Magic Bullet in Magic Land - Volume 1 Chapter 14

“That reminds me, I have not checked whether it works properly.”

Karito who suddenly remembered something, maneuvered towards a less crowded place at a corner of the courtyard where a pile of rubble, which used to be a warehouse, was located and operated his PDA.

Various parameters were displayed on the screen list, the BP (Battle Point) had increased nearly double from the last time as expected. As he had killed a considerable number of enemy soldiers along with the Alwina army that was caught by the Claymore attack, it is not surprising that it has increased by so much.

With the accumulation of the BP, more kinds of Support Request became available from the previous time. The problem, is whether the actual Support Request can be carried out in this world.

There is no other method than actually executing it to make sure.

“Which-one-should-I-choose… huh?”

An attack support will be too conspicuous and may cause panic within their own army, so he chose a material assistance request instead.

After selecting it, immediately after the price for the request support has been paid, with a ringing sound effect , a light gathered right in front of his palm and the next moment, it had morphed into the requested item .

The size is as big as a small compact all-terrain vehicle(ATV). The outline of the parts were covered by armored plate mimicking a small caterpillar tread, it looks like small tank. It was armed with a 7.62mm calibre light machine gun and 4 consecutive rocket launcher. Most importantly, is has the feature where it can be operated remotely via the PDA.

[TL: the picture is just there to let people see how it looks like, it is probably different type.]

The one Karito summoned was an armed model of an Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV).

“It seems like the Support Request can be used for time being.”

He muttered so as he stored the UGV that he had just been summoned into the item box. Additionally, a portion of the weapons were generally dropped from the Support Request and can not be placed into the equipment list, and it would need to be operated from PDA every time he wants store it in the item box. Similarly, Karito needs to open the item box every time he wants to use it and a time gap will be formed.

There will be no problem when being protected by teammates, however when participating in battle alone, it is necessary to be careful since a few seconds of defenseless tend to be fatal.

“(If I can use a support request, then the tactics that I can use will considerably increase. Anyway, I have to utilize what I can use.)”

As the UGV disappeared like a magic trick, an explosion echoed from somewhere.

The soldiers and refugees suddenly began to stir, Karito immediately noticed that it was the bouncing betty set up behind the alley. It was a sound that he have heard in the game over and over again that he can tell the difference by sound.

Still, he had troubled his allies carelessly, and in order to explain the circumstances, Karito headed for the headquarters.

Dawn came equally for everyone.

After spending one night on a main street too small for an army of over ten thousand, the Alwina army had regained their spirit and after rearranging the formation, they once again began their advance.

Of course, the Defense Force side had already sensed it, and as long as they can fight, even an injured person and male refugees were mobilized to prepare for the desperate resistance till the end. Women and children had already been evacuated to the underground warehouse installed in the headquarters. Persuaded by Karito and Ordy, Reona too reluctantly went to hide with Rina.

After finishing the installation of all preparations, with the headquarter’s permission, Karito went to hide himself together with Ordy’s group in the defensive position in front of the drawbridge. Looking at the bird’s eye view image sent by the ultra small unmanned surveillance plane switch blade that he launched some time ago, he realized some questionable points.

“This, isn’t their battle formation somewhat different from yesterday?

He showed the PDA image to Ordy. Ordy, who questioned Karito’s actions beforehand, understood immediately that the projection on the screen are the pictures of the Alwina army’s battle formation from the sky. He convinced himself that it was meant to be like that and inspected the image as he swallowed his surprise.

Ordy immediately grasped the identity of the sense of discomfort that he felt. He clicked his tongue once.

“The magician unit had appeared in the front rows. The enemy magicians are now right behind the heavy infantries, and this thin light film which spreads in front of the heavy infantries is a defense magic, perhaps it is the enemy’s tactic to advance while stopping the traps you have installed with defense magic.”

“How strong is their defense magic?”

“It is quite strong. If casted by a high ranking magician, they can even stop an attack from a siege weapon easily――――”

Two claymore burst simultaneously at the forefront of the Alwina troops as they approached the defense position slowly, stepping into the detection range. In no time, Karito heard the sound of screams.

