proud super elite unit of mages that are said to be even more powerful than the brave warriors of old, now stood on top of the walls.
"Such is the size of our target! Everyone! Concentrate all of your magical power! We're gonna blow away this massive golem along with the Demon Lord! All of you down there, get down!"
The leader of the Royal Battle Mage Force appealed to the soldiers on the walls.
Both Yasei and Reimu merely shook their head, knowing full well about the plan. This is why the Union borrowed a Manticore tank from UN Military for this occasion.
"Iseya, Drive to the battlefield. We'll follow behind you."
"Roger."
All ten of the mages then started chanting.
Emerging out of the great sea, its figure is hollow; heavier than rock but lighter than the moon; A voiceless cry that bores right into the greatest tree! Offer it all to the venerable man whose ravenousness knows no bounds, for his bride shall birth heroes!
"LIGHTNING TEMPEST!"
Dark clouds enveloped the entire sky as the air swirled into a vortex before finally forming into a tornado. The powerful gust threw up earth, snow, and ice alike, causing frictional electricity to build up. Eventually these became lightning, which struck down on the golem and on the place where the Demon Lord was standing.
"Woah..."
"A-Amazing..."
The soldiers on the walls gazed at the countless streaks of lightning that chaotically yet beautifully flashed all around. This relentless powerful force must have been the work of the Royal Battle Mage Force, the ones who were said to be much more powerful than the brave warriors of old.
The tornado raged on, throwing out the earth and snow that it had picked up. However, the soldiers could still make out the contour of the colossal golem walking towards them, which filled them with dread once more. The golem, together with the Demon Lord, emerged as if nothing had happened. Some of the golem's stone edifices were chipped off with some burn marks that were left behind by the lightning strikes. Still, it seems as if the destructive force of the tornado wasn't enough.
"I-It did nothing?!"
The ten mages collapsed where they stood. Seeing that they were out of breath, everyone knew that they had depleted all of their magical power just to summon the tornado. It was only natural for them to be tired as they had cast such a powerful spell with only ten individuals.
As the Demon Lord appeared into view once more, they could see him once more piling up enormous amounts of magical power. He was as dark as before when he casted the hellfire spell, terrifying the Topan soldiers on the walls. It was likely that the very same dark hellfire bird that reduced the knights to ashes earlier was going to appear once more.
"Did you think that simple gales and lightning strikes could defeat me? No matter the era, you insects will always be insolent! Go forth, golem!"
Receiving orders from the Demon Lord, the 17m tall Kaiser Golem trudged onwards to the gate that connected Minaisa to Castle Tormeus.
If the gate falls, the massive Demon Army, which still has a significant number of magical beasts left, would flood into the castle. On top of that, there's the colossal golem, whose size and hardness were above that of a magical beast's.
There was no stopping the Demon Lord and his army.
Everyone was now convinced that humanity has lost.
Vrooooom
... Up until they heard the roar of iron land dragons that Historia Alliance uses.
Place: Vicinity of Manticore Superheavy Tank
By the time Topan Royal Battle Mage Force had cast its spell, GUF Nosgorath Subjugation Unit had finished their preparations to set out. Some of the leaders decided to join as well. Iseya naturally is commanding the Manticore tank with Lucy and Izayoi joining her. The others are Hotaru inside the Hakutaku tank, Reisen inside the Artemis tank, and Hiroshi who is inside the lead Bullet Curtain. There are 5 Bullet Curtains total.
"Raise the gate, please!"
Yasei gestured over to the soldiers manning the gate.
Creaaaaak
The heavy gates were raised, revealing the monstrous, five-store-tall, rock figure coming to them.
Castle Tormeus's walls were 20m tall.
Fortunately for the Union, this isn't the first time they saw a huge enemy like this. Instead of being frightened, the Outsiders inside the Manticore showed resolute expression, ready to face the golem.
"Hera to Artemis. Codename Colossus detected."
"Artemis to Hera. Affirmative. This should be a good target for the Manticore."
Hearing Lucy (Hera) and Iseya (Artemis) talking like that, Hotaru decided to butt in with the same talking manner.
"Jericho here. I'm pretty sure that the Magus Trio have a fields day discussing about it. But for now, we need to go."
