Then I'll Show You

The bomb detonated.

Where my people were, where the empire’s citizens were riding.

“These crazy bastards……”

I turned serious and snapped at the crew members.

“Secure the engineer’s safety first. No, don’t stop!”

I shouted at the crew members and immediately turned around and burst out.

That moment, I ran into Heinkel rushing toward me.

“Heinkel! Protect the engineer! Someone might target him!”

“Understood!”

Tap! Whoosh!

Passing Heinkel, I kicked off the train’s outer wall and climbed onto the roof.

Howling, cutting wind.

The roof shook violently, but I controlled my posture and maintained balance with telekinesis.

The direction smoke was rising from.

“The rearmost passenger compartment?”

I asked and answered myself while running that way.

“They detonated a bomb in a passenger compartment. What were they aiming for?”

The Liberation Army’s purpose is to bring chaos to the empire.

If a bomb detonated in a passenger compartment, it’s a colossal incident.

“But even so, detonating on a platform would have been far better. While running at full speed, fewer eyes watching. To aim for derailment or overturning, there’s insufficient follow-through. Or maybe the enemy’s plan went awry……”

Swoosh!

I leaped down into the compartment through the hole blown open by the explosion.

The smell of blood.

The explosion had blown away not just the ceiling I descended from but all the way to the car’s tail.

“Hgk! Grrgh.”

No passengers visible.

Instead, dark elves collapsed and groaning everywhere.

Among them, silver hair — Orca gasping roughly for breath.

His neck, shoulders, and chest covered in blood — serious injuries.

But seeing me, Orca shouted desperately.

“Behind!”

“……”

I reflexively turned my body while grabbing and throwing the sword at my waist.

Toward where an ordinary person’s head would be.

“Gack!”

Clang!

A scream, then a deflecting sound.

It failed to pierce the enemy’s magic defense.

The sword I currently had couldn’t withstand my magic, so it was inevitable.

“Fuuuuu……”

But the opponent was rubbing his chest with an extremely shocked face.

A man wearing crew uniform.

A face I’d seen.

The car vendor who pushed a cart around, the bastard who threw me a peach.

“It wasn’t for nothing that you gave it for free?”

He must have hidden the bomb inside the cart back then.

Throwing it to me for free was to prevent me from approaching in case the bomb got discovered.

The circular object the bastard held, half the size of a palm.

An explosive orb.

Karakas bombs compress directional magic into gunpowder.

A magic phenomenon transcending physical phenomena.

Advanced bombs included types where even if you detonate while holding it, only the enemy dies while the user remains unharmed.

Explosive orbs — officially called explosive-type magic bullets — were the same.

That crew member would have already registered himself as the user.

Even if that bastard detonates the bomb inside his own underwear, only Orca and I would get caught in the explosion.

When I didn’t move after recognizing the explosive orb, the crew member let out an exclamation.

“You know what this is? Different from those idiot dark elves.”

“Normally you shouldn’t know. That’s an item only used within the imperial military, and it hasn’t been used for over 120 years.”

Since it was used in the war against the Seven Sin God, it wasn’t strange that Orca or young dark elves didn’t know it.

I watched for the enemy’s opening while talking.

Can’t I secretly attack with telekinesis?

Everyone has resistance to psychic abilities and telekinesis.

For instance, I could previously attack horse legs with telekinesis to make them go wild, but such indirect contact becomes impossible or drastically reduced against humanity with souls and intelligence.

That’s why I use Telekinetic Fist and Telekinetic Palm as supplements to direct strikes.

“Don’t move. If you move, I’ll detonate this.”

“I heard you…… but why the hell are you doing this?”

The crew member’s magic is orange — second rank.

I asked for now.

“A human who appears to be in their forties at second rank is decent. Railway crew is a pretty good profession too. Why engage in futile terrorism?”

“Then why do you, a human, take the dark elves’ side?”

“Someone who planted a bomb in a passenger compartment is now questioning race?”

However Orca handled it, there were no passengers in this compartment.

