Chapter 66

The iron spider began to move. Victory, who knew the story, was shocked, thinking this should be impossible. Unaware of his reaction, Seina observed the scene casually, without drawing attention, as he recalled the original story.

In the original story, at the beginning, Duke Kaminowa was the most powerful and influential noble. He even rivaled the royal family in power. Using his authority, he harassed the protagonist, Shin, in various ways and planned numerous plots to seize the emperor's throne.

He had that much power. The greatest enemy of the protagonist and a clear villain in the story, Duke Kaminowa, was just that.

The reason he gained such power was four years before the start of the original story, which was the year of this party. The emperor hosted a party to celebrate the 10th birthday, held in the royal city. During this party, a large number of monsters appeared, causing many deaths. Moreover, only commoners were killed, and no nobles were even injured.

Approximately 50,000 commoners died, and including the injured, the number was more than double. Although it might seem exaggerated, the author probably wanted to create an impact. In reality, it would be an unimaginable number of casualties.

The war chariots, which were supposed to protect the people, did not move, and the chariot soldiers fled quickly. The guard samurai were weak and lacked motivation, except for their captain, who was serious and skilled, leading the samurai as a core figure. He died in front of the numerous Scissor Mantises, along with many adventurers who were not even properly armed.

This incident sparked the anger of the commoners and commoner adventurers, leading to demonstrations in various places. To suppress these, Duke Kaminowa began his crackdown.

He organized the confused nobles and established a specialized monster-hunting unit called "Susanoo."

"Susanoo" was an elite unit chosen based on ability alone, regardless of age. At the start of the original story, even the student council of the magic academy was part of it. This unit, allowed to act beyond the law to hunt monsters, was primarily used to eliminate Duke Kaminowa's political enemies.

The nobles, unable to resist the skilled mages, gradually became part of Duke Kaminowa's faction.

As a result, the royal family's power waned, and Duke Kaminowa's power reached its peak. It was around this time that the protagonist, Shin Kaminowa, the former heir of Duke Kaminowa, who had been exiled, entered the magic academy.

"Nidhogg," "Duke Kaminowa," and "Susanoo" were the main antagonists. Other organizations appeared, but these three were the most powerful enemies.

The protagonist, with the help of the royal family and other nobles who still maintained their power, eventually defeated his father, Duke Kaminowa. It was a classic and dramatic story.

Therefore, it was strange for the war chariots to move here. Duke Kaminowa had manipulated the situation, taking control of the chariot soldiers' commander, who should have stopped the engines.

Even if Scissor Mantises appeared, the chariots should not have been able to start, and the commanders should have fled, while the other chariot soldiers should have given up on starting the engines and fought outside, only to be defeated.

"This is the Royal Capital Defense Force's Iron Spider Cavalry. We have confirmed the appearance of a group of monsters. We will eliminate them immediately, but for your safety, please evacuate. Move calmly and orderly."

A calm voice came from the chariot's speaker, and the chariot cannon fired. Missiles were launched, repelling the Scissor Mantises.

The samurai were also acting strangely. They should have been unmotivated, fearing the large number of Scissor Mantises and fleeing. The captain should have fought alone and died, eliminating the troublesome samurai. This was due to Duke Kaminowa's manipulation, reducing the number of guards.

However, the samurai were not only motivated but also highly skilled. The fireballs they cast were all the same size and appeared simultaneously, indicating their high level of training.

The reduced number was likely due to Duke Kaminowa's manipulation, but everything else was different from the story Victory knew.

Confused, he suddenly realized it was due to the transmigrator, Yami. Her existence was changing the story.

Without Yami, the top samurai, Ongi, had lost motivation and reduced his influence, affecting the samurai, who became corrupt and weak. Many entered through connections, and the once-strong samurai were weakened, as he had read in the background story.

But now, it was different. Yami, the transmigrator, did not kill in her youth and was not exiled. As a result, Ongi did not lose motivation, and his influence remained strong.

The samurai were still the strong, disciplined force they had always been.

"So, Duke Kaminowa's plan was thwarted in this way."

Victory had heard of the butterfly effect, where a small change can cause a large impact, and he felt a chill.

