Monster Wave (2)
Monsters poured endlessly toward Valkar Duchy's walls, living up to the name of the Monster Wave. No one knew where they kept getting reinforcements from, but the unrelenting onslaught wore down even the people defending against it. Students whose eyes once burned with excitement now clenched their teeth in grim determination, and the mercenaries who used to trade jokes fell silent.
And by the fifth day...
No one dared crack a joke anymore.
"...Haa."
Unidentifiable black sludge clung thickly to the base of the walls. The heat sinks on the Fireball Shooters bore clear marks of multiple replacements. From the people to the machines, nothing was left unscathed.
Even Kail of Body Technique GOSU was no exception. He still wore only his thin martial uniform, but now it seemed less like overwhelming presence and more like sheer stubborn grit keeping him upright. His breaths came ragged, his shoulders slumped heavier than usual.
One student watching him muttered softly.
"...He gets tired too, huh."
"He's not a game character—what'd you expect?"
"Looks like he's warming up to head out again...?"
Kail ignored their whispers, his gaze fixed solely on the snowy expanse ahead.
Flow... read the flow...
Five straight days of frontline combat without proper rest. Exhaustion pressed down on him so heavily he could barely track his own thoughts or what day it even was. Yet strangely, his body's senses felt razor-sharp.
The reflexes honed from countless Fireball dodges in the game were shining now amid the northern blizzard.
Kieee-raa-rak!!!!
Kkiyooot——
Someone swallowed hard.
"Damn it all... we take a breather, and the bastards swarm right back."
"Sigh..."
At the center of the wall, Ariel Valkar checked the Fireball Shooter's status once more at the distant howls.
"A-13."
"Holding angle, ma'am!"
"A-17, heat sink status?"
"Just swapped it out!"
"A-10."
"Output's fine, but the rotation axle's a bit stiff!"
"Don't force it. Overlap firing lanes with the adjacent unit instead."
Her commands were short and sharp. Every time her mouth opened, students, engineers, and soldiers moved like clockwork, no questions asked. Spare parts rushed in, mana flowed into circuits for checks. What started as awkward hesitation on day one now flowed like a seasoned engineering team's symphony.
Valkar Duke paused his relentless spellcasting to watch, a low chuckle escaping him.
"...Ha. I have to admit it."
That's when it happened.
"Hey, watch out—"
A mercenary's alarmed shout rang out. Spotting a staggering soldier, an Aurora Penguin dove from the sky. A Snowfield Wolf, hidden in the pack and out of sight, seized the gap and lunged.
A do-or-die moment.
"Shit—"
Students squeezed their eyes shut; mercenaries reached for thrown weapons.
Sssht— Paat— Whoosh.
Kail sliced through the snow like a blade, kicking the Snowfield Wolf's underbelly to disrupt the Penguin's path and yanking the soldier by his collar to hurl him back safely.
The soldier was saved.
But the real problem came next.
Right after the kick, with his stance thrown off, an Ice-Armored Boar charged Kail.
Thud!
He twisted desperately, but took the hit to his side and got flung toward the oncoming monster horde.
He forced his drooping eyes open, but all he saw was a tidal wave of monsters.
Exhausted. His body wouldn't move like it used to. On day one, he could've dodged that easy...
"Hey."
"Crazy bastard. Hey! Get up!"
...This is bad.
One Ice-Armored Boar. Three Snowfield Wolves.
...And an uncountable monster swarm.
"Hey— snap out of it!"
A familiar voice thundered into Kail's dazed ears.
"...Huh?"
In that instant.
"Get up, kid! Ain't yer time to die yet, ya hear?!"
With a gruff roar, a mercenary shoved his shield forward, blocking for Kail and his comrade.
Kuuuung—
The mercenary took the Ice-Armored Boar's charge head-on. Then a scrawny mage from a minor magic tower staggered to the frontlines on shaky legs.
"Bind!"
Invisible mana ropes snared the nearby monsters. Two apprentice knights burst through, slashing throats in a frenzy.
"Now! Pull back quick!"
"Why're you always up front?!"
Kail lifted his blank face.
"Why... am I here...?"
His comrade grit his teeth and yelled back.
"Why what?!"
Right behind, soldiers he'd come to recognize over the past five days rushed in.
"Pushing the line forward on orders! Wounded, fall back!"
That sparked a chorus of overlapping voices.
"Shooter's angled! Hold fire a sec!"
"Mages! One more Bind if ya can!"
"Screw it! Bind, Bind, BIIIIND!!!"
