Chapter 68: Airship Explosion
Several hundred meters above ground. Though they had descended to a lower altitude than usual to enter the Nevera Valley—
Let’s think rationally.
Even so, who in the world would attempt to infiltrate an airborne airship?
And by flying…?!
“Hah.”
Anyone in their right mind wouldn’t even dream of attempting it.
No—just the fact that such an idea had come to them meant they were already out of their mind.
“Completely insane.”
Exactly like that lunatic soaring toward them, golden cape fluttering in the wind!
Up until that point, Yellow Moon was more dumbfounded than anything. He hadn’t felt a single shred of tension.
“Load all 36 external cannons excluding the mana cannon. Fire the moment he’s within range!”
Yellow Moon pointed at the blond boy on the screen, lifting the corners of his mouth.
“Let’s teach this lunatic, who dares to oppose Depicio without knowing his place, the meaning of fear.”
They were Depicio. A gathering of reapers who granted peaceful ends without their victims even realizing they had died.
To go against Depicio was to defy death itself.
“He’s entered our range of fire. You’re all ready, aren’t you?”
“Of course! Just give the order, Yellow Moon!”
“Good, very good…”
Death is order. And order is an inescapable fate.
That blond boy flying toward the airship, and the others below who would soon be obliterated by the mana cannon—
No matter how beautiful the lives they had lived, no matter how brilliant the futures they might’ve had—
They would fall equally and pitifully before that fate.
“Shoot him down!”
“At your command—!”
It was when young lives like theirs met meaningless deaths that Yellow Moon felt the greatest thrill.
“Ha ha ha! Ahahahaha! Ha—huh?”
But then, something unexpected happened. On the screen, the blond boy turned his eyes toward the viewing orb—as if he were looking straight at them.
‘…Did our eyes meet?’
The thought crossed his mind. Those blue eyes were staring precisely in his direction.
‘No way, that can’t be... From that distance?’
The viewing orb used to monitor the outside of the airship was made with a high-grade mana stone. Its performance was superb, but it was small in size, making it difficult to detect even for high-level mana users.
And yet, despite closing the distance at a terrifying speed, there was still a considerable gap between the boy and the airship.
‘Yeah. Must be my imagination. A trick of the eye.’
But those strikingly clear blue eyes felt like they pierced straight through Yellow Moon.
He felt like a fish speared on a harpoon. And he did not like the feeling.
“Target locked. Firing now!”
As if to resolve Yellow Moon’s growing unease, the cannons released their payload.
Boom boom boom boom—!
Shells rocketed through the air toward the target.
Yet the boy, even as he watched them come, made no attempt to dodge or change direction.
In fact, he accelerated. Hurtling forward even faster.
And the result stunned Yellow Moon and the Depicio assassins.
“What?!”
The boy charged through, his body cloaked in solid mana—taking a direct hit from the shells and ignoring the impact as he closed the gap between them.
It was a head-on approach. Brutally effective, but also—
“Reckless idiot!”
It was no different from slicing his own flesh off in sheer disregard.
Even by naked eye, the golden mana cloaking his entire body was roiling like waves.
Just the mana spent to shield himself from the explosions—on top of the mana needed to keep flying at that speed—was immense.
“Is he unskilled at mana control? Or lacking in strategic knowledge? He didn’t even think to conserve mana for later engagements… This is just pathetic.”
It was simply that his natural mana reserves were massive—he saw no need to conserve.
But Yellow Moon, unaware of that fact, could only reason this way.
“A short-sighted brute who knows nothing but raw strength.”
He regretted even spending a moment observing such a disgraceful display.
But that was the moment—!
“Hmm?”
The boy suddenly came to a stop midair, then drew his sword.
The silver blade shimmered ominously as it caught the light.
And in that instant, Yellow Moon realized—all his judgments about this boy had been completely wrong!
“……!”
Their eyes met again—clearly, unmistakably.
‘It wasn’t an illusion!’
The boy was looking right through the orb at him! Fully aware of Yellow Moon’s presence!
Then the boy gave a faint, crooked smile and silently moved his lips.
As a trained assassin who had mastered lip-reading, Yellow Moon could make it out clearly.
‘Get ready...’
The moment he read the words—
–Chill!
A cold sweat broke out. Something heavy sank into his chest.
His gaze shifted to the sword in the boy’s hand, where mana was building at an insane rate.
‘If that’s fired… it must be stopped! No matter what!’
It was pure instinct. If they allowed this to happen, the consequences would be catastrophic.
