After the closure of Red-17 Gate.
Lieutenant Imosha felt a pain as if her heart were being torn out.
It was because she knew what her choice might lead to—and who it could cost.
"...."
Yet, Lieutenant Imosha stood up.
There was still work to do, and she didn't have the luxury of falling apart.
"...Combat readiness."
Her voice rang out through the communicator to the soldiers stationed at Red-17 Gate.
The Wave would arrive soon.
There was no time to wallow in doubt.
Lieutenant Imosha did what needed to be done.
She reorganized the troop formations to match Wave combat doctrine and redeployed the heavy artillery that had been undergoing maintenance.
Now, all that remained was to face the Wave—as Red-17's gate officer.
["Lieutenant Imosha! You need to see this—outside!"]
"What is it?"
["The search team is returning!"]
At the sudden news, Imosha bolted from the command room.
And then she saw it.
"What in the world...?"
The search team was indeed coming back.
At a glance, their numbers seemed slightly reduced, but that wasn't the issue.
Among them, clearly dressed differently from the rest, was someone unfamiliar—yet very familiar.
'Could it be... they found the Young Lady?'
'Then Carl Marcus...'
Her eyes scanned the team quickly.
But unfortunately, Carl Marcus's usual attire wasn't distinct enough for her to spot him easily.
Now, she had to make a decision.
Would she reopen the gate to receive the returning team—or not?
Normally, the answer would be obvious.
But the problem was the army of beasts gathering just beyond the horizon.
If even one of them got through Red-17 Gate...
'Ark could fall.'
The weight of her duty bore down on her.
True, the team was approaching fast, so in theory, the gate could open and close quickly.
But what if the worst happened?
'What do I do...?'
Even as she hesitated, the distance between the team and Ark continued to shrink.
A decision had to be made.
"Open the ga—"
But she couldn't finish.
Her mouth fell open in shock at what she was witnessing.
[Fly?]
[Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly. Fly...]
People were flying.
No—not just flying. They were soaring toward Ark's wall.
The entire search team, like a flock of birds, flew over the wall—hovering bikes and all.
It was unreal, even as she watched it happen.
"What the—"
Before she could finish the thought, the team landed atop Red-17 Gate's wall.
And among them, one figure stood out.
"...My lady?"
Covered in dust and mud, yet still radiating grace, the Young Lady locked eyes with Imosha.
"You're the gate officer, right? Good timing. We're back. Get the word out."
"Ah... yes! Understood!"
"Then I'm off. Too tired."
With that, the Young Lady casually descended from the wall and vanished from view.
Imosha stood frozen for a moment before snapping out of it and calling out to Major Arden.
"Major."
"What is it?"
"...The mercenary who joined the support team—did you find Carl Marcus?"
Arden raised his brows briefly in surprise, then shook his head.
"No. Carl Marcus is alive. He stayed outside of Ark."
"Then why didn't he come back?!"
Imosha's voice rose sharply, and Arden's brow twitched.
Though he wasn't her direct superior, such an outburst was borderline insubordination.
"...Apologies."
"It's fine. Carl Marcus chose to stay outside."
"Outside... Why?"
"That, I don't know. But from what I understand, Carl Marcus has always lived outside Ark. Isn't that right?"
"...Yes, that's true."
"Then there's no issue, is there? He'll continue doing what he always has. That benefits Ark too."
It was a sound argument.
Yet Imosha found herself wishing Carl Marcus had returned.
She couldn't explain why.
"Then we'll be heading back now."
"Ah, yes! Thank you for everything. I'll report to command myself."
"Appreciated."
As Arden and the search team moved past the defensive line, Imosha stared at their retreating figures.
Then she turned toward the horizon.
And she saw it.
Ruuuuuumble───!
The Wave had begun.
* * *
["What are you planning to do now?"]
"Well, obviously, I'm going to ride the wave."
["Hmm..."]
I would have liked to stop by the hideout for a hot spring bath, but unfortunately, there didn't seem to be enough time for that.
After all, the horizon was stirring as if a wave could occur at any moment.
'Well, finishing the task and returning isn't a bad idea.'
I turned around.
Then, I summoned Horus, who had been hovering in the sky.
[Kieeeek───!]
With a massive shadow beginning to cast from the sky, Horus revealed himself.
Naturally mounting Horus, I flew straight toward the horizon where the wave was surging.
'First, it's best to reduce the number of flying-type beasts.'
Although the upcoming stages would be somewhat different, at least in this ninth stage, the most troublesome and damaging to the Ark are undoubtedly the flying-type beasts.
Therefore, as I had done before, I planned to intercept the flying-type beasts as a priority.
'Of course, as we move to the next stages, the priority targets will change.'
But that wasn't important right now.
"Let's go."
[Kieeeek─!]
Horus's body soared swiftly.
The surrounding scenery blurred past, and the distance to the approaching swarm of dark clouds rapidly closed.
["They're coming!"]
"I see them too."
