“The Flandrians are insane. I wonder what really drives them to charge into all of this, so determinedly. Is it foolishness? Is it out of pride? Is it for some strange ideology? Or perhaps it's for national pride? And what ideology? A nation with bigger borders? Do they really think that destroying their neighbors will somehow make them safer? Their desires are quite appalling.”
- Excerpt from Lieutenant Hans Hoffman’s Journal Entries.
+++
+++ Lieutenant Hans Hoffman +++
Rousselot City
The expedition to the slums failed.
After two hours of circling around the slums, they came out empty-handed. Literally, nothing that would point to the existence or location of the demon that Hans was searching for. All they did was piss off the locals for their interrogation-like interviews to extract any intel from them.
“Hah…Lieutenant,” Adelyn suddenly said from behind. “You really need to cool off.”
“Sorry, I just got too…yeah, you’re right. I should definitely hold my tongue a bit more. It’s just, we really need damned information.”
She shook her head in disapproval.
“That’s not how you gather intel, Lieutenant. You can’t just make someone spit information they don’t know even if you aim a gun barrel on their face.”
Captain Weibel laughed from behind. “Ah, come on, young miss. The lad seems like a good future interrogator. You know, he might have a future in the Imperial Musketeer Guard. Hey, want me to give you a recommendation?”
“You two have long been fired,” Adelyn scowled. “Don’t plant bad ideas in his mind.”
“Hey, I’ll have you know, it’s a prestigious organization. And you two would fit right in. I’m sure once this crisis is over, the Imperium will be back in full force.”
“Or we’ll be IYC thugs for the rest of our lives,” Lieutenant Preisner cynically said. “Heh, think about it. At this point, the Empress already gave her authority to the Principalities by not even acting on this crisis. It’s over.”
“Oh come on, I told you it’s a temporary arrangement. For us, and for them. I mean, even I can’t stand working for some fatass rich men.”
“Neither can we,” Adelyn angrily said. “You know, I sometimes wonder, why the hell did the Company send two agents who hate its institution to the guts in order to essentially force us under their payroll?”
“Simple, they want this job done well,” Captain Weibel said. “Call the IYC whatever you want, but even they aren’t morons who do not know that their ‘loyal’ units are absolute wankers when it comes to competency. What option do they have? Send someone bootlicking their arses who’d probably die on the way? Or give us good money to follow their orders for now? Well, it doesn't matter now. They chose the latter option. And hey, again, we’re up for some good cash.”
“So it all really comes down to money…” Adelyn grumbled.
“What? The IYC are bastards, and we’re paid gun bastards too. If you think about it, it’s a perfect marriage.”
“It’s a surprise you all haven’t stabbed each other in the back yet.”
“Kinda hard to do that when you have damned monsters to manage,” Captain Weibel said. “But eh, if you give me a chance, I’ll absolutely blast the ‘Executives’ of the Company if need be. They’re some wicked bastards. And they probably pay us less than they’re supposed to do so.”
“You run your mouth everywhere you go about our employers,” Lieutenant Preisner said. “I swear, at this rate, it’s only a matter of time before we’re compromised, sir.”
“What, can’t an employee verbally abuse his employer?”
“Not if he wants to get paid.”
“Malte, I’ll smile good to them once we come back. And hey, we got these two clowns in on the agreement anyway. They’ll pay us well regardless. It’ll be fine, we'll smile, shake hands, the boss tells us ‘good job’, gives us money, and all we gotta do is hold off from shooting him afterward. I told you back there, this is straightforward. Easy money.”
“So easy that we’re now stuck hunting a damned demon on foot.”
“Well, the scriptures did say—”
“Don’t pull the words of the gods on me you godless twat.”
“Yeah, you two really are peak-paid goons,” Hans said, breaking the back and forth between the two. “Anyhow we still need to comb the rest of the city. This time, we’ll be going with Captain Wittenstein’s plan. We’ll check every route to the high-value targets of this city. Then we’ll go from there.”
“Yeah, that seems to be—” Captain Weibel’s words were cut off when suddenly, a cuirassier on horseback arrived right in front of them, almost in panic.
“Sir Hoffman!” the man shouted, as he handed a piece of paper to Hans. “Message from Captain Strobel. Someone attacked the St. Heka church. The staff are dead. The Vanus girl is missing.”