Back outside, Moah tells Yasei about what he knows regarding the Ancient Kaiser Golem.
"Zen Captain Sugaku! There's a core right in the middle of where the golem's chest would be which functions as its source of power! If you destroy it, it should no longer be able to keep cohesion over its body and collapse!"
"Acknowledged. Thanks for the reminder, Sir Moah."
Yasei then forwarded the information to the Manticore crew.
"This is Sirius to all units. We already know what kind of enemy we're facing right now, but some reminder wouldn't hurt. Artemis, Jericho, Soldier, listen carefully. The golem's power source is in its chest area. Use the cannons to take it out of the fight. Then focus your fire on Nosgorath. Understood?"
"Artemis here. Directive confirmed."
"Jericho here. Leave them to us."
"Soldier here. Understood, Sirius."
"Good. Shaman, once Red Ogre and Blue Ogre showed themselves, we'll execute "Red Oni - Blue Oni" tactic. We will let the mobile units deal with Nosgorath once the golem is down. Do you have any objections?"
"None, Sirius. I assume that we will know once Nosgorath made his move."
"My thoughts exactly."
"Alright. Count me in."
"Oh, and Shadow? Keep the rest of the unit informed about Nosgorath's movements."
"Wilco, Sirius."
Unexpectedly, Reimu decided to contact Marisa, who is currently inside the Paradox Engine.
"Enchanter! Keep tight watch on us and don't hesitate to intervene should the situation calls for it! Are we clear?"
"Gotcha!"
It's decided.
As agreed beforehand, the tanks will take on both Nosgorath and Ancient Kaiser Golem, while Yasei and Reimu will take on Blue Ogre and Red Ogre respectively should they appear. The Bullet Curtains will stay on support role for better combat assessment. One by one, the vehicles passed the gate. The Subjugation Unit finally departs.
Nosgorath was satisfied with the sight of the Ancient Kaiser Golem advancing. With this, they will lay waste to the fortified city that had stood on their path, allowing them to continue with their incursion into the continent. Tormeus was surrounded by a blanket of coniferous forest, making large scale maneuvers from their force of demons extremely difficult. This was especially true for the Scarlet Dragon, which was left behind in Grameus so that its strength could be preserved.
The Kaiser Golem which he had summoned was a replica of the "Bipedal Ground Unit" that the nation of the Demon Emperor (Ravernal Empire) had produced. No matter how organized humanity is in its attacks against it, it did not yield an inch. Still, it was unprecedented for the giant ogres and trolls to be defeated. It appears that the power wielded by humanity has advanced far more than he initially thought. However, looking back at the magic cast by the elves on the walls, he felt as if nothing had changed from back then. The level of magic used by the elves were enough to exhaust their magical power. In comparison to the brave warriors of old that had stood against him, who possessed true power, these elves were small fry.
It was then a good decision to just allow the Ancient Kaiser Golem to run over the castle. Its sheer power alone should be able to destroy it.
However, Nosgorath was rattled by a strange reaction in the air. Turning his head to watch what was going on, he saw the gates of the castle open.
"Hm?"
When Nosgorath saw what lay behind the now opened gate, he immediately recognized what it was.
"I-Is that...?! I-Impossible!"
Poking out of the steel box was a single horn, which he knew could spout out explosive magic.
"A-An iron dragon of the Sun God's Emissaries?!"
Memories from deep in the recesses of his memories returned to him.
Before, when he invaded Philades as the first step in his world conquest, the races were still weak, and so he was able to swallow the entirety of the continent in the blink of an eye. In a show of brashness, the races formed into an alliance to resist him, but since they used feeble weapons on top of clumsy deployments, they were no match for him and his Demon Army. It was only the magical power of the elves that they could not look down upon and they feared that they would be a menace later on, so they deemed it necessary to thoroughly exterminate them. They chased the elves all the way back to Rodenius using sea monsters that allowed them to cross over the great oceans. There, at the heart of the continent, the races' alliance deployed. Breaking through this defensive line, the elves were cornered inside their Divine Forest. If they wiped them out there, the Demon Army's victory would have been absolute.
