59Oof, this was rough, sorry for the ugliness before that. Anyways, here is the thing. MSDeus petitioned a series I once looked down upon for being a mobile game, but once I read the setting and saw the parallels between the Arknight world and Momonga's shitty polluted earth, I got inspired. I think I rushed some parts but anyways, I got something to show you all, so I am serving you zombie pirahnas a big chunk of my overcooked brain meat. I DEMAND REVIEWS! REVIEW, you ZOMBIE HORDES!
It was the seasonal event where the anticipated sequel to YGGDRASIL would be ready for beta-testing.
Lucky and dedicated players were invited online to dive into the sneak peek of the sequel of the legendary MMORPG, the opportunity to experience new class features, updated combat mechanics, new items, all for the chosen ones to use and explore to their heart's content.
Suzuki Satoru was one of the lucky chosen. He dived into the incomplete realm of YGGDRASIL's child, exploring the realm in his avatar form. Surprisingly recognizing Suzuki's identity and history after reading through his player logs, the developers gifted Suzuki Satoru for his dedicated contribution to YGGDRASIL, both for excellent in-game performance and real-world expenditure.
He was gifted the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown, the former guild item transformed into a World Class Item with new features, the red orb that was custom-made for him, one that Momonga could use without cost once per day, his divine-class gear, and the chance to playtest several classes to add to his favored character.
It was a fun experience, experimenting with classes that would ruin his roleplay build and the new combinations and effects, a new Necromancer-related class that further strengthens his builds, new summons, and more, up to the one hundred and twenty-five level limit.
But just when he was about to log out when the playtest ended… he ended up somewhere he should not be.
"…What's this?" Satoru muttered to himself.
He had encountered something he could not understand, which perturbed him.
The first thing that came into view was the bright night sky and twin moons in the sky, along with… snow.
White, pure snow. No, not pure. The area looked bleak, with leafless trees of a forest surrounding him, and a subtle cold was seeping into his bones.
He was stranded in an unknown, bleak tundra in a forest of leafless branches. He called this place bleak because of its gloomy environment, a dreary setting in natural scenery.
He also noticed that the constellations sparkled all around him, and the slow-moving clouds seemed to be trying to cover up their light.
"Did something happen in the server's database?"
The most likely scenario was that a certain and undisputable reason led to a breach in one of the game company's private servers.
He hurriedly opened the communications function that he had shut off until today and then slightly froze in place.
The control console did not show up, and neither did other control options.
"What is happening? What is this?"
As a mix of anxiety and doubt filled him, Satoru tried activating other functions.
None of them responded. It was as though he had been completely cut off from the system.
"…What's going on? This isn't my room," Satoru muttered to himself again.
This was a very abnormal situation.
Satoru looked at his hands, fleshless hands, one of which held the symbol of Ainz Ooal Gown.
He was still holding the staff, meaning he was still in his Avatar form from the beta server. The supreme staff was completely modified into a world item by the developers and personally gave it as a gift to Satoru when they recognized his player name, realizing that one of their top beta testers was the former guild leader of Ainz Ooal Gown. They were fascinated by their guild's staff and decided to make it a world item instead.
Its upgraded version was similar to Ginnungagap, but far more destructive and it is very useful against individual targets. He doesn't have to worry if another player tried to destroy the staff since it was now invulnerable to any kind of attack, especially theft as the developers made the World Items unstealable.
It was true that nothing had changed. There was no doubt that those bony hands belonged to him. However, the sensation was different. Precisely detailing the difference was a little difficult, but there was a strong sense that those were his own hands. While they were the same hands from the game, there was a perfectly natural feeling to them, like he was looking at his own hands from the real world.
However, it was his ability to remain calm despite being in a dire situation like this which concerned him more than anything. As if all extreme emotions like panic and fear were constantly suppressed by an unknown force.
Unconsciously, Satoru recalled the words his friend had once said.
Panic is the seed of defeat, so you must maintain your calm and think logically. Remain calm, look beyond your surroundings, and don't waste your effort on unnecessary details, Momonga-san.
"...Thank you, Punitto." Momonga smiled a little.
First things first, was to conceal himself.
[Perfect Unknowable]
He casted the strongest stealth spell he knew, invisible to all of the five senses from sight to sound to smell. He looked down on himself, seeing the spell hiding him as it functioned.
[Fly]
With the spell, he levitated to the night sky and saw that he was floating in the air, a superior vantage point to overlook his surroundings.
He was still in a position where he could be sniped by enemy Players. There were many forms of spells and skills that could see through Perfect Unknowable… he should add a bit of buffs on his person just in case but that might give away his position.
[Life Essence]
[Mana Essence]
Next step, attempting to see if there was any life in his surroundings as his mind wandered.
There were many questions, one of which was whether he was still in the testing site or not, but for the life of him, he felt as if he was no longer on the server.
He casted [Message].
"No connection," Momonga grumbled upon receiving no response.
None of the other beta-testers were here with him, leaving him as the sole abducted - that or they would not respond on purpose.
Then the next thing he will do is to try looking around the surroundings to gather information.
First, he protected himself with all anti-scrying and anti-information protections
"[Remote Viewing]"
Then he created a floating magical sensor.
It was a strange experience unlike in the game, instead of a simple camera window, Momonga felt like he had another pair of eyes to see through. It was a disturbing, new sensation as he motioned the sensor to float down to the forest below, scouting the area at his behest as he pondered on his situation. He was tempted to scream at the heavens to test the automatic safety feature that detected verbal signs of illegal digital confinement of the consciousness.
Either way, this did not feel like a hidden event, the beta testing team had no reason to do such a thing, and there was no reason for anyone to abduct a company man like him which would lead to a loss to the corporation.
But it was still impossible for what came to his mind… the game turning into reality. He could not log out in any way as well, the exit menu not available to him when called upon.
"...Alright."
Momonga calmed himself by focusing on his current task. His answers would come to him in time, so he should take care of…
"Hm?"
His magical sensor saw movement in the snow-laden forest.
There was a girl running away from a group. The group… for some reason, they reminded him of either Germany or Russia by their design.
The best description Momonga could give in summary was a squad of soldiers garbed in full body kevlar armor, in black and gray winter attire, dressed to fight in a quarantine zone or something judging by their clear visor gas mask apparatus as he could see most of their faces above the mouth behind the glass visor, wearing a hybrid of a winter long coat made of kevlar-like material, wearing heavy gloves and boots, and other minor details he couldn't describe easily.
They were armed with long bayonet spears from the looks of it, the blades at the end of the rifle far larger than what he remembered, something some YGGDRASIL gunman players would go for, though less custom-made and more factory mass-produced, colored in dull gray and black, while some others wielded crossbows.
And they were shooting at a girl with gray hair and… deer horns? One of the soldiers stopped, took aim, and fired at the girl's right shoulder.
