Trenches, Guns, and Magic

"Unit Two, watch the indicator lights. Prepare for airdrop!"

"The drop zone is located above the engagement area. You may land directly in enemy positions. Knights, prepare for immediate combat upon landing!"

Inside the cockpit of the "Siegfried Type 1 Mod," the voices of the armored airship technicians came through the newly installed audio pickup device.

The modified audio system cleanly filtered out most battlefield noise, leaving only human voices and warning tones at specific frequencies.

Reinhardt, piloting Unit Two in the "Experimental Squad" led by Ludwig, stretched his neck slightly, trying to find a more comfortable position within the cramped cockpit.

This new audio equipment was swapped in by the magitech technicians during the Armored Knights' maintenance overhaul after the Battle of Bucharest concluded.

Ever since they were "seconded" to the instruction unit under Grand Master Leonia's orders, the three Armored Knights had been undergoing continuous upgrades.

Besides routine maintenance, summarizing combat experience and reporting back to the Knight Order was a crucial task for the Teutonic technicians accompanying them.

According to Grand Master Leonia, since they were already seconded to an experimental unit, they might as well take the "experiment" all the way. Ludwig and his team were to conduct combat testing on new equipment along the way.

This was also one of the reasons Ludwig and his team had been able to remain with the instruction unit...

Therefore, periodically, one or two crates marked "For Exclusive Use by the Teutonic Order" would arrive among the supplies sent from the rear, containing various experimental components.

Sometimes it was new joint hydraulic assemblies developed based on the captured "Hound Type 4." Sometimes it was improved radiant crystal internal combustion engine filters. Occasionally, there were perplexing experimental parts—

For example, the "Magitech Core Cooling Auxiliary Module" received last month came with documentation explicitly stating: "Please test under extreme combat conditions and provide feedback."

However, to Reinhardt, this noise-canceling audio equipment—developed on Morin's suggestion—was the most practical modification yet.

Previously, the Armored Knight's pickups would capture every sound on the battlefield. The cockpit was filled with the roar of the engine and the muffled thuds of external explosions. Ground infantry couldn't hear what they were saying if they were even slightly far away, severely hampering coordinated combat.

But now, the brand-new audio equipment filtered out most battlefield noise, allowing the pilot to focus on combat and communication with friendly forces.

"Copy that, airdrop preparations complete~"

Reinhardt, not yet in "Synesthesia Operation Mode," adjusted a few valves and buttons in the cockpit to ensure all instrument readings were normal before replying to the technician via the external speaker.

He paused, then added, "By the way, are the ammo crates strapped to me secure? I don't want to jump out of this airship and have twenty-some crates scatter in mid-air like confetti..."

"Rest assured, Sir Knight! We double-checked three times!"

A bearded technician lying prone on the Armored Knight's back replied with a laugh. Because Ludwig and his team hadn't put on any airs since joining the instruction unit, they quickly integrated with the others. The title "Sir Knight" was used purely as a joke between them here.

"All straps use double-locking buckles, with a 1.5x load-bearing margin... They won't come loose even if you do somersaults in mid-air!"

"Let's skip the somersaults. I'm not that crazy yet!"

Reinhardt switched the "Synesthesia Control System" to semi-active mode, moving the mechanical arms to confirm all joint responses were within normal parameters.

Every movement of the Armored Knight was relayed back to the pilot through the "Synesthesia Control System." The sensation was hard to describe; it was as if your arms had suddenly become two or three meters of steel, yet remained perfectly nimble.

Of course, the price was an extremely high mental load on the pilot.

Especially during intense combat with the "Synesthesia Control System" fully engaged, the pilot was essentially using willpower and physical stamina to share a body with this steel can.

This was why the Teutonic Order's selection criteria were so strict and why members had to undergo physical modification surgeries.

However, Reinhardt was long accustomed to it.

Being chosen by Ludwig to join the "Experimental Squad" alongside Eric, the pilot of Unit Three, and deploy to the instruction unit already proved his capability.

