"Alright, alright, ladies and gentlemen! High noon is almost here!" Announcer Ibri's passionate voice echoed through every corner of the city via the Divine Mirrors.
In the front courtyard of the Guild Headquarters, the roaring cheers spread outward wave after wave.
"It's about to begin..." Eina clenched her hands nervously as she stared up at the massive Divine Mirror floating above the courtyard. She gave a curt nod to her colleague, Misha Flott, standing beside her.
All she could do was pray.
Meanwhile, a similar tension gripped the Twilight Manor in Orario's Eighth District.
"It's starting."
"You can do it, Aiden!"
"You gotta win, little Aiden! Kick the Apollo Familia's asses!"
Leaning against the balcony railing, Lefiya Viridis and Tiona Hiryute looked up at the Divine Mirror in the sky. Lefiya had her hands clasped together, praying for Aiden with a face full of worry, while Tiona waved her fists in the air, cheering at the top of her lungs with zero ladylike restraint.
Ais Wallenstein didn't say a word, but her golden eyes never strayed from Aiden's figure in the mirror.
Inside the Captain's office at the Twilight Manor, the atmosphere was far more serious.
"I don't know how you managed to pick a fight with the Apollo Familia, but... show me what you're made of," Finn Deimne muttered. He sat on his large desk, resting his chin on his hands, his sharp gaze locked onto the exclusive Divine Mirror Loki had opened just for them in the meeting room.
Behind him, Riveria Ljos Alf and Gareth Landrock sat stiffly on the sofa with solemn expressions. Tione Hiryute was quietly brewing tea for Finn, her eyes filled with undisguised adoration as she gazed at his back.
"Hmph. How ugly," Riveria remarked flatly. "Bullying the weak and fearing the strong. The Apollo Familia is going too far."
"That may be true," the burly Gareth rumbled, stroking his prized beard. "But this is Orario, isn't it? If you can't adapt, you can't survive. Besides, that Aiden kid isn't simple. Loki said the Focalors Familia agreed to participate in this war without a moment's hesitation."
"Oh?" A subtle smile tugged at the corner of Finn's mouth. "So, how do you think this little 'farce' will end?"
All of Orario held its breath. Countless eyes, peering through countless Divine Mirrors, locked onto that isolated ancient castle.
The noon bell was about to ring.
"The War Game—officially begins!"
Accompanied by the distant tolling of the bell from the Guild Headquarters and the deafening cheers of the entire city, this highly anticipated war finally pulled back its curtains.
At the exact same time, within the ancient castle ruins in the center of the plains.
The bronze gong signaling the start of the battle echoed from the hill where the Focalors Familia had set up their temporary camp in the distance.
However, unlike Orario, where the atmosphere was hot enough to ignite the sky, the morale on the ancient castle battlefield could only be described as sluggish.
"Ah... it started."
"So sleepy. Drank too much last night."
"What's the rush? There's only five of them. It's not like they can fly."
Since it was a Castle Siege format, the battle was scheduled to last for three whole days. Given the enemy's meager force of five people, it seemed obvious that they would drag things out until the final day, when the defenders' focus was scattered and they were exhausted, before launching a symbolic attack.
This was the prediction shared by the vast majority of the Apollo Familia. They assumed there would be a few sporadic skirmishes, but as long as the guards on the walls kept their eyes peeled, combined with the impenetrable fortress walls, they didn't foresee any problems.
Because of this, an atmosphere of extreme laxity permeated the entire castle. Some had even opened bets on when the newbies on the other side would start crying for their mothers.
There was almost no cover on the plains. A few scattered rocks could be spotted, but they were nowhere near large enough to hide behind. To the north and east lay sparse greenery and wilderness, a winding river flowed in the distance to the south, and a small patch of woods could be seen to the west.
The only thing they needed to watch out for was magic.
But half-baked magic couldn't shatter a massive wall like this outright; it would require several incredibly powerful bombardments. And the only thing capable of posing a threat was long-chant magic, whose massive magical fluctuations would stick out like a firefly in the dark from over a hundred meters away. They would have plenty of time to spot the caster and turn them into a pincushion with a hundred arrows.
After all, magic had a range limit. Even the city's strongest mage, Nine Hell, couldn't launch an ultra-long-distance magical strike. It was common sense that the further the distance, the weaker the spell.
However, amidst this relaxed atmosphere, one person stood out like a sore thumb.
Inside the ancient castle, Cassandra Illion stared fixatedly at the cloudless azure sky. She hadn't forgotten a specific scene from her prophetic dream—a sun falling from the sky, capable of destroying everything.
Suddenly, her pupils shrank sharply.
Beneath the glaring, actual sun, a tiny black dot had appeared without any warning. And that black dot was growing larger and closer at a speed that defied the laws of physics.
"Ah—!"
Cassandra let out a scream filled with pure terror. Using every ounce of her strength, she cried out the name of the person she relied on the most: "Daphne!!"
"What now!?"
Hearing Cassandra's ear-piercing scream, Daphne, along with the other Apollo Familia members playing cards and chatting nearby, jumped in surprise and shot her impatient glares.
Frowning, Daphne followed Cassandra's trembling finger up toward the sky. A second later, her pupils also shrank to the size of pinpricks.
High in the sky, a magnificent pink-and-white Pegasus was flapping its wings, and a clear figure could be seen riding on its back.
"Thanks, Little Ica. You can head back now."
Aiden gently patted the companion Hyacine had summoned. Little Ica let out a crisp whinny and turned to nuzzle his cheek.
Aiden smiled and rubbed the Pegasus. With that done, he vaulted off without a shred of hesitation, plummeting straight down toward the ancient castle below like a falling meteorite.
Accompanied by the howling gales of his rapid descent ripping through the air, he drew the Fire Spirit Sword from his waist.
"Ride Upon This Wheel of Flame!"
Enchantment magic [Everlasting Flames] activated!
Blazing, near-gold crimson flames instantly enveloped him like a divine robe.
The effects of his development ability [Fire Flash] and the Artifact set [Crimson Witch of Flames] triggered simultaneously. In an instant, the temperature of the flames reached an unprecedented, terrifying degree capable of distorting light itself.
---
Support this fanfict by leaving Positive Review, Comments, and Power Stones.
For Advance Chapters, Visit:
> Patreon.com/NegativeTranslations