The Marchioni Empire’s battleships, the Invincible Battleships, made up the Immortal Fleet.

Just as their name suggested, they were truly invincible.

In every single battle the Immortal Fleet had taken part in so far, the Marchioni Empire had never lost a single one of them.

Unlike conventional ships that fired heavy cannons, the Invincible Battleships were next-generation ships equipped with high-tech laser weaponry.

There were only a few nations in the world with battleships capable of matching the sheer destructive powers of the Immortal Fleet.

If there was one exception, then it would be the Proatine Empire’s Iron Fleet.

The Iron Fleet possessed monstrous defense, making them the only ships capable of withstanding the laser weaponry of the Immortal Fleet.

Most nations would not dare to antagonize the Marchioni Empire for fear of watching the Immortal Fleet rain down an array of laser beams cutting across their cities.

However, the Iron Fleet allowed the Proatine Empire to keep the Immortal Fleet in check throughout this war.

This time, however, things were different.

The Marchioni Empire had mobilized every single Invincible Battleship in its possession and deployed them to this battlefield. All fifty ships had gathered, circling the skies above.

For the first time ever, every single one of these behemoths had gathered together, completing the true Immortal Fleet.

On the other hand, the Iron Fleet only had thirty battleships.

While the allied nations contributed another eighty battleships, they were utterly worthless on this battlefield, as none of them could withstand the advanced laser weaponry of the Invincible Battleships.

“Ah...”

“This can’t be happening...”

“We’re doomed! We’re all going to die!”

“So is this how my life ends?”

Despair spread across the faces of the allied soldiers.

The lack of proper full-scale battles until now made it difficult for them to truly realize the gravity of the situation. Now that the Immortal Fleet had revealed itself, their morale collapsed instantly.

How could morale not crumble?

Just the thought of facing two and a half million troops was enough to sap their will, yet they now realized that the enemy also seized the skies.

The ground army would become nothing more than sitting ducks without air superiority.

Once the Iron Fleet was shot down, it would only be a matter of time before the ground army would be annihilated.

Every single troop on the ground will be reduced to nothing but ashes by the Immortal Fleet.

Surprisingly, Siegfried did not so much as flinch even as the Immortal Fleet hovered in the skies above.

“Do not waver.” His voice rang across the battlefield. Though he spoke gently, his voice was infused with Primordial Force, allowing it to strike directly into the hearts and minds of the soldiers.

“We will not lose! The skies are ours! Look behind you!”

At those words, the soldiers whipped their heads around.

“T-That’s...!”

“Good heavens...”

“Are those... our allies?”

Hope flickered in their eyes.

From behind the thick black clouds, three colossal battleships emerged.

They were so massive that they were far larger than even the Invincible Battleships, and they were easily three times the size of the Proatine Empire’s Iron Battleships.

Unlike the Iron Fleet, these ships were no ordinary ships. They were the ultimate battleships, forged from the combined pinnacle technologies known to this world.

The Dragon Lord Gerog’s airship, the Huracan.

The Proatine Empire’s Iron Fleet.

The Marchioni Empire’s Invincible Battleship.

And the Coral Race’s Mothership...

All of these were merged into one. Needless to say, the combat strength of these new battleships was guaranteed to be destructive.

‘Phew... I’m glad they made it in time,’ Siegfried thought, letting out a sigh of relief.

These new battleships were fresh out of the shipyard, hot off construction. They were rushed into battle without even a single trial run, and the destination of their maiden flight was this battlefield.

Why would they bear such risks? Well, the skies would have fallen under the Marchioni Empire’s control if they had delayed.

the Proatine Empire had no choice but to deploy them immediately to battle.

In fact, these battleships were still so new that their hulls had that raw, unfinished look to them, as they had yet to be painted.

— Greetings, Your Imperial Majesty.

A transmission came from the ship at the helm of the formation.

The name of this ship was the Siegfried, and it was the flagship of the fleet.

— Admiral Cork awaits your command, sire!

Cork was once a pilot in the Marchioni Empire’s air force, but he later retired and worked as a deliveryman. He met Siegfried during one of his deliveries. That chance encounter led him to the Proatine Empire’s air force, where he was recognized for his talents. There, he was promoted until he made it all the way to the position of Admiral.

Today, Cork stood as the captain of the Proatine Empire’s flagship—the Siegfried.

“Wipe them out. Don’t leave a single one of those junk in the sky,” Siegfried answered.

— As you command, sire!

At Siegfried’s command, the Proatine Empire’s new battleships opened their gunports.

Click... Clack!

Fshwooong! Shwooong!

Hatches along their flanks opened one by one, and light fighter jets came out from them. These fighter jets were modeled after the Dragon Lord Gerog’s Huracan, so they possessed extraordinary mobility and firepower.

The Proatine Empire’s new battleships were not just combat ships; they were motherships.

Each one of them carried thirty light fighter jets, making them aerial aircraft carriers.

***

The battle for air superiority had begun.

Ziiiing! Ziiiing!

The Marchioni Empire’s Immortal Fleet unleashed their laser beams.

In response, the Proatine Empire’s Iron Fleet aimed their cannons at the Immortal Fleet and fired back with shells.

Shwoooong!

The new motherships of the Proatine Empire unleashed a total of ninety light fighter jets.

