Stupid Heroes ~We Draft Candidates~ (WN): Chapter 171

 

Holy War



 The darkness of the night is illuminated by the light of the full moon in the sky. The balloons moving away from them, illuminated by that light, can be seen clearly from this location. There is also the sight of the divine race emitting its own light.


 The balloon is moving toward the four divine races floating in the night sky. A large propeller spinning behind the balloon is its driving force. In addition, the propeller is turned by one of the sciences called a [steam engine]. The humans of this world have arrived at the steam engine by connecting the fragmentary knowledge that arrives from the other world. The humans had taken a historic step, unbeknownst to anyone....... it was supposed to be.


"...That's ...just one blow..."


 The balloon that was flying in the lead was shot down by the magic of the divine race. The balloon slowly fell to the ground. It was further attacked by magic and crushed into pieces. A historic step in the history of mankind was blown away without a moment's thought.


 And the members of the Committee of Eight were terribly depressed. The hope of the humans was lost. They thought so.


"No, you don't have to be so depressed."


 On the other hand, for Ren, it was a natural outcome. The balloon was moving slowly. It stands out even in the night sky. It was as if it was asking them to attack.


"But, Ren-kun. We've been protecting that for hundreds of years, you know?"


 Mion, one of the members of the Committee of Eight, was also deeply depressed by this result. They, including the past members of the committee, had been desperately protecting the secret, enduring the fear of being against the world. Something that could be destroyed with a single blow against the divine race.


"You can understand if you think about it normally, right? With such a fragile and slow balloon, it can't beat even the humans, let alone the divine race. I think even I can take it down with one blow."


 Even Ren's lightning strike can drop the balloon. Anyway, as long as he can deliver the attack, that's fine. It's quite high, so it's not easy, but if they're just flying high, it's not a threat. If they use it for battle, the balloon should have to drop altitude. That way the magic can reach them.


"That's right, but……"


 A little thought will tell you that. But even so, she is not convinced.


"Besides, it's just floating in the air with gas, so if it's a force that moves you forward, magic will suffice. It's not exactly a groundbreaking invention in this world.


"Don't gouge out the wound."


 If you use magic tools to create wind, that should make the balloon move forward. Ren thinks it would be better to conduct research on how to increase the power of wind magic rather than steam engines. They still have a long way to go to steam engines, automobiles, and even airplanes. And he's not even sure that's necessary.


"It's not that it's completely useless. The results are yet to come."


 The second balloon is also falling to the ground. With this, there was only one balloon left. It was only a matter of time. The only difference is that the last one is different from the other two, although it is the same in that it will fall apart. There is a reason he knew they were going to be dropped and flew them.


 The magic of the divine race hit the third balloon. Immediately after that, there was a flash in the night sky.


"How's that!?"


 An explosion spreads while illuminating the ground. It swallowed up the divine race who were nearby and had attacked the third plane.


"...... Is there any damage? This is no time to think that. Attack! Shoot everything you can! Hurry!"


 Following Ren's order, the sound of explosions burst out again. It came from nearby, where Ren and the others were. A large, cylindrical object soared into the sky. It accelerated in mid-air like a rocket, heading toward the divine race.


 Noticing that, the divine race avoided it―― an explosion spread in the air again. It's not the only one. One after another, they exploded into the air and accelerated toward the divine race.


"Shoot! Shoot as many as you can! After you sho... run away!"


 The ground nearby collapsed heavily. They don't know what kind of magic it is, but it's definitely an attack from the divine race. Ren and the others, the members of the Committee of Eight, and the people of the Nord Empire Army all run down the slope all at once.


 Right after that, an oversized explosion rose up in the place where Ren and the others were.






◆◆◆






 Unidentified flying object. It was recognized as an enemy by the people of the Luine Kingdom Army who were born and raised in this world. It would have been the same even if there were former heroes from another world on the Luine Kingdom Army side. They did not know that balloons existed in this world.


 This perception was changed when the unidentified flying object was shot down by the divine race in the sky. So, at least they knew that it was an enemy of the divine race.


 In addition, the second balloon was also shot down without a second thought. Even though they are the same flying beings, their power is different. The people in the Luine Kingdom Army thought that it would not be able to overturn the war situation.


 However, this perception was also to be changed. Unlike the previous two balloons, the third balloon was attacked and created a widespread flame of explosion.


"...No way ...is that a magic tool?"


 A flying magic tool. King Albert had never heard of such a thing. But it was too early to be surprised. An explosion could be heard from a distance away. And from the sky, he also heard a slightly different sound, as if an explosion had occurred.


 What is happening? As they looked up at the sky with this thought, they saw the image of the divine race caught in the explosion. It was not just once. One after another, the flames spread through the air.


 Eventually, one of the divine races slowly fell to the ground.


"They are an ally, right?"


"...Magic Cannon."


 It was Rin who muttered back to King Albert's question, which was not aimed at anyone.


"Do you know what that is!?"


"Probably... a magic tool developed by the Nord Empire."


 Rin knows about the magic tools that Ren had Kou create. She knows that he had Kou develop a magic tool that was similar to a weapon from another world, but far more powerful than a bow and arrow.


"That kind of thing... N-no, the Nord Empire has come!?"


 There was no way they could have made it in time. He thought it was a faint hope, but he was fighting to buy as much time as possible, but even so, there was no way they could have made it.


 However, if Rin was right, it would mean that the Nord Empire Army had arrived at this spot.


"Ren-sama..."