The bullet drew blood… which should not be in the game, especially in the beta, a wet splash of crimson staining the dry bark of a nearby tree.
She was the definition of a village girl no matter how much he looked at her.
The girl was dressed poorly, a semi-transparent villager dress with a black apron of sorts overlapping it, torn from the middle down enough to see the opaque pale-white silk while wearing dark-brown shoe-laced boots.
Momonga was befuddled by this sudden encounter.
The men were chasing an unarmed civilian, a defenseless woman, for reasons unknown.
She did not look like a criminal, and the men pursuing her look like they were figures of authority. This could mean two things: the girl was a criminal with a black history he did not know or that the men were abusing their power to kill a girl for unfair reasons.
His options were limited and time seemed to be running out for the woman.
Should he help her or leave her to her fate? Should he try to befriend the authorities… no, wait, he was still a skeleton. He reached up and touched his face… feeling the hard bone and absence of flesh…
What were their opinions on the matter of the undead? Hostility was the usual response to his kind, which he couldn't blame them for, but he needed to know just in case.
They were isolated, not a single other soul was around despite the gunshots… no witnesses.
He could do whatever he wanted to them without impunity. The same way the soldiers could do whatever they want to the girl… he might have to seal off the radio waves, a spell available for that to deal with mechanical constructs and communications.
Perhaps it was time to perform an experiment to see where it goes…
Her trip to gather supplies for Talulah did not go as she expected.
Maybe her friend's suggestion to bring protection was the correct choice after all as regret filled her heart.
The scars her death would leave in Talulah might be too great for her to bear.
The stinging pain of the bullet hitting her right shoulder was the only thing keeping her focus forward.
If she could not return to them back in the village, she could not imagine-
"Agh!"
She cried out in pain when a bullet struck her left leg.
Alina tumbled across the snow, hissing from the burning pain lodged in her ankle.
She turned around to see her attackers, the Infected Patrol approaching her. She didn't think that they would attack her after telling them the village she was heading to, she didn't think that her friends would expel them from that place.
"Nowhere to run."
The patrol captain was the first to stand before her, his boots crunching the fallen branches and snow with each step.
"P-Please... Why are you doing this? There is no reason for violence." Alina pleaded for her life, not just for her own sake.
"What reason do I need to kill someone with dirty blood in them? We got a quota to meet, and the Infected in that village made things difficult for us. Killing you is the only thing that would get me through with whatever punishment command would deliver. Nothing personal."
He gestured with his fingers, two of his subordinates holstering their rifles on their backs as they approached Alina.
Alina couldn't resist when they grabbed her arms and held her to her feet against her will. She could only plead with her eyes as the patrol captain raised his fist, knowing the abuse to come.
However, something intervened, something supernatural.
From the corner of their eyes, a dark void yawned, a mouth of the abyss opening an entrance to a boundless pitch, swirling black.
"Arts!"
"We got a Caster!"
"Must be from the village! Spread out! Find the bastard!"
The soldiers immediately held their bayonet rifles and crossbows at the ready, two aiming at the portal while the rest scanned the perimeter for the Caster out of panic.
Alina hoped that it was one of her friends looking for her, but she did not recall anyone with such bizarre Arts that could summon a black void.
But what came out of the void… emerged something that should belong to the old fables, a terrifying encounter only reserved for those about to meet their end.
If Death had a form, this would be him, the incarnation of death emerging before Alina as her heart nearly stopped at the sight of the imposing skeleton.
In its hand was a majestic staff of gold entwined, a caduceus with seven snakes holding seven gems, a massive black orb hovering above the tip.
Crimson light glowed from the sockets of its skull, and dark robes woven from fabrics that could only exist in the imagination, grand, beautiful, regal, imposing, Death standing tall and wide, giving the impression that his form and presence alone was enough to swallow them whole if it could.
The two Infected Patrolmen stared at the apparition of death.
They were terrified, robbed of their voices at that moment. Their fingers were on the trigger, but they were paralyzed from the sheer terror of gazing upon Death. The ones holding Alina couldn't even drop her for a few seconds before they let her go and took out their crossbows, aiming at Death.
All present trembled before it, all ranged weapons were aimed at him yet none dared to pull the trigger or give the order to attack.
Death stabbed the snow with the sharp end of the golden staff.
"...It appears that I am holding you all at a disadvantage."
Death spoke.
His deep voice baffled them.
"A-A-Ahhhh… y-y-you can… talk?" The captain stammered, the fear hindering his voice.
"Oh, yes. I happen to stumble across you chasing after a lone woman in the middle of the woods like a bunch of savages… You have me curious. You look military, yet I wonder what could drive such men into a deplorable act?"
Alina blinked for a few seconds, seeing a chance. She was about to do something ridiculous by asking help from Death itself. Does she have a choice?
"P-Please! Help me!" She called out. "I need to go back to the village! I-"
"S-S-She's an infected!" The captain interrupted her. "You… Are you… some kind of Caster?"
The captain asked as his nerves calmed the more seconds passed.
"I am a Magic Caster, yes, an unaffiliated one."
"T-Then… you are interfering with the official duty of the Ursus Empire!" The captain declared.
"And what are your duties?" Death asked.
"What… What do you…" The captain wasn't sure how to respond to that question.
"Is ganging up on a defenseless girl and… what I assume is inflicting violence upon her an activity of a model officers do?"
The patrol captain couldn't respond to that.
That would mean that Death was watching them somewhere.
"I see… girl. Are you a criminal by any chance?" Death asked.
Alina's response was delayed, surprised to hear Death speaking to her, "Ah! N-no! I-I was trading for supplies for my friends in the village! Then…"
"Is that true?" Death asked the patrol captain for confirmation.
The captain stuttered confused and concerned by the direction of this conversation.
"...Are you… going to interfere with our orders?" The captain asked in desperation.
"...I believe so… I suggest you lay down your arms and surrender."
"...Fuck you, skeleton! Kill this asshole!"
Alina held her breath as they pulled the triggers.
The cacophony of projectiles raged, breaking the tranquil silence of the forest. The men didn't stop firing at the thing, unloading all of the ammunition and crossbow bolts into the apparition of Death.
Alina gasped when an arrow struck Death's left eye socket, lodged in its skull.
However, other than that, there was no sign of damage, arrows and bullets bounced off his form; not even his attire was damaged, not a scratch couldn't be found.
The captain grimaced, swearing that he made sure to shoot the thing in the skull. The Infected Patrolmen were trembling, never before encountering something that could stand against their weapons with such nonchalance.
Death calmly reached for the arrow in its eye and plucked it out. He dropped it on the snow.
"So you chose death. Very well."
[Grasp Heart]
Death reached out and clenched its bony hand, the wet sound of flesh crushed resounding in response.
