Chapter 72 - Joining Forces

The followers of Mammon who fled to the underground mines felt like they were going crazy.

Due to the influence of the pillar of light illuminating the entire city, their corrupted souls and Mammon's magic were completely exposed on their skin, making it impossible to hide their identities.

Also, because it was a sudden situation, there was no time for preparation or anything.

Because of this, most of the low-level followers who hadn't properly received Mammon's blessing were armed with extremely poor equipment.

Pistols.

At best, they could fire a few shots at the Ketratus members' armor with submachine guns before being disintegrated by cannons disguised as pistols.

"Burn them. All of them cleanly."

Or they were turned to ash by the fire of the Igniter Squad.

Of course, Mammon's followers weren't fools either.

"Machine guns!! Bring heavy machine guns!!"

The mine tunnels had been their base for a long time, so they were equipped with various armaments and equipment prepared for emergencies.

Heavy machine guns set up in narrow passages.

Spraying flamethrowers.

Throwing bombs to block mine paths and so on, they resisted desperately.

The problem was.

"It's a heavy machine gun!! A heavy machine gun!! But why is it still intact!!"

The armor equipped by the Ketratus members was made of magic metal that was difficult to penetrate even with heavy machine guns.

Moreover, they were wrapped in all kinds of defensive miracles, so they could approach while simply taking bullets.

"Roast them! Roast them!! Roast them I say!!"

"Do you think we fear fire when we use miracles that handle flames?"

The flames from flamethrowers poured towards Ketratus members entering narrow passages were simply sucked into their hands and then shot back.

"...High Priest. Those bastards are just clearing away rocks with their bare hands?"

The fact that all defensive tactics were being nullified because they were doing nonsensical things like clearing away boulders with ridiculously powerful strength to reopen passages even when tunnels were blocked by exploding bombs.

While attacks poured on them had no effect no matter how many.

Each of the Ketratus' attacks was terribly devastating.

The greatswords and hammers wielded by the Ketratus were of a size and weight that ordinary people would have difficulty even lifting, let alone wielding, so even a graze instantly crushed and turned them into lumps of meat.

The bullets they fired not only tore through bulletproof vests and the flesh inside.

They easily penetrated steel or rock cover and shredded enemies behind it.

And that wasn't all.

Even followers who had received quite a lot of blessings from Mammon and been granted much stronger bodies beyond human flesh.

Even abominations were exploding and bursting apart from a single pistol shot.

Seeing an abomination that had torn off a thick steel door in the tunnel and equipped it like a shield explode from a bullet that penetrated the steel door, Mammon's followers had to lose all fighting spirit.

"How... how are we supposed to stop that."

The followers, who had retreated again and again, were finally driven to a place that could be called their base, and when driven there, two opinions were presented among the followers.

"Let's run away even now! We must flee with the resentments we've gathered here!"

"They probably haven't figured out the secret passage yet! We must escape and survive to plan for the future!!"

There were opinions to run away, but opinions that they couldn't were not insignificant either.

"Don't you know the chosen one Mammon has been preparing for decades is still sleeping here!!"

"The moment we abandon the chosen one and run away, forget planning for the future, we might all be dragged to hell and burn forever from Mammon's anger!"

The two opinions clashed sharply.

"Then what are we supposed to do!? Just wait to die against those monsters pushing in!!"

"There's no way to deal with Dullaneer's dog bastards! Mammon's power has been reduced and because of that damn pillar of light, black magic and sorcery aren't working properly!"

In the midst of the deepening conflict.

One black mage slams the table to quiet people down.

"Let's wake the chosen one instead."

Everyone was shocked at those words.

"Are you crazy?"

"They're not complete yet!!"

"If they find out we woke them with an incomplete body, we'll all die by their hand!!"

"We'll die either way!!"

All opposing opinions were suppressed by that one line.

"If we make them able to move and flee together, we won't have abandoned the chosen one, so Mammon won't blame us! Moreover, even if incomplete, they are someone Mammon chose directly! They should be able to easily tear apart Dullaneer's dog bastards, so it will help when escaping too!"

Although no one opened their mouth at those words, everyone was tacitly agreeing.

In the current situation, that absurd suggestion was almost the only solution.

"We need to wake the chosen one by concentrating all the resentment we've gathered at once. We must hurry. There's not much time."

The black mage gripped his convulsing hand and spoke in a trembling voice, "Let's pray this plan works. It takes at least 10 minutes to wake the chosen one. I'll wake them, so the other priests and mages block the incoming enemies. 10 minutes. We just need to block for 10 minutes. Block for 10 minutes by any means necessary."

The probability of being torn apart by the chosen one realizing they were awakened in an incomplete state and the probability of dying while blocking the incoming Ketratus.

Unfortunately for the followers, the two probabilities were similar.

"Damn it. How did it come to this…?"

At someone's sobbing voice, all of Mammon's followers clenched their fists tightly.

It was exactly as they said.

How did it really come to this?

***

As they approached the base of Mammon's followers deep underground, the Ketratus' advance also began to slow down.

It was partly due to the stamina and divine power consumed to get this far, but because the followers who had been scattered here and there were now concentrated in one place, the intensity of resistance became stronger than imagined.

"Block them!!"

[For Mammon!!]

The number of black mages and abominations had now become burdensome.

Moreover, because they didn't hesitate to make suicide attacks by running in with bombs strapped to their bodies, damage was inevitably accumulating exponentially.

On top of that, the followers' dirty tricks were not few.

"Mister! Please save me!"

A 4-year-old child approached limping with an injured leg, shedding pitiful tears.

With a bomb strapped to their back.

"Please! I'm not a follower! I-I was brainwashed! When I opened my eyes, I was here! My child is waiting! I want to see my child! Please save me!!"

