855 Snow and Ash

There were a lot of things to do before the division resumed its march. Souls shards had to be extracted from the carcasses of the Nightmare Creatures, the carcasses themselves had to be piled into mounds to clear the way for the vehicles. Usually, each would have been dressed to harvest useful materials — the hides and bones of the abominations were a precious resource, especially that of the Fallen ones.

However, no one had time to properly process the remains of the fearsome horde, so the corpses were simply discarded by the side of the road, doused in incendiary liquid, and burned.

The transports and artillery vehicles, damaged war platforms, and powered suits of mechanized infantry had to be checked and repaired. Spent ammunition had to be replaced, wounded had to be healed. Soldiers, both mundane and Awakened, needed time to rest and recover.

Aboard the Rhino, members of the cohort slept in shifts. Three entered the Dream Realm while the other three remained on guard. As soon as the first shift returned, the second shift took their place inside the sleeping pod. Sunny remained awake, meditating silently at the back of the vehicle.

…In the morning, the division had to perform one final task.

In a solemn silence, the bodies of the fallen soldiers — about a hundred or so — were covered by pristine white flags. The general in command of the division gave a short speech, and then lowered his head. After that, several war platforms towering above him activated powerful flamethrowers attached to their mechanical arms, unleashing long streams of furious fire to consume the bodies.

In the harsh conditions of the Antarctic campaign, the First Army could not give its fallen a better burial. Even if the division could spare time to dig graves in the frozen soil, the risk of a stray Nightmare Creature disturbing them in the future was too high. And with so many living people waiting for their turn to board the evacuation ships, sacrificing precious space to send the bodies back home was a luxury that no one could afford.

Looking at the funeral pyre in silence, Sunny couldn't help but fall into a somber mood. Although the ritual itself was beautiful and dignified, in truth, the soldiers who had sacrificed their lives were treated not much different from the Nightmare Creatures that had killed them. In the end, both were consumed by flames.

For some reason, the image of countless candles burning in front of the Academy gates appeared in his mind. With a sigh, Sunny turned away and spoke to his subordinates:

"Let's go."

At least the losses weren't too terrible. If Saint had not struck down the Guardian of the northernmost Gate so swiftly, things could have been much worse.

Soon, the division moved forward. All that was left behind was a landscape decimated by the battle, with snow and ash mixing as they swirled in the air.

Sunny remained at the back of the Rhino with a contemplative expression on his face. Soon, however, he was distracted from his thoughts by an incoming communication.

Master Jet's alabaster face appeared on the screen.

"Sunny. I have a new mission for you…"

***

The field army dispatched to the Antarctic Center had a straightforward objective — turn a small number of cities into impregnable strongholds, relocate all human population of the region to these strongholds, and then entrench themselves for as long as it was going to take to evacuate everyone.

At some point, reinforcements were supposed to arrive and make the task of withstanding the siege of Nightmare Creatures easier.

Before that happened, however, the First Army had to complete the most perilous stage of the operation alone. Siege capitals had to be built, evacuation corridors had to be established, and millions of people had to be moved through them in a timely fashion. All of that demanded the human forces to be split into numerous smaller detachments, which posed a significant risk.

Additionally, there were too many moving parts to this plan, and each of them could fail and end in disaster.

Right now, the division Sunny was assigned to was swiftly moving toward a large city that was going to become an entrenched stronghold. In the process, they were also laying the groundwork to establish transportation connections to smaller settlements, either by bolstering the existing civilian infrastructure or creating their own.

After yesterday's battle, there seemed to be no serious obstacles in the division's path. Some of the other divisions, however, were not faring that well.

Soul Reaper seemed a bit tired as she spoke from the screen:

"...a bit of a problem. There is a Category Three Gate blocking their way, guarded by a powerful Corrupted creature. From the initial observation, it is at least a Devil… however, it could also be a Tyrant. Winter can't handle it alone. You and I are the closest, so… buckle up. Separate from your division and move south-east at full speed until you reach the rendezvous point. It's about seventy kilometers away from your current position."

Sunny briefly studied the map, then said hesitantly:

"A Corrupted Tyrant… are you sure that the three of us can manage killing it?"

All Corrupted abominations were frightening, but a Tyrant… the thought of facing one in battle made Sunny feel ill at ease. He had only ever fought one creature of that Rank, the Wormvine. Even then, he had only killed the vile Monster by slaying its host with the Aidre's wooden knife.

Of course, Sunny had been a mere Awakened back then. He was much more powerful now. But… what truly disturbed him was the lack of information. Fighting an enemy after studying it for a while was completely different from going in blind. He probably had a slim chance against a Corrupted Tyrant if there was ample time to prepare. As it stood, though…

Master Jet did not seem to share his concerns. She grinned darkly, and then shook her head:

"The three of us is enough. However, this time, we won't be fighting alone. Someone else will be joining the fun."

Sunny raised an eyebrow.

"Who?"

Soul Reaper leaned forward a little.

"A Saint…"