How to Replace Your Dad - Chapter 278

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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How to Replace Father
Chapter 278
Light arrows cascaded down from the airspace above.
The Reconstruction Council soldiers cried out in alarm.
“Scatter! It’s Annihilation Formation—!”
It was Sacred-Class Wide-Area Magic, deployed with high-ranking priests.
The Reconstruction Council soldiers tried to flee in panic, but it was futile.
The soldier who rushed forward first stopped short with a heavy, dull impact.
A barrier.
‘A barrier, then….’
The Reconstruction Council soldiers lifted their heads.
And what appeared were figures descending through the air using condensed mana as footholds.
“You are…!”
Those wearing crimson capes drew their blades.
Aragon, the man wearing an adjutant’s armband, spoke.
“Squad leader!”
The moment he cried out, a rectangular mana condensation plummeted vertically.
Like a blade carving up an enormous cake!
“…!!”
The faces of the Reconstruction Council soldiers went pale.
There was not just one condensation.
The condensations met edge to edge, dividing the massive dome-shaped barrier into compartments.
It was as though a small chest had been separated into countless cells.
In other words, the Reconstruction Council soldiers had been trapped in small groups.
And then other figures began descending from above.
“Those with melee weapons are our prey! That’s right, Antonio’s Unit!”
Antonio’s Unit, boasting rippling muscle, dropped into the compartment where armed soldiers clustered.
“The women—we’ll handle them. We can’t leave beasts like them to deal with women. Here we go.”
Yustea’s Team claimed the compartment packed with female soldiers.
They extended their hands with refined smiles.
“Please surrender. We don’t wish to harm you.”
Facing the mages was Cesar’s Squad, specialists excelling in mana manipulation.
Squad leader Cesar himself dropped into the mages’ compartment alongside his unit.
From Cesar’s fingertips, countless strands of mana spooled endlessly outward.
“This is tedious. Let’s finish fast. Oscar’s in that state, and our headstrong lady is furious.”
Miliano’s Squad, proficient in both offensive and defensive combat, claimed the compartment with the greatest numbers.
They too were accompanied by their squad leader, Miliano.
Miliano’s smile, usually so gentle, had frozen into something cold.
“Surrender if you can. It’s not just the young lady who’s angry.”
Combat erupted in each compartment.
The Irregulars occupied compartments where they could leverage their advantages.
Moreover, they excelled in one-against-many fighting, and were far superior to the Reconstruction Council soldiers in coordinated squad combat.
The outcome had been decided before the battle even began.
The Reconstruction Council soldiers fell like matches scattered to the wind.
Meanwhile, the Irregulars who entered the barrier first surrounded the GM.
They trained their blades toward the GM.
The GM asked a question.
“Which squad are you?”
“Abel Squad. And at the same time—.”
Aragon, the adjutant of Abel Squad, kicked off the ground and charged forward.
“The neck is what we target.”
“Wouldn’t the lower abdomen be more difficult to defend?”
“Force the stance to collapse while defending the neck.”
“Pardon? Isn’t that rather underhanded?”
He remembers that foolish man behind the GM, the moment he flicked his head in dismissal.
“Use any method, however base, if it means survival. Your lives come first.”
Everything learned from that foolish man has been engraved into flesh, becoming instinct.
“Oscar’s Squad—!”
The GM retreated to defend his neck.
In that instant, Aragon drew the short dagger at his waist in one fluid motion.
The short dagger cuts across the GM’s eyelid.
Aragon didn’t miss the instant the GM faltered.
“Gripping the blade like that will only damage your wrist.”
“Then I’ll have to hold it properly.”
“Grip it lightly. The force comes from your thumb and middle finger. Swing the hilt to change your attack’s direction quickly.”
“Aim for the left side of the abdomen. Target the spleen. Go for blood.”
You taught me all of that.
‘That’s why you’re the squad leader.’
Slash—!
Aragon’s blade pierced through the left side of the GM’s abdomen.
The GM crumpled, and the utterly ravaged Oscar came fully into view.
Aragon spoke, breathing hard.
“Come back to us….”
Oscar’s remaining eye flickered faintly.
With only one eye left, he gave a twisted smile.
“Impressive.”
“Idiot.”
“Look who’s talking.”
