Fallen Leaf
Makyeong.
A vast wasteland occupying a quarter of the continent. It lay to the west, and because demons and monsters infested the region, no other living creature could survive there easily.
There was a legend that if one went all the way to Makyeong’s western edge, a colossal tree rose up beyond the clouds. But most people who had actually been to the front lines dismissed it as nonsense. The land of Makyeong was so barren that not even a blade of grass could grow there.
Though the power of the monsters was formidable, humanity had managed to build fortifications along the current front line and hold the line just enough to keep the tide from spilling over. Unless a high-ranking demon or monster appeared, there was little real danger.
Even today, the soldiers stationed at the front had finished off the latest surge of monsters and were taking a breather over their meal.
"Jake! Ever since you got here, this damned place has become downright livable."
"I still have a month left before my rotation ends, and I damn near died of fright when a high demon showed up."
"Count yourself lucky, you idiot! Just a week ago, that terrifying bastard called the Reaper of Silence was rampaging all over the place. Somebody like you would’ve had his head taken off first."
Jake was a swordsman in his mid-twenties who had graduated from the Empire’s Eltemir Training Center. He couldn’t unleash aura, but his agile movements, aided by mana, made it easy for him to handle the monsters of Makyeong. Having survived fierce competition among the most gifted sword talents around, Jake’s pride was sky-high.
Compared to the notorious Makyeong he had heard about in the training center, the place turned out to be far more tolerable than he’d expected. A day’s work ended after carving down wolves with two heads or enormous serpents bit by bit. Fighting grotesque monsters was unpleasant, but not so dangerous that he felt his life was truly on the line. The pay was excellent, and if he completed the required years of service, he would even be appointed as an officer of the Empire.
When he’d first been assigned here, he’d gone pale and drawn laughs from his classmates, but if he managed to stay alive, this was a land of opportunity far better than most other postings.
"Haha. If the monsters are only this strong, then maybe high demons aren’t such a big deal after all."
At Jake’s words, the face of the senior who had been stationed here for a year stiffened.
"Watch your mouth, you brat. Do you know how many people have died to high demons lately?"
"He’s never even seen a high demon, that’s why."
Looking at the seniors who treated him like a greenhorn, Jake sneered inwardly. They’d only been killing monsters for a few years longer than he had, yet acted as though that made them something special. He also found their trembling fear of high demons deeply annoying. Wasn’t this the largest fighting force of humanity, packed with the finest talent from across the nation? Jake did know about the Hero’s Party, but he believed a handful of people could never change anything.
Clang, clang, clang!
An emergency alarm rang out. The noise was sharper than usual, and just as Jake reached for his sword and tried to leave the barracks, he froze at the expressions on the seniors’ faces. They quickly stuffed their scattered belongings into their packs and hurried out of the tent.
Why are they shaking so badly? What is that sound?
The ominous alarm was clearly different from the bell that normally rang when monsters got close. Jake followed after the seniors who had left first, running toward the assembly point.
Everyone from the 8th Division defending Makyeong had gathered. The front line, divided vertically into sectors from the 1st to the 20th Division, was being commanded from the center by General Austin Silurian of the 8th Division. Hundreds of swordsmen, mages, and priests stood in tense silence, waiting for Austin to speak.
General Austin surveyed the crowd. As befit an elite force, hardly anyone seemed to be missing.
How many of these elite troops are going to die?
"Men and women. We’ve received word that a Basilisk is rapidly approaching this location."
At Austin’s words, the people around him were thrown into great agitation, and Jake’s heart began pounding in response. The tension made it hard to breathe, so he tried to steady himself. A Basilisk was one of the high-grade monsters. According to what he had learned at the training center, where monster lore was taught thoroughly, it would not be an easy opponent. But when he remembered the news that had shaken the entire continent recently about a Basilisk’s extermination, some of his tension faded.
Sure, it was the Hero’s Party, but they took it down with just two people, right? And how many people do we have here?
Jake looked around. Roughly two hundred swordsmen who used mana, about one hundred and fifty sixth-rank mages, and fifty priests—it was an absurdly luxurious force. Honestly, he didn’t think they were any less than the Hero’s Party.
Under Austin’s command, they reorganized their positions with the regular soldiers in front. The swordsmen took their places in the lead line, the priests purified the miasma, and the mages stood at the rear, casting their spells. The disciplined movement stirred a thrill in Jake’s chest. He could already imagine a future where the news of a rookie swordsman who had helped slay a Basilisk would make the magazines, and his name would become famous.
