Dictator From Outer Space - Chapter 282:

The sudden ether storm and the gate were a huge shock for Lucia and her troops.

Some units that were not nearby retreated and waited for orders, but others that were fighting fiercely with the enemy had no chance to withdraw and were dragged into Astera.

These units and other demons stopped fighting as soon as they saw Astera, as if they had agreed on something.

—Why do we have to fight each other so hard?

—Isn’t it enough to k**l the humans and take their land?

They had this thought even though they didn’t know how long the gate would last, and it seemed that they were similar regardless of their species.

So they rushed together as if they were one group and started to fight the humans.

Lucia’s subordinates also had no choice but to march to the imperial palace, but there was a problem.

A familiar airship appeared from somewhere in the sky.

—It’s Hyperion…

—What? Hyperion? That’s the master’s ship!

—Watch your mouth, 1773, the master is the one who rules over Lord White, the legion commander, the guard captain, and the queen!

The units that came to Astera were only a small detachment of the Talos legion.

From their perspective, Leobold was almost a god-like being, who was the boss of their boss of their boss of their boss.

Think about it.

Their queen Lucia had become a strong enough to rival the top ten demon lords in a short time since she made her nest in Mare.

How strong would her master be, whom she served without fail?

There was a rumor among the subordinates that he was not the god who would unify Mare.

They had to prostrate themselves and beg for mercy when such a being appeared, but they couldn’t do that because of the surrounding eyes.

The detachment leader, Beetle 215, thought.

—The master must know that we are here. To help him, we have to hit these bastards from behind.

—If we make a merit here, maybe we can get out of this eternal detachment leader position…

It was always better to get a promotion from someone higher up.

Especially if it was from the master who was above the queen.

Beetle 215 made a decision and secretly sent telepathy to his subordinates.

Squeak squeak buzz buzz.

A strange atmosphere circulated among the beetle-shaped demons.

The other demons sensed it, but they were too excited to care.

What mattered when there was a nest of the human king in front of them?

They just wanted to fight, win, and report their victory to the demon lord.

Meanwhile, Leobold smiled inwardly after receiving a report that the beetles were squeaking.

‘He must know that I’m here, and he’ll hit them from behind for me. Good choice.’

It would be a problem for the Zaium nobles who were watching, but it would be good if a rumor spread that he was the king who made even the demons surrender.

It meant less blood to spill.

‘I’ll have to test it this time to make the rumor more plausible.’

That was the ether origin that was about 70% complete.

This energy source was not only incomplete, but also required a lot of effort to activate.

It could produce energy comparable to an ether sun when it worked properly, but that process was not easy.

Arma cautiously suggested one way.

“The most efficient way is to use your ether heart as a key to activate the ether origin. But in that case, you might get a big shock.”

“I won’t d*e, right?”

“As long as I’m here, there’s no chance of you dying. But it will hurt a lot.”

“I’m used to pain. Let’s do it that way.”

This was a method needed to fully activate the ether origin, and it was not necessary now.

It was just using a little energy from the incomplete one, but its power would be tremendous.

Leobold put his hand on Camilla’s shoulder.

“For a moment, you’ll feel like you’ve become a god. You’ll be able to fight almost equally with a dragon champion like Valgard.”

Of course, there was a gap in combat experience, so he couldn’t really match him.

Camilla nodded nervously and looked down.

“It’s my first time fighting demons… Can I do well?”

“You don’t have to worry. Arma will tell you where they’re attacking from.”

It was a mystery how Arma knew that, but there were more than one or two cases like that, so he had to admit it.

Leobold gave orders to his subordinates through the bridge communicator.

“Prepare for Black Knight sortie from now on. I’ll command personally.”

He didn’t go into battle unless it was serious after he became king.

This meant that it was not an ordinary danger if he led the battlefield himself.

Hyperion lowered its altitude and about ten Black Knights jumped out.

The imperial palace nobles were suspicious.

Black Knight was a model made by Bagran, but the empire also had many of them and even tried to copy them.

