Chapter 216: Chapter 210: Rather Bomb It Flat Than Fall into the Trap

Inside the cockpit of the Odyssey, a holographic screen hovered in midair.

Allen stood before the console, where several split-screens displayed battlefield footage from different angles—real-time surveillance transmitted from several high-altitude Demon Eye Mk. IIIs.

Mine Number Three had turned into a slaughterhouse.

Victor leaned back in his seat, his face still pale, but he forced himself to sit up, his eyes glued to the screen.

"Can... can I see?" His voice was hoarse.

Allen glanced at him. Without a word, he simply waved a hand to enlarge the screen, allowing Victor to see the images clearly.

On the screen, the defensive systems of Mine Number Three were collapsing.

A leader-class Crystal Shell Giant Scorpion, over twenty meters long, was using its massive, battering-ram-like pincers to smash an "Inferno" launch platform into scrap metal.

Ten adult giant scorpions were frantically assaulting the defensive line.

Twenty Spider Slayer Mk. IIs fought back desperately, but they couldn’t even buy a moment’s time.

One PX-1 unit, wielding a scorpion-tail spear, pierced the compound eye of a giant scorpion, but in the next instant, it was swarmed by three others. Its heavy chassis was gripped by their pincers, letting out an ear-piercing shriek of twisting metal.

In the sky, a Demon Eye Mk. II aerial fortress suddenly erupted in a brilliant flash of fire. It had been struck by some unseen attack; its shield shattered instantly, and the entire craft spiraled out of control, crashing to the ground and exploding into a fireball.

"This..." Victor’s pupils contracted. "How did these giant scorpions suddenly appear deep inside the mining operation?"

Allen didn’t answer, his gaze sweeping over every detail of the footage.

Jarvis’s voice rang out, "Commander, damage assessment updated."

[Inferno Launch Platforms: 2 units lost.]

[Spider Slayer Mk. IIs: 16 units lost.]

[Demon Eye Mk. II: 1 unit lost.]

[Mining Golems: 9 units lost.]

[Blessed-level Servants: 3 units lost.]

[Total Combat Losses: 95%.]

Allen knew that losses of this magnitude meant the mine’s defensive force was essentially annihilated.

’Normally, my standard defensive garrison for a mine could hold out for a while, even against an attack of five adult Crystal Shell Giant Scorpions and two hundred lesser scorpions. But I never expected a leader-class scorpion and ten adults to suddenly materialize deep inside the site, destroying the two ’Inferno’ rocket platforms and bypassing the long-range engagement phase entirely.’

Then, Jarvis’s next sentence made Allen’s gaze turn sharp.

[Anomaly Detected: The entire stockpile of high-purity Fire Element Crystals, totaling approximately 12 tons, vanished one minute ago.]

[No evidence of large-scale transport found on-site.]

Allen tapped his fingers on the armrest.

"Interesting."

Victor stared, baffled. "What’s interesting?"

Allen pointed at the screen, at the scorpions rampaging through the facility.

"Watch their behavior patterns."

Victor observed them carefully.

The Crystal Shell Giant Scorpions were using their massive pincers to smash the Mining Golems, destroying every structure in sight.

But they paid no attention to the ore fragments scattered on the ground, nor to the Magic Power-infused Fire Element Crystals.

"They... they aren’t eating the ore?"

Victor frowned. "That’s not right. Crystal Shell Giant Scorpions are Magical Beasts that feed on ore rich in Magic Power. They should be instinctively devouring those crystals."

"Exactly," Allen said with a nod. "Therefore, they aren’t acting on their own initiative."

He enlarged one of the video feeds.

It showed a clearing near the mine where the twelve tons of newly-mined Fire Element Crystal ore had been piled up.

Now, it was completely empty.

"Twelve tons of Fire Element Crystals, vanished into thin air."

Allen’s voice was cold. "There are no signs of them being moved, no transport vehicles, and no evidence of them being devoured by Magical Beasts."

