Chapter 299: Chapter 272: Mount the Cannon and Blast It to Hell

However, the moment her gaze met Jon’s, that hint of natural hesitation vanished without a trace. It was as if an unseen force steadied her, making her subconsciously straighten her back and report in a loud voice.

"Mr. Jon! Everything is ready! The [Fortress] can fire at any moment!"

Behind her stood four massive Mechanical Bodies, each the size of a small mountain. Like silent, steel behemoths, they had been precisely airdropped by the Elf Mage into a clearing amidst the ruins. Their heavy metal joints emitted a low hum, their cannons angled toward the heavens. The cold metal shells reflected the sky’s murky light, exuding a heart-stopping pressure.

Jon said nothing, striding forward. His eyes quickly scanned Esra’s slightly pale face. Once he confirmed she was alright, he patted her on the shoulder.

"Well done. It must have been hard work rounding up the residents, too."

"But this is no time to rest. Open the ammunition bays. I need to adjust the Enchantments on the shells!"

Encouraged by Jon, a faint blush crept onto Esra’s cheeks. She was clearly delighted, but she knew this was no time for delay. She immediately answered in a loud, clear voice, which held a barely perceptible, excited tremor.

"Yes, Mr. Jon!"

She immediately lowered her head to the Crystal Disc in her arms. Her slender fingers flew across the complex runic keys, and a low, rhythmic mechanical whirring sound rose in response.

"WHIRRR—CLACK, CLACK-CLACK—"

On the massive steel torsos of the four [Fortress] Mechanical Bodies, thick, multi-layered armor plates peeled back and slid open like petals, emitting the sharp screech of grinding metal. At last, their cold inner cores were fully exposed to the dim light of the sky.

Rows of neatly arranged cylindrical shells lay silently on their tracks, emitting the cold, hard sheen of frosted alloy.

Jon took a deep breath and held out his hands, aiming them at the ammunition bay of the nearest Fortress.

He had originally designed the [Fortress] as a specialized Mechanical Body for firing enchanted shells. Apart from their long range, the shells were designed more for utility than for true destructive power.

But now, in order to deal with the behemoth in the distance, this was no time to hold anything back!

He flicked his fingers, and shimmering threads of golden light immediately began to emanate from their tips.

This was not merely light, but something more akin to molten gold. It carried the searing heat of the Sun’s core and the boundless aura of the Life Origin as it flowed slowly downward, precisely merging with the complex Enchantment Array carved onto the surface of the shells.

Wherever the light touched, the cold alloy casings seemed to be endowed with Life. The lines of the Array suddenly lit up, flowing with a sacred radiance, as if dormant Runes were greedily drinking the nectar of the Divine Country.

This strange sight left Finian and Royce, who had not yet departed, visibly moved.

Royce’s eyes widened. His right hand, clad in holy white Arm Armor, subconsciously pressed against his chest as he gasped.

"This is... my Lord’s Divine Power!"

Jon didn’t turn his head, not even sparing them a glance.

At that moment, his entire being was immersed in the resonance between the Power flowing from his fingertips and the cold metal. Deep within his pupils, only the dance of light and the Array remained.

Finian stared intently at the golden light flowing from Jon’s fingertips, sensing the supreme majesty and the pure will that scours all evil contained within. He murmured to himself.

"There is no mistaking it... This aura, this majesty... It must be the great power bestowed by my Lord Po Ao himself."

"For Divine Power to be combined so... so exquisitely with a Mechanical Body..."

The old man’s low voice carried a solemnity that bordered on religious reverence, his praise heartfelt.

"His Highness Jon... truly worthy of being the Favored One chosen by our Lord...!"

He then looked to Royce, his voice growing stern.

"My friend, let us go. We must buy time for His Highness’s attack!"

Those words snapped the Sun Knight out of the reverie brought on by the display of Divine Power.

Royce took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the turmoil in his heart. He took one last, deep look at Jon, and all the doubt and shock in his eyes transformed into unshakeable resolve and a burning will to fight.