"Sir Knight! Maintenance work has undergone multiple confirmations!"

The lead technician ran a few paces in front of the Armored Knight, looking up toward the cockpit.

This middle-aged man in his forties had a face covered in grease and wore crumpled overalls, but his salute was impeccable.

"May you always be victorious!"

"Hahaha, I'll borrow your good luck."

Reinhardt chuckled, his gaze shifting to the indicator lights on the cargo bay wall. The red light was still on.

He used these final seconds of waiting to contact Ludwig in Unit One, standing nearby, via the built-in magitech communication device.

"Sir, I'm heading out first. See you on the ground."

Ludwig's voice returned almost instantly: "Copy that. Stay safe, don't underestimate the enemy!"

"Understood!"

Before his voice fully faded, the indicator light turned from red to green.

Reinhardt said no more. Fully activating the "Synesthesia Control System," he merged his consciousness with the Armored Knight, commanding the "Siegfried Type 1 Mod" to step forward.

The nearly six-meter-tall mechanical giant left heavy footprints on the airship's cargo deck, each step causing the surrounding technicians to instinctively step back.

The cargo bay doors for deployment were fully open. Reinhardt walked to the edge and looked down.

From this altitude, the woods and positions below looked like models on a sandbox. Scattered pinpricks of fire and plumes of smoke marked active combat zones.

"Reinhardt Wilhelm, Unit Two, launching!"

The "Siegfried Type 1 Mod" took its final step, and the deck vanished beneath its feet.

Reinhardt felt a sudden, intense wave of weightlessness.

With the "Synesthesia Control System" fully active, this sensation was magnified exponentially. Reinhardt felt as if his entire being was plummeting; the feeling was even stronger than jumping himself.

Through the wide-angle vision provided by the system, the entire battlefield sprawled magnificently below him.

Fire flashed in the distant forest positions, punctuated by intense explosions and tracer rounds sweeping across the ground. He could even see tiny, human-shaped black dots moving rapidly...

After the feasibility of Armored Knight airdrops was verified, the Teutonic Order had added rapid reconnaissance and target selection post-airdrop to their mandatory training curriculum.

Reinhardt didn't know if his colleagues back at the Order, who had only ever fought on the ground, experienced acrophobia during this training, but he felt absolutely no such fear...

Ever since his first combat airdrop at the Carpathian Mountain pass, he had developed a strange fondness for this high-altitude insertion method.

Piloting a steel giant descending from the heavens made him feel like a god of war delivering divine punishment...

The ground was rushing up fast. Reinhardt gathered his thoughts, refocusing entirely on assessing the battlefield situation.

He could already roughly distinguish friend from foe on the battlefield below, and the method was simple—

Those clustered in small groups, with muzzles flashing constantly and occasional bursts of flamethrower fire, were the instruction unit.

Those huddled in masses of dozens, with sparse, sporadic muzzle flashes, were almost certainly Greeks.

In the next moment, his altitude reached the threshold for activating 【Feather Fall】.

Reinhardt engaged the spell unit. The magitech core emitted a low-frequency hum, and the Armored Knight's plummeting speed decelerated abruptly.

From the outside, it looked as if an invisible hand had suddenly caught the nearly twenty-ton steel giant in mid-air.

Simultaneously, Reinhardt raised the left mechanical arm.

He disengaged the safety of the MG08 heavy machine gun mounted beneath the left arm. A circular crosshair representing the muzzle's aim appeared in his synesthetic vision.

He fine-tuned the arm's angle, placing the reticle over a spot on the ground where Greeks were clearly clustered.

At least twenty men were huddled behind a low barricade, firing sporadically toward the direction the instruction unit was advancing.

"You'll do."

Reinhardt squeezed the trigger. The heavy machine gun's tracer rounds drew a slanted line of light through the air, whipping toward the ground target.

The top-down firing angle rendered the barricade shielding the Greek soldiers meaningless.

