The Greatest Estate Developer - Chapter 393: Operation Holy Water Showdown (2)
Rumble…!
The Eastern Mountain Range trembled violently.
Deep, deep valleys.
Numerous peaks.
Every slope and ridge seemed to roar.
Sheer cliffs shook and crumbled.
Streams and rivulets opened their eyes, and finally, a mountain echo of two billion liters bellowed out.
Rumble!
The Prona River surged explosively.
It flowed from the Eastern Mountain Range, sweeping clockwise around the southern part of the Frontera estate.
Normally, it was the lifeline for the estate’s residents.
But now?
It was screaming.
As if it would sweep everything away.
Rushing forward.
Pushing through.
Destroying.
Finally, it roared into the northern part of the Marez reclamation area.
Rushing in at 180 kilometers per hour.
Accompanied by a 140-meter-high wave.
Crassshhh!
“…!”
Sir Khalidus, Commander of the Second Legion of Hell, had his eyes wide open in shock.
He had seen all sorts of sights in the ruthless depths of Hell.
But never had he witnessed a natural disaster as violent as this.
“W-What the…?!”
The wave hadn’t even arrived yet.
But the storm driven by the massive wall of water came first.
Roarrrr!
“…!”
Sir Khalidus staggered.
Even his galloping horse stumbled.
Thanks to this, Ppodong could briefly widen the gap between him and Sir Khalidus.
A bit of distance gained and moment of time earned.
That was the golden opportunity Lloyd needed.
“Ggoming!”
The moment Lloyd shouted.
“Ggoming!”
A bright white silhouette pierced through the storm, revealing itself.
It dove down swiftly.
It was Ggoming.
Lloyd’s hands moved swiftly.
“Ppodong! Eat this!”
“Ppodong!”
He fed Ppodong a blue sunflower seed.
With his other hand, he reached back.
“Nunim (Big Sister), grab my hand!”
“What did you just call me?”
“Now’s not the time, just grab it!”
He grabbed the Queen’s hand.
Pop!
He secured the now-shrunken Ppodong.
His entire body lifted into the air.
At that moment, Ggoming’s foot reached out.
“Ggoming!”
Thud!
Ggoming’s foot gripped Lloyd’s shoulder.
“Up! Go up!”
“Ggoming! Ggoming!”
Ggoming flapped its wings vigorously.
The 140-meter-high wave rushed in with immense force. Surging forward. Sweeping over. At an unbelievable speed. Overwhelming in scale. Bone-chilling. Terrifying. Enormous.
Crashhh!
The wave’s crest barely brushed past their feet.
The Queen was swept away in an instant.
Startled, Lloyd pulled her back.
It felt like his shoulder might dislocate.
The Queen emerged through the rough spray.
“Guh! Ack! Cough!”
Afraid of losing her grip, he hugged her tightly.
He looked down.
“…”
Everything was being swept away by the wave.
The lead Hell Knight, who was chasing them precariously.
The rest of the Hell Knight vanguard that followed.
A third of the Marez reclamation area.
All were being smashed to pieces, flailing like ants caught in a flood.
‘Well, of course. A two-billion-liter flood came crashing down all at once.’
Suddenly, he recalled the Vajont Dam disaster in Italy.
The landslide that caused that dam disaster.
Wasn’t the impact of that landslide twice that of the Hiroshima bomb?
‘That landslide had a volume of just over 230 million cubic meters. But the water sweeping through here now? In total, it’s two billion liters. Phew.’
It was dizzying; the numbers were hard to comprehend.
‘Please, let it not flow towards the estate.’
Please don’t let that happen.
Please, just this once.
Lloyd anxiously prayed while observing the water’s flow.
Originally, they had carried out massive canal construction to ensure the water flowed only where they wanted, without spilling over.
‘For that, the northern part of the Marez reclamation area was perfect. It was already connected to the Prona River, making it easier to control the water flow, and since it was naturally a lowland marsh, it was also easier to prevent overflow. Plus… it’s mostly farmland, not a residential area.’
It would also be easier to restore later.
There would be less damage.
‘…As I thought, it’s perfect.’
As he climbed onto Ggoming’s back, he patted the Queen’s back as she coughed continuously.
Internally, Lloyd cheered.
The massive flood that flowed from Lake Kapua.
Its overwhelming current was being controlled exactly as intended.
Sweeping across a third of the Marez reclamation area.
