Chapter 45. The Forest That Doesn’t Fall from Just One Hit
“What’s the situation?”
“Fix your clothes first.”
“Mind your own business.”
As soon as I entered the meeting room, Cheonha Ilgyeom started picking a fight, but I ignored him and sat down in my position.
“Hey there, mister. It looks like you should fix your clothes.”
Even Oxymoron making comments about my outfit felt suspicious, so I lowered my body to take a look.
My combat Magical Girl outfit was caught in the nuclear fallout, burned, and torn. While the coat I wore over it was ripped off, the white tights underneath kept my bare skin hidden.
“Isn’t it fine?”
I’ve seen enough in 30 years to not get hung up on appearances.
“We’re not the only ones here…”
Are we seriously not the only ones? When I turned my head to look, I saw unfamiliar faces among the commanders from various military branches and the dedicated team from the Association.
People in suits were visible between the monitors.
– What were you thinking using a nuke?
– Didn’t you say you could stop it? A ruckus is happening in every nation right now.
– If the frontline breaks like this, who’ll take responsibility?
The Association’s hearings followed a polite turn-taking protocol, yet this was even more chaotic than a market brawl.
These guys just ramble on about their own interests.
With curiosity about whether there was a different meaning to the loud voices, I distilled their chatter into this summary:
Why did you use a nuke when you could have maintained the frontline?
You retreated once already; can you really stop them now?
Why wasn’t media control implemented?
News of the nuke explosion has heightened panic.
If it continues like this, I’ll withdraw my country’s deployed troops.
“How brazen…”
Leaning back in my chair, I whispered my thoughts.
“What will you do if you hear me?”
“It’s just a façade; most of those people don’t even know who Macbeth is.”
“That sounds about right; there wasn’t even a mention of Commander Macbeth.”
Cheonha Ilgyeom said this, and it seemed he found the situation amusing as he clicked his sword hilt while staring at the monitors.
The loud nonsense pouring out from the monitors was being fervently countered by soldiers and Association personnel.
Commander Macbeth was sitting back, listening with one ear.
Meaningless time passed, and believing they had all voiced their demands, they made one final statement.
– If we fail again, we will lodge an appeal with the Association, so be aware.
BEEP!
An appeal, huh?
“If you can’t stop it, are you even going to have time for an appeal?”
“Haha, well said, you hammer-novice. What nonsense can these politicians who’ve never seen the frontline talk about?”
“That’s right. It was uncomfortable seeing them act tough.”
My off-the-cuff remarks transformed the atmosphere of the meeting room.
The commanders of various military branches, the personnel from the Association, and old heroes all laughed and criticized their own sense of reality.
“Still, it’s fortunate they’re not actively obstructing us.”
As long as the complaints don’t end in chaos, it’s bearable. At least they’re not firing nukes over our heads, stealing the distributed supplies, or kidnapping heroes.
Thud Thud
In the inner part of the meeting room filled with cheery banter, the sound of metal striking the floor echoed.
Macbeth stood up, banging his RPG against the meeting room floor.
“Is the small talk done?”
It had been a while since I saw Macbeth. I hadn’t seen him at the meeting a few days ago because Infinite Architect was covering for him. It’s been years, hasn’t it?
The military uniform that had started to fade from old age was now tinged with gray, and perhaps in sync with that, his hair color was sparse with gray strands.
Despite looking like he was wandering around with an RPG as his cane, the sight remained unchanged.
Macbeth waited until the meeting room quieted down.
As the commotion disappeared, silence began to envelop the meeting room.
“I will now begin the operation meeting.”
Thud.
The RPG hit the floor, and a small magic screen materialized in the center of the room. A map of the Pacific frontline appeared, accompanied by various satellite photos and graphs.
The complicated data was hard to decipher at a glance, but I didn’t need to interpret it.
After all, Macbeth and Infinite Architect would explain it all.
“How many of you have not received the information on why we are gathered here?”
“I only heard an emergency call from the Bering Sea direction.”
“Oceania feels the same way.”
“The same goes for the South Pacific Forces.”
All units, except for those from Bering Sea, had almost no damage.
The enemies in the Southern Hemisphere were mostly swept away with the first attack, so they likely suffered little to no losses.
“That’s a lot. Then let me proceed with the explanation.”
As Commander Macbeth waved his cane, the data displayed on the screen began to change.
“We originally planned to establish a secondary defensive line here.”
Behind the first defensive line, which turned black, a red second defensive line was established.
From Daema Island in East Asia to California in North America, a landing defense line was set.
“However, the chances of failing to hold even from there were high.”
Flash Flash Flash
Then the various colored lines continued.
The image of a massive entity appeared on the screen, and the third and fourth defensive lines were continuously drawn. The U.S. mainland was depicted as being invaded, all land in East Asia disappearing into the sea.
“So we aimed to evacuate civilians and conduct most of the combat at sea.”
As long as people survive, recovery is feasible.
Houses and structures can be rebuilt quickly.
“This operation was scrapped upon the suggestion of Hero Haram Lee.”
BEEP!
All the lines drawn on the map vanished, replaced by a thick, red line.
A ring shape drawn with the Kanto Plain of Japan as its vertex.
“From now on, we will abandon the defense system and switch to an offensive system. We will push as many of them back as possible from the sea.”
