The fortress's attacks shifted toward the flying monsters that had reached them first.
As arrows and spells focused on the aerial threats, the assaults on ground monsters inevitably decreased.
Roar!
Thud! Thud! Boom!
Finally, the massive ground monsters reached the fortress walls. Huge ogres swung their colossal clubs, and trolls smashed their fists against the stone walls.
Crash! Smash! Smash!
The enormous monsters relentlessly pounded the fortress, seemingly intent on breaking it apart, as they were too large to climb over the walls themselves.
However, the smaller, more nimble monsters moved differently. Using the bodies of larger monsters or scaling the fortress walls directly, they succeeded in climbing up.
Crunch! Slash!
“Ahhhh!”
“Stop them! Push them off the walls!”
“Hold the line! Don’t let them break through!”
Commanders' desperate shouts echoed through the chaos. Yet, as more monsters breached the walls, the situation rapidly deteriorated.
“Do not falter! Keep your formation tight! We can hold them back!”
“Archers and mages, focus on the flying monsters! Ignore the ones already on the walls!”
“Everyone else, focus on the monsters in front of you! Don’t look up!”
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The soldiers, gritting their teeth, pushed forward with their shields while thrusting spears through gaps to repel the monsters.
Screech!
Experienced soldiers maintained their discipline and held formation, methodically repelling the climbing monsters.
Despite their struggles, hope still flickered among the defenders. They had not yet been completely overwhelmed, and their lines held firm.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
From behind the advancing waves of monsters came a thunderous roar. Soldiers who glanced toward the sound froze in terror.
“No way... Is that...”
“Are those... still around?”
“It’s a cyclops! Cyclopes are here!”
Towering over even the massive ogres, five cyclopes emerged.
Cyclopes were thought to be nearly extinct, and their incredible strength made them mythical creatures in the eyes of most. While ogres were often considered the strongest monsters, cyclopes were in a league of their own, overshadowing even those giants in raw power.
Now, five of these legendary monsters had appeared on the battlefield.
Growl...
Unlike the mindless, frenzied monsters that charged blindly, the cyclopes displayed a degree of cunning.
Shockingly, they picked up boulders used in the fortress's trebuchets and hurled them back with terrifying force.
Crash! Smash! Boom!
“Ahhhhh!”
Soldiers screamed as the massive stones smashed into the fortress. Many were crushed instantly, unable to react in time.
With the cyclopes essentially acting as living trebuchets, the soldiers' formations began to crumble.
Crash! Crash! Smash!
Human screams mixed with monstrous roars, creating a deafening cacophony that filled the battlefield.
The cyclopes paid no heed to their own allies, indiscriminately crushing friend and foe alike with their boulders. Even flying monsters were struck down in the chaos.
The battlefield descended into utter pandemonium.
“This... this is...”
Marquis Alpheren, the fortress’s commanding officer, stood frozen, his mouth hanging open in disbelief.
He had meticulously studied reports on monster waves and had gathered a force comparable to an entire kingdom's army at the fortress.
Confident in their strength, he had focused on preparing for the eventual confrontation with the dragon.
But the scale of this wave was beyond anything he had ever imagined. The sheer number of monsters dwarfed any previous records.
And now cyclopes—beasts powerful enough to overwhelm the strongest warriors—had joined the fray.
Crash! Smash! Boom!
“Ahhhhhh!”
The soldiers' screams rang out as the fortress's walls began to crack under the relentless assault of the massive monsters.
Despite their formidable defenses, the fortress was buckling under the overwhelming pressure of the monsters' onslaught.
Marquis Alpheren’s mind went blank as he stared at the unfolding carnage, unable to process the magnitude of the threat.
The monsters' eyes burned with a feral madness. They seemed immune to pain, ignoring their injuries as they pressed forward with unrelenting aggression.
The soldiers' morale wavered as fear spread like a contagion.
“Shouldn’t we retreat...?” someone muttered, but their words were lost amid the chaos.
Roar!
