Chapter 146 — Core

【Leo Garcia——】

As I head toward the center, two pillars stand tall, with a platform-like structure between them. A few hundred meters ahead, a massive square pyramid looms.

On the platform rests a crystalline object I recognize.

The same one the Black Knight had held aloft in the sky. A few soldiers stand guard, but they’re not warriors like Chronos.

When I get close, one of them shouts something and fires a gun. Seems they don’t understand our language.

So general soldiers can’t talk… unlike Chronos.

I deflect the bullets with a wind shield and slash at the approaching soldier with a wind blade.

Ten or so fall, but the few in the back aren’t fazed. A magical barrier surrounds the crystal.

They’re shooting at me from inside the barrier, so I retreat for now.

I barely made it here, healing myself with Healing Magic—but my skill isn’t enough. I’m far from fully healed.

I just hope I can meet up with Elias soon…

I push myself forward, diving into a storm of bullets. I deflect each with my sword, pushing toward the barrier—

“Southern Flame Gale Slash (Nototh)!!”

My sword pierces through the barrier, shattering it into fragments. The soldiers inside are blown back by the shock. Some don’t get up again.

Before me lies the blue crystal, placed on the platform.

“If only this weren’t here…”

I raise my sword and strike with everything I’ve got.

“Western Harvest Gale Slash (Zephyros)!!”

The blue crystal splits in two, dissolving into particles of light.

For now, I let out a breath I didn’t even know I was holding. But when I looked closer, I noticed two more similar pillars surrounding the central structure.

The main triangular building hides it from view, but if there’s one over there too… that makes four total installed…?

I probably got spotted by soldiers at the other locations during the fight.

Should I head straight for the central building, or take a longer route around the crystal’s location…?

I hesitated for a moment… but in the end, I trusted my teammates. I’d go straight for the central building. Smash it open. Then rush to cover everyone else.

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

【Freyja Cruz, Wang Xinyi (Wang Xinyi)】

“Something ahead. Soldiers, too.”

“Wang! Let’s break through by force!!”

“Yeah, got it.”

Freyja’s sword and Wang’s staff cleaved through the enemy soldiers. They reached the spot with two pillars. Noticing the barrier protecting it, the two exchanged a glance and nodded in silent agreement.

Dodging the projectiles fired from within the barrier, Wang pulled his staff back.

“Flying Dragon Spear!!”

Wang’s golden staff, wrapped in ki, transformed into a spearhead and slammed into the barrier at high speed, blazing with intense light.

A high-pitched *kiin* rang out—then the barrier shattered. The soldiers inside staggered, clutching their heads from the shock. Freyja didn’t miss a beat.

“Radiant Meteor (Radious Meitia)!!”

A bolt of light streaked through, piercing over ten soldiers. All collapsed instantly. As the two approached the pedestal, they found a green crystal—almost identical to the one the Black Knight had held.

Wang and Freyja raised their weapons high and brought them down hard on the crystal.

It shattered into dust, dissolving into light.

"Alright, this place is secure for now."

"Yeah, I think the monsters won't show up anymore. There are other pillars like this one, but we'll leave those to the others."

"Right. Let's head to the biggest building in the center!"

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

【Carlo Bandis――】

"Whoa! They shot at me outta nowhere!"

As we approached the building, about thirty soldiers opened fire. Their bullets were tiny magical fireballs.

I could dodge them, sure—but not without care...

"Everyone, scatter! Some of us here aren't fully healed yet. No slackening up!"

With Luka leading, the ranged attackers returned fire.

Gotta move carefully... that’s all we can do.

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

【Emily Simon】

As we headed toward the center, a group of armed people started shooting at us. Looks like they’re guarding that pedestal.

If it’s that important, then it’s dangerous to us.

I summon my unique skill, “Black Sun,” right in front of me. The black sphere hits the pedestal straight on—then, in an instant, explodes outward, swelling into a massive black sphere.

Then—like a massive explosion—it erupts in black light, rising high into the sky.

The pedestal, the soldiers—gone. Nothing left but a huge crater.

"...I have no idea what just happened... but... it’s safe now, right?"

