Poverty makes me capable of anything.

"Is it time?"

The guard said, "The Grand Secretaries have already set off."

"What about the elites who are preparing to relocate?"

"Under the cover of the faithless, they have already gone toward the veil of light."

Derrick was startled: "Why go to the veil of light?"

"I heard that it's just a transit point."

Derrick was silent for a moment, then said, "I have nothing more to ask."

"Then please go up, Colonel Derrick."

Derrick nodded.

He walked up the stairs.

Finally, it stopped in front of a deep pit.

Below, there is a large tree that looks like an emerald.

Derrick took a deep breath and leaped.

He heard the wind in his ears, and the wind grew louder and louder until he completely lost his hearing.

tick-

Derrick opened his eyes in a gray fog.

Listening to the sound of the waves, he saw a gray shadow walking towards him.

"Wait……"

Derrick's attempts to dissuade him were to no avail.

The gray shadow then burrowed into his body.

"Ahhh-"

A deafening scream suddenly echoed from the abyss.

The men guarding Derrick exchanged a glance and quickly ran to the edge of the pit.

All they could see was gray mist rising from the bottom of the pit.

Why is it foggy here?

"Go and report this unusual situation to the High Priest immediately."

"I'm coming right away, you guys keep watch..."

Rumble!

The person who was speaking stopped in their tracks.

His eyes widened, and his hands trembled with fear.

Suddenly, a giant claw emerged from the gray mist.

The screams gradually subsided, and after a while, they turned into the roars of a ferocious beast.

"Ow—"

The spreading sound carried a magical power that instilled a deep-seated fear in people.

"Run! Run!"

The claw rested on the edge of the deep pit.

It didn't climb up directly because it didn't need to.

As its body rapidly expanded, even the Tower of God, considered a sacred site by the Feathered Civilization, was crushed by the monsters emerging from the deep pit.

On the main street outside.

The people who were having a lively conversation looked up after hearing the strange noise.

They all saw it; it was a hideous monster, seemingly born to fight.

It occupied almost half the sky and was still growing.

The disaster came too suddenly.

Chapter 38 The Epic of Monsters (Part 1)

In the desolate starry sky, a massive fleet is slowly advancing.

This is a special operations team from the Feathered Civilization.

Their objective was to bypass the coalition forces via secret routes and launch a surprise attack when the war was at a stalemate.

The vanguard of the Feathered Civilization's main force has made contact with the fleet of the Drenthe Civilization.

Both sides are cautiously launching probing attacks.

Such probing eventually comes to an end.

Once enough gunpowder has accumulated in the powder keg, the explosion will inevitably overturn the already ruined starry sky.

The atmosphere in the fleet never had the fervor of fighting for one's country.

All that remained was silence and repression.

Although the outcome of the war was still uncertain, everyone on the ship understood that even if they repelled the invading outsiders, they would only be pulling themselves from the brink of death to a suspended death sentence.

They might even end up as pets in the breeding farm of the faithless.

"We weren't kept in captivity by these outsiders, but the final result wasn't much better."

The commander, who belonged to the Feathered Civilization, muttered to himself.

He stood alone in the lounge behind the bridge.

The blue glass cast a deep melancholy hue over the starry sky outside.

The guard stood up straight. He heard what they said, but he felt that, given his experience, it was not appropriate for him to comment on the commander's thoughts.

"Everyone dies eventually, but some people die in a way that is utterly meaningless."

The commander gently stroked the smooth glass.

At this moment, he recalled his life at the military academy, where their hypothetical enemy was the faithless.

The commander then recalled what he had learned there.

Given the vast difference in cultural and historical background, is this knowledge truly useful?

Finally, the commander thought of Derrick.

Like him, Derrick was once a rising star at the military academy.

But in the years that followed, the more brilliant Derrick faced numerous hardships as he was inexplicably drawn into political struggles.

On the contrary, he, who was always under Derrick's thumb, has gradually made it to where he is today.

"The title of Major General at least sounds better than Colonel."

He gave a wry smile.

The commander turned to the guard and asked, "By now, has the sacrifice already begun?"

"what?"

The guard was taken aback.

After figuring out the situation, he quickly shouted, "Sir, there are already dried-up carcasses appearing on the front lines."

The term "dried-up shell" is what the Feathered Civilization refers to as the seed of life that grows through the sacrifice of life.

That is, the Green Leaf Monster.

The only thing that is abundant is the body in sight.

A life without a soul.

It eventually dried up.

Once the sacrifices cease, death becomes the final destination of the dried-up body.

The commander nodded.

It looks like Derrick will be on the road soon.

In this way, the title of the best student in that year's class was transferred to him.

But the commander was not happy.

Competition is what drives progress.

He still misses the days when he was pinned down by Derrick.

During that period, he made rapid progress.

I experienced a different kind of scenery in life.

Now that Derrick is gone, he's become that towering tree standing out in the forest, and who knows what his fate will be.

"It's really sad."

A few minutes later, the commander received a message from his subordinates.

"Sir, we are about to enter hyperspace."

The commander replied, "I understand. Everything is proceeding according to the pre-arranged plan."

Finally, he added, "May the God of Origin protect us!"

The people over there also repeated a sentence.

The entire fleet's energy level rapidly increased, preparing to enter hyperspace.

With only about two minutes left on the countdown, the long-range communicator next to the commander suddenly rang.