By then, a group of Holy Light Clerics had cleared the rats around the Earl's estate. But when they approached and saw a perfectly preserved noble residence, their expressions soured. Without a word, they moved on to search for survivors elsewhere.
They had no time for these Carnivores now. Anyone who could keep their estate intact through such a severe rat infestation clearly held considerable status.
"Yahiko, let's go take a look too!"
Yahiko snapped out of his shock and nodded. The three quickly followed the Holy Light Clerics. By the time the Earl came to his senses, they were long gone, and his blood surged with anger.
"Who are you?" a Holy Light Cleric at the rear asked warily as he watched the three approach. The other squad members turned around too.
"Everyone, don't worry. We're Ninja from Amegakure, and I even know your Regiment Commander Axel!" Yahiko hurriedly said with a smile.
"You know Corps Commander Axel?" The other Holy Light Clerics looked at the three with curiosity.
"Yes, yes, Regiment Commander Axel!" The three nodded hastily.
A Holy Light Cleric stepped out from the front of the squad. "You must have met Corps Commander Axel quite some time ago! He hasn't been a regiment commander for ages!" With that, he opened his visor, revealing a broad, square face.
"Hello, I'm Oli, captain of the 7th Mixed Squad!" Oli held out his hand.
"Hello, my name's Yahiko. These are my teammates, Nagato and Konan." Yahiko shook Oli's hand.
"Hello, everyone!" Oli nodded to the other two. "Are you here to help with disaster relief too?"
Yahiko nodded, suddenly a little embarrassed. How could he tell them they were here to complete a mission?
"Then come along with us! It's easier to get into trouble with so few people," Oli offered kindly.
The three quickly nodded. They also wanted to see how these Holy Light Clerics rescued people.
"Priest! Keep using Life Sense!"
Oli gave the order.
"Yes, Captain!"
The squad's Priest began silently reciting an incantation. Rings of light spread outward with the Priest at their center.
"Captain, I'm sensing a large number of living beings five hundred meters ahead!"
"Move, quickly! Let's hope they're all right!" Oli immediately led the squad forward at full speed. The rats along their path began to stir.
"Holy Light Judgment!"
"Knight charge!"
"Holy Rank Gun barrage!"
"Holy Cantor, keep them under control! Priest, delayed light projectiles! Armament specialists, hammer them with your machine guns! Knights, charge with me!"
Mixed squads like Oli's generally consisted of four Knights, two Priests, three armament specialists, and one Holy Cantor. Compared with large formations made up of a single troop type, this composition allowed the squad members to coordinate better and adapt to special squad operations.
Yahiko and his companions were astonished. They had wanted to lend a hand, but the Holy Light Clerics cleared out all the surrounding rats with one seamless sequence of coordinated attacks.
"They're getting stronger and stronger!" Nagato sighed.
"Yes! What path will be left for us Ninja in the future?" Yahiko murmured, lost.
"Whatever happens, let's focus on doing our part! Akatsuki is growing now, and plenty of Ninja support us!" Konan reassured Yahiko when she saw his uncertainty.
"Right!" Yahiko nodded firmly.
"Captain, this is the place!"
"Quick, everyone, search the area! The civilians may be hiding in a cellar!" Oli said anxiously.
Everyone began searching through the ruins.
"Captain, we found it!"
The others hurried over and saw several bodies, gnawed down to bare bones, lying beside an enormous rock.
"It looks like these villagers organized their own rescue efforts. We still arrived a little too late! Everyone, push the boulder aside. Let's see how the people inside are doing!" Oli said sorrowfully.
"Yes, Captain!"
Several Holy Knights worked together to push the rock aside.
A cool breeze carried fresh air into the cellar. The civilians sheltering underground immediately panicked. "Oh no! Someone opened the cellar!"
"What? What are we going to do?" the surviving villagers below cried in terror.
"Mom, are we going to die?" a child sobbed.
"Be good. Mommy will protect you!" The woman forced a smile as she comforted her child.
The surviving men picked up knives and forks and stood resolutely at the entrance.
