Magic Gems Gourmet Chapter 204

Chapter 204

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ED: LonelyMatter

Chapter 204 – Battle of Heim’s Capital Part 3

As Ain rode his horse, Logas did the same and rode his horse toward Heim’s army.

As the commanders of both sides returned, the battle was about to begin.

As the giant crossbow advanced, it took aim at the capital of Heim itself.

“Ain-sama!”

To greet Ain, who had returned, Dill rode up to him on his horse.

His expression was radiant, and he had a hopeful look on his face with a slight grin.

“…Eh, what’s that look for? What’s wrong?”

It was rare for Dill to grin, so Ain asked him in a dazed manner.

“No, I think it was a wonderful speech. The morale of the knights must have been at its highest, and they must have been ready to give their lives at any moment.”

“Ah… yes. I’m glad to hear that, but… what’s with the face? What’s wrong?”

Dill addresses him with his usual expression, but the reason for his face remains unresolved.

When he asked a second time, the grin on Dill’s face changed to a happy smile, and he began to talk about the reason.

“Ain-sama’s gallantry. It was a word that made me understand why Krone-dono had feelings for you. Artillery unit! Prepare to fire!”

“…H-huh?”

Dill, who had relaxed his expression, spoke up with the reason, and in the tense situation just before the battle, he continued to give instructions and prepare for the attack on the capital of Heim.

After taking some distance from Ain, Dill also raised his voice as if he had shed a layer.

“I see. Yes.”

Then Ain, who had been left behind, nodded as if he understood.

Looking at the knights lined up before him, he realized that Dill was not the only one who had reacted.

“Yeah. I guess that’s it… It seems they heard.”

The words he used in Krone’s name.

He had only meant to tell Logas, but perhaps the wind carried them to the knights.

The knights all showed their white teeth and turned their eyes to Ain.

“…d.a.m.n. I’ll have to silence them after the war is over.”

So, there was something in common with his so-called ‘Krone Declaration.’

Although it was true that it would be a nice story, considering Ain’s own mental stability, it was necessary to keep their mouths shut.

When he made this feeling firm, he realized that the tension that had been building up had been released, aside from his determination to go to war.

“Well then, let’s get everyone moving at once…”

…and at that moment, as Ain was about to announce the advance, a familiar sound of a steam whistle echoed through the air.

It came from the direction of the port city of Roundheart and was followed by a deafening explosion and a rumbling that shook one’s very core.

“It’s a bombardment, right?”

Roundheart was a port city a few hours by carriage from the capital of Heim.

In other words, it was a distance that could be covered in a few tens of minutes at a gallop on a warhorse, and it was not far from where Ain was stationed.

Turning his face toward his birthplace, he could see the smoke slowly rising into the sky.

“What happened? I don’t know, but they all started to open fire, didn’t they? It wasn’t just one shot, was it?”

The bombardment from the Ishtalika battles.h.i.+p far exceeded the power of the crossbow Ain and the others had brought with them.

This was because the large capacity of a battles.h.i.+p-like body allowed them to carry huge weapons that prioritized power.

If that were the case, the power of a single shot would be incredibly powerful, and it would be an easy way to attack a city from the sea.

However, Ain thought of some confusion….

…Chris was sending it from the beginning, isn’t she? Ain opened his mouth and looked in the direction of the port city.

＊＊＊

Meanwhile, going back by more than ten minutes.

About ten Ishtalika battles.h.i.+ps have arrived at the port city of Roundheart.

However, the port city of Roundheart was lined with fis.h.i.+ng boats, n.o.ble s.h.i.+ps, and many other s.h.i.+ps.

There were also a reasonable number of soldiers, though not as many as near the royal capital, waiting to greet the Ishtalika army.

In addition, there had been no sightings of ordinary citizens on the main street, and it was likely that they had evacuated to another location.

The Ishtalika battles.h.i.+p, however, sailed right up to the dock without a care in the world.

As the battles.h.i.+p advanced, opening up on both sides, a single huge battles.h.i.+p appeared in the middle.

