A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 448 Let's stop, the rest is all...

Five pillars support the sky, the jade palace is clear.

Looking down from the airship's window, everything became clear: the shattered ruins of the fortress, the city walls climbed by giant trees and tentacles, and the monsters—as the black, sticky liquid receded, there were living people on the verge of death, and remains that had become one with the soil, their bones and flesh intertwined and pieced together.

The Empire deployed all its equipment at the front lines, and the other bombers escorting the five airships carrying the equipment were also numerous. If Valois had air power, the Empire would suffer heavy losses; if the Empire were willing to bomb, the already twice-damaged Moncado fortress could be wiped out.

Neither of them made a move.

Judging from the situation below, the technical director guessed that his mission was complete. He still didn't know who the archmage threatening him was or what his purpose was; only the large hand on his shoulder remained firmly in place.

Should they launch a sneak attack and counterattack? The technical director had experienced the baptism of the anti-magic field more than once, and coupled with his mediocre strength, he could easily adapt to a situation without magic.

The small eye behind the lens began to dart restlessly to the right and back, while his right hand reached for the gun holster.

"Don't move without my command." The steady, powerful voice rang out, and Humboldt's large hand exerted force, making the director feel as if he were being pressed through the floor. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a broad, muscular body. Ah, a nature mage should have the muscles and strength of a bear—that's what true well-being is!

If technocrats then realize they don't even have the strength to catch a chicken, then it's fine; whatever the master says goes.

Seeing that the other party was being honest, Humboldt asked, "Will anyone break into the command room in a moment?"

"Normally not. After the anti-magic impact, the facilities inside the airship that require magic to operate must also be switched to a non-magical backup system, and defenses against enemy attacks must be maintained. This is the busiest time for the crew."

He paused. "But you'd better let me give some routine instructions to let them know that the command center is still operational and to make sure these people have work to do and that my assistants don't have to come back here."

Humboldt agreed with the other party's statement and, after clarifying what instructions were available, allowed him to select and broadcast them to the airship fleet one by one. The technical director then became busy again; as a temporary commander, he was not yet familiar with the operations and was quite flustered. Levers and buttons were pressed, the mechanical structures constantly meshing and working in tandem, a combination of pneumatic and electric forces, emitting a series of piercing noises.

After the director was ready, he pulled the brass-cased walkie-talkie in front of him, and the voice was transmitted between the copper tube and the vibrating plate: "Leadership 201 is calling the entire team to report the situation of each unit." Finally, the voice was converted into radio waves by the electrified vibrating plate and broadcast to the other airships.

This is a radio that the Empire reverse-engineered, and the technology was developed in a slightly off-target manner. They are not yet clear about the relationship between bands, frequencies and transmission distances, and their anti-jamming technology is not very good, but it is perfect for communication within a formation of airships that are close to each other and separated only by air.

"202, everything is normal."

At first, Humboldt was a little nervous when the technical director started paging outwards, but he quickly calmed down because the director was indeed just making a routine call and did not alert anyone else to the abnormality in the command room.

After the basic procedures were completed, the director wiped the sweat from his brow. A quarter of an hour had passed since the last impact, and based on experience, the environmental magic would gradually "recover" to a level that allowed the caster to perform their spells in a few more minutes.

He suddenly had a bold idea: "Sir, I implore you to allow me to issue one last order—bomb the fortress."

Humboldt was silent for a moment, then said, "Tell me about it."

"Look, the entire airship force deployed by the Empire at the front has been mobilized. This is a matter of great importance, and I, a mere technical director, cannot bear the responsibility." His face gradually contorted, becoming ugly; perhaps in his own imagination, this miserable appearance would evoke sympathy from the other party.

"You certainly picked a good time, hijacking it just when I was in charge of testing the new airship's technology. The others don't even know what's going on! If you could let me lead the squadron to achieve some results, I could go back and report, sir. You see, I've completed your mission."

The airship has just completed its modification, with major upgrades including replacing the "safe lightweight air" provided by Rorschach, installing basic electrical equipment as a backup for magic-free conditions, and finally upgrading the energy storage equipment to speed up the charging and discharging efficiency of the magic-free system. That's why the technical director is temporarily taking on the role of commander.

The director's excuse was nothing more than having elderly parents and young children to support; if he went back like this, he would definitely face a military court.

Despite being gazed upon with expectant eyes by the technical director, Humboldt's main attention remained focused on the fortress itself. Suddenly, from the edge of the shattered fortress, a clear and vibrant "wave" erupted, its speed comparable to the previous invasion of Mother Earth, but bringing with it a radiant glow of hope for life.

At the same time, the master also felt that he could reactivate the magic of the environment, which meant that the mages below could cast spells.

In that case, Humboldt agreed to the technical director's request, but he had an additional condition: "A bomb must be dropped first to test the waters before the bombing can begin. Secondly, you must not tell anyone outside the fact that I am here."

"Thank you, sir! Your request is perfectly reasonable."

A little earlier.

Delyuez looked up at the shadow cast by the airship. At this moment, he was just an incarnation. In the process of resisting the impact, all the incarnation of God could do was try his best to restrain his power and sacrifice most of it to preserve a part of the core.

At this moment, His beautiful form was covered with cracks resembling the bark of an ancient tree, and He struggled stiffly to turn His head from looking up to looking straight ahead. The infiltration of Mother Earth had ceased, and the evil and filthy aura had vanished.

Dryaz murmured, "He is right. The age of the gods has truly ended."

He also saw the crowd still unconscious and in pain, and made a final decision: "Since our current power comes from you, let us give back a little today."

Light burst forth from the cracks in the wood, and the last essence of this clone was fully unleashed, bringing divine healing to the people of the fortress and city who still clung to life. The price was that this clone dissipated.

"Ah," Rorschach crawled out of the ruins, bathing in the last essence of Dryaz's clone for a moment, and he recovered quite a bit. At first, he felt comfortable, but then his whole body ached.

"It was the Empire's attack that saved everyone." Canola pulled Roscia up, a bitter smile on his face.

"I don't think it's that simple. They're definitely not here for charity." Poincaré examined the sky-covering airships with suspicion.

A heavy aerial bomb fell and exploded in the center of the fortress.

"Damn it, just as I thought! This is a probing attack, a large-scale bombardment is coming soon!" The recovered spellcaster cursed and began preparing his spells for defense and counterattack.

Immediately afterwards, a barrage of bombs exploded over the fortress, completely engulfing the entire structure in flames.

"I advise you to stop here." Humboldt, having confirmed that the next bombs had been defended against, kindly reminded him, "There are at least three archmages and several spellcasters below. Once they recover, you won't be able to leave." That mysterious lady is even stronger than an ordinary archmage! However, the technical director no longer needed to concern himself with such details.

"Huh?" While the director was still in a daze, one of the outer airships was shot down by a mysterious force.

"Return to base! All units, full speed ahead! Run!" The communication system was filled with heart-wrenching shouts, the technical director's hoarse voice and the noisy electronic sounds echoing among the frantically fleeing airship formation.

(End of this chapter)