Chapter 20

"Uh, ughhhh!"

"How can we topple such a gargantuan beast...!"

The emergence of the boss monster plunged the soldiers on the ramparts into disarray.

The once relentless fire of the cannons and ballistae halted, and the once impermeable wall of flame quivered and broke.

-Roaarrr!

-Roaarrr-!

Living Armors that penetrated the weakening wall of flame swarmed from the front and sides of the wooden fortifications.

These monstrous brutes lunged toward the nearest human.

Toward Jupiter, who lay unconscious after a devastating fall from her horse.

"Damn it! We need to form a shield!"

"Protect the mage!"

Four members of Jupiter's party sprinted to her side, forming a protective barrier in front of her.

However, they too were roughed up from their respective falls from their steeds. Furthermore, the horses they had been riding had scattered in every direction.

The final stand of a cavalry unit that had lost its mobility was as predictable as fire consuming dry wood.

'She's going to die!'

I gritted my teeth.

We couldn't afford to lose Jupiter and the hero party here!

"Damien!"

Damien turned to me. I quickly gestured towards Jupiter's party.

"Pick off the Living Armors heading for Jupiter's party!"

"Yes!"

Without missing a beat, Damien swiftly redirected his crossbow.

-Whizz! Whizz! Whizz-!

Snipe shots whistled through the air in quick succession.

-Thud! Thuuud!

The lethal arrows accurately impaled the Living Armors.

The only snag... while Damien was the most accurate sniper in the world, his rate of fire wasn't particularly fast.

-Roaarrr-!

The influx of Living Armors breaking through the faltering kill zone was overwhelming. Damien's sniping alone couldn't halt them all.

Lucas called out to me.

"My Lord! We must adjust the cannon fire to support Jupiter's party!"

"No!"

I dismissed his plea with a swift rebuttal.

"We must sustain the flame wall as it is! If we lose the kill zone, the escapees will multiply!"

"But!"

"Concentrate on reestablishing the flame wall first! The soldiers are losing their heads!"

I dashed over to a soldier who was standing stupefied by the cannon on the wall and slapped him on the back.

"Pull yourself together, you fool! Don't cower just because that monster is a tad larger!"

With that, the soldier jolted back to his senses.

"Huh?! S-sorry, my Lord!"

"Eh?"

I was taken aback, somewhat surprised. Really? Was my slap that impactful?

Glancing at my hand, the reason dawned on me.

My passive skill, [Unyielding Commander]!

'Soldiers within 10m of me recover from mental status abnormalities.'

I surveyed the trembling soldiers on the ramparts.

Could it be that recovery from mental status abnormalities not only counters debuff spells but also bolsters shaken morale?

'So, if I dash around the battlefield in this state of panic, can I restore the soldiers' spirits?'

As soon as the thought struck me, I made a snap decision. I quickly pivoted to Lucas.

"Lucas!"

"Awaiting your orders."

"I'll handle the task of soothing the soldiers and reestablishing the kill zone! Lucas, you!"

I faltered for a moment, then finally spat it out.

"You'll lead the rescue team."

"...!"

"Open the fortress gates, venture out, and rescue Jupiter's party."

We couldn't risk losing an SR-grade wizard in this chaos. Not at any price!

And the only one who could brave the monster-infested battlefield to rescue Jupiter was, unavoidably, our protagonist, Lucas.

Lucas swiftly scanned the battleground.

Even now, the Living Armors that had broken free from the kill zone were surging forward with a formidable momentum.

The armored creatures bellowed menacingly, barreling toward Jupiter's party.

His task was to dive into this onslaught and retrieve our comrades.

A seemingly foolhardy order, to put it mildly.

"Yes, Your Highness!"

But Lucas gazed back at me, his face set in determination, and nodded.

"I shall return posthaste."

"....I'm relying on you, Lucas."

This was a decision that could potentially cost me an SR-grade wizard and even an SSR-grade knight.

But I chose to trust Lucas. I chose to wager on this protagonist's inherent luck.

