Chapter 44 – Crying Sound

Chapter 44 – Crying Sound

A swarm of aerial monsters, Harpies, darkening the sky.

“Kee-ee-ee!”

But it wouldn’t be just this.

Unlike the past when they came in small numbers and were defeated individually, monsters of this level instinctively knew which combat method was most efficient.

In other words, it was clear that ground monsters would follow them soon. Of course, there was nothing to worry about.

“Ms. Sua. Please issue an air raid warning.”

“Yes!”

WEEEEEEEEEE- WEEEEEEEEEE-

The loud air raid siren pierced my ears.

This was a matter of water for the citizens of the Fortified City, whose numbers were steadily increasing.

This was, of course, a matter of water, signaling an incoming attack and advising evacuation… But this was the Apocalypse. It was an era where those who could fight, had to fight.

And… my castle had an unusually high proportion of those who could fight. This was thanks to the systematic combat training that had been carried out among the people.

“Now! Shoot!”

TAAAT- TATATATATAT-

Each of the Fortified City’s citizens used their loyalty ability to launch projectiles into the air. Some used psychokinesis, manipulating rocks, or shooting barely visible blades of wind.

On the other hand, there were also occasional individuals who used water or fire manipulation, though their firepower wasn’t on par with Sua or Seongjae.

I marveled inwardly.

‘Oh. The number of good Ability Users has increased quite a bit…’

Water or fire manipulation were useful and good abilities everywhere.

Especially the electricity ability, which also appeared occasionally, was even more so. In most places without someone like Seongjae, who was rare, it was still common for electricity users to generate electricity.

As Seongjae said, it might be very inefficient in the long run, but what could be done when that’s all they knew?

This… meant that if they had been living in another group instead of my castle, they might have secured a proper position in that group.

However, they seemed satisfied with their current lives, fighting diligently without complaint.

This was because living as a village resident in my castle allowed for a much more luxurious life than being an executive in another group.

It was a good phenomenon.

If they could also help as castle leaders, Sua and Seongjae wouldn’t have to focus on maintaining social infrastructure, such as filling water tanks or operating steam turbines.

Considering Sua, who has been showing considerable combat abilities recently, or Seongjae, who has a tremendous amount of work to do even without the boiler, this was truly a good phenomenon.

However, even with all these people participating in combat… they couldn’t overcome the sheer number of monsters that darkened the sky with water.

“Maintain the front line! We’re going to be pushed back!”

“We’re all going to die at this rate!”

The moment they began to fear.

Squeak- Squeak-squeak-squeak-

Just then, the fourth Interceptor was summoned.

“Hmm… I wanted to get about eight of them.”

It was most efficient to gather a certain number of Interceptors and launch them all at once to project firepower.

They weren’t monsters; they were machines. Sending them out one by one as soon as they were produced, little by little, would mean losing Interceptors that cost an enormous amount in materials.

However, the situation didn’t allow for it. If I stubbornly tried to get eight of them, there might be casualties that would require fire manipulation.

“Well… four should be enough. Launch.”

Like a man, I shrugged and gave the order. At my command, the four Interceptors immediately started climbing the stairs to the rooftop.

***

Clank- clank clank clank-

Although they looked like small flying squirrels, their size, not being medium-class, was actually comparable to a large dog.

With their thick tails, almost the length of their bodies, wagging as they moved, it almost seemed comfortable for fire manipulation. Despite that, they were agilely heading towards their target.

Moreover, since most of their bodies were made of light mithril, they were quite fast on the ground.

It might not seem like much, but this was a significant advantage.

Although they were aerial machines, just as they had four legs, they weren’t machines that only operated in the air.

It wasn’t that they fought on the ground, but like human airplanes, they had to take time to land and refuel after flying.

This was… if you could call it a ‘limitation,’ due to an inherent ‘limitation’ they had.

That was…

Overwhelming, monstrous castle abilities, unfitting for a medium-class.

Whoosh- flap-! Bang!

As they spread their wings, their thick tails unfurled, revealing their true nature. This was none other than… a [Thrust Vectoring] jet engine.

Thrust vectoring nozzles, which are used to some extent in the most powerful modern fighter jets, are devices that change the direction of the jet engine’s thrust.

Compared to that, the Interceptor’s tail engine was…

A truly astonishing piece of engineering compared to modern fighter jets, capable of moving 360 degrees freely and adjusting the jet thrust direction without restriction.

It was not only dominant in evasion and pursuit maneuvers, possessing all the necessary abilities in the air, such as steep dives, sudden stops, and sharp turns.

It also meant it was a piece of engineering that had all non-combat features like vertical takeoff and landing or hovering. But that wasn’t all.

The Interceptor was a watercraft with an incredibly complex structure, but in fact, if you look at it from a functional point of view, it was rather simple.

With freely movable wings on four legs.

Thrust Vectoring tail jet engine for added mobility.

But in fact, all of this was attached to the body of the Man…

No, to be precise, it was nothing more or less than the Man himself, a Photon Autocannon, designed to float the Man’s body. When you think about it, the Interceptor was just a Photon Autocannon with wings, like the Man.

And the power of this Photon Autocannon was enormous.

It was a watercraft with overwhelming rapid-fire speed, of course, and firepower that could not be said to be absolutely lacking in the air.