But the dark elves got hit.

Also, if the dark elves hadn’t stopped it, many human passengers would have died.

The crew member shouted in a burning voice.

“Because we humans are ruled by other races! To drive them out and create a true empire requires sacrifice and resolve!”

“……”

“I am a torch driving out the darkness. I’ll become a blazing flame for when that person arrives!”

Normally, terrorism that sweeps up unspecified masses can’t be easily committed.

Would a sane person fly a plane into a building?

In other words, the terrorist’s foundation is frenzied conviction.

Countries don’t negotiate with terrorists for nothing.

Actually, I wasn’t trying to persuade but looking for an opening.

“……”

I glanced sideways at the compartment’s terrain and the survivors.

Of roughly ten dark elves, most were dead or unconscious.

Only Orca remained conscious.

His condition wasn’t good.

“……”

But Orca’s eyes blazed fiercely.

Fighting spirit.

At this rate, we both die.

The message transmitted through his gaze: let’s join forces.

But his expression was too honest!

“You’re scheming.”

The terrorist put his left hand into the cart and pulled out an explosive orb.

Whoosh!

Then while glaring at me, he threw the second bomb behind him.

An action trusting the bomb in his right hand — absolutely impossible for an ordinary person to stop.

But I’m a psychic!

“Orca!”

I quickly snatched the flying explosive orb with telekinesis and pulled it toward me.

In that instant, understanding my meaning, Orca charged at the terrorist with his blood-covered body.

Once activated, explosive orbs take 5 seconds to detonate.

4 seconds.

I pulled the second bomb with telekinesis while charging at the terrorist one step late.

3 seconds.

Orca swung his sword and slashed the terrorist’s chest.

But even while vomiting blood, the terrorist threw the first bomb at his own feet.

His calculation: as long as it detonates, he can catch both of us.

If an explosive orb detonates at close range, magic defense and everything tears like paper!

2 seconds.

I grabbed the retrieved second explosive orb with my hand and…… shoved it into the terrorist’s mouth.

The terrorist, who’d been smiling despite his fatal wound, looked shocked, but it had already gone down his throat.

One handled, but one more remains.

1 second!

Ah, there’s no time to pull the remaining one, and even if I did, there’s no time to handle it.

Then…….

KABOOM!

It detonated.

A roar that deafened the ears.

My back hurts.

Explosive orbs are military items, created to break formations of hundreds of enemies.

The power is enough to turn a hundred people into rags.

I didn’t pull it with telekinesis but pushed it away, but there wasn’t enough time.

“Mmm.”

The Telekinetic Barrier also has limits.

No, if I’d only protected myself, maybe.

But right before the explosion, I turned my body to embrace Orca while activating the Telekinetic Barrier.

My body moved before thought.

How could I calculate when saving my child from the fire demon?

“Ah, but I didn’t die.”

My back is tremendously agonizing, but it’s fine.

Orca, face covered in blood, just blinked in surprise.

His face turned deathly pale.

“B, blood……”

“Ah, it’s fine. Ah……”

Dad won’t die from this.

I tried to smile but shook my head instead.

My back having no sensation at all…… it really got shattered.

“Are you okay? You won’t die?”

“I, I’m fine! You’re the one……”

Well, Orca is also tattered, but doesn’t seem close to death.

I pulled a healing potion from my chest and drank it.

The Grade Two healing potion I received from Lisera.

“Mmmmm……”

Pain began surging.

Good thing.

It means the nervous system survived.

Orca asked blankly.

“……What did you just do?”

“Endured with fighting spirit and guts. Must have been a dud.”

I deflected that way and looked back.

It was carnage.

The terrorist whose explosive orb detonated inside his body only had below the knees remaining.

And the compartment…… completely shattered, with the railway tracks clearly visible behind us.

“Damn it.”

We prevented passenger casualties, but there were casualties.

The terrorism succeeded.

No, actually preventing it was impossible.

Even in America, mass shooting incidents happen frequently, right?

You can’t stop all terrorism when someone’s determined to commit it.