No other places were affected.
Only the Hell Knights who were chasing them were being thoroughly crushed.
And that water wasn’t just any water.
Lloyd shouted towards the destruction below.
“Your Majesty! How was your experience riding the rapids of the Holy Water?!”
Then, from the still raging torrent, a muscular upper body suddenly emerged.
Despite the flood sweeping away everything, they held their ground.
Maintaining a dolphin kick against the current—the Queen of the Merfolk.
“This is great! I have a few complaints about the muddy water, but it’s far more exhilarating than riding the waves in the ocean during a typhoon! And the water tastes clean!”
“Yes! That’s because it’s holy water!”
“Indeed! Thanks for providing such an opportunity!”
“Yes! Enjoy to your heart’s content!”
Lloyd shouted with all his might.
The Mermaid Queen, hearing his shout, dived underwater.
She surveyed the overwhelming flow of holy water.
Five hundred Hell Knights were floundering miserably.
Those hit directly by the initial wave had all their bones broken.
Those who barely hid in shacks or ditches were no better off.
At least three or four of their bones were broken or severed.
Suffering in agony within the holy water.
Being swept away by the destructive current.
Smashing into various places, continuously being broken apart.
In the midst of this, the mermaid warriors were swimming vigorously.
“My warriors!”
The Mermaid Queen’s powerful shout spread through the water.
The warriors turned to look at their queen.
She asked.
“Answer me. What do I hate the most?”
“When water is left dirty!”
“Then what should we do?”
“Clean up the filth!”
“What is the dirtiest thing here?”
“Those bastards!”
The fierce eyes of the mermaid warriors locked onto the Hell Knights.
The queen gave her command.
“Then strike!”
“Roarrrr!”
The muscular mermaids charged.
Armed with unparalleled strength and agility that no sea creature could rival.
They pounced on the Hell Knights, floundering like plastic bags caught in the current.
“…Growl!”
Sir Khalidus, the commander of the Second Legion.
And the rest of the Hell Knights.
They could do nothing but suffer helplessly.
The enormous shock of being swept away by the flood.
Holy water had seeped into their broken and exposed bones.
To make matters worse, an unexpected giant enemy attacked them.
Thud!
“…!”
A massive foot covered in red scales stomped on Sir Khalidus.
The weakened and broken Sir Khalidus, soaked in holy water, couldn’t withstand the blow.
Solitas, the young dragon who stomped on Sir Khalidus, firmly ground his heel into the ground.
Crunch!
In the end, Sir Khalidus’s entire body was crushed.
Turned to dust.
He was swept away by the rushing torrent of holy water, meeting his end.
“One down!”
Solitas snorted triumphantly.
He gave a thumbs-up towards Lloyd.
And secretly hoped.
‘With my help, we’ll get through this, and if that guy survives… I’ll finally get a date!’
Thus, this battle had to be won.
Resolving to fight harder, Solitas continued to crush the Hell Knights.
Meanwhile, the mermaid warriors also fought valiantly against the Hell Knights. If any tried to escape the water, they dragged them back in. Surrounded them, attacked collectively, and crushed them.
Of course, the Hell Knights didn’t just take the beating.
They were beings who surpassed even Swordmasters.
Although they had taken significant damage.
And were soaked in holy water down to their bones.
They fought back and resisted as best as they could.
But they couldn’t escape the flow of holy water.
Seeing this, Lloyd clenched his fist.
‘It’s working. We’ve succeeded here.’
The plan was working perfectly.
This was no less than a victory at Sal-su, or rather, the Holy Water Battle.
“Fortunately, we’ve managed to hold back the Hell Knights. So now, it seems time to move on to the next phase.”
“…Hoo, indeed. That’s fortunate.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. But are you alright?”
“I am fine, of course.”
Queen Alicia shook the holy water from her hair.
She gave Lloyd a haughty and proud look.
“Rather, I have a question for you. What did you call me earlier?”
“Pardon?”
“Before the wave hit, when you reached out to me.”
“Uh, well, forgive me, but…”
“Forgive you?”
“I don’t remember.”
“…”
“It was a very urgent situation, you see.”
“…”
“Truly.”
“Really?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Ha. Such shamelessness in this situation.”
“I am most grateful for your grace.”
“If you’re grateful, you should take responsibility.”
“Excuse me?”
“I know that you saved my life earlier. So I wish to reward you personally.”