 Without a doubt, Ren has arrived at the battlefield. Rin could tell. She just doesn't know whether she should be happy or sad about it. There are still three divine races, just the ones flying in the sky. Rin also knows that there is a limit to the number of magic cannon attacks.


 Flames rise from the ground in the distance. An attack by the divine race. That means the Nord Empire Army is there.


"What's going on?"


 King Albert had no idea what was going on. The result of the counterattack by the divine race could not be known from this remote location. Are the Nord Empire Army safe? Or did the current attack cause a lot of damage? They have nothing to judge how they should move.


"...They're here."


 A horse is running toward them. It looks like a horse, but Rin knows it is not. It is a magical beast that she has been riding for a long time.


"Rin-san!"


"Shizuku, huh..."


 It was Shizuku who came running on top of the magical beast. Rin was a little disappointed that it wasn't Ren, but there was no doubt that Ren was on the battlefield. There was no way Shizuku would come here alone.


"Come with me!"


"Where's Ren-sama!?"


"He went ahead!"


"Ahead, where!?"


 Even if it's a magical beast, they cannot attack the divine race if they cannot fly. Rin did not know where Ren was headed.


"To kill Yuya and the others!"


"……What do you mean?"


 Yuya and the others are members of the divine tribe. If they can't fly, they can't kill them. Rin thinks so.


"I don’t know, but Ren seems to think that Yuya and others are different from those angels. And ......there's something else he's thinking about, but I don't have time to explain it."


 They can fly in the sky and use magic of an order of magnitude. There must be a reason for it, Ren thought. The ritual that Jin told him about has something to do with it. If they don't do it, they can't get power. They can gain power just by doing it. It means that it has nothing to do with Jin himself.


"Yes. I understand."


 Whatever the purpose is, she must go after Ren anyway. She had to be there for Ren's fight. Rin jumped on the back of the magical beast and behind Shizuku at once.


"Ah, not good... it's a full moon today. Rin-san... I'm getting excited."


"Hurry up and go!"


 In this dire situation. Even as she yelled at her, Rin thought this was a good thing about Shizuku. No matter what situation she is put in, she never changes. Everyone around her is sinking into despair, and Shizuku remains the same. This must be a tremendous feat.






◆◆◆






 It is not only King Albert and the people in Luine Kingdom Army who think they don't know what is going on. Michael and the other divine race were also very confused.


 They thought it would be easy to bring down the balloon. In fact, they could easily attack the third one and it blew up. While involving his allies in the blast

.

 He knew immediately that it was not just a blast. A hint of enormous mana told him that it was. An ally damaged by the powerful magic. It was a mistake to let down their guard, to let it approach it easily and attack it. If it had ended only with the explosion of the balloon, he would have only had to warn them of their carelessness. But it did not.


 Explosions occur one after another in the air. Receiving the attack many times, one of his allies falls to the ground.


"…Is this also an evolution!?"


 At a speed incomparable to a balloon, an incomparably small object flies and explodes. He knows it's magic, but Michael doesn't know how to use it.


"You..."


 There are no enemies in this world. It has to be. There should be no enemy who can resist God. He is supposed to be that God.


 But the evolution of humans is about to shake that. They have acquired weapons to defeat the divine race. They have allowed it to happen. The gap in power, which should have been overwhelming, has somehow narrowed. For Michael, this is something that should not have happened.


"That's why humans are..."


 Should be destroyed. It should be destroyed. But God did not do it. He tried to do it, but he allowed it at the last moment. He extended his hand of mercy to the dying race.


 That was a mistake, Michael thinks. God made a wrong decision. God is no longer perfect. That God is gone. So once again, Michael thought, he would be the perfect God. He thought that he should once again take everything from the humans.


"...That one."


 While Michael was thinking about this, an ally called out.


"...Nord Emperor ...Kaiser Ren Breitkreutz, huh ...so that's what it is..."


 Such beings rarely appear in the ground. They are the ones who think nothing but defy the world. Beings that do not kneel to them, but rather try to resist them. They have eliminated such beings, and those with the potential to become such beings, many times in the past. And yet, such beings will reappear. In this era, Kaiser Ren Breitkreuz is such an existence. Michael has now recognized this.


 It was proof that he was not omniscient and omnipotent, but Michael didn't even admit it or think about it. That's how he has fooled himself for thousands of years. Fooling his allies and himself.


"It's very convenient. The one who should be eliminated came to me himself."


 There was no longer any reason to hesitate to kill Ren. Here, it became possible to bury him together with the Luine Kingdom.


"You should perish while regretting your own stupidity. You have no future. I will not allow it. It's the beginning of the real holy war."


 In the past, God turned all science and civilization on the ground into dust. Fire spewed lava and consumed everything. The waters brought forth a flood and swept away everything. The winds created storms that blew everything away, and the earth shook and chipped away at the ground. Nations disappeared, things disappeared, and people disappeared as the world's wrath raged.


 Michael wanted to recreate it only in the Luine Kingdom. He wanted to leave his wrath on the ground as an example so that the inhabitants of the land would never think of doing something foolish again. Unlike the God who used spirits, they used their own power.


 At first, it was just one of the stars in the night sky, but its brightness grew and grew. It seemed to those living on the ground as if a number of stars were increasing their brightness. Meteors were falling to the earth.


 No one recognizes it as an attack of the divine race. It has been a thousand years since that many divine races appeared on the ground at the same time. It is a past that has not remained in the memories of the humans.





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