Clack─
The trigger was pulled once more.
Bang─────!
With a burst of flame from the muzzle of the Ark-34 Anti-Material Sniper Rifle, a blinding flash shot out.
But the beam of light was quickly swallowed by the darkness.
Against the surging horde of monsters, even the firepower of the Ark-34 Anti-Material Sniper Rifle faded into insignificance.
Clack─
Still, it didn't matter.
If one shot wasn't enough, I could just fire hundreds, thousands of rounds.
If it were anyone else, it might be impossible — but for me, it was perfectly doable.
Bang────!
Once again, the gun roared.
The deafening sound of gunfire filled the air, but was quickly drowned out by the overwhelming malice that cloaked the sky.
[Kaaaaaaaah!]
[Kieek, Kieeek──!]
The Turncoat Rook, still wearing a vicious grin, spoke.
"Filthy noisy things."
"Yeah, no kidding."
"Shall we shut them up?"
"Not a bad idea."
With our bone wings spread wide, the Turncoat Rook and I faced the vanguard of the monster horde.
I switched the Ark-34 Anti-Material Sniper Rifle to automatic rifle mode.
The Turncoat Rook, meanwhile, drew out massive bone axes in each hand.
Axes so vicious-looking that they seemed capable of cleaving lesser beasts in a single swing.
Sssss──
Bone tendrils slithered out from the Turncoat Rook's arms, wrapping tightly around them.
The tendrils began to function almost like his own sinews, boosting his strength.
Creak, crack...
The Turncoat Rook's arms pulled back powerfully.
"Hup!"
With a rough shout, he hurled one of the axes at the charging vanguard.
Vuuuuuuuum!
It wasn't fast like a bullet, nor was it flashy like some spell or special move.
But it was heavy.
Crack!
Craaaack!
The flying bone axe tore through the airborne monsters as if resistance meant nothing, cleaving a path effortlessly.
Even as I watched it happen before my own eyes, I couldn't help but feel impressed.
'Hmm… maybe a weapon like that wouldn't be bad either.'
Until now, I had mostly relied on spear-type weapons through Janus.
But seeing the sheer destructive weight of the Turncoat Rook's bone axe made me consider otherwise.
'I should try it out sometime.'
Of course, the Spear of Ankelenth itself was shaped as a spear, so adapting it wasn't practical.
But apart from that, using Janus to craft weapons similar to those axes wouldn't be difficult.
'More importantly...'
Finishing my thoughts, I resumed pulling the trigger of the Ark-34 Automatic Conversion Rifle.
A-985 Explosive Rounds scattered into the air, triggering a series of explosions across the battlefield.
Boom!
BOOM-BOOM──!
The chain of explosions created a temporary barricade to slow the monster horde's advance.
But unfortunately, it didn't last long.
Some of the monsters were strong enough to push through even the raging infernos.
[Kaaaaaah───!]
Terrifying roars echoed as monsters and beasts began to emerge from the clouds of smoke and flame.
The real battle was about to begin.
["Master! They're coming!"]
"I see them."
The Turncoat Rook glanced at me with a puzzled expression.
"Hmm?"
"...Don't worry about it."
I was so used to chatting with Esther that I momentarily forgot the Turncoat Rook was there.
"Esther, if you keep excluding me like that, I'm gonna get hurt feelings."
["Get over it."]
Esther stuck out her tongue, though luckily, her words didn't reach the Turncoat Rook.
After that brief moment of levity, we faced the monster horde closing in right before us.
Rooooooaaaar───!
There was no announcement.
No declarations.
Only pure hostility and violence unleashed toward the enemy in front of us.
Bang────!
Boom! BOOM-BOOM!
Vuuuum!
A-985 Explosive Rounds fired in every direction.
The Turncoat Rook's hurled axes scattered as well.
But it wasn't enough to completely halt the advance.
Naturally, the battle shifted into close-quarters combat.
"Janus."
[Screek!]
At my call, Janus extended bone tendrils across my body, taking up battle form.
The Turncoat Rook did the same.
Sssss...
In an instant, the Turncoat Rook was ready.
A flying monster swooped toward him.
But the Turncoat Rook didn't flinch.
He unleashed his bone tendrils.
Thwok!
Thwop-thwop!
The tendrils pierced the wings and bodies of the flying monsters.
[Kaaak, Kaaaaak!]
The creatures screeched and thrashed but could do nothing after being completely skewered.
Then came the feeding.
Slurp, slurp, sluuurp...
In no time, the Turncoat Rook drained the fluids of one airborne monster.
He flashed a savage grin.
"Finally, my thirst feels a bit quenched."
Sadly, there was no time to enjoy a leisurely tea after the meal.
More flying monsters and beasts were already descending upon us.
[Kaaaaaaah!]
[Kroooh, Krooooh!]
Despite the overwhelming numbers, the Turncoat Rook showed no signs of retreat.