“Y-Yellow Moon, sir?”
The assassins looked at him in confusion—he had gone still, drenched in sweat.
“Gasp!”
Yellow Moon gasped and widened his eyes as he shouted at the top of his lungs:
“Redirect the mana cannon! Change the target! Hurry!”
“...Excuse me?”
“You fools! Are your ears blocked?! Switch to him, now!”
“A-at once—!”
In a panic, the assassins hammered at the control console, adjusting the cannon’s aim.
Woooong—
With a heavy groan, the cannon’s barrel shifted.
The light gathered at the tip dispersed slightly, but after locking onto the new target, it once again drew in surrounding mana with terrifying force.
At that same moment, both the cannon and the boy’s sword had charged enough mana.
“Kill himmmmm—!”
Yellow Moon screamed as the cannon fired.
The massive surge of mana on the boy’s sword was also unleashed.
BOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMM─!
A blinding beam of blue clashed with a golden slash in a clash that rocked the heavens.
The sound was so loud, everyone nearby felt their ears go numb.
Crackkkrkrkrkk—!
But to Depicio’s misfortune, the fierce collision between the two forces didn’t last long.
“…This is kind of fun.”
The blond boy—Elwin—murmured, intrigued.
“I held back and weakened it a bit, but if it gets stopped… I’ll be pissed.”
He enunciated clearly, loud enough for anyone watching from the distant airship to understand.
Then he grinned—an expression as nasty as they came—and began channeling even more mana into his blade.
“Think you can withstand this too?”
He held his sword forward and split the massive beam in half with ease, continuing to advance.
And judging from his composed expression, it was clear he could’ve moved faster—but chose not to.
“You’ve always been like this, haven’t you? Clutching someone’s life in your hands, toying with them like a cat with a mouse.”
To make the Depicio assassins feel sheer terror from a living nightmare.
“Also, did you know? Mana cannons are prohibited for use by anyone except the Hunter Association or state authorities. Scum like you—not that you'd know such things!”
Having reached the cannon's exterior, Elwin plunged his sword into the barrel.
He violently injected his mana into the very path the beam was supposed to exit through.
As the outgoing mana collided with the incoming surge, the cannon quickly overloaded.
Unable to withstand the pressure—
BOOOOOOMMMMMM─!
It exploded with a monstrous roar!
Unsurprisingly, the shock wasn’t limited to the cannon alone.
The explosion dealt massive damage to the airship itself—
To the point that the entire ceiling and outer hull were blasted away!
“Urgh! Is… cough, cough! Is everyone okay?!”
Barely able to open his eyes, Yellow Moon spoke weakly.
But no voice answered.
All around him, assassins lay collapsed, bleeding.
Not even Depicio’s elite aboard the airship could escape the shockwave.
–Shield! Gather together and form a protection barrier!
They had mustered every last ounce of mana to deploy a defense in time, but…
As could be seen—
Most had died or fallen unconscious. And truthfully, there wasn’t much difference between the two.
“…I see. So that’s how it ends.”
Whether death came now or a bit later—only a difference in timing.
Wooooong……
The airship, now half-destroyed by Elwin, had lost most of its functionality and was falling from the sky.
Soon it would crash, leaving not even a shell behind.
“…Ha. Haha.”
Yellow Moon let out a dry laugh.
Blood suddenly gushed up his throat, staining his lips, but he continued laughing without care.
He was as good as dead. Though barely alive, his wounds were too severe.
Requesting reinforcements from Depicio wasn’t realistic.
And even if they somehow arrived, there was no telling whether the revered Master would spare him for failing the mission—or deem him worthless and eliminate him.
“Ghhhk!”
But if this truly was the end, there was one thing he had to do.
With trembling hands, Yellow Moon reached into his robe and pulled out a precious communication orb.
Ssssh—
He poured the last of his mana into it.
A direct communication line to the Master of Depicio.
A privilege granted only to the ‘Moons.’
[Yellow Moon. You called sooner than expected.]
A flat voice came through.
It was unmistakably the Master of Depicio, the Mountain Elder.
Clinging to fading consciousness, Yellow Moon tried to speak.
He had to report the situation—so they could prepare for what came next!
To the one currently in the Batevil Kingdom!
“Gah… Gasp… R-respected Master. This mission was—”
But he couldn’t speak any longer.
“……!”
A blade stabbed through his throat—an ambush from behind.
The attacker picked up the fallen orb and said,
“Mission. No issues.”
The attacker was none other than… White Moon!