I Became a Foreign Worker Loved by Transcendents-Chapter 219: Invaded Empire

-Let’s go, to the Empire.

A resolute voice echoed throughout the room.

The fortune teller, standing before the crystal orb from which the voice emanated, began to tremble at her fingertips.

“…In the end, you’re coming after all.”

It was beyond expectation, even something she was certain of.

She knew very well that the one who had embraced her so kindly would never decide to abandon her.

However, there was no means to overturn his decision at the moment.

Now that things had come to this, the only way to fulfill her mission would be to face him directly, convince him, and send him back.

“O Mother of Beginnings.”

All was for the sake of protecting love and duty.

Airi, who had always kept this resolution in her heart, let out a bitter voice as she watched the future unfold in the crystal orb.

“…Is this really the best outcome I can produce?”

Being united with him was the most certain way to achieve her mission.

She realized that giving him up was the only way for more people to be saved in the era soon to come.

“Is the ship all right?”

As she soothed her complicated emotions from foreseeing such a future, a familiar voice rang out.

Airi, who had been gazing into the crystal orb, quietly turned to face the person who had entered the room.

Orion Seis.

A leader who, along with a rapidly fracturing empire following the disappearance of the suppressant, sought mutual destruction with the calamities plaguing the world.

“Yes, it’s fine.”

Airi had joined him in his ideals, and that was why she was here.

From the standpoint of humanity, he would surely be considered evil, but what she wanted was something beyond humanity, for the whole world…

She wished to leave behind as many traces of people as possible in this harsh world.

“…I’ll ask you one last time.”

Even if people lived in the era to come, they would certainly remember them as villains.

Crown Prince Seis, who foresaw such a future, asked the descendant of the God of Destruction, who was working with him.

“Are you sure you won’t regret your decision?”

“No.”

With a prompt response, Airi stood up.

She then placed her hand on her empty belly, preparing to follow him.

“I’m already prepared.”

She had done all that she could, and now, all that was left was to wait for the time to come.

Just as she was about to express her strong resolve, someone revealed their presence beside Crown Prince Seis, who was about to guide her.

Gradually, a figure emerged from the mist—a vampire dressed in a maid’s uniform.

“…Scheherazade.”

“Yes~ I am the faithful servant of My Lord, Scheherazade~”

Scheherazade the Pilgrim.

With her signature sly smile, she elegantly lifted the hem of her skirt and bowed.

Her actions did not suit the gravity of the situation soon to come, but the voice that followed was exceedingly serious.

“It seems the Demon King’s army is about to invade the capital… I came to ask if we should release ‘them’ as planned.”

“Proceed as planned. Prevent the Demon King’s army from invading until the ceremony is complete.”

“What about the citizens still left in the capital?”

“…We’ve already given them enough time.”

For half a year, they issued a subjugation order, eradicating the threats near the empire as much as possible, and through coercive suppression, they gave them a natural reason to leave the capital.

Yet, those who remained here must now accept the fate that was soon to arrive, whatever their reasons may be.

Whether they were ignorant, lacked the courage to face danger, or harbored ambitions to rule over a crumbling empire.

“…You’re quite ruthless, My Lord.”

She chuckled at her lord’s cruel decision but moved to withdraw shortly after.

“Oh, by the way, there is one thing I forgot…”

As if something suddenly came to mind, Scheherazade faced Crown Prince Seis and asked a question.

“What about the witch?”

“…Vivian, you mean?”

“I saw her briefly on the way here, just staring blankly at the sky. She follows orders when under hypnosis, but if left alone, she can’t make any decisions on her own anymore, would you say?”

The curse of forgetfulness.

A vampire’s secret technique that gradually erases the memories of the target.

Because of this, even beings capable of bringing calamities to the world would lose their will and become empty dolls.

“Handle it as you see fit.”

But everything they needed from her had already been obtained long ago.

He said he no longer needed to care about her, and Scheherazade gave a bitter smile as her body dissolved into mist.

“Are you really sure I can do whatever I want?”

