The Land of the Rising Sun Transfers to Another World

Chapter 77: The Devil's Breath, Part 2

Disturbing content ahead.

- ワイアード

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A small hill near the outlying town

In the darkness, the first and second airships landed slowly atop a grassy hill overgrown with vegetation. As soon as they touched down, the crew rushed to disembark, hastily offloading the survivors as if sweeping them out.

"Go, go, go! Move it! Get off, now!"

"Quickly! H-hurry! Faster!"

"Come on, come on!"

Even through their gas masks, the soldiers' fear was palpable. Nagia couldn't shake the nagging question of why their captors had so easily decided to release them. The other survivors, however, celebrated what they believed to be their salvation.

"YEAAAAAH!"

"I don't know what just happened, but we're released!"

"Let's go home! Let's go home!"

"Where is this place?"

"I've seen this hill before... it's near an outlying town."

Nagia was stunned upon hearing those words. He had never imagined that they would be set down so close to the place where his fiancée lived.

"W-what's going on? Why here? And those soldiers... their panic is unsettling."

But no amount of thought could provide him with answers, so Nagia hurriedly set off in the direction of the outlying town. Watching the scene unfold, the observers aboard Ships 1 and 2, which had already taken off again, conversed.

"They're scattering. Are we sure it'll be okay?"

"There's no problem... they're still within the 'effective range.' The data confirms it."

・・・

Sky above the outlying town

"We've arrived over the outlying town!"

"Alright! Prepare for the drop!"

"Drop preparations complete!"

"...Drop now!!"

"Dropping, dropping!!"

Several wooden crates were released from the cargo hatch of the third airship, falling straight down—directly toward the outlying town square.

・・・

An outlying town

The town remained in its usual festive state when suddenly, something came crashing down onto the roof of a house near the center of town.

Crash!!

"Wh-what the!?"

The sudden noise caused a stir among the townsfolk. Moments later, something else fell—this time directly into the center of the square, landing on a table laden with food and shattering it.

"What's going on!? Did the roof tiles fall off!?"

Curious about the fallen objects, the townspeople rushed to inspect them. What they found was a battered wooden crate, so damaged by the impact that it was barely recognizable as a box. However, its contents, packed tightly in burlap sacks, appeared intact. The same type of crate had crashed onto the roof earlier, and from within the sacks, a strange, smoke-like substance began to waft out, irritating the townspeople's noses.