The ten Lyons Mad King Richard had activated were not the only ones; there were twenty more. The onlookers went pale as the additional golems emerged from the opposite side of the Detached Palace.
Twenty-three Lyons were now running amok, tearing through everything in their path.
For the time being, their aggression was focused solely on the palace. The guards seemed to have escaped successfully, so there appeared to be no immediate threat of human casualties. However, many people were still trapped in the Guest House.
Among them were Marcia and Arrow, who had been unable to attend the ceremony, Rita—the girl Fritz had rescued—and the various security details from the visiting nations.
"We can't fit everyone on board. In that case... I've got it!"
Jin switched the controls to autopilot and headed for the passenger cabin. His destination was Her Majesty the Empress of the Shouro Empire.
"Lord Jin Nidou, what is the matter?"
"Your Majesty, I intend to evacuate the people remaining in the Guest House and any stragglers onto the ships. And so..."
"Ah, I understand. You have my permission."
Before he could even finish his request, the Empress granted it.
"I would be glad to see my nation's vessels put to good use."
"Thank you for your prompt approval, Your Majesty," Jin said, offering a bow.
The Empress raised a hand to cut him short. "No need for thanks. But do you have a plan to guide them?"
Jin nodded. "Yes. Laozi and Anne are still on the ground."
"Ah, that's right."
At his words, the delegates peered down through the windows at the scene below.
Jin returned to the pilot's seat and began lowering the Konron 2’s altitude. Although the Lyons had not yet reached the Guest House, he deployed a barrier as a precaution.
Once the ship was roughly ten meters above the ground, he relayed his instructions verbally to Laozi and Anne, who were waiting below. He transmitted his voice using wind-attribute magic via an Aco-tube.
"Laozi, Anne, Her Majesty has given her permission. Evacuate everyone to the Shouro Empire ships, the Bernstein and the Granat, as quickly as possible."
"Understood. Let us go, Anne."
Seeing Laozi and Anne spring into action, Fritz stood up and knocked on the cockpit door.
"Ani-sama, what’s wrong?" Elsa asked, poking her head out.
Fritz stated his intentions to his sister clearly. "I need you to lower the ship a bit more. If you do, I can deploy my Goliases to help the evacuation and hold back the Lyons."
He turned back toward the Empress. "Your Majesty, do I have your permission?"
The Empress gave a wry smile and nodded. Normally, one should ask the sovereign for permission before ordering her pilot to change course, but she was not one to dwell on such trifles.
"I am most grateful."
Fritz offered a quick salute and headed for the hatch at the rear of the cabin. Lily followed to assist him with the controls.
As he passed them, Gloria and Cynthia offered short words of encouragement.
"Fritz-dono, please be careful."
"I pray for your success in battle."
Fritz gave a silent nod in response.
Following Elsa’s instructions to Jin, the Konron 2 dropped even lower, hovering barely two meters off the ground—practically skimming the earth. Lily threw open the hatch, and Fritz leapt out. He hit the ground running, heading for the area behind the Guest House where his five Goliases were stationed.
Meanwhile, Laozi was directing the crowd.
"There is no need for panic! Please proceed to the evacuation zone in an orderly fashion!"
Because the crowd consisted mostly of knights rather than panicked civilians, the maids and servants felt relatively secure. The evacuation proceeded smoothly.
Marcia and Arrow were the exceptions to the general order; they were personally leading a group of people toward the new trimaran.
Anne, meanwhile, was sprinting through the Guest House at full speed, checking every room for stragglers. In a room deep in the back, she found a young girl crouching alone. It was Rita.
"It is dangerous to stay here. Please come with me," Anne said gently. Though she was still trembling, Rita managed to stand.
Anne took the girl’s hand, and Rita squeezed back, visibly comforted by the automaton’s presence. Together, they ran for the exit.
From the sky, those aboard the Konron 2 monitored the situation below.
"Laozi has just led out the second group," Jin noted.
"Marcia-san and her companion are also getting several people to safety. They’re doing a great job," Reiko added.
While Jin and Reiko provided the commentary, Elsa and Edgar kept a tally of the survivors. They cross-referenced their numbers with the heads of state in the cabin, who had a general idea of how many people had been staying in the Guest House.
"Anne’s out. It looks like she’s with a girl... That’s Rita."
The three Goliases led by Fritz had taken up positions between the Detached Palace and the Guest House, acting as a deterrent to keep the Lyons at bay. However, the rampaging golems seemed fixated only on the palace, ignoring everything else as if they could only see what was directly in front of them.
"With this, we should be able to hold them until the evacuation is complete," Fritz muttered to himself. He joined the effort to guide people with his remaining two golems.
"That should be everyone."
Jin looked down. There was no one left on the ground. Human casualties had been kept to an absolute minimum. Even the members of the Celuroa Kingdom appeared to have finished their evacuation.
"Yes. Except for King Richard and Crown Prince Cesar. Their whereabouts are still unknown," Elsa said, checking her notes.
The King and Prince were likely in a secret chamber within the Guillaume Detached Palace, but there was no time to search for them. The palace itself was already half-destroyed by the Lyons’ relentless assault.
"Wait a second..." Jin suddenly remembered someone. Her name wasn't on the list, and for good reason—since Prince Cesar had kept her in his private quarters, no foreign dignitaries knew she existed. "Arshel might still be in the palace."
Elsa realized the possibility and frowned with worry. Regardless of the circumstances, they had to rescue the King, the Prince, and the girl.
"Jin-nii, is there any way to stop the Lyons? Like with a Magi-Jammer?"
Elsa hoped for a non-destructive solution, but Jin shook his head.
"No. Since those units almost certainly use mana tanks, a Magi-Jammer wouldn't do anything. Those only work by seizing control of free ether to seal magic. They don't affect stored mana."
"I see."
"Besides, we don't even have one on the Konron 2."
Since the door to the passenger cabin was closed, they were free to discuss such technical matters.
"In that case, the only option is a Magic Canceller."
A Magic Canceller was a powerful device that could negate almost any magic by forcibly reverting mana back into free ether. However, because the core magi-device required a mental catalyst, Jin couldn't mass-produce them. One was installed on his personal craft, Pegasus 1, and another had been built into a bracelet for Reiko.
"But I left Reiko's special bracelet back on Hourai Island," Jin admitted.
He had recently repaired it after she had pushed it past its limits to stop the Shouro Empire's giant golem from rampaging, and it was currently undergoing final checks at his base. The bracelet Reiko was wearing now was the same model used by Jin and Elsa—milky white with a translucent magi-crystal. It was a standard model that lacked the Magic Canceller function.
"I suppose even we have blind spots," Reiko remarked.
Jin could only give a wry smile. He hadn't expected to encounter a situation where he needed to counter such old-fashioned mana-tank golems. Reiko did have an ultra-compact Magic Canceller built into her body, but its range and area of effect were too small to be useful here; it had been designed specifically to prevent the Ether Stampede attempted by the Failure in the demon territory.
"Well then... I think it's time for Pegasus 1 to take the stage."