A Distant Reverie

Chapter 77

Marine pried her eyes open, her face smeared in the grime of dust and dirt. Her head was still rattling from the concussive shockwaves based on the flickering instability of her vision. Colors shifted between monochrome and gray with every blink—her disorientation further worsened by her wavering focus.

It also didn't help that the orbital socket of her left eye was throbbing in agony. The influx of mana in the surroundings was the likely culprit. As the gears in her head gradually began to turn, she recalled the irradiance of blue light right before the golem exploded.

What happened to my men?

Unable to find her eyepatch, she covered her left eye with her hand instead. The agony immediately lessened as her flickering eyesight steadied.

Everything was a mess.

The lobby of the castle keep was inundated in destruction. Fragments of stone missiles and shrapnel were etched into the floor and walls, protruding outwards like crude, unsharpened spears. The black smear of ash and discoloration was imprinted on a section of the ground, spreading outwards in a radial formation. Likely this was where the golem had exploded as it was being flung back by Kersen's sylph.

Marine looked to the side where her men were supposed to be. The metal barricades they had set up to be their last line of defenses had been mauled into pieces. Jagged stones of various size and shapes carved into the structures. Dust displaced by the explosive force still filled the air, slowly settling with a chilling indifference.

Her men laid on the ground.

Bloodied. Mangled. Tore. Smashed into an unrecognizable blob and mixed with collateral damage from Duke Calon's soldiers. The only reason she could tell the difference was due to the remnants of their uniforms in the ensuing aftermath.

Her heart sunk. The entire first line had been eliminated.

The second line fared better, but significant damage was dealt nonetheless. The survivors were slowly crawling above the destruction, their eyes dazed and distant, likely still suffering from confusion induced by the concussive shockwave. Once their minds settled, however—

"A-Ahhhhhh!"

The haunted screams found its way into Marine's ears. She closed her eyes, wincing at the horror experienced by her men, aghast at the situation. But the battle wasn't over yet.

She tried to drag herself out of the confines of the battered barricade in front of her to get a better view of the situation. But her legs suddenly refused to move. Confused at the incongruity, she glanced down. The lower half of her body had been submerged under a pile of rubble from the golem's explosion.

I don't even feel anything.

Suddenly concerned about the state of her body, she clawed at the rubble, desperately trying to pry herself free from the stone cage.

In the midst of her panic, she caught a sharp metallic click echo before her.

She raised her head, finding herself staring down the barrel of a rifle. A soldier. Battered and caked in dust, the man took aim. His eyes gleamed with hatred and conviction as if convinced that he was doing something righteous. His uniform borne the insignia of an eagle.

Duke Calon's men.

Marine's mind blanked. For once in her treacherous life, she found herself before an impossible situation. There was nothing she could do but watch as doors of death opened its embrace. Even so, her hands moved instinctively to her side. She reached for her pistol. She would never have enough time to make it.