Day of the Wave

In the castle of the city lord, an air of tension hung thick as news of the impending monster wave reached the cunning lord, Leonard. The city was in peril, and Leonard's mind raced with thoughts of how to handle the situation without endangering his elite knights.

Leonard's advisors gathered in the grand hall, their faces etched with concern. One of them, trying to hide his anxiety, suggested deploying their best soldiers. But Leonard, with a dismissive wave, stopped him. "Why waste our well-trained and obedient soldiers? There must be a better way to handle this without jeopardizing our elite.

Another advisor, more cunning and pragmatic, proposed, "We can use the adventurers' greed to our advantage. Promise them a generous reward. Many will die, reducing the number of rewards we have to pay. Our knights will be preserved, and your reputation will soar. We might sacrifice a few minor soldiers, but no one will suspect a thing."

An evil smile spread across Leonard's face as he leaned back in his ornate chair. "I like this plan," he said, tapping his fingers together. The decision was made, and the preparations began in earnest.

Amateur soldiers, under hasty instruction, dug trenches and placed wooden spears in front, creating a crude but potentially effective barricade where the adventurers would stand. The city gates were closed and barred, and the elite knights took their positions on the walls, their armor gleaming in the sunlight. Leonard delivered a stirring speech, praising the bravery of his soldiers and knights, promising that not a single monster would breach the city walls under their vigilant watch.

Many adventurers, including Akira, stood among the hastily constructed defenses, questioning why the elite knights were behind the safety of the walls instead of joining them on the front lines. But there was no time to debate or protest. The monster wave was in sight, led by a formidable Bone Lich. The horde consisted of skeleton soldiers, goblins, orcs, ogres, a few trolls, and two fearsome wyverns. As soon as they saw the city walls, they charged with terrifying speed and ferocity.

The first to reach the defenses were the swift goblins and towering ogres. Archers on the walls fired volley after volley of arrows, but the ogres, using makeshift shields and the bodies of goblins, protected themselves with brutal efficiency. Akira, with his reinforced chest plate made of mithril and a plethora of throwing daggers and potions, was ready. He had earned a reputation as an emerging adventurer, having defeated a giant alone and cleared the abandoned mines single-handedly.

Hand-to-hand combat erupted as the ogres breached the barricades. Akira moved with precision and power, using his sword and water jets to create distance, followed by wind blades to cut down the ogres. The main wave of skeletons advanced, their empty eye sockets glowing with a malevolent light, rendering the archers' arrows useless. The battle grew fierce and chaotic. Amidst the din, Akira fought valiantly, sustaining only minor injuries. He could hear the cries of soldiers and adventurers alike, and the sight of the young soldier he had first met, now lying lifeless on the ground, struck him deeply. This was no game; it was a grim battle for survival.

Determined, Akira faced the relentless wave of skeletons. He unleashed a barrage of ice bullets, which were effective but insufficient to stem the tide. Gathering a massive amount of mana, he cast a powerful spell called Mega Explosion. A gigantic fireball soared into the middle of the wave, exploding with devastating force and destroying a third of the skeletons. This act of heroism rallied the adventurers, who renewed their efforts with fervor. But it also drew the ire of the Bone Lich. Enraged, the Lich sent its wyverns to eliminate Akira.

The wyverns dived from the sky, their talons outstretched to snatch Akira like a hawk hunting a rabbit. He evaded with a swift dash, running towards the city walls. The wyverns, now dangerously close to the city, forced the elite knights into action. They fired large crossbows, hitting one wyvern and sending it crashing to the ground. The other wyvern evaded the bolts, but the knights continued their assault, using their magical swords to hurl fireballs at the creature.

Amidst the chaos, Akira ran to a nearby tree. Placing his hand on it, he crafted a wooden spear, infusing it with enchantments for penetration and reinforcement. Locking his eyes on the remaining wyvern, he hurled the spear with incredible force. The spear flew like a bolt of lightning, piercing the wyvern's chest and killing it instantly. Everyone who witnessed this was stunned, as wyvern scales were notoriously tough. Akira then rushed to the downed wyvern entangled in the net and delivered a fatal blow with his sword, thrusting it into the creature's skull.

