Steel and Mana

Chapter 307 – An Early Wave

The winter was cold, and the snowfall was becoming a continuous company above my city, but it wasn’t as bad as last year. It was just another typical winter. Still, as high as we were at the moment, the cold bite of the wind could be heard howling, even within the airship, filling its cabins and corridors with its noise. Looking out through the Imaginary, surveying the Pass, it was a sight that I couldn’t help but feel proud of. This year, our side was stronger than ever.

We came here not only to survey and prepare but also to visit my parents, bringing my kids over as usual. They were also nagging me relentlessly to bring them aboard, so I decided to merge the occasions.

Its newly painted black and violet metallic hull looked great as its body loomed over my army, causing them to stand firm and proud on the walls. Steam curled from the vents along its sides as we were testing the freshly installed heating system so my crew wouldn't freeze to death up here while standing guard day and night.

While boarding it, I was thinking about the hum of its magical core, something that only mages could pick up on. I was wondering if it would pique the interest of monsters… Draw them here to check it out, or would they ignore it? Like my kids? Because they were clearly not bothered by it.

I had a hunch we would learn about it this winter, but so far, it was only the first week. I didn’t expect an attack so soon. Even if they came early… this time, in addition to the Camelot, the Rook, the Lion, and the Princess were also here. We were ready.

Getting on and giving them a tour was more fun than I anticipated. After letting the little ones check the rooms, the barracks, and the engineering, we then walked along the ship's wide observation deck, heading towards the bridge. My wives followed closely behind me, their expressions changing a lot throughout the tour as it was one thing to build it, watch it fly, and thoroughly another experience standing within its belly. Of course, my attention was mostly on the two imps, Leyla and Arthur, who had been nagging me day and night to bring them along. They have been running up and down everywhere, touching and watching everything, way too excited. Lancelot, already strong enough to stand on his own, two tiny feet, tried his best and trailed after them, sometimes faltering or even falling to his butt. But he never gave up, simply standing back up, determined to follow his siblings. Especially as my Mother was shadowing the trio more than I was, always there to pull them back when they went too far.

“It didn’t seem this massive while building it,” Sasha sighed, her voice coming from behind me. She ran her hand along a rail, knowing exactly which group made it just by looking at the craftsmanship.

“That’s what–” Luna tried saying something, but Mikan interrupted her before Sasha could roll her eyes.

“I wonder what others will say when they see it!”

“That, I am also curious about!” I added with a chuckle, “I will ask the bridge to zoom in on their faces when it happens, as much as possible.”

While they also giggled at my response, we finally reached the ship's bridge at the bow. My little ones wanted to stay aboard for the whole day, but the royal chamber was not yet ready; the furniture still waiting to be finished and installed. So, a sleeping party above the ship was a no-go.

Of course, at first, my Mother was against the idea of bringing everyone up at once. But I felt differently. Was it recklessness? No, not if you knew the full capabilities of our creation. Only three days ago, we had the last test. With Polo returning, I ordered him to mount his Rook and fire at Camelot so we could test its anti-magic defenses.

First, we started with low power, and its shielding shrugged his attacks off very easily. In the end, it even withstood a full-blown spell from the Rook, firing all four of its cannons at once. Half of those spells were dispelled before reaching it; the other half was halted by the magic shield it erected automatically around its hull. Merlin’s final report stated with certainty that it could withstand at least four such attacks before failing. The second report was from Elena, saying that she would like it to be finally finished because it was nerve-wracking. I know... I was sitting there, along with her and the crew, proving my belief in our ship.

Plus, I knew that if such an attack did land on Camelot in the first place, we would already be in big trouble. That was why my Mother relented in the end, following us and my children onto the Camelot and no longer complaining. Right now, it was the safest place in the Pass, safer than being in the castle.

After entering the bridge, my twins clapped their hands, and they quickly found my seat and climbed up on it, surveying the view from there and making the bridge crew chuckle. Especially when they saluted back, learning the proper posture very quickly from the officers who greeted us. Lancelot, too young to understand the significance, clung to his grandmother's hand, his eyes filled with pleading to pick him up and put him between his older siblings.

“Leon,” Louise said softly, her tone laced with pride, holding my youngest Son, “you’ve outdone yourself.”