However, a mysterious force suddenly appeared. Called by the elves as the "Emissaries of the Sun God", they annihilated more than half of the Demon Army with powers beyond imagination. They were obviously no match for the Demon Emperor's forces, but they were far too powerful against them at the time. One of the things they brought were a legion of iron land dragons, which the Demon Army found indestructible.
"Damned lower races... No wonder the giant ogres and trolls were defeated! They've summoned those damned Emissaries again!"
Yasei merely snickers when he heard about it.
"Damn right, Nosgorath. We have returned."
However, the iron dragon before his eyes was much taller and more level than the iron dragons from his memories. The horn it uses to shoot explosive magic was far longer and its body was far bulkier. Not only that, there are now multiple horns embedded in said iron dragon. Looking further, he also noticed that there are two person flying behind the iron dragon, not to mention several smaller iron dragons behind it.
"Tsk! Golem! Crush those iron boxes over there! Red Ogre! Blue Ogre! Deal with the annoying pests for me!"
Noticing the ogre lieutenants started moving, Yasei and Reimu immediately speed up.
"Now!"
"Now!"
"Red Oni - Blue Oni"!
Soon enough, each of them hits their respective targets with their massive speeding momentum, bringing the ogre lieutenants out of the battlefield.
The golem's stoney mass grumbled as it turned, raising one of its legs high up into the air. Just as it was about to rise it up further...
Bam!
The lead iron dragon had used its explosive magic.
"That must be the golem's core. Target locked. AP rounds loaded. Ready... FIRE!"
The Manticore superheavy tank turned its turret up towards the Ancient Kaiser Golem before firing its main cannons. The dual 155mm cannons fired their AP rounds, which then found its mark dead center of the golem's chest area, penetrating past the hardened rock surface. Piercing deep into its innards, the round then flew out from the other side, creating a hole far larger than the hole it created on the other side. The Ancient Kaiser Golem, with its core destroyed, crumbled into a mess of boulders and earth.
It all happened in an instant.
In a single attack, the Alliance's Manticore was able to defeat the golem that the Topan soldiers and the mage force were not able to take down.
Silence reigned over the vicinity.
"..."
The soldiers on the walls, seeing what had happened from start to finish, could not say a word at the immense power that they had witnessed.
The titan of boulders continued to crumble when...
Fwoosh!
The Demon Lord had jumped 50m up into the air, emerging from behind the crumbling golem.
"Hm?"
From the monitors inside the Manticore, Iseya noticed that Nosgorath prepared a spell. Seeing that, the Topan soldiers broke into a frenzy.
"It's that hellfire spell! The one that annihilated the rapid-response unit!"
The Demon Lord began chanting.
I open this verse, welcoming the dead silence. By the time thou hast heard this gospel–
"Forbidden Launchers ready. Target: Demon Lord Nosgorath. Fire!"
The Guards garrisoned inside the Bullet Curtains aimed their Forbidden Launchers at the Demon Lord and fired it at Hiroshi's command. In comparison to Fire Cannons, it was much better in frontal interception and instantaneous engagement. The flame projectiles emerged and flew straight for the Demon Lord that was in the middle of chanting.
"?!"
Seeing many things come at him at ultrahigh speeds, the Demon Lord interrupted his attack spell and cast a defensive barrier. Around his person emerged a translucent wall of gold-colored light.
Boom!
The flame projectiles found their marks, exploding in a flash of white smoke.
Back at the Paradox Engine, Vaati alongside the Magus Trio were discussing the battle between Nosgorath's ogre lieutenants (Red Ogre and Blue Ogre) and the Union's top two Fighters (Yasei and Reimu). It must be known that the latter side didn't use any Spell Cards or even fire any danmakus, yet still able to hold their own regardless.
"I'm pretty sure they can do much better than this." (Marisa)
"True, but they opt to beat the ogres at their own game." (Vaati)
"Knowing them, they're more than capable of doing so." (Patchouli)
"That's our Captain and Champion for you." (Alice)
Given the fact that both Yasei and Reimu have countless incident resolvings on their bag (the former only started since 2019 while the latter already doing it since 2002), it wouldn't be surprising that they have large experience accumulations to back their combat capabilities. Furthermore, that's not mentioning the wars they took part in since the Alliance formation in 2040.
(AN: Thank God for countless Touhou fangames because I couldn't think of any other way to give Yasei a path to join incident resolving except this one. Reimu is still the most experienced one though, which is why she's the Champion.)
