Abandon Ragna!
His aide, unable to bear the thought, stepped closer and tried to stop him.
"Vice Admiral Sakazuki… there are five hundred thousand people living on that island…"
They had no way of knowing that Grimm had already evacuated all the civilians.
Sakazuki turned sharply, his eyes locking onto the man with such intensity that the aide stumbled backward two steps and fell to the ground.
"The total population of all the nations we are still defending adds up to over ten million. Do you think we should abandon all of them for the sake of a mere five hundred thousand? Are you prepared to take responsibility for that choice?"
His aura was terrifying even without shouting. Every Marine present immediately snapped to attention and saluted. "SIR, YES, SIR!"
Ragna was, aside from the two main strongholds connected by portals, the very first island Grimm had ever conquered.
Inside the city, a Marine disguised as a civilian hid in the shadows of a ruined house and made a call to Sakazuki.
"Reporting, Vice Admiral Sakazuki! Our investigations show that the number of civilians remaining here is extremely small… it looks like they vanished into thin air…"
"Never mind what's happening there. Gather your men and retreat immediately," Sakazuki commanded without hesitation.
They understood instantly: Sakazuki intended to abandon this island. They didn't know the reasons why, but orders were orders.
"So we really are just leaving them…"
An officer slipped his Den Den Mushi back into his pocket and looked around with a bitter smile.
All around him, citizens had transformed into ghouls and were hunting for new prey. Yet, long before this moment, more than eighty percent of the population had simply… disappeared.
Everything here was exactly the same as what happened in Orbedia — the only difference being that this carnage was taking place in broad daylight instead of under cover of night.
There was one other difference: Grimm hadn't marched straight to the palace to kill the King.
Instead, after turning a number of "heretics" into ghouls, he sat comfortably atop a bell tower, drinking beer and watching the bloody spectacle unfold below.
"How could this happen… how could this be happening!"
King Gineas of Ragna, surrounded by his royal court, stood before the palace gates and witnessed the exact same sight that Grimm was watching.
But the expressions on their faces were total opposites.
Grimm was smiling. They looked as though they had already died.
"Your Majesty, please return inside! It is far too dangerous out here!"
A minister grabbed the King's arm, trying to pull him back. Just recently, another minister — one who had been marked by Grimm as a collaborator — had been executed right before their eyes.
"REPORT!"
At that moment, an armored soldier rushed up the steps and bowed before the King.
"Your Majesty, our forces have completely crumbled. Soldiers bitten by the creatures turn into ghouls themselves. The few who remain alive have lost the will to fight; they are throwing down their weapons and fleeing!"
Gineas nearly fainted upon hearing this. He barely managed to stay upright and asked, his voice cracking in despair:
"What about the Marines?! Where are the reinforcements?! Wasn't Vice Admiral Sakazuki, the future Admiral, patrolling the waters right near us?! Where are they?!"
"Well…"
"They are gone. It seems… they have already abandoned us."
The ministers fell silent, choking back tears.
Suddenly, a voice spoke from behind them. They turned in horror to see Grimm standing there.
He walked calmly over to Gineas, staring down at the King with eyes filled with absolute dread.
"What do you think? Doesn't this scene perfectly suit… the fate reserved for rebellious heretics? Isn't it beautiful?"
"Y‑You… you…"
Gineas was paralyzed by a whirlwind of emotions — fear, rage, regret — but somehow, every word he tried to speak got stuck in his throat.
He wanted to scream, yet couldn't make a sound.
"Sights like this are rare. It would be a shame not to watch it unfold. So… stand right here and keep looking."
Grimm turned and walked toward the palace entrance, then raised one hand in a mocking gesture without looking back.
"If only you had placed your faith in the Holy Light… none of this would be happening now. You could still be King — perhaps even living a more comfortable life than before. Don't you think?"
Back in the waters off Ragna, soldiers reported to Sakazuki: "Vice Admiral Sakazuki! The team sent to investigate Ragna has lost contact. We presume…"
"Never mind. There's no need to report such trivial things." Sakazuki raised a hand to stop them.
"Let him kill for now."
Altdimir — a massive nation with a population of five million. It was the largest in land area and the most populous of all twelve nations that once flew the flag of the Holy Light Pirates.
It was said that long ago, they had even paid the Heavenly Tribute to the World Nobles.
Naturally, this made it the single most important and heavily protected nation among the twelve.
At this moment, Chief Instructor Zephyr was stationed at a temporary Marine base within Altdimir.
From the Den Den Mushi placed on the table before him, the voice of Fleet Admiral Kong echoed clearly.
"Zephyr, I know you are famous as the man who 'Does Not Kill'. Abandoning Ragna was a decision made out of absolute necessity. You know as well as I do that the combined population of the nations we still hold exceeds six million. You understand the logic of choosing what to keep and what to let go."
Zephyr was still firmly opposed to the plan, but he had been unable to send aid to Ragna.
While distance and travel time were part of the reason, the bigger issue was this: it was time for nations worldwide to pay their Heavenly Tribute.
Ever since Grimm's regime was toppled a month ago, Altdimir had resumed paying the tribute.
Zephyr had been assigned responsibility for guarding the transport convoy to ensure it wasn't attacked by Grimm during the transfer.
"You don't need to call me every single day, Fleet Admiral Kong."
Zephyr sat with his hands resting on his knees, lifting his head slightly. "I'm not a child. I don't need you coming here to lecture me on principles every time."
"However…"
Zephyr shifted his tone and asked sharply, "I have just one question. Are we protecting Altdimir simply because it has the largest population… or is it really because of the Heavenly Tribute it holds?"
On the other end of the line, Kong fell silent. Several seconds passed before he replied with just two words: "I am sorry."
"Don't apologize to me. The ones you have wronged are the innocent people who are now dead."
Zephyr hung up the call and remained quiet for a moment.
"Instructor Zephyr!" A Marine Major stepped forward.
"We just finished our investigation. It appears that all the missing civilians went to the churches — they are all devout followers of the Holy Light. But where they went after that… we have no way of knowing. The churches were locked tight immediately afterward."
"They went to the churches…" Zephyr frowned deeply.
"Instructor Zephyr! Vice Admiral Sakazuki has arrived and is making his way here to meet you!" another Marine reported. His arms were unusually long — nearly twice the length of an average person's.
"Haa… very well."
Zephyr stood up and walked outside. Even though Sakazuki was his student, it was only proper for the junior to come to the master.
There was no reason for him to go out of his way to welcome his subordinate.
Zephyr was a Marine who drew a clear line between public duty and personal feelings.
On a mission, there was no teacher or student — only superior and subordinate.
"Instructor Zephyr!"
The master and pupil met at the edge of Altdimir's city limits. Sakazuki, also a man who valued duty above all else, addressed Zephyr by his official rank and title as a mark of respect.
"Vice Admiral. Begin drawing up our strategy to deal with Grimm immediately."
Zephyr nodded. Although he was deeply displeased with Sakazuki's eagerness to abandon Ragna, he kept his opinion entirely to himself, hidden deep in his heart.
__________________
For more advance chapters visit patreon.com/bars45.
For 10$- All advance chapters.
"Schedule"
Monday - Friday - Update 3 Chapters a Day
Saturday - Sunday - Off