Reborn General: My Interstellar Arsenal Slays Magic

Chapter 6: Steel and Thunder

The subterranean vault beneath Frostpeak Fortress vibrated with blinding azure light as fifty thousand high-purity mana-stones dissolved into raw, digitized code.

[HIGH-PURITY MANA-STONES CONVERTED.]

[SYSTEM ENERGY BALANCE: 53,135 CREDITS.]

[UNLOCKING TIER 3 ARSENAL: HEAVY ARMORED VEHICLES & TACTICAL ARTILLERY.]

Leonidas stood at the center of the vast underground staging bay, watching the holographic interface spin through lists of war machinery. In his past life, fighting an Imperial legion required tens of thousands of commoner casualties just to breach their enchanted shield-lines.

This time, he wouldn't waste a single human life in a war of attrition.

"System," Leonidas commanded softly. "Execute deployment."

[PURCHASE LOG:]

2x M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams Main Battle Tanks (120mm Smoothbore Gun + Reactive Armor): 16,000 Credits

4x M2A4 Bradley Fighting Vehicles (25mm Chain Gun + TOW Missile Launchers): 12,000 Credits

2x M109A7 Paladin 155mm Self-Propelled Howitzers: 10,000 Credits

Supply Package (120mm SABOT/HEAT rounds, 155mm High-Explosive Shells, Fuel Reserves): 5,000 Credits

[REMAINING CREDITS: 10,135]

The air inside the vault warped. Deep, metallic clanks echoed off the stone walls as dark shadows materialized out of golden light.

Six massive steel leviathans settled onto the concrete floor with a heavy, ground-shaking thud. The matte-tan camouflage paint of the M1A2 Abrams tanks gleamed under the harsh artificial lighting, their 120mm main guns jutting out like the spears of ancient giants. Beside them, the Bradleys and Paladin artillery units hissed as their hydraulic systems pressurized.

Kael, who had followed Leonidas down to the vault alongside Gideon and ten conscripts, dropped his submachine gun. He fell to his knees, his jaw hanging open as he stared at the sixty-ton steel beast towering over him.

"C-Commander..." Kael whispered, his voice trembling with instinctual dread. "What... what kind of mythical beasts are these?"

"They aren't beasts," Leonidas said, stepping up onto the steel tread of the lead Abrams and patting the reactive armor plating. "These are war engines. Iron forged to crush kings."

He looked down at Gideon, whose face was completely drained of color. As a former Imperial guard, Gideon knew the power of an Imperial Iron Legion—two thousand heavy cavalry, five hundred battle mages, and high-tier defensive spell-casters. But looking at the massive 120mm smoothbore cannon pointing straight ahead, Gideon realized with sudden clarity that the empire's tactics were about to become obsolete.

"Gideon," Leonidas called out. "Select sixteen men who have background as carriage drivers or mechanical smiths. Starting now, you learn to crew these machines."

Three days later, the storm cleared over the Northern Plains.

From the observation tower of Frostpeak, the RQ-11 Raven drone transmitted crisp, real-time thermal imagery back to Leonidas's tactical command screen.

Ten miles south, marching across the snow-covered valley, was the 7th Imperial Iron Legion.

Three thousand heavy cavalry in silver-runed plate armor led the vanguard, followed by massive siege towers drawn by mana-beasts. At the center of the formation stood a hundred high mages in velvet robes, holding aloft a massive golden banner bearing the crest of House Solaria. Leading the vanguard was Grand General Marcus Vane—a Rank-5 Sword Saint whose aura could split mountain peaks.

"They brought an entire legion for a border garrison," Kael noted, standing beside Leonidas with a pair of tactical binoculars. His voice was steady now, free of the terror that had consumed him days ago. "They mean to flatten Frostpeak to dust."

"They're marching in tight, concentrated ranks," Leonidas observed calmly, scanning the drone feed. "Traditional Imperial doctrine. They gather their mages in the center to maintain a joint defensive barrier."

Leonidas picked up his radio headset. "Artillery Battery One, this is Vanguard Alpha. Target coordinates locked. Range: twelve kilometers."

Five miles behind the fortress wall, hidden deep within a snowy ravine, the two M109A7 Paladin self-propelled howitzers adjusted their long 155mm barrels upward toward the sky. Automated computer systems calculated wind resistance, elevation, and target density in fractions of a second.

"Load High-Explosive Variable Time fuse rounds," the conscript commander inside the lead Paladin ordered into his mic. "Fire on my mark!"

Back at the fortress, Leonidas watched the Imperial legion march into the designated kill zone.

"Teach them the weight of cold steel," Leonidas said softly into the radio. "Fire."

BOOM! BOOM!

Five miles away, the mountain shook as two 155mm artillery shells tore into the frozen sky, screaming through the clouds at supersonic speed toward an enemy that didn't even know the battle had begun.