Do Your Own Revolution

#064

Boom! Thud-!

“Keep your distance! Keep pushing!”

The magic bullets loaded in the shotgun continuously emitted magical power, pushing back the massive beast’s body.

I also launched consecutive Fireballs at Klaus’s face, who was confronting me, to create distance.

“Damn it, what kind of magical power…!”

“Something’s strange, Colonel. These guys are on a completely different level from those Magic Corps bastards.”

“Indeed. Seems like we’ve met some interesting friends after a long time.”

After saying that, Klaus narrowed his eyes while looking at me.

Special Magical Power Unit soldiers emerged one by one from the bushes.

As Klaus carefully observed the bullets loaded in their weapons, his eyes glinted with recognition.

“Magic bullets? Aren’t those the magical power enhancement devices used by the Revolutionary Army?”

As expected, he recognized them immediately.

This meant that at this point in time, Klaus had already made contact with the Revolutionary Army.

The fact that not only intelligence agents but also regular soldiers had contact with the Revolutionary Army…

‘It means Randall is absorbing the Revolutionary Army much faster than in the original story.’

While it couldn’t be called good news, it wasn’t exactly a disaster either.

Rather, this brief conversation allowed me to deduce the Revolutionary Army’s situation, which was fortunate from my perspective.

I wonder what happened to that guy Claude?

Given his usefulness, he wouldn’t have been discarded yet, so has he completely switched over to Randall’s side?

While I was thinking this, Klaus twisted his lips and spoke.

“To think the mighty Imperial Army would use rebel technology, looks like that precious Emperor of yours has really gone off the deep end, hasn’t he?”

A probing comment directed at me, an Imperial soldier.

Looking back at the soldiers, I received his words with a smile.

To recover from the recoil of using magic bullets, we needed to buy some time.

“How interesting. For the Republic’s Bear to be wagging his tongue needlessly, something must not be going according to plan?”

“Your mouth is quite skilled too. You’re a much better friend than any Imperial officer I’ve met so far.”

When did we become friends by your arbitrary decision?

While I was thinking this, the artillery mounted on both of Klaus’s shoulders aimed at me.

A surprise attack without warning.

As expected, talking more than two sentences with Republic bastards was a mistake.

Instead of deploying a barrier, I created magical power chains to break his stance.

Simultaneously, I formed Hellfire beneath his feet.

‘Even with a surprise attack, you can’t finish it in one go. However…’

I could buy some time.

Thinking this, I immediately started firing consecutive Fireballs to suppress the Armored Infantry.

“Huff…! Huff…!”

Meanwhile, Leopold, who had been continuously using magic bullets to push back the beast, gradually stabilized his breathing.

‘Impressive. In terms of magical power resistance alone, he might not lose to even the trio.’

No matter how optimized, the recoil from using magic bullets is hard to ignore.

Each shot should feel like your heart is about to burst from the pressure, yet he’s recovering this quickly.

As expected of the Revolutionary Army’s assault leader.

Glancing at Leopold, I asked him.

“You seem quite skilled at commanding soldiers. What’s your name?”

“Leopold, Kolhead. Private Second Class…!”

No need to mention your rank. You’re all privates anyway.

Thinking this, I said to him.

“Staff Sergeant Leopold Kolhead. As of this moment, you’re the 1st Platoon’s assistant platoon leader. I’ll keep the enemy commander occupied, so coordinate with the platoon members and eliminate that beast.”

“…!”

“Wait, what did you just say?”

“S-Sergeant?”

A promotion from private to sergeant, and appointment as assistant platoon leader.

The surrounding soldiers’ eyes widened at this lightning-fast promotion on the battlefield.

“C-Company Commander? This…”

“I know what you’re going to say. What kind of messed up promotion system is this, right?”

Saying this, I shrugged my shoulders self-deprecatingly.

“What can we do? We need to select non-commissioned officers from among the members, but our first battle broke out before that.”

“…”

“So the only option is to appoint directly on the field and train through actual combat experience.”

Leopold looked at me with an incredulous expression, but I was confident.

After all, the promotion applications for Special Magical Power Unit members are approved directly by Keiren, not the Imperial Army’s personnel department.

As long as it’s below my rank, I can appoint as I please.

“What? Not confident?”

When I provocatively asked while glancing at Leopold, his previously dazed expression changed completely.

“I’ll crush everything – the beast and those Republic steel pigs standing next to it!”

“Good. Excellent answer.”

Seeing Leopold’s enthusiastic expression, I couldn’t help but smile.

Welcome to becoming my direct subordinate, Leopold.

New slaves are always welcome.

I’ll keep you close and train you personally.

“Grooooar-!”

While I was having this brief conversation with Leopold, the beast that had broken through my fire network was charging towards us.

“The beast is coming! Ready to fire!”

“You damn beast, think we’ll let you get us twice?!”

Simultaneously, the beast charged in while the Armored Infantry unleashed their mounted weapons.

In the chaos where beast roars and gunfire mixed, Klaus immediately rushed at me and threw a punch.

“Ugh?!”

Klaus’s fist collided with my double-layered barrier, and a blinding flash filled my vision.

“Amazing, truly amazing! This is a completely different taste from catching those knights! Kuhahaha–!”

One punch nearly blew away my barrier?

No, looking carefully, that wasn’t just a fist.

Hydraulic devices intertwined like muscles, the firing mechanism connected to it, and the huge steel stake attached at the end.

This crazy bastard had equipped a rock drill instead of a machine gun on one arm of his powered armor.