“A reward…?”
“Once this is all settled, I thought I might find you a bride.”
“…Pardon?”
“You are so brazen and thick-skinned that not just any woman could handle you. She would need to be strong-willed or skilled with a sword. So, how about I hold a swordsmanship tournament among unmarried women to find your match?”
“Y-Your Majesty?”
“What’s the matter?”
“A swordsmanship tournament… Are you saying you intend to marry me to the winner?”
“Of course. And I might participate myself.”
“…Pardon?”
“What? Is there a problem?”
“N-No, it’s just that if Your Majesty participates in the tournament, you would undoubtedly…”
“Win?”
“…”
“Then I should strive even harder.”
“…”
Lloyd couldn’t say anything.
He wanted to shout.
This is tyranny!
No, this is a dictatorship!
It’s an outright abuse of power!
‘Honestly, I’m kind of excited and happy… No, but still, isn’t this kind of proposal a bit of a cheat?!’
But he couldn’t actually voice those thoughts.
Because at some point, the Queen had taken his hand.
“…”
Her touch was clumsy but warm.
He could feel the pulse in each of her fingers.
A pulse slightly quicker than usual.
‘…Damn it.’
Goodbye, normal married life.
I guess I’m being dragged into this.
Lloyd quickly wiped away the tears forming at the corner of his eyes.
This wasn’t the time to banter.
The real battle was just beginning.
“Then, I shall return to the Hellgate and proceed with the next operation.”
“Do so.”
He turned Ggoming around.
Back to the north.
They headed toward the open Hellgate.
The place was already teeming with people.
Had the demons spilled out of the Hellgate?
No.
“Her Majesty has returned!”
“Uwoooahhh!”
The kingdom’s elite army, numbering ten thousand, roared.
Their armor, helmets, shields, and spears gleamed in perfect formation.
Beside them, their ranks were loose, but the spirits of the three thousand muscle-bound orc warriors were fierce.
“Destroy, today, we, guik!”
“Crush, today, we, guik!”
“Fight, today, we, guik!”
“Date, today, we, guik!”
“…There’s a traitor here, guiiiik!”
The orc warriors, a total of three thousand muscle-bound creatures, roared like beasts.
But that wasn’t all.
Three hundred elf snipers, their arrowheads gleaming calmly.
They rode atop five hundred centaur sprinters.
Beside them, though their formation was loose, five hundred white spear cavalry burned with competitive spirit.
Behind them, the ranks of 1,200 Mamluk cavalry.
In the rear, two companies of seven hundred pikemen from the Namaran County.
And at the very back, thirty-six cannons from the Cremor County.
All were fully prepared, brimming with a fierce and grim determination.
Finally.
Whoosh—! Whoosh!
From the direction of the Eastern Mountain Range, a huge silhouette flew in.
It was the Bone Dragon, Yongyong, carrying Javier and clutching Bibeong.
‘Good. Everyone’s gathered right on time.’
Thanks to Javier, Bibeong, and the Bone Dragon breaking the dike of Lake Kapua at the right moment, the Holy Water Battle plan succeeded.
At last, they had properly shattered and pinned down the main Hell Knight vanguard.
“So, Your Majesty?”
Lloyd turned to Queen Alicia.
Inviting her to give a speech before the battle.
But the Queen shook her head.
“No. Since you devised all these plans, it is only right that you command. So you should speak to them.”
“Yes, Your Grace, with great honor.”
If that’s the Queen’s wish, gladly.
Lloyd stood tall on Ggoming’s back.
He spoke to the assembled allied forces of over forty thousand.
“I am Lloyd Frontera. I won’t speak for long. Thanks to everyone maintaining silence and concealment according to the plan, we were able to pin down the Hell Knight vanguard. The enemy’s main force is being annihilated. So now, it’s our turn to move.”
Indeed.
It was now their turn.
They had been warned the enemy would invade.
Told they would invade fiercely.
But they couldn’t just sit back and defend.
Taking hits wasn’t something they liked.
So they drew out the enemy’s main vanguard, crushed them, and pinned them down.
So, now?
“Are you ready for the Hell Invasion?!”
He shouted with all his might, imbuing his words with mana.
In response to his shout.
The allied force of forty-three thousand five hundred roared fiercely.
The successfully executed Holy Water Battle plan.
Riding on that momentum, it was time to strike their main base.
Operation Hell Conquest was about to begin.
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