Chương 239

"We need to leave as soon as possible," Daelin announced with a steely resolve that commanded the room. He pointed to the older smith.

"Strip the prototype. Draw up the schematics and begin retrofitting all the projectors in this fortress. You won't have the numbers to stop an armada if it gets here, but you can make them bleed for every inch they take, and I doubt they'll have put all their eggs in one basket."

"It will be done, Heir Lazuli," the smith vowed, striking his chest with a soot-stained fist. Samael, who had hurried to join them once the situation became clear, caught Orion's attention with a gesture.

"I will stay here. Borin needs experienced casters to defend the battlements until their retrofitting is complete, and I can keep a direct line of communication with Archmage Valentia once you arrive. Take Jonatan with you." Orion gave the older mage a nod of respect. Staying behind at a border fortress actively targeted by an overwhelming enemy force was a risky move, but Samael did not seem concerned.

"Keep them busy as long as you can," Orion said, accepting Jonatan with a nod. With the most pressing matters resolved, Daelin didn't waste another second. He signaled for Orion, Jonatan, and Pauline to follow and broke into a quick jog down the corridor. Two heavily armored dwarves fell into step beside them, their presence forcing an immediate split among the passing artisans. These must be the hidden guards watching him. I figured it was a little too strange for a Prince to wander around without any protection.

Orion quickly glanced at their status.

Brok Ironweaver - Faithful Steward Class: Master Shieldbreaker [B-rank] Level: 132 Mind: 352 Attunement: 473 Body: 811 Traits: Bulwark [B-rank]; Blood of the Slain [B-rank]; Mountain Shadow [B-rank]; Inner Mana Manipulation [B-rank]; Thrum Deepdelver - Front line of the Deep Class: Force Warden [B-rank] Level: 129 Mind: 272 Attunement: 443 Body: 840 Traits: True Projection [B-rank]; Blood of the Slain [B-rank]; Mountain Shadow [B-rank]; Mana Manipulation [B-rank]; Unsurprisingly, they were Tier 3 veterans.

As members of the Heir's personal retinue, they were armed with runic axes and masterwork plate armor, which meant that although their power wasn't that great in the larger scope of the war, they could probably hit above their weight class. The two offered no greetings, but Orion appreciated how they managed to speed up their passage, and he was sure there would be time to talk later. They avoided the main elevators and descended through a hidden, spiraling stairwell.

The air gradually grew hotter, with the familiar smell of sulfur and molten iron burning in Orion's throat. This time, however, they completely bypassed the magma layers, and before long, the glowing red veins disappeared into cold bedrock.

"We'll be using the Deep Roads," Daelin explained, his voice bouncing off the narrow walls.

"The magma tunnels are primarily for mining and venting, but the real network exists beneath the continent. It's just the surface of the underworld, so watch carefully. While the clans have subdued most of the beasts, darker forces occasionally reach the surface." Another hour of descending brought them to a wide iron platform extending over an abyss. Orion fed some mana into his adamantine glasses, and the Arcane Overlay lit up. The cavern was so enormous it felt like a starless sky hidden underground.

Even with data streaming in, its vastness was hard to grasp. Bioluminescent fungi clung to the distant walls, casting an ethereal glow over an endless expanse of stalagmites and subterranean rivers, and the Field was just as alive as on the surface, if more concentrated with the local elements. Their transport rested on a set of rails. It was a heavily armored locomotive, resembling an iron wedge designed to cut through solid rock.

Runic arrays were carved along its sides, drawing power from a crystal that siphoned earth and fire mana from the environment. Brok and Thrum moved to the front, unsealing the iron doors, and the group piled into the cramped cabin, taking seats along the reinforced benches. Daelin took the conductor's position, his hands flying across a complex array of levers and runic dials.

"You'd better hold on," the dwarf warned. Barely giving them time to comply, he pulled the main lever, and the locomotive lurched forward, its runic engine emitting a deep, thrumming roar. Acceleration pushed Orion back into his seat as the cart sped down the rails, plunging into the endless darkness of the underworld. The stone pillars outside blurred into streaks of shadow, the speed far surpassing any conventional transit he had experienced in this world.

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. After a few minutes, when it was clear nothing would change, Orion fully activated his HUD, fiddling with it until he managed to project the decrypted Iron State map over the structural blueprints of the dwarven range Daelin had provided. There's something that's been bothering me for a while.

The Crawlers managed to attack the fortress and retreat far too easily, and while I understand how they got here, I doubt they would have avoided detection during their escape if they had used any regular route. Which means they didn't. The data streams merged seamlessly in his vision, forming a three-dimensional model of the Adamantine Range and the surrounding areas. He traced the enemy's projected path, comparing it to the natural fault lines and the wide empty spaces of the Deep Roads.

"They couldn't have marched over the mountains," Orion realized, as the tactical picture snapped into focus.

"The coastal armada isn't a distraction, not with how many resources they've dedicated to it, but they can't have put everything there." Pauline and Jonatan leaned forward, and he created a light illusion so they could see the maps too. The witch's eyes narrowed as she thought.

"You think they are using the underworld as well?"

"It gives them perfect cover," Orion confirmed, tracing a glowing path through the cavern map.

"We already know they brought specialized digging units, since they managed to infiltrate the magma flows. To do that, they must be moving through the faults, bypassing the surface wards entirely to strike the fortresses from below."

"But wouldn't they have attacked directly from below, then?" Jonatan asked, but before Orion could reply, Brok interjected."' Twas a probing strike." Thrum nodded.