The Patrol Captain clutched his chest with a cry of pain, dropping his crossbow then fell over on the snow.
"Hmmmm. As I suspected, Grasp Heart might be overkill. Alright, let's test out the lesser spells, my wonderful guinea pigs."
He aimed his skeletal palm at the closest infantrymen while the others were in a stupor at the sight of their captain's fallen state.
[Fireball]
Their stupor ended when Death used its arts, casting a sphere of fire at a group of four. Alina watched the flames explode and consume them. Nothing was left behind, the only proof of their existence being the soot topping the charred soil, flames powerful enough to vaporize the snow and scorch the soil in its blast radius.
Seeing their fellow patrolmen burned to ashes in an instant. The remaining patrolmen panicked, they dropped their weapons and turned around, running through the snow as their pathetic cries rang in the forest.
As Death unleashed its arts upon them like a hunter casually preying upon a pack of crippled rabbits, a beam of lightning piercing through one, another melted by a bolt of green liquid, the next electrocuted by lightning.
Alina could describe the scene as nothing more than an elemental massacre.
It did not take long for the Infected Patrol to end up as corpses joining the snow in various states of ruin.
"Hmm, interesting. Seems my spell efficiency is optimized."
Death muttered to himself before he turned to her.
Alina held in her breath as it approached her.
"...Are you alright?"
Alina didn't expect Death to ask about her well-being face to face. Or face to skull.
"I…" Alina inhaled, taking a deep breath. "I am… not alright."
She said when the pain of her shoulder and ankle reminded her that she needed medical attention.
"Yes… unfortunately, it seems that I do not possess the items that can help you." Death said as he knelt down so that he could look at her at eye level.
"I can see that you have a lot of questions for me. And I you. But for now, you need assistance."
Alina stared at Death's crimson light in its eye sockets. She wondered what that was. For now she needed to return to the village. And Talulah will be worried for her if she doesn't return back in time.
"...Yes… but… may I ask away despite my condition?" Alina asked.
"Of course."
"Are you Death? Are you… here to take me away?" She asked, wondering if her question may be too personal.
Death remained silent.
Did she say something wrong? Could it be Death got offended by her question. If so, she would apologize immediately. Lucky for her Death's wasn't slightly offended by her question and response her in kind
"...Ahahahahahaha." Death chuckled. "Well, I suppose you would mistake me for the Grim Reaper with this appearance of mine. If I am Death, well… Do you want me to save you?"
Alina… smiled. Past that terrifying visage was a kind soul with a heartwarming sense of humor. She nodded at his question and carefully stood up from the snowy ground.
"Then… may I have your name, Mr. Skeleton?"
Alina tightly clutched the basket in her hand. She needed to pick up the food she left behind…
"Call me… Hmmm. Momonga." The skeleton answered. "Just Momonga for now."
"You even defeated the reinforcements? I shouldn't have expected less from you, Talulah!" An infected fighter cheered.
They ambushed a Patrol squad into the village.
The Reunion's situation was one of attrition. They hid away from the Infected Patrol in the villages on the outskirts to avoid conflict as much as possible. Although their situation was grim, provisions dwindled as their numbers increased, and the risk of discovery grew every day.
Talulah asked, "What about all the other Infected?"
"They all made it in one piece. The backup safehouse we found really came in great use."
Talulah continued, "Have you done a headcount yet?"
"I did. Some kids were crying about how one of the older girls hadn't returned yet… It's sad, but this happens fairly often these days," The infected fighter sighed.
Talulah widened her eyes as she remembered.
'Alina.'
She was out in the cold, vulnerable, with hostiles escaping in her direction.
She was about to rush out but stopped when a Shieldguard approached her.
"Talulah! We found Alina heading our way from the East!"
Talulah sighed with relief, all the stress and anxiety leaving her in a single breath.
"Take me to her."
"...And, forgive me, but she is returning with company."
Talulah tensed. Who could it be? She wondered if this company was the one that Talulah had spared from deserting Reunion and got exiled to the east of their direction. So, there was a possibility they were.
"...How many?"
"One. And he's… big."
"Big?"
"Come see for yourself."
Talulah didn't ask further. She followed the Shieldguard towards the East.
There was a crowd gathering around the eastern exit of the village.
"You're just in time. Alina found an interesting friend," Frostnova called out, also among the crowd.
"Where's Alina?"
Frostnova pointed at the paved village road in the snow-laden fields under the bleak-tinted starlight.
Talulah couldn't believe her eyes.
"Talulah!"
Alina was waving at her.
While sitting atop the shoulder of a large, wide man. She didn't think she would meet someone that could compare with Patriot's height in a sense.
His attire was foreign, illustrious robes woven from the night and tinted with gold, adorned by two spaulders, each holding a crimson orb. Is he a noble, perhaps?
His staff was… Talulah wasn't sure if that thing was made of pure gold; it looked valuable beyond imagination.
And… wait a minute.
His face… Why was his face a skull?
Overall, the man, if he was a man, looked like a majestic incarnation of Death from the old fables.
"Holy… is that a skeleton?"
"More like the Grim Reaper, I mean…"
"Damn. He looks scary… and look at that staff, that a Casting instrument?"
"Never saw one that fancy and artistic before."
"A Caster? Sarkaz, maybe?"
"Like Patriot?"
"Probably Lich…"
Talulah could only assume that Alina's mysterious company was a Sarkaz Caster, but it was unlikely he was.
Maybe she could ask Patriot on which of the tribes this one might belong to.
Talulah composed herself. She shuffled through the crowd with a stoic mask.
"Alina. What happened… you're injured!" Her stoic mask fell when she saw the bloodied bandages wrapped around her shoulder and ankle.
"Yes. Fortunately, we stumbled upon a medical kit from an officer. She still requires medical attention, miss…"
The personification of Death courtly inquired.
"Talulah. And… I am afraid that I'm without proper words. Please identify yourself and the reason you're here."
"Savage officers beset your companion. She would've been slaughtered were I not happened to pass by. For now, I believe it is best to continue this in private, preferably in the medical office where your friend can be treated."
Talulah had no objections against that notion, "Very well. Please come this way, Mr….?"
"Momonga."
That name sounds Higashinese. Could it be that the skeleton came from Higashi? If he were, the travel distance from Higashi in the far east of Terra to the Northern Tundra of Ursus would be a long journey.
Anyway, she needs to know who he was exactly if he was friend or foe to the Infected and its cause.
"Mr. Momonga, sir. Please follow me."
The skeleton nodded with surprising compliance despite his presence. He reminded Talulah of Patriot, imposing, strong in a different sense… but with as much danger as the terror his visage inspired.
Frostnova made eye contact with Talulah as they crossed each other. She nodded as she followed behind Momonga, the eyes of the Reunion members locked onto them, parting paths for their leader and their 'guest'.