“Even in that state, you manage to be infuriating.”
Aragon’s eyes grew wet. In the same breath, laughter spilled from him.
Like the boy he’d been, laughing without a single hesitation.
The members of Abel Squad—no, Oscar’s Squad—rushed toward their leader.
They bit their teeth as they undid Oscar’s restraints.
“What kind of state is this.”
“Don’t you know Oscar’s Squad’s first rule? Youngest, tell them.”
“Style comes first!”
Aragon let out a short laugh.
“Even the youngest knows.”
“Yeah.”
Oscar burst out laughing.
The Irregulars, divided into their sections, glanced at Oscar and chuckled quietly.
The missing piece had returned.
That was all.
Yet the battle was far from over.
“I’m curious. Will you choose the squad leader of the past, or the squad leader of the present? What will you choose?”
It was the GM’s voice.
The Irregulars flinched, their eyes snapping toward the GM.
While the squad members rushed toward Oscar, Abel—who had descended from above to restrain the GM—stood frozen solid.
“Abel?”
Miliano called out.
Abel couldn’t answer.
His skin was crumbling like earth parched by drought.
Abel turned his head slowly.
His neck cracked as it moved.
“…Go.”
The faces of Oscar’s Squad members went pale.
Abel’s mouth gaped open.
“Go, now—!!”
The compressed mana released all at once.
They had never heard him shout like that.
The GM, clutching at his left abdomen, spoke as he rose.
“You have three choices.”
He gripped Abel’s throat and turned to face the Irregulars.
“You can flee and leave him behind, abandon Oscar, or abandon Yustea.”
“…!”
“…!!”
The GM’s lips curved upward.
“So, which one will you sacrifice?”
The tide of battle had shifted.
The Reconstruction Council soldiers who had been lying fallen began getting to their feet, one by one.
Members of Miliano’s squad gripped cowls and magical devices, fixing their gazes on the GM.
‘The GM is a spirit entity. We’ve faced it before, so we know what it is.’
Miliano and his squad members had driven the GM back using techniques that struck at the spirit itself, along with magical devices.
But this time was different.
Before a member of Miliano’s squad could remove his cowl and reveal his special ability, a soldier from the Restoration Council charged forward.
For its members, the Reconstruction Council was as much a religion as anything else.
An ideology—and a hope that would bring forth a new world.
They did not fear death.
Clamping a bomb between his teeth, he threw himself at the Irregular with his special ability.
Bang—!
With the deafening blast, the Irregular sprawled across the ground.
His entire body studded with bomb fragments, drenched in blood….
With soldiers from the Reconstruction Council pouring in, Miliano’s squad couldn’t execute their techniques properly.
Above all, now that Abel was being held, they couldn’t move recklessly.
The eyes of the Irregular members flickered with narrowed focus.
‘Abel was especially careful in handling the GM. He seized it with a barrier without making contact.’
‘But then how did the GM activate its special ability?’
‘Isn’t contact the condition for activating the ability? Does it trigger when approaching within a certain distance?’
‘Then what’s the distance at which the ability won’t activate?’
‘We can’t pull Abel up with a whip or magic. His body might shatter completely.’
Yustea’s Rewind couldn’t bring back the dead.
But neither could they bring Yustea here now just to save Abel.
Unless they figured out the conditions of this damned ability…!
The GM let out a low laugh.
“You simply have to choose one. It’s a very simple matter.”
“….”
“….”
The Irregulars gritted their teeth.
The GM gazed around at them leisurely.
“Oscar’s Unit. I ask you—what is more precious?”
“I….”
“Ah. A foolish question, wasn’t it.”
“….”
“Oscar taught you the way to live. You’ve crossed the line of death together, and he became a steadfast guide for you. A patchwork chimera created by charlatans could never stand against that.”
“….”
“So you can simply flee as things are. You’re merely filtering out one impurity.”
“….”
“Something filthy that has no place in the light—you’re just letting it break apart.”
“….”
“Besides, your squad leader has already safely rejoined you.”
Abel gazed quietly at the GM.
There was no agitation in him.
Because what it said was true.
A chimera created by charlatans.
He knew that was the most accurate word the GM had for him.
For the Irregulars, the right answer was Oscar.
