-1520- The enhanced variants

"Boom—!"

A scorching light cannon struck the warehouse district in the Outer Zone, causing a massive explosion that sent shockwaves rippling outward like a tsunami.

"Crack, crack, crack...!"

The ground fractured inch by inch, forming a spider web of cracks.

"Rumble, rumble...!"

Countless stones and rubble shot outward, crashing into the walls of nearby warehouses and shattering them.

The sudden explosion was so abrupt that even River Endycase, who had been kicked away by Rozen, was blown backward by the blast, rolling several times across the ground until he slammed into the door of a warehouse, finally stopping.

"Cough...!"

River coughed up blood, staring blankly at the massive explosion in front of him.

"Rorelai Arneet!"

When River finally regained his senses, he shouted.

However, flames roared ahead, almost lifting the entire warehouse district off the ground. The scorching heat made the surroundings unbearably hot, leaving no possibility of anyone responding to River amidst the inferno.

"Damn it!"

River struggled to his feet, quickly scanning the sky to locate the source of the cannon fire.

It didn't take long for him to spot it.

High in the sky, beneath the moonlit night, a figure slowly appeared.

It resembled a pea flower, with a cannon barrel aimed at this direction. The barrel was gathering an ominous, terrifying power. It was an Armored Beetle.

River instantly recognized this particular beetle.

"Livia...!"

—Livia.

This was a medium-sized Armored Beetle, a rare variant among them. It specialized in artillery attacks, had low defense, and almost no speed or agility. Its only redeeming quality was its overwhelming firepower. Its cannon blasts were powerful enough to level a building. If it appeared on a battlefield, it would become the top priority for elimination. If left unchecked, its artillery would undoubtedly become the greatest threat.

"Why is an Armored Beetle here...!?"

River's expression drastically changed.

An Armored Beetle this close to Vebel should have been detected long ago. Normally, a squad of Sky Wizards would have been dispatched immediately to eliminate it, ensuring the area around Vebel remained the safest airspace.

Yet, this Livia variant had appeared directly over Vebel without triggering any alarms, which was simply impossible.

Moreover, this Livia was clearly unusual.

Its size was much larger than any Livia River had ever known, and its aura was overwhelmingly ferocious, causing River's face to grow pale.

What's worse, behind this Livia, two more Armored Beetles emerged.

On the left was a beetle with massive tusks protruding from either side of its jaws, reminiscent of a dinosaur. Its muscular body sported four wings, and its skin, a sinister purple, was rough and full of ridges, giving it an awe-inspiring appearance.

"Broken...!"

—Broken.

This was another medium-sized Armored Beetle variant, known for its incredibly thick hide. In terms of defense, it surpassed even large Armored Beetles. Regular Sky Wizards couldn't penetrate its defense, even with Battle Skills. Its primary attack was a charge, and combined with its ironclad hide, its dive from the sky was no less devastating than a small meteorite strike.

The Broken variant now before River was even larger than any Broken he had ever encountered. Its hide was covered with spikes, and its tusks had grown thicker and stronger, making it incomparable to any other Broken variant he knew of.

Next to the Broken was another Armored Beetle.

This one was spherical in shape, with ten tentacles. Its entire body was black, and its size rivaled that of the Broken.

"Orm...!"

—Orm.

This was also a medium-sized Armored Beetle variant, extremely rare. Many Sky Wizards might go their entire lives without encountering one, so few knew of its existence. It had only recently been discovered. If not for River being the son and secretary of a councilman, he wouldn't have known about it either.

Its distinguishing feature was its ten tentacles, which could extend and retract freely to launch multi-directional attacks, overwhelming enemies from all angles. Even the strongest Sky Wizards found it incredibly difficult to handle. To defeat it usually required several squads working together, or an elite squad of S-Class wizards.

This particular Orm variant, like the Broken, was far larger than any Orm River had ever seen. Its tentacles had become thicker, and they were now covered in spikes, making it look all the more terrifying.

These two variants, along with the Livia variant that had fired the earlier cannon blast, appeared in the sky above the warehouse district in the Outer Zone.

Furthermore, the power emanating from their bodies was so menacing that it was more frightening than that of large Armored Beetles, making even River tremble with fear.

Because River recognized that power.

It was...

"Collapse Force..."

River suddenly realized.

The reason these three variants had become so abnormal, so terrifying, and so powerful was because they had been enhanced by Collapse Force.

At this moment, these three variants were more fearsome than any large Armored Beetle. One could engage in close combat, another could attack from long range, and the third could launch all-encompassing assaults with its powerful tentacles. They formed a perfectly ideal team.

And the only people capable of controlling such a team of enhanced Armored Beetle variants, using Collapse Force to strengthen them, were those from the Zeth Faction.

If the Zeth Faction had sent these variants, it would explain why no one knew about their presence in Vebel.

With the chairman secretly pulling the strings, sneaking three variants into Vebel wouldn't have been difficult.

The earlier Asmod had only been an appetizer.

The true force Zeth had prepared to deal with Rozen was this team of Armored Beetle variants.

"Zeth Wiegert...!"

River gritted his teeth.

But just then, the Livia variant in the sky began charging up another immense blast of power in its cannon.

"Boom!"

The scorching light cannon was once again fired from the Livia variant, streaking through the atmosphere towards the ground below.

Clearly, the enemy intended to press the advantage and eliminate Rozen in one fell swoop.

Unfortunately...

"————!"

As this chant echoed from below amidst the flames, a colossal serpent of fire shot up into the sky, crashing into the incoming light cannon.

"Boom—!"

The fiery serpent collided with the light cannon, creating an explosion as powerful as a clash between two celestial bodies.