+++
“Damn it! Damn it! I thought those men we assigned in the church were enough!” Hans complained as they arrived in haste at the St. Heka church. It was a disaster site. Musketeers and pikemen formed a perimeter around the area, as bodies, dead bodies of those inside, were picked up by the soldiers and carted off.
Immediately, Hans and Adelyn rushed straight into where Captain Strobel was, as he and one of his officers talked. The man noticed Hans and Adelyn approaching, and immediately told the officer he was talking to his last words, before telling him to go off. Hans stopped as Captain Strobel turned to meet him.
“Well…I concede,” Captain Strobel said. “You’re right.”
“I have one question,” Hans said. “Where is the girl?”
Captain Strobel frowned. “She’s not the priority. The priority right now is to evacuate the city. Word is already out. The troops have opened the gates. You two have new standing orders now. Get to your vehicles, as we’re commencing anti-demon operations immediately.”
“No,” Adelyn said. “Mobilize search parties. Give me two of your platoons. Captain Weibel, Lieutenant Preisner, you two will be under me right now, we’ll be searching for the girl. Lieutenant Hoffman, go take your Wanderfalke and get on the move, follow Captain Strobel and his men in hunting the demon and killing it.”
“Wait, Captain, what the hell—”
“Those are my orders,” Adelyn said.
Captain Strobel shook his head.
“You can’t just grab my men, foreigner. They’re under my command.”
“You can command the rest, Captain Strobel,” she replied with concealed anger. “The girl is clearly a high-value target if that creature attempted to abduct her specifically. In that case, it is a major threat that must be tackled immediately. And I’ll be leading that part of the mission today. You can have my subordinate under your command in exchange. Now get me the men.”
What the hell? Hans stared at Adelyn. Damn it! I want to search for her too.
“No…please, just trust me on this,” Adelyn replied, almost as if she understood Hans’ pleas. “And if the demon is with her, I’d need armor backup immediately. Move out, now.”
Orders were orders. And she had a point.
“Fine,” Hans said. “Tell me your location immediately. I’ll get there quickly.”
She nodded. And while Captain Strobel called for the men that would accompany Adelyn and the two IYC mercenaries, Hans turned around and began running to the location where his Wanderfalke was parked. If she asked for that armor support, then he’d absolutely get that part of the job done.
+++
INITIATING MECH-SYTEM PILOT INTERFACE…
Hans rushed the pre-drive checks on his mech. One by one, each module was confirmed green, and he immediately began pressing on the HUD in front of him to activate his only ‘upgrade’, the [UPG: EYE OF PARANOIA I].
With a fifty-meter automatic detection range for his tactical maps, it should help greatly in finding and tracking the hostile entity within the city. Within forty seconds, his feet pressed on the pedal, and his mech rapidly drove through the open gate, as the soldiers that controlled the panicked crowd pushed them to the side to make way for Hans’ mech.
Of course, he also raised his chassis to make sure that his mech’s legs didn’t take too much space, allowing him to once again traverse the tight streets and roads at the sacrifice of increasing his height profile. But it didn’t matter. Hans wasn’t trying to hide.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
He wanted to get to that demon and retrieve Alizée fast. He couldn’t believe that he had been duped. She was the target of that thing all along. And he failed to recognize that. Now, the kid that trusted him was in the hand of a demon, corrupting her or goddess knows what. He wouldn’t forgive himself if she died of all this.
+++
+++ Alizée Amboise +++
The strange man tossed her into the dark room. Alizée naturally whimpered in pain, as the monster called her a weakling before she tried attacking it with the only attack spells she knew with her most barebones open skill that ran in her family due to their allegiance to the Goddess of Purity.
[ACT: SHARDS OF LIGHT I].
She aimed her hand at the creature, shouting ‘Briller’, firing a barrage of pink bolts of energy at the creature. ‘Briller’ was the most basic spell under the ‘Shards of Light’ skill. The demon tried blocking it with its tentacles, but Alizée’s most basic attack spell was an un-exhausting barrage, slicing and piercing its tentacles one after another until it finally ran out.
No…no…
She tried casting more, but her body was evidently tired as her legs wobbled. She made a mistake that her mother had always warned her about. To use up a large amount of magical power within a few seconds would cause a weak body to give on. She tried to channel more of her AP from the ‘system’ out, causing weak flashes of pink from her palms, but it failed.