The Demon Lord was engulfed in explosive gale, pushing him out of the air at a speed greater than if he were to freefall. Landing among the remains of the Ancient Kaiser Golem, throwing up earth and dust as he hit the great road below. Now extremely infuriated, the Demon Lord slowly stood back up from the dust and glared at the Emissaries in front of him.
"Target hit! ... He's not down! Keep attacking! All units, fire at will!"
After eliminating the ferals from the vicinity, the Guards inside Bullet Curtains immediately surround the Demon Lord and opened fire with their Plasma Rifles and Yin-Yang Rifles supplied by Marisa.
Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink!
"Hmm... Looks like the rifles did little damage against him."
The talisman and needle rounds fired from the Yin-Yang Rifles found their marks on Nosgorath, but they merely bounced off his seemingly steel-like skin. There does seem to be an effect, but the Demon Lord angrily continued his advance towards the castle gates.
"Shadow here. The rifles have little effect on him. Over."
"Artemis to Shadow. Reposition and keep the ferals at bay. Hera, set the autocannons to fire at the Demon Lord."
"This is Hera. Copy that."
Ta! Ta! Ta! Ta! Ta! Ta!
The 30mm autocannons mounted on the Manticore Tank started firing on Nosgorath.
"Grr! What power..."
The Demon Lord stopped in his advance as he put up another defensive barrier. Since the barrier and the force of the 30mm rounds cancelled each other, it would seem that the defensive barrier was holding up.
"This is Hera. The autocannons are countered by that defensive barrier. Over."
"Artemis to Hera, keep up with the suppression. Jericho, Soldier, move up next to the Manticore. Load the HE rounds and open fire."
Ta! Ta! Ta! Ta! Ta! Ta!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Manticore's autocannons keep firing, and soon both Hakutaku and Artemis tank fire their cannons.
The golden barrier became even brighter as the Demon Lord's face started showing signs of fatigue. While he was able to maintain the barrier, it seems that he was slowly starting to get hit by rounds that break past.
Every round that hit sent him back inch by inch.
His feet began to sink into the ground.
The sounds of cannon fire and explosions overlapped, producing ear-breaking sounds within the vicinity. The smoke from the exploding rounds threw up dust all around, the sight of which disheartened the ferals that had come out to attack.
The Manticore turned its autocannons towards the Demon Lord as it loaded the next rounds. Lucy then mutters to herself.
"Well, I've faced plenty of crazy BOWs. But an actual ancient relic like you? This is literally my first time, you know?"
The Demon Lord that reflected in the middle of the display was shining bright gold from the defensive barrier, which allowed him to withstand the rounds that were raining down on him.
"Too bad we can't capture you. Well, hasta la vista, baby!"
Bam!
The Manticore 155mm dual cannons fired.
The AP rounds directly hit the Demon Lord, penetrating past the defensive barrier. After the rounds had violently eviscerated his body, the shock wave from the blast threw back several ferals while the rounds themselves flew far, hitting the great auditorium in front of the square and finally landing in a building behind it, destroying it in the process.
Silence.
Gunfire ceased as friend and foe alike stood in shock. They have witnessed the Demon Lord, who not even the legendary brave warriors of old could defeat, succumb to an attack with immense power that rendered his recovery capabilities null. Everyone besides the GUF personnel were at a loss for words.
"F-F-Fools..."
The head of the Demon Lord spoke as it rolled on the ground.
"Mission completed. Show them, Reimu."
Soon after, two other heads rolled on the ground as well. Turns out, it's the Red Ogre and Blue Ogre's heads!
"Even the Red Ogre and the Blue Ogre are killed..."
Moah said in shock. A second later, both Yasei and Reimu returned.
The Demon Lord no longer had a body and its throat was obliterated in the attack. Yet it was still able to speak.
"Fools... Emissaries of the Sun God... Not once, but twice you foiled my ambitions! Heed my words, insects! The revival of the nation of the Demon Emperor, Ravernal Empire, is close at hand! Your puny world will soon be no more! Against the overwhelming army of the Demon Emperor, you will all be enslaved! Ha! Ha! Ha... Ha..."
