Rumble!
A meteor was plummeting to the ground at breakneck speeds.
Horacio and Crypt Commander 981’s faces darkened.
Why?
It was uncommon to see a meteor falling from the sky.
How often would one witness a meteor falling in their lifetime?
A meteor falling from the sky wasn’t a common sight—no, it was unlikely that one would ever witness a meteor in their entire life.
Just how likely it was to see a meteor falling straight toward someone?
One percent? Or a tenth of a percent? Perhaps a hundredth of a percent?
It was impossible to know for sure, but everyone would agree that the chances were extremely low. However, a meteor was currently heading straight toward Horacio and Crypt Commander 981. In addition, the meteor was ablaze in blue flames.
Such a sight only meant one thing—the meteor was made from a spell, and it was aimed at them.
A spell that could summon a meteor—Meteor Swarm could only be cast by Eight Circle magicians, and it was an extremely terrifying spell. Of course, the meteor plummeting to the ground right now couldn’t be considered a part of the Meteor Swarm spell.
The Meteor Swarm was a spell Daode Tianzun used in the past to totally decimate an important enemy fort. It was a spell that summoned dozens of meteors to crash into the enemy and cause total annihilation.
It was a spell that demanded a lengthy channeling time and a complex magic circle.
However, it was a different story if it was just a single meteor.
A single meteor wasn't as powerful as the Meteor Swarm, but a meteor was still considered a calamity.
“…”
“…”
Horacio and Crypt Commander 981 looked at each other and thought of the exact same thing.
‘We’re fucked…’
The two felt like they were in a peaceful village with sirens that suddenly blared and announced—Tactical Nuke Incoming.
Shwoooooong…
Kabooom!
Not even a second later, Tunnel 718 and the surrounding three kilometers were engulfed with a dazzling light.
***
Flash!
Meanwhile, Siegfried, Seung-Gu, General Overlock, and the officers safely managed to get ten kilometers away from Tunnel 718.
“Welcome, Your Majesty,” Decimato greeted him.
“Huh? You were waiting?” Siegfried tilted his head in confusion.
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Decimato replied with a smile and said, “How can your servant not wait for his liege?”
“Didn’t you say that you didn’t want to get into that ass?”
“W-well… I’m not immortal, so it would have been a dangerous endeavor… I still have decades to work for Your Majesty, so…”
“You do realize making excuses will only make you feel guilty, right?”
“If Your Majesty gives me a bit more time and budget, I will—”
“Why are you talking about time and budget all of a sudden?”
“Ahem…!”
“Anyway, thank you. We survived thanks to you,” Siegfried said. He was a bit annoyed by the old magician trying to slither his way out of the predicament, but he decided to stop picking on the issue and let the old magician save face.
“More importantly—”
Siegfried was interrupted by a blue meteor falling from the sky.
Shwooong!
“Huh? Why is there a meteor…?” Siegfried tilted his head in confusion once again.
“It’s my Meteor Swarm, Your Majesty,” Decimato replied proudly.
“A M-Meteor Swarm?!”
“I cast the spell right after Your Majesty made it out safely to annihilate the enemies,” Decimato said while pointing at his feet. There was a red magic circle underneath his feet. Siegfried immediately noticed that it was a high-level magic circle based on its complexity alone.
“You can use Meteor Swarm…?”
“My proficiency is only at a beginner’s level, but I am a Great Wizard, so I can still cast it. Of course, it’s not even ten percent as strong as a Meteor Swarm that was cast properly since I cast it in a hurry…”
Kaboom!
An explosion occurred before Decimato could finish his words.
Flash!
Boooooooom!
A bright flash enveloped the surroundings, and it was followed by a thundering boom.
Siegfried was not looking in the direction of the explosion, but the sound alone was enough for him to tell that it was powerful.
“Great Wizard? Meteor Swarm?” General Overlock interrupted and asked, “Excuse me, Are you really a Great Wizard?”
“W-well…” Decimato was rendered speechless.
However, it seemed that General Overlock wasn’t done just yet.
“No, more importantly, did you just call Lieutenant Colonel Sieg Your Majesty just now?”
“Hahaha…” Decimato laughed awkwardly.
‘Damn it…’ Siegfried grumbled after realizing that Decimato had made a mistake, but he figured that there was no longer a need for him to keep hiding his identity.
“General Overlock.”
“What’s going on, Lieutenant Colonel Sieg?”
“I’m sure you want an explanation, but I think we should return to the command center first. We will have a lot of time to talk about it later.”
“A-All right…”
Ding!
A message popped up in front of Siegfried’s eyes.
[Alert: You have acquired a new title: Pesky Brat!]
‘Yeah… I thought you were a bit quiet these days…’ Siegfried’s eyes narrowed. He looked like he knew that the system was about to give him a title.
He was a bit taken aback the last time the system gave him a cool title after slaying the Vampire Lord, and his instincts seemed to have been spot on because the system gave him another rubbish title.
‘Sigh… Let’s check the option at least…’ he sighed in resignation and checked the title’s details.
[Pesky Brat]
[A title given to those extremely good at annoying people and running away from their responsibilities.]
[Type: Title]
[Rating: Unique]
[Effects: Swiftness, Come and Get Me!, You’re Dead Meat!]
[Swiftness: Movement Speed +7%]
[Come and Get Me!: Movement Speed +50% while being chased (Active)]
[You’re Dead Meat!: +25% Damage Received while Come and Get Me! is active]
The title increased his Movement Speed by seven percent, and his Movement Speed would increase by a further fifty percent while he was being chased. However, the twenty-five percent additional damage received made it a bit annoying.
