Pick Me Up Infinite Gacha! Novel - Chapter 229
C229
I lay back against a column.
Mercenaries in sufficient numbers to fill the entire forest were converging here.
Thousands of horses were charging simultaneously, shaking the earth.
«That egg is not a symbol of peace. When it wakes up, thousands of people from Taonier will perish! If you don’t want to lose your families and friends, run for your life!»
Yoshu, mounted on his warhorse, unsheathed his sword at the head of the cavalry.
«The first division will follow me and deal with the enemies within the forest! The second division, move out to the sides and clear the outskirts of the forest. Don’t stop no matter what appears! Don’t slow down!»
Waaaaah!
The cries of the immense crowd shook the entire field.
Outside the forest, a trail of dust rose long and high due to the sprint.
«Kiiiaaak!»
«Krrrr!»
Monsters, from Goblins to Trolls, Orcs, Harpies, Lizardmen, and even Order Soldiers, revealed themselves in the forest.
The group following Yoshu seemed endless.
The cavalry filled the plains completely.
Although the monsters formed a battle line belatedly,
Crack!
The monsters trampled under the hooves of the horses were crushed en masse.
Despite hundreds of initial casualties, the monsters left no corpses behind.
The first division of the cavalry broke through the monsters’ defense like paper and penetrated further into the forest.
«What are we supposed to do now?»
Jenna scratched her cheek beside me.
I sighed before answering.
«What to do? Just watch without moving from here.»
«There are so many of them. It seems like double the monsters. Maybe there’s something we can do to help.»
«Our turn is over.»
I glanced back.
Nearly a hundred airships filled the sky.
Compared to that fleet, our assault team was like a firefly in front of the moon.
And on the flagship of that fleet, Pria was overseeing the battlefield.
‘……’
So much had changed.
The girl who had been like a high school student in our first encounter had now become a woman.
At first glance, she had been nothing more than a naive girl of high status.
She had been reckless, always devising crazy plans under the guise of strange dreams.
The troubles she caused me didn’t even need to be mentioned.
‘I thought there would be a few hundred at most.’
I just hoped to buy some time.
That’s exactly what the Asynis Family, who were the mission’s aides, would have done.
But this was too much.
Instead of bringing reinforcements, they brought an entire legion.
How she persuaded them, I don’t know.
While it’s true that I owed a debt to Yoshu, a famous figure in the mercenary world, that debt shouldn’t have led to raising such a large force.
‘Is this the girl’s capability?’
Mercenaries move for money.
Pria must have overcome numerous difficulties to persuade them.
‘I want to know.’
How she unified hundreds of different mercenary groups.
What she did to engage them in a battle for which they were not paid.
Pria stood firm on the deck, without a visible hint of fear.
«The princess I knew seems like a different person.»
Jenna looked at Pria with dazzled eyes.
I just laughed.
«She’s acting. She must be trembling inside.»
While Pria lacked talent in swordsmanship, magic, and tactics, she seemed to excel in a critical area.
Perhaps the most necessary skill in the current Taonier.
Before Taonier was destroyed, there was a prince who took its place.
But now that he had gone over to the side of the monsters, the stage was set.
It was as if the stage of Taonier had been designed only for her.
‘It’s simple.’
You just need to act confidently and maintain the pose in front of them.
What I say is absolutely correct.
So, everyone will follow your lead.
If this works…
«Roaaar!»
For just one person,
Tens, hundreds of thousands of humans would gladly put their lives on the line.
«If this happens… it’ll be practically a civil war.»
Katio muttered as he drank a magic potion.
Katio had also learned a lot about Taonier’s political climate.
He knew that the empire, led by the prince, ruled the entire continent.
«The empire, the order, and the mercenaries led by the princess are fighting. From their appearance, they can hardly be called mercenaries.»
«Yes, it’s only the beginning.»
So far, we had been fleeing, but now the balance of power was almost equal.
The mercenary fleet began its advance.
The airships opened fire simultaneously.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Overwhelming firepower.
The sky was dyed red like fireworks.
Caught in the bombardment, dozens, hundreds of flying monsters disappeared instantly.
On land, the cavalry advanced,
In the air, the fleet cleared the way for Pria.
‘Now there’s only one left.’
Pria must prove her worth.
She wore a silver dress and a crown, the same outfit as when we first met.
Her transparent golden eyes looked forward.
«…….»
Pria’s lips trembled.
She seemed to be either reciting a spell or praying.
<Do you know why the imperial throne has been vacant for over a thousand years?>
Over the railing.
Suddenly, a sparrow appeared and pecked its beak.
Unfortunately, Kishasha’s gaze was fixed on the princess.
<Because no one has been able to prove their worth.>
«…….»
<It’s been a long time.>
Pria extended a small silk bag.
Inside, colorful beads shimmered.
‘The essence of the sky, the vessel of the earth, the cup of the sea.’
The objects Pria took out were what we had collected through tremendous effort in various missions, known as ‘keys’.
Although the previous emperor had used them to sew together broken dimensions, no suitable successor had appeared since then, and they had been scattered across the continent.
Pria’s lips moved again.
This time, I could read her whisper.
‘Please.’
Fear and tension crossed Pria’s face.
But they quickly vanished, her expression turning solid again.
«I declare here!»