The resentment-filled voice slowly got weaker. Before long, the Demon Lord's head turned to stone before crumbling entirely.
The remaining ferals suddenly started crying out loud, which caused GUF personnel to raise their guard. However, since the head of their 'hive mind' has ceased to exist, the ferals simply scattered, retreating back north to Grameus.
"W-We defeated him..."
Having seen part of the fight, Gai muttered as he watched from atop the walls. Since he didn't see the iron dragons at work during the rescue operation, he had doubts regarding its power. However, now that he has seen it for himself, he no longer harbored any skepticism. From the get go, these people were the hope for Topa.
"What a... What a battle..."
Moah, the Topan soldiers, and the knights were witnesses to a whole new legend being born.
"VICTORY!"
Yells of exhilaration rang out from atop the castle walls before spreading to the Minaisa civilians that they had rescued.
Tormeus was engulfed in the joy of its people in their victory.
The legendary Demon Army that had suddenly appeared was at long last routed by the will of the Topan soldiers, backed with Historia firepower. The remnants of the army had fled, but Topa lost 3,500 men in the process.
It was a hard fought battle.
After rejoicing, those that had survived were silenced by the memory of what they had lost. Lining the streets of the great road were the remains of Topan knights and soldiers–their countrymen. They had laid down their lives to save them and to protect their people, their town, and their world. The surviving soldiers then ran out to properly give these fallen men their burial rites. Some of them also ran out to dispose of the remains of demons and beasts that had been killed in the fighting.
Still, they were able to defend their homes.
The citizens of Topa had beaten back the Demon Lord's advance before he could even step foot in Philades. Now freed from the legendary terror, they felt a massive sense of accomplishment in the endeavor. Sunlight emerged from the dark clouds to the south as if to honor the soldiers that had fought; as if to reach out to those that had fallen.
The events of today will surely go down in Topan history.
The deeds of the GUF echoed throughout the populace, erasing any and all skepticism that had lingered. Since then, the Topans grew ever closer to Historia in friendship.
"Finally."
Moah patted Gai on the shoulder as he exhaled deeply.
"Yeah... What a fight this was. Those Historia guys sure are a teeny bit too strong though."
Gai openly praised the Alliance, who had weapons that were far different from what they had. Above all, he was deeply impressed by the high level of their tactics. The Demon Army's strength was something that they could not have dealt with by themselves. The Alliance have vividly shown their skill in the rescue of the survivors in Minaisa and their courage in fighting the ogres and the Demon Lord by not taking a step back. Gai saw this as something that was brought about by their training.
"... Let's get a drink, shall we?"
Moah asked, out of character.
"Huh? Ah, yeah. If we don't get to drink today of all days, we might as well never drink! Let's go get Elei in on it! We're not the only ones that had a bad couple of weeks."
"Yeah. There's lots to catch up on."
Moah and Gai, after all this time, finally managed to smile.
"Oh yeah, one more thing."
"What?"
"Get your hands off Elei."
"Huh?"
Gai never forgot to warn his potential rival to back off. Noticing it, Reisen then pats his shoulder with a smile.
"Good for you."
"Thank you."
Appreciating the gesture, Gai then salutes Reisen, who returns it in kind.
An inn in downtown Tormeus
Intelligence officer Rydorka Olifant of Holy Milishial Empire, a Superpower from First Civilization Area, the strongest nation in Shoukan Dimension, was shaking in terror in one of the rooms of a certain inn at downtown Tormeus. He had witnessed the return of the Demon Lord Nosgorath, a relic of Ravernal Empire. In order to confirm how powerful he was and what kind of magic he used, he slipped into the general populace of Topa. This was why he was here.
The toughness of the two legendary beasts, the Red Ogre and the Blue Ogre, were amazing. Filled to the brim with magical energy, they'd continuously apply it to maintain a weak field of recovery magic around their bodies, allowing them to fight like they did. Seeing them charge through the mass of knights and tossing them about as if they were pawns gave him the feeling of death.
However, even these ogres were defeated. While he wasn't able to confirm for himself what had happened when they were defeated, it seems that they were slain by the soldiers from a nation called Historia Shoukan Dominion. Still, what proved far more troublesome than them was the Demon Lord. He was already a threat merely by his own ability to control the unruly magical beasts. Then, he possessed the ability to cast black hellfire, which he used to instantly eviscerate 200 knights. There was nothing left of them, not even bones. Just thinking about it made him shiver to the core. The brave warriors of old must have also lost faith against the sheer power of the Demon Lord.