"Victory, look! I've never seen the Iron Spiders attack like this!"

Seina's excited voice, grabbing his arm, brought him back to his senses. Worried he had said something wrong, Victory checked her expression, but she was happily excited and hadn't heard.

"Seina, let's evacuate. It's dangerous here."

Shin scolded the excited Seina and grabbed her hand. Envious but agreeing, Victory nodded.

Originally, the Scissor Mantises should have attacked the commoners without hindrance from the chariots or samurai.

Although the story seemed different now, the main plot of the original story would likely remain unchanged.

In the future, Shin and Seina would be attacked by Scissor Mantises, and Shin would show a glimpse of his "Void" power to repel them. Seina would then develop a crush on Shin for saving her.

Victory planned to change this. If attacked by Scissor Mantises, he would quickly defeat them. He wore combat innerwear under his clothes and a magic bracelet to cast spells. Although weaker than "Magic Armor," he was confident he could easily defeat Scissor Mantises.

The idea of Seina falling for him made him smile. He followed Seina and the others to evacuate.

"Hey, Mii! Stop sightseeing! You'll die! Hurry up and escape!"

As a thank you for the pizza, he shouted at the girls still eating. They were packing food into Tupperware, thinking it was their chance.

"Ah, yeah, it's dangerous... right?"

"Which is more important, food or your life, you idiot!"

"Okay, we're going!"

She wrapped a piece of roast beef in paper and put it in her pocket before starting to evacuate.

Behind them, the battle had begun, with shouts and explosions, but the people were walking orderly, without panic, and no one was being crushed to death.

"What is this? Is this really happening?"

"What's happening?"

Seina's cute face appeared from below as Victory muttered, walking with his head down. Even in disguise, she was cute, probably because he was a fan of the original story.

"Well, with so many monsters, some might slip through, right?"

"Wow, that's scary. ...Will you protect me then?"

"Of course, I'll protect you with my life."

Seina, showing fear, made Victory feel good, and he smiled, trying to increase his favorability. Shin, seeing this, smiled and joined in.

"That's right. There is a risk, but we'll be fine. There are many commoners behind us, and we can escape while they are being attacked. I'll protect you, Seina, so don't worry."

"Hehe, I have two reliable knights."

"Huh?"

Seina, happily clapping her hands, said something odd, but Victory, thinking it was a mistake, smiled back.

However, the Scissor Mantises would not reach this far, and he was becoming suspicious that the story had changed.

"Kyaa! Monsters!"

"What!"

Turning around in shock, he saw Scissor Mantises standing right behind them, five of them.

"Why? There are still people behind us!"

The Scissor Mantises appeared in the middle of the crowd. Confused, he shouted, as they should have attacked from behind.

Because of this, he had thought the story would not follow the original with the chariots and samurai protecting them.

But the Scissor Mantises suddenly appeared. Shuddering at the original story's force, Victory saw this as an opportunity to save the day and win Seina's heart.

"Let's run. Follow me!"

Shin grabbed Seina's hand and started running, just as the story described. They tried to escape but were caught. Shin, without realizing it, used magic for a moment.

'The crowd became the prey of the Scissor Mantises' scythes, turning into a world of screams. People ran in terror. Shin ran hard, supported by the warmth of the princess he had to protect, amidst the smell of blood and the cries of the dying.'

It was exactly as the original story described. He knew every word by heart. This was his chance to take the protagonist's heroine.

"Kyaa, Mami, hold on!"

He heard Mii's scream in the chaos and stopped.

"Huh?"

Looking back cautiously, he saw Mii holding a friend, crying. The Scissor Mantises were not killing but using their scythes to obstruct, which was still fatal for the commoners.

"Huh?"

A passage from the novel he had read.

'The crowd became the prey of the Scissor Mantises' scythes, turning into a world of screams. People ran in terror. Shin ran hard, supported by the warmth of the princess he had to protect, amidst the smell of blood and the cries of the dying.'

She was a minor character, a background character in the world of screams, a BGM to heighten the tension.

So, he had to chase and save Seina.

"Huh?"

But faced with the first human death, Victory stopped.

The world of the novel he had read was rapidly becoming reality, overwhelming him.