Above the treetops, bird-like golems scouted the area of corruption. On an airship situated over the area, Control looked at the footage. The scouting team had located a few large magibeast on the verge of corruption.
"Fauna located. 6 Drake types and many more fauna have failed to flee. Are there any squads available for an evacuation operation?"
"Negative. They're still dealing with more pressing issues at other POIs."
"A rise in Hollow Deaths has spiked close to the corruption source. Incendiary corruption levels appear to be at max and need to be dealt with ASAP. We cannot let them break confinement."
"Affirmative. Send squad 1,4,6 and 11 once they return with the supplies to the nearest hot zone."
"What about the paladins and clerics from The Order? When will they arrive at the site?"
"…"
The ship's general looked at the newly updated report written on the screen.
"They've stabilized the other minor sites and are heading this way."
"Affirmative."
Then, just as the situation seemed to have stabilized, the golems became engulfed in flames and lost signal. The corruption had converted them as well, using their husks as its own.
"And… that's the last of our scouting birds. General, what is our next move? We don't have live intel on the ground, and the supplies won't arrive until 11 AM."
"Increase barrier output."
"But then our defenses—"
"Then fire on sight within a 1 km radius until supplies arrive."
"Affirmative! Entering "Compromised Defense Mode." Arm the artillery—shoot anything airborne within a 1 km radius on sight!"
"…"
Then, a few minutes later, Redam heard something reassuring in his left ear.
[Urgent transmission request has been received. Incoming VoD: Luna Ilifel.]
[Redam. Status quo?]
"Most of the fauna was evacuated and treated. However, corruption levels have dramatically increased over the last few hours, but fortunately, only exotic fire mana has leaked through the shard."
[Such is often the case. This one's a flame type too, bad match.]
"You don't say—the problem would've been solved already if I could personally go inside that zone. At this rate, we might have to evaporate the area before Leviathan's generators become unable to sustain the containment. But even then, the shard and its splinters might remain."
[I see. How is your crew?]
Redam leaned his head to the side, cracking his neck. "They're fine—showing only a small hint of internal burns. How's it on your end?" he returned the inquiry.
[The minor sites have been dealt with with the help of The Order, though, they're all pretty exhausted. Saint Amethely told me she should be able to close the spatial shard in her current state. I would say she's being modest. But otherwise, we'd have to wait for the clerics to recover some more.]
"I see. We've employed a 5 km barrier around the site, but the actual corruption area is about 500 meters wide. The problem is, there are thousands of Hollow Deaths spread around a few hot zones. It's only been a week, but it appears this shard splintered faster than we initially thought. A few squads are down there dealing with the ones near the barrier's edge. I've personally taken care of a few splinters. But… with how low my resistance to incendiary corruption is, I'm afraid I'll have to leave the big one to The Order."
[Affirmative. Then, does the ship have enough mana to fully clear the area while maintaining confinement?]
"At this pace, the generators run at max capacity. You got a plan?"
[Positive. Lady Saint and I could arrive within 6 minutes and quickly close the shard.]
"I see… we could support you with precision strikes, but we unfortunately won't be able to fully clear the area due to the Ecological Preservation Act."
[That's alright. Just clear as many as possible, I'll personally protect the saint at close range.]
"Affirmative, then—"
[—Incoming message from High Command: Necessary collateral of the target ecosystem has been granted. Based on the data we have received, we have determined that this spatial shard was a larger threat than initially assessed and is growing too fast. Immediately prepare for urgent corruption cleansing, and clear the area of any and all hostile forces.]
Redam looked at the mana slate in front of him, a smile cracked on his face.
"Fortunately…"
[…?]
"We received permission to use necessary armament on site. We'll clear the area for you."
[Affirmative. That is all.]
"That is all. Closing comms."
Just like that, the call ended. Redam turned to his crew.
"Alright, people!" he exclaimed. "Prepare to clear the area with magical bombardment and load the railcannon with water magic shells. We're leveling the area!"
"Sir! Yes, Sir! Hurry, get a move on, folks!"
Some even seemed to think—finally, we can do something other than wait around!
…
..
On top of a cliff not far away from MSS-Leviathan 51—just right outside of its barrier, pillars of water splashed to the sky. Blue arcs rained down, among other radiant magical bombardments.
The ground below was like a firework show of colors, and despite there being a barrier separating her from the artillery site, muffled explosive noises leaked out as the ground beneath her shook.