They made their way towards one of the empty wooden houses, the one with the medical staff on standby.
They were surprised to see the personification of Death accompanying their leader when they entered the house, through the door, Alina waving at them with an almost-cheeky smile.
Alina was placed on the bed, the lantern flame hung on a wall hook, the only light in the darkness.
"Leave us." Talulah ordered the medical staff, the infected demihumans looking concerned as they glanced at the skeleton in the room.
They left after Talulah glared at them with her commanding gaze, closing the door behind them.
"Now… let's get to the point. What are you and what do you want with us?" Talulah asked, almost demanding answers from the unknown entity.
"To the point, I see. I will be brief. My name is Momonga. I was considering meeting you in a disguise, but your friend insisted that you will be welcoming to my true appearance." Momonga gestured to Alina on the bed.
"...Haaaaah…" Talulah exhaled, breaking away from her commander persona.
Frostnova started to giggle when Alina waved at her.
"...I assume that Alina informed you about us?" Talulah frowned.
"I am not from around here. So I am new to this movement of yours. You don't look like you're infected by something contagious, to be honest." Momonga admitted.
"It is something we all have to endure… Where are you from, Momonga?"
"You are taking my appearance better than I expected." Momonga chuckled.
"I assume that normal people wouldn't accept whatever you are… are you even alive?" Talulah asked.
"...You have me curious. You look like this, yet you speak like you're one of us. Is that appearance of yours a costume?" Frostnova added, pointing at his skull.
"You may think of it like that if you wish, but it will not come off no matter how hard you pull." Momonga hummed.
Talulah could tell that the snow rabbit girl was considering trying it.
"And to answer your question, I am… an undead. I am not alive, in the popular sense. However, I am open to reason."
"Undead?" Talulah pondered.
She never heard or met an undead race in Terra before based on her knowledge. She was definitely going to ask Patriot about his kind if the undead were part of the Sarkaz race. Regardless of what he was, she felt grateful for saving her best friend.
"Whatever you are, I thank you for that. And… I thank you for saving Alina."
She thanked the undead for saving her dear friend and confidant. Dreaded of losing her would be quite devastating to Talulah. She thought of taking vengeance on her attackers personally, seeing the sight of Alina getting injured. But shaked that thought.
"No need. I am also here to bargain for something that is useful to me, but trivial to you."
Talulah quirked an eyebrow.
So, he wanted to bargain with them after saving Alina... Taking advantage of their good grace for saving their fellow Infected. She was thinking of unsheathing her longsword at him, but decided not to as she was in the presence of Alina. They do not have much, so she decided to hear his bargain first. Hope it's not something outrageous.
"Such as?" She asked cautiously.
"Information. I would like to know where I am, what governs these lands, and the people here."
"...You don't know where you are?" Talulah asked, surprised by his request.
"Yes. To answer your previous question, I… am afraid the world I am from no longer exists."
Talulah, alongside her companions in the room, went completely silent after hearing what he said to them.
No longer exists? Did something happen? Does that mean Mr. Momonga's country was destroyed?
She read a history book about the fall of the Gaulish Empire, commonly known as Gaul. The once great empire was no more and its utter defeat led to its dissolvement through scrambles over its territory and properties by the victors from Ursus, Victoria and Leithanien.
Ursus greatly benefited from Gaulish technologies that revolutionized their industries, and these allowed them to become the next expansionist powers for the coming decades.
After the moment of silence, the girls in the room softened their expressions.
"I see... I understand… Then… I assume that you are here somehow due to that?" Talulah asked.
"In a sense, yes. I am not sure if I should be thankful for that… but let's not dwell too much into the past. Will you assist me in this small endeavor?"
As Talulah was about to explain where he was, a slight headache paused her a second, but the pain was gone instantly without her realizing it. What was that strange feeling she felt just now? She decided to ignore it and begin explaining the country and its history to Momonga.
Their village looked medieval despite the evidence of advanced technology, especially the firearms and modern bulletproof armor of the soldiers he massacred.
Wooden houses built from chopped logs, capped with triangular rooftops, a small farm plowed in the cold, hard soil. It looked bleak under the starry night for some reason, and it was populated by demihumans. He swore that he did not see a single person that was without an animal feature, everyone there was with bear ears, bunny ears, horns, the likes.
Momonga would've arrived masked and covered, but the deer girl's insistence that it wasn't necessary convinced him otherwise. Actually, he made sure that she was telling the truth with a Charm spell just in case, which worked wonders.
The road to the village was tranquil as Alina explained her story.
She was with a movement called the Reunion, a recent organization made to defend the rights of the Infected, a derogatory term meant for those that contracted a terminal illness known as Oripathy.
To explain Oripathy, Alina showed it to him.
A part of her skin was crystallizing into a dark, black-purple mineral, and it was spreading like an infection.
In this world known as Terra, a prominent mineral called Originium was omnipresent around the world, a special mineral with almost limitless potential, used as a superior energy source to power great machines that could even lift and transport cities across the barren lands, which surprised Momonga that he was standing on one, a mobile city that was carrying even the village out in the snow through the skies.
The one that introduced herself as the leader, Talulah, looked like a decorated noble military officer.
A longsword with a red pommel and black crossguard in a black sheath was on her hip. Her black military uniform was a bit on the lighter side in this cold, though, long loose black sleeves up to her wrists, a triangular cape hanging from her right shoulder, black on the outside and red on the other side. Her uniform even had a skirt of sorts, showing most of her legs.
A knife socket was strapped to her left lap, two belts parallel and tied around her pale skin. Her left knee was strapped by a black kevlar and polymer he could not describe.
Her shoes reached up to her shin and she wore black socks.
She was a Draco as well, a demihuman species with dragon-like features. She had a long dragon tail behind her and small black horns, four horns, a longer horn accompanied by a smaller horn on each side of her head.
The other companion was a snow rabbit, white rabbit ears and ice-blue eyes. Her attire was more rugged, wearing jackets with zippers on her sleeves, torn jagged around the edges, standing on white thigh high leather boots, with a gray tunic underneath.
Her snow-white hair reached down her neck, combed, her eyes almost covered by her forelocks.
He hummed as he digested the information.
The world he was in was known as Terra.
Since the age of crystallization, all of the cities were built on mobile platforms known as Nomadic cities the size of battleships to transport the city due to the dangers of Catastrophe - cities on wheels so to speak.
High concentrations of Originium were known to produce artificial disasters known as Catastrophes, ranging from sudden lightning storms raining the wrath of the thunder gods on one area while showering meteoric fires in another, which amazed Momonga. The world he was in was polluted to the point of beyond saving, a dying world. To think that he would end up in a similar world from his previous world, though this world was faring much better. There was still clean water and nature, and no one needed gas masks twenty four seven.