The first long burst dropped four or five men.

Reinhardt didn't stop. He slowly traversed the muzzle while continuing to fire in bursts, blanketing the entire area behind the barricade.

Sprayed with their comrades' blood, the remaining Greeks finally realized the attack was coming from above. They instinctively looked up, then broke and ran.

Everyone dropped their weapons and scattered toward the rear, abandoning any semblance of formation or unit cohesion.

These deserters, now stripped of cover and exposed in the open, were immediately targeted by the instruction unit soldiers advancing on the ground.

A dense barrage of gunfire erupted, cutting down scores of routing Greek soldiers.

"Yes, yes, ground attack is the way to go... If only I could stay in the sky and shoot forever~"

Reinhardt couldn't help but let his mind wander as he admired the results of his attack.

The Armored Knight continued to descend, its altitude now under thirty meters.

【Feather Fall】 brought the nearly twenty-ton steel giant toward the ground at a relatively slow pace. Looking up from below, it was clearly an oppressive behemoth.

In several isolated positions nearby, Greek soldiers mustered their courage to fight back, opening fire into the sky.

Normally, Reinhardt wouldn't care about attacks of this caliber. The "Siegfried Type 1 Mod"—or any Armored Knight, really—could shrug off small arms fire and even some small-caliber artillery.

But not right now...

Because the Armored Knight's exterior was strapped with a massive amount of ammunition crates containing submachine gun rounds, light machine gun rounds, and grenades, Reinhardt still activated the mana shield unit.

A translucent blue force field flared around the Armored Knight, deflecting the incoming bullets.

Simultaneously, he made a mental note of the positions still firing at him. They would make perfect targets for his ground assault later. After all, the Teutonic Knights never held grudges overnight; they settled scores on the spot~

Seconds later, the "Siegfried Type 1 Mod"'s feet touched down. The heavy impact shook the surrounding earth. Instruction unit soldiers poured out from nearby cover as if they did this every day, crouching low and rushing toward the Armored Knight.

"Ammo is here! Hurry!"

They quickly established a temporary firing position around the Armored Knight. Two MG14s opened up suppressive fire left and right toward potential enemy approaches, while the others began unbuckling the ammo crates.

"The straps are single-use! Just cut them with knives and bayonets! Move fast!"

"Light machine gun ammo... Submachine gun ammo... This crate is grenades! Handle with care!"

The instruction unit soldiers unloaded the ammo at breakneck speed. Reinhardt stood stock-still, merely lowering the chassis slightly to let the infantry work beneath him.

He felt like a massive tree stump swarmed by bees, except these "bees" were harvesting "pollen" from him.

In about a minute, the external ammo crates were mostly unloaded.

Meanwhile, a lieutenant crouched low, sneaked up beside the Armored Knight's leg, and shouted up toward the cockpit.

"Thanks for the ammo support, Sir! But there are still a few firepoints ahead. The toughest one is the heavy machine gun in the back. The gunner is clearly a veteran; his suppressive fire is much more professional! You catch my drift, right?"

"Oh my, you infantrymen... using honorifics while ordering the 'Sir Knight' around. Is that proper?"

Reinhardt complained jokingly while turning his head. Using the visual magnification of the "Synesthesia Control System," he looked in the direction the lieutenant pointed.

Leveraging the Armored Knight's height advantage, he spotted a heavy machine gun firing sporadically from a semi-circular sandbag fortification about three hundred meters away.

Due to the terrain, it couldn't hit the instruction unit soldiers for the moment, but it was indeed causing a "minor inconvenience" to their advance.

And the gunner firing it was indeed skilled. Unlike other shooters in the Greek forces who simply held the trigger down, this gunner clearly had a tactical mind. He only fired precise, suppressive bursts when the instruction unit soldiers attempted to advance.

"He does have some skill... But no matter, leave him to me! Just make sure you follow up with support!"