The Demon Lord on his own is a nuisance, but it managed to create a golem that was reminiscent of and was about the same size as the "Bipedal Ground Unit" of Ravernal Empire. It's not known if its abilities were as described in the ancient texts, but it's believed that with the amount of magical power the Demon Lord has, the massive golem could be controlled.
However, Historia used a weapon called a "tank" that managed to defeat this golem in a single strike. If the task had been left to the magic ships of the Holy Milishial Empire, then they would have also easily fulfilled it. However, it was currently impossible for the technology in the empire to mount magical circuits in a land vehicle. The output wouldn't be enough to move a steel compartment that small, let alone power a weapon that could put out similar firepower. Since Historia weapon did not radiate any magical power, it must be similar to the technology fielded by the mechanical civilization Mu. Even the weapon they used to bring down the Demon Lord that had leaped into the air clearly changed its course midair to hit him. It was similar to the guided light munitions that they were currently researching, but even the ones fielded by Ravernal Empire could only be fitted into ships. It was a far-future prospect to be able to miniaturize such munitions to a size which could be carried by a person.
What routed the Demon Army was without a doubt this Historia. Topa, for all its effort holding off the incursion, was worthy of praise, but it was simply a matter of time before they fell. This Historia... will it become an enemy of the Demon Emperor? Or will they become allies with them?
Then, there's the words that the Demon Lord left behind when he perished–the most shocking of them all.
"The Demon Emperor will return soon."
The most powerful nation that the world has ever known, Ravernal Empire, built on top of all the races and possessing extreme amounts of magical power which not even the entire population of elves could ever have. In the process of excavating and unraveling the mysteries behind the artifacts they left behind, the Holy Milishial Empire had propped itself up to be the strongest nation in the world. However, even the empire could not exhaustively unravel every mystery, for the artifacts they left behind were too advanced. The newly discovered ruins they'd come by from time to time would always reinforce the fact that Ravernal Empire was advanced. It is due to that advancement that they even dared to turn their attention to the gods.
If the Demon Lord himself said that the revival of the feared empire was near, then this must be true.
"I must report back... with haste!"
Finishing his report, Rydorka hurried preparations to return to the empire.
That night
Victory celebrations have begun in every part of the city of Tormeus, including the castle. Topan ministers took to the stage to advance the celebrations.
"Everyone! As you may all know, today, the Demon Army has been pushed back, and that wretched Demon Lord eradicated! Today is a victorious day. I would like all of us to offer a prayer in silence to the spirits of the heroes that have fought and died for our kingdom."
Everyone closed their eyes and offered prayers to the departed.
"Now, we shall commence the feast of our victory over the Demon Lord! In addition to this venue, food and drink have been provided for by the royal treasury! As this was from His Majesty himself, hesitate not in drinking and filling your stomachs to your heart's content! Cheers!"
Everyone raised their glasses in response as the lively celebrations began.
Meanwhile, GUF Yatagarasu Brigade leaders are currently inside the Paradox Engine.
"Everyone, please gather around."
All of the leaders are fully accounted for as Yasei plans to make an announcement. In fact, this announcement isn't limited to them alone, but they planned to involve the Topans as well. Hence why the Topan Knight Leaders and Commanders are present as well.
"Thanks to everyone's combined effort, Operation Yatagarasu is successful. However, we still need to clean Minaisa before it can be inhabited again. As for the expedition at Grameus Continent, General Hoshiguma will be in charge of it. Naturally, once we clean up the district, the Brigade will be disbanded. Gensokyo Oni Division and Makai Frontier Brigade will start the expedition once the necessary preparations has been completed. From our field recon, we detected two civilizations inside the continent. Thus, the First Contact Protocol is in effect. Just like how UNM found Gensokyo and GUF found Neo-Gen Earth, try to approach them peacefully and only use lethal force as last resort. Understood?"
"Yes, sir!"
"As for the Topan leaders and commanders that volunteered to join this expedition, we're grateful for it. Still, there's more thing that need to be said. All yours, General, Colonel."