"Hmph!"
With a wild grin, he charged into the fray.
I switched the Ark-34 Automatic Conversion Rifle into shotgun mode and faced them head-on.
Clack─
The familiar feel of the trigger was reassuring.
At the same time, a faint warmth from repeated firing spread across my hands.
BOOM!
The Ark-34 Shotgun unleashed a burst of flame, consuming the monster right in front of me.
A perfect example of the raw firepower the A-985 Explosive Rounds were capable of.
The body of a Grade-8 flying beast was torn apart mid-air.
["Where do you think you're going!"]
With Esther's shout, the head of a monster lunging at me exploded.
It seemed she had recovered enough strength — easily taking down a Grade-7 flying beast now.
"Good job."
["...It's not like I did it to get praised, you know. I did it to survive."]
"Think whatever makes you feel better."
["Hmph."]
* * *
Naturally, with not only the Turncoat Rook but even Esther — who usually just observed — joining in actively, the vanguard of the monster horde was blocked far more easily than expected.
At that moment—
Thunk!
Something flew at us from the ground.
It wasn't particularly threatening, and it was effortlessly neutralized by Janus's natural defenses without me needing to dodge or block it.
But the fact that the attack had come from the ground meant it couldn't simply be ignored.
'That was...'
I looked down and spotted a Grade-6 Primordial Beast unit preparing their next attack.
This confirmed it — long-range attackers, the symbol of post-Orange Line stages, had finally started appearing in earnest.
'Now even the ground isn't safe anymore.'
Stepping into the Orange Line stages meant just that.
Still, it didn't matter much.
As long as I didn't get hit, it was fine.
"Janus."
[Screek!]
Janus beat Wings of Ankelenth even faster, weaving into evasive maneuvers.
If I had the Z-74 Jetpack working, my movements would be perfect — but it was broken for now.
"Move!"
The Turncoat Rook, too, flapped his bone wings, shifting into full evasive maneuvers.
Getting surrounded by flying monsters while under ground fire would have been disastrous.
'Hmm...'
Because of the situation, we could no longer maintain our formation.
We were forced to split and fight individually.
'Well, it doesn't matter.'
There was no need to worry.
Turncoats — specifically Skull Turncoats — were beasts built for dealing with overwhelming numbers.
'In terms of survival, he's even better off than me.'
Even if Janus recovered his strength, if I were rendered combat incapable, our overall fighting power would drop nearly in half.
But for the Turncoat Rook, a true monster, things were different.
He could recover endlessly by absorbing the beasts and monsters around him.
Of course, there were limits, but even so, he was in a much better situation than a human like me.
'Times like this really make me envy Skull Knights.'
Of course, the fact that I didn't become one myself was the best choice at the time, and I didn't regret it.
Still, I couldn't deny a part of me felt a tinge of wistfulness.
Especially the thought of becoming something entirely other than myself — that had honestly been frightening.
'Well, that's all irrelevant now.'
Now was the time to focus on the enemy in front of me.
[Grrrrrrr...!]
[Screeeeech!]
[Grumble, grumble!]
The vanguard of the monster horde bared their fangs and claws as they charged toward us.
In response, the Turncoat Rook and I didn't stop moving.
We poured fire and fury into them, never allowing them to corner us.
Boom!
BOOM-BOOM!
Explosive rounds from the Ark-34 Automatic Conversion Rifle rained down everywhere.
Meanwhile, the Turncoat Rook darted between enemies, sending bone tendrils lashing out in every direction.
Thwop!
Thwop-thwop-thwop-thwop──!
[Kiaaaaak!]
[Kyaoo!]
The battle was overwhelmingly one-sided.
Even if we were only facing the vanguard, it still meant we were exceedingly well-suited for this type of warfare.
Of course, despite that, the two of us alone couldn't cover the entire front.
The horde continued to press forward — dominating the skies, the ground, even beneath the earth — steadily advancing toward the Ark.
The battle grew fiercer.
Explosions and shards of bone filled the air.
The sky was filled with constant roars and screams.
Even amid the chaos, I never stopped scanning the battlefield.
'Come to think of it, it should be about time...'
Speak of the devil.
[Screek!]
At Janus's signal, I saw a familiar figure approaching from the distance.
Moving at a speed no ordinary monster could match.
At minimum, it was a Grade-1 Named monster.
And I knew exactly who it was.
[Screeeeech────!]
With a deafening roar, Horus revealed himself and approached me.
"...Ho."
The Turncoat Rook muttered in awe.
But Horus wasn't the only one who appeared.
In the distance, another familiar figure tore through the monster ranks with wings made of bone.
It slowly made its way toward us.
'You're here.'
At last, it closed the distance.
Looking right at me, it moved its lips slightly.
["Comrade..."]
The Turncoat Knight.
One of my loyal brethren had joined the battlefield.