Chapter 123 – Sekigahara

The survivor groups in Nagoya were sensitive to information, such as rumors. This was particularly true because their innate nature was that of a Merchant Guild.

After all, information is money.

However, even so, the rumors circulating lately were far too different from the usual.

“I heard they’re establishing a cooperative relationship with the Korean forces?”

“They say a new currency is even being introduced…”

“That’s not all. Apparently, they were the ones who eliminated the Water Mass in Tokyo.”

Every single piece of information was far beyond their common sense.

Thus, it was only natural that some of them were skeptical about the truth of these rumors.

“That’s impossible. How on earth would they cross the sea?”

“Currency in a world like this… who guarantees the value of that currency? The government?”

In particular, as even more unsettling rumors had been heard recently, many people were wary of these bizarre claims.

And those unsettling rumors were…

“I heard they’re coming from Osaka to wage an all-out war with us?”

“They say they’ve already passed Kyoto.”

“Yes, I heard it too. They say almost all of their forces are coming.”

It was a rumor that an attack was coming from Osaka.

And since all these rumors had begun to spread rapidly over the past few days, it was perhaps natural that many found it hard to believe.

“Things have been quiet lately, so why now?”

“Didn’t a similar rumor circulate once before?”

Being in Nagoya, located in the heart of Japan, they had encountered so many false rumors throughout the Apocalypse that they were practically tripping over them.

Therefore, being cautious was the right move.

However, the difference between then and now was…

Now, all those rumors were true. And they were about to have the truth of those rumors confirmed.

* * *

Sekigahara Station, located in a relatively inland region connecting Nagoya City and Osaka City, was also the site of one of the most important battles in Japanese history.

In fact, in Japanese culture, the name ‘Sekigahara’ carried the connotation of being the land of decisive battles.

Sekigahara remained a significant transportation hub even now. National Route 1, which flows from Osaka, through Nagoya, and toward Tokyo, runs through Sekigahara.

Beyond that, it was one of Japan’s vital arteries, serving as the route for the Tokaido Main Line—Japan’s first railway line—and in modern times, the Shinkansen high-speed rail.

The Nagoya Merchant Guild had long recognized the importance of this region and, while keeping a check on the Osaka forces, had concentrated and protected a considerable number of troops in Sekigahara.

Ironically, as history repeats itself today, a decisive battle was about to unfold on this land once more.

Meanwhile, the sentries of the Nagoya Merchant Guild, unaware of this fact…

“Ahaaaaam—!”

…were merely letting out long, lazy yawns.

Then, as if he had just remembered something, one sentry spoke.

“I want to go to Tokyo!”

“Senior Officer, are you talking about Tokyo again?”

His junior responded to his lament with a smile.

“Have you ever been to Tokyo?”

“My older cousin lives in Tokyo, so I used to go hang out there all the time.”

“Wow, you! I didn’t see you that way. You’re a traitor, aren’t you?”

“Why do you like Tokyo so much, Senior Officer?”

“Well, compared to boring Nagoya where there’s nothing to see… huh?”

The senior soldier, who had been lamenting, raised an eyebrow.

“Hey. Didn’t something move over there?”

“Is it a Monster?”

“Gasp!”

With a short scream, the senior soldier lowered his posture and ducked his head inside the observation post. He naturally forced the oblivious junior’s head down to hide him as well.

“Senior Officer, what on earth is there…?”

“Hey, get on the walkie-talkie right now. It’s the Osaka bastards. There are tons of them. The rumors were true!”

The senior soldier whispered with a serious expression.

“Senior Officer, you’re joking right now…”

The junior, about to retort with a laugh, realized from the senior’s fierce gaze that he was not joking.

Krrr-chhh—

“Uh… this is Post 24. I, uh, well…”

However, he hesitated, unable to report properly. The senior soldier snatched the walkie-talkie away from him.

“Post 24. Multiple armed forces to the west. At least several hundred. Likely Osaka forces. Requesting emergency support. Repeating. This is Post 24. To the west…”

It was just as he began to report.

Whish— BOOM!

With a powerful impact sound, the observation post shook.

And simultaneously…

“Ghaaaaak!”

The senior soldier screamed. A large iron pillar, fired by some unknown ability, was embedded in his chest.

“H-hugh! Senior Officer! Senior Officer!”

The startled junior shook his senior violently, but feeling his body limp and lifeless, the junior instinctively knew he was dead. Soon, terror dominated him.

“I-I don’t want to die…”

Immediately after, he deployed his own ability.

Fwoosh—

His ability was a Defensive Ability. As he drew up his mana, a dense, honeycomb-shaped Mana Barrier formed in front of him.

Bwooooom—!

For a moment, he felt a pang of guilt, wondering if he could have saved his senior if he had deployed the shield just a bit sooner, but he quickly shook it off.

‘I have to hold out until support arrives!’

Fortunately, as it was a defense-specialized ability, the Mana Efficiency for defending was considerable. Thanks to that, he was able to withstand the opponent’s barrage for a short while.

Bang! Boom boom! Thud!

However, the dull impact sounds of various abilities were enough to further shake his heart, already clouded by the death of his senior.

“P-please, someone quickly help me!”

Just as he began to pray for his life, trembling in fear and reciting the names of every god he knew.

Zzzzzzz—

A vibrating sound began to resonate.

“What is it this time?”

It was when he raised his head to find the source of that vibration.