Victor’s pupils contracted. "A spatial item?"

"Correct." Allen turned to look at him. "It’s the only possibility."

"So..." Victor’s voice was grim. "The enemy’s primary objective is to destroy our production capabilities. Their secondary objective is to plunder high-value ore."

"Correct." Allen’s gaze grew colder. "This isn’t the instinctive behavior of Magical Beasts. This was a premeditated attack."

"Black Wizards," Victor said through gritted teeth. "It has to be those Black Wizards hiding behind the beast hordes!"

Allen remained silent, his eyes fixed on the screen.

His mind was working at high speed. One part of him analyzed the battle data, another remotely mobilized his Golems, and several others were deducing the enemy’s course of action.

"Jarvis, pull up the Demon Eye surveillance records for the area surrounding Mine Number Three."

[Accessing...]

[Anomaly: No trace of any approaching Magical Beasts detected within a ten-kilometer radius of Mine Number Three.]

[The target group appeared directly inside the mining operation via unknown means.]

Allen’s brow furrowed even more deeply.

’Group spatial teleportation? Or some other ability?’

"Careful," Victor suddenly warned. "He’s very likely still at the mine, waiting for you to show up."

Allen turned to look at him.

Victor’s face was ghastly pale, but his eyes were exceptionally clear.

"Think about it. If you were that Black Wizard, and you went to all the trouble of attacking the mine, destroying the facilities, and plundering the ore... what would your ultimate goal be?"

Allen was silent for two seconds.

"To draw me out."

"Right!" Victor nodded. "You’re one of the Mentor’s favored disciples, and what this place lacks most are Alchemy Wizards. If a Black Wizard could eliminate you, they could disrupt our Mentor’s development in Zone 18. The ambush I fell into... it must have been for the same reason."

Allen’s expression remained impassive.

"So, he’s betting I’ll personally go to the mine to investigate."

"Or to find an opportunity to deal a heavy blow to your strongest forces," Victor took a deep breath. "And he bet correctly—your most powerful Golem, the ’Freedom Gundam,’ is on its way to the mine."

Allen glanced at his Golem’s location tracker.

The Freedom Gundam and six "Storm Falcons" were still eighty kilometers from Mine Number Three.

At their speed, they would arrive in a few minutes at most.

"That’s right. If I were him..." Allen mused softly. "I would set traps around the mine, wait for that Alchemy Wizard or his strongest Golem to enter attack range, and then..."

He didn’t finish the thought.

But Victor already understood.

An ambush.

A fatal ambush, aimed at Allen.

A brief silence descended upon the cockpit.

Victor looked at Allen, awaiting his decision.

Allen tapped his fingers on the armrest a few times, then issued an order.

"Jarvis."

[Present.]

"Order the Freedom Gundam to immediately cease its advance and return."

[Command confirmed.]

Victor looked at him. "You’re... abandoning the mine?"

"Yes." Allen’s voice was frighteningly calm. "The mine has lost all function. The Golem loss rate is at 95%, and the facilities are completely destroyed."

"If I send the Freedom Gundam, I’d be sending my strongest combat unit straight into the enemy’s ambush. If I go myself, I’d be serving myself up on a platter."

"It’s a high-risk, low-reward operation."

"But its only value now is to become *my* trap. He wants to ambush me, so he’ll have to lie in wait for me to take the bait."

"You mean... blow up your own mine?" Victor asked.

A cold smile touched the corners of Allen’s lips.

"Exactly. Since he wants to wait for me, I’ll give him plenty to wait for."

He took direct control of the Storm Falcon squadrons: the six that had been returning with the First Golem Legion, plus the six on routine patrol in Zone 18.

"Jarvis, you control the Inferno launch platforms at the Three Forks Canyon Camp."

[Inferno Launchers One through Twenty, standing by.]

[Current Position: 42 kilometers from Mine Number Three.]