Ogres, even with severed arms, continued to hammer the walls. Trolls climbed over the bodies of their fallen comrades to scale the fortress.
Wyverns, their wings tattered and torn, hurled themselves at the defenders without hesitation.
The battlefield was a nightmare of monstrous roars, splintering bones, and anguished cries. The monsters’ glowing eyes reflected the abyssal depths of their primal rage.
“They’re not diminishing!”
“Close ranks! Reform the line!”
“We can’t hold them! This is the end!”
Amid the chaos, the soldiers’ morale collapsed further.
With their formations broken, the defenders struggled to hold their ground. The cyclopes' relentless boulder assaults had shattered the carefully maintained ranks, leaving them vulnerable to the surging tide of monsters.
“Get it together! Reform the line! We still have numbers on our side!”
Commanders roared, trying desperately to rally their troops.
Archers and mages continued their attacks on the flying monsters, while trebuchets hurled stones at the advancing horde.
Crash! Boom! Smash!
But the cyclopes' indiscriminate attacks caused just as much damage to their allies as they did to the defenders.
The fortress’s defenders, once confident in their preparations, were now overwhelmed by the sheer ferocity and numbers of the enemy.
The battlefield was a symphony of violence and chaos, a raw display of unrelenting primal power clashing against the defenders' disciplined resistance.
One young soldier, overcome by fear, collapsed to his knees.
“This isn’t a battle... It’s a slaughter...”
Crunch!
A harpy with the body of a bird and the head of a human swooped down, seizing the soldier in its talons.
Before he could react, the harpy tore into his head.
Slash!
A knight sliced through the harpy's neck, but before he could catch his breath, more monsters surged toward him.
Below, gorgon-like beasts resembling massive black bulls slammed their horns against the fortress walls repeatedly.
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Crack. Crack...
The relentless assaults of the large monsters caused the fortress’s walls to begin crumbling.
Cyclopes continued their unyielding bombardment, crushing soldiers with their massive boulders.
Monsters clung to the walls like swarming insects, while waves of flying creatures descended from the sky.
Marquis Alpheren stared in despair at the chaos unfolding before him.
“This is the end...”
Despite his confidence in their preparations, the fortress’s defenders were being overwhelmed. Even with their strategic position, they couldn’t withstand the unrelenting tide of monsters.
The priests worked tirelessly to heal and protect the wounded, but the sheer number of injuries outpaced their abilities.
The overwhelming tide of violence rendered all efforts meaningless. Civilization and reason were being trampled under the weight of unrestrained barbarity.
The fortress, once a symbol of hope and strength, was now the last fragile bastion against a sea of savagery.
“Ahhhhhh!”
“Hold the line! We must hold the line!”
“Reform the ranks! Running will only make it worse!”
Amid the chaos, soldiers fought desperately to survive.
Yet everyone knew it was only a matter of time before they were completely overrun.
As despair began to take hold, a sudden sound pierced the air.
Bang!
It was like the very sky had split open.
Bang! Bang! Boom!
A streak of light blazed across the battlefield, approaching the fortress at incredible speed.
KABOOM!
A massive bolt of lightning struck the battlefield, scattering the advancing monsters.
Amidst the blinding light, a man appeared—Jerome. He stood tall, his arms outstretched, golden magic circles glowing in his eyes.
“Gravity Wave.”
Woooooom!
A powerful gravitational wave rippled outward, halting the monsters in their tracks.
Screeeeech!
Flying monsters fell from the sky one after another, crashing to the ground. Monsters clinging to the fortress walls were unable to withstand the immense pressure, bursting or dropping below. The larger monsters that had been relentlessly hammering the walls also began to slow down.
The soldiers didn’t miss this opportunity. They quickly thrust their spears into the monsters that had fallen from above and finished off the ones lying prone on the ground. Despite the relentless flood of monsters, this gave the fortress defenders a brief respite.
“Quickly! Reform the lines!”
At someone’s shout, the soldiers scrambled to regroup. It was then that they realized what had just happened.
“L-Lord Jerome is here!”