He turned toward the distant rock troll, the one clad in savage, metallic feather armor that raised waves of destruction. The dormant Holy Light around his body, like a suppressed volcano, suddenly erupted!

"Let’s go! This battle is for justice, and for the glory of our Lord and His Highness Jon!"

Before his voice had faded, he had already become a searing white meteor, tearing through the dim sky!

"My Lord is on high, and justice will prevail!"

Finian’s aged yet powerful declaration followed. The golden halo behind his head suddenly spun faster, and an immense sacred pressure erupted outwards!

The old man’s gaunt frame seemed to merge with the halo behind him, transforming him into a miniature, walking sun. Without hesitation, he followed Royce’s silhouette, charging fearlessly toward the blasphemous behemoth!

As the two of them joined the battle, the sky above Heta County City grew several shades brighter.

Meanwhile, Jon had quickly completed his preparations.

He lowered his hands, doing his best to keep his arms from trembling with a noticeable strain. He looked at the nervous, black-haired girl beside him and said in a low voice,

"Alright, Esra. Close the ammunition bays, aim for that big guy over there, and blast it!"

"Yes!"

Esra’s heart leaped into her throat.

The girl’s keen perception had caught Jon’s subtle, almost unnoticeable pause.

She could sense that the power contained within those shells was immense; each one was infused with Mr. Jon’s painstaking effort and a certain indescribable, boundless energy.

’I can’t waste a single one of these shots!’

She took a deep breath. Her eyes, behind her glasses, focused on the Crystal Disc in her lap, and she performed each action with an almost prayerful concentration.

"WHIRRR—CLACK! RUMBLE—!"

With the dull thud of closing machinery and the sharp whine of charging Energy, the four massive bodies of the [Fortress]es began to tremble.

The heavy armor plates sealed shut again, fitting together seamlessly like a behemoth closing its maw.

Under Esra’s control, the turrets whirred with a low, steady mechanical hum. The thick, long barrels slowly rose, their muzzles locking onto their target in the distance: the mountain-sized rock troll, clad in savage, dark-red steel feathers and radiating a monstrous, evil aura—the incarnation of Red Crying Castle!

The reek of gunpowder hanging in the air seemed to freeze in that moment.

Esra’s chest rose and fell with her nervous breaths. Her eyes were glued to the crimson dot on the Crystal Disc that indicated a target lock. Without further hesitation, she slammed her hand down on the activation Rune!

"Fire!"

—

Deep in the core of Red Crying Castle, the once-magnificent Lord’s great hall had now devolved into a dim space, filled with profane flesh and twisted Energy.

Countless dark-red feathers covered the walls and floor, even hanging clammily in the air, making the place look like the nest of some monstrous bird.

And Nerva Heta, who had been a swollen, amorphous figure, had now bizarrely contracted and solidified, regaining a roughly humanoid shape.

However, his current appearance could by no means be called a ’normal human form’.

Dark-red feathers sprouted from beneath his skin as if they were alive, covering his arms, shoulders, and back. A few sharp feather tips even protruded from the edges of his cheeks, making him look like a half-human, half-avian monster.

His head hung low and his eyes were shut tight. His body twitched faintly and unconsciously on its throne of coagulated flesh, and with each movement, the feathers rustled, making a sound like scraping metal.

Indistinct, delirious whispers escaped his lips, as if he were trapped in a nightmare from which he could not awaken.

"...Child... my... leave... don’t come near... danger..."

His voice was filled with pain, struggle, and a hint of deep-seated panic.

Viscous, dark-red threads of Energy wrapped around him, faintly connecting him to the vascular network of the entire living castle. Every heavy footstep of Red Crying Castle seemed to tug at his fragile nerves.

In the midst of these chaotic, nightmarish ramblings—

BOOM!!! THOOM THOOM THOOM—!!!

Four deafening booms, like a god beating a war drum, shattered his nightmare!

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