‘Is it because someone annoyed will hit you harder once they catch you…?’ he wondered while reading the description. It made perfect sense since anyone enraged would definitely hit the person who had annoyed them with their most powerful punches.
‘I just don’t have to get caught, right?’ Siegfried smirked. In the end, he considered the title to be quite the blessing—as long as he didn’t get caught.
“Then, shall we return to base for now?” Siegfried asked.
“Please come this way,” Decimato guided them to a magic circle.
‘This old man is quite useful in numerous ways,’ Siegfried confirmed once again that it was the right choice to take in Decimato. The party safely managed to teleport back to the command center.
***
Toot, Toot, Toot!
The sound of trumpets greeted Siegfried and the officers upon their arrival at the command center.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
A round of applause greeted them along with the trumpets.
General Overlock and the officers took a bath, ate, and went to the meeting room.
“I-Is that true? Did that really happen?!” General Overlock was shocked after hearing Lieutenant General Woodbridge’s report.
“W-Was I really abducted and replaced by those monsters?”
“Yes, General.”
“Haa… It could’ve been a disaster… I dedicated my entire life to my kingdom and people, but I never imagined that I almost brought the downfall of the very kingdom I swore to protect. It’s a huge relief that their plans were stopped… really…” General Overlock let out a sigh of relief.
It was definitely something to be surprised about. The commander of the coalition forces was swapped with an enemy spy, and things could have turned out really ugly if Siegfried hadn’t discovered them in time.
“Lieutenant Colonel Sieg… Thank you very much. Really, thank you. You didn’t just save me, but you saved the entire Macallan Kingdom and even the entire continent!”
“I am just relieved that you are safe, General.”
“No, I will make sure that the palace will declare you as our kingdom’s hero!”
“Haha…”
“Thank you so much…” General Overlock grabbed Siegfried’s hands and looked at him with teary eyes.
Worry for his kingdom, gratitude toward Siegfried, and repentance for messing up as the commander—there were many different complicated emotions in the old veteran’s tears.
“You need to be strong, General. That is the only way you can fight those monsters again, right?” Siegfried comforted the old general.
“Yes, you’re right,” General Overlock replied. He wiped his tears and gritted his teeth before declaring. “I will stake my career and honor as a soldier and put an end to this war once and for all.”
“You are truly a soldier worthy of respect,” Siegfried said with a smile and said, “Please get some rest while I go tie up some loose ends.”
“Hmm?”
“I can’t let the meat sit for too long, right? I should finish roasting it,” Siegfried said with a vicious smile before leaving the tent.
“Hey, Sieg! Lieutenant Colonel Sieg! We should continue where we left off a while ago!” General Overlock called out to him.
“I will tell you everything later,” Siegfried nonchalantly brushed him off and ran away.
He knew that this wasn’t the right time to tell the old general everything about him.
***
Sizzle… Sizzle… Sizzle…!
Thirty minutes later, a barbecue party was hosted in front of the barracks, but nobody dared to touch the meat that was served to them. The reason was that the meat served wasn’t the meat of an animal but the meat of alien-like monsters.
It went without saying that these monsters were the Crypt Humans that had disguised themselves as the abducted officers to infiltrate the army. All this was made possible by Crypt Human 009’s betrayal.
“Ack! AAAACK!”
“ACK!”
“You demon! AAAARGH!”
“S-Spare me! Please! AAAAAH!”
The Crypt Humans were rounded up and subjected to the same torture as Crypt Human 009.
“Owner punk! I think we need more chili oil! Kyu!”
“All right! Drench 'em all!” Siegfried exclaimed.
Hamchi jumped and moved a paintbrush with godlike speed to smother the Crypt Humans with chili oil.
“AAAACK!”
“Even the devil himself won’t go as far as you—ACK!”
“Kyaaaaah!”
The Crypt Humans were subjected to excruciating agony at the hands of Siegfried and Hamchi, and the onlookers, including General Overlock and the rescued officers, felt a chill travel down their spine at the sight of Siegfried’s atrocities.
“L-Lieutenant Colonel Sieg… Even the Demon King will bow in reverence to you after witnessing your atrocities…” General Overlock said after seeing the Adventurer’s viciousness.
“Now…” Siegfried grinned and asked, “You’re going to tell us everything you know. Did you get that? Hmm… I guess I won’t need all of you, so it’s going to be on a first-come, first-serve basis. Raise your hands in three… two… one… go!”
However, none of the Crypt Humans raised their hands.
“Huh? Why aren’t any of you raising your hands? Oh, is it loyalty or something like that? Wow… that’s quite impressive…” Siegfried said in awe.
“Hey! You crazy motherfucker! How can we raise our hands when our hands are tied up, you fucking psychopath!”
“Ah, you’re right,” Siegfried muttered.
“You can be so smart yet so dumb at the same time, owner punk,” Hamchi said while shaking his head.
“Hey, Hamchi.”
“Yeah?”
“Put more salt and pepper on him. How dare he cuss at me just because I made a mistake! Teach him a lesson!”
“On it! Kyu!”
Siegfried made an example out of the Crypt Human by subjecting it to even more excruciating pain.
“Now, let’s try that again. The first one to shout will be spared. Got it? Three… two… one… go!” Siegfried gave the signal.
Find the original at bit.ly/3iBfjkV.
“Me! I’ll speak!”
“I’ll do it!”
“I know everything!”
The Crypt Humans screamed at the same time.
“All right, you first,” Siegfried pointed at the Crypt Human that shouted first. He stared coldly at the Crypt Human and said, “Tell me everything you know.”
“W-well…”
The Crypt Human started to spill everything.