Seeing his minions fall one by one, the Bone Lich cast a powerful buff spell, making the remaining monsters stronger and more vicious. Alfred, always vigilant, informed Akira of the spell's effects. Akira, diverting mana to his legs, sprinted towards the Lich with unparalleled speed. The Lich, now desperate, sent elite skeleton knights to intercept him. Akira, with a flurry of throwing daggers, dispatched them swiftly.

With no obstacles left, Akira charged at the Lich. The Lich, in a last-ditch effort, hurled fireballs, but Akira dodged with agile zigzag movements. The Lich then cast Quicksand, turning the ground into a treacherous trap. But Akira leaped into the air, his sword gleaming. With a powerful strike, he decapitated the Lich and then incinerated its body with a fireball. The remaining skeletons crumbled to dust, and the surviving goblins, orcs, and ogres, now leaderless and weakened, were quickly defeated by the rallied adventurers and soldiers.

The battle was over. The city was safe, and the adventurers cheered in triumph. Akira stood among them, a hero in their eyes. The young adventurer had proven himself once again, ready for whatever challenges lay ahead.

The battle had lasted two exhausting hours. As the adrenaline ebbed, fatigue set in, but there was no time to rest. The arduous task of collecting monster cores and tending to the wounded awaited. Traditionally, it was the lord's duty to deploy his servants and soldiers to aid the injured. However, as the city gates creaked open, a disheartening scene unfolded. Instead of helping the needy, the servants eagerly began collecting the precious monster cores.

Anger simmered among the adventurers. Those who dared to voice their objections were swiftly silenced by the elite knights, their cold, intimidating gazes brooking no dissent. Faced with this blatant injustice and cruelty, the adventurers felt powerless. The knights, a wall of steel and authority, loomed over them, squashing any potential rebellion.

Resigned but not defeated, the adventurers organized themselves. One group took on the grim duty of tending to the wounded, while another began collecting the cores left by the fallen monsters. Akira, though seething, knew he had to focus on what he could do. He retrieved his hard-earned loot from the Bone Lich, obtaining a Lich mana core and a Lich monster core. Among the Lich's remains, he also found jewelry imbued with powerful effects: mana increase and magic resistance.

When Akira moved to claim a wyvern core, he was initially denied. A tense confrontation with the knights ensued, but recognition of his role in slaying the wyverns swayed them. Reluctantly, they allowed him to take one core.

As the din of post-battle activity buzzed around him, a sudden thought pierced Akira's mind: the old man. His heart pounded with urgency as he sprinted towards the old man's house, located a good distance from the city. The journey took ten agonizing minutes.

When Akira arrived, his worst fears were confirmed. The property was in shambles. Windows shattered, doors broken, and one side of the outer wall lay in ruins. Smoke billowed from inside. Panic rising, Akira rushed into the house, using a small water jet spell to extinguish the flames.

Inside, he found the old man's body surrounded by several goblin corpses. The sight told a tale of fierce resistance. The old man hadn't gone down without a fight. Grief and respect welled up within Akira as he carefully carried the old man's body and the goblin corpses outside. He knew that leaving the bodies unattended could lead to them rising as ghouls.

With a heavy heart, Akira set the corpses alight, watching as the flames consumed them. The sun dipped below the horizon, casting a somber glow over the scene. Once the pyre burned out, he made his way back to the city, the weight of sorrow pressing heavily on his shoulders.

At the tavern, Akira showered, washing away the grime and blood but not the grief. Outside, a festive celebration filled the city center with music and laughter, but Akira couldn't bring himself to join. The lord's mishandling of the situation and the subsequent mistreatment of the adventurers left a bitter taste in his mouth. The old man's death weighed heavily on him, a stark reminder of the cost of battle.

Retreating to his room, Akira lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling. The sounds of the distant celebration were muffled, a stark contrast to the turmoil within his heart. He felt the exhaustion of the day's events pulling him into sleep, a restless slumber filled with visions of the battle and the faces of the fallen.