Lucas bounded down the fortress wall via the stairs, resembling a blur. I'm banking on you, protagonist!

I hastily jogged around the fortress wall, thumping the backs of the soldiers.

"Shake it off, wake up, you imbeciles! Are you prepared to die just like that!"

-Zap! Zap!

The soldiers, jolted by my stern thumps, all snapped to attention.

"Argh?!"

"That stings!"

"Your Highness? What...."

"Regain your composure and fire the cannons! Can't you maintain the kill zone?!"

As I ran atop the fortress wall, I slapped soldiers' backs, cheeks, shoulders - anything within reach, and bellowed at the top of my voice.

"Are you frightened of those monsters? Seriously?!"

The soldiers were all fixated on the colossal specter looming in the sky, fear etched on their faces.

So, I told them the hard truth.

"I'm scared too, damn it!"

"Huh?"

"Of course it's terrifying, wouldn't it be? If you aren't scared of that monstrosity, you aren't human!"

Monsters are larger than humans.

Monsters are stronger than humans.

Feeling a raw fear is only natural. There's no dishonor in being scared.

But!

"But think about the common folk who would be even more terrified than us, the trained ones, when facing these monsters!"

As I sprinted along the fortress wall, I thumped each soldier's back. They all came back to their senses.

But knowing they had regained their senses, I ran in the opposite direction once more, thumping each one's back again.

"Think of your mother! Your wife! Your sibling! Your child! Imagine the terror they would feel gazing at those monsters!"

A fresh wave of fear, tinged with bewilderment, dawned on the faces of the soldiers receiving my back-thumps.

"Envision the scene when these monsters break through and invade the city!"

"...!"

"Imagine the defenseless civilians being slaughtered by these monsters! Visualize the countless children who could be sacrificed because you are paralyzed by fear!"

Gulping, huffing, I felt like I was on the verge of retching, having made a full lap around the ramparts.

"We must hold them back here."

Even though I was panting heavily, I continued to bellow.

"It's us! We're the ones to stop the monsters and shield the people! This is our final stand!"

The soldiers were still rooted in terror, but with trembling hands, they clasped the cannons and ballistae once more.

"If you've come back to your senses, fire quickly! Unleash every bit of ammunition you have!"

"Yes, yes sir!"

"Fire! Fire--!"

-Boom! Boom! Bang-!

The cannons belched flames, and the ballistae resumed firing. I too roared fiercely.

"Fire, fire! Burn all those monsters to the ground--!"

The kill zone was just about restored.

The core of the wooden outer wall was once again bathed in crossfire, and the living armors began to disintegrate in vast numbers.

Yet, a significant number of monsters had already breached the outer wall during the temporary cease in kill zone's operation.

"Open the gate!"

And towards the monster-ridden battlefield, Lucas charged out in a swift sprint.

"Charge, charge--!"

Lucas on horseback vanished like a launched arrow. I clenched my fists tightly.

'Please, Lucas!'

The destiny of this level, no...

The entire fate of this game hinged on Lucas's hands.

***

"Huh?!"

Jupiter's eyes widened.

'Where am I?'

Jupiter frantically scanned her surroundings.

She was in the plain before the southern wall of Crossroad. She found herself sprawled there.

'I remember being hurled off when my horse unexpectedly went wild.'

What transpired after that?

What's happening?

"Lady Jupiter! Have you regained consciousness?!"

A desperate cry came. Jupiter painstakingly propped up her upper body.

She felt her forehead damp. When she touched it, blood stained her hand. It seemed she had wounded her head when she toppled from her horse.

Her waist also felt sprained, as every movement elicited severe pain.

"Oh, such trials at this age..."

"Lady Jupiter! We're running out of time! Lady Jupiter!"

Looking towards the source of the voice, she saw her party members huddled around her, safeguarding her.

-Roaaaaaaar-!

And charging towards her party members were the living armors, howling.

"...?!"

Her spinning head abruptly cleared. Jupiter regained her senses and sized up the current predicament.