No…no…no…
Why? Where was everyone else? They said they’d never let this happen. Then why? Why? Why was she alone in a dark room about to be killed by a monster?
The creature seemed stunned by her attacks, but it stood up and pulled out a glowing shard. Alizée retreated further in fear, as her eyes begged the creature not to come any closer. Just as the voices grew in her head.
“So what now, little girl?”
Shut up! Shut up!
“Isn’t it real? It’s just you. Just you. All alone. Did they lie or not? Can you even still trust the adults? Can you? Would they really give you what you want, a peaceful, pure life? Or have they left you for their selfish wants?”
No…they’ll still come back!
“Are you sure? Do you really still trust the world, that there is a shred of pure innocence out there? That there are people who would care for an orphaned Vanus like you?”
She stepped back and felt her back against the wall.
No…no…
Tears streamed down her cheeks.
No…they lied. They all lied. They lie and lie and lie to me. I’m…I’m gonna die now. I don’t wanna die. No…I’ll never trust anyone again. I’ll…
She gritted her teeth…
[SEVERE MENTAL BREAKDOWN DETECTED!]
[WHERE DO YOU STAND?]
All of it was a lie.
Innocence.
Purity.
The Goddess…
How stupid of me. I’m so silly. I’m so…why did I trust them when I knew they’d just leave me alone?
[CORRUPTION (DESIRE) STAGE I ACHIEVED]
[IDEAL (PURITY)—SHATTERING]
[CORRUPTION: CRYOWAVE (DESIRE) I PARTIALLY MANIFESTED]
Alizée began changing. Her skin turned ever more pale. Her eyes started to glow red, as she backed down in despair at the creature in front of her. She felt something within her change. Was it power? Was it a desire for something greater? She didn’t know, but slowly, she felt herself growing more confident to take on what was in front of her.
Yet…yet she continued to cry, as one of the tentacles struck the wall above her—the strange crystal’s glow intensifying.
Damn you! Damn you! Why’d you promise me that everything will be fine if the truth is like this? Why even tell me sweet lies?!
[CORRUPTION (DESIRE) STAGE II ACHIEVED]
[CORRUPTION: CRYOWAVE (DESIRE) II PARTIALLY MANIFESTED]
The demon in front of her continued attacking Alizée, even if it didn’t hit her. Almost as if all it wanted was to scare the girl further and push her to the edge. And Alizée did, as she collapsed on the floor, unable to even act against the creature in front of her, as sharp appendages began appearing in her back.
Why?
I prayed and trusted you all.
I even tried to learn your language.
I tried everything.
But…
But you all hated me…
You all wanted to leave me…
That must be why you all wanted to lie to me…
To keep me as a weak stupid naive girl.
Just a weak naive girl that’s easy to leave.
Because she’s useless!
I hate you all!
I hate you all!
Alizée laughed and laughed, as the voices that mocked her turned true. It was right. They were right! Why listen to her mom’s words—her mother who died and left her? Why listen to the teachings of the Goddess? The church she was in didn’t even like her. Why listen to Hans and Adelyn? They left her here!
“So what is it then, little girl? Do you still believe your ideals?”
Alizée looked down at the floor, tears falling down on it.
No…no…
No, I don’t. Screw this cruel world!
[CORRUPTION (DESIRE) STAGE III ACHIEVED]
[IDEAL (PURITY) SHATTERED]
[FULL CORRUPTION COMPLETED]
[CORRUPTION: CRYOWAVE (DESIRE) III FULLY MANIFESTED]
[TAKE WHAT YOU DESIRE FROM THIS CRUEL WORLD—WITH CRUELTY IF NEED BE]
Innocence…is weakness…
+++
This is bad.
Hans fired his third MPAT of the day. The shot slammed into a blue shield-like circle that detonated his shots. He gritted his teeth as he dodged another tentacle-based strike from the enemy, dashing through the broken and tight streets of Rousselot.
“Lieutenant! We finally found her!” Adelyn shouted on the radio. “Damn it…she’s….”
“What happened?!”
“She looks different. I…I’ll try approaching her…goddess, what did that demon do to her?!”
“Don’t damn it! Pull back and hold position. I’ll suppress this damned thing first, then I'll come there.”
