Chapter 155 – Deathball

While waiting for the base to be established over the past two days, I also began the process of verifying the performance of the Engineer Cannons.

One of the things I checked was the maximum range of the Engineer Cannon.

It was approximately 140km.

To put it in perspective, that is roughly the distance from Seoul to Daejeon. This was truly an astronomical level.

For instance, the range of the latest self-propelled howitzers—the top tier of indirect fire weapons used by humanity—barely exceeded 50km.

I felt satisfied.

“At this rate, I might even be able to provide support for the Photon Battleships.”

The range of the Photon Battleships was not far behind that of the Engineer Cannons, but there was a clear difference. This was because the Photon Cannon of a Photon Battleship is a direct-fire weapon.

In other words, it is a weapon that fires in a straight line.

And weapons that fire in a straight line do not have such a long effective range. This was a very physical problem.

For example, the Earth is round.

Due to the curvature of that round surface, the distance someone could theoretically see in a straight line barely exceeded 5km.

Of course, this was only theoretical; one could see further when looking down from a higher place or looking up at something taller.

And ‘seeing’ means that light reaches that point.

That was the distance the Photon Cannon’s beam could reach.

This was also good news for my fleet, including the Photon Battleships. Naturally, a Photon Battleship is not a craft tied to the ground.

If the opponent was invisible due to the Earth’s curvature, they simply had to raise their altitude using those powerful engines.

By looking down from a higher vantage point, no matter how much the enemy hid behind the curve of the round Earth or behind terrain like a Valley.

One could rain down an artillery barrage right on top of the opponent’s head.

‘Just like an indirect fire weapon.’

However, of course, the efficiency of this was abysmal.

The further the distance, the weaker the condensation of the photon barrage became, and thus the firepower decreased.

In other words, to maintain the same firepower, a larger cannon had to be fired, which required more Mana. But a larger cannon is heavier, making it harder to increase altitude further.

Accordingly, operating a Photon Battleship required a massive amount of Mana.

To the point where operating a single Photon Battleship consumed nearly half of the Mana produced by my numerous Mana Facilities.

‘Seriously. I only put up with it because it’s a Photon Battleship…’

It was exactly as it sounded.

I only used it because it was, truly, a Photon Battleship.

In contrast, the Engineer Cannon was different. With the Mana consumption of a mere Super-Large Class, it could achieve the range of a Photon Battleship!

Furthermore, since it could construct a reasonably decent firepower base, it was perfect as a defensive unit.

Thus, I sent the Engineer Cannons to the vicinity of the coordinates fixed by the Dimensional Buoys and constructed a total of three firepower bases.

Arranged in an equilateral triangle with the Dimensional Buoy at the center and placed 60km apart, these firepower bases were designed to share a fire network.

This meant that in an emergency, firepower could be concentrated in the direction of a single base. Additionally, it had the advantage of being able to sufficiently concentrate firepower on the central coordinates.

Each of these firepower bases also boasted a bunker-class level of defense using the Worker Bugs’ lava… and upon seeing this, Seongjae began to say something.

“Wow… this is a total triple-.”

“Stop.”

For some reason, I felt like I shouldn’t let him finish that sentence.

* * *

Meanwhile, the Engineer Cannons were also being used smoothly on Earth.

There weren’t many Monster Remnants left on Earth now, and the focus had shifted to removing the Pollution, but…

The Magitech Legion was active on Earth in another way.

“Oh, what is this?”

“It’s an Engineer Cannon… a new model released this time. Super-Large Class…”

That was none other than the mercenary business.

Of course, strictly speaking, it wasn’t utilization ‘on Earth.’ There was no reason for an Engineer Cannon to be needed on an Earth where there were no more wars or conflicts.

Rather, it was the Hunters who were hiring the Magitech Legion’s forces.

For these Hunters heading into fragments of other dimensions occupied by Monsters—namely, Dungeons—the Engineer Cannon became an immense source of power.

“Wow… this thing even sets up a base?”

“That’s not all. I heard the range is insane.”

While operating in a Dungeon, one of the most tedious yet indispensable tasks is base construction; the Engineer Cannon was like a multi-tool that provided both construction and firepower support simultaneously!

“How many Worker Bug Coins for one of these?”

“2 million to rent for a week. A monthly rental is…”

As a result, an enormous amount of Worker Bug Coins were being recovered. In other words, the value of the currency was rising.

This meant that the trading price of materials should have increased—

“What? Why is this so cheap?”

Minju, who was in charge of long-distance supply for the Factory Landing Ships, was witnessing the exact opposite phenomenon.

“Lately, it’s a total frenzy because of the Engineer Cannons. Whether it’s Adamantite or Mithril, they’re pouring in like crazy every single day.”

Rather… thanks to the Hunters who found Dungeon expeditions easier, the price of materials was falling! After receiving an explanation of this phenomenon through Kim Gyeongcheol, I shook my head.

‘This… at this rate, it’s practically like producing them for free.’

It seemed nothing could beat the Engineer Cannon in terms of cost-effectiveness.

