The Butterfly that Crossed Time and Space The Butterfly that Crossed Time and Space Volume 2: Politicians' Farce Chapter 20: Battle of the Hot Spring Valley (Part 2)

  Twenty, Onsen Valley Battle (Part 2)

  After leaving the ground, under the cold wind blowing, Ferina's brain, which was messed up with anxiety and fear, gradually calmed down and began to think rationally about her actions.

  Feili has always thought of himself as the type of person who can remain calm and even indifferent to everything, no matter what. He always acts with his own personal interests in mind, prioritizing his own safety above all else, and tries his best to avoid any possible risks. To put it bluntly, he is selfish, self-serving, and afraid of death.

  Even in past battles and life, his help to others had different purposes. He helped Sohn-nom to please his superiors, helped Charlotte because she was his colleague and partner, and helped the Great Druid for convenience in case he needed him in the future. As for being so generous to Renny, the purpose was naturally the female pastor's beautiful body.

  But when he learned that Lenny was still in danger, his head felt as if it were going to explode, and his heart seemed about to jump out of his chest. Without thinking, he rushed towards the direction where the gunshot sounded.

  Ferris Taylor found himself more anxious than ever before for someone else's safety, even having an impulse to rush up without caring about his own life, completely without any hint of fear of death.

  Is this love? Fili, who had never experienced such emotions in another world, looked at the changes in his heart with a hint of hesitation and fear, but also felt an inexplicable comfort, as if drinking ice water on a sweltering summer day.

  He shook his head vigorously, driving out these miscellaneous thoughts. Now he had to face the life-and-death battle in front of him; these vague and elusive things could be considered later.

  The exquisite villa complex teetered on the brink of collapse amidst flames and explosions, in the choking smoke, the red-haired female pastor threw out the last handful of metal grain bombs scrounged from her lover through the window, then signaled the last few soldiers to take cover. With a string of explosions, the enemy outside finally retreated temporarily.

  "Are we really going to die here?! The price of being a hero is indeed too high!" Although she was the strategic goddess priestess, this was also Renny's first time participating in battle. She used her trembling hands to load bullets into both handguns, trying to calm herself down, but couldn't do so no matter what.

  Due to the suddenness of this attack, there was no time to deploy defenses, and the defenders had to use fire to block the enemy's advance. The invaders also planned to use a large fire to force people out of the villa, and both sides fought to the death in the flames and smoke. The attackers who attacked the villa area were much fewer than the rebels at the mountain pass, but their combat effectiveness was significantly stronger. Even with hundreds of guards, they couldn't stop the first wave of attacks, allowing the attackers to rush into Zena's home, where almost all the politicians had gathered! The small conference room suddenly became a scene of blood and flesh flying everywhere, filled with mournful cries.

  It's not that the guards were lax in their defense, nor did they lack courage. It's just that there were an astonishing number of mages among these guys - over 20 in a group of less than 100 people. Although they were all below level 8, it was enough to make the unprepared defenders fall into a big trap. The yellow-green poisonous clouds alone could knock out everyone in the entire building, and the unstoppable spider webs and mud pits made the battle almost a slaughter.

  After consuming the limited number of magical items, the private guards of the politicians were forced to give up their resistance and retreat with their still-living superiors. The attackers tried to surround them but their small numbers made this plan impossible. While most of them split up to pursue, the resting mages were suddenly counterattacked by a small group of defenders led by Laini, who had almost exhausted their magic and were nearly annihilated. However, soon after, Laini and her companions were also surrounded in a burning house, on the verge of collapse.

  The bomb that was just thrown out has lost its effectiveness, and with a burst of gunfire, more incendiary bombs were thrown onto the roof of the house that had already caught fire, and for a moment, the house seemed to have turned into a scorching hell!

  "Run quickly!"

  Renee led the last few people, rushing to break through a wall and escape before the house was burned down, but was ambushed by snipers and could only lie motionless in the bushes. She watched with her eyes wide open as the killer approached with knives and swords.

  Suddenly, a bright white light and a massive sound almost destroyed everyone's hearing and vision in an instant. Renny, whose ears were buzzing, felt herself being pulled up by someone, and then the airflow brushing against her face told her that she was being carried away at an extremely fast speed, fleeing from the flames.

