Resistance That Refused To Give Up, Armored Grow

Dallon, the main city of Dairam Island.

“Did you hear the king’s warning? He said that if by April 20 we do not withdraw independence and send over everyone related to the bomb terrorism, he can no longer tolerate it.”

“That means he intends to oppress us by force.”

“Indeed. It means they intend to continue with actions even worse than now. They are probably preparing to send a large-scale force to our island.”

“It is fine. If we unite, there is no one here who can defeat us. Believe in the 3 million Dairam people.”

“I do believe. But Luson, the situation is growing more serious. Can you not see that even the king himself has stepped forward and is showing a firm attitude? If that happens, we may lose many people.”

At the middle-aged man’s words, the man called Luson shook his head strongly. All of this was something he had already expected. Honestly, to stop now would mean that everything they had done up to this point would return to nothing. That was something that absolutely could not happen.

“Have you forgotten already? He told us to send over everyone involved. We are all involved.”

As Luson said that, his gaze turned toward those among the Dairam people who could be called the leadership. At that look, all of them could only wear hardened expressions. Luson was right. The words everyone involved meant that they too would have to be dragged before the king.

“If all of us are to live, then we absolutely must achieve independence. We have already climbed aboard a runaway locomotive that cannot be stopped.”

“If you compare it like that, then in the end, are we not all going to die? Even if we board a runaway locomotive, it cannot be stopped.”

“…Are you going to keep nitpicking my words? Why have you been so negative since last time? Have you become afraid?”

“A-afraid! Do you think words alone are enough!”

“Then why are you so negative? We cannot stop something that has already begun, and do you know how demoralizing it is when you keep speaking like that?”

“That is…”

“We Dairam people are fated to fight together and die together. We must achieve independence. Otherwise, we will forever be dragged around by the evil country called the Polia Kingdom.”

At Luson’s forceful words, the middle-aged man could no longer speak. To be honest, comparing the past and the present, he felt that the present was a much better world. Of course, that did not mean he had good feelings toward the Polia Kingdom. He was simply worried about how many of his people would die because of this incident.

“I apologize. I am just worried and anxious because all of our plans have ended in failure.”

Hearing such words, the man called Luson could only shut his mouth. They had made a plan to carry out large-scale terrorism using the armed retaliation organization, and had even put it into action. But everything had been blocked.

Everything had been prevented in advance, and after even receiving the report that the assassination terrorism against the king was being carried out, there had been no further contact. From the king’s voice appearing over the radio, they could tell that it had failed.

‘How could all of that fail?’

This was literally a situation where both their hands and feet were tied. There was nothing they could do on the mainland. Experiencing such a situation, they could not help but feel just how enormous the power of the Polia Kingdom was. He had always thought it was a capable nation, but what he felt now was a hopelessness no less than that of an empire.

“If the April 20 date the king declared passes, then there will be massive armed retaliation measures. At that point, they will probably try to attack and occupy not only this city but the entire island. If that happens, the king will try to weaken our strength. He may even try to scatter all of us.”

“S-scatter us?”

“They may take us to the mainland. Or they may drag us away in small numbers as if scattering us to other islands.”

“…If that happens, then we will live our entire lives under the surveillance of the mainlanders.”

Though there were as many as 3 million Dairam people, they were only a small enough number to be no more than an ethnic minority in the Polia Kingdom. The mainland’s population could be said to exceed 100 million. Imagining that massive population, the Dairam people in the future would not only be unable to raise any proper voice, but would live their entire lives in discrimination.

“To prevent that from happening, we must all join hands and endure to the end! Everyone must rise up together!”

“We are already doing that now.”

“What we are doing now is still far from enough. We need more weapons and more ammunition. We must arm ourselves and hold out to the end.”

“Are you thinking of demanding weapons from them?”

“Yes, I am. It seems they were expecting a situation like this.”

“They are people whose identity we cannot know. They want us to cause chaos against the Polia Kingdom.”

“I know. Even so, is that not why they are handing weapons over to us for free? Since our objective is the same anyway, all we need to do is join hands with them and receive more weapons and more supplies.”