Even though he couldn’t grasp a detailed situation with his bare eyes as they were surrounded by a thin smoke from the explosion, the number of light dots displayed in the image sent from the <SwitchBlade> was reduced by about a dozen.

It seemed that the explosion from the Claymore reached the Alwina army perfectly.

“It seemed that the defense magic was of no use.”

“……It seemed so.”

After the sudden destruction of the heavy infantries and magician units, it was the Alwina army Sky Cavalry unit that came to invade the headquarters next.

Eight riders separated into 3 formations flew towards the headquarters. One formation consisting of half Dragons and half Griffons flew along the main street in positions to bombard the defense camp, swinging their body in small circles repeatedly as they flew in low altitude with a straight trajectory.

“Don’t be distracted with the left and right ones. Focus on the enemies in front!”

At a distance of around 250 meters, between the Sky Cavalry and the defensive camp, arrows, magic attacks, throwings by the beastman, and Karito’s FN and MK 48 light machine gun (the firearms come under the correct category for squad support), was released to the sky one after another.

While there were some who were able to escape by a hair’s breadth, there were also those who got pierced by arrows, released their holds on the reins, and fell from their dragons’ backs. While some of them plummeted onto the ground with a sound of something full of water being crushed, some of them were directly hit along with their Gryphons by magic bullets and were blasted in the air together. There were also two riders that got their head pierced by bullets consecutively as they fell through the roofs.

Still, the remaining 4 cavalry kept track on each other’s positions without communicating, and quickly covered the distance in no time. During that time, they noticed an unfamiliar object placed on a relatively flat roof of one the buildings slightly away from the defensive camp. Since they judged that there were no threat of ambush from it, they kept advancing towards the bombing target as it is.

That proved to be fatal. At the moment when their distance was only around 100m away in a straight line from the defensive encampment, the mysterious object that was placed on the roof suddenly moved. The object that looked like a stepladder with an upper part that looked like a pair of thick steel tubes, turned towards the Sky Cavalry and spit out fire.

Several 12.7 mm bullets spewed from the gun muzzle destroyed the riders and their winged beasts together. The Sky Cavalry crashed down from the air, scattering pieces of meat that can not be distinguished any longer.

Two units of the M2 heavy machine gun used as an automatic sentry gun, immediately locked on its next target, easily piercing through the outer skin that dragons boasted of, and bounced back arrows from the archers. The Sky Cavalry units who rushedly turned away was shot down quickly by another sentry gun installed on the opposite building across the main street.

“To easily annihilate a formation of Sky Cavalry from far away, the weapons from your world is amazing!”

“But, it has limited bullets and it will not respond toward the enemies outside its detection range!”

“Can not you just install it in large quantities?”

“There is a limit to the number it can be installed!”

Inside the game, the number of powerful weapons acquired from the Support request that can be installed at the same time is limited, even in this world it is impossible to install more than certain number no matter how Karito operated it.

The remaining two Alwina formation were either shot down entirely by the welcoming magic missiles released in large quantities from Headquarters, or were driven away before the bomb or breath could be released. They were able to survive this time, but if they were to be bombarded from all directions, he was worried whether the surviving magicians, sentry guns, and Marians would be able to cope up with the numbers.

The Alwina ground army also showed new movements at the same time with the Sky Cavalry offenses. As the infantry line divided, cavalry troops straddling their battle horse appeared.

They marched through the main street at full speed. Are they thinking of breaking through the Claymore’s effective range before its explodes?

“Such recklessness….”

The Claymore activated simultaneously as the person who set them up muttered in disgust. It is impossible to escape the rain of iron balls fired at supersonic blast with just a horse’s full dash. After getting hit by the Claymore, they turned into something that can not be distinguished be they human or horse.

However, the cavalry repeatedly charged while raising war cries from their horses, and they followed in pursuit of one another behind the company. Following after, the smoke from the explosion that covered the battlefield, the troops advances, trampling over the dead bodies of their allies, closing the gap to the defense camp. It is almost where they were about to reach each other’s shooting range.

“This is bad, the Claymore installed on the main street is decreasing.”

“That Cavalry was a cannon folder to open the path huh….!”