A beautiful woman claimed she was brainwashed and begged tearfully and desperately.

With a cursed dagger hidden at her waist to stab into their vital points the moment they showed even a little sympathy and tried to be kind.

"Brother! I've injured my leg! Help support me!"

There were also cases of wickedly pretending to be another Ketratus to lure them.

"Fight among yourselves!!"

All kinds of illusions and hallucinations cast by black mages also tormented the Ketratus.

Of course, booby traps were set up at every passage, and because of followers rushing in without regard for their lives, ammunition was gradually running out.

But nothing could stop them.

"Don't have any sympathy!"

Whether an injured child was crying.

Whether a beautiful woman was pleading that she was wrongfully brought here after being brainwashed and wanted to see her child.

Whether other Ketratus who looked exactly the same asked for help.

They silently used miracles to confirm the followers and then neutralized them by putting bullets and weapons into their bodies.

"Suspect everything!!"

They detected booby traps in advance with miracles and neutralized or disarmed them before passing through.

"If you're out of bullets, pick up stones from the ground and throw them! Kill with miracles and flames!! Don't have any mercy!!"

Even heavy stones fallen on the ground turned into crude ranged weapons when picked up and thrown by the Ketratus.

Holes were punched in abominations' bodies when hit by stones, and low-level believers' brains were simply crushed and burst.

The white flames created by igniting a mixture of gasoline and elixir with divine power were still burning the evil ones without problem.

But it was inevitable that limits were gradually approaching.

"We're out of ammunition."

The ammunition used by the Ketratus was 20mm caliber.

It was powerful ammunition that would make any monster's body explode when hit once, with tungsten penetrators and special gunpowder consecrated with divine power in the warhead, but because of that, the number of rounds each person could carry was inevitably small.

"We have wounded, Company Commander. Brother Romaro can no longer advance."

"Call a medic!"

Beings left behind began to appear one by one, and because of the reduced firepower due to that, the vicious cycle of slowing advance speed repeated.

But they never broke their fighting spirit.

"Recite the Codex Prorilium! Raise divine power! Brothers! If we fall, they will destroy humanity! Even if you die, die fighting!"

Throwing stones and swinging swords and hammers, they continued fighting desperately.

And at their forefront, Grand Master Al Madai was fighting harder than anyone else and creating a path.

"Look! You can feel the concentration of resentment getting thicker! The enemy base is not far! Advance and burn it all...!!"

Al Madai had been advancing relentlessly while swinging his greatsword and shield, but the next moment, he finally had to stop.

"Oh Dullaneer."

As if they had been waiting in preparation, dozens of abominations and black mages were standing by fully prepared.

The abominations were different from the small fry encountered until now.

Huge bodies over 3 meters tall were looking at the holy knights with dozens of eyeballs shining, and the black mages were also glaring at them while emitting unusual resentment.

"Come in! Dogs of Dullaneer!! We'll tear you apart!"

[We'll devour you!!]

All kinds of sorcery and black magic began to rise chaotically, and empowered by that, the abominations also began to let out terrible screams that felt like they would tear souls apart.

If they fought them, the Ketratus might also suffer considerable losses.

There might even be fatalities.

But even knowing that clearly, Al Madai and the Ketratus didn't lose their fighting spirit.

"Let's go, brothers. Charge for the most glorious death!!"

Rather, they began to advance even more fervently, spewing anger.

Seeing such Ketratus, the black mages and abominations had a slight hope in their eyes.

"Those idiots are charging as expected! Bring out what we prepared! We'll show Dullaneer's bastards a taste of... Gack…!! Gaaagh!!!"

Suddenly.

All the black mages scream and writhe.

"M-magic is backfiring... Keuuk!!"

The black mages collapsed while vomiting blood.

All the black magic they were controlling dissipated futilely, and some were convulsing while clutching their heads as if gone mad.

The moment the abominations about to rush in turn their gaze in surprise.

Their bodies begin to be cut to pieces.

[Something is attacking us…!!]

[W-where!? Where!? We can't see it!!]

[P-power isn't coming out properly! Mammon! Who on earth…!?]

Unable to properly see the beings attacking them, they flailed about before collapsing with screams.

The abominations and black mages were slaughtered so simply without being able to properly counterattack that it felt empty.

While the Ketratus were surprised and stopped advancing, blankly watching the scene of slaughter.

[Are you the holy knights of the White Order? We are not enemies.]

Suddenly, a stiff mechanical voice was heard from midair.

Instinctively feeling unpleasant, Al Madai turned his gaze to where the sound came from, and faintly.

A very faint presence began to be felt beyond the air.

Al Madai slowly extended his sword burning with divine power towards where the sound came from.

Suddenly, as the divine power disappeared and the flames on the sword vanished, Al Madai burst into laughter.

"An anti-magic field, huh. No wonder the black mages and abominations were defeated so easily."

[Please don't come too close. If you enter the field, your divine power will disappear too.]

"I wasn't planning to anyway. Assassins of the Black Fortress."

[Your Holy Woman is coming down through tunnel 4 herself, escorted by battle mages from the Magic Tower. If we go in just a little more from here, it's the enemy base. Your condition looks serious. We recommend joining forces to fight together.]

"The Holy Woman herself? We should go see. What do you plan to do?"

[We'll dig into the base like this and assassinate the enemy black mages and priests. Don't worry, we'll avoid overlapping operation areas.]

Al Madai smirked.

"Assassins! I owe you a debt. I won't forget it. For Dullaneer!!"

From the empty air where no one could be seen, a faint presence responded to those words.

[For His Majesty the Emperor.]

The faint presence soon completely disappeared.