They wondered how they could improve this desperate situation with just ten of them.

But when they heard that Leobold was on board the lead machine, some of the nobles raised their arms.

“It’s the king of Bagran!”

“K**l those demons!”

Then the firebomb unit followed, carrying ether bomb launchers on their backs.

“It’s the firebomb unit!”

“Our firebombs were nothing special, but what about them?”

“They must be the original, right? Look at them coming down on ladders! Isn’t that something different?”

“They’re amazing for commoners!”

The demons reached the front of the imperial palace.

***

They were definitely different.

The nobles looked at the battlefield with concern and realized that Bagran’s forces were something different.

First of all, there was no confusion.

They took perfect positions by machine and their formation was solid, even though they weren’t training for a big demon battle.

And the machine that led them was the one that the king was on board.

He stood firmly in front of the demons who were swarming in, even though it would be scary.

His unique posture of sticking his sword into the ground and putting his hands on the handle was enough to make the nobles exclaim.

“Black Knight… It really feels like a giant Goliath when he stands like that.”

“Is it because King Vandus is riding it? Even compared to the machine that High Knight is on board, the pressure is no joke…”

“It must be because of the halo behind his head.”

When Leobold activated his ether heart, a bright halo appeared behind the head of the Black Knight as usual.

But he didn’t pull out all his output.

Even the enhanced Black Knight couldn’t handle Leobold’s ether heart, and only the new giant of steel that Arma was making could do that.

That giant was so big and heavy that it couldn’t be called a Goliath, and it would probably be named a Titan.

As everyone was mesmerized by the Black Knights’ display of power, the demon army approached the palace.

The ground shook and hundreds of demons shouted in discordant voices.

Leobold drew his greatsword from the ground and gave orders to Camilla and his knights.

“This may not be Bagran, but you are still servants of the empire. I will spare your lives for now, so fight and d*e for the empire.”

“Oooh!”

“For the empire! For the emperor!”

The empire they meant was the future human empire, and the emperor was Leobold himself, but the nobles of Zaium interpreted it differently.

“They haven’t forgotten that they are Zaium’s servants…”

“Isn’t he still an earl? That’s how a noble should act.”

“But the emperor has already fled and doesn’t deserve such loyalty…”

As if to drown out those voices, the demon army and the Black Knights clashed.

The knights of Zaium had been ambushed from behind and shattered while struggling, but the Black Knights didn’t stop.

Aether blades spewed from Leobold’s Black Knight and carved a huge path through the demon army.

Dozens of demons were disintegrated by the highly concentrated ether.

“Follow me.”

The Black Knights moved along that path.

Demons attacked from all sides, but the Black Knights were far superior in size and output.

The nobles felt as if they were watching a single sword slashing through the battlefield.

“How can they maintain such a formation while diving into the demons’ midst…”

“It’s like the Goliaths have become one.”

The cores of the nearby Goliaths synchronized with the ether that Leobold emitted, and they moved in unison.

That naturally led the riders, who were knights.

Camilla, who was facing the demons from all directions, realized that this was not what she intended to do, but she couldn’t stop.

‘What is this? It’s like I’m bewitched…’

It was an ether field.

Leobold alone had created a field that ignored physical constraints that only Settler ship or Assault Armor could produce.

This field had limited time stop and wide-area blessing effects, giving allies an incredible boost in combat power and enemies a terrible curse.

In fact, the knights who were in charge of the flanks were surprised that the fearsome demons were so slow and weak.

‘This is not because we are strong or the demons are weak.’

It was all thanks to the king’s power.

His movements naturally shifted their steps and changed the battlefield.

The demons they faced became bigger and more ferocious, but they didn’t feel like they were losing.

‘We will win, we can win!’

It was a miraculous sight to see such an overwhelming display against enemies that outnumbered them by dozens of times.

Especially those who were watching from the palace above felt it better.

The murmurs soon subsided and only the sound of swallowing saliva was heard.