After the lieutenant gave a firm affirmative, Reinhardt strode forward, temporarily deactivating the mana shield—a common habit among Teutonic Knights.

In the absence of a threat from enemy Armored Knights, they conserved their mana shield's operating time as much as possible. After all, the performance of the "Siegfried" series' magitech cores still fell short of the Britannian models.

The commotion of the heavy steel giant breaking into a full sprint was even more intimidating on the battlefield than small-caliber artillery fire. The heavy mechanical feet punched deep craters into the ground, and several thin trees blocking its path were simply plowed over.

The instruction unit lieutenant yelled for his men to quickly resupply, leaving the remaining ammo for another approaching platoon, then followed Reinhardt to continue the attack.

At this point, the coordination between the instruction unit and the Armored Knights had preliminarily met Morin's expectations: a tactic centered around the Armored Knight, pivoting the attack around this powerful ground assault unit.

While this coordination was still rough around the edges, they had taken the first step regardless.

The heavy machine gunner clearly spotted the Armored Knight charging toward him. He swung his muzzle toward Reinhardt, raining a dense stream of bullets against the armor plating.

Clang clang clang clang—

A continuous cacophony of ricochets rang out. To Reinhardt, such an attack was no different from a tickle.

He didn't even bother raising his gun to return fire. He charged right up to the sandbag fortification, kicked the heavy machine gun nest to pieces, then drove his right mechanical arm down and activated the underslung flamethrower.

A tongue of fire erupted from the end of his right arm, pouring directly into the opening of the semi-circular fortification. The flames rapidly expanded within the sandbag-enclosed space, engulfing everything inside.

"Target eliminated! Move up!"

Reinhardt roared through the speaker at the instruction unit soldiers behind him, then pivoted and pushed toward the next target.

The lieutenant followed closely with his men, utilizing the suppressive effect created by the steel giant to bound forward rapidly while clearing out residual enemies in the vicinity.

As Reinhardt finished clearing the second firepoint, he glanced up at the sky.

The L15 armored airship continued its forward flight, its massive hull casting a shadow in the morning light.

From the cargo bay doors beneath the airship, he saw a familiar figure—Unit One, which had painted its shoulder pauldrons red, also strapped with ammo crates, leaping from the airship.

Although Ludwig and his team had seen the effectiveness of camouflage, in a battle like this where they knew in advance there were no enemy Armored Knights, he still preferred to give his mech a conspicuous paint job.

In his words, it was to "create a deterrent effect against ordinary enemies."

Soon, Ludwig piloted Unit One down from the armored airship, followed shortly by Eric in Unit Three.

"Alright, I'm not alone anymore."

Reinhardt returned his focus to the ground, continuing his advance.

His left arm's heavy machine gun fired intermittent bursts at fleeing Greek stragglers, while his right arm's flamethrower dealt with those stubbornly hiding in the trenches.

The Greek Kingdom's soldiers possessed no anti-armor capabilities whatsoever. The few Armored Knights the country owned had all been retained to defend the capital and were not assigned to the expeditionary force.

Given that the Bulgarians had deployed all their Armored Knights against the Romanians and Ottomans, the Greeks indeed hadn't needed to worry about them.

But now, with the instruction unit joining the fray, the situation had changed.

Relying solely on Reinhardt's single Armored Knight, the instruction unit had turned this position completely upside down.

The 1st Battalion, traveling light to complete the forced march, had expended a massive amount of ammunition in the initial wave of attacks, entering a period of "fatigue" afterward.

But now, bolstered by the resupply and direct support provided by the three Armored Knights, the instruction unit launched a fresh, tidal-wave-like assault.

Just as Reinhardt acted as a cold, advancing machine, constantly ripping through the Greek lines, the detection device on the Armored Knight used to locate magitech cores and magical targets suddenly blared a warning.

Simultaneously, through the "Synesthesia Operation Mode" and the Armored Knight's sensors, Reinhardt detected a powerful energy fluctuation passing rapidly nearby.

