World Keeper

Chapter 915: The Oncoming Swarm

When I heard the requests of the two acting generals, I was… admittedly hesitant. Getting Lorence the Peace domain actually wasn’t that difficult. If I had Ashley use some admin tools, I was sure that I could find the suitable fragment in time, but I wasn’t sure how long it would take. On the other hand, I could have Aznod prepare the domain for him as a dish. Although few people could afford a hand-crafted domain dish from Aznod, he was entirely capable of preparing it.

The reason I was hesitant was that Aznod had only just started his honeymoon, and I didn’t want to disturb him if I could avoid it. In the end, I agreed to ask him for this when he had a moment free. Given the scale of the game, it could take years for Ashley to find the fragment even if she used admin tools. Thus, my only options were to either storm the imperial family’s treasury to steal theirs, or ask him.

As for the other general, Cierna Evans, she had a far more difficult request. Her army was being pressured by the enemy team, and one of the systems she was in charge of was in danger of being overrun by a divine swarm. We had to either rout the swarm or completely annihilate them. For a moment, I actually considered giving up on this request. Theoretically, we could create a hyperlane network with just Lorence’s information.

However, the more I heard, the more I resolved myself to get involved. The system that Cierna was defending had a total of two inhabited worlds. Even disregarding the normal NPCs that didn’t possess a soul, there were bound to be thousands of ‘living’ NPCs on those worlds.

Normally, I wouldn’t personally take action for just a few thousand people, or else I’d never have a moment’s peace. There were two reasons that I decided to get involved this time. The first, naturally, was because I did still want the hyperlane information that Cierna possessed.

Aside from that, I wanted to test out some of the abilities that I had built up to prepare for the previous invasion, but had never gotten the chance to use. For instance, my Shattering Fists were almost always being interrupted by the fighters intercepting me, and I hadn’t had the chance to unleash the power of ‘The One Who Speaks the End’. Similarly, this was a chance for Dana to send her new familiars into battle.

Which brought us to the battle in question. There were just the seven of us, suspended in the empty space, watching as a golden cloud seemed to slowly make its way closer. Before we begin, what can you tell me about the enemy? I asked Cierna, who was standing with us. She was not here to fight, but to watch the event and verify the safety of the system. Those actually doing the fighting would be myself, Tsubaki, Lifre, Dana, and her two familiars.

Most empires simply refer to them as ‘the swarm’. Cierna answered respectfully. Each of them possesses the Fragment, or domain, of Hunger. This is because they all originate from a single entity, one that used this power to consume other energies and replicate itself. It is said that if a member of the swarm appears on any inhabited world, local fragments must be called in to eradicate that world. Otherwise, the swarm will consume it to create millions more of itself. They travel by means of the hyperlane network, but otherwise are thankfully not able to achieve faster-than-light travel under normal circumstances.

So we are fighting millions of gods in a hive mind? I asked, furrowing my brow. However, Cierna shook her head.

According to the preliminary report, the incoming swarm should number in the billions. However, despite this, their individual combat power is quite weak. An average fragment can take on hundreds by themselves. This is due to their bodies being ‘impure’. Only a small fraction of their being has been converted to true divinity. Occasionally, if the swarm kills a fragment, there will be elite monsters birthed that have a higher degree of purity, but those are incredibly rare within the swarm. It’s these elites that are able to move beyond the speed of light.

Do they obtain the domains of the gods that they eat? Dana asked, staring at the swarm ahead.

Not entirely. The elite monsters have some fraction of the domain power, but not enough to be considered a full god. It’s more like leftover energy.

I nodded my head, stretching one hand out towards the incoming swarm. By now, they were close enough that I could make out various shapes within them. All things end. I muttered, transmitting my thoughts through the draconic bracer I was wearing. There was a pulse of spiritual energy surging forward in a wave in response to my words.

When this wave crashed into the swarm, nearly half of them became still, the other half quickly overtaking them. Just as I was starting to be pleased with myself, I saw the survivors turn around and begin madly consuming their own fallen soldiers. The entire process took under a minute, before new troops filled their ranks. Although they had suffered a loss, they were able to bring back over eighty percent of the forces that I had killed in my initial attack.

So that’s why they are so hard to deal with. I sighed deep in my heart, knowing that I would have to release far more power if I wanted to kill them faster than they could replenish their forces. Dana, it’s your turn. I’ll be preparing the God Shattering Hand, so let me see what you can do.

Dana nodded her head with a wide smile, glancing at her two familiars. You heard him.

Sienna floated back, darkness wrapping around her before exploding violently into her surroundings. Fly. With that one command, a black swarm erupted from the darkness, flying towards the approaching horde. However, these small insects acted rather strangely as they flew away from Sienna, becoming larger and larger as they traveled.

Looking at the incredibly focused expression on Sienna’s face, it was likely that she was using the Absurdity of Fate to increase the size of her own swarm based on her perspective of their flight. By the time they reached the enemy, each of her ‘little’ insects had become dozens of times larger than the creatures within the opposing swarm. Though they weren’t gods, they were more than enough to serve as a distraction.