“Coming to this city on this s.h.i.+p… I can’t help but feel a connection I don’t want to feel…”

Standing on the deck of the giant battles.h.i.+p, the Princess Olivia, was Chris.

It was almost ten years ago, but she remembered visiting this place at Olivia’s request, and she was overcome with mixed emotions as she crossed her arms.

As she looked at the fleet, fully prepared to attack, she turned her attention to the mansion at the end of the main street.

“Your Excellency Wernstein, Princess Olivia’s preparations for the bombardment are complete.”

A crew member approached Chris as the sun was setting.

“How are the knights on the other battles.h.i.+ps?”

“They are ready. We can land at a single word.”

“Then let’s make our way to the royal capital.”

Unlike the calm tone she had used earlier, Chris replied in a harsh voice.

The crew members, sensing Chris’ power, questioned her true intentions behind her back.

“W-what do you mean?”

“If we follow the road in the center of this town, there is a single building that is an eyesore. If that weren’t there, we could go straight to Ain-sama―no, the location of the Crown Prince.”

The crew members noticed its existence when they turned their eyes in the direction Chris was looking.

The mansion that stood out the most was undoubtedly the old Roundheart Mansion.

It would take some time to find out who lived there now, but Chris was not interested in that information.

“Princess Olivia’s main cannon, ‘Mercy of the Saint,’ is not a long-range attack. However, its destructive power in a straight line should be greater than even the White King’s.”

There’s no Lloyd or Ain here… the commander of this fleet was Chris.

In other words, there was no one who could suppress her hatred for Roundheart.

“We need to destroy that eyesore of a mansion and make the airflow better in this city.”

“But if there are any enemies worth capturing…”

“We have come to settle this battle once and for all. There is no need for captives. On the contrary, if there is an enemy worth taking prisoner… he should be killed as soon as possible.”

Chris, who had spoken terribly coldly, turned around with equally cold eyes.

The crew, seemingly frightened, held their feet down and waited for Chris’ words.

“After the main cannon attack by Princess Olivia, we will fire from the other battles.h.i.+ps at the Heim forces in the port city. After that, we will land and proceed to His Highness.”

“H-ha! T-Then, immediately unleash the main cannon―the Mercy of the Saint!”

“…Wait. I will give the signal. So you return to the wheelhouse and wait for my signal.”

“Understood!”

The crew didn’t understand why Chris didn’t fire the main cannon right away.

Chris didn’t explain the reason either, but after the crew left, Chris looked in the direction of the royal capital and mumbled something very sad.

“…Mm.”

Chris was unhappy―she was extremely unhappy.

While clarifying her intentions, she turned her attention to the battlefield near the royal capital.

Chris, being an elf, had good eyesight.

She could not see the person she was looking for, and of course, she could not hear his voice.

However, the power of both sides has reached the port city of Roundheart.

She felt the special atmosphere before the battle began and surrendered to the sea breeze of the port city of Roundheart.

“Hmm… I can’t see… and I can’t hear…”

Even though she was on a battlefield, she had a sullen expression on her face, feeling terribly disappointed that she wasn’t near the royal capital.

“Hah… the speech… the speech of Ain-sama. I can’t see it, I can’t hear it, I can’t reach it…”

Judging from the situation, it should be a war of words between the commanders of the two camps―in other words, it should be a big stage on the battlefield.

Chris understood this situation, so she hesitated to fire the main cannon.

On the other hand, she couldn’t help but complain about not being able to hear Ain’s speech.

If she had a tail, it would have hung down.

“First of all, even if it’s a strategy, the fact that I, the bodyguard, am not at his side is strange. I’ll definitely be selfish when I get back to Ishtalika…”

Although she was not directly involved in this war, Chris had this kind of determination in her heart.

However, if it was a source of energy for Chris, then it must be something to be welcomed.

…Chris made this decision without Ain knowing, but suddenly, she felt as if she had heard Ain’s voice.

“?!”

A s.h.i.+ver of excitement ran through her whole body and she almost bowed before Ain’s presence.

Chris looked around as if she had the illusion that Ain himself was standing right in front of her.