“Yes, as long as it doesn’t interfere with the upcoming ceremony.”

“Hehe, understood. We’ve been short on labor anyway, so I’ll make full use of her until the time comes~”

With a soft sound, Scheherazade vanished without a trace.

Seis, clearing away the remnants left behind in the empty space, gazed at the darkness that hung over the palace corridor and spoke quietly.

“Follow me.”

“…Yes.”

Shaking off her last remaining hesitation, Airi followed behind him.

As she walked, she glanced out the window in the corridor, and her breath began to still.

The once majestic and peaceful city was burning in real time, spreading black smoke in all directions.

Even from afar, the scene of tragedy was palpable, but Airi’s gaze wasn’t on the capital—it was directed towards the sky above it.

Smoke billowing from the burning buildings. Even darker clouds above.

And within those clouds, a red current slowly began to seep through.

‘Soon…’

The faint starlight scattered across the ominously changing sky made one thing clear to the fortune teller standing before him.

‘Soon… everything will come to an end.’

The beings that existed beyond that sky had their own reasons.

And they were watching the events unfolding in this small world.

As the sky turned red, we crossed the border of the empire.

“Everyone, evacuate this way!”

After crossing the ruined gates, what greeted us from behind the refugees were none other than hordes of monsters.

-Kiiieeek! Wooooooh!

“Damn it! We spent half a year hunting them down, so why are there so many monsters swarming here?! What were the others doing while we were busy subjugating them?!”

“What’s the point of subjugating them?! We used all our forces to suppress the uprisings, and now we can’t stop the ones coming in from outside!”

As the soldiers said, the monsters that appeared now were a result of the empire’s deteriorating control.

The swarming monsters destroyed the shelters in each territory, leading to the massacre of refugees.

“More refugees are coming from the west! The monsters are chasing them, too!”

“Activate the defense system immediately!”

Boom, boom! The Ark’s cannons roared, sweeping away the approaching monsters.

However, due to the nature of artillery, precision was difficult, and some monsters continued to pursue beyond the bombardment.

The soldiers who entered to stop them guarded the path to the Ark while protecting the refugees, but the problem was that there were monsters too powerful for ordinary soldiers to handle.

-Kuaahhhh!!!

A giant, serpent-like monster rose, tearing through the ground.

The soldiers flinched and faltered, but two people moved forward before anyone else, preparing to face the monster.

“Old man, are you ready?”

“Yeah, kid!”

Ga-ram and Ja-seong.

They were my reliable pillars, guarding the Ark with me.

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-Kwaaaang!!

The dirt shot up like cannonballs due to their combined strength, and the massive monster, now battered and disoriented, staggered and closed its gaping mouth that had been aimed at the refugees.

But it was my role to finish off the monster, which was still struggling, not yet dead.

“Annabel!!!”

-No need to call me; I know what to do!

A massive wave of energy surged from the spear I raised.

The precise control of the power using the spirits collided with the force she wielded, creating a chain of shockwaves.

That power combined with a technique of flow, allowing for a devastating strike that didn’t rely on the enemy’s strength.

-Boom!!!

The monster shattered into pieces as the thrown spear hit its mark, and I turned my spear towards the newly approaching monsters, blocking their advance toward the refugees.

“Everyone, take shelter in the Ark! We’ll protect this place!”

“Th-thank you, Hero! You saved us!”

The refugees gradually piled into the Ark.

The reason there were more refugees than we initially expected was because the shelters within the empire were collapsing one by one.

And the speed of that collapse was accelerating.

You could realize this just by hearing the reports from the refugees.

“Our… our territory has been invaded by the Demon King’s army!”

“You mean the Demon King’s army crossed the border?”

“Yes, yes. We somehow managed to deal with the monsters… but then the Demon King’s army launched a massive invasion on the shelter in the territory, and the defenses were completely wiped out.”

“We were only able to escape because we were on the outskirts…”

The refugees shuddered as they recalled those events.

The soldiers exchanged glances upon hearing the information, all of them pale as they looked at one another.

“Even if we go, there won’t be anyone alive, right?”