Reinhardt instinctively halted the Armored Knight, searching the full-vision field of the Synesthesia system for the source of the fluctuation.

He locked onto the energy almost instantly. In the woods to his front-left, an incredibly fast-moving human figure was cutting across the edge of the treeline.

That speed...

Reinhardt's first reaction was that his eyes were playing tricks on him.

Because the visual feed in the Synesthesia system only captured a blurry afterimage, completely unable to form a clear picture, as if someone had hit fast-forward right in front of him.

Reinhardt froze for about half a second before realization hit him.

There was only one person in the instruction unit capable of generating that level of magical fluctuation within his detection range while moving at such absurd speeds.

The "just passing through" Colonel Morin.

Following the Battle of Bucharest, everyone knew to what inhuman lengths Colonel Morin's combat prowess had reached. Reinhardt and the others privately suspected the Colonel could probably go toe-to-toe with an Armored Knight using just his bare hands and a shaped-charge armor-piercing weapon...

The afterimage flashed across his vision and vanished deeper into the woods, heading precisely in the direction the 2nd Company was attacking in depth.

"So the Colonel went to personally handle the trouble the 2nd Company ran into?"

Reinhardt clicked his tongue. He contacted Ludwig, shared the intel, and then temporarily set the matter aside.

He couldn't interfere with the Colonel's business; all he could do was clean up the Greeks in front of him.

...

Deep in the woods.

If Reinhardt was merely shocked, then for "Old Man" and his team, the death knell had truly begun to toll.

At this moment, "Old Man's" sixth sense was screaming alarms in his brain.

It was hard to describe. He hadn't seen anything directly, but every nerve in his body was telling him: Something extremely dangerous is approaching at high speed.

This intuition had saved his life many times in his career. In every past mission, whenever this warning sign appeared, "Old Man's" first reaction was always to break contact immediately.

Including the failed "Queen's Blade" operation on the Western Front previously...

But he couldn't this time. He knew the "Baron" needed him to buy time.

"Everyone, form up on me immediately! Watch your two o'clock!"

"Old Man" immediately notified his eight-man squad via communication stone. Hearing the obvious tremble in "Old Man's" voice, the others clearly realized something was wrong. They quickly converged on him, keeping a vigilant watch on the woods at two o'clock.

When the young Spell Jäger at the front saw "Old Man's" condition, it was the first time he had seen genuine terror on the veteran's face.

"'Old Man,' what's wrong? What hap—"

"Shut up! Watch your two o'clock!"

Under "Old Man's" reprimand, the young Spell Jäger raised his rifle and looked toward the woods at two o'clock.

The morning light filtered through the eastern treetops, creating dappled shadows across the forest floor. At first glance, there was nothing but distant fires and explosions.

But "Old Man," possessing superior dynamic vision, caught sight of a figure flashing between two trees in that instant, moving so fast it left only an afterimage.

That was clearly not a movement capability a normal human should possess.

Mage Killer, Butcher, Saxon Super Soldier... A barrage of titles flooded his mind.

"Old Man's" Adam's apple bobbed.

The terror buried deep in his heart since the end of the Western Front battle surged up instantly. In that engagement, the Spell Jägers had lost many comrades, and he had nearly died there himself.

Upon returning to the home islands, "Old Man" told himself more than once that he had to exact revenge on this enemy.

But now, when that nightmare-like existence truly appeared, "Old Man" realized he had already lost the courage for revenge.

"Ironmen, step up and prepare to engage!"

Following "Old Man's" order, the four heavy armor warriors moved to the front of the formation without hesitation.

They raised their heavy shields, hiding most of their bodies behind them, and rested their longswords atop the shield rims, vigilantly watching that eerily quiet patch of woods.

Meanwhile, "Old Man" looked at another Spell Jäger who had moved close to him and spoke hurriedly, "Prepare crowd control spells! Whatever you do, do not let him close the distance!"

