Chapter 22 - Real battle experience

”[RAAJIA IGNIS]”

[Skill: Raajia Ignis Lv1] [No info available]

Li shouted, his spellbook starting to glow fiercely, causing his voice to reverberate through the surroundings due to the empty chamber. Subsequently, an enormous glowing red circle began to form above his head, rapidly expanding to reveal strange marks and symbols within it. This surprised the enemy soldiers completely, making them hesitate momentarily before reacting—a fatal mistake.

“Charge!”

The soldier carrying the shield, that squad’s sergeant, shouted as he forced a stern expression and gave the order to advance. Immediately, the other four men accompanying him obeyed, propelling themselves forward with some sort of mechanism in their armor, very similar to how Adam had seen Captain Magnus move during their first encounter. The thrust was immense, and it would take only a couple of seconds to reach the invaders' position, who didn't seem able to react to such speed.

However, before even getting halfway there, the sergeant saw for an instant how the smile of the man beneath the strange circle grew even wider. Then, before his eyes, the enormous head of a strange creature made entirely of fire emerged from the drawing in the air—a beast with an elongated snout and open jaws revealing considerable fangs.

“Burn…”

Li simply whispered a taunt as the smile never left his face, and a current of hot air flooded the surroundings, forcing him to hold onto his hat.

Adam, Drake, and Kazue were front-row witnesses to the horrendous spectacle. They saw the fiery dragon's head appear and then spew a torrent of flames that spread throughout the area, covering the space from the entrance to the back of the factory room. The air filled with steam and the screams of the soldiers trapped in the sea of fire, followed by various mysterious explosions in the midst of it.

The three young people were stunned, even as the spell's effect ended and the dragon's head vanished, causing the fire to dissipate and reveal only the charred remains of everything it had scorched. This included the burned bodies of the soldiers, whose armor was partially destroyed and had holes, indicating that the explosions they had heard moments ago were the mechanisms in their suits bursting from the extreme heat.

“Damn, that was quite effective. I'm starting to understand why Teo liked to attack so recklessly.”

But those affected by the attack weren't just the soldiers of the Armada. The workers who hadn't been evacuated in time were also caught in it. Several bodies lay at the back of the room among the charred machinery that had collapsed on them after being weakened by the fire.

Feeling that his work there was finished, Li simply sighed with satisfaction, closed his book without making it disappear, and turned to leave. However, a figure stood in his way, blocking his path—none other than Drake, who looked at him with a very dark expression.

"Why did you attack the factory workers as well? They have nothing to do with this war."

At the blond’s question, Li's surprise shifted to another smile, as if he were watching a child say something amusingly silly.

"Why do you say it as if the soldiers I killed don’t matter? Don’t you think they’re also innocent, forced to participate in this senseless war? Don’t you think they had families waiting for them at home? What makes them different in your eyes?"

Drake was left silent by that response, unsure of how to reply. However, the man simply laughed and continued on his way, not without giving him a pat on the shoulder and saying something loudly that reminded them they were not in their world and that everything they were experiencing was something they had never encountered before.

"Relax, I was joking. You’re a pretty promising group, so keep this in mind... None of the beings here are real; they’re just characters in a story. They don’t have a life nor existence outside of what we see, it doesn’t matter what happens to them."

That was a hard pill to swallow, even if it were true, since those "characters" continued to look and act like living people. Yet, they also had to accept the fact that they were in an impossible world where nothing they previously believed to be true applied anymore.

Kazue was the first to speak, still nervous but trying to quickly regain her usual demeanor, repeating her companion’s words to herself.

"It's true, it's true, they're just NPCs. We shouldn't feel bad. No main character actually cares about enemy extras in these kinds of stories. Yes, this is no different; this is our adventure."

Wasting no more time, Li set off for the next closest factory. Although the first one they had entered still had some additional floors and rooms, it was very unlikely they would find soldiers of the Ironclad Armada there, who were their primary targets. He instructed them to move and cover his back. The others followed, though they still had internal conflicts, especially Adam, who kept telling himself that the man's words were the closest thing he had to true information about this world. At the same time, he wondered why he hadn't felt more disturbed after witnessing the literal death of living beings in front of him, even if they were fictional characters.

Even the fact that he felt relatively calm when thinking about his lack of empathy was troubling. But this only brought a particular memory to his mind—a small ability he had read in his profile the first time he checked his stats... [Half-Undead Psyche], the skill that said it could force him to remain calm in situations of mental stress. He didn’t want to admit it, but something as simple as that made him feel less human than he supposedly already was. Even though he wasn't very empathetic to begin with due to his lack of interaction with people outside his field of study, having his emotions stripped away like that was almost poetic justice.

