Battle

Chapter 19: Battle

The presence of the young man instantly drew Athena's attention.

On the other hand, the young man also glanced at her and greeted her with a nod.

After a slight pause, Athena and Shirley bowed and greeted Baron.

"Greetings, My Lord."

Upon noticing their arrival, he gave a nod at them and spoke.

"Athena, Shirley, thank you for coming. I trust you've received the summons for the Wave Assault Team?" Baron Alexander's voice carried a sense of urgency.

"Yes, Lord Baron. We are ready to fulfill our duties and defend the Town," Shirley responded with a firm nod.

Baron Alexander glanced at Athena, "And you, Athena? This will be a challenging battle, but I have faith in your capabilities. From what I've heard so far, you only hunted goblins with the guidance of your Aunt and never encountered them in masses. That's why you can learn a lot from this battle."

Athena met his gaze with determination, "I won't let the town fall. We'll face the beast wave head-on."

The Baron acknowledged their resolve, "Good. The wave is approaching faster than we anticipated. Our scouts have reported a significant concentration of monsters just 3 km away from the Mirage Woodland's outer region. And it seems they will reach the Town before evening."

Shirley inquired, "Do we have information on the size of the monster wave and the types of creatures leading it?"

Baron Alexander sighed, "Although we are not sure of the exact numbers, a total number might exceed thousand. The reports suggest a large wave with more than a dozen of high-rank monsters, Orcs, at its forefront. And we suspect there must be a Leader among them. This will not be an ordinary battle."

Athena nodded.

"Henry, Town's Policemen will be taking the lead in this battle. Your job is to take care of all the Low and Intermediate Rank Monsters. On the other hand, Town's personal Elite Team will focus on the High Rank Monsters and confront them." Baron spoke.

"What about the Leader, My Lord?" Athena asked.

"I will join with the scout team and lie in ambush 500 meters away from the northern gate. When the opportunity arises, we will strike the leader from behind and kill it." Baron said as he stood up from his seat and added.

"Shirley, you should also ask the other private mercenaries to join the battle. Although most of them are only around apprentice Walker level, they will greatly help the main team." Baron knew Shirley had more authority when ordering the private soldiers and asked for her help.

"Father, as long as you give out an extra reward, they won't hesitate to join the main battle." The young brown-haired man interjected.

"Nolen, they are indeed money hungry people. But they aren't fools. They knew that if they participate in the main battle, they will actually face large causality than us. Even though the Policemen didn't have any battle experience against monsters like my personal Army squad, they have been in dangerous situation for years and will not let the enemy any opportunity to kill their comrades. But the private mercenaries are completely different. They indeed have outstanding experience in battle against monsters but most always acts alone. So, it's easier for them to getting ganged upon by the monsters." Baron Alexander shook his head and continued.

"Shirley, just tell them it's not an order but a request. Whether they decide to participate or not, it's entirely up to them to decide."

"You guys have time until noon. Whatever you want to do, do it before this time and arrive at the northern gate's entrance. Dismissed."

Athena and Shirley didn't stay in the Baron's office and hurriedly went out before giving orders to their team members. Athena, Henry, and the other Inspector Elijah relayed Baron's order to all other police officers and hastily left the Administrative department building. Shirley also went to inform her team members and soon reunited with Athena.

After that, Athena and Shirley went directly to the blacksmith shop in Merchants District and brought the previously ordered equipment like swords, armor, gauntlets, and helmets.

Once they had fully equipped themselves, they also had food in the nearby Inn and directly went to the northern gate.

Time slowly passed, and soon, it was noon.

As minutes passed, more and more people came from different parts of the Town and soon gathered at the Town's Entrance gate. But they weren't civilians but policemen, Baron's military men, and the private soldiers in different attire.

Before long, around 1300 people gathered at the Town Entrance with different equipment. Some wielded rifles, swords, and sabers; a few even held spears as their primary weapon and appeared fully prepared. But what was unique about them were the helms and shields in their hands. Even though they were made up of a thin layer of a particular metal, they were capable of absorbing the attack and exceptionally durable, capable of withstanding even a blow from intermediate-rank monsters.