“I, I couldn’t stop it. I……”

Orca muttered that blankly.

A self-blaming face, trembling pupils.

I slowly shook my head.

“No, your subordinates dying isn’t your fault.”

“What?”

“If this is consolation, it’s ridiculous but…… there were three explosive orbs. If used properly, they could have overturned the train and massacred the passengers.”

If this is consolation, it’s too cruel.

Seven hundred could have died, but only ten died, so it went well?

If I say that, I’m truly cold-blooded.

“Raise your head and straighten your chest. Orca, you are the emperor’s son and the empire’s son. If you crumble from self-blame, who will protect the empire?”

But I’ll become cold-blooded.

If I can remove the darkness from my son’s heart, I’ll do it gladly.

“I’m not telling you to lightly forget today’s events. But don’t despair and become frustrated from failure and surrender. The enemies did this to make you surrender, to break your fighting spirit — will you dance to those bastards’ tune?”

“……”

Orca looked at me blankly.

I’m dying of pain but grinned.

“Hey, you struck down the terrorist and saved me. If the guy who saved me whimpers, what should I do?”

Because Orca inflicted a fatal wound on the terrorist, I could handle one inside the bastard’s body.

If both detonated, I’d have been in danger too.

When I smiled, Orca hesitated then smiled back.

The burden on his heart remained, but as if he’d let go of his worries.

I relaxed my body and laughed.

Even though I failed to completely stop it, at least this much…….

Footsteps.

“……”

What?

I turned and froze.

An opponent wearing a black hood pressed low was running toward us.

Speed catching up to the train running at full tilt.

Green magic wrapping around their feet.

Fourth rank — Mana Sprint.

Whooom!

The opponent who caught up to the train threw their body and landed.

I reflexively realized.

This bastard is an enemy.

“……Right, I see. You’re the one finishing up?”

“……”

To extract if the terrorist succeeds?

No, in case of failure?

“No. In case Orca survives by some chance, you were going to cut his throat.”

From behind, Orca drew in a deep breath.

I glared at the hooded opponent and said,

“Even if the train terror is stopped by some chance, Orca and the dark elves would have expended their strength. Then you charge in and cut Orca’s throat. If just the explosion, maybe not, but the second prince’s death — that absolutely cannot be concealed.”

“……”

“Leak information about train terror to draw out the dark elves. Whether Lisera or Orca…… no, you guided Orca to step forward?”

The Millennial Empire had been rolling along decently despite having no emperor for 100 years.

Because of the empresses who were my wives, and their children.

There was a calculation that someday a second emperor would emerge from among humans, and they would marry my bloodline.

But then what if the emperor’s bloodline gets murdered?

“……Right, was that the Empire Liberation Army’s purpose?”

Destroy the imperial railway and kill my child.

Killing two birds with one stone.

I steadied my breathing while extending my hand backward.

“Sword.”

“……Run away. What he’s targeting is me.”

“Just when I say sword, throw me a sword. That’s all you need to do.”

Ah.

With each breath, tearing pain rose from my back and…… blood dripped steadily.

Blood flowing down my torn back soaked through my pants to my ankles.

Condition is bad.

But I cannot retreat.

Whoever the opponent is.

“Sword!”

“……”

Orca placed his sword in my hand.

Gripping the blade properly, I glared at the enemy.

“Orca, fall back.”

“……What?”

“I won’t lose. Don’t worry and fall back.”

This bastard is a master.

Not just because of skillfully using fourth-rank magic.

Crocell or Wayne? Those bastards are post-war generation before being about magic.

Greenhorns who don’t know the fierceness of battlefields.

But this bastard now is completely different.

The battlefield against the Seven Sin God — that desolate smell wafted over.

A powerhouse who survived the war from 120 years ago!

Normally maybe not, but now I’ve consumed massive mental strength and suffered severe bleeding.

I might die from this.

But.

My son.

My son who seems grown yet is still young.

Is watching me from behind.

“Come at me.”

Then Dad has to show a cool side.