A fellow human.
One who shared precious memories.
The squad leader with whom you could exchange emotions when together.
Abel could not fulfill any of those conditions.
He would be abandoned as things stood, but becoming an Irregular had not been a bad choice.
He had eaten plenty of delicious sweets, and the Irregulars and Yustea were quite enjoyable.
Far better than living as a dogma created by a heretical cult.
‘I suppose dying in their place doesn’t seem so bad….’
He blinked slowly, his expression impassive.
That was when it happened.
“Squad Leader—!”
Aragon charged forward.
Abel’s eyes snapped wide open.
‘…Is he an idiot.’
The GM activated the special trait without making contact.
If they rushed in to save him, death was all that awaited.
But Aragon wasn’t finished.
Oscar’s Unit members threw themselves at the GM like moths to flame.
Their heads shattered against the GM’s barrier, their skin melted away by the special trait, yet they refused to yield.
“Ahhhhh—!”
“Aaaagh!”
The GM was unaffected by their attacks.
Since that first careless blow from Aragon, nothing had landed.
The other squads were too occupied holding back the Restoration Council members attempting suicide attacks, keeping them away from Oscar’s Unit.
Even as Miliano poured forth incantations and Cesar unleashed threads of mana at the GM, they could not pierce the barrier.
Only Oscar’s Unit had been permitted entry into the GM’s domain.
It was a game.
Like a beast toying with mice, the GM toyed with those who dared to draw blood from it.
The GM’s voice rang out, laced with mockery.
“Will you throw your lives away for vermin?”
Aragon dragged his tattered body forward, crawling desperately to cling to the GM’s legs.
That was when Abel’s eyes wavered.
“Why….”
“Don’t… talk nonsense… resist…!”
Aragon howled like a beast.
“You can’t… rank everything in this world… by priority…!”
“….”
“You can’t abandon your sister… to save your brother, can’t sacrifice your parents… to save your lover….”
“….”
“There’s no way… you can choose… which family member… deserves to die—!”
Abel’s face contorted.
That was the moment.
“That’s right, Aragon!”
It was Yustea’s voice.
Not coming from the mechanical doll, but from very close by.
All eyes turned skyward at once.
“I’m coming down! Catch me!”
The Elite of the Irregulars scrambled as Yustea shouted.
“You mad little fool!”
“Ah, Miss!”
“Miss…!”
Cesar, Antonio, and Miliano called out in that order.
Yustea leaped down.
It was Miliano who caught her.
Yustea spun in Miliano’s arms before landing.
In that instant, a radiance of golden light spread outward.
All the pain and wounds remaining in the Irregulars’ bodies swiftly faded.
Even Oscar, whose body had seemed half-destroyed.
“Oscar! B12-053!”
The moment she cried out, Oscar’s eyes flew open.
He vanished in an instant.
It was the power of the Pattern granted by the Swift Messenger.
The GM’s brow furrowed.
“A pointless effort.”
“You look pretty scratched up yourself.”
“What…?”
“Having your belly torn open by Aragon must have wounded your pride. The Irregular choosing something other than the optimal choice must have infuriated you.”
“You….”
“What? Does it sting that I chose my current family, lover, and friends instead of you—the superior option?”
“….”
The GM’s face twisted savagely.
“A foolish choice. Provoking me will gain you nothing. This place is now my domain.”
“You have no domain here.”
“What….”
“This land belongs to those who live in the present. Not to the ghosts of the past.”
The GM’s eyes blazed with fury.
His shadow stretched long across the ground.
‘The shadow!’
‘It’s the shadow!’
‘Wherever the shadow touches—that’s the range where the ability he used on Abel activates.’
“Young lady—!”
“Young lady!”
The Irregulars rushed forward to save Yustea.
But the one who truly saved her was….
A whisper of wind.
The air shifted.
And there appeared a skeletal knight who cast no shadow.
The iron-masked skeleton knight bore the brunt of the GM’s ability in Yustea’s stead.
“This is….”
“Huh?”
Yustea’s mouth twisted into a thin smile.
“The reason you captured Abel first. You were afraid, weren’t you, GM?”
Abel’s ability.
The phantom army of Abel, restored by Rewind, had reached this land.
Abel commanded them.
“Perish.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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