Pria pointed her sword at the egg.
«From now on, I, Priacis Al Ragnar, will wager my body and soul to the goddess to claim her futures!»
Pria threw the bag from her left hand.
Three pieces of the key scattered in the air.
[Heaven’s Essence!]
[Earth’s Vessel!]
[Sea’s Cup!]
[Combine!]
Woooom!
The key pieces stopped in the air and transformed into orbs of light.
After that, the orbs of light spun and merged into the sword Pria held.
[The Dimensional Sword ‘Lusrada’ awakens!]
[The special NPC title of Priacis Al Ragnar has been changed to Heir of the Golden Lineage!]
The sword, once merely decorative, began to emit a brilliant golden light.
It wasn’t just a glimmer; the golden glow remaining at the tip of Pria’s sword illuminated the entire field, burning intensely.
«……»
The mercenaries on the ground and in the air paused, weapons in hand, and gazed in awe at Pria.
It took less than a minute for that to turn into a cheer.
«Wow!»
«Clear the way for the princess!»
[Effect, Heir of the Golden Lineage, activated!]
[The morale of the entire mercenary group skyrockets!]
The mercenary onslaught intensified.
Despite numerous casualties from the fierce counterattack of the monsters, they advanced without hesitation.
«The effect is truly astonishing.»
Belkist smiled.
«She has been chosen by the heavens. To those who know nothing, she might seem like a goddess. Well, it was worth all the effort we went through.»
Belkist crossed his arms and looked at the egg.
«So, is our princess going to deal with that nasty piece of flesh?»
The mercenary fleet approached the egg.
The flying monsters turned into beehives under the bombardment, and not even the large monsters could do much.
After all, Taonier’s fleet firepower was in a completely different league. The difference in numbers was simply too great.
‘We might need to increase our own numbers.’
From Floor 50, we can assault higher-level Daily Dungeons.
Resource acquisition will be much better.
From now on, we must lead a fleet of medium size.
However, there had been significant losses during the mission.
‘Edith……’
Now is not the time to think about her.
I shook my head and looked at Pria.
Pria approached the egg, the golden sword raised high.
<Hmph, I can’t believe it finally awakened. It’s late. If I had been able to use the dimensional sword earlier, I wouldn’t have ended up so futilely.>
Halgion adjusted his wings.
Normal physical or magical properties don’t work in the Fragment Series.
After meeting for the first time on a mission, I had to invest tremendous time and effort in devising countermeasures for the heroes of Niflheim.
«Back off!»
Pria swung her sword to the side, and the tentacles clinging to the aircraft instinctively retreated.
Our encounters had been completely different; the tentacles shrank away from the sword’s light.
The mercenary fleet advanced almost unimpeded towards the egg.
«By the way… those prince’s enemies aren’t showing up.»
Jenna looked around the field.
True to her words, the prince who had left the arena was nowhere to be seen.
By then, he should have appeared and started causing trouble.
«Well, it’s good he hasn’t shown up. Luckily, things are going well.»
Jenna smiled and sat beside me.
Then she rested her head on my shoulder.
«……It’s heavy.»
«I’m just tired. Give me a break.»
The smile on Jenna’s face turned bittersweet.
She was probably thinking about Edith.
I said nothing and simply looked ahead.
Right in front of the egg, the princess lifted the sword high.
A golden flash burst from the sword’s tip, soaring into the sky.
«I can’t keep watching this… Go back where you came from!»
Pria slowly lowered her sword.
The glow of the dimensional sword pierced through the egg in a straight line from top to bottom.
There was no sound of an explosion or torn flesh.
Woooom.
The gigantic egg, over a hundred meters tall, was enveloped in a bright light.
Then, like a fading light, it disappeared, leaving behind countless particles of light.
‘A cut to send it back.’
Indeed, that’s what happened.
At that moment, light enveloped my vision.
[Stage cleared!]
[Han (★★★★), Jenna (★★★★), Belkist (★★★★), Kishasha (★★★★), Katio (★★★★) level up!]
[Benik (★★★★), Anan (★★★★), Rain (★★★★) ……]
[Rewards – 1,000,000G, Conqueror King’s Heart, Sharp Fangs x 3, Advanced Mercenary Insignia x 2……]
[MVP – Han (★★★★)]
Time in the field stood still.
The cheering mercenaries, the fleeing monsters, all frozen like statues.
Pria turned to look at me.
[Master, congratulations on clearing Floor 50!]
[You have now entered the ranks of elites in Pick Me Up! Tell your friends! Your family! The internet! Boast, boast, boast!]
[My assistance will no longer be needed much longer! What a pity! May the goddess’s blessing be with the Master.]
[※ Additional content available in the Help section.]
‘It’s over.’
Sigh.
I sighed.
It had been a long journey.
‘First…’
Let’s sleep when we get back.
I’m so tired I could die.
The unfinished conversation with Pria will have to wait until the next level.
The nearby heroes were disappearing into light.
The signal to return.
I too was preparing to return.
«……?»
Just before going back.
I squinted.
Someone was standing in the distance.
It didn’t take long for me to realize it was the prince.
「…….」
He didn’t even look in this direction.
In the paused world, the prince, dressed in a blood-red coat, silently watched Pria.
His gaze remained unchanged until I left.