However, before he could finish his sentence, he heard a heavy armor soldier ahead yell in terror.

"He's here! Ironmen, engage—!"

Before the yell died down, a thick cloud of smoke rose in the woods ahead.

"Old Man" recognized it as the effect of 【Misty Step】. The enemy was indeed closing the distance rapidly.

But just as "Old Man" worried about how long the heavy armor soldiers could hold, Morin delivered the answer with a ferocious attack.

"Boom!"

Accompanied by a dull, massive impact, the heavy armor soldier at the very front was sent flying backward, shield and all, as if struck head-on by a battering ram!

His heavy body traced a parabolic arc through the air, ultimately snapping a fairly thick tree trunk before crashing heavily to the ground.

"Pfft—!"

The heavy armor soldier spat out a mouthful of blood. Because he was wearing a helmet, the blood nearly choked him to death.

After violently tearing off the blood-dripping helmet, he felt as if his internal organs had all shifted out of place, and every bone in his body felt shattered.

Severe pain washed over him like a tidal wave, nearly swallowing his consciousness.

But this "Ironman," ready to sacrifice himself for the Spell Jägers at any moment, did not cry out. Gritting his teeth, he used a trembling hand to pull a carefully preserved small glass vial from a special protective pouch at his waist.

A handwritten label was affixed to the vial—"Last Struggle."

This was their final lifesaver, an alchemical potion that could temporarily squeeze out vitality, ignore pain, and stimulate potential, but at the cost of rendering the user a cripple once the effects wore off...

The heavy armor soldier didn't hesitate. He bit off the cork and downed the pungent liquid in one gulp.

A searing warmth instantly spread throughout his body. His injuries seemed to ease, and the heart-wrenching agony miraculously vanished completely.

He could clearly feel that multiple bones in his body were broken and his organs severely damaged, but for the duration of the "Last Struggle" potion, he could ignore the damage and continue fighting.

"Let's do this... For the Empire!"

With a low growl, the heavy armor soldier leapt from the ground, discarded his deformed shield, and charged forward with his sword raised.

He tried to regroup with his three companions, forming a tight encirclement formation as trained, to trap the phantom-like figure in the middle.

All the "Ironmen" knew that facing an enemy like this, scattering would only lead to being picked off one by one; a combined assault might buy some time.

However, in the next second, the heavy armor soldier who had just downed the potion saw his target's silhouette flash and vanish into thin air.

When the figure reappeared, it had ghosted to the side of a comrade to his front right.

A sword gleam carrying the aura of death and black smoke flashed.

Before that heavy armor soldier could even react, his head was severed cleanly at the gap between his helmet and body armor.

Boiling blood shot into the sky. The headless corpse swayed twice before crashing to the ground.

One Strike Kill!

Although the remaining three heavy armor soldiers were hardened veterans, witnessing this at close range made their scalps tingle. The corporal who had just drunk the potion instinctively raised his longsword, defending his vitals with all his might.

But unfortunately, Morin's next target wasn't him.

When the figure flickered again, it appeared behind another heavy armor soldier.

【Steel Wind Strike】!

Under the attack effects of the 【Dark Sword】, Morin's form turned into a whirlwind of black mist. The legendary magic weapon in his hand unleashed several continuous slashes from various tricky angles in an extremely short time.

When Morin's 【Steel Wind Strike】 concluded, all four heavy armor soldiers responsible for defense had fallen.

While their protection was formidable, against Morin, armed with the 【Dark Sword】 and specifically targeting weak points, it was clearly insufficient.

As the effects of the 【Dark Sword】 triggered, invisible streams of life energy poured from the bodies of the slain heavy armor soldiers into Morin.

This temporary life force clung tightly to the surface of Morin's body, making him look as if he were shrouded in a faint, bloody halo, resembling a demon stepping out of hell.

"..."

"Old Man" and the remaining three Spell Jägers watched this scene helplessly, their minds going blank.

Just like that... they're gone?