“Lord Jerome has arrived!”
“Waaahhh!”
A thunderous cheer erupted across the fortress.
Everyone stationed at the fortress knew who Jerome was—a legendary mage who had reached the 8th Circle, the hero who had single-handedly stopped the terrifying beast Gatros.
The soldiers, fully aware of his overwhelming power, felt their morale soar.
A Counterattack Begins
Thump! Thump! Thump!
The Cyclopes resumed their bombardment, hurling massive boulders toward the fortress. Although Jerome’s intervention had momentarily cleared the walls of monsters, these relentless attacks still posed a significant threat.
As the boulders hurtled toward the fortress, Jerome raised his hand.
Ziiing—!
Golden magic circles shimmered into existence in front of the fortress.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The boulders were shattered upon impact with the magic barriers. The soldiers, witnessing this, erupted into cheers once again.
“Waaahhh!”
“Lord Jerome has blocked all of it!”
“Push back the monsters!”
With the threat of the Cyclopes’ projectiles neutralized, the soldiers were able to focus entirely on holding the line against the advancing monsters.
While Jerome handled the defensive measures, another figure appeared in the distance. It was Vanessa, floating mid-air, her presence radiating a commanding aura.
With a graceful motion, she summoned dozens of magic circles into the sky.
Crack!
Lightning bolts streaked down, illuminating the battlefield as they tore through the ranks of the monster horde.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The relentless onslaught of lightning devastated the monsters’ formations, creating a massive gap in their ranks.
Not stopping there, Vanessa conjured enormous pillars of fire that erupted from the ground, throwing the monsters into disarray and slowing their advance toward the fortress.
Despite Vanessa’s intervention, many monsters had already reached the fortress, swarming its walls once again. The soldiers gritted their teeth and held their positions.
Just as the situation seemed dire, a new presence appeared—darkness coalescing in mid-air.
Shwaaak!
The shadows tore apart, revealing Belinda, emerging gracefully from the void. In an instant, hundreds of daggers materialized, radiating a dazzling light as they scattered in all directions.
Screeech!
The advancing monsters were mercilessly torn apart by the storm of daggers. To the soldiers, it felt as if hundreds of knights had suddenly joined their defense.
The daggers darted across the battlefield, providing invaluable support to the struggling defenders.
“Victory is within our grasp! We can do this!” Marquis Alpheren shouted, clenching his fist.
The arrival of three extraordinary figures—Jerome, Vanessa, and Belinda—had turned the tide of battle. Confidence began to return to the soldiers’ eyes as they rallied to push back the invaders.
The remaining threat was the large monsters at the base of the fortress—Cyclopes and other giants who continued their relentless assault. Even with Jerome’s intervention, their sheer strength made them a formidable foe.
Before Alpheren could issue an order to Jérôme to shift his focus to these massive threats, another figure appeared.
Thud, thud, thud.
Riding a majestic horse, Julien charged toward the horde of massive monsters. His expression remained stoic as he unsheathed his sword.
A tremendous surge of mana flowed into his blade, causing it to glow with an icy blue radiance.
Crack!
With a swift slash of his sword, the earth itself split apart in a long, jagged line, cutting through the ranks of the massive monsters.
Splat!
Every large monster caught in the path of his attack was cleaved in half, their massive forms collapsing to the ground.
Watching from the fortress, Marquis Alpheren could only blink in disbelief.
“What... what is this...?”
Julien’s reputation as a powerful warrior was well-known, but what he had just witnessed was beyond comprehension—a display of power that defied human limits.
Without pausing, Julien plunged back into the fray, his blade a blur as it cut down monster after monster. Yet, even his incredible strength couldn’t hold back the seemingly endless horde alone.
Just as the defenders braced for another overwhelming wave, the sound of galloping hooves echoed across the battlefield.
Thud, thud, thud, thud!
A group of riders emerged, charging fearlessly toward the rear ranks of the monster horde.
Leading the charge was none other than Ghislain, followed by 200 elite knights of the Fenris Mercenaries.