CHAPTER 262: THE GREAT LIBERATION BATTLE 7

 

—From Heil’s POV—

This time around, for Tekirana, there was one huge obstacle standing in the way of taking on Calvados head-on in this large-scale liberation battle.

That was the overwhelming difference in numbers.

The main battlefield was centered around the Dragon Tower, where Calvados had set up camp. The environment of Ogre City also worked against us. So, how could we compensate for that numerical disadvantage? The place I set my sights on was the advanced-class Lion Tower.

For Calvados, which holds the top ranking, there’s an unspoken rule to demonstrate their strength to outsiders: victory in both the advanced and supreme towers is the bare minimum.

In that case, if Tekirana could seize control of the advanced-class tower in the initial clash, it was obvious that Calvados would be forced to commit more of their forces to the Lion Tower.

And if Tekirana could win even after Calvados reinforced the second battle, they would inevitably begin to suspect: ‘Are they intentionally focusing all their strength on the advanced-class tower this time?’

The power gap between us is so absurdly large that even just winning the battle at the Lion Tower would give Tekirana major prestige within Wislo. Conversely, even a partial loss would stain Calvados’ reputation.

And Calvados—Wislo’s strongest clan—cannot afford to leave things at that.

They’ve ruled the top of Wislo for over a decade. That pride of theirs—if I could turn it into a shackle during this liberation battle, it would work in our favor.

The doubt—’Maybe they’re pouring everything into the Lion Tower’—would gradually become a poisonous thought eating away at their minds. But to maximize the effect of that poison, a thorough disruption of information was critical.

That’s why we opened with an all-out information war right from the start. If we could devalue the information coming from their informants in the opening moves, it would gradually unbalance the entire battlefield in our favor.

However, one key part of this plan still heavily depended on Curu’s performance.

How much Curu could achieve would directly influence the outcome of the decisive battle at the supreme-class Dragon Tower.

It was a gamble, no doubt. But for now, I had no choice but to trust in Curu and focus entirely on shaving down the enemy forces stationed at the supreme-class tower.

—Just then, a report came in from the scouts stationed at both the advanced-class tower and the town.

「Urgent report! The Tekirana forces deployed to the advanced-rank tower have successfully seized and secured control of the tower!」

「Hell yeah! That’s what I’m talkin’ about!!」

「Furthermore, the Calvados Coalition’s rear support units are not only struggling to keep up with healing the injured, but nearly 150 Calvados adventurers on the 10th floor of the advanced-class tower have been incapacitated with paralysis status, rendering them unable to even use teleportation stones to retreat! And on top of that, our side has taken zero casualties!」

「Huh? …You serious?」

「Y-Yes, sir! I know it’s hard to believe, but I witnessed it all firsthand! Moreover, after returning to the city briefly via teleportation stone, the fox-masked man who achieved these results entered the supreme-class tower, humming to himself. He then launched a solo assault on the left-side defensive formation and had already incapacitated roughly ten percent of the enemy forces there…」

「H-Haha… Just as planned!」

Even Ciel, our top combatant, couldn’t pull off something like this solo. Sure, Ciel’s specialized for one-on-one duels, but Curu must have a bunch of skills that are heavily optimized for fighting multiple enemies at once. I’d heard bits and pieces from Aun-san, but… I still couldn’t even imagine how one person could neutralize 150 opponents alone.

(Aun-san… just what kind of insane modifications did you make to Curu…?)

「Um… who exactly is that fox-masked man? And where on earth did you find someone with such monstrous power?」

「He’s our trump card. As for his identity… well, you’ll find out soon enough once this liberation battle wraps up. More importantly, right now we’ve got the best chance to break through Calvados’ main camp! Heavy Ram will hold the teleportation gate—everyone else, we charge their headquarters full force! Mohito-san, I’m leaving things here in your hands!」

「Got it! We’ve come this far—win or die trying!!」

After delivering the orders across the Tekirana alliance and preparing to launch the assault, Ciel suddenly grabbed my shoulder.

「Hey Heil, is it okay if I finally get serious now?」

「…You’re itching to fight after hearing Curu’s results, aren’t ya? But not yet. You’ve got a special job that only you can handle. Save your strength until then.」

「A special job?」

「You wanna fight Garcia one-on-one, don’t you?」

「…You mean it?」

「The only one who can beat the so-called ‘Wislo’s strongest tyrant’ Garcia… is you, Ciel. But right now, their main camp still has Garcia’s top parties like Ambrosia and Gala, not to mention the upper-ranked clans of the Calvados Coalition. I’ll do what I can to create the chance for your duel—until then, hang tight.」

「Hmm, okay. But if things get too dangerous for everyone else, I will step in. That’s allowed, right?」

「I’ll make sure it doesn’t come to that.」

I’ve known Ciel since we were kids—I understand his strength better than anyone. Calling it ‘exceptional talent’ doesn’t even come close; his battle instincts and unpredictable chains of attacks are outright genius.

That frail-looking body hides overwhelming destructive power and attack speed so fast it’s nearly impossible to follow with the eye. The reason Tekirana climbed to second place in the chaotic city of Wislo is largely thanks to Ciel.

Of course, there’s no denying that ‘Tyrant’ Garcia—the master of Calvados—is a formidable opponent, but I still firmly believe that no one is more worthy of the title Wislo’s strongest than Ciel.

Somehow… no matter what it takes, I want to give Ciel his one-on-one against Garcia.

Thanks to Curu’s exploits, the foundation has been laid.

But we can’t keep riding on Curu’s coattails forever.

From here on out… it’s our turn to push forward.

We will break through Calvados’ final defensive formation—no matter what!

「Alright!! Move out, Tekirana!!」