"They didn't bring enough specialized units to breach the hold from below. I wouldn't be surprised if they lost several infiltrators just to get there, considering the number of monsters under the fortress." Orion grunted in agreement, though he wasn't so quick to believe the threat had passed. The natural dangers of the underworld were undoubtedly many, but the Iron State had proven to be frustratingly capable. In fact, it wouldn't be surprising if they had been lying in wait for a moment like this…

A sudden, violent tremor rocked the locomotive. Sparks showered from the ceiling of the cabin as the heavy iron frame groaned under an external impact. An alarm bell shrieked over the roar of the engine, even as it kept chugging along, far too resilient to be taken out in one blow.

"Get ready!" Thrum shouted, drawing his axe as the runes on his armor flared with energy. Orion looked through the reinforced quartz window and saw that the darkness outside was no longer empty. A swarm of mechanical horrors clung to the cavern walls, keeping pace with the speeding train. They were segmented constructs, built like centipedes forged from brass. Massive, spinning drill-heads formed their snouts, and their plating was forged in the unmistakable style of the Iron State.

For once, the Silence hiding inside their chassis wasn't enough to stop Orion's inspection, undoubtedly thanks to the upgrade to his SDGs. Magitek Burrower - Infiltration Model Class: Alchemical Construct [C-rank] Level: 98 Mind: 110 Attunement: 450 Body: 650 Traits: Reactive Adaptation [C-rank]; Silence Emitter [C-rank]; Biological Core Integration [C-rank] Three of the machines lunged from the rock, slamming their chassis against the side of the locomotive.

The impact dented the armor plating, and the screech of tearing metal drowned out the engine, but at least one of the Borrowers was mowed down, as the cart kept moving, still drawing mana from the Field. Damn, this thing is tough. I guess it is almost tier three. Seeing that they weren't stopping them, the Burrowers activated their drills, trying to bore straight through the hull and flood the cabin with anti-magic powder.

"Repel them!" Daelin ordered, unable to leave the controls as he navigated a treacherous curve in the rails. Shadows surged at Pauline's command, striking two of the constructs and sending them crashing into the void, briefly giving them a reprieve. Orion raised an eyebrow as he turned to her, and she smirked.

"This is a good environment for me." He suppressed a snort, knowing it was much more than that. Pauline had been working nonstop on her tier three magic, and it seemed she'd reached the point where she could infuse even basic spells with the power needed to affect the Silence. Still, it wasn't time to slack off, as more Burrowers attacked them, but this time, the dwarves were prepared. Brok slammed his palm against the side door, channeling a burst of earth mana into the metal.

The spell strengthened the iron, transforming the hull into an impenetrable shield that immediately shattered the closest Burrower's spinning drill. Thrum followed up a moment later, surprisingly throwing the door open. The howling wind from their passage tore into the cabin, and the Warden swung his axe, releasing a wave of repulsive force that hit the closest construct in the center of its segmented body. The machine was torn from the hull and sent tumbling wildly into the dark.

Unfortunately, there were too many. Dozens of Burrowers dropped from the cavern ceiling, raining down on the roof of the speeding train. Their mechanical legs gripped the metal, and the overwhelming weight of the swarm threatened to derail the locomotive entirely. Pauline phased straight through the roof of the cabin, emerging onto the exterior hull. Through the glass, Orion watched her dance across the speeding train.

She commanded the darkness of the underworld, turning the absence of light into ribbons of shadow that lashed out, wrapping around the constructs' segmented joints. She used blunt force to lift the machines and, with their momentum, smash them together. However, the damage was minimal, and soon, those constructs that had been hit initially rejoined the mass of writhing limbs. A Burrower broke through the back door, its drill ripping through the reinforced hinges. Jonatan and Orion exchanged glances and got to work.

The machine lunged, its metallic mandibles clicking rapidly. Orion extended his hand.

"[+G]." At the same time, Jonatan cast.

"[Maximize Magic] [Penetrate]" Two opposing gravitational wells appeared simultaneously. Thanks to the reinforcement, Orion managed to influence the more powerful machine, and once he felt the metal give, he pulled the front half of the Burrower straight down with crushing force, snapping its rear segment upward. The conflicting physics tore the machine in half, and sparks and alchemical fluids sprayed across the cabin floor as the ruined halves clattered into the darkness.

"Damnit! The tracks!" Daelin shouted. Orion suddenly spun around, glancing quickly past the controls. His HUD showed a rapidly approaching critical structural failure, and he realized the saboteurs had severed the rails once it became clear they wouldn't be stopped. A wide, yawning chasm lay directly in their path, the bridge completely destroyed.

"Brake!" Brok yelled, bracing himself against the bulkhead.

"If I brake, the swarm will overwhelm us!" Daelin argued, gripping the levers tightly. He looked at Orion, a wild, desperate glint in his eyes.

"Can you lift us?" Orion performed the calculations in a fraction of a second. The locomotive weighed several tons, and its speed was extreme. Lifting it entirely was impossible, but he didn't need to make it fly. He just needed to change how the world perceived its weight.

"Go at full speed!" Orion commanded. He moved to the front of the cabin and pressed his hands against the glass, drawing deeply from the Field and funneling the mana through the CC to ensure complete stability. Once he had taken all he safely could, he projected a gravitational well directly above the speeding train.

Inverting Earth's downward pull was something he had grown very accustomed to, but maintaining a continuous bubble of negative gravity that effectively removed the locomotive's mass shouldn't have been easy. Yet, the gravity magic seemed to work exceptionally well, and the heavy iron became as light as a feather just as the train hit the severed edge of the track.