“Ah?” I flinched; the last time she complimented me in this affectionate tone was when I told her that Mikan was pregnant.

“I thought your walking toys would be the peak, but son…" She continued, "This is even better.”

“Which was more shocking? The mechs or seeing the Camelot,” Luna asked suddenly, grinning, but that smile quickly vanished after hearing my Mother’s answer.

“The most shocking thing is that you are yet to bear my Son’s child! Do you use the correct hole? Do I need to come in and assist you? Or what?”

“…”

Of course, the whole bridge fell silent at once, and all the murmurs disappeared from around us. Even my kids leaned out of my chair, watching my Mom with big eyes. Luna, on the other hand, looked so red that I thought she had turned into a furnace. Maybe she tried melting the floor to hide away...

Before she could respond, though, alarms blared throughout the ship, shattering the moment. My face hardened as I strode to Kustov, standing at the main wheel of the Camelot. Looking at the image before us, soldiers on the walls were shouting, their movements quick and well-trained, and there was no sign of panic. It was routine.

“The Lion has noticed a reaction,” Kustov explained, his voice grim. “Beasts are coming.”

The Imaginary zoomed in at his command, revealing the threat in a surprisingly crisp image, even while they were kilometers away, just emerging from the winding pathway within the canyon before us. They were weird creatures. More… deformed than I was used to. However, they weren’t small, despite their surprising numbers. They were easily the size of small buildings, maybe reaching a two-story height. Counting them, there were about two dozen coming at once. Their forms were the amalgamations of claws, fangs, and armored hides. Watching them come into view, the leading beast resembled a twisted combination of a gorilla and a lizard, maybe with the head of a crocodile. It had four arms, two ending in human-like fists the other two being tipped with scythe-like talons. Sharp, fin-like scales were jutted outward from its back, while its body was covered in a mix of scales and fur.

Behind it, more creatures surged forward—mostly hulking, four-legged warthog-like animals with razor-sharp tusks and tails that looked like cobras. Lastly… there were a few insectoid, ugly, thin bastards with chitinous exoskeletons bringing up their rear. Why are there always bugs? I hate bugs.

“Get back to my room,” I ordered my family, my voice steady despite the view displayed on the Imaginary. “Mom, take the children.”

“But—” Arthur began his tiny protest cut short by me.

“Son, you will have time to face these things,” I answered firmly, my instincts overriding my thought of safety.

“But they can’t jump this high!” Leyla countered, making me smile a little, looking at the others.

“It isn’t like they would be safer anywhere else on the ship.” Sasha countered me, surprisingly, taking the side of my kids, who beamed happily for her support. The only one who was unsatisfied with the sudden development was my Mother. But she stayed silent, simply shrugging, holding Lancelot, who was the only one becoming nervous, feeling the sudden change in her.

“We aren’t scared!” Leyla declared, standing in my seat proudly. “The baddies will be defeated by you, Dad!”

“No. Not just me.” I shook my head, turning back towards the image, knowing that my kids had won this round. "We will defeat them. I alone can’t."Nôv(el)B\\jnn

With the matter settled, letting them stay, my mind also calmed down significantly. Yeah… Sasha is right. It is the same anyway, and we are not in any real danger, not on the Camelot. Maybe it will be a good experience for them to see it. Maybe my twins will pick up on the feelings of the monsters that we have missed so far…

“Activate defensive protocols.” I ordered not only Kustov but the army below me, ”Signal the mechs. The Lion, the Rook, and the Princess are to deploy immediately.”

“We are already in place!” Echoed Yuri’s answer through the comms. “Time to kick some furry butt!”

“Butt!” Lancelot repeated, clapping happily, making my twins join in on the chorus.

“Furry butt!”

Ignoring their cheerful antics, Kustov nodded with a half-smile, relaying the orders to the rest of the army. Outside, the three mechs stirred to life, my Father taking the lead with The Lion, painted in gleaming gold and royal blue. He stepped forward with his sword and shield ready, becoming the vanguard of the operation.

The black and white Rook followed, its bulkier frame hulking along with long-range cannons turning and locking in place on its shoulders. Its shield spell shimmered to life, creating a translucent barrier around itself and the soldiers below, who were filing out in its wake to man the howitzer battlements. They were ordered to wait, as this was our opportunity to bag ourselves some monster cores, scales, and bones. Firing on them early could scare our self-delivering resources away.