Allen’s gaze turned glacial.

"Target: Mine Number Three. Full area coverage."

"Prepare for a saturation strike."

Allen glanced at Victor, his tone grim.

"The best way to deal with a trap..."

He paused.

"...is to blow up the trap along with everything around it."

Victor couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret for Allen. ’That’s a Fire Element Crystal mine! Even if the facilities are destroyed, the pits and tunnels are still there. It could be rebuilt quickly...’

"Rebuilding takes time, Magic Stones, and resources," Allen interrupted. "And as long as that Black Wizard is watching, the mine will never be safe."

"Rather than hold on to a mine that could be attacked at any moment, it’s better to just blow it up and force him to show himself."

Victor opened his mouth to speak, but ultimately said nothing.

He instinctively shied away from destroying assets; after all, he had only managed to open three mines since arriving in this plane, and now all of them were gone.

Allen ignored Victor, his attention completely focused on the console.

"Inferno Launch Platforms, firing solution calculated."

[CALCULATION COMPLETE.]

[WIND CORRECTION: EASTERLY, FORCE 2.]

[TARGET AREA: MINE NUMBER THREE, FULL COVERAGE.]

[PROJECTED IMPACT POINTS: 240.]

[PROJECTED COVERAGE AREA: 3 SQUARE KILOMETERS.]

At this point, the twelve Storm Falcons had also arrived in the airspace above Mine Number Three.

Allen took a deep breath.

"Fire."

Forty kilometers away, not far from Three Forks Canyon Camp.

Twenty "Inferno" launch platforms simultaneously lit up with an eerie blue glow.

Two hundred and forty Magic Missiles shrieked as they soared into the sky, tracing parabolic arcs across the heavens.

They soared over canyons and across the desolate plains.

Then, they rained down with precision upon Mine Number Three.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

An unending series of explosions instantly engulfed the entire mining site.

Terrifying pillars of fire shot into the sky as shockwaves swept through, leveling everything in their path.

Temperatures reaching thousands of degrees turned the ground to magma, and the explosions literally lowered the elevation of the entire site by more than a meter.

Inside the cockpit of the Odyssey, Allen and Victor carefully watched the area being consumed by a sea of fire through the surveillance of a high-altitude Demon Eye Mk. III.

Suddenly, Jarvis’s voice spoke up.

[ANOMALOUS MAGIC POWER FLUCTUATION DETECTED!]

On the screen, in a corner of the inferno, a translucent shield suddenly materialized.

The shield lasted less than a second before shattering under the terrifying force of the blast.

It was followed by a faint flicker of spatial energy.

And then, there was nothing.

Allen’s eyes sharpened instantly.

"Jarvis, record the characteristic frequency of that spatial fluctuation."

[Recorded.]

[Fluctuation Type: Long-Range Spatial Jump.]

A cold smile touched the corners of Allen’s mouth.

"So he was there."

Victor drew in a sharp breath.

’If Allen hadn’t decisively bombed the mine... if the Freedom Gundam had really charged in...’

The consequences would have been unimaginable.

"You... how were you so sure he was at the mine?" Victor couldn’t help but ask.

Allen turned to look at him.

"I couldn’t be certain, but I know he’s greedy."

"He went to great lengths to attack the mine and plunder twelve tons of Fire Element Crystals. Those crystals are worth at least one hundred thousand Magic Stones."

Allen’s voice was cold. "But what he’s more interested in is me. My life is worth more." 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

"He was likely to stay at the mine, waiting for me to show up."

"And I..."

Allen looked at the screen, at the mining site that had been bombed into rubble.

"...just gave him a welcome present."

Victor fell silent.

He suddenly realized that his previous perception of Allen was just the tip of the iceberg.

This fellow disciple, who always seemed so stingy and petty, was more ruthless than anyone at a critical moment.

Ruthless to his enemies.

And even more ruthless to himself.