What was interesting was how the mineral was used as a power source for their magics known as 'Arts,' schools of Originium energy manipulation that manifests into certain phenomena as if casting spells.
However, to safely use these Arts, they must use tools.
The infected people, on the other hand, could use Arts by using the Originium in their bloodstream, their bodies as a living conduit… though not without severe side effects.
There were some detestable people that would use the Infected as living tools for their arts, which was flabbergasting.
As for the country they were in…
Historically called the Empire of Hippogryph , Ursus was the largest country situated in the north, that borders Kazimierz, Victoria, Leithanien, Sami, Higashi, and Yan, famous for its military might and the physical prowess of its predominant Ursine inhabitants, an imperial monarchy that was not without political struggles between loyalist aristocrats and the old guard, whatever they were.
The empire was born after a violent revolution that dissolved the Hippogryph dynasty, followed by an attempted expansionism that ended in failure during the war with Higashi and a civil war with the military, ending up as a boiling pot of political rivalries and civil unrest.
Ursus was also the cruelest country for any infected to live in, abused, hunted, gathered for slave labor in the mines, only to be executed after the Originium mines dried…
It reminded him so much of his parents and the mines that worked them to death, the memory of his mother dying in front of him while making a sandwich resurfacing.
And that was the short story of how Reunion was formed, a conglomeration of those that were tired of the oppression.
"...I see…" Momonga tapped his jaw.
There was much more to learn about this world, but he should stop for now. There was a thing known as 'too much information,' after all.
"And what of your current situation?" Momonga asked.
Talulah and Frostnova exchanged glances. There was hesitation in their face which was quite understandable. If some rival company found out about their company's circumstances, they may use it as blackmail against them or worse, exposing it to the public to destroy their rival's image and reputations.
"...I assume that you are all fighting in a war of attrition, perhaps?" Momonga summarized using his PKK experience with his guild members as a reference.
The location wasn't ideal as a defense point, and the environment wasn't ideal for food production.
"Unfortunately, yes." Talulah admitted to her movement's predicament.
"How bad is it?" Momonga inquired about their situation.
The Draco girl did not answer.
He understood that she doesn't want to reveal their situations to a strange outsider that they just met..
"...We are facing food shortages, and the number of villages willing to trade with us are being investigated by the Patrolmen." Alina answered.
"Alina!" Talulah spoke out while the snow rabbit's face had the look of disapproval.
They can't believe that her own friend just revealed their food problem to an outsider.
"I believe in Mr. Momonga. He is not a bad person… skeleton."
Momonga chuckled, "I see. And judging from the numbers of your members, I assume that soon your organizations will have too many mouths to feed in the long run?"
"...You are correct." Talulah sighed. "At this rate, we might have to relocate entirely and move from the tundra. But…"
"You are in hostile territory. You said that you trade food with the other villages, correct?"
"Yes."
"Hmmmm…"
Momonga pondered his options.
The girls here were the most receptive of his true form since he arrived. He knew from the reactions of the soldiers that he would not be welcomed in Ursus if his undead nature was revealed.
And the average citizens there were xenophobic.
These people… they were good people. He could tell from talking with them. If he didn't encounter them, he would've gone out in the unknown and explored the world… but would he do so by leaving these people?
His mind wandered to his friends… how he started out in YGGDRASIL when he recalled the first time he was desperate, oppressed by the human players until…
"Touch Me…" Momonga muttered his friend's name.
"Excuse me?" Frostnova asked.
"Ah, I apologize."
If he could blush, he would be red as an apple if he had skin.
"I was reminiscing about the past… Your situation reminded me of how I first began my journey as an undead magic caster." Momonga explained.
"Really?" Talulah sounded surprised at his words.
"Indeed. I was tormented repeatedly in my beginnings as well. For a while, I was brought low every day until someone who wanted to become a hero of justice arrived." Momonga chuckled.
"He sounds like a good man." Alina smiled.
"He is. In a way, he is my role model and one of my best friends."
"...Was he also a skeleton?" Frostnova asked.
"Oh, no, he was a living being. But he is also something that would be persecuted by your country if given the chance," Momonga admitted with a chuckle.
"What? No way. You're lying." The snow bunny girl jabbed Momonga's side playfully.
"I do not need to lie. Our journey was long, filled with strife and joy. This staff you see is proof of our years together, me and the guild we made back in my world." Momonga gestured to the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown. "The story behind this staff is rich with victories and defeats. From that day since I was saved, we gathered allies and built something great together no matter our biological differences, an organization that was both respected and feared by all."
"...So you are like us, then?" Talulah asked as she's not sure with her words if they were alike.
"Yes, in a way, I am like you." Momonga nodded. "From our conversation, I can tell that you are all good people wanting the best for those outside this house. People that… dare I say, even I can trust in these hostile, frigid lands."
Alina perked from the bed.
"...I have a few questions regarding your food problems." Momonga changed the topic. "If you desperately need food supplies, did you attempt to find a viable supplier that is willing to sustain your movement?"
The three girls were surprised by this logistic question.
"Are you…" Alina held her breath with high hopes.
"Hmmm. This might be sudden and unexpected, even for me. But consider this skeleton with nowhere to go as a part of the Reunion from now on. Although I am unsure whether or not I can contract this 'Oripathy,' yet, I am confident in my 'immunities' against all things biologically inconvenient."
Talulah and Frostnova were shocked to see that they acquired a wild card.
Talulah recomposed herself after he declared himself a new member of the Reunion.
"I… graciously accept your initiation, Momonga… and to answer your question, unfortunately, there aren't any willing to support us in Ursus."
"What about outside of Ursus? Foreign countries willing to support your cause? Do you know anyone that might help your people in the current situation?"
Talulah paused for a moment. Her face had a hint of hesitation like she doesn't want to mention it..
"...There is one place…" Talulah's twisted in a grimace. "But I am not sure if he is willing to help."
"Even if we mobilize everyone from here to his location?"
Talulah and Frostnova looked at each, baffled.
"Mobilize? What do you mean 'mobilize'?" Talulah asked.
"We are sitting in a disadvantageous location. From what I gather, it is best to sustain a small group of skirmishers, but your organization is growing to a point where it must move to 'greener pastures' as a friend of mine likes to say."
Mainly Blue Planet. He was always particularly excited whenever the topic about nature was brought to his attention. Good times, he wondered how he was doing after YGGDRASIL ended.
"But…"
"It will only be a matter of time until Ursus closes in on this village. It is better to prepare to move than to prepare to survive another day."
It was the worst position to be in as a defender. Excellent geographical advantage, but with worsening sustain.
"...He is right. We will continue to lose territory at this rate," Frostnova admitted.
"But there are still Infected that need our help. We cannot abandon those that are still working in those dreadful mines!" Alina protested.