Kieeeeeeek!
With a tremendous roar, a foul miasma surged toward them. Thanks to the priests’ constant prayers and purification, the miasma had weakened somewhat, but Jake still felt his body growing heavy. If not for the priests’ support, they would have been forced to fight under an even harsher penalty.
After a little while, the rumbling of the ground grew louder and louder. With smoke billowing as it tore up the earth, the Basilisk was rapidly closing in. The enormous size of its head—about three meters across—made Jake’s body lock up for a brief instant with a rising wave of fear. The great horn growing from its brow and the slick, gleaming scales covering its whole body made it look like a dragon from legend. As the Basilisk drew near, the mages unleashed their magic.
"Slow Down!"
"Fire Boom!"
Dozens of spells layered over one another—magic that slowed the target’s speed, followed by high-temperature explosive magic—rained down at once. Jake’s eyes widened at the overwhelming surge of mana he had never felt before.
At that level, it might actually die just from this.
The Basilisk, now clearly slowed, took a direct hit from a massive fireball. The huge explosion that followed blinded everyone for a moment. But the Basilisk merely paused before charging again. Perhaps because it had started from a standstill and lacked momentum, its crawling speed now seemed slower than when they had first seen it.
"Soldiers and swordsmen, charge with me! Mages, prepare your second casting!"
The soldiers shouted and rushed forward. At the very front, Austin wrapped aura around his sword. Watching him, Jake admired him inwardly.
As expected of Count Austin. He handles aura so skillfully. He might even be able to finish it off himself.
Austin swung his sword at the Basilisk’s enormous charging head. With a sound like artillery fire, the count quickly leaped aside. Unlike Jake had hoped, the Basilisk bore only a slight scratch. At the monster’s indifference to the swordsman’s strongest secret art, fear finally began to spread through Jake in earnest. The soldiers struck its body with spears and arrows, but it was useless. Even the slightest movement from the charging Basilisk was enough to send soldiers reeling with serious injuries.
The Basilisk was breaking through the positions of the swordsmen and soldiers, heading straight for the priests and mages. The mages, now in a panic, unleashed everything they had in desperation. Jake was crushed by hopelessness.
How are we supposed to kill this thing if even a holy knight without aura did it? We’re all going to die.
A monster immune to both aura and magic. If the priests, who had no means of evasion, were killed, then it would all be over beneath the suffocating miasma. The swordsmen and mages did everything they could to buy the priests time to flee.
Once the priests no longer had time to pray, the concentration of miasma began to thicken. Jake could feel his strength draining away. The sword he had carried for more than ten years suddenly felt impossibly heavy. As the Basilisk approached the priestly ranks and opened its maw, the priests closed their eyes and gave up on life.
Dimension Wall!
At the brink of disaster, a man’s shout rang out, and a huge blue barrier appeared instantly between the priests and the Basilisk. A heartbeat later, the Basilisk slammed into it head-on. With a tremendous crash, the barrier held—and astonishingly, it didn’t even show a crack.
Seeing magic stop the monster that had seemed impossible to halt, Jake was left dumbstruck. He couldn’t make sense of what was happening. Before long, his condition also began to return, vitality surging back through his body.
Sanctuary Declaration
All the miasma around them vanished in an instant. Along with pure white feathers, radiant golden light spread across the barren land in place of the miasma. Having its charge blocked, the Basilisk roared even more violently, lifting its head high into the air as it tried to shatter the barrier.
"Sleep."
At the mage’s command, the Basilisk closed its eyes for a moment and stopped moving. Immediately afterward, a swordsman in a black cloak and a holy knight in a white surcoat leaped high toward the monster’s head. A split second later, the Basilisk regained its senses, but the holy knight’s and swordsman’s brilliant light each drove deep into its eyes. Confirming that the attack had landed, they dropped back to the ground in an instant and landed cleanly.
Thud!
The Basilisk lurched for a moment, then collapsed to the ground under its own weight. By the way it lay still without even twitching, it was already dead. Jake felt a shiver run down his spine. He turned his head toward the group that had felled the Basilisk in an instant.
The Hero, the mage, the saintess, and the holy knight.
"It’s the Hero’s Party!"
In the stunned silence, Jake was the first to recognize them and shout loudly. Then the people who had been sunk into despair before death began to cheer.
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