Lastly, I watched as the Princess moved into position on the flanks, its slimmer design a stark contrast to the Rook's as it passed by. Its foldable spear extended with a sharp hiss, ready to impale some of the incoming enemy.

“The Lion is to engage the leader.” I gave the order to my Father, who followed my lead without questions. “The Rook will provide coverage to the howitzers at the back. The moment they are engaged, the Rook can start shooting those that slip through! If they run, the howitzers must rain hell down on them! Lastly, the Princess will have free reign to engage. Kill the ones that get through it all and keep the battlements secure. Understood?”

“Roger.” Came the trio’s answer at the same time, making my lips curl upwards.

Below, the battle began when that gorilla-like beast noticed my Father’s invitation to battle. It roared and lunged at him, its arms and clawed fingers raining down on his shield. Before it could land them, though, Father charged, his sword slashing downward, putting the whole weight of the mech behind it. The blade's edge bit deep into the creature’s shoulder, eliciting a deafening roar of pain from it, forcing it to use its four limbs to stop it from cleaving it into two.

The Rook’s cannons thundered the next moment, each shot lighting up the sky as it targeted the four-legged group of beasts behind the leader, trying to go around him. Explosions tore through the ranks of the tusked monsters, scattering them like leaves in a storm. Then the Princess darted into the fray, using their chaotic reaction to her advantage, her spear spinning in a deadly arc as it skewered the creatures with precision, letting it go through their brain in just one thrust.

It wasn’t even a fair fight.

“Lion, keep it pinned.” I gave another order, watching it play out, “Don’t let it retreat. The bastard already knows it's beaten. Rook, adjust your aim—focus on the insectoid group to the west; they are trying to flank you. Princess, move to intercept the remaining four-legged ones. Ignore the ones that are already running; the howitzers will bombard them.”

The lead beast, wounded but not defeated, lashed out with its claws again, forcing my Father to raise his shield. Sparks flew as its talons met the metal surface, the sound echoing like a thunderclap. Seizing the opening of its claws stuck into the shield, he let go of it with a dance-like move, sidestepping to arrive at the beast’s back. It was over as he drove his sword into the creature’s spine, severing it at once. The bastard still tried and thrashed wildly, its roars turning into guttural cries as it collapsed, bleeding out on the ground.

When it happened, the other variants received either some kind of backlash because they became… erratic, or maybe it was the fact that their leader died. Almost the same, really, as they were no longer trying to break through but to run away. The Rook’s cannons continued to fire, thinning their numbers along with the howitzers, cutting their retreat off, and blasting multiple of them into shreds. One of the insect-like bastards tried to grab around the Princess’s legs, attempting to crush or cut it to make it fall. Yet, with a flick of her spear, Yuri severed the creature’s head; it then slumped into the snow, twitching, releasing its greenish blood.

“Yuck. I hate bugs.” She grunted, her voice coming through the open channel, stepping on it for good measure.

High above the battlefield, we hovered like an all-seeing sentinel, my crew ready to intervene if needed. But we held back, trusting my knights and soldiers to handle the battle. It was an easy victory.

My Father had delivered another crushing blow to another large beast, its sword cleaving through its armored hide, cutting it into two. Nearby him, the Princess ran through the battlefield, her spear slicing and dicing the remaining insect-shaped monsters, their skinnier bodies unable to protect them against her strikes. Not long after, the Rook’s cannons fell silent as it powered down its shields and let my soldiers swarm out from between its legs, already preparing for a harvest.

Within minutes, the first wave was defeated; their broken bodies scattered across the snow, oozing glittering red and green blood onto the snow. This was… way too easy.

“Well done,” I said quietly, my voice carrying through the comms. “Bring the spoils back. I’m afraid this occasion will repeat itself soon enough.”

“Are you expecting trouble?” Sasha asked while my kids were in a loud chatter. They were clearly awed by what they were seeing and repeated the moves they witnessed.

“It was too easy,” I whispered, but then Mikan leaned in between us, saying something that made me blink my eyes.

“Well… We did become pretty strong… aren’t we?”