Chapter 1197 – #282_A Hidden Card (4)
#1191
1.
Originally, Siwoo’s role was simple and clear.
To hold down Blanche Erelim, the witch of the constellations who had turned against Gehenna, while stationed in the central unit.
There was no need to win.
No one, including Siwoo, expected that.
The goal was simply to restrain her so that she wouldn’t affect the war.
Of course, even this was risky, so the original plan was for one or two 23rd-tier witches to stick with Siwoo as the core.
Count Metis Gremory, who was in charge of support bombing in the central army, L’Rye, who was excellently marking the enemy in the right-wing unit, and her teacher, who succeeded in a flank breakthrough in the left-wing unit.
As countless histories have proven, no war goes according to plan.
Even after receiving a magic power recharge, L’Rye was still engaged in a fierce battle with the Time Witch.
Eloa was also being held back by the Verdant Witch, and worst of all, the main force of Gehenna was being pushed back.
Count Gremory, who should have been conserving his strength along with Siwoo, was forced to repeatedly expend it on support fire.
It was an inevitable result that Gehenna, which had to deal with ‘variables’ while already short on numbers, had achieved sluggish results in all operations.
Therefore, Siwoo was required to achieve more than her original goal of ‘stopping Erelim’.
To stop Blanche Erelim ‘alone’.
To recover the collapsing front lines and fulfill the role of a support unit.
“This is a bit tight.”
Of course, it was a task that required risking her life.
And even if it hadn’t been added, Siwoo already had a top-secret mission given to her from the start.
In other words, she had to perform a total of three roles.
“There she is! Get that bitch!”
“Kill her! Kill her! Kill her!”
The primal language spewed out in a frenzy.
Instincts overriding reason and raw red hostility were a common sight in any war.
-Swish!
The countless attacks that filled the air, targeting Siwoo as she tore through the battlefield, were reminiscent of a first-person view of a pilot in a shooting game.
However, the difference was that the barrage was not made up of patterns coded in a certain way.
Each small spark and thick magic cannon was filled with murderous intent.
Siwoo, who had lived a tumultuous life for such a short career, was used to combat, but most of her enemies were also veterans with real combat experience.
If it had been the usual Siwoo, she would have had a considerable struggle.
“Bloom.”
In other words, it wasn’t that difficult for the current Siwoo.
-Kiiiiiiiiing!!!
The seams of the black armor, which looked heavy and twice as heavy as usual, shone.
At the same time….
-Thwackaaaaaa!!!
One of the sand dunes she had used as a foothold exploded, creating a wave of sand that stretched for tens of meters.
Siwoo’s body drew a crooked line.
Above the afterimage of the sprinting armor, all sorts of magic rained down in succession, half a beat late, like a scene from a Hollywood movie where the protagonist dodges machine gun fire.
The pressure wave created by the belated explosion fiercely chased her from behind, but the current Siwoo was faster than the speed of the explosion.
“What, what’s with her speed?”
“Someone cast a curse on her!”
Siwoo, who had pierced through a familiar that had been in her way, thought amidst the scattering fragments.
Her movements are much better than expected.
Since obtaining the ‘Law of Shadows’, Siwoo had repeatedly improved her armor.
Well, there had been some trial and error, but the final destination was an exoskeleton armor.
A protective measure to replace inadequate autonomous defense, and a powered suit to compensate for physical abilities that were difficult to enhance beyond a certain point due to durability issues.
Trying to do anything too grandiose beyond this would be a waste, so she had compromised on both size and output.
If the output was too high, it would consume more computing power and magic power than necessary.
Also, she had maintained a slim size for speed efficiency within the given magic power.
But the armor ‘Titan’ didn’t need such compromises.
The overall height of the armor, which was about 2m including the helmet, was now close to 2.5m, and the thickness, which had maintained an unrealistic curve as if it were sticking to her body, had also changed to suit the purpose of an ‘exoskeleton armor’.
“Hoo.”
Siwoo took a breath and ran towards another ally who was isolated in the middle of the enemy lines.
The speed of the vision, which narrowed unrealistically fast with explosive thrust, was similar to when she activated the Angel’s Ring and made unreasonable enhancements.
Yet, there was almost no burden on her spirit body.
“It’s Shin Siwoo! Count Shin Siwoo is coming! Just hold on a little longer!”
“What? It’s real! You’re all dead, you bitches!”
Although she had taken on a somewhat unreasonable burden, Siwoo was not a disposable piece in Gehenna.
She was nothing less than a decisive weapon that had to be used to its maximum efficiency.
Gehenna’s preparations for the Great Hexennacht War included a project just for Shin Siwoo.
The things invested in the project were beyond measure.
The First World, whose fate was at stake in this war, had promised unconditional, free support.
All sorts of goods, measured in tons, and all sorts of relics, which were treated specially even in museums, were poured into Gehenna as sacrifices for the ‘symbol’ to pay for the war.
