Earth's Greatest Magus
Earth's Greatest Magus - Chapter 1963: Counter Attack

The magus pirates, though formidable, paled in comparison to the dark elves' magus abilities. Once Emery found an opening, he seized the moment with decisive action, swiftly dispatching one of their strongest—the full moon magus.

"Leader!!!" The anguished cry echoed through the rocky expanse of the Moon Base as the remaining six magus pirates witnessed the tragic demise of their leader.

Having no loyalty and honor, their immediate reaction was to abandon the fight and make a frantic dash towards their spaceship, to safe themselves. Emery, however, chose not to pursue them, focusing instead on the imminent threat descending from above.

Emery activated a device attached to his ear and commanded, "Initiate defense system."

A rough voice, resonating in responded, "Finally!! I'll show you what these babies can do!!"

It was the voice of Master Borin, positioned at the Moon Base Command Center. With Emery's signal, the inventor rapidly operated the eight finished plasma cannons simultaneously, directing a relentless bombardment toward the approaching pirate spaceships.

The Moon Base's defensive systems roared to life, unleashing a storm of energy beams towards the oncoming vessels. Bright streaks of light illuminated the lunar sky as the plasma cannons unleashed their power.

The high-grade cannon, designed for both precision and power, served as Master Borin's tool of defense against the incoming pirate ships. His skilled aim targeted the vulnerable power system of one of the smaller vessels, and the sudden attack struck true, disabling its defensive capabilities.

In retaliation, when the two pirate ships unleashed their counterattacks, Master Borin swiftly responded by raising the Moon Base's defensive barrier. The energy shots from the enemy ships collided with the protective shield, preventing them from advancing further.

Inside the main ship, the pirate chieftain seethed with rage over the loss of one of his captains and issued a decisive order. "Change to projectile shots!"

The seasoned pirate chieftain, promptly recognized the nature of the Moon Base's energy barrier. In response, the pirates shifted their weaponry strategy, substituting energy weapons with metal bullets and explosive missiles, a type of attack that could pass through the energy barrier. Master Borin, now faced with a new challenge, skillfully maneuvered the plasma cannons to intercept and neutralize the incoming projectiles.

The cosmic battlefield intensified as the two pirate ships relentlessly bombarded the Moon Base, focusing their attacks on both the defensive cannons and the machine controlling the protective barrier. Master Borin, with unwavering focus and expertise, skillfully juggled the task of defending against the onslaught while attempting to counteract the pirate assault.

Amidst the chaos, the third ship, previously docked in the Moon Base's hangar, began to hover away from the lunar outpost and back into the vastness of space. The sudden movement caught the attention of the pirate captain "Is that Geru's crew? What are they doing?!"

"They are returning back toward us," replied the female magus operating the pirate ship.

"Those fools!! They are already inside!! Told them to start attacking the base!!" barked the pirate captain. However the female magus turn panicked, realizing that they weren't receiving any response from the third ship. In a perplexing turn of events, the ship not only flew out of the protected zone but also directed its course toward the two attacking vessels, unleashing a barrage of shots upon them.

"What the fuck are they doing?!" the pirate captain exclaimed, a mix of confusion and anger evident in his voice.

The confirmation came swiftly – the six pirate magus crew members were indeed inside the ship, but their unexpected attack revealed that the vessel had been compromised by the opponents. Decisively, the pirate chieftain issued the order, "Shoot it down!"

As the pirates wrestled with the chaos of battling the Moon Base and contending with one of their own ships turned against them, a shadowy figure materialized on the Moon surface next to Emery.

"It seems to work as expected"

The figure was Chumo. While Emery cleverly diverted the attention of the pirates using his clones, Chumo, utilizing his proficiency in shadow spells and a special artifact known as [Phantom Skin], had infiltrated the pirate ship. There, he installed a device that enabled VIA to take control of the enemy vessel.

VIA, having taken control of the pirate ship, and Master Borin, in charge of the Moon Base cannon, orchestrated a synchronized assault, unleashing a barrage of attacks on the two pirate vessels. The collaboration between artificial intelligence and seasoned inventor proved effective in dealing substantial damage to the adversaries, causing chaotic explosions and evident destruction.

Despite the initial success, the main pirate ship exhibited unexpected resilience. It retaliated fiercely, managing to destroy the controlled pirate vessel that VIA had commandeered. The resulting explosion painted the cosmic canvas in fiery hues, claiming the lives of most pirates on board.

Observing the turn of events, Emery commended VIA and Borin for their efforts and inquired about the current state of the pirate ship. He was relieved to learn that not only they manage neutralized both ships' projectile weapons but also badly damage the smaller ship,fully disabled the weapon systems. Only the primary pirate ship retained the capability to fire its energy weapons toward the Moon Base.

As they wasted no time in doing so, Emery ask VIA "Give me estimates, how long it will take for them to breach the barrier with their current weapon"

[Using their full power, estimated 7 hours and 40 minutes]

This information aligned perfectly with Emery's intentions. He aimed to buy as much time until reinforcements arrived.

The tense situation took a new turn as a figure emerged from the main pirate ship – a grand magus hybrid. Recognizing the individual, Emery ascended to meet him from inside the protective barrier. A visible rage emanated from the pirate chieftain, who communicated directly into Emery's mind.

<You think you are so smart, don't you?>

Emery responded with nonchalance, "I think it's pretty smart. I am sure your men would agree... wait... I am sorry, they are dead."

Infuriated, the grand magus unleashed a torrent of lightning that reverberated through the shield. Although the barrier held firm, VIA updated a few minutes off the remaining time.

The grand magus's formidable abilities were undeniably intimidating, yet Emery remained unperturbed. He understood that the relentless assault would ultimately deplete the pirate chieftain's power, rendering him vulnerable.

As if attuned to Emery's thoughts, the grand magus taunted through their mental connection,

<You only extend the inevitable...>A sinister smile played on his face as he added, <I'd like to see how long you can stay comfortably inside when we pillage your planet.>

With a signal from the tiger-faced grand magus, one of the pirate ships set course for Earth, aiming to bring chaos and destruction to Emery's home planet.