Jupiter's party was stranded.

Everyone had been injured when they were thrown from their horses onto the plain, and Jupiter had lost consciousness.

Before they could even attempt to return to the city, they were ambushed by the living armors.

"Backup will arrive soon! We need to hold on until then...!"

The mercenary briefing Jupiter about the situation swung his held hammer in desperation.

-Thump!

The helmet of a charging living armor caved in from his hammer.

-Roar, grrr-!

Yet, the living armor hesitated only for a moment before fiercely thrusting its spear once more.

"Madness! How you endure that hit?!"

The mercenary spat out an expletive.

His fellow party members shared his sentiments.

They clashed against the living armors that swarmed them like a torrent, but regular attacks didn't faze the armors.

Magic attacks might stun them, but unless the entire armor was shattered with physical blows, they'd continue their assault.

This was the challenge of confronting living armors.

Jupiter's party was composed of N-grade heroes.

They'd battled quite a few monsters before, but the sheer number and prowess of the living armors were proving a tough match.

Inevitably...

"Ugh?!"

There were casualties.

It was the mercenary who had been updating Jupiter on the situation.

He'd managed to crush the fourth living armor with his warhammer, but his leg was impaled by a spear swung by a living armor, now only half its former size.

Reeling in pain, he was besieged by several more living armors.

He swung his warhammer ferociously and smashed the leading living armor, but...

-Thunk! Thunk-thunk!

His chest and abdomen were skewered by the spears of other living armors.

"Ugh... damn it..."

He writhed in agony, attempting to swing his warhammer once more, but the monsters were quicker.

-Thunk! Thunk-!

They mechanically withdrew their spears and thrust again.

The monsters moved devoid of any emotion, only following the most efficient trajectory to take down a human.

Jupiter watched one of her party members be ruthlessly slaughtered, her eyes wide with horror.

"These goddamn monster bastards...!"

Jupiter hurriedly tried to harness magic to sweep away the nearby living armors, but her magical energy wouldn't gather properly in her hand.

Due to the blow to her head when she was thrown off her horse, her magical control was off.

Jupiter clutched her forehead, struggling to amass her magical energy.

"Damn it...! Hurry...!"

Thunk! Thunk-thunk!

"Ah, ahhhh!"

In the meantime, a second party member fell.

A mercenary who'd been warding off attacks with his shield.

But under the relentless assault of the living armors, his shield shattered, and his body suffered grave wounds.

"Ugh, ugh-ugh! Fuck, fuck!"

The third party member battling alongside him spun around and bolted. No, he tried to bolt.

But as soon as he turned his back, the living armors launched their spears at him.

-Swish! Swoosh-!

-Thunk-thunk!

The third party member, instantly impaled by a spear, crumpled to the ground without even a cry.

He convulsed in a pool of his own blood and soon drew his last breath.

The fragile defense line held by a mere few was obliterated in a flash.

Jupiter found herself close enough to the living armors to smell their stench.

The scent of rusty armor and stagnant water.

The scent of impending doom.

"You should've remained submerged in the lake..."

Finally, a modest amount of magic energy accumulated at her fingertips. Jupiter extended her hand forward, shrieking.

"Do you truly believe that this old woman will retire in tranquility?!"

-Crack-!

A vivid blue bolt of lightning cut across the sky, illuminating the entire battlefield.

The Living Armors positioned at the front line were instantly incinerated, crumbling to the ground.

It was a successful strike, but it was just a fraction of her usual power. Instead of the usual shower of bolts, only a single arc of lightning was discharged.

'This isn't good...'

Jupiter mused.

Surveying the Living Armors that surged forward again from behind their scorched companions, Jupiter clicked her tongue.

She then called out to the last remaining member of her party.

"Run for your life, you're the last one left!"

"Eh, what?!"

The final party member was a youthful mercenary, still wet behind the ears. Jupiter hollered again, her voice resonating across the field.

"Better one lives to tell the tale than all perish! Run, kid!"