Before long, another wave of cavalry became the Claymore’s prey, and explosions no longer occurs even after they dashed dozens of meters. The Claymore that was installed on the main street to restrict their movements had been depleted.

In a flash, the momentum of the Alwina troops increased quickly. Just as the heavy infantry Cavalry broke through the minefield, the heavily equipped foot soldiers started to ran at full speed too, and the area turned into a human tsunami. Their footsteps rumbled the ground. In fact, the vibration from ten thousand soldiers’ footsteps reached the defensive encampment.

Karito’s throat became parched from the excessive intensity. If it was not because of an order from Ordy to drew them closer, Karito might not have squeezed the trigger and stayed frozen.

“Fireeee!!!!!”

With the signal as the trigger, the spark for the gunfire has been made. Soldiers were pierced by arrows through the chest and magic cannons hit the land nearby making several infantries to flip into the air and scatter from the shockwave. Spears followed by, thrown by the beastman militia, it pierced through the soldiers successively.

The M240 which was lent by Karito in the middle of night, was fired by the human soldiers of this parallel world. The 7.62 mm NATO bullets were fired one after another, the empty cartridges flew into sky as it detached from the belt link.

As the tracer bullets were fired, it created a trail of light and charges with violent power as if sucked into the direction of the Alwina army. It is impossible to prevent the high powered rifle bullets with only protective gears made from forged iron. The bullets easily pierced through the armors and stirred their internal organs, those hit by the bullet in the arms, legs, or bone had those parts cleanly torn off from their bodies

Karito also joined in with his MK48. It was a model based from a large caliber of the Minimi 5.56 mm light machine gun that was adopted by many countries such as the U.S.A and JSDF, and it also used a belt link of type 7.62 mm bullets system. It was installed with dot sight, foregrip, and a box magazine that can rapidly fire 200 magazines. In contrast to the soldiers who fired the M240 out of excitement, Karito fired continuously while making constant revision to his firing alignment.

In addition, there was also the sentry gun installed on the roof. The Sentry Gun of M2 heavy machine gun that fires 12.7 mm bullet were something that couldn’t be compared with the infantry rifle bullets.

If it hits the head that is protected by helmet, it will be annihilated in the literal sense. Of course, other protective gears are also useless, if it hits the body, most of it will disappear, if it hits any limbs, it will be torn off. It goes without saying that losing a limbs is a fatal injury. Such bullets were pouring from sky and from the front, barraged by the rain of arrows, magic, spears and lead bullets.

When Ordy and the beastmen soldiers had used up all of the spare arrow and spears, they now began to throw the grenades left in a small mountain pile under their feet. Taught by Karito, they threw it at full power after removing the safety pins. On Earth, around 40~50 m was considered the limit, but the beastman could throw up to 100 m ahead easily.

――――― A scene from hell continued for a while for the Alwina and Defense army.

As for the Alwina troops, when the Commander howled “advance!” with his long sword raised up, they were assaulted by unknown attacks completely different from the counters they tasted up till now as they witnessed their comrades falling one after the another. Furthermore, they were being shown the deaths of their comrades as they exploded into pieces of meat and fresh blood. As they were occasionally attacked by explosion from over their heads, many squatted down as they lost their fighting spirit and ended up dragging the following soldiers to trip here and there.

As for Karito’s group, looking at the situation where the Alwina army continued to push forward over the dead bodies of their fellows even after being shot again and again, was like a nightmare in a daylight. Fresh blood flowed from piles uf corpses paved the main street red―――― how many should they kill more until this nightmare ends?

Karito had already switched the magazine box, and it seemed like the 2nd box will be depleted soon. The remaining number of the M240 bullet must be below 100 shots. The barrel was already red hot from the rapid-firing, and the sandbag where the light machine gun was placed even had a burn mark. However, there was no sign of malfunction at all.

Then, the roof of the building where the sentry gun was installed was half destroyed by the magic shot from the Alwina army over the heads of the infantries. The Sentry gun was swallowed by the collapsing roof and became unusable. The installation point of the sentry gun must have been found out from the magnificent fire flames flight trajectory. As it continued, another Sentry gun was destroyed too.

