“Truly…an unsavory plan.”
The man’s voice, inside the remaining smoke, sounded exhausted. His words, however, went unheard.
“It’s time. Move out,” he said.
A small red light began to faintly illuminate the smoke in response. As if on cue, the creatures trapped inside the cages started to go wild. They had been waiting for this signal.
The insectile monsters destroyed their cages from within and began racing toward Galdorssia. They made a beeline without even forming ranks, much like an actual army ants.
The ant-like monsters were not confined to the land. Winged ants also emerged from the smoke.
Once the ant creatures were free, the horse-men collapsed, as if they had exhausted the last of their strength. From here on out, the fight was going to be waged by the insectile legion. The ants divided into two types: the infantry, which advanced by land, and the airmen, which approached by air.
✦ ✦ ✦
Now that everything around her had been frozen, Ieskha began to charge ahead, abandoning herself to her rage. The ice covering the ground beneath her undulated with her magic, carrying her toward the enemy on a frozen wave.
The tide of ice swept over the army ants; one, then the next, then the next.
“Damn you! Damn you! Damn you—!”
The monsters were immediately frozen solid. Ieskha began crushing them easily with her hammer, blustering through their ranks like a mistral squall. Fitting for a warrior known as the Ice Crusher.
“You’re not getting through from above, either!”
Seigrat, meanwhile, began shooting down the winged ants attempting to invade by air. While his magical javelins weren’t as charged as last time, each time they connected with an enemy, they exploded, catching nearby monsters in the blast.
Seigrat flicked up javelins from the pile next to him with his foot, tossing them almost as soon as they reached his hand.
“There are a lot of enemies, but it looks like Seigrat and Ieskha are handling them just fine…”
As far as Homura could see, the Holy Protectorates were making short work of the enemy. At this rate, it didn’t seem like they were going to have any trouble fending off the invaders.
“Yes. Let’s hope it stays that way,” Falmeyr said, although she still seemed tense. Something was off, but Homura hoped Seigrat and Ieskha would be able to end the fight without further difficulty.
Psycho’s next words dashed those hopes to the ground.
“Wait a second, something doesn’t add up.”
“What do you mean?”
Homura was just beginning to relax. The tone of Psycho’s voice immediately put her back on edge.
“If they were able to create these ants out of the villagers, then what about the soldiers stationed in Wodtrim?”
“You don’t mean—?!”
Homura turned white. This was exactly what she had been worried about.
“Yes, there could be enemies out there that are as powerful as Rotraud.”
The smoke continued to clear. Homura saw something at the end of the column…
“I knew it.”
A group of larger ants, about two or three times the size of the others. Unlike the smaller ants, these had unique features. One had massive blunt arms like war hammers, another had sharp-bladed arms like scythes, and the third had what looked like massive grasshopper legs.
“Maybe the way they fought while human is reflected in their shape.”
Psycho’s guess must have been correct, because Seigrat and Ieskha froze for a brief second in recognition, as they caught sight of the larger ants.
While the smaller infantry and airman ants continued to march toward Galdorssia, the larger ants seemed more interested in targeting Seigrat and Ieskha directly. Their objective was apparently different from that of the rest of the army.
Wodtrim had been home to a squad of highly skilled gold-shield-badge soldiers. Those soldiers had been transformed into monsters with augmented abilities—monsters who were now attacking Galdorssia in force. The Holy City would have to fend off multiple transformed gold badges.
“This looks concerning.”
A hint of panic crept into Falmeyr’s face. She quickly lifted her spear into the air. The sight that followed was breathtakingly beautiful.
“What’s happening…?”
Particles of light rose up across Galdorssia, converging upon the spot where Falmeyr stood.
“My magic relies upon small quantities of mana received from all the faithful. Additionally—”
The tip of Falmeyr’s spear began to glow, and Seigrat and Ieskha were bathed in a corresponding light.
“This holy spear has the effect of amplifying healing magic. Seigrat and Ieskha can now fight to their fullest. Even to the point of destroying themselves in the process, though it may not seem right to say. Even if they die, of course, I will resurrect them immediately,” Falmeyr said gently.
What a terrible thought. But one could not be too choosy in war.