In the sky, two massive objects stood side by side, boasting their presence as if reigning over the battlefield.

However, perhaps because it was a dark night, it was difficult for him to properly identify the nature of those objects.

‘A-a new species of Monster?’

In a world like this, it couldn’t possibly be a man-made object, so he simply assumed it was a Monster. The anomaly happened then.

KABOOOOM!

With a powerful explosion, a Pillar of Light swallowed the Osaka expeditionary force.

“What?!”

They all looked at the site of the artillery barrage in a daze.

There was only a crater so deep that the ground at the center was barely visible. There wasn’t even a trace of the people who had originally been in that position.

“This is impossible!”

“What kind of ability could do this…?”

But that was only the beginning.

Zzzzzzz—

The vibrating sound resonated once more. At this, the leadership of the Osaka expeditionary force, gripped by terror, shouted urgently.

“Retreat! Damn it! We can’t fight an enemy like this!”

However, it took a little time for that order to be carried out.

“What?”

“I think they’re telling us to retreat?”

“Run away now?”

“But what on earth was that light just now?”

This was especially true for those who hadn’t seen the devastation at the impact site. And the interval between the Photon Destroyer’s shots was only about 8 seconds.

KABOOOOM!

Once again, artillery fell.

“Damn it! Scatter, you brats!”

“Scatter! Scatter!”

Only then did the expeditionary force realize the severity of the situation, but…

Whish— Shhh-t!

Even if they scattered now, they would only become easy prey for the Interceptors. Thus, the expeditionary force began to be crushed.

* * *

“What on earth is this…”

The junior soldier, who had been certain he was going to die, could not close his mouth as he watched the scene. Meanwhile, a certain image came to mind.

“Ah, come to think of it, the thunder and lightning in Tokyo last night…”

Because his colleague had made such a fuss, he had caught a glimpse of the thunder and lightning in Tokyo in his half-asleep state. Except for the fact that the light had spread across the Water Mass, this scene was eerily similar to that moment.

‘If it’s this light… then eliminating the Water Mass in Tokyo might not be impossible.’

Only then did he chew over the rumors that had been floating around Nagoya.

‘Wait… then could it be?’

The total attack by the Osaka forces, which he had thought was a false rumor. Furthermore, this mysterious force helping them. And even the fact that they had removed the Water Mass in Tokyo.

It was the moment when all the rumors, which had been impossible to believe by their common sense, were revealed to be true.

Meanwhile, there were other facts that had not yet been confirmed.

‘Come to think of it, they said a new currency would be introduced…’

Strictly speaking, he had been closer to a skeptic who denied the recent rumors. But now it was different.

Because he had seen it with his own eyes.

‘How on earth is the world going to turn out…?’

He sensed a wave of immense change.

* * *

‘My god…’

Meanwhile, Ryohei, who was watching the scene as an Observer, flinched every time a Pillar of Light slammed into the ground.

‘This is impossible, this can’t be happening…’

He had known about the majestic appearance of the fleet, but he had never imagined their combat power would be this strong. The color was draining from his face more and more.

‘I can’t fight things like this.’

He reached a conclusion quickly.

This wasn’t a battle.

It was simply a one-sided massacre.

The problem was that he would be the sacrificial lamb.

‘This absolutely won’t do. I have to run.’

He made up his mind quickly.

The title of “The Man Who Swallowed Osaka” bestowed upon him was useless now that he had lost those forces.

He quickly pondered his next course of action.

‘I’ll join the Monsters.’

For a Villain like him, it was the optimal way to survive.

Ryohei was cunning in securing his own survival, but…

He was by no means weak.

‘…And. I’ll take my sword.’

In the first place, he was a Sword Skill Ability User.

Since he was someone who mostly talked big on the internet, he found it difficult to deal with other people in reality. However, he prided himself on being the best in the Japanese archipelago in one-on-one combat.

Due to his personality, which made him struggle when dealing with people, he had left the command chain—which he couldn’t handle properly—to others. Contrary to how he appeared to be swayed, he hadn’t become the leader for nothing.

‘First, I’ll hide. If I fight while hiding, I have a chance.’

If nothing else, regarding his own survival…

‘Because I am strong.’

He believed firmly that there would be no major problem.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the skies above Osaka.

Zzzzz—

Making a mechanical sound as it adjusted the focus of the Mana Lens, the Observation Ship was concentrating on mana of a different color than the surrounding people.

[Fine-tuning Mana Frequency…]

And the moment the Mana Lens’s focus was set.

[Unique entity discovered.]

A notification came to me immediately.

“What. A Villain candidate?”

I switched to the screen the Observation Ship was viewing.

In the depths of Osaka City, a single figure seemed to be hurriedly packing bags, as if they had somewhere urgent to go.

That mana reaction belonged to a Villain.

I observed the sight for a moment.

“What, is he trying to run away?”

I snorted.

My Observation Probes and Observation Ships were already deployed countless times across all of Japan. No matter how much he ran, there was no place he could escape my information assets.

Just as no matter how great Sun Wukong was, he could not escape the palm of the Buddha.

While monitoring his movements, I decided to weigh the pros and cons of what would be more helpful to me.

And I soon reached a conclusion.

“Well, I still want to secure the city intact… so shall I let him go for now?”

I decided to let him run away.

He probably couldn’t even imagine it, but whether he ran away or not was, in fact, something that was only possible if I permitted it.

“Well, go ahead and try your best to run.”

I grinned.