"I've… never seen one of these ships unload this much armament before…" Amethely confessed.
The mass destruction reflected in her pink amethyst eyes. Each collision was like a splash of colors, evoking the fiery flora corrupted by the shard.
"It is… a warship," Luna remarked, then adding, "And it's not even unloading the heavy payload yet."
"…"
The sight of Hollow Death crawling and attaching themselves and being blown into pieces was quite the horrid sight. They managed to assimilate into a large fiery titan, but…
[Warning: Firing Railcannon, please stand clear.]
Less than five seconds after the ship announcement, a beam left the massive barrel beneath the ship—a massive mushroom cloud rapidly rose into the sky, then came the wave, the ground inside the barrier was torn from the impact zone to the barrier's edge, and water rapidly filled the cracks left behind. The titan had been completely obliterated.
Amethely looked at the destruction and clenched her fist. She convinced herself it was necessary since the incendiary corruption would've done more damage, but… if only she arrived faster, then this might've been avoidable.
"…"
"Are you alright?" Luna inquired as she turned her gaze to Amethely.
"I'm okay... I just couldn't help but think there was something I could've done before it resorted to this. But given the circumstances, leaving it be even for another day could be more severe…"
Amethely awkwardly scratched her cheek. She shook off the "What-if's" as her expression returned to being firm but serene.
"I see…" Luna briefly glanced at her, then at the area ahead. She then removed the crescent moon ornament from her hair. "I've received the locations of where the splinters are. Let's hurry as soon as the bombardments stop—this is the last wave. Don't worry about the remaining enemies. The ship and I will cover for you with precision strikes."
"Nn. Got it," Amethely replied elegantly with a soft smile, then waved at the crew.
..
Inside the confinement, near a sahrd, Amethely clasped her hands together. With her eyes closed, she sensed the flow of the exotic mana, and to close the shard, she had to either destroy it with brute force or hijack it and collapse it into itself.
Of course, Option A was only available for those who had the strength to collapse such phenomena, just like her older sister, Chely. But if it was not completely annihilated, it could leave a micro shard that would later regrow.
Such cases were rarer in Option B, which was the most likely scenario. Establish control over the spatial anomaly and guide the shard, and let it close by itself.
As a cleric herself, Amethely was trained to resist such influences. Such was the price of being a cleric; if she became ill or injured, others' cleansing or healing wouldn't do much for her.
In combat, she couldn't rely on other enchanters like herself; if they were highly skilled, the effect would likely be subpar and very inefficient.
However… she was also a swordswoman, or rather, closer to a paladin, considering she could only rely on her own magic to enhance herself. No matter. It was a trade-off for instances like these.
..
"Its pretty…" Luna commented as she quickly glanced at Amethely.
She'd been fending off hostiles for around 5 minutes from a safe distance from the shard with the squads that were relocated. They, too, were mildly captivated by the sight.
Amethely stood elegantly, basking in mana that appeared like beautiful crystals floating in the air. Ten minutes later, pinkish-purple light fully illuminated the site; a halo appeared in the sky.
When basked in this light, the Hollow Death appeared to be in pain as they spasmed uncontrollably. The flames eventually went out, leaving a crisp of what once was a corpse deformed beyond recognition.
The shard's flames began to retract into the spatial rift as it began to slowly close. When the job was done, she opened her eyes, warmly smiling at the people protecting her.
"Good job, everyone. Let us rest up and wait for the Clerics and Paladins."
The soldiers relaxed and cheered. After a reassessment from the Order to make sure the job was done, they would finally switch outposts with another company. Weakening corruption sites for The Order wasn't an easy task after all, especially without the ship's support.
Meanwhile, as they set up camp, Amethely and the medics from the ship made sure there weren't lingering effects from the corruption site, and the soldiers afflicted by it previously also stabilized after the shard was closed.
"Aw man, we really got to see the saint this time! She's as kind and pretty up close as they say, isn't she?" a man casually voiced.
"Yeah, well, she apparently has a lover now, what a surprise, right?"
"Huh? Really?"
"Yeah, found out just recently on a supply run."
"Heeeh… whose the lucky fella?" the man asked, stroking his beard.
"He's a wanderer. Y'know, the one that's been getting a lot of attention at HQ."
"Oh? Well, we haven't been back in Ilifel for ages, but I really hope our next outpost isn't at sea."
"Hmm, about that. Apparently, a lot went down at sea, so Hero Chely's people are currently stationed there."