An alchemist who'd run to rescue the wounded smashed a potion vial over Kail's head.
"Gahhh!"
"Hold still! Fastest way!"
Ariel seized the breach they'd created.
"A-13, right blind spot!"
"Won't reach at current settings!"
"Get as close as you can... no, blow the snow pile! A-17, stagger and cut the rear!"
A brief silence. Then immediate responses.
"A-13, ready!"
"A-17, ready!"
"10-series, follow up. Fire!"
Kwaaang—!
"Now!"
The first shell nailed a snow mound near the horde, burying the monsters' view of the soldiers in an avalanche.
Thud, Kwaaang——!
A-17's follow-up torched the trailing pack.
Boom! Boom! Boom—!
Kieee—!
The 10-series Shooters unleashed in unison, a massive fireball barrage vaporizing the snowstorm's veil. The field cleared wide open, monsters that had filled every inch now gone without a trace.
An apprentice knight who'd witnessed it up close muttered in awe.
"Shoulda gone to the Magic Tower 'stead of boot camp..."
"Idiot, the Tech Development Bureau made these, not the Tower..."
Kail, slumped on the ground staring at the line, could hardly believe he was alive.
Thought I was done for just now.
Never imagined this many would come running to save him...
A mercenary clapped his vacant shoulder.
"Aigoo, kid— savin' folks is great an' all, but ya gotta look after yer own hide first, ya?"
The mage jumped in seriously.
"Don't charge out alone next time."
An apprentice knight chuckled dryly.
"If you're goin', at least yell first. We can back you up then."
The students looked beat, but couldn't hold back grins.
Kail stared blankly, then let out an unwitting laugh.
"...Thanks."
"Whatever, go see the priest instead of that quack."
But the Monster Wave offered no time for more talk.
Beyond the blizzard, more monsters than ever surged toward the walls.
Yet now, no one felt fear.
Ariel raised her hand again.
"All units! Focus— up!"
Her voice was hoarse from strain. Still, her intensity burned fiercer than before.
"Hold the line. The end's in sight."
As if mocking her, the monsters hammered harder in a final frenzy.
Kwaaang—! Kuung, thud, boom——!!!!
Fireball Shooters spat fire nonstop, bursting monsters. Outliers shaking the flanks got thrown back by mercenaries and students alike.
Time lost all meaning in the endless fight. Short screams meant someone fell or barely clung on gasping.
Sun set, but shadows danced on amid flames and ice.
Then, at some point.
The ceaseless howls cut off.
No more monsters charged across the snowy plains outside.
Ariel stared long before her trembling voice rang out.
"...It's over. The Monster Wave is finished!"
No one reacted at first. She understood—they were all in shock. Hell, she could barely believe it herself.
"It's over!"
"This damn wave!"
Quick minds echoed her, weapons clattering to the ground everywhere. Some collapsed in place; others gawked blankly at the sky.
"It's really done...?"
"What, you think it'd fake-end?"
The silence shattered with academy students flopping into the snow.
"Wave's done... maybe confess to my childhood friend back home."
Thwack!
Kail, lying nearby, smacked the back of his mate's head.
"Don't jinx it."
"Ow! Bit my tongue!"
Watching mercenaries chuckled.
"Kid was quicker, we'd've shut that trap..."
"Heh, gimme a sec."
Snickers rippled around.
After the wave ended, participants got a few days' rest. Crowds cleared from the walls; Fireball Shooters went into disassembly and maintenance.
Students from Grace Academy sprawled in warm lodgings.
"Gonna buy it."
"Kail hit a new Body Technique Realm, huh?"
"Watchin' him, thought he was Master-level ages ago..."
"Kek, fair."
Mercenaries, flush with pay, gulped soup instead of booze while arguing plans.
"Northern Wave's already a paid app!"
"Right! Chargin' for updates? Idiots!"
"Heh, free app devs got rich—bet GameMakerCute's the same."
"Heretic!"
"String 'im up!"
Soldiers and locals eyed them differently now. Body Technique GOSU... Kail still got half-weird looks, but...
"Anyone know why that kid wears just thin clothes?"
"Beats me."
"..."
"Student for sure? Not like the prof escort?"
"Too young for prof."
From plain weirdo to skilled weirdo.
The busiest spot during rest was Valkar Duke's Mansion. Tallying losses, Shooter data, volunteer lists, merit selections. Ethan buried in reports for days; the Duke and Ariel shuffled papers with hollow eyes.
And finally.
External personnel and key meritees gathered at Valkar Duke's Mansion.