Chapter 59

Upon hearing his name, Count Dman raised his head.

His gaze was fixed on a small airship far away, left alone in the middle of the enemy camp without a single escort ship.

Sergel said.

[Although I am ashamed to call myself a mage because I was born unable to wield mana, I too am a noble, and a member of the House of Dman that protects Ahinlab Fortress.]

“……”

[Didn't our father say? That nobles are not beings who reign over and enjoy the people, but beings who have the responsibility to protect them.]

“……”

[Brother. I am a disgrace to the family. Not only am I a noble who doesn't even know how to use magic, but I am also the culprit who split the once-united Dman family in half by staying in the family for a long time. That is why I feel relieved. With this, I can fulfill my role as a noble, and as a member of the House of Dman.]

“…Sergel.”

Count Dman barely managed to utter his name.

Perhaps Sergel's last words, echoing across the battlefield, helped the wavering Count Dman to steel his resolve, as there was no longer any tremor in his eyes.

Straightening his back and holding his head high, he undoubtedly exuded a dignity that was worthy of the title of the guardian who protected Ahinlab Fortress.

“You are right. You are a fine noble.”

[Thank you.]

“But Sergel. The current Count Dman is me.”

[…Brother?]

Count Dman's eyes shone blue.

He was preparing some kind of magic.

Come to think of it, Count Dman had shown a tendency to conserve his mana as much as possible throughout the operation.

Except for the Joint Incantation, Selina was in charge of most of the magic.

I hadn't paid much attention, thinking there must be a reason for it, but now, the reason why Count Dman had been conserving his mana would be revealed.

Soon, Count Dman's magic was complete.

Blue mana covered his entire body.

And starting from his toes, he began to scatter into blue particles.

“Therefore, if someone must be sacrificed to save Ahinlab Fortress from crisis, that person must be me.”

“Co-Count Dman?!”

The flustered Selina shouted.

To Selina, Count Dman threw his rank insignia.

“Selina Verdin. I leave the command of this war to you. And…. Please take care of my brother.”

Leaving behind a single word, Count Dman quietly closed his eyes, and a small magic circle unfolded in front of him.

The old man, who had been watching him quietly, clicked his tongue and turned his body away.

I was frozen like a stone and couldn't say anything.

Because I knew what that magic was.

A type of teleportation magic.

It wasn't a simple magic that just moved one's own position, but a high-level teleportation magic that exchanged one's own position with a pre-designated target.

In other words, Count Dman had intended to do this from the beginning.

In the blink of an eye, Count Dman had completely disappeared.

And Sergel appeared.

“……?”

The look of bewilderment was evident on Sergel's face as he looked around, his legs seemingly giving out in surprise at the sudden teleportation.

It was the first time I had seen the usually expressionless Sergel make such a face.

“Bro-brother! I…!”

Sergel staggered to his feet to plead for something.

But the words he was about to say were vaporized into thin air by the flash of light and the roar that erupted and filled the battlefield.

――――!

I squeezed my eyes shut and covered my ears.

Nevertheless, perhaps because I couldn't completely withstand the shock, I heard a ringing in my ears.

I couldn't even hear Ririsa's scream, which was being let out at the top of her lungs right next to me.

The explosion did not end with the first one.

The dazzling explosion of mana swallowed up all the airships within its range, and among them was the medium-sized airship, which could be called the enemy's main force.

The medium-sized airship exploded, spewing out an enormous amount of flames, and the remaining fragments plummeted towards the ground.

I could say with certainty that all the crew members and heroes on board must have lost their lives.

The other airships were the same.

The enemy airships hit by the explosion suffered varying degrees of damage and either crashed or spewed black smoke, and among them were also allied airships that had not managed to get out of range for reasons such as being caught by the enemy.

However, the scale of the damage was clearly divided.

The damage to our allies was significantly less, while the enemies suffered extreme damage, close to annihilation.

Now, all that was left was to mop up the enemies who were in a state of confusion.

My gaze naturally turned to Selina, who had the command authority.

“……”

She was staring intently at Count Dman's rank insignia, which was placed in front of her, as if contemplating something.

After a short while.

She clutched the rank insignia in her hand and struggled to her feet.

Where Selina was heading, there was Sergel, who was muttering something in a daze.

Only when Selina's shadow fell over him did Sergel slowly raise his head.

Kneeling down, Selina placed the rank insignia in his hand.

“Sergel. You do it.”

“……”

“From this moment on, you are not Sergel Fram, a soldier of Unit 917. The new Count Dman is you.”

It was a cruel thing to do.

Sergel's mental state must have been shattered by now.

On top of that, Selina had dealt a finishing blow, grinding the fragments into fine powder.

But I was sure that I would have done the same.

I didn't know the details, but according to the kingdom's laws, he would naturally succeed Count Dman and become the count who protected the fortress.

