Chapter 158: Turning Point [9]
Everything changed on that day.
Otherworldly creatures descended in their world.
After two weeks, the crack in the sky abruptly closed.
Towns, villages, cities all crumbled under the sheer destruction of the catastrophic event.
Chaos ensued everywhere, and as a result, survivors living in the continent took refuge inside the capital, Vale City.
Due to that there was a significant lack of resources to distribute to the refugees.
People started living on the streets. Crime rate statistics shot at an all time high.
Wherever the otherworldly creatures vanished off to, no one knew.
Just that, they knew they were now living amongst them.
Several weeks passed, and it was revealed that the incursion had already started, even before the calamity happened.
50,000 Imperial Army Soldiers participated in the incursion.
Conclusion?
Zero survivors.
Not a single one.
As a result, the continent's military power significantly decreased.
But that wasn't the worst of it.
…Lucian Frost was deemed dead. As well as Grand Marshal, Albert Constantine.
Thankfully, there were still military personnels who weren't strong enough to join the incursion.
Before the incursion, they were severely demoralized.
But now, they had realized it was a blessing in disguise.
They were still alive, and were now handling Imperial Army matters.
At the moment, there was no Grand Marshal.
Several elections were held on who should take the position.
"I vote for Sir Adam Frost."
Lucian Frost's Father.
He was weak, despite being a Field Marshal.
After all, he had only risen to that status due to his son.
But now that Lucian Frost was dead, he had nothing but his title to hold to.
And so votes for him were of the minority.
"I vote for Sir Chrome Answorth."
He was a General. The rank, just below Field Marshal.
However, he was close to Omar Locke and Albert Constantine.
He was grieving for the death of both of his friends.
However, he persevered.
He could drown in grief later. But now was not the time for that.
Humanity was in a perilous situation. If he didn't set his thoughts aside, then it was bound for extinction.
Not just him, but the entire Imperial Army.
The government was one thing. They were in charge of taking the initiative in managing the dire states of affairs.
For the army, what they would tackle was humanity's protection.
Protection against the otherworldly creatures.
Only time would tell when they would begin their rampage.
In fact, there were already several sightings outside the city.
The green-midget looking ones resided in grass plains and meadows.
The army collectively agreed that they would be classified as goblins.
There were also lizard-like humanoid figures who took control of swampy areas.
Lizardmen.
During their travel to the city, survivors of the calamity, who resided in towns, had reported sightings of large humanoid creatures with snouts and weapons.
They took hold of the mountains.
The army had classified them as ogres.
For the survivors who used to live in the hotter areas of the continent, they had reported sightings of similar looking creatures.
Orcs.
There seemed to be more, and the sightings were being reported everyday.
But the one that caught their attention the most were the ones residing in the forest.
From all the creatures that descended in their world, the ones in the forest seemed to resemble humans the most.
However, there was a key difference that separated them from humans.
These creatures all share the same hair color.
Silver.
But what was most peculiar were their leaf shaped pointed ears.
And so they classified them as elves.
Maybe…
Maybe they were capable of vocal interaction.
There were more.
So much more.
But for some reason, these creatures were only taking territory.
They weren't actively trying to attack the city.
If so, then what was their purpose?
As they tried to assess the situation even more, it seemed like they were…
Taking refuge?
But that was nothing but a hypothesis.
Sooner or later, they would soon bare their fangs against humanity.
And so, humanity had to prepare for that day.
Their debriefing ended there, and they returned to their previous discussion.
The next Grand Marshal.
It had to be noted that there were fresh recruits.
They were young. Some of them were previously students. But had dropped out due to the events that transpired.
After all, the academy was shut down. With no Headmaster, and the ongoing problems, there was no one present to actively volunteer to teach.
The new recruits were humanity's next hope.
And to the Imperial Army's surprise, a certain someone had decided to join their ranks.
Evelyn Cessna.
A renowned ranker of the S+ rank.
Guild operations were closed, and with nothing to do to prevent humanity's setback, she had decided to join the Imperial Army.
At least, that's what it said in her résumé.
But she wasn't the only one that caught the Imperial Army's attention.
Two new recruits.
Amelia Constantine.
And…
Belle Locke.
The successors of the late Albert Constantine, and Omar Locke.
Immediately, as soon as Amelia joined, she was instantly up for nomination for the Grand Marshal title.
She had several supporters. After all, she was a known leader during her academy days.
But alas, there were also soldiers who were against it.
After all, she was too young for the leadership position. The role would put too much pressure on her.
And so, their voting ended there.
In the end, no one was elected as the next Grand Marshal.
***
"Haa…"
Stepping out of the meeting chamber, Belle breathed out a sigh.
She was a recruit, and yet, there was already a lot of pressure placed on her.
But the pressure was nothing compared to the atmosphere around the room.
It was suffocating.
Just being in the same room as where her father once stood had left her suffocated.
After the death of her father, things were never the same.
Her mother had suffered severe depression.
And so she had decided that her mother moved in with her.
Thankfully, their city hadn't suffered too much damage.
It was still a place that they could live in.
However, it wasn't safe.
Being in the capital was much safer.
At the moment, the maids and several house servants were taking care of her mother.
And during the night, Belle would often be there for her.
The world was undergoing significant changes. With such thoughts, Belle decided to join the Imperial Army, just so she and her mother wouldn't be swept up by the changes.
But the world aside, something inside Belle changed.
She had put a boundary between her and her peers.
At the thought of the calamity, Belle clenched her fist.
"Shit."
She cursed under her breath.
Her mood became sour.
Her previous lively demeanor was nowhere to be seen.
She had set aside the thought of her previous life.
…When her family was still complete.
But it was to no avail.
Two months had passed since the calamity, and yet she could never forget him.
Her precious little brother.
Why?
That was because…
Brandon Locke was dead.
*
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[AN]
I decided to prolong volume one, up until this point.
But this officially marks the end of volume one.
Volume two starts in the next chapter. Thank you so much for the overwhelming support.