nucmednet Chapter 61 After the Forbidden Zone
Chapter 61 After the Forbidden Zone
"Today is a special day for me. We have arrived in the New World, but this is not the New World that I or anyone else wanted—or rather, for us, this land is not a new land where we can travel freely, but the starting point of death."
"On November 13, 653, perhaps it had already snowed on the Old World, but today, on our first day in the New World, what the New World greets us with is death, the ultimate death. The expedition lost a man on the very first step of reaching the New World—a scout from the 11st Naval Infantry Company. He was at the forefront, climbing a concrete staircase to the land of the New World. But the New World does not welcome any of us. As soon as he stepped onto the ground, he was enveloped by a light that devoured his upper body. His lower body fell down the stairs, along with his rifle, which was now just a butt."
"Without a doubt, this first step terrified us all. We had considered tens of thousands of possibilities, but when this continent rejected us, no one expected it to happen so quickly and so decisively. And with the death of the vanguard came the shaking of the earth—I was lucky enough to look up and stick my head out of the ground, and I saw the embodiment of death."
"I reached out as if possessed, and the Minié rifle fired as usual, the bullets ricocheting as usual, but God! Who could have imagined the sound of those bullets hitting them? It was the sound of metal clashing!"
“Those skeletons are made of metal! They were clearly enraged by my foolish actions, and I witnessed their fury—they also had rifles! No, not just rifles, but tens of thousands of rifles firing!”
"We retreated hastily, after all, who wants to face those beams of light that can melt your body, and countless bullets? Fortunately, we still had cannons. The cannons on the ship saved us and the fleet—the cannon blasted a skeleton apart, and its arm flew in front of me. Somehow, I picked up that arm as if possessed."
"No matter what, I don't want to go to that so-called 'New World' anymore. I want to go back, back to Hilla, back to Trian, even if it means taking on the task of conquering the capital!"
Olina Kristoff put down her diary and placed it in the Marine Corps' locker. On the deck lay a burlap shroud; the soldier had collapsed the day after boarding the ship, and no one could say what illness he had, which even caused panic until the scholars brought out some instruments and began to marvel at it.
"This isn't an infectious disease... but the body must be disposed of immediately!"
Scholars explained: This is a magic radiation disease caused by excessive magic power irradiating the body. Such a disease only exists in theory. As the magic power becomes overloaded, his body will crystallize, turning into a huge magic crystal, which will eventually cause a magic explosion.
"Excessive magical energy irradiation?"
“We don’t know where the source is, but we can speculate that the entire New World is covered by an excess of magic, which means we can’t enter.”
Olina Kristoff sighed, unsure of what to do next. She summoned the captain to inquire about the current situation.
"The good news is that we currently have enough fuel, food, and fresh water to support us for about 40 more days, which means we can go either south or north."
The scholars continued to discuss the materials they found in the wasteland port. In reality, there wasn't much usable information: a few thin pieces similar in texture to waste magic crystals, some metal artifacts that emitted a foul stench, and a book that was almost completely corroded, with its cover and inner pages incomplete. Most importantly, the metal skull arm that the fallen recruit had picked up was the result of their efforts.
Olina Christopher looked at the daunting wasteland and sighed. Fear and curiosity struggled in her mind. She didn't know what lay beyond this wasteland, nor what she could find if she continued south or north.
But Alice's funding wasn't for a piece of land that couldn't be reached; she understood perfectly well that Alice was spending her money on land that could be developed.
She finally said, "Let's go south."
The fleet sailed south through the wasteland. Olina Christopher would look into the distance and the sky every day. Finally, things took a turn for the better, and the azure sky appeared on the horizon. Olina Christopher leaned against the railing, looking at the sky. There was a clear dividing line between the gray-black clouds and the azure sky.
But the dividing line was beyond the wasteland, which connected from south to north. Olina Christopher saw a passageway beside the land, a complex, port-like passageway, beside which lay a massive shipwreck, larger than anyone could imagine.
"Should we go over there, or continue sailing south?"
The captain looked at the passage, or rather the canal. It was still part of the wasteland, but it had a wide expanse of water. Upon closer inspection, the jagged frames on the shore turned out to be abandoned giant metal cranes.
"Send someone off the small boat."
Several marines disembarked in small boats, which led the ships. The ambush or danger that Olina Kristoff had feared actually did not exist. The fleet passed through the Wasteland Canal unharmed. Scholars had drawn a map here to indicate that there was a passable sea area.
"I've never thought blue skies were so beautiful."
Olina Kristoff exclaimed that the fleet was finally back on the open ocean, the sextant was finally working, and the captain put the machine down.
"We deviated from our planned route and went too far north... That's probably why we encountered the Dead Wasteland."
Olina nodded, continuing to gaze into the distance. The Wasteland of Death might just be a small piece of land on a vast ocean, or they might eventually reach the eastern continent. But whatever the case, the land beneath their feet was a sphere, and they would eventually find their home.
The steam engine roared, the sails rose again, and the fleet accelerated once more with both engine and sail in use. A few days later, Olina saw something. She looked up and saw seabirds flying westward in the sky.
"Seagull!"
The presence of seabirds meant that land was getting closer, and sure enough, just as the sun was about to set, they finally reached land—a bay.
Compared to the horrors of the wasteland, this continent seemed so normal, with beaches and green trees. However, having learned from the previous experience, most people were a bit cautious. The landing team didn't disembark from the small boats until the sun was about to set.
"normal!"
The naval infantrymen raised their guns, alert for any unusual signs, but everything remained normal until the tents were ashore, and Olina Kristoff also disembarked.
The lookout stood atop the mast, his view revealing a breathtaking panorama of blue skies, archipelagos, and towering mountains. A horse emerged from the bushes and disappeared into the forest before the crowd's eyes.
"Gentlemen! We have successfully reached the New World!"
Olina Kristoff announced that she had planted a flag and a wooden marker on the beach, and the harbor had a new name—supposedly given by Princess Alice.
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