Sergel had become the guardian of Ahinlab Fortress.

And he had also taken on the responsibility that came with that position.

“……”

Sergel couldn't do anything.

Selina did not rush him.

She just stared at the remnants of White Hero, who were retreating in a somewhat clumsy formation.

If they were any later, even a chase would become impossible.

In the end, Sergel gave the order with a trembling voice.

“…All forces. Pursue and annihilate the enemy.”

* * *

“I don't know.”

During the annihilation battle.

It was a remark made by Sergel, who had been staring blankly at the battlefield in the sky for a long time after giving appropriate instructions to all units with Selina's help.

What didn't he know?

Selina and I, who were lying down without even the strength to lift a finger due to our depleted stamina, just exchanged glances and said nothing.

It was probably because we were both thinking similar thoughts.

Another long silence.

Craaash!

In the distance, an enemy airship was hit by our allied airship's cannon fire, spewing smoke as it crashed.

Sergel, who was watching the scene of it hitting the ground and spewing out an explosion and flames, spoke again.

“My brother was certainly a better leader than me in many ways. It would have been more beneficial if I had died….”

Whether he was saying that hoping for an answer, or simply for comfort.

Even that was difficult to understand.

Even if I had grasped his intentions, my withered emotions wouldn't have been able to offer Sergel any helpful words.

So, I kept my mouth shut and stayed still.

Then, I heard a shocking remark from beside me.

“…Sergel. You are right. If Count Dman were alive, it would have been a great help to Ahinlab Fortress, and furthermore, to the Mergan Kingdom and the Alliance.”

“……”

Sergel was silent.

I nudged Selina in the side.

Are you a psychopath?

Why did she have to rub salt in the wound?

I made my own effort to shut the mouth of this ruthless devil in human form.

However, Selina, with a frown, grabbed my wrist that was bothering her and continued to speak.

“If you think about it calculatively, that would be the correct answer. But is family a relationship where you can act calculatively?”

“But….”

“The duty of the one who remains is to make sure that sacrifice is not in vain. Sergel. Showing that you can accomplish this much as Count D-man will be the greatest reward…. At least, that's what I think.”

“……”

Sergel fell silent again.

However, perhaps because he sympathized with Selina's words to some extent, his gaze had changed from before.

I slightly raised my upper body and looked at Selina.

What was she thinking?

Selina, who was covering her eyes with her arm, looked like she was about to cry.

“…Selina.”

I reached out to her without realizing it.

At that moment.

Rustle….

“……?”

A small, alien noise that didn't belong on a battlefield.

And a creepy sensation on my skin.

The air I breathed in felt very cold.

It was as if the air around me had been replaced with that from somewhere else.

Rumble….

A small piece of a part located under my feet was vibrating minutely, trembling.

I wondered if there was something wrong with the airship's navigation system, but the airship was fine.

A strange sensation, as if I was about to remember something, tickled my brain.

I closed my eyes and focused on recalling the memory.

Thanks to that, I was able to remember quickly.

What the current phenomenon meant.

“Could this be…! Sergel!”

I don't know where I got the strength, but I shot up from my seat.

Although my legs gave out quickly and I staggered.

I was about to warn Sergel about the danger of the current situation, but before that, a loud alarm blared from Count Dman's rank insignia.

[Count Dman! This is Ahinlab's No. 3 Mana Observatory! Northeast of the fortress, 1.3 kilometers, altitude 300 meters! Precursory symptoms of large-scale teleportation magic have been observed!]

The observation point was not far from our current location.

At most, a distance of 200-300 meters?

The gazes of everyone, including myself, naturally turned to the observation point.

I was sure that not only the personnel on board Unit 917's airship, but everyone on this battlefield, friend or foe, was looking at the observation point at the same time.

Soon, the space at the observation point began to distort strangely.

Rumble…!

The trembling of the atmosphere, which could only be felt with intense concentration before, had now become so intense that anyone could feel it.

A cold sensation touched my cheek.

A cold wind blew.

That wind was accompanied by small snowflakes.

The weather at the forefront was harsh.

A space where a cold wind always blew, and a cold chill that could not be dispelled even by the heat of war dominated.

To think that the day would come when I would feel with my own skin the chilling cold, which was evaluated as severe, that I could only feel through the monitor screen.

How should I describe this feeling?

Yes.

It was absolutely terrible.

Fwooooooosh!

A dazzling light filled the world.

Even a hero who received the benefits of the nurturing system would be blinded if they took that light directly.

I hurriedly closed my eyes and blocked the light with my arm.

Perhaps because my vision was blocked, it felt like I could hear sounds better.

Even amidst the roar, the voice of the observer coming from Sergel's rank insignia was heard more clearly.

[Teleportation complete! No friendly response. It's an enemy ship! Identification result…. Da-danger level 10. The devil of the battlefield…. It's Odin's fleet.]