Monsters merely attacked people, but the Demon King’s army was different.

They were a race that had sought plunder since their inception.

It was foolish to think there could be any hope left in places ravaged by those who mercilessly trample on the dignity and lives of others.

“Well, there might still be survivors.”

However, right now, we had someone on the Ark who was the most knowledgeable about demons.

Merilyn, who had been listening to the invasion news with me, gave me a subtle glance and quietly shared her thoughts.

“Demons drunk on power usually behave that way. Instead of killing the weak right away, they toy with them to prove their superiority.”

“So you’re saying they keep them alive until the fun runs out?”

“The children we’re sheltering on the Ark are alive for the same reason.”

Even though she was a demon herself, was she disgusted by such behavior because she had been a victim of it, too?

In any case, there was still a slim possibility that the people in the raided shelter were alive.

After considering it, I gave instructions to Sanson, who had been listening to the news with me.

“Inform everyone on the Ark. We’re heading to the nearby territory to rescue the refugees.”

“Are you sure this is okay? If we head to the territory, it will delay our arrival at the capital…”

“If the Demon King’s army has already crossed the border, the capital will face conflict soon. And to maximize the Ark’s functions, we need to secure as many skilled people as possible.”

It wasn’t just about saving people.

We needed to increase our allies for the future. That way, we’d be better prepared for what would happen after entering the capital.

Although we were pressed for time, if we were to take a detour, we needed to make swift decisions.

“The destination is the nearby Teles Territory! Turn the Ark’s course!”

“Switch to operational mode and inject fuel to boost the engine output!”

“Use the defense systems to deal with the incoming monsters! Have the able-bodied refugees assist in the defense room and control room to increase our response capabilities!”

-Kwagagagaga!

The wheels cutting across the unpaved ground caused the fortress to tremble violently.

As I felt the vibrations in my body, realizing we were heading into danger, Annabel spoke to me reproachfully.

-If you try to protect everything, you might lose everything.

I knew that.

With more urgent matters at hand, there was no time to look elsewhere.

But how could anyone live while thinking of the world only in cold, rational terms?

“Even trying to live in a world like this is unreasonable to begin with.”

Airi would also hope I didn’t ignore the people we encountered on our way to meet her.

Believing my decision was right, as we headed to our destination, Sanson rushed towards me in the control room.

“Hero! The scouting Zoin Tribe has returned! They say the territory is filled with corpses!”

Damn it, did the demons kill everyone and leave in such a short time?

I quickly headed to the top of the Ark to hear the details. The Zoin scouts descended from the watchtower and relayed their report.

“They aren’t human corpses.”

It was some hopeful news amidst what I thought was the worst possible scenario.

“They aren’t human, you say…?”

“The bodies belong to various creatures. Many of our own kind were also killed by those things.”

Confused by the report, I quickly grabbed my binoculars to survey the territory myself.

As she said, scattered throughout the ruins of the city were corpses of non-humans…

For some reason, the demons who invaded the territory had been slaughtered, almost as if they were waiting for our arrival.

“What on earth happened? The demons that invaded the territory were massacred like that…”

“There are survivors over there!”

Whatever the case, we first needed to figure out what had happened.

With that in mind, I rushed out of the Ark and approached the survivors secured by the leading soldiers to gather information.

“A-are you here to save us?”

“Are there more survivors besides you?”

“Yes, yes… ah, there are more survivors gathered further inside.”

“We’ll rescue them immediately.”

Sanson and the soldiers immediately began securing the survivors, spurred on by the good news.

Trusting them to do the job, I quietly questioned the remaining survivor, trying to calm them.

“Calmly… can you tell me what happened here?”

What on earth happened here for the demons that invaded the territory to end up dead?

How was it that more survivors lived than expected?

“Orcs…”

The answer that came was something I had never imagined.

“An orc from the Demon King’s army suddenly started killing the demons in their own ranks.”

Helkrai, one of the Four Heavenly Kings.

The one who saved my life in the past—why has he now betrayed even the Demon King’s army?