Unfortunately, Esther's current condition wasn't very good.
In other words, I had to face the swarm of flying beasts converging like dark clouds all by myself.
'Well, that's still manageable.'
I first switched the Ark-34 Automatic Conversion Rifle to Railgun mode.
Since it's the most powerful single-shot weapon I currently have, with a significant cooldown time, I intended to use it as much as possible.
'Gotta cycle the cooldown promptly.'
Ziiing──
Gripping the Ark-34 Railgun tightly, I focused on a particularly large flying beast among the approaching dark clouds.
'Grade-1 Named Flying Monster, Radiation-Eating Gayor.'
Among the numerous flying beasts, it's a notably troublesome Named entity that disperses radiation just by breathing—a real nuisance.
If Radiation-Eating Gayor were allowed to approach the Ark, the damage would be unimaginable.
'Intercept it midway.'
Fortunately, despite being challenging to deal with, Radiation-Eating Gayor has relatively weak exterior defenses.
In other words, the Ark-34 Railgun could potentially inflict a fatal wound in a single shot.
Tzzzt─
Tzzztzzzt!!!
Sparks erupted fiercely from the Ark-34 Railgun.
Ziiing...
Soon, a massive amount of energy coalesced, and a beam of destruction shot out from the muzzle.
Shooaaaaaaa───!!!
The beam of destruction pierced straight through the belly of Radiation-Eating Gayor among the flying beasts.
I deliberately aimed for the center of its body to avoid missing the heart.
That wasn't all.
Many beasts caught in the Railgun's path burned up entirely and plummeted helplessly to the ground.
[You have slain Grade-10 Giant Insect, Giant Gnat.]
[Damage to Giant Gnat increases by 0.05%.]
[You have slain Grade-7 Flying-type Beast, Spiny Cuckoo.]
[Damage to Spiny Cuckoo increases by 0.05%.]
[You have slain Grade-10 Flying-type Beast, Red-Beaked Sparrow.]
[Damage to Red-Beaked Sparrow increases by 0.05%.]
.
.
.
[You have slain Grade-6 Giant Insect, Red-Eyed Giant Dragonfly.]
[Damage to Red-Eyed Giant Dragonfly increases by 0.05%.]
I didn't stop there.
Radiation-Eating Gayor was still alive, dispersing radiation everywhere as it approached the Ark.
'Not so fast.'
I slung the Ark-34 Railgun over my shoulder and opened the [Rift Space].
From there, I retrieved the NOA-31 Anti-Behemoth Gatling Gun.
[Kiek!]
The sudden weight of the NOA-31 Anti-Behemoth Gatling Gun caused Horus to falter, but not to the point of falling.
However, our speed noticeably decreased, making agile maneuvers in the sky difficult.
'Not that it's necessary.'
Clack─
Gripping the trigger of the NOA-31 Anti-Behemoth Gatling Gun, I pulled it.
Drrrrrr───!
The barrel of the NOA-31 Anti-Behemoth Gatling Gun spun fiercely, soon erupting in flames.
Kwakwakwakwakwa───!!!
Bullets scattering destruction sprayed in all directions, indiscriminately hunting the fearless flying species heading toward the Ark.
In addition, I opened the [Rift Space] again and retrieved the CRN-842 Hemp Rocket Launcher.
"Esther, assist me."
["I'm out of strength."]
"Use my ether."
["Tch."]
No slacking off.
With Esther's assistance, I wielded the NOA-31 Anti-Behemoth Gatling Gun in one hand and the CRN-842 Hemp Rocket Launcher in the other, bombarding the approaching flying beasts in the sky.
Kugugugugung───!!
Kwarururung!
As I continued hunting the beasts, Radiation-Eating Gayor staggered into view among them.
'Finally, here.'
Despite being several kilometers away, the radiation carried by the wind was indeed formidable.
Allowing it to approach the Ark any further seemed dangerous.
'It's best to deal with it here.'
I aimed the NOA-31 Anti-Behemoth Gatling Gun and the CRN-842 Hemp Rocket Launcher at it.
Radiation-Eating Gayor was already within their range.
Kwakakakakang───!!!
Once again, flames and fire erupted from the muzzles, pouring firepower toward Radiation-Eating Gayor.
[Kaaaaah!!!]
Radiation-Eating Gayor initially struggled, but eventually let out a scream and fell to the ground under the relentless bombardment.
Already critically wounded by the Ark-34 Railgun, it fell relatively easily for a Grade-1 Named beast.
And then...
As Radiation-Eating Gayor completely crashed to the ground, a familiar message appeared before my eyes.
[You have slain Grade-1 Named monster species, 'Radiation-Eating Gayor'!]
[Acquired the trait 'Poison Resistance.']
──────────────
[Poison Resistance]
— Grants resistance to toxins.
"View Details"
──────────────
[You have slain a Named beast.]
['Beast Hunter' effect applied tenfold.]
[Damage to Grade-1 monster species, Mutated Bagdon, increases by 0.5%.]