My turn, now! Clara said, clapping her hands together. Her hair began to lift into the air behind her, mana surging through her body. I am the one who walks through the shadows unhindered. My word is the law that binds the soul. Come forth, the blade of eternal night. Come forth, the spear of ruin. Wrapped in the cloak of shadows, let nothing stand before you.

At first, I thought she was using elemental magic from the geometric field when I heard her chant. However, there was no sign of a magic array. Instead, two dark projections appeared on either side of her body. One sat astride a black steed, a dark lance held in one hand. The other carried a black blade more than two meters long.

Both figures were wrapped in black armor, making it difficult to make out their figures without the planets behind us as the backdrop. Once I saw them emerge, I was sure that this was one of the spells that Dana had imbued her with, likely a use of Kione’s elemental magic.

Just as I was beginning to wonder how strong these two were, they charged out, their bodies a dark blur. In seconds, they had arrived before the swarm, far surpassing the speed of Sienna’s monsters.

The dark lancer pierced his weapon into the body of one monster, which immediately blackened and dissolved into shadows. These shadows then moved to surround both the lancer and swordsman, causing them to grow just slightly. However, this growth was far more noticeable when the swordsman swung his sword, similarly dissolving more than a dozen enemies.

With that, their bodies grew by more than half, and the swarm recognized them as either a threat or a potential meal. The swarm gave up on its charge, now choosing to fight against the creatures released by Dana’s familiars. Just to make sure, it’s fine for those units to die? I asked Dana, who nodded her head.

The two released by Clara are simple projections created by a spell. They don’t have a proper soul or anything like that. As for the ones Sienna called, they are a rather low tier monster in Deckan. In fact, I’d suggest you kill them all quickly, so that they don’t just add to the enemy’s forces. Until then, their only job is to serve as a distraction.

I looked at Tsubaki next, but she shook her head. My Way of Hidden Truths is more suited for one on one combat. As for the Heart of Combat, it would indeed be ideal for me to go forward to fight. However, I would not be able to avoid the attack you want to release.

I was proud of her for not choosing to go out in consideration of my attack. Had this been earlier in her life, she would have told me without hesitation to attack even if she were in the way. That left Lifre, who nodded her head with a bright smile.

When the young slime girl stepped forward, the space around her seemed to tremble. She put on a solemn atmosphere, pointing one hand towards the swarm. Distort. She commanded, and the space around the nearby battlefield seemed to ripple, forming a sphere. Whenever one of the monsters moved to the edge of that sphere, they would simply appear on the other side. Collapse.

Immediately, the sphere she had created began to rapidly contract, compressing the monsters together. Originally, there were several dozen meters between each one, as space was rather… well, large. However, soon they were pressed together, making them easy targets for Clara’s soldiers. At least, until they became tighter and tighter, some of them starting to perish under the sheer pressure of space weighing down on them.

Just as I thought Lifre might be able to deal with the entire swarm, there was a cracking sound. The surviving monsters had begun attacking the compressed space barrier. Individually, these creatures did not have the power to shatter space, and thus could not overcome the power used on them. However, once their attacks became concentrated, the sphere was punctured, shattering around them.

Thankfully, I had been preparing myself. With my hand held back, palm open, I focussed my ki through the pattern that I had practiced before. At the same time, I tapped into my Keeper reserves, as killing this many creatures in one hit would be impossible unless I were to access my full power. Even Keliope had only been able to shatter one starship with her strike.

God Shattering Hand. I muttered mentally, my hand slowly pushing forward. Although it was not a fast movement, the power behind it was constantly increasing. After my arm was fully extended forward, a palm of ki shot out, growing rapidly as it traveled.

At this moment, I was thankful for Lifre compressing the swarm together, as it made them a smaller target for me to strike. Originally, I had been prepared to lash out with a series of attacks in order to defeat the entire swarm, but now I could put my entire energy behind one move.

The swarm was inevitably crushed when the palm of ki made contact with it. I stood, prepared to release a long sigh when I noticed movement. Four figures within the cloud, still capable of movement. From what I could see, they had been at the back of the swarm, and had positioned themselves to let the rest of their allies take the brunt of my attack.

Even without scanning them, I could tell that they were the ‘elites’ that Cierna had warned us about. Unfortunately for me, I had used up my ki in the previous attack. If I wanted to deal with these four, I would need to resort to one of my other powers.

As I lifted my hand, conjuring the draconic bracer again, Tsubaki stepped forward. Please, let me handle this, my Keeper. She said with confidence. Now that the enemy numbers had been substantially reduced, she could fight without needing to worry about friendly fire.

I hesitated for a brief moment, before nodding my head. Already, the elites were starting to consume their fallen friends, so there wasn’t much time before their numbers would increase. If Tsubaki said that she could handle it, I believed her.