United by the Game: The First Wave
The crowds started flooding into the Valkar Duchy about two weeks before the Monster Wave. At first, no one in the north had high hopes. A minor magic tower faction. A few mercenary bands. Apprentice knights from training halls near the capital. Taken individually, none were powerhouses, and their numbers were... questionable.
But as the days passed—two weeks, then five days—until finally, just one week before the wave was set to hit, the walls of Valkar were packed with people from across the empire.
"The part I was most worried about has been resolved," Ethan said, gazing out the window.
The Valkar Duke set down his pen for a moment and turned his head. "I still can't quite wrap my head around it. It was just a game on a magic panel, after all."
"..."
Out there beyond the window—people tinkering with Fireball Shooters, hauling heat sinks, gripping their weapons. Folks who, not long ago, had been clutching magic panels and playing games.
Ethan's stoic face twitched ever so slightly at the duke's puzzlement. "GameMakerCute... was it?"
"We should consider awarding them a medal."
"If we successfully repel this wave, there's no reason not to."
Over eyes clouded with complex emotions, the chaotic scene inside the castle gates came into view. Luggage wagons rolled in one after another, warehouses buzzed nonstop with supply sorting. His own daughter, Ariel, darted here and there, inspecting Fireball Shooter positions. The volunteers clutched assignment sheets with frostbitten hands, bustling to figure out where to go. And among them stood some particularly youthful figures who caught the eye.
Students from Grace Academy.
"...They really came all the way up north."
"Went to that briefing session and next thing you know, we're signed up like we were possessed..."
The students, bundled in thick winter gear, huffed out breaths of steam as they huddled in a corner.
"Hoo... It's cold. When's our turn gonna come?"
"Still a ways off... Wait, isn't that guy cold?"
Some faces were tense, others already regretting it. And right in the middle was one who seemed utterly unfazed. A male student clad only in a thin martial arts uniform, even in the eternal tundra's chill.
Within Grace Academy, he was more famous by his nickname than his real name. From the first release of Dodge Fireball, he'd shown freakish skill unlike anyone else—and later, he'd even leveled up his Body Technique Realm by dodging fireballs in real life. Nickname: BodyTechniqueGOSUToBe.
His actual name was...
"What's that guy's name again?"
"...No clue? He's always 'body tech master' this, 'body tech master' that—can't remember."
"..."
The clustered students stared at BodyTechniqueGOSUToBe with jaded expressions.
"Dude levels up by dodging fireballs for real, and he came here for the same reason...?"
"Is it the realm he's after, or turning real life into a game?"
One student muttered softly in response. "Heard it's both."
"..."
"...What?"
Silence fell over the group. Sure, they'd felt some inexplicable thrill after playing the northern wave game and signed up... but at least they weren't here chasing game-like fun in reality.
"He's seriously on another level."
"Over-immersion in games dragging people all the way north...?"
"Coming here just to level up doesn't seem normal either..."
The man in question, BodyTechniqueGOSUToBe—Kail—paid zero attention to their stares. They had his motives a bit wrong, but he saw no need to correct them.
This is just repaying a one-sided debt.
Kail truly believed his Body Technique Realm breakthrough was thanks to GameMakerCute. Playing Dodge Fireball sharpened his dynamic vision, taught him to read openings. He started sensing the rhythm to disrupt breathing, seize his turn. Control over his body improved, letting him move faster.
Without Dodge Fireball, I'd still be your average academy student.
And now, a game themed around the Monster Wave had dropped. Right when interest in heading north was at rock bottom.
GameMakerCute must have a message for us through this game.
Having received that grace, I can't just sit idle.
Kail clenched his fists with resolve. Far off, Ariel Valkar—finishing her Fireball Shooter checks—spotted the scene and let out a short breath. A faint smile tugged at her lips.
"Just days ago, I thought we'd never see a sight like this."
# Wave Day.
The northern sky dumped white snow as always. Winds slashed at cheeks like knives atop the walls, blizzards limited visibility.
But today's walls looked nothing like last year's. No empty spots—everyone burned with passion.
The Valkar Duke surveyed the walls. Beside each Fireball Shooter stood assistants ready to swap heat sinks. Supply runners poised to move. Students from academies across the empire checked circuits and fed mana. Mages from minor towers read wind flows to bolster the shooters.
"The apprentice knights from the training hall and the mercenaries have just been assigned to both wall ends."
"Good work. Return to your post."
"Yes, sir!"
One academy student who witnessed it all murmured softly. "Whoa..."
"What, getting scared now?"
"Wouldn't it be weirder not to?"
Then, down below the walls, Kail—warming up—cracked his neck lightly.
Crack.
Pop-pop—
Two students watching made disgusted faces in unison.
"Dude's not even scared."
"He can't seriously not know the difference between game and reality... right?"
