Amidst the Chaos

The Alsarm army's response was swift.

They recovered from the tremor almost immediately, assessed the situation, and the moment they realized the enemy would rush the gap in the wall, concentrated their firepower there.

Even against foes who kept moving until physically incapacitated like undead, a concentrated barrage of arrows and magic was more than enough.

The ones hit by focused volleys looked like pincushions.

In a way, it might have been easier to defend now that the enemy was funneled into one spot rather than spread across the entire perimeter.

Whether the same would hold against Paladins clad head to toe in steel armor was another question.

Alexia and Elza, too, relocated from their original positions to the breached section of wall, intercepting anyone who tried to force their way through.

There was no point in treating those things as human anymore.

"I'm fine now. Let go."

"Oops."

I stepped away from Princess Yupe, whom I'd been shielding.

She stood on her own and brushed the dirt from herself with her hands.

Her expression was unreadable.

"Thank you, sir."

I pulled Orleans to her feet and checked her for injuries.

Luque, apparently, hadn't so much as flinched despite the violent shaking.

The situation had changed dramatically.

The walls we'd thought we could hold had been partially destroyed by a giant foot that appeared from nowhere.

After smashing through the wall, it vanished like smoke.

That was apparently just how it worked.

The one mercy was that it wasn't used again immediately.

If they could use it in rapid succession, the walls would have been smashed to rubble and the enemy would have flooded in.

Since the burning soldiers used as sacrifices were still present, perhaps a cooldown period was needed after each use.

At the very least, there was no doubt it was the power of an apostle.

I sent a messenger with orders to carry this information back to the Royal Capital.

We needed Evalin's power to deal with something this absurd.

The enemy's encirclement had broken, so the messenger should make it through safely.

"Your Highness, given the circumstances, I believe our cavalry should sally forth."

"Wait a little longer. Sending them now would only increase casualties."

"… Ma'am."

The cavalry captain wanted to leverage their mobility by riding out, but Princess Yupe stopped him.

"Coordinate with the infantry that's coming behind us. After that, you have command."

"When the time comes, victory will be ours."

The cavalry captain left.

He was likely heading to his men.

Ready to charge when the moment came.

On the projection, the former Secretary of Military Affairs sat perfectly still.

Far from it, he'd brazenly settled into a chair that had been prepared for him and sat there looking our way with a smile.

He seemed to know full well that he was being watched.

"He's really looking down on us, isn't he. That bastard…"

An anger I'd never heard before colored Princess Yupe's voice.

After cycling through various emotions, she'd settled on fury.

From her standpoint, it was understandable.

She'd said before that she wanted to punch him in the face.

"The regulars are coming!"

Apparently deciding the common soldiers were getting nowhere, the Paladins shoved past and forced their way toward the gap in the wall.

Ordinary arrows bounced right off their steel armor.

Not a single one got through.

Ordinary magic was skillfully deflected with their swords, axes, and shields.

The Paladin at the lead was particularly massive, bracing a shield in front and bulling his way into the breach.

If they got inside the wall, concentrated fire would become impossible and it would devolve into being picked apart one by one.

The breach had to be held at all costs.

Finn stepped in front of the lead Paladin.

Arrows and magic ceased.

The size difference was literally that of a child and an adult.

The Paladin must have thought the same.

He tried to crush Finn beneath his shield.

To Finn, he might as well have been standing still.

She slipped under the shield, moved right in front of the Paladin, and drove a thin dagger deep into a tiny gap in his helmet.

A scream rang out.

Using his recoil, she swept his legs and toppled him.

The size difference meant nothing against movement like that.

As a finishing touch, she hurled small black orbs at the fallen Paladin and those behind him.

By the time the explosions went off, Finn had already created distance.

No amount of armor could fully protect against that.

The Paladin Finn had downed twitched and convulsed on the ground.

Normally that would give anyone pause, but the enemy simply trampled their fallen and pressed forward.

Stones and boiling oil poured from above slowed their advance.

But the attackers from outside were making that harder to sustain.

And the ballistae couldn't be aimed into the gap.

This was what made armored knights so formidable.

They were built to kill humans.

The defenders held on, harassing and delaying, but eventually the enemy set foot inside the wall.

Alsarm's regulars formed up around the breach to stop any further advance.

The intruders were few, so our numbers still held the advantage, but their equipment was superior.

How long could we last…?

Timing it for the moment the enemy was focused entirely forward, Azu leapt from the top of the wall to the outside.

She began her disruption.

She appeared to be using the apostle's power, cutting through their armor by brute force.

A quick slash here, a dash there, never staying in one place.

When the enemy faltered, Finn lit a barrel of gunpowder from above and dropped it on them.

That had to be Finn's idea.

She understood exactly what the enemy hated most.

With the Wind Elemental's blessing, Finn could dodge arrows and magic alike.

And as long as Azu had the apostle's power, they wouldn't catch her either.

Against enemies packed tight trying to squeeze through the breach, it was devastatingly effective.

The Paladins who'd already made it inside sensed the chaos behind them and started to turn around.

That was when Alexia stepped forward to block their path, new battle-axe in hand.

Against enemies torn between two threats, Alexia was in her element.

She swung her magic-infused axe and sent them flying head-on.

Inside and out. They'd managed to disrupt the enemy from both directions.

The Paladins' advance ground to a halt, and they were being pushed back.

And yet, the former Secretary of Military Affairs' demeanor remained unchanged.

That was what unnerved me.