In their tactical planning, the "Ironman Squad," meant to intercept targets and buy time for the Spell Jägers, was kicked to death like a bad joke.

Morin's blood-soaked image in the morning forest light, combined with his emotionless eyes, was truly terrifying.

At this moment, terror completely seized the hearts of all the Spell Jägers.

He didn't even need "Old Man" to issue another order. The Spell Jäger previously tasked with preparing a crowd control spell instinctively unleashed it.

"【Evard's Black Tentacles】!"

Simultaneously, the other two Spell Jägers reacted, immediately firing their rifles, enhanced by 【Magic Weapon】, madly at Morin.

Blue magical trajectories cut through the forest air, but Morin's figure flickered again before the guns even fired. Using several thick tree trunks as cover, he easily dodged the dense volley.

The Spell Jägers tried to track Morin using their superior-to-normal aiming abilities, but after he flashed behind a few trees in succession, they completely lost sight of him...

But at this moment, 【Evard's Black Tentacles】 was fully cast.

Just as Morin lunged forward, the ground beneath his feet suddenly turned pitch black, and the soft soil began to churn violently.

Immediately following, black tentacles resembling infinitely magnified squid tentacles burst from the ground!

The tentacles whipped about with howling wind, carrying viscous fluid and a foul stench, surging terrifyingly toward his position from all directions!

Without time to think, Morin pushed off with his superhuman reflexes, his body darting sideways at an inconceivable angle, narrowly dodging the lash of the first tentacle.

In the instant of dodging, Morin realized that this seemingly massive area-of-effect crowd control spell... could apparently be forcibly dodged with his current agility?

If the Spell Jäger who cast the spell knew his thought, their jaw would drop.

Because in the current era, where traditional classes like "Rangers" and "Rogues" had died out, escaping the area of effect of 【Evard's Black Tentacles】 relying purely on human agility was considered impossible.

And Morin's next moves left "Old Man" and the others watching from afar utterly dumbfounded.

They watched the bloody silhouette begin a "dance" beyond ordinary comprehension within the death zone woven by dozens of thrashing black tentacles.

Morin would sprint, brake suddenly and lean back, or dodge laterally without warning... Every movement was precise to the millimeter, every dodge executed in the final instant before a tentacle struck.

He weaved through the gaps between the tentacles, not only avoiding entanglement but continuously closing the distance to the caster.

"This... this is fucking impossible!"

The Spell Jäger who cast the spell stared wide-eyed. He never imagined anyone could "dance" so effortlessly within the range of 【Evard's Black Tentacles】.

This completely exceeded their understanding of combat.

In this instant, "Old Man" also completely understood that the power of the enemy before them had vastly surpassed their imagination.

The experience they summarized after the battles on the Western Front was completely useless...

With the few men they had left, let alone blocking him, they couldn't even buy time.

Under these circumstances, if they continued to fall back toward the "Baron" as planned, they would only lead this monster straight to him, resulting in total annihilation.

A resolute thought instantly formed in his mind.

"Listen up!"

"Old Man" issued his final order to the other four via the communication stone.

"We lure him away! Buy time for the 'Baron' and the others to evacuate!"

"Understood!"

The other four Spell Jägers responded immediately without hesitation.

They were comrades who trained together and shared a deep tacit understanding, grasping "Old Man's" intent in an instant.

Sacrificing themselves to save the main force was the only viable plan right now...

"I'll hold him off first! You guys open up the distance, fast!"

The Spell Jäger desperately maintaining 【Evard's Black Tentacles】 yelled at "Old Man" without looking back.

"Old Man" looked at him deeply, without saying another word. The tacit understanding between Spell Jägers required no speech.

He took the other two Spell Jägers, turned, and sprinted away at full speed in the exact opposite direction of the "Baron."

The Spell Jäger left behind caught a glimpse of "Old Man" and the others disappearing and felt a sense of relief.

However, when he refocused his attention on the battlefield before him, he discovered in horror that the bloody silhouette trapped in the thicket of black tentacles just a moment ago was gone.