At Luson’s words that they had to do it even knowing all this, everyone could only groan, because they had no choice but to acknowledge it. For the sake of independence, their circumstances were such that they had to join hands even with the devil.

Thus, in the hearts of the Dairam people, there was absolutely no option such as surrender. They contacted the people who had reached out to them before, using the same method they had been given. Of course, the way they would receive the weapons would be through a submarine.

In order to avoid the Polia navy warships occupying the sea around the island, there had been no way through except a submarine. Thus, the Dairam people who were to receive weapons from the unidentified group greatly strengthened their will to resist through armament.

As for them, they had no idea at all what would happen in the future. A very, very difficult road had opened before them.

Time flowed on endlessly. Even after it turned to March, the mainlanders’ feelings toward the Dairam people could only worsen. At this point, it had become difficult even to see Dairam people on the mainland, to the extent that they were almost hidden from view.

Even at such a moment, Dairam Island was still full of unrest. In Dallon, which could still be called the main city, many people were holding armed demonstrations. Every day flames blazed to the extent that it was nothing unusual for Molotov cocktails to fly toward the Polia Kingdom army occupying the city’s major areas.

In some quarters, people were saying that they should just crush everything already, and asking why a grace period lasting all the way until April 20 had been given. Rather, radical demonstrations were taking place at once in cities across the mainland, demanding that Dairam Island be crushed by the military immediately.

Although police had been dispatched in response to such demonstrators, they did not take actions such as breaking up the protests. They instead showed an atmosphere as if quietly sympathizing with such demonstrations. In truth, what they were demanding was that the Dairam people be crushed immediately.

The king had already given a grace period until April 20 and had said that once that time passed, he would no longer forgive them. In other words, the demands of the demonstrators were the same as the king’s words. Only the timing was different, but their intent aligned. That was why the state was not particularly trying to stop such demonstrators.

In truth, at other times citizens might have objected, but the opinion of the demonstrators was gradually gaining more strength, to the point that there were even those who were showing signs of agreeing little by little. Of course, because it was something the king himself had said, the weight of it was great, so the Polia Kingdom was waiting until April 20.

Thus, while the Polia Kingdom was in uproar because of the Dairam people, the battle between the Magnia Empire and the Republic of Promance was growing fiercer and larger with each passing day.

Having pulled its air bases far to the rear, the Magnia Empire counterattacked the attacking groups of Republic of Promance fighters by mobilizing both remodeled fighters and its existing fighters. As a result of these movements, aerial combat between fighters was taking place day after day outside the mountain range.

As time passed, the number of fighters in operation only kept increasing. Before long, it became common for fighters in the hundreds to clash, and the blue sky could not help but be noisy day after day with their battles.

At such a time, the fiercest place of battle was none other than where the tunnel entrance existed. Though it was said that they had withdrawn to the rear, such as air bases, this place where the entrance was located was literally being fortified.

Machine guns and anti-aircraft guns for anti-air fire had been installed, and even solid bunkers were being constructed. Amid this, the skies were quite stable, to the point that attacks were very rare, since friendly fighters were continuously flying in and engaging the enemy.

Meanwhile, the movements of the Magnia Empire army seeking to suppress the interior of the mountain range were active. Gunfire rang through the tunnel every single day, and in truth, it could be said that the distance the Magnia Empire army had pushed in so far had reached as much as 2 kilometers.

From last year until now, when it had already become March, this was all they had managed to break through. In other words, there were difficulties even worse than when they had been fighting trench warfare. Amid this, it could be said that the movements of the Magnia Empire army had become different from usual.

Even though until the very morning they had been continuously exchanging fire and sending bullets flying, they were not attacking at all now. In that situation, the Republic of Promance forces could not help but be bewildered. But they did not attach much significance to it.

After all, the tunnel had only one path, and they knew the enemy did not have many things they could do. Moreover, digging a new tunnel itself could be said to be nearly impossible. Breaking through an enormous mountain range made of solid rock was an extremely difficult task.

At the very least, it would take an immense amount of time, so they did not think at all that a new path would be opened. Thus, just as they were spending time waiting at ease, suddenly a single monstrous cry rang out from inside the tunnel.