If it were on the ground, it would be impossible to use due to overheating. This was because Mithril was not a material with excellent heat resistance like Adamantite.

But in the air, there was no problem.

This was because the Interceptor had numerous air intake ducts, which cooled it with an overwhelming flow of air, solving the overheating problem.

The reason why such insane performance was a drawback was this:

Its performance alone was comparable to a Large-Class, and if limited to aerial combat, which was its strength, the Interceptor had nothing to fear from a Super-Large Class…

This guy was a Medium-Class.

As a Medium-Class machine, it could not handle the terrible mana consumption that allowed it to achieve such monstrous performance.

They could barely stay afloat for about 10 minutes at most. Considering flying to and from the combat zone, the actual combat time was at most 3-5 minutes with fire manipulation.

After fighting like that, they would return home like Humanity’s aircraft, complete a short refit, and sortie again.

To properly utilize them, a Super-Large Class machine…

This was also why an Aerial Mothership was needed.

Of course, they could be used without much difficulty at the Main Base, which has a Mana Facility and Production Facility, as it is now.

KWAANG-

Thus, the first launch of these guys began.

Four lights from the Shopping Mall Rooftop emitted strong power and advanced towards the cloud of Monsters.

KUUUUNG- PAAAANG!

A sonic boom immediately resounded.

Being light, they instantly broke the sound barrier.

“Indeed, expensive ingredients are worth their price.”

I smiled contentedly.

It was a moment where I felt the reward of my hard work in finding Mithril.

The creatures, which reached the Harpy Swarm in the blink of an eye, let out-

Chiiiiiiiiiiiiing-

They emitted a maddeningly high-pitched cry.

It was as if, when the gatling gun of a modern A10 Thunderbolt Attack Aircraft fires, it’s not the individual shots but…

Like a muffled vibration of “Broooooong” erupting, the sound of the Photon Autocannon’s firing was muffled, sounding like a high-pitched cry.

Was it fired for only about 0.4 seconds?

It wasn’t a particularly long cry.

However, the numerous straight beams of light that were fired like that…

Pierced directly through the center of the Harpy…

Papapapapapak!

It turned the Harpy Swarm’s cloud into a donut shape.

It happened in an instant.

“W-what is it?!”

“Th-that light… What in the world…?”

“Could it be a new machine?!”

“No… That’s impossible…”

It was natural for the Ability Users, who were fighting with all their might on the ground City Wall within the Defensive Facility, to look up at the sky with bewildered expressions. Of course, that bewilderment quickly turned into a shout of triumph.

“Now’s our chance! Keep fighting!”

“Whoa!”

Not wanting to lose momentum, the citizens of the Fortified City began to fight as if pressing forward.

“That’s more like it.”

I grinned.

Meanwhile, the Interceptors pierced through the Harpy flock like that.

Whoosh-

They sharply turned and came back, firing their electromagnetic cannons once again. The Harpies that had started falling during the first volley hadn’t even hit the ground yet.

“Keeeee-!”

By the time the Interceptors had completed their first sortie to the castle and returned to the Main Base for maintenance by the Worker Bugs, the number of Harpies had been reduced by half.

However… they wouldn’t be satisfied with just one sortie, would they?

“Once maintenance is done, launch again.”

Whoosh- Flap- Thud!

Once again, they were carrying out their second sortie.

***

Afterward, once the Aerial Monsters were dealt with,

the Ground Monsters were also quickly eliminated.

This was thanks to the Adamantite Assault Cannons, which boasted immense firepower after the explosion enhancement research was completed, and the Interceptors, which started eyeing the ground when there was nothing left to eat in the air.

The Interceptor’s weapons were specialized for aerial combat, and although their sustained power was lacking compared to the Assault Cannons, they were effective enough against small and medium-sized Monsters.

And all these Mana Stones were mine.

This was because I had stipulated in the contract that all Mana Stones from the Castle Defense Battle would be mine.

Since I built the Defensive Facility in the first place, and I killed most of them, there were no people with only Fire Manipulation who complained, instead they were grateful for saving their lives and their families’.

Anyway, there were countless ways for them to obtain Mana Stones, such as Dungeons. In particular, with Deokchan leading the agricultural development in the first Dungeon, private Mana Stone income had increased tremendously.

Meanwhile, Deokchan cautiously brought up borrowing some Rough Terrain Pioneers for land reclamation, but…

That couldn’t happen yet.

Because there was still a lot to excavate in the Desert Dungeon.

Even if the oil found by chance was put aside… the original reason for opening the Desert Dungeon was not only Mithril, but also other abundant ores such as Iron Ore and Adamantite.

‘Since I’ve sent them, I should have them mine more materials.’

Moreover, with the Large-Class Rough Terrain Pioneers and four Interceptors, each consuming a truckload of mana per sortie…

One Mana Facility was no longer enough to handle it.

If I built one more Mana Facility, I would be able to make up for the current lack of Mana Quantity and have enough Capital City to hire another Rough Terrain Pioneer for Deokchan (more precisely, for land reclamation).

Furthermore, I would be able to build more Production Facilities or increase the number of troops.

“No, I have to build another Mana Facility after all.”

It was a good timing, as Mana Stones were accumulating.