The witches who could not participate in the war due to their upcoming succession competed to donate their ceremonial attire and family treasures, and the academies generously invested the treasures they had been keeping for a long time.
In addition, countless great witches from the Hesed Academy, and witches who had reached the pinnacle in each field, poured in various materials to create the final weapon’s armament.
The result of humanity’s support and Gehenna’s wisdom accumulated over centuries was the armor ‘Titan’ that Siwoo was wearing and the ‘Seven-Colored Spear’ that was stuck behind her like a fan.
The name of this project, which aimed to raise Shin Siwoo to a ‘near 25th-tier combat power’ through crazy cash spending and enhancements, was….
Demon God.
The prowess that Siwoo unleashed was indeed worthy of the arrogant name.
-Thwack!
The shock caused by just the two actions of leaping and landing created a large crater.
The ‘shock-absorbing runes’ and ‘anti-gravity/anti-inertia-motion support device’ engraved on Titan’s legs effortlessly performed the hero landing with a huge burden.
The magic power circuit, which should have been heating up and accumulating fatigue by now, was also fresh due to the ‘coating’ applied to it.
With this, she could recover her mana pool through magic amplification at least four or five times.
“Academy Head… you came to save us…!”
“The escape route is open, so run right away. I have to move.”
“We’ll go with the Academy Head too… Huh?!”
As soon as she spoke, Siwoo disappeared again towards the next point.
She quickly stirred up the battlefield, helping allies who were isolated or surrounded to secure escape routes and buy time to regroup.
She had rescued all the personnel from the isolated points and drove out the Hexennacht personnel who had been digging into the Gehenna camp.
2.
After crawling through a long tunnel of humiliation, the fruit of victory was finally within reach.
Those who tried to grasp it were bound to be seized by excitement and fighting spirit.
The enemies belonging to the Southern Legion were also continuing their fierce advance with burning fighting spirit.
That was until one being was deployed on the battlefield.
“What, what is that…”
“This is insane.”
“It was that strong…?”
The front line wavered.
The witches who had been shouting ‘Kill them all!’ as they advanced ran away in a panic.
While the following troops hesitated, the Gehenna witches, who had been like rats in a trap, safely returned to their main force.
The black armor, which had done all that alone, was now charging alone as if it would break through the front of the Southern Legion.
The place he was aiming for was the center of the Southern Legion, and the target was undoubtedly the Southern Legion Commander, Orcelia.
“Even so, this is crossing the line!”
However, there was a clear difference between crossing a stream and going against it.
The deeper Siwoo penetrated into the enemy’s main camp, the more elite troops were deployed.
In other words, she had to face more and stronger enemies and fierce resistance.
-Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwang!
-Kugugugung!
Soon, the colorful barrage that densely blocked her vision became something that could not be broken through by mobility alone.
While mindlessly advancing towards Orcelia, Siwoo noticed a single magic cannon that had cleverly flown in, piercing her blind spot.
“Oh no…!”
She had missed that one blow because she had been dodging too many attacks, and it was already too late to dodge or block it.
The moment she felt a chill down her spine, the white feathers that had sprouted as if decorating ‘Titan’ reacted.
-Thunk!
Two feathers, shot straight at the magic cannon, formed a defense in the air, blocking the enemy’s attack.
It was the ‘Active Defense Feathers’ mounted on Titan.
It was a replacement for autonomous defense that autonomously deployed a shield with ‘absolute power’ when it was judged that Siwoo could not dodge.
She was briefly flustered by the unfamiliar function, but she was confident in her adaptability in combat situations.
After roughly grasping the performance of the active defense feathers, Siwoo chose an even more daring charge.
“Don’t let her get close!”
“Stop her at all costs!”
So far, so good.
But this alone was not enough.
To lead a disadvantageous war to victory, she needed a more amazing move.
For example, killing the Southern Legion Commander, the Witch of Proverbs.
Of course, in this state, it was close to impossible.
No matter how much Siwoo had enhanced her combat power with proxy cash spending, there was a quality to quantity.
It was impossible for her to kill the commander in the middle of the enemy lines, especially an old witch who was notorious for being belligerent, alone.
The end of this charge would only be a futile and glorious death.
The important thing here was that.
Hexennacht would also believe that.
“Las Werphanas. Assemble.”
Black armors appeared all over the battlefield.
The number of armors that looked exactly like the one Siwoo was wearing was twenty-five in total.
Great daughters who were specialized in combat, wearing decoy armors, who had been lying in wait in various parts of the Southern Legion.
“…? What, what is that?”
“Clones? What is it? Which one is real?”
“The magic power waves are almost the same…!”
The confusion in the Southern Legion reached its peak.
The armors of the great daughters, which had almost no performance but were at least perfectly identical in appearance, would be excellent decoys in the already chaotic battlefield.
[Your daughter obeys your command]
[I will open the way]
This was the other top-secret mission given to Siwoo, which only Siwoo could do.
‘The Daughters of Troy’.