As soon as the powerful gunfires from the fully mechanical automated heavy machine gun ceased, the intimidation for the defensive position doubled. Even though it depended on the angle of fire, the 12.7 mm that can pierce through several people with one shot had been destroyed.

It was time to change the situation, Ordy as commander decided, to retreat and raise the drawbridge and shift the war into holding onto the castle.

“Retreat to the headquarters!”

As though they anticipated it, the other soldiers began to withdraw from the defense camp quickly. Karito also nodded and switched the weapon on his hands to a HK416 with a Grenade Launcher. The M320 grenade launcher was loaded with smoke bombs.

[TL: the M320 grenade launcher here is installed to HK416]

After firing at the tip of the approaching Alwina army to conceal themselves, Karito also crossed the drawbridge. The castle gate mechanism device began to close at the same time he passed through the castle gate. It was a two level protection as the castle gate part were made to close too when the drawbridge was fully raised.

Looking back at defensive encampment on the other side of closing castle gate, the Alwina troops who broke through the smoke curtain had arrived one after another into the defensive camp. They were approaching with bloodshot eyes to take over the castle gate before the drawbridge had been raised completely.

Like magic, the HK416 which he held was replaced with another object. It had a shape like large palm sized clothespin

He stretched out the hand which held the object straight towards the castle gate, and just before the castle gate closed, he strongly gripped it.

…….At the next moment, C4 (plastic bomb) explosives placed in several building around the defensive camp exploded along with Alwina Soldiers.

[TL: the remote and C4 picture.]

Karito’s group climbed up the interior stairs that was prepared beforehand to the upper parts of the castle.

The defensive camp had completely disappeared due to the explosion that occurred on both sides. The same was for the buildings where C4 was installed, even a small crater was formed in respect to the center of the blast.

The damage on Alwina side was enormous, as their flow temporarily stagnated in attempt to climb over the defensive camp, many infantries gathered, at least hundreds of people had been transformed into dismembered bodies which no longer resembles human figures at all. Bodies were minced into pieces by exploding building fragments, their internal organs were destroyed from the shock wave that penetrated inside the body and blood was flowing out from every hole.

Still, the Alwina troops continued fighting. As soon as they thought that the enemy had abandoned the defensive camp and even holed inside the headquarters which was their last stronghold, they were convinced that they will achieve victory had they broke through here and the Alwina army regained their morale once again. The cavalry dismounted their horses, turned into infantries, and joined the siege attack the archers and magicians fired from the infantry’s rear.

“All members prepare!”

Inside the fortress, the Defense Force Commander Minotauros gave orders to the soldiers. Not only for the soldiers, even male refugees who were participating in the battles. Their hands trembled as they held swords, spears, and large stones to throw down from above. Some people were also stirring boiling oil inside a cauldron.

The depth of the dry moat surrounding the headquarters was 2 m deep and 10 m wide. The soldiers who raised ladders, surged in to climb over the castle walls.

Under the sound of their thundering footsteps, the faint sounds of metallic safety devices being disarmed were erased.

As soon as one infantry who aimed into the castle stepped down into the bottom of the moat, suddenly, flat objects jumped out of the ground. There were some who stopped in their tracks surprised, but there were also those who went past through it without noticing.

It is not of a one or two in number. As the large army escaped from the narrow street, they advanced forward while spreading sideways in order to siege the fortress. The infantries who stepped down into the dry moat were blocked by dozens of bouncing bettys which were triggered almost simultaneously.

Likewise, the climax of a fireworks display, the landmine bodies launched into the air as high as the soldiers’ line of vision and exploded consecutively. There is no way a human being can live through an explosion that happened right in front of their nose. More than 100 infantries who charged mindlessly in the first wave of the siege attack, had their whole body torn into fragments separating their necks and their lower parts.

After being caught by traps they had never seen before on the dry moat, the movement of the infantries were slightly delayed.

The Minotaur Commander who saw the scene, gave a signal that rivaled the sound of the Alwina army’s footsteps advance.

“Now, Release it!!!!”

The Defense Force who had been driven into a corner had prepared a special “welcome” gift for their invaders, and showered it over the invading infantries’ heads.

――――――Now, the Citadel is reaching it final stages of the war.