“Your Majesty… I can’t believe you can jump in there and fight…”

“Those scary demons are flailing around like fools…”

It was a completely different sight from when they fought with the imperial guard.

It was strange, but they were all fascinated by Leobold’s magic.

And that magic exploded fiercely when Lucia’s detachment hit the back of the other demons’ heads.

Beetle 215 stabbed its horn deep into a Highpex that had turned its back on him.

―Kraaak!

―Now!

As soon as Highpex’s death cry was heard, the detachment reversed and attacked the demons as they pleased.

They were outnumbered, but the Black Knights had drawn so much attention and their surprise attack was perfect, so the demons fell into chaos.

―Who are you!

―Our allies are attacking us!

The beetles of the detachment looked very different, but there were so many creatures crowded in a narrow space that it was impossible to distinguish them perfectly.

And Leobold and his Black Knights and rifle troops didn’t stay still either.

The former tore through the demon army with their mobility, while the latter gradually destroyed them with their firepower from a distance.

Some demons couldn’t stand it and attacked the rifle troops, but they had no chance to fight back using the terrain features.

And even as they played hide-and-seek, bombs kept flying in.

Boom!

Explosions occurred everywhere and the number of demons decreased steadily.

The nobles of Zaium gaped their mouths open.

“How can they fight like that with only ten or so Black Knights…”

“The rifle troops’ movements are no joke either. They’re not getting any closer to the demons.”

From the perspective of the demons they faced, it was a taste of death.

It would not have been strange if they had retreated earlier in such a desperate situation, but they couldn’t do that either.

Where could they run when the gate had disappeared in the yard?

All they had left was to fight to the end and d*e.

―Today we d*e here! For Kether… Keh!

Leobold’s greatsword smashed the head of a Tyrant that was trying to shout loudly.

That was the beginning of the end of the demons’ resistance.

The distance between the rifle troops and the Black Knights narrowed, and dozens of demons raged as if for their last struggle.

But they were vaporized by Leobold’s ether blade.

―How can you be so strong…

―You… If Aphroxia comes here, the situation will change…

“Shut up.”

Leobold finished off the last Tyrant and stuck his greatsword into the ground.

The beetles of 215’s detachment sensed the atmosphere and quickly gathered in front of him and lowered their posture.

―Please forgive us!

―The Demon King Lucia told us to surrender! You are our master from now on!

Leobold pretended to be surprised and looked them over.

“Are you not demons? How can demons follow humans?”

―If we have loyalty and communication, what does appearance matter? If you don’t like this form, we will take human form!

“Well… You don’t have to do that.”

It was a ridiculous act, but it was a rather impressive sight for the nobles of Zaium.

Demons who had been hostile and unable to eradicate humans for hundreds of years knelt before a mere king.

“Those demons seem quite strong, but they surrender to a human king?”

“There has never been a case of demons defecting in hundreds of years of history…”

“Didn’t you all see the overwhelming battle earlier? Even Lucia, that Demon King, surrendered to King Banda.”

It was a rare sight that might happen once in a lifetime for many people who saw demons for the first time.

They all craned their necks and looked as the beetles collected the cores from the dead demons’ bodies.

They were much smaller than the cores of the Plague that appeared in the solar system, but they had the same essence.

“You’re quite smart, knowing what I want. Do you have any wishes?”

The creature spoke in a low voice.

―I have served Your Majesty with zeal and devotion since you arrived in Mare. But I’m still stuck as a squad leader. If you don’t doubt my merit and loyalty…

“Captain White. You are now Captain White.”

Leobold knew very well the structure of the army that Lucia commanded.

He also had the help of Arma, who could use ether close to the Plague Queen.

That meant he could accelerate evolution within a certain limit.

When he gave his permission, Beetle 215’s body began to grow rapidly.

―Ohhh!

―The master has bestowed grace upon us!

The squad beetles danced, and the Zaium nobles were confused by this sight.