"You sure know a lot, huh?"
The furry woman smirked. "Of course, they call me gossip queen!" she proudly declared.
"Sounds like a bad thing," another colleague jumped into the conversation.
"Still, have you noticed The Princess being more mellow?"
"Mellow, you say?"
The other two turned their heads, looking straight at Luna, who stood by Amethely, helping her cook.
""Oh? You're right…""
..
For the past week, Luna and Amethely have spent a lot of alone time. Although they considered the other a friend, they hadn't been alone to this extent. It was awkward at first, both quickly warmed up to one another.
"Luna, how do you like this?" Amethely asked, scooping up the soup, blowing it lightly before feeding it to her.
"Delicious," Luna affirmed with one word, giving it a thumbs up without ever changing her expression.
"…"
Cute… Amethely thought as she softly smiled. But at the same time, she was conflicted, and her mind wandered in a strange direction—she's like Al if he was girl…
Luna adorably tilted her head.
"You thought of something strange, didn't you, Ame?"
"W-well." Amethely averted her eyes; her index fingers poked one another. "I-I just wondered if Al would look like you if he were to dress like a girl… is all…"
"Pfft…" Luna chuckled. "Do you miss him?"
"I do." Amethely softly stirred the pot, her expression relaxing just at the mention of him. "But, not as much as I thought. After all, you're here."
"Mm… I see, I'm just his replacement, huh?"
"N-no, that's not it! Geez…" Amethely stretched Luna's cheeks. "I'm just saying… I don't feel lonely. Because… you are here."
"…"
Luna turned her head, and a visible blush surfaced on her face.
"Y-yeah…" she stammered quietly. "Likewise…"
"Aww! Adorable!" Amethely exclaimed, burring the petite girl in her embrace.
"…"
H-help… How hasn't Al drowned…?
…
..
On a day off, Alum wandered the streets of Ilifel, snacking. On the other hand, Noel and Chely got a lot of attention.
"This sculpture is kinda cute, huh?"
Chely picked up a strange-looking thing. It was a mix of some eldritch horror and a fish.
"Rather than cute… I'd say cool?" Noel remarked.
"Really?"
Noel crossed his arms and nodded. "Rather, you're the cute one," he shamelessly said.
"…" Chely frowned. "So… I'm not pretty anymore? Even though you showered me in praise earlier, saying I looked pretty and refined in this outfit."
"Wait-wait-wait! That's not what I meant! Besides, you just want me to say you're pretty again, right?"
"…" Chely's eyes suddenly took an interest in another item.
"Hey, if you ask…" Noel's words trailed off as he grinned.
Chely glanced at him.
"Would you…?"
"Of course!"
"…"
The shop owner was speechless, but regardless of that—ah, youth, he thought.
"It… feels like we're third-wheeling pretty hard, huh?" Miu giggled?
"Does it?" Alum tilted his head.
"It does! You're just the weird one, mou!" Miu lightly puffed her cheeks.
"…" Alum stared at her for a second before softly smiling. "I suppose. But I was surprised. I presumed it would've taken longer for them to become a couple."
"Me too, honestly. I thought they didn't get together yet because they liked the "Not-yet-together flirty dynamic." But it appeared my childhood friend was shyer than I thought."
"I suppose," Alum chuckled.
"…" Miu also smiled; it was somewhat more mature than usual. "Still, you really went for it, didn't you?"
Alum's head tilted to the side.
"Regarding Ame?"
"…Yeah."
"…"
"…"
"…"
"Well," Alum broke the silence as he glanced at a bakery. "I simply made up my mind."
"Simply, huh…?" Miu reiterated. "Such determination, I'm jealous."
"Yeah… I made someone dear to me hurt. I wish that hurt would heal soon."
"Do you feel guilty?"
"…I suppose."
"Don't be. I was hurting, but not thaat hurt. Mou!"
"I won't feel guilty then," Alum teased.
"H-hey! It's sad if you put it like that—it stings you know? A-at least feel a little guilty, but not too guilty!"
"A. Ffirmative." Alum shrugged, feeling as though some weight slid off his shoulders.
Miu pouted, saying, "Ah, geez! You're mean!" Though she didn't fully mean it, some weight lightened her chest, too.
A little further behind, Emely slurped a sweet drink.
If someone's a third wheel, isn't that me at this hangout T-T?
A/N
Apologies for the late post. I had to liberate Cyberstan, it's brutal.