  Bullets whizzed past her ears, she opened her eyes which were still white and blurry, wanting to see who had saved herself, but only saw a pink coat, but that was enough, she already knew the answer, and immediately grasped the person's hand even tighter.

  Her little lover didn't give up on her after all.

  Fili-Taylor clutched the most important person in his life tightly, panting heavily as he zigzagged through the forest. The spells stored in his portable Magic Web terminal had been depleted after last night's and today's consumption, and several bullets from behind had already hit his cloak, although they didn't have much force due to the distance, but still made him grit his teeth in pain.

  Hugging a person while long-distance running in the mountains is really an energy-consuming task, even with the help of elastic boots. If it were just him, he could have used his precise positioning transmission ring (not the fake inferior product he sold, but his own life-saving treasure) to bring himself back to Emon Port after opening up some distance. But now that Renny is with him, he has to persevere to the end, as the ring can't transport two people.

  "Put me down, I think I can walk myself." Renny struggled out of Ferry's arms and wiped his dusty and sweaty face with his sleeve. "How is it, are they still chasing?"

  Fili looked back and didn't find anything, just in case, he used the last reconnaissance magic on his portable Magic Web terminal, and the result was somewhat reassuring. "They're still at the foot of the mountain, and they don't seem to be coming up."

  "Let's take a short break." Rennie sat down on a tree stump, "Thanks to you today, otherwise I'm afraid I would have... thank you."

  "Don't mention it." Phil sat down beside Rennie, putting his arm around her shoulders. "Are you hurt?"

  "I'm fine." The female pastor said so, but her shoulders indicated that she was in a very bad mood. Soon, she lowered her head and buried her face between her legs, sobbing, "Fili, I really thought I was going to die just now, it was really about to happen! Waaah..."

  Fili turned Renie's body over, putting her head on his shoulder, and the female pastor silently accepted Fili's embrace, sobbing as she poured out her emotions.

  "In the past, I always thought that war was like a game of chess in church. Just now, when I mentioned counterattacking, more than 20 people gave up and ran away, but I fought back with them. But now they're all dead, all because of my one sentence! One by one, they were burned to death, beaten to death or hacked to death, while I survived..."

  He listened silently, unable to think of any comforting words. No one was born a warrior, not Renny, and certainly not himself. He too would be frightened by the sight of corpses, tremble at the sound of gunfire, and vomit at the smell of blood. But what could he do? This wasn't some distant expedition where you could think up excuses to escape military service, but an enemy invasion that was about to happen right next door. No matter how much you feared death, war would come anyway, and it wouldn't be swayed by your personal will. In turbulent times, if you didn't have the confidence and ability to protect yourself, you had to be prepared for a senseless death. Crying and retreating wouldn't increase your chances of survival, but rather earn you contempt and abandonment from everyone.

  Many times, he was puzzled as to why he had chosen the military profession in the first place. Was it for the status of a lieutenant colonel in the Imperial Army or his admiration for war heroes? If he had to escape, there were other options available at that time.

  He thought he was long past the age of blind worship of so-called heroes, knew that behind those glorious battle achievements were piles of corpses on both sides, and didn't want to test his luck with his life at all.

  He also doesn't think the current position is worth risking his life to fight for, which can be seen from his constant thinking of escaping. He has no intention of sacrificing and dedicating his life for others, nor does he think that the so-called honor of a soldier is more precious than life.

  He may be a somewhat clever businessman or perhaps a magician with some talent, but he is absolutely not a qualified soldier.

  But... soldiers, although often facing the threat of death, at least have a weapon in hand to protect themselves. Ordinary people in the midst of war can only helplessly face swords and bullets, begging for the enemy's mercy.

  Rather than that, it's better to take up arms and grasp one's fate in one's own hands. Even if one can't preserve one's life in the turmoil of war, one must make those who seek to take it pay a sufficient price. This is what some people truly think when they join the army.

  Feli sighed, patted Renni's back and said, "Nothing, as long as you're fine, that's all that matters. War is indeed not a game, but at least we're both still alive, aren't we?"