Meanwhile, Emperor Barak, who had escaped through the underground passage, heard the news late and came up to the palace.

He had fled, leaving everything behind, so he couldn’t expect any cheers, but the eyes that looked at him were too cold.

“Your Majesty, it’s good to see you.”

“I’m glad you’re safe.”

The greeting was just a formality, and there was no emotion in it, making it chilly.

On the other hand, the cheers for Leobold seemed to send him out of the palace.

“King Vandus! You’re the best!”

“You definitely deserved to take over the Tassos Duchy!”

Leobold raised his arm in response to their cheers, and Emperor Barak’s heart sank.

Could he be dreaming of becoming emperor?

***

The Zaium demon crisis was over for now.

But because so many gates had opened, every part of the continent was in severe chaos.

Most countries could only stop the demons by mobilizing their forces, and this caused tremendous damage.

And there were still many intact legions.

They fell into places like swamps or wastelands, assessed the situation, and formed their own factions to plan to invade nearby countries.

Leobold decided that he couldn’t leave them alone.

He had gotten everything he wanted.

“It’s bubbling… Hafnium 2 warheads won’t be enough to deal with them all.”

He could k**l them all by pouring out supplies, but he didn’t want to waste missiles.

And Settler ship was fully repaired and emitted a stronger output than before.

The supermassive particle accelerator was also producing reaction bombs one after another.

It was for the sake of fighting Omega One someday.

Arma hinted at him.

“A small reaction bomb of 100 megatons is ready.”

Leobold originally didn’t want to use reaction bombs in Asteran unless necessary.

That thrilling weapon was made to fight against the fully grown Plague.

But those demons were no exaggeration to call them baby Plagues.

“So there’s no need to hesitate. We can send knights to deal with other places, so we just need to take care of those two spots.”

Leobold pointed out the border area near Elvrande and Denova.

The former would be taken care of by the elves, but the latter was doomed to fall.

“Altema attacked there, right?”

“Thanks to that, our debt was swept away too.”

Denova’s destruction also destroyed the supply chain in the eastern continent, but that was a problem for later.

The urgent matter was those thousands of demons.

“Fire the reaction bomb.”

As soon as he gave the order, two missiles were launched from Settler ship, which was anchored in Terra’s geostationary orbit.

The missiles, equipped with high-output ion thrusters, reached their destination in minutes.

And a huge explosion occurred.

Particles and antiparticles annihilated each other, spewing pure energy.

Its power was enough to completely vaporize a small mountain that rose near Denova.

Thousands of demons who had gathered nearby to attack also died en masse.

The shockwave shook the eastern continent, and soon a gray mushroom cloud rose up massively.

When the explosion subsided, Altema and Valgard, who had been attacking Denova for a while, found traces of it.

At the end of their sight, they saw a crater of unbelievable size, and around it were thousands of corpses of demons.

“What did they use for this?”

“It’s the king’s power. He used a weapon made on Earth. But I didn’t know it would be this strong…”

“A weapon made on Earth…”

“He never used it before. He used it now because it must be okay against demons. So you better stop making him your enemy. Even if you’re the master’s main body, you won’t be safe if you get caught in this explosion.”

They didn’t know that the reaction bomb that caused the explosion had reduced its power by 10%.

Altema tried to feel the ether, but failed.

“It doesn’t seem to be an ether-based weapon.”

“There was no ether on Earth, remember? They made this with pure technology.”

“…”

She stared at the crater for a long time, then opened her mouth.

“Listening to that makes me want it more.”

“Damn it, the king is not someone you can mess with, even if the master is strong.”

“You won’t know how long or short it is until you try, right?”

Valgard read infinite greed in her attitude.

She hadn’t learned anything from the war that had caused such a mess.

But Altema was confident.

If this was the extent of his power, she wasn’t without a way to counter it.

She would start the war again, but the continent’s situation was already a mess.

It wouldn’t make any difference if she added a little more chaos.

She spread her arms toward Bagran.

“Come, I am the true emperor of Asteran.”