“Jinpok! Come back! We’re starting now!”
“Oh, is it time already?”
A giant war drum began to sound, and all the soldiers out on the field began to hurriedly retreat.
“Mortars will be fired soon! Retreat!”
“RETREAT!!”
The soldiers began running back as they threw flame bottles to hold the monsters at bay. Then, as all the soldiers left the battlefield, the sounds of explosions filled the area. Explosions filled the entire frontline, destroying trees and land, killing monsters along with it.
“We have cannons now! They’re amazing!”
“W…we can do it with those weapons!”
“Hail the Emperor!”
“Was it the Emperor’s creation again?”
“To think that some objected to making them because they cost too much…”
Soldiers muttered among themselves as the sounds of cannon fire deafened the area. Over three thousand cannons filled the entire mountain range with explosions and smell of gunpowder.
“I guess we can have some rest then.”
“KKKEEEEK!”
Joonbum turned and saw Jinpok grinning, holding a monster in his grip. It was a small monster about three feet tall.
“Why did you…”
“Do you know what this is?” Jinpok asked as he pointed to the monster’s leg.
“…it’s an artificial leg.”
“Yeah, just like the ones we use. What’s even more interesting is…”
Then Jinpok pointed at a spot, to which Joonbum became shocked.
“Made in… China?”
Joonbum was beyond being shocked. Then the monster began fighting back again, so Jinpok snapped its neck, killing it instantly.
“I see these kinds a lot. They’re all from Earth. From a similar time frame. I can’t be sure if it’s from the exact ‘same’ time though.”
Joonbum looked at Jinpok.
“Do you have more evidence?”
“Yeah. There were some of them with gunshot wounds. But our soldiers aren’t using any guns right now. There were some with bullets stuck in their bodies too.”
“Hmm…”
Jinpok drank a bottle of water before continuing,
“You may be guessing it already, but I think these were humans. At least some of them seem to be so. It means we are fighting against humans right now.”
Joonbum nodded.
“Yeah… I was thinking of that too. I was actually ready for humans to walk through that gate, not monsters. But I guess it’s better than facing an army of humans.”
“So, you’re saying this isn’t the worst case scenario?”
“Not in the least. And at this stage, we can’t be soft because they were once human. We have lives to save here.”
Doral, who was next to them, seemed to be surprised by what he just heard and asked, “So, they’re from your world?”
“Yeah, at least that’s what I think. I’m not sure how they turned into those, or why, but from seeing those things like artificial legs, I don’t think it’s too far from where I came from, timewise.”
However, they still had no answer as to why they had turned into monsters. Then, a soldier came running up to Joonbum to report.
“Your Majesty, a message from Chancellor Jackson from the capital. He asks you to withdraw our troops to Lown Peak and open our perimeter around the gate.”
“Hmm.”
Joonbum frowned as the soldier added quickly, “All of our million soldiers are at this warfront, your Majesty. There are regions showing signs of attacking from all hostile countries. The Chancellor thinks that we cannot risk the safety of our people to save others who think about attacking us when we are vulnerable.”
The soldier spoke with silent anger in his eyes. This war wasn’t just for the Khalodian Empire. It was a war to save all the people of the continent and the Emperor was out here fighting those monsters with his own two hands.
“…We’ll let them have a true taste of what they are being protected from. If they still don’t get it, then it’s too late. We’ll let them fight their own war.”
Jinpok spoke out from behind, and Joonbum nodded.
“…Tell all the kings of the entire continent. The Khalodian Empire will now abandon our perimeter and concentrate our forces on defending our Empire. If they wish to survive, they themselves will have to fight.”
Joonbum gave the order, and all the soldiers began to retreat from the mountain. It was done in a very quick manner and soon the land where they had been was filled with new monsters coming into the world through the Gate.