"Listen, everyone inside! Don't panic! We're a rescue team from the Holy Church. Don't be afraid. We're here to save you! You're all safe now!" a Holy Knight shouted.
"The Holy Church? Could they mean the Holy Church in the west?" The people inside immediately grew excited.
"Move! Everyone, get inside quickly!"
A faint glow shone from the hands of the Knight in front as they swept past the entrance. The moment the Knight entered, a foul stench struck. Seeing the civilians' cracked lips and pale faces, the Holy Knight ignored the terrible conditions and asked anxiously, "Is everyone all right?"
"Are... are you really from the Holy Church in the west?" a civilian asked in disbelief, staring at the Holy Knight's silver-white armor and faintly glowing hands.
The Holy Knight opened their visor and reassured them with a smile. "You're all safe now! May the holy light bless you!"
"Thank goodness! Thank goodness! We're finally saved!" Some of the civilians wept with joy after surviving the ordeal.
Yahiko and his companions followed them into the cellar, covering their mouths and noses. Looking at the filthy, chaotic surroundings, they could hardly imagine how these people had survived the past few days in such terrible conditions.
As the Holy Light Clerics quickly brought the civilians out, the rats began gathering again. "Captain, this won't work. The civilians are still very weak. We need somewhere to set up a Holy Light Barrier and have an airship drop supplies for us."
"Is there a good place nearby?"
An armament specialist took out the Observation Armament and scanned the surroundings. "Captain, there's a fairly intact noble estate not far ahead. We can go there."
"Move!"
The Holy Light Clerics guarded the civilians as they carefully made their way toward the estate.
As though they had caught the scent of delicious food, the rats launched ferocious attacks against the Holy Light Clerics all along the way.
"Damn these rats! Was anyone hurt?" Oli demanded angrily after they finally cleared the rats from the estate.
"Captain, a few civilians were bitten. Fortunately, Yahiko and his companions reacted quickly and killed the rats with Kunai. The Priests are treating them now."
"Armament specialists, set up the barrier immediately! Install the locator and transmit our position to the airship. Some of these civilians are already severely dehydrated!"
"Yes!"
The armament specialists quickly took out round iron spheres and tossed them around the building.
Clack, clack.
Mechanical components shifted with a series of clicks, and an enormous curtain of light enclosed the area. Seeing the rats kept outside it, the frightened, helpless civilians all breathed sighs of relief.
An armament specialist immediately took the iron box off their back and pulled out a long, thin wire. "Calling airship, calling airship. This is the 7th Mixed Squad. We have a large number of civilians here and urgently need supplies. Please locate our signal and send support immediately upon receiving this message!"
"Airship No. 9 acknowledged. Please stand by. We'll lock onto your signal and launch supplies right away."
"Bearing east, five hundred. Wind speed sixty. Use the Electromagnetic Cannon to deliver supplies immediately!"
"Calibrate the bearing and load the supply crate!" A four-wheeled forklift lifted a sheet-metal crate and placed it onto an iron frame fitted with rails.
"Supplies ready. Clear to fire."
Bang! Sparks flashed along the rails, and the supplies vanished from the frame.
An enormous iron crate suddenly appeared overhead, suspended beneath a huge sheet of white fabric as it slowly descended toward the ground.
Konan curiously asked the female Priest beside her, "Miss, what's that for?"
"Those are airdropped supplies. There's food and water inside!"
"How... how did you come up with all these methods?" Konan asked in astonishment.
"All this knowledge was taught to us by the holy light!" The female Priest smiled at the wide-eyed Konan.
They watched as the Knights killed the surrounding rats and dragged the crate, as tall as two people, back inside the barrier. They opened it and distributed the food and water to the civilians, who had barely eaten anything for days.
Konan murmured, "Could your god really be all-knowing and all-powerful?"
"I don't know whether the holy light is all-knowing and all-powerful. But I do know that I could spend my entire life studying the knowledge it brings and still never learn it all!" With that, the female Priest offered a devout prayer.
Before you continue