With each impact I blocked, tremendous shock waves rattled my skull.

The special armor plates covering his entire powered armor ignored the occasional Fireballs I shot while pressuring me, and his magically enhanced body effortlessly broke through my magical power chains trying to bind him.

‘This bastard has the worst compatibility with me…!’

My combat style relies on long-range spells with overwhelming firepower and hand-to-hand combat.

But my opponent is a berserker-like human who breaks through my fire network with barriers, powered armor, and body enhancement spells.

“This is driving me crazy!”

What I learned was assassination and close combat, not going toe-to-toe with a 2.5-meter steel giant bare-handed!

To make matters worse, this giant before me is a veteran who has spent over a decade on the frontlines.

Just from the few exchanges we’ve had, he has perfectly grasped my weaknesses.

Klaus detached the mortars on both shoulders and the machine gun on his left arm, charging at me with just the rock drill equipped.

A speed incomparably faster than his previous ponderous movements.

If I showed even the slightest opening, that rock drill on his right hand would turn my body to mush.

“Huff…!”

The red steel giant charging towards me.

The battle situation at a stalemate, and time steadily flowing by.

‘This is the watershed moment that will determine the battle’s outcome.’

With the initial surprise attack having failed, my Special Magical Power Unit held the initiative with their numerical advantage.

But that would only last for a moment.

The recoil from using magic bullets would soon overtake the troops, and soldiers with severely diminished combat power would quickly become food for the beast.

After observing the entire situation, I thought.

Right now, when our firepower is overwhelming the enemy.

Right now is the time to pour out all the power I have.

After steadying my breathing, I activated my magic circuit near my heart at maximum output.

The magic imprint turning red, and six magic bullets firing from the revolver cylinder.

The surging magical power coursed through my entire body, and heightened senses made 1 second feel like 1 minute, 1 minute like 1 hour.

Detection spell activated at maximum output, [Eye of Horus].

Klaus’s attacks that I had barely been dodging until now seemed so slow.

‘Though enhanced by powered armor and weapons, Klaus’s base magical power amount isn’t large.’

In Imperial terms, he’d be a three-stroke mage.

Just slightly above an average knight.

If there’s a limit to his fundamental magical power amount, breaking through that steel giant wouldn’t be too difficult.

The simplest way to kill this steel giant that ignores firepower-focused attacks and charges in?

Overwhelming heat and impact enough to melt the entire powered armor!

As the fifth magic imprint glowed red, I activated the second spell stored in the engraving.

Five spheres appearing along with the magic circle.

The red magical power instantly condensed, continuously drawing in surrounding magical power while increasing heat and pressure.

Six magic bullets, and the magical power flowing from my magic circuit.

Gathering all of that into a single spell.

The spell engraved in the fifth stroke, [Focused Heat Shell]

A heat pressure explosion spell created by modifying it.

[Father of All Flames]

The power of that spell, pushed to the extreme with six magic bullets, became the center of a catastrophe comparable to what a seven-stroke magic imprint would unleash.

As I pulled Heresy’s trigger, all sounds disturbing the forest ceased.

What remained was only deadly silence and a flash of light that dyed the entire space white.

The flash erupting from the condensed magical power spheres temporarily burned away all surrounding air, creating a momentary vacuum in the blast radius.

And what filled that space instead was heat and pressure.

The armor plating made of multiple layers of alloy melted like butter, and the shock wave released in an instant mercilessly tore apart that melted armor.

The drill bit charging towards me vaporized just before reaching my body…

“It’s over.”

…and only after all that process ended did an enormous explosion shake the entire forest.

“Grooooar?!”

“What, what exploded?! What the hell happened?!”

“It’s from the Colonel’s direction! What kind of magic is that?!”

The flames and wind pressure spreading in all directions instantly turned the lush forest into a hell of fire.

The straight-standing trees all collapsed while burning, and grass and soil instantly vaporized and vitrified.

Everything visible was in flames.

And at the center of those flames, the man who had been charging at me slowly crumbled in place.

“Bu-burn… burning…!”

The right arm with the rock drill had already vanished without a trace.

The powered armor covering his upper body had long since melted away, with ribs beginning to show through the boiling flesh.

A corpse-like appearance with half his face blown away by heat and shock wave.

The Republic’s Red Bear had become a red-hot corpse.

“Huff…!”

When I exhaled the remaining magical power, red smoke puffed out of my mouth.

The temporary sense of omnipotence disappeared without a trace, and the recoil from using six magic bullets at once consumed my entire body.

Forcibly gripping my trembling hand, I fed ammunition into Heresy.

The Armored Infantry who couldn’t withstand the shock wave were flailing on the ground, and even the beast was just watching me warily, not daring to charge in.

“Klaus Medvedev.”

I aimed the gun at his head.

Hearing my voice, Klaus slowly raised his head to look at me.

“The Republic’s Red Bear, who would later dominate the Republic’s military and threaten the entire Empire.”

Klaus’s face, with half of it blown away, contorted.

An expression of incomprehension, probably.

I know.

What I’m muttering about is your future from the original game.

The potential you should have originally possessed.

However, your potential will never shine.

You die here, now, by my hand.

As I applied pressure to the trigger, Heresy’s cylinder moved slowly like a gear and…

A small gunshot, incomparable to the previous explosion, echoed through the flame-engulfed forest.

The Republic’s Red Bear, Klaus Medvedev.

He was the first prey caught by me and the Special Magical Power Unit.