But Kail was tense in his own way.
Watch the flow. Spot the opening, commit your body.
Even after his realm breakthrough, a weakened fireball had left him immobile for ages. So what about a monster attack? If he couldn't use his arms or legs?
Flow, opening, advance. That's all I need to remember.
Seeing the Fireball Shooters lined atop the walls, he finally got a glimpse of GameMakerCute's intent.
"Trying to block everything is arrogance. I'll just do my job from my spot."
In the game, ground units like him weren't placed on the right flank either.
And from beyond the blizzard came a horrific howl. Eerily like the BGM from Chase's first game.
KieeeEE—!!!
KraaaAA—
Far off, black shadows rippled, closing in fast.
Center of the barrier. Ariel raised her hand.
"Left flank, Frostwolf pack vanguard—hold fire!"
"Hold fire!"
"Mana supply stable!"
"Circuit heat stable!"
"Ready!"
Responses flew back without a beat.
"Ready!"
"Ready!"
Ariel's eyes coldly pierced beyond the walls.
One, two...
"Fire now!"
BOOM—
Thud—
Thoom—
The first central fireball tore a long gash through the snowfield. Half a beat later, the second and third severed the pack's rear.
Thud—
Thoom, thud—
The flanks' shots supported, slowing isolated Frostwolf packs. The vanguard halted, the midsection severed.
Seizing the gap, more fireballs exploded in the pack's center.
BOOM—!!!
Snow, dirt, flames, blood erupting together. Amid the hush on the walls, an academy student muttered blankly.
"...This is actually a fireball?"
A nearby magic tower mage looked even more shocked. "Firing high-power fireballs like that—continuously, at precise angles?"
"Uncle, you didn't go to Nista Festival?"
"...Uncle? I'm not even thirty yet!"
Ariel, eyes locked on the wave without slack, shouted again.
"Right flank! Switch to support shooters! Small fry to melee!"
The Fireball Shooter's power was proven. But mana resupply, heat sink swaps—the whole process relied on people. And they'd made it work—thanks to everyone gathered here.
As disciplined motion unfolded atop the walls, melee fighters moved below.
"Hey! You missed that ice goblin!"
As two ice goblins slipped into a blind spot below the walls, Kail charged first. Closing distance with a skid-like glide, he kicked off the ground.
Short leap. Twisting mid-fall to snap one goblin's neck, then recoiling to uppercut the other's jaw in acrobatic flair.
Crack—
Snap!
"Whoa, that's something."
"Yo, it's a monster. Snap out of it."
"Bet he levels up again like this."
"Nah, no way."
Ignoring the stunned reactions, Kail casually returned to formation. Then shoved back another ice goblin, helped a soldier retreat, and fell back.
"Th-thanks—"
Whoosh——
SMACK!!!
"—man..."
Not all rushes were mindless. Eyes reading safe paths, danger zones. Two apprentice knights from the training hall gawked.
"...That's student-level skill?"
"Man, he'd eat us alive."
"Shoulda gone to the academy instead of training hall..."
Kail's classmates nearby corrected them with jaded faces. "No way that's academy average..."
Amid shouts, the Fireball Shooters kept spewing fire nonstop.
Then—several central shooters' circuits glowed red-hot.
"A-13 overheating! Firing delayed!"
"A-17 overheating!"
"A-10's circuit melted! Non-functional!"
"Heat sinks, now, you bastard! Hurry!"
Runners shoved crates up; mages vented heat in the brief window. But as if seizing the chance, armored boars veered center.
"How's that pig turning—ngh!"
"Center! To the center!"
With the shout, Kail launched himself.
Front—too risky.
He wasn't a plated knight—he was a bare-handed fighter. Target the flank.
The armored boar hesitated, sensing Kail's move.
"Fall back! Shooter 1 squad—fire in 3!"
BOOM—!
Rumble—
CRASH!!!
Before Ariel's cry even landed, Kail pulled back, mission done. Fireball barrage poured onto the lone boar.
BOOM——!
"..."
"...It actually works."
As the monster surge eased, euphoria lit the walls. Frostwolf packs massacred, armored boars aggro'd at edges and center for easy picks. Sneaking ice goblins? Shredded by melee before reaching the walls.
No lone hero mowing them down. Instead, countless people's teamwork forged hope on Valkar's walls.
Ariel ignored her raw throat, peering below. Through chill and shooter steam, people held their posts: soldiers, students, mages, mercs, knights, engineers...
Where groans once echoed, now faint laughs rose. This time was different. At least, to Ariel, it felt that way.
"Focus!"
All eyes snapped to her.
"We will repel this wave successfully!"
A short declaration. But no one heard it as bravado. The words rang true—they all shared the conviction.
And so the first day of the Monster Wave passed.