Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage

Chapter 474: How To Fly In Another World

CH474 How To Fly In Another World

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’Is he a sorcerer... or a warrior?’ The adventurers and orcs couldn’t help wondering.

’As expected of the Silver Fang—Drakeslayer.’ The Fury soldiers felt a quiet, familiar pride.

Watching Alex casually release another [Fire Bolt], instantly killing an ant that stood out from the swarm, Kavakan couldn’t help but think—

’Is Boss really handicapped?’

Alex pressed the ant horde so hard that they finally abandoned the orcs and adventurers entirely, redirecting their full attention toward him.

Sensing the shift, Alex immediately abandoned the [Delayed Spell: Triple Fireball] he had begun forming. He was about to chant a new spell—one he had only recently learned—when the temperature around him suddenly plummeted.

[Ice Ball]!

The ice-attribute variant of the spell he had just given up, detonated nearby.

A blast of frost spread outward, and while the damage itself was moderate, its secondary effect was devastating—every ant it touched by the frost had its legs frozen solid, grinding their movement to a halt.

Then—

A spectre flashed between the immobilised ants.

Steel whooshed while bodies fell.

The figure vanished almost as soon as it appeared.

From above, multiple [Spatial Rend] strikes struck, slicing apart the flying ants bloating the sky and any ant below unfortunate enough to survive the previous assault.

A white blur shot past Alex.

An ant that had somehow survived all three attacks lunged for him anyway.

Crush!

Its head froze instantly—then shattered under icy claws.

”I had that perfectly under control,” Alex said flatly, turning to the new arrivals.

”There’s no need to sulk just because we ruined your moment to show off while killing small fry,” Zora replied, riding atop Fen’s back, her lips curled in amusement.

Udara emerged silently from the shadows, coming to Alex’s side.

”There’s no need to take risks anymore, Master,” she said calmly. ”You’ve already rallied the adventurers and the orcs. Let them do the heavy lifting.”

”You’re no longer just a fighter,” Zora added. ”You’re a commander now. Behave, Alex.”

Alex’s first instinct was to argue.

Then he stopped.

As irritating as it sounded, Zora was right.

Azgrug was fully engaged with the Nest Ruler. There was no one else left who could oversee the battlefield as a whole.

Charging back into the frontlines would narrow his vision, dull his awareness, and slow his ability to issue commands.

As Udara said—his power had already been established.

Now, the orcs and adventurers would follow.

Senu dropped down beside Alex, her figure now towering over him.

’Master, I can carry you now. Get on.’ Her excitement came clearly through their link.

Alex looked at her strangely—but mounted her back anyway.

The moment Senu flapped her wings and lifted them into the air, Alex noticed something unexpected.

There was no wind pressure, no turbulent draft.

’That’s... wrong.’

His eyes narrowed as he noticed a transparent film extending from Senu’s feathers, enveloping him as well. He found the energy signature was something eerily familiar.

’Spatial Energy?’ A jolt ran through him.

’She’s not flying through the air... she’s moving through space itself?’

’That’s— That’s incredible!’

”How are you flying like this?” Alex couldn’t help asking.

Confusion rippled through their link.

’I’m just flapping my wings,’ Senu replied. ’Isn’t that how all birds fly?’

Alex nearly facepalmed.

’She doesn’t even realise what she’s doing...! How infuriating!’

He decided not to pursue the matter further—for now—and shifted his focus to the battlefield below.

The orcs and adventurers were locked in fierce combat, holding a line against the endless ant tide.

Thanks to Alex’s rampage, morale on the humanoid side had reached its peak, while the ants’ coordination faltered. The Sand Ant Queen was struggling to maintain control.

However, this advantage is deceptive.

Alex’s eyes sharpened.

’They still have overwhelming numbers.’ He mused.

’The only reason they haven’t crushed the line is because the Queen refuses to fully commit.’

His gaze shifted toward the hill.

Even now, the Dune Wolf King refused to engage Azgrug directly. It attempted to disengage repeatedly, only to be forced back into combat again and again.

’At least that much is going right,’ Alex mused. ’As long as Azgrug keeps it busy, the Wolf King can’t coordinate the packs.’

Then his attention turned to the flanks.

While Alex dominated the ant frontline, his followers and soldiers had already reached the wolves on both sides.

’The hill won’t be decided quickly, neither will the frontline. The flanks are the key.’ His gaze hardened. ’Whoever breaks there... wins the battle.’

”Get me closer,” Alex said.

Senu dipped her wings and glided toward the left flank, where the scout team unleashed a steady rain of arrows and bolts into the wolf packs.

Alex inhaled.

[Dominion]! [Regality]!

The aura of his Solmir True Name erupted outward.

For a brief moment, the wolves paused.

Then they bared their fangs—hostility burning in their eyes.

Alex chuckled softly.

”As expected,” he muttered. ”If it were that easy, this would already be over.”

Nonetheless, the pressure of Alex’s aura combined with Senu’s overwhelming presence was enough to disrupt the wolves’ coordination.

The scout team seized the opening immediately, cutting down half a dozen wolves in rapid succession.

With their formation shaken, Havel and the elves slipped in from the flank. Havel’s blade flashed, piercing through another two wolves. The elves also dropped a few other ants before they were forced to retreat –with cover fire from Silver and the crossbowmen— as the remaining wolves attempted to overwhelm them.

’Not perfect,’ Alex assessed, ’but more than enough.’

The scout team would finish this flank on their own.

He patted Senu’s back lightly, and she banked away, soaring toward the opposite flank.

This side of the battlefield was far more stable—and far bloodier.

With Mordor’s hexes weakening the wolves, Mogal and Kavakan led the guard team in brutal close-quarters combat, cutting down the beasts with relentless efficiency.

’No need to interfere directly here,’ Alex thought. ’But they should still feel our presence.’

”Fly over once,” he instructed.

Queen Senu swept low across the right flank, her ten-metre wingspan casting a vast shadow over the battlefield.

The wolves froze for a heartbeat—pure instinct overriding reason.

That single moment was all the guard team needed.

Blades fell, another wolf dropped from each member of the guard team.

’Much better.’

Alex turned his attention back to the main battleline.

Several ant clusters had begun spreading out, attempting to use their numerical advantage to encircle the orc–adventurer formation.

’So much for beasts being mindless.’

The orcs and adventurers had responded well. A dedicated ten-man retrieval squad moved through the battlefield, dragging wounded fighters back to Eleanor’s rear-line treatment zone, where they were stabilised and sent back into combat.

The ants had noticed.

Several groups peeled away, angling toward both the retrieval team and Eleanor’s makeshift medic stand.

’Smart.’ Alex thought. ’But— Not going to happen.’

Zora rained down low-tier but highly efficient spells, breaking apart ant groups and thinning their numbers, while Udara flowed through the gaps like a living shadow, cutting down any ant that slipped past the spell barrage.

’With those two there, the ants won’t reach the medic stand,’ Alex concluded.

He was about to shift his focus, when he noticed something off.

His gaze snapped back to Zora.

Then to the Rune Tattoo on her shoulder.

’That energy...! Zora, you—.’

Realisation struck him like a blade.

Before he could act or speak, Udara’s voice came through the comms.

”Master, these ants are becoming a nuisance. Should I assassinate the Ant Queen?”

***