"Then we will mobilize most of our forces while leaving the rest. I suggest those that are most adept in fighting in this terrain remain."
"That would be me, dad, the Shield Guards, and the Snow Yetis." Frostnova raised her hand.
"...But the journey will be long. We cannot force our people to march such a long distance."
"So, you have a destination in mind?" Momonga asked the leader.
"...Lungmen. I know a few people in Lungmen that can help us. No, they will help us… But… they are too involved in politics." Talulah informed.
Despite saying that, Talulah was doubting her own words after she mentioned Lungmen as a suitable location.
"I didn't know you had connections in Lungmen." Frostnova was surprised.
"...I didn't want to go to him." Talulah admitted.
"But the distance is too great. And the empire will see us if we move so many to Lungmen." Alina added.
"We smuggle them in small groups then." Momonga suggested. "Instead of moving by foot, what about… are any of you good pilots by any chance?"
"...Wait, you're thinking of raiding military vehicles?" Frostnova dropped her jaws.
Never before did Reunion attempt such a daring act of national terrorism.
"Can we fly past their detection range? Or would something with wheels work?" Momonga suggested.
"...It shouldn't be that hard." Frostnova muttered. "We should be able to commandeer those vehicles with enough preparations."
"Wouldn't the Empire notice and send their best troops in retaliation?" Momonga asked.
"I forgot to mention this." Talulah spoke. "Communications between mobile cities are done by couriers. The Originium dust in the atmosphere disrupts all long-range communications."
"What?" If Momonga had eyes, he would blink thrice.
"Then… what the… I am surprised that this nation is still running. My word, everything is so inefficient that it is criminal." Momonga's mind sparked with new possibilities that he could exploit.
"Yes, it is. Back to the subject, we still lack the forces needed to commandeer an aircraft. And I don't know how many of us know how to pilot an airship." Talulah added.
"Leave that problem to me. I believe I can make up for the manpower alone."
Unlike in YGGDRASIL, this character was in beta, with new classes and updated abilities… and with balance-breaking loopholes waiting to be discovered.
"...I'll trust you with that. We'll have to gather supplies for the operation…" Talulah grimaced. "We might have to force the villages to…"
"No!" Alina shook her head. "We can't do that! If we force the villagers to surrender what little they have left, then-"
"How about we trade for the surplus of supplies instead of coercion?" Momonga suggested.
The girls turned to their newest member.
"...Trade? Wait, what do you have to trade with? Don't tell me you're thinking of selling your clothes or stuff." Frostnova pointed at Momonga's priceless gear.
As if he would sell them for anything.
Grinning in his head, Momonga reached out.
Before the beta test ended, the developers left the testers a generous starter pack which they could cash in at the start of the official release of the sequel.
Unfortunately, the starter packs were customized, meaning Momonga did not have something like a Cauldron of Daghdha. It would have solved Reunion's food problem.
But, along with some tester exclusive and premium perks and items, the developers did let him keep the gold he accumulated from his past. All of the gold of Nazarick in fact was in his inventory.
He pulled out a handful of gold coins, the eyes of the girls almost popped out of their sockets at the sight of so much glittering gold clattering on the floor, the precious metals practically gleaming.
"...Am I… looking at your world's currency?" Alina pointed at the cluster of gold coins in his skeletal hand.
"Yes."
"Is that gold?" Frostnova asked in a hurry.
"Yes."
"Pure gold?" Frosnova asked again.
For some reason, the snow rabbit was looking at the gold with an intense stare and wanted to verify if the gold he showed to them was actually real or not. He wondered about her intention.
"Oh yes, indeed. We can melt them into something the villagers cannot ignore."
"How much do you have? Wait, how did you even pull it out?!" Frostnova sounded a bit frantic, almost entranced by the sudden appearance of wealth.
"Oh, much more than enough. I hope we can get along, Talulah." Momonga outstretched a bony hand to Talulah as the snow rabbit dove down and scrounged the coins in her hand, eyeing the gold with such scrutinizing intensity.
Draco hesitated for a moment. She was doing something beyond her original plan for Reunion. She didn't think far ahead beside sheltering persecuted Ursine Infected in the Northern Tundra, but looking at their dire predicament, the Ursus' army will be upon them soon if she still continues to grow the movement even further.
Does she have a choice? She was running out of resources yet with an increasing amount of mouths to feed. Not to mention, there were even some members deserting and abandoning the movement when the organization was getting too big to handle.
"...I can only pray that I am not shaking hands with the Devil." Talulah sighed as she reached out and grabbed the boney hand.
"Oh, so the concept of the Devil exists here. I assure you, I have nothing to gain from swindling nor do I have a soul-binding contract," Momonga chuckled with mild amusement.
Large rime-filled storms swept across the northern tundra.
A white, freezing maelstrom consumed most of the regions of the North in the wake of a Catastrophe, gelid winds traveling swathing miles of the snow-covered lands, blowing flakes of white so numerous that it blotted the mining outposts stationed in the North in freezing cold and blinding snow obscuring almost all in a pale color.
The mines were the equivalent of a death sentence for all Infected caught by the patrols of the Empire.
Thick metal alloy walls and towers built on a skeletal frame of intersecting metal bars, square in width and length, the walls of height filled with criss-cross metal rods holding up platforms and a spiral staircase around the perimeter, snow decorating the roofs of the towers, the cordon protecting the military outpost built around the cave structure and the resources inside.
Down the road leading to the outpost, a convoy of trucks guarded by black-colored LAVs could be seen from the metal entrance, newly captured Infected slaves held in open freights.
They did not choose the freight with a ceiling and walls to cut costs, and entertain the sadistic whims of the Overseers by letting them freeze during the transportation, even though the snowstorm was fierce enough to murder the sturdiest with hypothermia.
Some of them were already dead, skin blue and ice growing from their pores and whatever moisture that managed to escape from the huddled bodies frozen in their seats, frozen eyes lifelessly staring forward..
The convoy was hailed by a guard.
Soon, the drivers and the military passengers left their vehicles first to stretch their stiffened muscles.
"Good haul today?"
"Yeah, but not sure how many are still alive. Freak Catastrophe snowstorm was wild."
The driver and guard chatted while the rest of the patrolmen unloaded the cargo, the prisoners.
They shuffled and moved like the undead, living zombies that seemed to have lost their will to live to the cold winds, or that the cold winds froze it still like ice.
The heavily-dressed soldiers with breathing apparatuses and ushanka hats corralled them like sheep with the attitudes of abusive shepherds, telling them to move while shoving them with the back of their rifles and crossbows.
They did not bother with the frozen deceased, the cleanup will happen later.
"Shame, we could really use those workers, you know? The bosses are having too much fun with their death lotteries. We're starting to miss our quotas for the front lines."
"That bad?"
"Command from the radio tower is demanding results."
"The Duke?"
"No, logistics."