“Watch out!”

So absorbed was he in his thoughts that he didn't notice what was happening around him. Even Drake's warning wasn't enough to make him react in time. The blond had to violently shove him to the ground just as a figure sped between them, narrowly missing a slash by only a few centimeters.

It was an ambush by a small group of soldiers who had surprised them in the middle of the street amidst the chaos. It seemed they had just finished off a small group of pirates and were now targeting the group of strangers. Certainly, these individuals didn't have the classic look of the criminals they were fighting, but they clearly weren't workers from the facility or members of the Armada either, so they had to be enemies.

One of them had sped past, propelled by his steam mechanism, narrowly missing his attack on Adam, while the other two followed in the same manner but targeted the rest of the group. Fortunately, the prior warning was enough for both Kazue and Li to react. The girl barely avoided a thrust, which luckily struck the serrated sword she was holding, sending it flying several meters away due to the impact and causing her to stumble.

The three soldiers sped past due to their momentum, and seeing their initial charge fail, they turned around to try again. This time, they intended to be more careful and ensure their cuts wouldn't be dodged.

"Hey, kid, snap out of it!"

Li exclaimed as he watched the soldiers turn around, directing his shouts at Adam to do what they had discussed during part of the journey. Despite his initial confusion, the boy luckily understood what needed to be done.

"Uh, yeah... Eyes!"

That was the code word they had discussed. At that moment, the other three diverted their gaze from Adam, even covering part of their line of sight with a hand to ensure they couldn’t see him even out of the corner of their eye.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

Immediately, the boy extended both arms forward and invoked his cursed paper, the Necronomicon's page, which began to emit an ominous aura from its symbols.

[Skill: Insanity Aura Lv1] [Upon viewing directly, it will cause every living being to passively build up “Insanity” status effect of up to 10%, its effect will last until the skill is deactivated]

Just like what happened with the pirates during the siege on the ship, the four soldiers quickly succumbed to the effect of the object. However, instead of waiting for their violent impulse to manifest, Adam verified that there was a brief window of a few seconds during which the affected individuals remained immobilized while accumulating charges of madness. This moment had been agreed upon as part of their strategy.

“Now!”

He exclaimed as he made the page disappear, clearing the way for his teammates to attack as planned. They had been quite fortunate in this case, as the soldiers' controlled momentum ceased the moment they succumbed to the power of the treasure, bringing them close enough to be easily attacked during that brief moment.

The three acted quickly. Drake pulled out his Thunderbolt Zapper and fired at his target, hitting it squarely, much to Adam’s surprise, who had only seen him practice it once. Meanwhile, Kazue leaped toward her target with a beaming smile, a large charge of electricity crackling in the palm of her gauntlet.

“Thunder Piercing Hand!”

A window appeared in front of Adam in response to the use of the skill, but as it was his first time seeing it, only the name and level, which he already knew, were displayed. Nonetheless, the effect was clear: both the electric pistol shot and the gauntlet's discharge caused a flow of current that made the two affected soldiers scream, causing them to fall helplessly to the ground. While they didn’t have severe injuries, their armor had acted as a conductor, amplifying the paralysis effect. They likely wouldn’t be able to get up for a while.

Meanwhile, the last remaining soldier was struck by the brutal impact of four spiked spheres similar to cannonballs in various parts of his body. He was thrown backward with great force, crashing into many boxes scattered around and disappearing from view.

Li’s shout was drowned out by the noise of the rest of the attacks, but the information about it finally appeared to Adam, who quickly read it.

[Skill: Ganzu Metalo Lv1] [You have seen the skill twice, data is being collected] [Low-level spell that summons and shoots 4 spiked iron balls to the designated target, the balls disappear upon spell deactivation. The shooting power and the number of the spiked iron balls depend on skill level.]

Adam had to admit that the topic of spells was quite intriguing, though it was still odd that Li hadn't used the same fire technique from the start. There might have been some limitations, which is why he had opted for his support. However, it wasn't something Adam needed to worry about for now, with those enemies out of combat, they had to keep moving, as it was possible that more soldiers would arrive due to the widespread fighting throughout the mini-city.

