Chapter 180: Final Assault ; Contact

"Are the men prepared?" I ask Yvonne while checking the state of the capital.

"Yes, Your Highness," she replies.

"Hm… weird," I subconsciously mutter.

"Your Highness?"

"Ah, never mind," I say while deliberating on what I just saw.

First and foremost, the capital seems to be bereft of civilians. Throughout the period I used Clairvoyance, I didn't see anyone apart from the kingdom's soldiers.

Did the civilians get evacuated? That's highly unlikely.

This shouldn't be that something Joseph de Gallia would do if I were to take his previous actions into consideration.

"Yvonne," I say, once I'm sure that there are no civilians, "Inform the soldiers that they are free to kill every enemy they come across."

"Yes, Your Highness," she responds before leaving my side to follow my instructions.

I observe her as she makes her to where Godeffroy is while listening in to the soldiers' talk.

As expected, most of their conversation revolved around the recent battle in which they used Organic Constructs and how our purpose is proven by that 'blessing' that they received.

That's not all, as there seems to be a certain group that was established for the specific purpose of idolizing me and the girls.

While the content they come up with is somewhat embarrassing in a way, it doesn't harm us, so there isn't much of a problem in the end.

Anyway, it's good that the soldiers' morale has risen from previous events, after all, this battle is the most important one.

Thinking of it logically, unless the enemy has prepared extravagantly, they have a very low chance against the enhanced army, let alone us.

Well then, it's about damn time that I killed Joseph.

---3rd POV---

"Sir, we spotted the enemy. As expected, they are approaching from the north-east," a fairly young man dressed in a red and golden uniform says respectfully.

"Good job," a dark-haired man responds, "Make sure to relay this to His Majesty."

"Understood!" comes the response as the young man goes away.

The dark-haired man sighs before raising his arm to slide his finger across a large scar on his face.

"Looks like the time has come," the man mutters to himself as he slides his hand into a small pouch on his clothes.

Pulling out a small chain watch, the man presses a small button on the top, causing the back of the watch to make a clicking sound before opening.

Inside the watch, there is a small hand-drawn picture of a man that seems to be in his mid-forties.

"Dad, it seems like you were right after all."

---1st POV---

"There we go," I mutter once I've gifted the last bunch Immortality, Organic Constructs, and Insight.

Knowing that I mustn't waste much time, I turn around before exclaiming at the top of my lungs,

"This is it!"

Hearing me, the soldiers all shift their focus to me as they begin to straighten their backs and adopt a serious look on their faces.

"This is the battle that will decide the fate of thousands!" I continue while slowly floating into the sky, "We will bring an end to the vile acts that have been forced upon the innocent by defeating the enemy in this battle.

"Our enemies aren't humans, but monsters. They would do something as low as weaponizing civilians against their will, so there is no need to show them any mercy."

The moment my words fade away, the soldiers immediately begin to cheer loudly while some even begin to let out battle cries.

Seeing that everything is set, I mutter,

"Gabriel, it has begun."

[Understood, Father.]

I stop using Flight and land on the ground before turning to face the girls and saying,

"Let's do this."

All the girls, including Jeanette and Sheffield, nod their heads as confirmation.

It seems like those two have been convinced that Joseph is truly doing everything I informed them of, as they have been showing an improved attitude toward us.

And so, we begin our assault on the capital.

"Irene, you stay here and protect Siesta as well as our two ex-prisoners."

"Saturnus, Krul, we will launch an attack of our own."

"Hehehe," Saturnus giggles as she slowly strokes her strange weapon while Krul looks at her with an odd expression on her face.

Shaking my head, a small smile forms on my lips as I begin to dash toward the capital at maximum speed.

It doesn't take me long to pass through the main gateway that leads inside while killing the dozen or so guards that have been stationed there.

Then, to not waste too much time, I directly leap onto a building close-by as Krul and Saturnus follow suit.

We then proceed to make our way to the giant castle that's at the far back of the capital.

Shortly, we run out of buildings to hop onto, so we jump down and run across the plains to where the castle is situated.

Just as I was beginning to think that this is going much more smoothly than expected, AI's voice resounds in my head.

{WARNING: Unknown detected.}

{WARNING: Code Theodon detected.}

{WARNING: Multiple Binary Factors detected. Threat level: 2}

Hearing the series of warnings, I stop in my tracks and begin observing the small group that's making their way over here.

The group is being led by a golden-haired middle-aged man.

Behind the man, there are multiple 'teens' which I assume are more elves who have been caught and 'brainwashed'.

"Creator," Saturnus all of a sudden says, "I will deal with the Code."

"What?" I voice, dumbfounded by her proclamation.

"You go on ahead," Krul adds, "Those kids shouldn't amount to much."

What's gotten into these two? Well, I'm sure that Krul would be able to effortlessly deal with these Binary Factors.

However, I'm not so sure about letting Saturnus fight a Code all by herself.

As if reading my thoughts, Saturnus says while grinning,

"Don't worry Creator. This will be easy."

Then, Saturnus's expression changes to one that seems to be bereft of all emotions as she raises her weapon and pointing the tip at Theodon, before saying,

"After all, this is what I was created for."

Sensing the confidence that seems to be exuding from the aesthetic android, I let out a small sigh before saying,

"Make sure to not overdo yourself."

Before leaving, I shift my sight to Krul and say,

"Remember, these kids are under the effect of a power that's similar to brainwashing."

"Don't kill them. Got it," Krul says.

Nodding my head, I turn my head to look at the approaching enemy before shaking my head in exasperation.

Then, I directly utilize Godspeed and Blink to easily pass by the foe and head inside the castle.

Making use of my senses, I locate Joseph who's sitting on his throne while surrounded by a bunch of knights.

"Looks like he really has prepared something for me," I mutter before using Permeation to pass through a wall.

Soon, I find myself standing right in front of a double-door that leads to the throne room.

Being the gentleman I am, I knock on one of them twice while amplifying the sound before breaking both doors in one swift kick.

Thus, without heed much attention to the startled knights, I casually walk inside with a small smile plastered to my lips.

"We finally meet, Joseph de Gallia," I say while erecting a reflective barrier around myself using Vector Manipulation.

"Yes," Joseph says without any change in expression, "You can let go of the façade, Origo."

While keenly observing the expressionless man who is exuding an eerie aura, I shrug my shoulders before saying,

"Say whatever you will. Either way, you're going to die, and those weaklings by your side won't be able to delay that by even a single second."

The moment the words leave my mouth, the knights around Joseph begin to gnash their teeth in fury while an expression of pure rage covers their faces.

It seems like they've taken the bait. Truly, weaklings.

As for Joseph himself, his face is still expressionless, almost as if the man feels no emotions at all.

Well, it's either that, or he's remarkably adept in hiding them…