The size of the red line constricted, ultimately leaving only parts of the sea in front of Japan and the Kanto Plain.
“We will gather all enemies in this Kanto Plain and eliminate them. Are there any other opinions?”
An employee from the Association who had earlier claimed to be the commander from Oceania stood up, holding up documents.
“According to this data, such a siege operation would hold no meaning.
Given the law of the Otherworld, large-scale annihilation isn’t possible, thus we should reduce their numbers while minimizing losses. This was the initial grand strategy.”
Even if the land becomes contaminated and purification takes a long time, minimizing human casualties takes precedence.
The higher-ups might not like it.
Losing land? The next election will be doomed. Yet we’re just content to know this.
“Nevertheless, I’d like to know why you switched to a high-risk, full-engagement siege strategy after using a nuke.”
Thud Boom Thud.
The RPG swept through the air, hitting the ground several times. Those without any special powers watched nervously, wondering what would happen if it exploded, but Commander Macbeth seemed to be in a good mood and even increased the speed of his speech.
“Good point.”
Commander Macbeth’s expression hadn’t changed at all, but laughter erupted among the seasoned heroes.
That expression perfectly matched when he shoved tactical training into Awakeners’ heads.
“Let’s look at the screen.”
BEEP BIIRP!
Scenes of nuclear explosions.
My ultimate attack obliterated the Southern Hemisphere, and the adjacent graph magnified to show the expected enemy losses.
“Wide-ranging attacks appear to be effective. My past experiences and data don’t align.”
“Why do you think that is?”
“In the case of self-propelled artillery, even if it detonates at the enemy’s center, it has no effect. But the Crimson Hammer hero’s waiting skill caused significant losses to the nuclear output.”
A young-looking commander from the Association pressed his fingers to his temples in thought.
Looks like Macbeth’s bad habit is starting; turning the operation meeting into an unnecessary tactical debate.
Well, it’s probably because there’s still time.
Not just the questioned commander, but those who hadn’t received all the information sank into contemplation.
As unconscious hum sounds began to fill the meeting room…
Thud.
“I will reveal the answer.”
His voice had the tone of a teacher instructing students.
“It’s simply a matter of power. Just how much can the enemy endure?”
He swung his cane again.
BEEP BIIRP!
The total amount of energy that burst forth from my attack, along with the damage calculation formulas, graphs, and images, appeared on the screen.
A clear explanation and proof of why the attack succeeded and its unprecedented damage.
“I’ve proven it.”
The Librarian murmured beside me.
“During the battle?”
Still my brain can’t keep up.
“In other words, if the power exceeds a certain level, you can exploit the enemy’s Otherworld invasion to impose significant losses on them.”
BEEP BIIRP!
Simulation results began to pile up as if to validate him.
Number of surviving enemies. Number of large entities. Number of massive entities.
How strong an attack is needed to wipe out all enemies.
The necessary range was displayed.
“I calculated that too.”
“Good job.”
Why does this genius kid not show off? Is it a hint for me to pat his head with a hammer as praise?
“Through this proof, by concentrating all remaining enemies near Japan’s Kanto Plain and striking them, we can minimize sacrifices. However, this plan requires that the East Asia line does not break before we can gather all the enemies, so I will concentrate most of our forces here.”
The screen changed, displaying the numbers of A and S level heroes assigned to each frontline.
Next, arrows indicated the movement direction of each army.
“This unit, with small entities mostly dead, their soldiers will not be much of help, so let’s compose them mainly with heavy artillery units.”
Then, the map enlarged, revealing the entirety of the Pacific. Data on how to construct the ring-shaped siege began to materialize.
“This side consists of our forces narrowing the siege line. Utilize overwhelming firepower to push the enemy back. I expect Oceania and the South Pacific forces, who have the least losses from this operation, to take the lead.”
A low murmur of conversation followed.
Commanders directly leading troops exchanged opinions, reconsidering their actions.
Thud Thud.
After a short consultative pause, the RPG struck the floor once more.
“Are there any objections?”
Everyone quietly turned their gazes toward Macbeth without uttering a word.
“Then let’s delve into the details.”
Now I can afford to close my eyes.
The brief delivery of the operational plan was done, and it was now the time for the commanders of each military branch to discuss their opinions.
After all, the contents like troop deployment, weapon use, and communication methods will be the main focus, which I wouldn’t understand anyway.
As I began to close my eyes and drift into sleep…
“I have one question.”
A voice I couldn’t identify echoed.
“According to the formula, at the end of this operation, an unimaginably immense force must strike. Are you planning to use a nuke from the ground?”
What’s the problem with that?
Slowly, I summoned the hammer and waved it overhead.
“That’s the answer.”
Commander Macbeth raised his voice, pointing at me; more precisely, at the hammer I was swaying above my head.
Attention in the meeting room gathered on my hammer; reactions of comprehension and bewilderment danced in the air simultaneously.
“This is merely a precautionary question, but Haram Lee. Can the second use be possible?”
That’s why I took the ambiguous thirteen seconds.
As long as Unho doesn’t waste away and die from starvation, we should be fine.
“It seems the questions are finished, so let’s continue the meeting.”
Looks like I won’t miss anything important.
Well then, perhaps I should take a nap.
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