Firing his grappling hooks into one of the buildings, Hans’ Wanderfalke scaled it, and its legs gripped the rapidly collapsing structure of the building, as he tried to aim his gun at the rushing serpentine demon. This time, an APFSDS round was slammed into the chamber by his autoloader, and Hans wasted no time firing it.
The shot slammed through the water-based shield that the creature used, piercing its head in a bloody manner, causing it to stagger and retreat into cover into the street it was closest to.
Good, it’s injured.
Hans’ Wanderfalke jumped back on the road and ran like hell straight into Adelyn’s position. In just thirty seconds of constant turns through the deserted streets, Hans’ mech drifted to a halt in an area where dozens of musketeers faced off with one girl in front of the IYC’s Rousselot branch building.
Hans knew what was happening. Just like the last time, she had once again been corrupted, or something.
Immediately, he opened his hatch, carried his SMG and pistol, all loaded with the enchanted bullets that he acquired, and ran straight in the direction of the troops under Adelyn’s command. He could see his CO already trying to talk to Alizée, as she shouted for everyone to hold fire, and he stopped.
“Adelyn, get out of there! She’s unstable!” He shouted as he tried covering Adelyn. “Go back to cover, I’ll deal with this.”
“No, damn it, if she’s that dangerous then I’ll be here too,” she insisted. “Alizée…please, calm down. We’re here now. It’s alright. Everything will be alright.”
Her eyes’ glow intensified, as her dead voice replied.
“Liar.” She spoke in perfect Lotharingian. She looked straight at Hans. “Liar.”
“Alizée,” Hans flicked the safety of his SMG off. “I would never lie to you. I’m telling you, it’ll all be fine. We’re already dealing with demons. Just bear with us, please.”
“Liar. You two abandoned me.”
The temperature began dropping around them began dropping, and Hans knew what was about to happen. Just then, on their left, the “Tentacled Ear” appeared, now in its humanoid form. Immediately, Adelyn ordered the musketeers to turn to it and respond, and they all immediately formed a firing formation to target it before sending in a scattered volley.
Hans, Adelyn, Captain Weibel, and Lieutenant Preisner all joined, firing their weapons all at once at the creature. Hans’ bullets glowed blue, and Adelyn’s glowed red. Hans’ shots began doing its work, his bullets freezing sections of the demon’s body as it growled in pain. Then, Adelyn’s bullets struck at just the same time, shattering the frozen limbs and causing them to fall off as frozen shards on the ground.
But the demon regenerated quickly. Still, Hans began conserving his bullets, flipping his firing mode to a single shot. He began firing it in controlled shots to the face, torso, legs, and arms. And each time he fired a bullet, Adelyn followed suit, coordinating their shots as if it were natural.
Suddenly, however, Alizée’s long appendages that came from her corruption struck them from behind, hitting multiple musketeers—and Hans.
Alizée…you…
Why?
Why?
He didn’t even have the energy to scream in pain.
Did I really lie so badly to you…
That you’ll kill me this way?
It stabbed out of him, as blood spurted out of the open hole in his abdomen. He heard Adelyn’s orders, as everyone retreated under her direction. Hans however merely collapsed the road, as he pulled out his Ruger and began firing at the “Tentacled Eel”. Someone then began pulling him off the ground he was on.
He looked up, it was Adelyn. She was dragging him to their fallback line, firing her rifle with her one hand. More attacks from the “Tentacled Eel” struck them, downing four more musketeers as they tried to respond with their volleys, which tore through both Alizée’s body and the body of the “Tentacled Eel”.
Soon, Adelyn placed him on the side, shouting at him as she desperately pulled out her first aid kit to cover his wound. Unfortunately, Hans felt the sheer amount of blood that oozed out of him was way too much. He was going to die.
“Adelyn…” he tried to breathe out. “Run. Please.”
She didn’t. Instead, as more attacks came, she returned fire at them, before she tried picking him up, carrying his half-conscious body on her back. Hans didn’t expect that she could do it to him, but she managed to do it without collapsing or breaking his neck in the process, and she began running as everyone retreated in a broken rout.
Still…Hans felt his vision darkening until there was no more. The pain, the sounds of battle, all of it faded away. The last thing he heard was the same thing he would tell her if the situation was reversed.
“Just hold on! I’m not leaving you!”