Dying breath

"Take my sister." Karen requested.

"Huh?" Kalasag looked at her in bewilderment.

"I will dispel my Reilaea Vanguard and throw everything at them." Karen looked at Kalasag with serious eyes. "Please."

"...I refuse," Kalasag replied after a slight pause. "If you want to get your sister to safety, then do it yourself."

"Ha?! But if I don't destroy their annoying catapults..."

"And who said you could take that responsibility to yourself?"

They are soldiers of Reilaea who swore to serve the kingdom until their dying breath. They took that vow on their free will, but that doesn't mean they can't go against it when the time comes. After all, even if they are the loyal and proud knights of Reilaea, they are free.

That's one thing that separates Reilaea and Kruule from one another at the moment. Freedom.

"It sounds hypocritical, but you're free to do whatever you want, and the same goes for me and my men, am I right?!"

The Malayas roared in agreement behind Kalasag, making him proud. The Malayas know exactly what's in Kalasag's mind. They know because they all think the same.

"You chose to fight until your last breath, so you do you. Me and the others chose the same thing, so we'll do just that. You can't tell us otherwise!"

That's right. Kalasag and the Malayas are preparing to deactivate Reilaea Vanguard at the same time as Karen before charging head-on at the enemy.

"Jeez... I hate to admit it, but I guess you're right."

At that point, all she could do was give the soldiers of Kruule a malicious smile. Karen gave up trying to convince Kalasag and the others to get to safety. On the other hand, Nina had also given up.

"So in the end, you two decided to just risk your lives together... How stubborn."

"Nina?!"

"You're awake?!"

Having caught by surprise, Karen and Kalasag wordlessly watched Nina slowly getting herself back on her feet before calling out Emby.

"Biii!"

"Doing what we came here to do and then head back home together, that's the choice I want to take. You can't tell me otherwise, got it? Also, don't you think it'd be a waste to die a virgin, even though you knew you like each other for a long time now? Honestly, if I could, I would have validated you two as husband and wife right now." A sigh of discontent left Nina's mouth.

Her words sounded like it struck a blow on both Karen and Kalasag that Reilaea Vanguard showed worryingly big cracks after being hit by the enemies' attacks for a split second. It scared the Malayas behind them.

"You cheeky brat..."

"Don't call me a brat, you're only five years older than me, big sister."

"Biii!"

Emby flew past Reilaea Vanguard and stayed afloat in the middle of Karen's fire arrows before creating its own set.

"Anyway, enough chattering. Emby!"

"Biii!"

Following Nina's command, Emby created set after set of eight fire arrows. That's right. Nina also triggered her Mana Burst. At that moment, Kasalag called out the Malayas behind him.

"This is it, everyone!"

"We've got your back, Payapa Kalasag!"

They patiently waited for the right moment when a few more boulders would strike Reilaea Vanguard.

Bugohm! Bam!! Bang!!

And then... Kalasag and the Malayas all moved their shields down, dispelling Reilaea Vanguard. Karen did so, too with her own Reilaea Vanguard at the same time as them.

"Sugod!!"

With Kalasag's loud cry, the Payapa bravely charged at Kruule soldiers on foot!

"This time for sure..." As more and more blood is leaking out of her eyes, Karen and Emby's fire arrows began merging into a single but bigger one that was made more powerful with Karen and Nina continuously pouring mana into it.

Seeing this made every single operator of the catapults and other long-range defenders of Kruule flinch and take a step back.

"...I'll destroy it!"

"Yeah! We'll do it together, big sister!"

Karen and Nina jumped in the air and grabbed the giant arrow before tossing it forward.

"Haa!!!"

"Haa!!!"

The giant arrow soared past Kalasag and the Malayas who began clashing shields and swords with Kruule's foot soldiers with beyond incredible speed.

Buwooooh~!!

"R-Reinforce the shield! Shoot it with before it hit us!"

"E-Even if we do that...!"

The magic users who cast the barrier realized firsthand that they can't take the giant arrow head-on, even if they reinforce the barrier. After that, the other magic users also realized that their magic tools such as a wand fueled with their mana to fire beams aren't powerful enough to parry it either. In the end, Karen destroyed no barriers. Because before it struck them, the magic users tried to flee, hoping they could get far from harm's way.

Fwip~!

Sadly, their movements aren't even on par compared to the destruction that's heading their way.

"Idiot! Why did you all dispel the barrier...!"

Bugoohm!!!

A loud explosion incinerated every single one of the catapults standing in Reilaea's way to the plateau. They all turned to ashes, including a lot of knights of Kruule who failed to avoid it in time. After that loud explosion, a massive shockwave demolished countless structures near it. At the same time, it stopped Reilaea and Kruule soldiers alike from fighting one another as they got violently blown away.

"Urgh...!" Kalasag groaned in anguish as he crashed to a nearby structure wall. "It hurts..."

Kalasag allowed his back to rest against the wall that showed massive cracks upon his impact for a short while. He partly opened his right eye to look around. That's when he saw the aftermath of the explosion.

It appeared that most people from both sides are in an incapacitated state and are struggling to even lift a finger, just like Kalasag. Some are able to stand on their feet, but the ear-piercing explosion seemed to have affected their hearing, making them feel light-headed and even end up awkwardly dropping to the ground. But more than that...

"Heh..."

The sight of the row of the catapults, the things that halt Reilaea's advance to the royal castle being reduced to nothing, puts a smile on Kalasag's face.

"...They did it."

"Finally..." Said Karen as she breathed heavily while gazing over the path that she and Nina opened. "Now they can't stop us from advancing. Or at least not all of us."

It appeared that even after destroying their powerful long-range defense, the number of soldiers of Kruule had barely dwindled. Karen could see more knights in black armor coming from behind the aftermath of the explosion.

"Wars are so annoying, there's no end to them..." Karen claimed before finally losing the strength on both her legs. "But... It's time for me to tap out."

A squad of Kruule soldiers desperately charged at the Karen who finally lost consciousness.

"She's one of the two who destroyed our long-range defense!"

"Kill her!"

Right at that moment, Emby appeared between Karen and the soldiers of Kruule who are aiming to end her life, putting their movements to a stop. Emby appeared so weak and tired that it was not even trying to create any more fire arrows. No, creating fire is not in its plan. Rather, Emby stood in their way as a distraction.

"Ha!!"

To the enemies' surprise, Nina landed a surprise attack kick on one of them Kruule knights. Right then, she grabbed the spear of the one she attacked after letting it go.

"I'm not letting you lay a finger on Karen!"