"At once, Captain."
Yuugi and Angra stood up. The former then starts the briefing.
"Greetings. I'm Yuugi Hoshiguma, General of Gensokyo Oni Division. As stated by the division name, I'm an Oni. To my right is Angra Menog, Colonel of Makai Frontier Brigade. Unlike me, she's a demon from Makai, one of our homeworlds. To make it brief, the goal of this expedition is to investigate the civilizations inside Grameus Continent. Believe it or not, Gensokyo and Makai once fought against each other back in 2006 and 2011. My homeworld, Gensokyo, ended up winning both times. Thankfully, we managed to resolve our disputes and even became core realms of the Union that was formed in 2021 alongside Abendrot, who have yet to send their forces here. Hopefully, when this expedition is over, we'll gain new allies."
The Topans cheered for both commanders as they sat down. Due to the fact that the Oni Division and Makai Frontier Brigade played a role in defending Topa during the early phases of Nosgorath's invasion, their perception towards the onis and Makai demons changed for the better. It shows them that even among demon race, there are still those who can coexist with other races. Onis are the best proof of it.
At one of the taverns in Tormeus
Some people cried in sadness for the ones they had lost while some lamented in grief for lost families and loved ones. Many spent their night in silence, content with the life they had been given, and drank to their heart's content to regain the vitality needed for tomorrow. The hustle and bustle was much more pronounced than usual, as the entire city was in the middle of celebration. High quality alcohol not meant for everyday drinking was distributed without hesitation as people crowded every single place in the fortified city. The clear night skies above were filled with shining auroras as folk continued to drink in the outskirts of the city. This was after all alcohol brought to them by public funds. Even if just for today, they were going to have the time of their lives.
At one corner in Minaisa stood a tavern. There, at a certain table, three people were huddled next to each other.
"Cheers!"
"C-Cheers..."
These were Moah, Gai, and Elei.
Deciding to join in on the city-wide drinking, they've come together once Moah was done reporting in.
"Ah! Alcohol after a good fight is always the best!"
Sitting next to Elei, Gai was in the best of moods.
On the other hand, Elei was nervous, as she also sat next to Moah. Seeing this, Moah felt worried and talked to her.
"It was truly a blessing to have you here safe and sound, Elei. I didn't think you'd actually come today..."
"Y-Yeah... That's all because of you, Sir Moah."
Having been talked to by Moah, Elei's mood brightened.
"Me? But I'm not the one who saved you back there."
"Huh?"
"Oi, what are y'all talking about?"
Gai tried to cut in, but was stopped by Moah.
"This guy is the one. Yeah, as much as one could expect from him, no? He ran out from the great auditorium, saw you being carried away, and charged right into the countless mess of demons."
"Shut up! I wasn't there just for Elei! Hicc! There were other people there too! Hicc!"
Whether it was due to drink or something else entirely, Gai's face turned red.
"Really..."
"Well... In reality, the plan was laid out by the people from the Alliance, but when I saw you... Rest is history..."
"When I saw Gai running after you, it was only then that I realized that that person was you. My apologies."
"Ah, no. You don't have to, Sir Moah."
There were ten goblin lords bringing Elei and some others. No experienced knight nor mercenary would ever attempt such a rash move like what Gai did.
"Oh yeah, you got hit, right? How's the injury?"
Hearing this for the first time, Elei looked at Gai with a worried look.
"It's fine. All's fine. Don't say unnecessary stuff like that! As long as all three of us are alive, it's all good!"
Finally recognizing the feelings of Gai, who did everything he could, risking his life and even getting hurt in the process, to save her, Elei's heart was moved.
"Ah, right. I overheard at the station a while ago that we currently have a lot of vacancies among the knights. I think there was also talk of promoting you soon to replenish our ranks. I'm not sure if you'll be in the same rank as I am, but that sounds great, right?"
That day according to Moah's diary
The Demon Lord Nosgorath brought death among countless elite knights through the use of his powerful magic. He then cast another spell, summoning forth the Kaiser Golem, reminiscent of the ancient superweapons described in the mythologies. The elite Royal Battle Mage Force, the most elite mage unit of the army, used all of their magic to cast Lightning Tempest, an ancient spell. However, this hardly did anything against the golem nor the Demon Lord, and so everyone was wrought with despair.