Where did he go?!

A chill shot from his feet to his scalp. Alarm bells rang furiously in the Spell Jäger's mind.

He instinctively wanted to drop 【Evard's Black Tentacles】 and cast a 【Shield】 spell on himself.

But before he could complete the spellcasting motion, he felt a sharp rush of wind coming from his flank.

In the next second, a tremendous force slammed into his waist. His entire body was sent flying, crashing heavily to the ground an unknown distance away.

Before he could even struggle to get up, Morin's silhouette arrived right in front of him like a shadow.

Through blurred vision, the Spell Jäger saw in terror that the weapon in his opponent's hands had, at some point, changed from the dark-aura-emitting longsword to a gold-plated double-barreled shotgun glowing with blue magical aura.

And floating beside him was another pump-action shotgun, also shimmering with blue magical light.

"Bang! Bang!"

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The double-barreled shotgun and the pump-action shotgun fired simultaneously at point-blank range. A steel storm composed of deadly enchanted pellets instantly enveloped him.

The protective force field provided by his 【Mage Armor】 shattered like glass under such furious firepower after absorbing only the first volley.

Subsequently, countless pellets pierced his body, completely reducing his upper torso to a bloody pulp.

Morin expressionlessly reloaded his double-barreled shotgun, while the pump-action shotgun manipulated by 【Mage Hand】 automatically ejected the shells and chambered the next round, floating quietly beside him.

Looking up in the direction "Old Man" and the others had disappeared, Morin frowned slightly.

He recalled the location where these Spell Jägers' unit markers first appeared on the system map, and compared it to their current escape direction.

It was completely contradictory...

"Looks like they're trying to lure me away... The Britannians' will to fight is truly not to be underestimated..."

A complex look flashed in Morin's eyes. He was all too familiar with this tactic of sacrificing a small portion to save the main force.

If it were in the past, he would be forced to choose one or the other right now.

But this time, he chose "I want them all."

Morin accelerated again, giving chase in the direction "Old Man" and the others had fled. He wanted the enemy to think their plan had succeeded.

Simultaneously, while sprinting, he freed up a hand to pull out the portable magitech communication device, quickly connecting to the armored airship's bridge. At times like this, Morin really wished he could grow a few extra hands.

"Lieutenant Colonel Andreas, this is Morin."

"Colonel! What's the situation on your end?"

"I've dealt with the first wave of enemies, but their main force should be in the other direction... I will give you coordinates now. Continue area reconnaissance in that direction!"

"Also, notify Klaus to have the Thunder Warriors ready for an airdrop. The moment they detect strong magical fluctuations, attack immediately. Don't wait for my order!"

"Understood, Colonel!"

Having given his orders, Morin put away the communication device, accelerated again, and vanished into the woods.

On the other side, "Old Man" and the last two Spell Jägers were running for their lives through the forest.

He glanced back periodically, feeling the suffocating, oppressive presence closing in behind him.

When he confirmed that the monster was indeed chasing them, his heart actually settled.

At least the "Baron" and the others were safe... Their sacrifice was worth it.

"Prepare for combat!"

"Old Man" gave a low growl, knowing they couldn't just outrun him.

He pulled a 5th-circle 【Bigby's Hand】 spell scroll from his coat.

Moving rapidly and lacking the time to use the communication stone, he signaled the other two companions to fan out to the sides immediately to divide the enemy's attention.

Then, without hesitation, he tore the scroll, instantly activating the 5th-circle Transmutation spell.

A massive, translucent hand made of pure, shimmering magical energy materialized out of thin air before him.

The giant hand was the size of an Armored Knight, mimicking "Old Man's" right hand movements, adopting the same posture.

"Taste this!"

"Old Man" threw a vicious slap toward the pursuing Morin.

The massive magical palm brought howling wind as it slapped down toward Morin's head, as if intending to swat him into the ground like a fly.