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

"Leo!"

"Freyja, Wang—thank goodness you're okay."

I’m standing in front of the massive pyramid-shaped building at the center, deep in thought, when Freyja and Wang rush over, breathless.

Looks like they just took down the enemy.

"Was it a tough fight?"

"Yeah, pretty strong... but I made it through..."

"Hey, Leo—what the hell are you doing here, anyway?"

Wang asks, eyes narrowed, confused.

"Check this out."

I thrust the sword forward. *Bam!* It snaps back with a crackling blast.

"Wha—?!"

"Magic barrier... and a damn strong one at that."

"So that's why you were stuck?"

"My magic’s almost gone. Even if I could break it, taking down this whole massive building? That’s a stretch."

"But now that we’re here, it’s fine, right?"

"I’m counting on you."

We’re about to pool our strength when a voice echoes from afar. Carlo and a big group are coming this way—seems they’ve shattered the crystal.

Everyone’s okay... I’m not worried about Emily, so we’ve made it this far without any casualties.

I brief Carlo’s crew on the situation, then get to work breaking the barrier.

"Everyone, attack together! Now—fire!!"

Arrows, magic—anything we’ve got, we throw at it. Explosions rip through the air, but the barrier doesn’t even flinch.

"Man, this thing’s way too tough!"

Carlo mutters, shaking his head. This barrier’s nothing like the one guarding the crystal in front of us—completely different level.

"Must be something really important..."

"Ah!"

I turn at Freyja’s shout—Emily’s sprinting toward us, gasping, clearly struggling. She’s never been strong to begin with.

"Emily, you okay? Glad you’re safe."

"...Huff... Huff... I’m... fine..."

"Sorry to ask this, Emily, but we need your help breaking the building. Your power’s essential."

"H-Hey... I... understand..."

Emily steadied her breath, spreading a black aura around her. The aura coiled into three black dragons, then lunged straight at the pyramid-shaped structure.

The barrier blocks them—but the black dragons climb vertically, wrapping around the barrier like vines.

Crack! Snap! The sound of pressure—like magic barriers straining under force. Emily summoned a black sphere before her, compressing it further.

We stood frozen, barely breathing, not daring to interfere.

The compressed sphere drifted slowly toward the structure.

It hit the barrier—bounced—exploded. Black flames burst out, merging with the dragons, igniting instantly into a massive explosion. A fire column punched through the clouds, right in front of us.

Everyone braced against the shockwave—some were thrown back.

Smoke cleared, vision cleared—nothing remained. As if it had never existed. Completely erased.

"Whoa... insane. We didn’t even get to do anything."

Carlo stared, half-amazed, half-dumbfounded. She didn’t just break the barrier we couldn’t crack—even with all of us—but she obliterated the entire pyramid-shaped building...

"Looks like we're winning up there too. Might actually pull through."

As we stepped toward where the structure had been, something unnatural caught our eye. A strange machine—something we’d never seen before—buried deep into the ground.

It was buried deep, but still active.

No—active wasn’t even the word. I could *feel* it. A massive surge of energy blasting upward from directly beneath us.

"Shit! Something's going on underground! Get out of here—this place is dangerous!!"

Everyone scrambled away at once, and the ground instantly began glowing crimson. A massive surge of energy erupted upward, blasting into the sky.

"What the hell...!?"

A colossal pillar of light pierced through the clouds, changing the color of the sky itself.

Where the hell is this energy coming from...? Then it hits me— if it's being drawn from underground, is it geothermal energy? No... it's deeper. Past the mantle... could it really be...?

It's unlikely, but... did they dig all the way to the outer core?

A lot's still unclear, but one thing's certain: they pulled massive energy from deep underground and used it for something.

The sky looked warped, like the atmosphere itself was screaming.

In an instant, a number of warships too vast to comprehend filled the sky. Warships stretched as far as the eye could see, all the way to the horizon.

"What... is this...?"

That day, over a million pitch-black warships appeared above Mongolia and its neighboring countries. And it dawned on me— the forces we'd been fighting all along were just the vanguard.

Facing the enemy's main force right before me, I could do nothing but stand frozen.