The fighter jets zipped through the air, creating sonic booms as they streaked toward the Immortal Fleet.

As the aerial battle erupted overhead, the battle on the ground started, too.

The Proatine Imperial Army and the allied forces versus the Marchioni Imperial Army.

Neither side planned to just sit idly by and wait for the outcome of the aerial battle.

The die was cast.

Win or lose, they had to fight.

Both sides had staked everything on this final battle, so they would have to fight until the very bitter end.

“All forces! Charge!”

“Chaaaarge!”

“Let’s go!”

The Marchioni Imperial Army charged toward the Proatine Imperial Army and the allied forces with terrifying speed.

Krwaaang...!

The ground itself shook as if an earthquake was occurring, and this was all thanks to the stampede of more than two million people charging forward at once.

“Let’s go, Hamchi.”

“Kyuuu!”

Siegfried and Hamchi ran toward the very frontlines without any hesitation.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Shells rained down as the aerial battle above raged on, and chunks of airships fell from the sky the longer the battle raged.

Siegfried ended up walking straight through the storm of explosions and wreckage.

He walked straight through the storm of explosions as a vanguard.

“Sseuuu...!

A green mist poured out of Siegfried.

Wooong!

Siegfried unleashed a huge amount of Primordial Force, spreading the green mist all over the battlefield in an instant. The Green Hell Magno was now a shield, an absolutely reliable defensive skill rather than a terrifying offensive skill,

Every single long-range attack aimed at the Proatine Imperial Army troops and the allied forces soldiers was blocked.

It was hell for the enemy.

Green Hell Magno damaged all enemies while protecting allies, making it both an offensive and defensive skill at the same time.

However, Siegfried was far from finished.

Wooong!

He activated Discharge.

Fwoooosh!

Sshwaaa!

Then, he unleashed both Karma Flare and Embrace of Despair onto the entire battlefield. The battlefield itself transformed into a massive debuff zone—one that would weaken and kill all enemies who dared to set foot in it.

The moment an enemy stepped into it, they would suffer radiation poisoning and an endless barrage of debilitating debuffs.

It was truly a living hell.

And yet, Siegfried was far from satisfied...

“Hey, it’s your turn now. Do something.”

Shwoooong... Bam!

A massive cross fell from the skies above.

Chae Hyung-Seok. The buffer of all buffers. A man whose buffs could cover an entire battlefield and buff every ally in it. He was once a bitter enemy of Siegfried, but now, he was one of his most reliable comrades.

“Sigh... So you only call me when you need me? Is that how it works?” Chae Hyung-Seok grumbled.

“Yeah. It’s kinda difficult without your buffs,” Siegfried replied nonchalantly.

“Thanks for giving me a heads up.”

“And it’s time for you to earn your keep. Get to work!”

“Yeah, yeah.”

This time, there was no grumbling.

‘At least he gives me a call now,’ Chae Hyung-Seok thought with a smirk.

Fate was truly a funny thing. They were once moral enemies, but now, they stood on the battlefield as allies, fighting the final battle that would decide the fate of the game itself.

‘You forgave me, accepted me, and gave me a second chance. Even after everything I did to you... So, it’s my turn to repay that grace.’

With that thought, Chae Hyung-Seok unleashed every single one of his buffs.

Woooong!

An explosive amount of mana was unleashed from him, scattering all over the battleground and buffing his allies.

But that was not all...

As if proving to everyone that he was the best buffer in the game...

Wooong! Wooong! Wooong!

The stats of every buffer within the Proatine Imperial Army and allied forces increased by over two hundred percent, making their buffs far more powerful than ever.

Chae Hyung-Seok started a massive chain reaction of buffs by buffing all ally buffers on the battlefield.

***

‘It’s my turn.’

Siegfried charged at the enemy with Hamchi at his side.

“You shall be punished for your treachery.”

“You shall be punished for your treachery.”

“You shall be punished for your treachery.”

The enemy vanguard of the Marchioni Imperial Army was none other than the clones of Duke Randoll.

It was only natural for them to be the vanguard. The clones of Duke Randoll possessed strength that rivaled that of knights, so these expendable soldiers diving behind enemy lines would be an extremely efficient use of them.

Only a fraction of the clones were real ones, while the rest were just fake copies. Even if the fake copies were destroyed, the original ones would simply split again, creating new fake copies.

In other words, the fake clones were renewable and expendable. It was an army that could be thrown at the enemy again and again without end.

If the enemy somehow managed to get past the fake clones possessing the strength of knights, then they would have to deal with the real clones, who possessed the strength rivaling that of Master-level experts.

These clones were almost an exact copy of Duke Randoll, so they were capable of withstanding the hellish debuffs Siegfried had placed down.

The Marchioni Empire played to its strengths and used the clones as the vanguard.

“Good. Bring it on,” Siegfried muttered, gripping his +10 Sky Piercer.

“Hey, show me what you got, owner punk,” Hamchi said, speaking with his trademark arrogant and mocking tone. After all, he was now a strikingly handsome young man with long flowing hair in his true form.

“Okay. You'd better watch real closely,” Siegfried said, sounding more arrogant than Hamchi.

Rumble!

In the next instant, blue sparks crackled around Siegfried. Then, a powerful electromagnetic pulse erupted from him, sweeping across the Marchioni Imperial Army.