The Alliance then brought out their iron land dragons, bringing down the colossal golem with their powerful explosion magic.
Then, they managed to defeat not only the Red Ogre and the Blue Ogre, but even the Demon Lord himself.
Today is a day that will forever be part of those myths.
The Alliance, without relying on their stationed units in Topa, defeated the overwhelming threat that was the Demon Lord with a hastily-created task force. Furthermore, they did not suffer a single casualty.
What the hell.
The rumors of their endeavors in Rodenius against Louria and even their battle against the Imperial Oversight Army of Parpaldia must have been true after all.
Most of all... I finally remember.
The Demon Lord begrudgingly called them the "Emissaries of the Sun God" in his last words. Historia's flag does have a red disc with sixteen rays imposed on a white background, which resembled the crest of the sun that the Emissaries of the Sun God brought with them as inscribed in the myths: a red disc with sixteen rays on a white cloth.
The Emissaries themselves were recorded to have described themselves as "the citizens of the nation from where the sun rises."
There's no doubt about it.
The Alliance confirmed that it refers to one of their homeworld's nations, which is Japan.
They even told us during our admission to the Defense Council about the reason of their return to our world as well.
The Sun God calls them once again.
And this time, they're here to stay.
Date: December 16th, HS 2069/CC 1639
Location: Tormeus, Topa Kingdom, Zeroth Civilization Area
GUF Yatagarasu Brigade started cleaning and began checking if there are any remnants of the ferals left on Minaisa. They check it block by block, while for the corpses, they put them inside the coffins before storing them at the Paradox Engine. As for the remnants/incomplete corpses, they separated the Topans and the ferals. They immediately cremated the latter before giving the former to the Topan officials.
None of the ferals remained in the area as they're already retreating to Grameus continent yesterday. Yatagarasu Brigade and Topan knights are working together to clean up the mess while the damage is also being assessed in order to determine the needed material to not only reconstruct the town, but also upgrading it as well.
This time, Iseya leads the funeral as a landmark is selected to be converted into a cemetery in honor of the Topans' sacrifice. The Topan Rapid Response Unit received posthumous World Defender medals with the citation of "Giving their lives to stop Demon Lord Nosgorath" since the Alliance are unable to retreive their ashes.
During the entire procession, a song is played. Said song's name is In Flanders Fields. All of the Alliance personnel sung it.
In Flanders fields the poppies blow between the crosses, row and row that mark our place; and in the sky the larks, still bravely singing, fly.
Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the dead. Short days ago we lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow. Loved and were loved, and now we lie.
In Flanders fields, in Flanders fields. And now we lie in Flanders fields.
Take up your quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw the torch; be yours to hold it high if ye break faith with us who die.
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow in Flanders fields, in Flanders fields.
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow in Flanders fields, in Flanders fields.
"We salute your courage and valor, soldiers of Topa. Rest in peace, for you have seen the end of war."
Once the funeral is over, Yatagarasu Brigade is officially disbanded and returning to the mainland. Gensokyo Oni Division and Makai Frontier Brigade then continue the reconstruction effort while waiting for Abendrot Ragnarok Division led by Kleine Gluttony. It's decided that Minaisa will be Historia Alliance's hub in Topa Kingdom.
With that, Operation Yatagarasu has come to an end.
The initial deployed vehicles for the expedition are as follows:
Gensokyo Oni Division (Leader: Yuugi Hoshiguma)
- 1 Kishin MCV
- 15 Deva Assault Tanks
- 25 Oni Heavy Tanks
Makai Frontier Brigade (Leader: Angra Menog)
- 1 Hormuz MCV
- 15 Tiger IIs
- 25 Panzer IVs
Abendrot Ragnarok Division (Leader: Kleine Gluttony)
- 1 Edda MCV
- 15 Panzerkerberoses
- 25 Panzerhundes
More reinforcements will be available once all the MCVs are placed, in which a Paradox Engine will be placed above Grameus continent.
Since the Alliance have confirmed the presence of Onis in Grameus, Yuugi will be the Supreme Commander of Historia Expeditionary Force (Grameus). Naturally, this means she's in charge inside the continent.