Chapter 164: The Arrival of Chaos (Part One)
May.
Under the dark and spooky sky at the southwestern border of the Kingdom, troops were stationed everywhere, their numbers flowing like a tide.
Black, fiery red, silver—various kinds of sturdy armor and helmets concealed solemn faces filled with determination.
They had set up a defensive line on one side of the mountains, erecting high walls and towers, quietly waiting for the moment when the disaster would strike.
Sure, there may have been some doubt and fear in their hearts, but at least at this moment, nobody was thinking about backing down.
In the northwestern camp, nestled against the mountains, black and white tents dotted the hillsides. The valley’s fork at the foot of the mountain, once a simple checkpoint fortress, now had noticeably reinforced walls.
Stationed in this direction were the first joint forces of the Emperor from two nations. With a staggering number of nearly ten thousand warriors, they were practically the best of the best. Under the organization of Old Henry, the legendary “Demon Terminator,” they had been undergoing intense training for three months in the Rahshim Basin with the Empire’s elite hunters and cavalry. Sure, three months was a bit of a rush for training, but it was enough for them to understand the kind of enemies the Western Continent was about to face.
“What a grand scene,” Sarah said, pulling off her helmet and tucking it under her arm, fluffing her messy hair before nodding at Daisy, who had just come to find her.
Her tone wasn’t one of nostalgia or excitement. Sarah rubbed her face, accepting the water Daisy handed her, and gazed at the increasingly dark sky to the south, a glimmer of confusion crossing her eyes. “Daisy, I’m a little scared…”
It was noon.
Yet the sky was as dark as night, and Sarah couldn’t remember the last time she’d seen a sunny day. Ever since arriving here, she couldn’t tell day from night anymore.
The enemy was from the Abyss…
They were to resist those rumored monsters of the Abyss.
Sarah understood this, and everyone in the joint forces understood it too.
However—/
No one had ever heard of any monster whose mere presence could change the color of the skies.
“…I heard,”
Seeing Daisy lost in thought, Sarah continued, “According to the officers up top, this checkpoint we’re guarding seems like the most likely direction for the monsters to attack. Those things tend to follow the path with the most people. Beyond this checkpoint, the plateau we passed on the way here has the two largest cities in Ethanbel’s Western territories, surrounded by plenty of villages.”
Daisy, dressed in a battlefield medic’s robe, was rummaging through her clothing when she froze at Sarah’s words and blinked.
“Aren’t they… evacuating?”
“Evacuate?”
Taking several gulps of water, Sarah tossed the canteen back like it was a bomb, looking at Daisy as if she were out of her mind. “Over twenty thousand people, more than the combined numbers of the joint forces stationed here—how are they supposed to evacuate, and where would they go? Sticking around in the city at least means they can scrounge up some food. Outside, who’s to say they won’t starve to d*ath on the road?”
She paused, “If there were any choice left, only those noble lords with private armies would dare to bolt now.”
“……”
Daisy awkwardly caught the canteen; she didn’t understand.
Sarah didn’t want to say more; she wasn’t exactly an expert on the situation herself. “I heard you saw your family a couple of days ago?”
“Yeah…”
Suddenly changing the topic, the girl’s gaze darkened, and in a hushed voice, she said, “They came escaping with a small group of refugees… The Emerald City was destroyed, and we lost everything. My brother… died on the way… My father is really sick…”
Recently, a significant number of refugees had streamed in from the direction of Silgaya. Before the joint forces arrived at the border, those refugees had been stuck outside for half a month without orders. No one would dare let those starving folks pass—letting them in would be like opening the gates to a horde of locusts crashing into a not-so-great harvest.
But once the war supply lines were laid out and the first joint forces officially reached the border, the mustached general from the Shanter Army looked at the throngs of heads peering in from beyond the mountains and pondered for a while before asking, “Is there a way we can help as many of them as possible?”
Days after his question, a command from the Royal City reached the border instructing that some able-bodied refugees be assigned to help build fortifications. Their shabby shanties and filthy families were gradually moved inside the defensive lines. Even though they weren’t allowed to run away, men and women alike were pressed into doing what they could, eating only a watery porridge a day. Before long, some collapsed from exhaustion on the wall; but at least, with gritted teeth, more people had a shot at surviving.
At the very least, there was a glimmer of hope for life.
Those walls, which seemed capable of protecting them, grew sturdier from the daily rush of work. More and more formidable-looking armies arrived at the border during this time—maybe these folks could hold back the disaster. Some refugees had seen it from a distance, but for now, that swirling mass of unseeable black fog didn’t seem nearly as intimidating as an army of tens of thousands clad in shiny armor.
Under their protection, despite the harshness of life, they felt a lot more secure.
It was as if a beam of light had suddenly pierced through the gray world; they had a chance to live— and this was the outcome the joint forces hoped to see. Because if those starving people were left outside, when the disaster truly arrived, everyone would end up as monster chow. The insignificant deaths of the refugees would only empower the forces of chaos, making it even harder to resist.
Daisy’s family was one of the lucky ones.
Her second brother was dead, with her older and younger brothers helping to build the walls alongside the refugees. Maybe it was a miracle; her father had fallen seriously ill. The volunteer squad leader managing the refugee area was a kind man who took her father to see a doctor, and by chance, Daisy spotted him among the military medic teams.
When father and daughter reunited, there was no tearful embrace, just a heavy silence.
Daisy shared this with Sarah, but she didn’t want to dwell on it too long, even though Sarah could see a flicker of relief in her eyes.
The two chatted as they sat cross-legged at the foot of the wall. Daisy slipped Sarah two small packets of herbal powder, claiming it was a secret recipe she concocted with a few skilled doctors. The stuff was amazing at stopping bleeding and disinfecting—way better than any of the market’s so-called remedies.
Sarah graciously accepted it. While chatting, they brought up their other two roommates from 1504.
“I think Sophia is coming too,” Sarah said. “But I haven’t seen her on the march; she might be coming later with Her Majesty’s Guards. She’s really something now.”
With that, she pouted as if trying to act indifferent.
“What about Peilo…”
Daisy thought for a moment and asked, “It seems like I haven’t heard anything about her since we left the Academy?”
“She…”
Sarah lowered her head, pondering for a moment before saying, “I don’t know; she’s definitely not with the Empire’s troops. I asked around specifically—she’s not here…”
Pausing again, the girl lifted her gaze. “But I’m sure when the disaster truly strikes, she’ll be at the front with everyone else.”