“There’s no way he’s here, but what was that just now…?”

No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t find an answer, and all that spread out around her was the port city of Roundheart, which was also about to explode at any moment.

However, it seemed that the Knights of Ishtalika were also immersed in the same feeling, and they all began to bow their heads naturally.

“I see… it’s starting… then I should leave as well.”

This strange feeling only lasted for a few seconds.

She was also curious about the pressure before, but Chris sensed that the battle of words was over.

Then Chris raised her right arm―a signal to the crew in the control room.

She took a deep breath, and then, with a clear mind, she swung her arm down with great force.

When it came to a hit from the main cannon, there was no room for error.

For this reason, the conditions for firing the main cannon are especially strict.

On the Princess Olivia, for example, there were several firing levers.

…And at Chris’ signal, the crew members would lower the levers in unison.

“W-wow, that’s really… amazing!”

Even for Chris, there weren’t many opportunities to experience the power of the Princess Olivia-cla.s.s main cannon.

Even if it was for training, it wasn’t realistic to think about the cost of each shot.

It was a shock that could only be experienced by counting on one hand, but even for a knight like Chris, there was no choice but to kneel down and support herself with her hands.

As the firing lever was pulled down, a light, rhythmic sound, like the tinkling of a bell, echoed out.

Then, the light began to fill the giant tube that has been made into a boatman for Princess Olivia, and the tinkling sound quickly turned into the sound of a bell.

The raging purple lightning overlapped in layers, and as the complexly mixed purple lightning solidified into a sphere, it began to show a shape that pulsed like a human heart.

The purple lightning connected to every part of the tube-like blood vessels, and it continued to grow larger as if it were absorbing energy.

With each beat, a huge shock was transmitted to the hull, which was clearly filled with immeasurable energy.

Its figure, glowing a bluish purple, stared mercilessly at the port city of Roundheart.

Then, as if giving a signal, Princess Olivia blew her steam whistle loudly.

“Princess Olivia. Main Cannon―Mercy of the Saint―Now…!”

As if whispering the name of her beloved, she then recited the name of the main cannon as if in wors.h.i.+p.

Then, as if in response to Chris’ words, the pulsing ma.s.s changed its appearance as it headed toward the port city of Roundheart.

It stretched forward as if extending its arm from within and then attacked in an instant as if bursting open.

“Show your power…!”

The main cannon that Lili fired from the Euro.

Compared to this, Princess Olivia’s main cannon could be described as very quiet.

Without spreading damage like a madman, it simply showed its power along the designated path.

The attack that had turned into a single ray of light continued until the huge ball of energy shrank and disappeared. Once the inside of the tube was empty, it vanished as easily as mist.

…However, the scene that had been created was something that was difficult to describe.

“Is it over…?”

Chris, who had s.h.i.+elded her eyes from the light, looked toward the main street of the port city of Roundheart as she confirmed that the shaking had stopped.

“It smells burned… but… yes.”

The road to Ain’s location was now clear.

Chris nodded in satisfaction as she looked at the main road, which had taken on a completely different appearance than it had a moment ago.

As she had said, the smell of burning could be smelled even from the battles.h.i.+p.

The cobblestones on the main street had melted, and the surface was smooth like a stone that had fallen into a river. In addition, the cobblestones were leaking air as if they were boiling in places.

The walls of the adjoining houses were melting like a liquid, dripping with building materials as if they had shed tears.

And the main cannon, which extended in a straight line―the Mercy of the Saint―burned down the old Roundheart mansion, leaving a plain without a trace of it.

Then, following Princess Olivia’s lead, the surrounding wars.h.i.+ps began to fire on the city, taking advantage of the straight line of fire that opened up to the outskirts of the capital.

The army of Heim, waiting in the harbor, was annihilated in an instant, and the Knights of Ishtalika began to land.

To rush to the battlefield, Chris jumped from the bow of Princess Olivia’s s.h.i.+p onto the dock.

She landed with a light step and slowly moved her feet forward.

After making sure the knights were disembarking around her, she called out to them.

“Now is the time to go to His Highness’ side.”

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