Kkeueeeek—!

“W-what is that sound?”

“Didn’t that come from the Magnia Empire side?”

“It sounded like some kind of monster.”

“Could this be those things called biological weapons?”

“T-then this is bad. Doesn’t that mean they’ve released monsters?!”

From this conversation, it could be seen that they knew quite a lot about the Magnia Empire. Since they had been gathering information about the outside world from quite a long time ago, they were not ignorant about the Magnia Empire. Of course, after those people had occupied the “exit,” they had no longer been able to hear such information.

Gulp. The throat of the soldier holding the mounted machine gun bobbed heavily. Because he had known about biological weapons from information delivered in advance, he could not help but be tense. Though he could not see anything right away, the monstrous cry reaching his ears and the sound of something rapidly approaching could only make him tense.

“I-it’s coming!”

“It’s over there!”

“That thing?!”

Something white was running down the tunnel. It was even kicking away the cover that blocked its path as it ran, and the creature, which was over 2 meters tall, looked as though its entire body was covered in pure white armor.

“Kreeeek!”

“D-die!”

At the sight of the thing charging while letting out a hideous cry, the soldier fired the machine gun at it. Dududududududu—! With a heavy roar, the machine gun bullets poured out and continuously flew toward its body. Because of the narrowness of the space, they hit it at once. But the bullets could be seen bouncing right off.

It was literally a creature called Armored Grow. In truth, it had appeared only briefly near the very end of the Great War, and had now finally appeared again. It grew even angrier at the bullets flying toward it and charged forward with a monstrous cry.

As it came right up to them, everyone drew even their rifles and fired, but in truth they could not penetrate its armor at all. In a situation where even heavy machine-gun bullets could not get through, it was not armor-like skin that ordinary rifle bullets could pierce. Then, the moment it came right up before them, it swung its fist.

Whoosh— Thud—!

“Kyaak!”

“Urk!”

Those struck by that fist fell at once with screams. With a single punch, they were slammed into the wall and could only collapse into bloody lumps. At that, everyone pulled the trigger desperately, but they still could not pierce the creature’s skin.

Since it was a situation where they could not even use large explosive weapons like grenades, the performance of the Armored Grow could only become tremendous. Because of the creature, which could not even be controlled and attacked indiscriminately whenever it recognized something as human, the soldiers of the Republic of Promance could only continue to be massacred amid screams.

As it charged through the tunnel and attacked the soldiers, its speed did slow somewhat once it reached the next place where a machine gun was mounted, but the bullets of the heavy machine gun could not pierce its hard armored skin.

Had they been pushed back another 500 meters like that? At that moment, something flew toward the head of the Armored Grow. Thwack—! With that sound, the Armored Grow was knocked straight backward. The twitching creature twitched again and then began moving once more.

Looking closely at the creature as it got back up, there was a hole in its face area. The thin membrane-like thing surrounding its single eyeball was now covered in cracks. It had almost had its eyeball pierced as well, but had survived.

Thwack—! But luck was enough only once. Before long, a bullet struck the central area, pierced straight through that membrane, burrowed into the eyeball, and turned even its brain to mush. At this moment, a somewhat distant place showed a long anti-tank rifle.

Clack! Ting—!

A rather thick shell casing popped out. In other words, an anti-tank weapon that seemed made to pierce tank armor had appeared. They too knew that tanks were active in the outside world, and that if infantry were to defeat such tanks, anti-tank weapons were needed, so they had been developing them.

Thus, as he looked again through the magnifying sight at the creature’s movements, he realized it had been dealt with from the fact that it was no longer moving. The soldier, who had been smiling in satisfaction, could not help but stiffen when from far down the tunnel there again came monstrous cries of Kkeueeeek—!

He had killed one, but another was approaching. In truth, the deployment of biological weapons had only just begun. From the moment of its first appearance, the Armored Grow was being followed by more new individuals continuously charging through the tunnel.

In response, the Republic of Promance’s army soldiers were also taking up defense, mobilizing anti-tank weapons and the like. In both the skies and the tunnel, fierce war was currently underway.