Chapter 319. Reinhard on the Attack
"—"
The people in the Water Gate City stared with wide eyes, filled with both shock and terror... The future displayed in the sky did not just focus on those turned into flies; it provided a bird's-eye view of the entire city being scoured by the flood.
Under the rampant floodwaters, hundreds of citizens who hadn't managed to hide in shelters in time became pale, bloated corpses. The city was filled with the sounds of lamentation.
Although Hikigaya Hachiman had done his best to have Anastasia warn everyone to enter the shelters before the battle began, the city was simply too large and the number of shelters limited... In the end, victims were inevitable.
"...Ugh..."
Looking at their own corpses, the corpses of friends, and the corpses of family members—this hellish scene was extremely distressing.
However, these pale-faced people, people with consciences and normal values, no longer directed their anger at Hikigaya Hachiman or Emilia. All their hatred was focused on the culprit: the Witch Cult.
Toward the blood-soaked candidate camps, toward Kiritaka and his White Dragon's Scales, and toward the local soldiers busy rescuing civilians—toward these saviors who had stepped forward...
The people of Pristella felt nothing but sincere and immense gratitude!
Amidst this gratitude, and to prevent the Sin Archbishops from attacking earlier after seeing the future, the people here began closing the city gates and arming themselves to man the walls.
Inside the Hoshin Company, Anastasia let go of her hands. Mimi nimbly hopped over and tugged at a dazed Julius.
"Don't be sad, nya! Mimi will help Julius get his memories back, nya! Garf too—the next battle will definitely help Julius beat that Gluttony bastard to death, nya!"
Her optimistic comfort caused the daze in the depths of Julius's heart—that dark cloud—to dissipate slightly, but he still couldn't bring himself to smile.
He could only let out a sigh, barely finding luck within the misfortune. "At least I was the one who bore it; the others didn't suffer damage..."
"Don't say stuff like that. If you lose your memories, no one is going to be happy just because you blocked Gluttony." Ricardo grinned and gave the dejected Julius a punch on the arm. "But, have faith in him—that man!"
If it's that guy, he will definitely exert every effort for the sake of his best friend's memories.
In the convenience store, Hikigaya Hachiman's eyelids drooped, and he let out a deep sigh, his heart tinged with gloom.
'If I can't do it... if I can't snatch Julius's memories back, I will definitely despise you, Hikigaya Hachiman!'
Yukinoshita said nothing, only gently patting his back in silent comfort.
"Puck... I think I finally understand why someone as gentle as Hachiman can occasionally use such bottomless insults and verbal abuse toward others."
On the streets of the Royal Capital, Emilia stared blankly at the battered and bruised candidate camps—every single one of them covered in sword and knife wounds, with Julius's memory stolen and countless civilians dead or injured.
"I am... ve~ry angry right now!"
Previously, when Hachiman suggested imprisoning the four Archbishops and making them mate, Emilia had been shocked. She thought the gentle Hachiman wouldn't propose such insults and abuse... but now, she completely understood.
Dealing with these "Bastard Fakes," no matter what method was used, was entirely reasonable!
"That's how it is, Lia." Puck nodded. It didn't care about the many people dead in Pristella; it only felt that as its daughter's killing intent increased, it would effectively strengthen her personality, giving her an advantage in the upcoming "Battle for Hachiman."
The vast majority of people across both worlds were demoralized. While the battle for the City Hall had indeed reclaimed the building, the price paid was truly high.
The Witch Cult opening the floodgates was actually expected; after all, those bastards have no humanity.
"Couldn't they have reclaimed the floodgates with Kiritaka first?" Kirino Kousaka couldn't help but ask.
"It's impossible." Kyousuke Kousaka shook his head. "Doing that would have too little benefit. Even if they reclaimed them, the Archbishops would only need to pick a random gate, attack it again, and open it. The result would be the same."
"After all, the candidate camps can't predict which gate the Archbishops will attack, so they can't concentrate their combat power to guard it. If they split into four groups, they can't stop a Sin Archbishop."
"Therefore, they had to go to the City Hall to kill Capella first. As long as the Archbishops aren't dead, reclaiming the gates is useless. Capella and the others are the priority."
"It doesn't matter if Kiritaka and the White Dragon's Scales take the gates; what matters is when Capella, Batenkaitos, and Sirius die. Only when those three are dead will the gates truly be safe."
"Oh..."
Kousaka Kirino was dejected. She turned her eyes away, not daring—and not having the heart—to look at the current state of the Water Gate City.
In a KTV, the usually "little devil" Iroha Isshiki was now shivering, terrified by the malice of Capella and the others. Stuttering, she said: "I'm actually starting to look forward to Hikigaya-senpai carrying out that 'Ultimate Insult' he proposed to those Capella bastards."
"—What 'Ultimate Insult,' you damned male-meat! To dare threaten this Lady... I'll make you personally taste the feeling of being toyed with by four other male-meats!"
Inside a certain Witch Cult stronghold, Capella had transformed into a black dragon, furiously sweeping away everything around her to vent her disgust and fear... just imagining the scene of herself mating with those self-righteous, selfish, and nauseatingly willful colleagues made her want to vomit.
Hikigaya Hachiman had indeed grasped the only point capable of breaking her composure.
"If not for... if not for... AHHH! Damned meat-scrap! Damned male-meat!"
If Reinhard weren't in the Royal Capital right now, she would definitely go there to seize Hikigaya Hachiman and turn this "male-meat" into a fly or a puppy to make him suffer!
Capella's eyes flashed; she decided. She would go to the Water Gate City first to vent her rage.
At the same time in the Royal Capital, everyone heard a sonic boom that echoed throughout the city. Turning their heads, they saw Reinhard leaping from the Sword Saint estate, soaring into the sky.
Reinhard's figure was tiny, yet so dazzling. Everyone could see him, and it was as if they could see the hundreds of various Divine Protections swirling around him, all of them fully activated.
His silhouette dispersed the clouds in the air, carving a trail straight toward the distant Water Gate City. What Reinhard was worried about and where he was going was plain for all to see.
While the Sin Archbishops are mentally unstable, they aren't stupid enough to seek out Reinhard for a death wish, so it's basically impossible for them to attack the Royal Capital.
However, seeing this future, the possibility of them going to Pristella earlier to massacre the city was very high.
Reinhard's departure did not diminish the sense of security among the people of the Capital, because they knew the other heroes remaining—the Finest Knight Julius, Lady Crusch, Lady Emilia, and the others—were also absolutely reliable.
Furthermore, with the Authorities of all the Archbishops now exposed, and given the number of powerhouses in the Capital who could gank them, Julius and the others feared no one except Regulus!
If Regulus were to attack, Reinhard—who now had all his Divine Protections active—could immediately sense it and rush back quickly.
Thus, carrying the hopes of everyone from the Council of Sages down to the common citizens—
"Please save the Water Gate City, Reinhard!"
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