* * *

Meanwhile, the mobilization order for the Gatekeeper-Class Dimensional Predator, Sentz, was also proceeding smoothly.

He mobilized as many as three Dimensional Predators belonging to his direct unit, who were already preparing in his own dimension. Furthermore, two more were arriving via the Dimensional Buoys.

A total of five Dimensional Predators had gathered!

One might think this wasn’t a large number, but to begin with, the number of Dimensional Predators wasn’t that high.

Moreover, for Dimensional Predators, who do not form human-like societies through mutual exchange, this was a considerable number.

Meanwhile, those Dimensional Predators each led their own Mutant Legion. Each one of them was a Legion Commander.

Because of this, Sentz was confident.

‘This will be more than enough.’

If anything, it was bordering on excessive; it was well beyond a sufficient level.

The reason he took such ‘excessive’ measures was to ensure that other Dimensional Predators would not covet his position.

Not only had his Reception Hall been destroyed, but if he responded lukewarmly to an enemy who had nested in his own backyard, other Dimensional Predators might begin to look down on him.

And this wasn’t just a matter of pride.

Once he was viewed as weak, it was obvious they would immediately try to usurp his position. Of course, he wouldn’t hand over his position easily.

But in the world of Dimensional Predators, one never knows what might happen as power gradually drains away through repeated battles.

‘I must avoid that at all costs.’

Therefore, the answer was to not be underestimated in the first place. This was the philosophy that had allowed him to hold the position of Gatekeeper for so long.

He had finished all preparations to achieve this.

He began sending telepathy to the other Dimensional Predators.

• The opponent has three bases. Like a fool, they have dispersed their forces. We will crush them one base at a time, with full strength.

This is the basic of military strategy.

The enemy must be dispersed, and the allies must be concentrated. This was an immutable law that had never failed throughout the long ages Sentz had fought.

‘To think he’s a fellow who doesn’t even know the basics. How pathetic.’

Thus, he couldn’t help but doubt the opponent’s intellectual capacity.

Sentz looked upon his Legion Mutant Soldiers, who were comparable to such an enemy, with a pleased expression. They were marching in perfect alignment.

“Maintain your rows and columns!”

“Advance in an orderly fashion!”

This was also one of the reasons he had been successful.

To put it bluntly, unlike other Dimensional Predators who threw Monsters forward almost brainlessly, he emphasized strict discipline and military spirit as his strengths.

For example, even when operating the same Mutants, his method of use was different.

He compared and divided the special abilities, intellectual capacities, and usable armaments of his subordinate Mutants, organizing them into formations with the appropriate Monsters.

For instance, those with high Defense were put forward as heavy infantry, while those capable of long-range attacks attacked separately from the rear. Or, he would gather the light and agile ones to form a mobile strike force.

It was something like that.

And dividing the Monsters by role like this also gave new advantages to weak Monsters that would normally not be utilized properly.

He could frugally employ even the Monsters that other Dimensional Predators ignored.

To become a Gatekeeper-Class, one had to be able to do at least this much. It was, so to speak, basic literacy. Among them, Sentz had succeeded in going one step further to create his own exceptional advantage.

And that was the Legion Mutant Soldiers he was looking at now.

‘Truly… they are pleasing to look at no matter when.’

He selected only those with the highest defense and martial power among his subordinate Mutants to form an elite force capable of both offense and defense.

In particular, their abilities interlocked like gears. By forming a dense formation, they protected and covered each other; that combat style was nearly an art form.

As a result, his Legion Mutant Soldiers, despite being mere Mutants, were capable of winning comfortably even against Dimensional Predators.

‘Though it was quite a struggle to train them.’

Sentz gave a bitter smile.

Uniting Mutants of different species and cultural backgrounds into a single fused Legion was no easy task.

Since abandoning one’s own species was one of the conditions for Mutantification, expecting altruistic behavior was a significant problem.

However, thanks to (literally) endless whipping, he was the one who accomplished that difficult feat.

He had created a Legion that was loyal only to him.

Of course, this was also his sore spot. It was a relief that those who underwent Mutantification transcended their lifespans, because it took an incredibly long time to create even a single Legion Mutant Soldier.

‘Though it’s become a bit easier lately.’

Even so, once the Legion was established, the fact that he could apply discipline using the internal culture of the Legion rather than doing it himself was a huge factor.

The silver lining was that once a Mutant, after such a long period of poured-in effort, became a Legion Soldier, their survival rate increased dramatically.

It had been over 100 years since the last Legion Soldier had died. To that extent, in a way rare for a Dimensional Predator, Sentz had grown fond of them; he could no longer imagine himself without them.

And so, he…

“I’m counting on you again this time.”

…placed his proud Legion at the forefront.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the same time.

Seeing the opponent’s dense formation, I grinned.

“What? They’re coming in a clump?”

That was a tactic used on Earth hundreds of years ago.

They may have invaded other dimensions for a long time, but it seemed they didn’t quite reach the level of human warfare capabilities.

“Have you… ever heard of splash damage?”

I decided it was time to give them a proper lesson.