"I didn't expect your Aunt's words could bring a force of 750 Private soldiers." The Town's Superintendent, Henry, said with an impressed tone.

"Sir, please allow me to leave my position and help them if they ends up in a dangerous situation."

Athena stood along with Henry and the other Crime Branch Inspector, Elijah, and asked with a calm gaze.

"You want to act solo?" Henry frowned deeply and shook his head.

"I can't allow that. Although you are stronger than me in terms of pure strength, you might draw attention of all other monsters if you act alone. In the worst case scenario, you might end up becoming surrounded by a bunch of intermediate rank monsters."

"Sir, it's been more a year since we last battled. And I'm confident enough not to get killed by some intermediate-rank monsters." Her gaze was firm.

"Haa, go on but keep your distance closer to our Squad. And if you are in pinch, Inspector Elijah will come to your rescue." Henry said while glancing at the black-haired man standing beside him.

"I'll try my best, Sir Henry." Elijah responded with a nod.

For the next two hours, the group of people stood outside the Town's entrance gate, waiting for the upcoming battle.

Suddenly, a sharp whistle came from the faraway woods, followed by two knights riding their horses towards the Town at an incredible speed.

Before long, they ran past the army of police officers and entered the Town.

On the other hand, Athena unsheathed her long sword and sharpened her gaze towards the faraway woodlands.

"Get ready for the battle." She bellowed as all the other police officers took out their weapons and roared in unison.

As minutes passed, everyone witnessed the whole layer of land moving in their direction, leaving dust storms behind.

Within a few more minutes, they saw almost two thousand goblins, hundreds of kobolds, and horned wolves running towards them while taking the lead battle. Even though all of them were low-rank monsters, the mere numbers scared everyone.

"Don't panic. Elijah's elite team and the policemen with rifles will reduce the goblin numbers first." As Henry spoke, more than 100 people came forward with their long rifles, got into half-kneeling positions, and aimed at the flocks of monsters.

"Aim!" Henry shouted.

"Fire!!"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The crackling sound of rifles echoed as the first shots were fired. The private soldiers, positioned strategically, aimed precisely at the approaching horde of goblins, kobolds, and horned wolves. The well-coordinated shots hit their marks, thinning the numbers of the charging monsters.

Athena, with her long sword in hand, observed the battlefield. The Town's superintendent, Henry, and the crime branch inspector, Elijah, were strategically positioned to oversee the operation. The initial barrage from the rifles was effective, causing chaos among the monsters. However, Athena knew that the real challenge lay ahead.

The goblins, though numerous, were relatively low in rank, and the rifles made quick work of them. The police officers, trained in marksmanship, showcased their skills, firing precision and efficiency. The initial onslaught bought valuable time for the main force to prepare for the incoming battle.

As the goblins fell, more goblins, kobolds, and horned wolves surged forward, their primal instincts pushing them to attack.

"When facing small goblins, use your shields to block their weapons and aim for their chest. That way, you guys have an easier time dealing damage on the sneaky monsters." Henry spoke loudly and signaled Elijah, his 100-plus team, and the private mercenary members to get ready to face the goblins.

"Chase's and Bryson's team will be facing the kobolds and horned wolves."

Just as he spoke, Elijah unsheathed his sword and started moving along with his team and the other private mercenaries. Like them, two more teams advanced from the main force and stepped ahead to confront the hundreds of kobolds and horned wolves.

"Now, our job is to stop the elite Intermediate monsters." As he spoke, he sharpened his gaze towards the dusty region and soon saw more than twenty goblin-like beings, more than 30 two-meter tall wolves, and a dozen humanoid Kobolds with dog faces standing calmly.

But what started him were not the elite monsters but ten monstrous pig-faced humanoid beings behind them. They were around 3 to four meters tall, wore animal skin to cover their private parts, and held axes or gigantic swords in their hands.

They were the High Ranked Monsters!