"Ugh."
Despite long range communications being near-impossible due to the miracle mineral disrupting the radio waves, they could still use radio to contact others within the area of a mobile platform.
"Shit, nothing I can do about it. The Third Army Deputy Marshal is still coming over to 'play' right on schedule."
"The Grand Duke? In this weather?"
"Probably to relieve stress from overwork, I heard the Emperor is breathing down on his neck, and the Catastrophe can cover his tracks."
He pointed behind him with his thumb.
The Deputy Marshal of the Third Army, Grand Duke Vaikal, emerged from one of the LAVs.
Imperial Strikers, the backbone of the Ursus army, powerful shock troops armed with a speargun escorted the Grand Duke, the Ursine noble arrived in heavy winter fur trench coat as his ushanka hat fluttered under the biting cold winds.
Normally, the Grand Duke would've arrived by VTOL, but the Catastrophe made flight infinitely difficult.
The Grand Duke led the Third Army, the army responsible for patrolling and gathering the Infected to throw into the mines, unwilling workers picking at the Originium-rich cave walls with the death looming over their heads, ready to take them at the whims of their cruel masters.
The mine he was visiting was Klad, one of the largest Originium mines in the Northwestern frontier, one of the most valuable assets of Ursus and the cruelest hell for the Infected forced to work in those mines, the living conditions there being the worst of all.
The life expectancy of this ore vein was estimated to survive for at least a hundred years.
Vaikal was infamous for participating in the mining overseer's 'games', playing with the lives of the infected for the entertainment and thrill of toying with the lives of others.
That was the information Momonga learned when he saw the important-looking bear-eared man entering the front gates of the very large military base.
"Hmm. He's a persistent man for going through this hellish weather just to watch simple miners die," Momonga commented.
From a considerable distance in the skies overlooking the military base, shrouded in invisibility, Momonga levitated in the air with company, while looking at below with the help of the spell, [Distant Vision].
The spell summoned a wide, oval screen that zooms into the distance, allowing the caster to adjust the screen size and zoom, letting him see the Ursine noble.
He was shrouded with [Complete Invisibility], already camouflaged with the obscuring snow winds, perfectly unseen.
During the weeks after Momonga introduced himself as the newest member of Reunion, he parlayed with the Infected to raid a military outpost.
The common and elite members of the Reunion did not trust him, a walking talking skeleton that looked like the Grim Reaper as one Infected put it, one that was trying to convince them to potentially go to war with Ursus which would be seen as nonsense..
So he decided to demonstrate his abilities and talents to the group to assure confidence, with a few speeches to motivate them.
He glanced at his left, seeing one of those that decided to accompany him on the most daring mission of Reunion's short history.
Despite also being invisible, Momonga could see her fidgeting, her head darting left and right, tilting and floating left and right. Her feet were scrambling, the 'stoic' leader reflexively trying to find purchase in the air.
He glanced at his right, seeing Frostnova flailing her arms wildly as if trying to keep herself afloat. She nearly yelped when she flipped over in the air, flailing harder in her panic to stay afloat.
"I take it you girls don't fly that often?"
Talulah and Frostnova flinched at the question.
"...You can see us?" Frostnova asked in a small whisper.
"Oh yes. The others can't, however."
The group Momonga brought was invisible through [Mass Invisibility], the Yeti Squadron and the Shieldguards were brought with him in this endeavor.
The Yeti Squadron was the group in white winter jackets and hoods, the infected that had followed Frostnova since their rescue.
The Shieldguards were the elite soldiers of Patriot, guerilla shock troops adorned in advanced, heavy armor decorated in advanced polymer-metal alloys in the form of spaulders, arm guards, and leg guards. They all wore dark-green helmets, a thin window visor the windows of their gaze.
Leading these veteran soldiers was Patriot, the strongest fighter of Reunion.
Momonga could only describe him as a mechanical tribal Wendigo and a Death Knight in one, wearing a helmet fashioned in the shape of a deer skull… no, he forgot that the deer-like horns were natural, the helmet was in the shape of a snout. What the helmet didn't cover, his dark-gray scarf shrouded what's left of his face in mystery. His choice of weapons were a long double-bladed spear-halberd and a shield, not like a medieval shield, a mechanical riot shield of joints and parts, with a faded symbol of a double-headed griffin on the top center of the black shield. His armor was mechanical, indicated by a ventilation fan in the center of the chestplate, which reminded Momonga of the soldiers he saw on the news wearing the latest state of the art technology.
He was eerily composed despite experiencing flight, and Momonga sometimes could feel as if Patriot was dissecting him with a scrutinizing, piercing gaze. This one was the kind that watches from the shadows, especially since he first arrived at the village.
Talulah still couldn't believe that Momonga managed to sway the Reunion into partaking in this daring mission. Even though him showcasing his abilities as a Necromancer to the group did inspire confidence… It was still bold. Which was why all of the leaders and their most elite forces were here, for the future of the Reunion.
Grand Duke Vaikal was a dangerous man, the leader of the army that deploys the Infected Patrols to the northern tundra. The Reunion kept tabs on Vaikal's movements after they encountered him by accident when they were scouting the labor camps in the more fortified areas, encountering Vaikal visiting Klad by accident. Frostnova said she would've raided the military outpost if it weren't so heavily fortified and freed all of the slaves inside.
Not only that, once they touch Vaikal, they would be in Ursus' crosshairs… but only if they were caught. The Catastrophe storm nearby had isolated Klad. It was the perfect moment to strike at a head and have Reunion move forward.
"We should go over the plan." Talulah suggested to deflect the fact that she was embarrassed.
"Hahaha. Alright. Everyone! Despite that I am new, lost in a land not my own, I am thankful of the welcome I received when I first arrived at your village." Momonga began his speech.
This was his first military operation.
Honestly, Momonga was a little nervous as the target reminded him of the corporate PMCs in his world… This speech was mostly to motivate himself.
"Despite knowing my true nature, you welcomed me with open arms! And despite the suspicion, you have heeded my advice and gave me more trust than I deserve. What we are about to do today, we will truly antagonize the Empire… but I doubt any of you care. If given the chance, I am sure you would all march into the Capital and burn the Imperial Palace of this Emperor to the ground if you would. And for the common fighters, I would say this for you all: FUCK URSUS! For the atrocities and evils they performed upon their own citizens, for failing its people, for treating you all as slaves for their war machines! Today, we will be a sword of divine judgment and take back the years they have stolen from you! In lives, in loot… and for justice!"
The Yeti Squadron and Shieldguards were… immensely motivated.
Talulah, Frostnova, and Patriot were still surprised by this skeleton's eloquence and capacity for persuasion.
"Once I begin my part, we move! For justice!"
[For justice!]
The Yeti Squadron and Shieldguards raised their fists.