Knowing what would be the best option, everyone looked around and prepared to head to the nearest factory, moving with worried gazes. The only exception was Kazue, who, for some reason, had an expression of euphoria that was almost frightening.

"Stick together, don’t stop, and don’t look back!"

Li shouted without slowing his pace, as the entrance to the next factory was far enough away to require them to pass through a battle between soldiers and pirates. This could put them in the crossfire if they weren’t careful, but it was clear that staying in the same spot would be much worse.

The route took less than a minute but, for Adam, it felt like an eternity. Before his eyes, many things were happening: not only were armored soldiers from the Armada facing off against pirates who barely wore vests and pants, but he also glimpsed one or two spider-like machines moving through the area. Additionally, a zeppelin in the distance was hit by a volley of missiles and was crashing down over the walls, engulfed in flames.

"We’re almost there, don’t stop!"

Li continued shouting, already able to see the entrance where they could take refuge from the surrounding battles and proceed with their mission. However, just a few meters from their destination, a very tall figure emerged from the shadows of the open doors and landed in front of the group with an impossibly large jump. The impact created a loud noise that drowned out the sounds of the battles around them and raised a small cloud of dust.

Slightly blinded by the dust that spread around them, the group had no choice but to cover their faces for a moment. They discovered who was responsible for that dramatic entrance when the dust settled.

"By order of the Tenth Regiment of the Ironclad Armada, you shall not pass beyond this point!"

She was a tall, slender woman with long black hair, dressed in what appeared to be a military uniform. However, the most striking feature of her appearance was her red eyes and the two enormous mechanical arms extending from her back, emitting small amounts of steam with each movement. These mechanical arms were responsible for the crater in the ground caused by her landing.

"You will not harm any innocents while I am here! You will fall by my hands!"

Without stopping, the woman pressed a button on the bracelets of her uniform, and four tubes were ejected from her back, connecting to a backpack-like device that linked both mechanical arms. With a swift motion, she grabbed a tube with both her human and robotic hands, and the tubes extended instantly to reveal they were pikes. As if that weren't enough, they began emitting sparks of electrical energy, surrounding them with a blue glow and a crackling sound.

[Skill: Electro Quadrant Technique Lv5] [No info available]

Immediately, an information window popped up before Adam’s eyes, indicating that the opponent in front of them was far superior to anything they had encountered before. However, he didn't have time to warn the others, as the woman leaped towards them with a jump similar to the one she had done before, but this time without any apparent steam propulsion like the soldiers. She used only the strength of her legs.

Li was the first to react, pointing at the woman and shouting almost in desperation.

“[Ganzu Metalo]”

The projectiles shot out like cannonballs toward their target, who couldn’t dodge while in the air. To everyone’s surprise, and fitting the surreal nature of their situation, the woman used her four weapons to hit the spheres and deflect them purely through brute force, as if she were batting them away.

“Eyes!”

Adam shouted, employing the same strategy as before and invoking the page of the Necronomicon. The woman stared directly at it with a fixed gaze; this should be enough to affect her at least for a moment, giving them a chance. But then…

[Skill: Synthetic Gaze Lv5] [No info available] [...] [...] [Your information has been forcefully revealed]

“What?!”

He didn’t have time to say or think anything else, as even in mid-air, the woman disappeared from view and reappeared right in front of him instantly. She moved so fast that the rest of the group didn’t even notice in time, as they had tried to look away after Adam’s warning.

"You are the most dangerous; you will die first."

As she said this, her two human arms crossed, and delivered a cross-shaped strike directly to the boy’s arms. With no chance for him to react, his page was torn to shreds, and a powerful electric shock coursed through his body from the impact.

“Aaaahhh!”

The scream of pain he let out was deafening, alerting his group to what was happening. They quickly turned around in surprise, but it was too late. The two robotic arms loomed over their target, ready to deliver the final blow, and there was nothing they could do to stop it.

*BOOM*

Another powerful explosion occurred right at that spot, causing Kazue, Li, and Drake to lose their balance. At the same time, the woman's body was thrown backward with great force, coming to a stop several meters away. After getting up without difficulty, it was clear that the mechanical arms had shielded her from whatever hit her.

"Damn Armada!"

A familiar voice was heard then, revealing the figure of a man as tall as the woman, with a massive mechanical fist emitting smoke from the impact it had caused.

"It's still too soon to withdraw. I'll take care of this nuisance; regroup immediately."

Captain Magnus had arrived on the scene just in time. Given Adam's condition, they were perhaps lucky not to have died before even noticed.