Chapter 17: A war of survival.

Rigel saw 7 fighter jets flying above him and he wondered where they went because it was the first time he saw the 7 of them going in the same direction. That could only mean that something had happened on the other side.

"What's going on over there?" Rigel asked a soldier as he put bullets in the magazine.

"The black dragon, they're going to lure it away from the city. I'm not sure where are they going to lure it to because there are so many civilians in other cities. I heard they're going to bring it down south," The soldier answered. "Also, the giant green monster had been sighted in the center, that's why half of our unit is going there to assist," he added.

Rigel who heard about the giant green monster thought it was the orc that killed him. He hurriedly put all the magazines that had been loaded into his vest and then left. He joined the squad that went to assist the Battalion in the center.

The air support had become more frequent compared to before, and they were from different countries. The reinforcements had arrived, making the mission to hold the line successful. The monsters that were about to breach the line got pushed back because of it.

"Don't stop firing! We have a lot of supplies that can last us days! It's time for payback and let them taste our force!" The office shouted as he watched as a rain of bullets massacred the orcs and ogres.

Everyone was in high spirits, but then a deafening roar sent everyone down to the ground. Their eardrums were torn for those who didn't use earplugs, and it made them lose balance. Before they could recover, a car flew and crushed them to the ground, killing the unfortunate instantly.

The gigantic orc was the one who threw the car, and when it found that method effective, it immediately grabbed another car and threw it again. On the third time, before the gigantic orc could throw the car, a tank shot its head and made the gigantic orc drop the car.

"Watch out!" A soldier screamed as he looked at the sky. 2 fighter jets were falling and going straight down to the area where the soldiers were.

The fighter jets hit the ground and exploded, killing more soldiers and destroying some of the artillery. They didn't know what had happened to them. It was because the pilots lost consciousness after they heard the roar from up close. Not only that, the wyvern behavior became aggressive after the roar from the black dragon and started to attack the remaining fighter jets fearlessly.

The golems that were left behind by other monsters because they moved slower than them had finally arrived at the frontline. The situation became dire in just a short amount of time because the golems could withstand the high-caliber bullets.

Before the soldiers could even think how they were going to die, a report just came in. The west side of the city had been breached by a giant basilisk and drake. There was also a giant ogre that had been spotted on the east side of the city, and the reinforcements that were on their way to central Berlin got sent back to hold the line there.

"Keep firing! Our only chance of surviving is to fight those monsters! If we fail here, the people we love and care for will die! So keep firing!" The officer shouted.

No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't penetrate the thick and sturdy bodies of the golems. They had wasted a lot of resources and yet they barely did anything to those golems. Not to mention, the gigantic orcs threw the golems toward them, killing dozens of soldiers and destroying a few artillery.

It was a devastating war, and humankind had no chance to win against those monstrosities. They could only delay the inevitable and hoped all the civilians managed to leave the country.

(At the same time on the East side of Berlin).

Rigel caught his breath as he pulled his sword from the giant ogre's head. He looked at the fat belly of the ogre and didn't hesitate to cut it open while the soldiers were dealing with the horde of ogres. He ripped its stomach apart until someone rolled over and landed next to his feet.

"This is..." Rigel paused as he grabbed the glowing light blue stone as big as his fist.

Before he could observe the stone, it turned into ashes and went inside his nose, ears, eyes, and mouth. He fell to his knees as he coughed badly and his whole face was itchy because of it. He didn't know the stone would turn into ashes and absorb it into his body because he remembered it wasn't like that in his past life.

An ogre roared behind Rigel with the massive club going down toward him. Rigel grabbed his sword and turned around as he swung his sword, cutting the club in half. His vision was still blurry because of the ashes that got in his eyes, but he could see the blurry image of the ogre in front of him. He dashed forward, cutting its legs as he slid in between its legs. When the ogre fell to its knees, he jumped and decapitated the ogre from behind.

Rigel's vision became clear and slowly recovered from the absorption of the stone. He looked around and saw the ogres become weaker the moment their leader died. The soldiers pushed the ogres back and it had been determined who was the victorious of the battle.

They never thought on their way back they would encounter the giant ogre. They thought it was over since they were surrounded by monsters, but Rigel showed off his unbelievable feats and somehow turned the tide. His action boosted soldiers morale and nobody feared death because they knew they could win with him on their side.

"Everyone gathered around! Our job here is done!" The captain of the unit shouted. "We won't be going back! We are going to assist our brothers in the center!" He informed.

Rigel sheathed his swords and went into the armored vehicle because his job was done and he was still thinking about what had happened earlier. He looked at his palms and realized he had become an Adapter, and weirdly enough, his senses were enhanced after he absorbed the whole stone. Something within him changed, but he didn't know all the changes until he found out about it himself.

"If I took the stone for myself, doesn't that mean there won't be any Adapters other than myself in the whole of Europe?" Rigel muttered as he looked at the soldiers slowly and steadily retreating since they were going to leave. "If that's the case. I will take everything for myself since none of you came back after you entered the tower in my past life after you became Adapters. Your presence here on Earth is more important than in the tower," he continued.

After they managed to push back the ogres, they went straight to the center of Berlin. But, they were shocked by the revelation that the Battalion that was supposed to be holding the line had been annihilated. Flames were burning everywhere and dead bodies scattered on the ground. They were too late, and there was no reason for them to stay there anymore.

Rigel suddenly got out of the vehicle and confused the soldiers in the convoy.

"Rigel? What are you doing?" The captain asked as he peeked his head out of the vehicle.

"I'll handle this side. You guys should go and check the other side," Rigel answered as he looked at the orcs in the distance. "Don't waste your life here. You won't be able to win this time," he warned.

The captain nodded with understanding and then led the convoy to check if there were any survivors.

Rigel looked at the magazines he had left and went to hunt the orcs, hoping to find the gigantic orc.

After Rigel killed the monsters except the golems since it would be a waste of time, he went to the roof of a building. He looked around for the gigantic orc, and he was fortunate to find the gigantic orc was still in the area. He hurriedly went to where the gigantic orc was, and when he arrived, he was ambushed by hundreds of orcs that guarded their leader.

The gigantic orc noticed the ruckus and when it looked at Rigel, it was surprised to see him again. Rigel could see the disbelief in its eyes, and then he pointed his sword at the gigantic orc, challenging it once again.

"It's time for a rematch," Rigel stared into the gigantic orc's eyes.