"For the Reunion!" Deciding to join, Talulah drew her blade and raised it.
[For the Reunion!]
The blinding snowstorm sat at the side of the road and in front of the military outpost of Klad.
The Ursine soldiers on the lookout towers could only see shifting pale white, a blizzard teasing the soldiers that it would cross over to welcome them in its cold embrace. The Originium dust in the mines had never attracted a Catastrophe this close to their base before. It was only a matter of time until this mine was a danger zone, but the resources inside were more than enough reason to hold firm.
There was not much for conversation between the guards on such a quiet day, the only topics of discussion being the betting rings on who would die in the black lottery or how long a particular Infected would survive, and the mood was dulled by the Catastrophe snowstorm.
At least they still had the warmth of the office in the lookout towers, hot coffee poured from the coffee machine from the desk and a fridge storing their food to keep them going on duty.
"Hey, I see something coming out of the blizzard."
A guard radioed in while eyeing at the white pale behind the tower window.
They watched for any change to the perpetual pale… a shadow was forming. No, another shadowed figure was walking out of the snowstorm.
And another.
And another.
A swarm of them were walking out of the blizzard.
It was shambling with slow, strained steps, unfazed by the blood-freezing cold.
"Who in the world is crazy enough to travel through that death storm?" One guard muttered as he held a binocular and looked through.
"Survivors? Refugees? Lost traders or…" Another guard asked, walking closer to the window and leered at the shadows.
The one looking through a binocular blinked.
What came out was not a man or beast, nothing alive could survive in that Catastrophe and walk out unscathed.
"What the fuck?" The soldier lowered his binoculars and looked through it again.
The first that emerged barely had flesh, ice and frost crusted over its bones, gaunt to the extreme, no muscles yet it moved with undying persistence, a walking skeleton covered in ice.
The next was more of a zombie, frozen rotting flesh and pale, murky eyes devoid of life.
The third was a ghastly fusion of the previous two, a skull with hair, scraps of ice-encrusted flesh dangling from decayed bones.
"F-Fuck! Get your asses out there, we got hostiles!"
The guard slammed his hand on the red button, sounding the alarm as sirens blared, alerting every soldier in the outpost of the situation.
Once the alarms blared through the winter winds, legions of undead stopped their slow, steady march.
Their march became a stampede, a horde running across the snow and ice-slicked terrain.
The soldiers already swarmed the ramparts, taking positions and manning the mortars loaded with etched Originium explosive rounds, the heavily robed Casters looking overhead as they aimed their hands, their casting gloves glowed with the Originium laced inside as their arts activated.
"Open fire!"
Despite the advancement of Terran technology, the spread of modern firearms wasn't as prolific as it should be.
The reason why most soldiers and combatants in the field rely on Terran-made bows and crossbows was that their firepower was comparable or surpassing that of firearms, the tensile strength of the bows coupled with the strengths of the natives that surpass that of the average humans' could contend with the might of guns with the advantage of cheaper costs.
Not only that, there was a heavy monopoly on the widespread use of firearms, overseen by Lateran, a theocratic country that discovered firearms first.
Guns were not easy to use as Arts and other prerequisites were required, and Originium bullets were expensive.
Which led to the current situation with the army defending their metal walls deprived of the rapid-fire guns needed to suppress the horde, single shot rifles, crossbows, explosive Arts, bombs, and Mortar fire were their only options of defense.
The explosive fireballs of the Casters and mortar fire were the most effective in thinner the horde of the undead.
Burning heat blossomed in the white field of snow, bones and rotten flesh scalded by rime and cold scattered, then trampled by the undead marching over their remains in their olympic sprint.
"Why the fuck are these things running like they're runners?!"
"They should be walking! Why aren't they walking?!"
"They're getting close!"
The rest barely dented their advance, arrows piercing through the bones and rotting flesh unable to faze them, bullets flying through their bodies couldn't kill them unless they hit their skulls.
They expected the horde to bang on the heavily reinforced metal gates, enough time for them to shoot them down and regain their momentum.
But the horde did not bang on the walls.
With unnatural coordination, the vanguard dropped to their hands and knees, prostrating as the undead behind them climbed on their backs and prostate, the ones behind them mimicking their actions as…
"This is bullshit!"
"What's with these things?!"
"That's not fair! They should go for the walls, not like this!"
The undead were systematically climbing atop each other, piling a stairway of bodies so efficiently, it was an organized movement.
So efficient and sudden that they didn't have the time to take out the grenades as the undead jumped onto the rampart.
A Caster was the first victim.
Meanwhile, behind enemy lines, while most of the Ursine soldiers swarmed towards the gate, a black void yawned into existence.
Talulah, Frostnova, Patriot, the Yeti Squadron, and the Shieldguard emerged from the portal.
"Check the area. We need to make sure we're at the armory building." Talulah ordered.
They were standing between two fortified buildings of metal, the winter-coat-clad Yeti Squadron moving out first with crossbows at the ready, one peeking out with his back to the wall only to see a sight.
"Uhhh, Sister… the coast is clear." He gestured to the rest to come look.
Talulah already understood his tone, and a part of her did not want to see it.
Momonga had demonstrated his military background, as mysterious as it was, during the month they got to know each other.
There was some argument on how to 'procure' the transportation needed to drive some of the forces to Lungmen.
Momonga preferred a more militaristic and physical approach to address their problems - a raid on one of the Ursus military bases, something Reunion had never done before since inception.
Alina argued that Momonga could use his portal ability to transport the refugees, but Momonga said that he must be at the location to teleport to that place, and Lungmen wouldn't approve of someone like him. Not only that, relying on him in this manner would damage their self-sufficiency as Momonga preferred to not be used as a transport mule twenty-four-seven.
When Momonga suggested this location after much consideration, everyone thought he was mad.
Until he demonstrated his ability to summon the Undead.
Not only that, the timing to raid Klad was perfect, the incoming Catastrophe generated near the mines would cut off all communications, and Duke Vaikal was not one to miss his schedule no matter the external circumstances… and Momonga could provide the support needed to pull this off.
Still, Talulah somewhat agreed with Alina in terms of logistics; Momonga could transport their people given enough preparations… but Momonga was correct in stating that Frostnova and Patriot would need the supplies to fuel their operations in Talulah's absence.
Still, Talulah did not expect that Momonga could summon this many.
They could see the undead climbing atop the metal walls and dragging the poor soldiers down to the other side.
The ones manning the mortars abandoned the artillery to pick up their crossbows as the undead jumped down, landing from the ramparts before stampeding towards them as spear-guns, Arts, and crossbows fired at them.
Those who were too close to the undead drew their swords.
"...We should move," Frostnova suggested.
"Hmmm. This operation… there will be terror, a new fear of death approaches these lands." Patriot added his input. "We must press on. Time will tell, whether Death stays on our side."