Raid - Demon's will (1)

Today was the D-Day and Alain's group was ready.

He had just received his quest. Well, actually, it wasn't a new quest but his monthly quest that had changed.

[''Defense'' (monthly quest): Protect your village from the hordes of demonic creatures].

'A raid, huh?'

''Get ready guys.''

They were prepared for anything that might happen to them.

...

The battle was announced by a thunderous sound from the sky.

Quickly, the sky changed. And its red color, which hadn't changed since he arrived in this place, changed. The rift seemed to widen as an object slowly pass through it.

'No... it can't be?' Alain didn't want to believe it.

The object became more and more visible, and soon its shape was revealed: a planet. But not just any planet. This one was blood-red and was in itself one of the most feared symbols of humans as it referred to the disasters that occurred every 10 years.

''The temptation of the demons," Alain murmured.

A phenomenon that would only appear when this planet came down to this world. At this time, humans would gradually lose their minds, going berserk as bloody rain would continuously pour down.

Soon, the rain came. From that moment on, Alain knew he was right.

However, he didn't get depressed. Even if the fighting strength of a catastrophe's raid was much bigger than that of a normal one - to the point where comparison couldn't be made anymore - he could only fight.

Moreover, the red sky had been there since the beginning but still hadn't done anything special yet.

So he could hope that the raid would remain a classic one.

...

A few hours later, Alain saw the first demonic creatures arrive as a trail of dust arose. With this smokescreen coupled with the bloody rain, it was hard to discern things and tell how many enemies there were. As such, the group waited for them to get closer before deciding on a strategy.

During this time, no projectiles were launched, as bows weren't a part of their equipment. Not that they couldn't have one, but that no one was trained with a bow.

At the same time, in a world where energy existed, why would anyone train it, except to respect ancestral values?

The group didn't shoot with energy as it was far too precious to be used at a long distance. On the other hand, using it to strengthen their weapons was much more interesting.

They now had the vision of their enemies.

'At least 30...' Alain's heart shuddered for a brief second.

Their opponent wasn't normal life. They couldn't even be described as such.

Even if one thought so, he would soon regret his mistake. Demonic creatures may seem a little weaker than beasts as they didn't have much energy in their body, but they still had a much better vitality.

Moreover, some of these things could even claim another creature's body's part as their own, while others had sharper teeth or bodies. They were all so different that only the skin color seemed to bring them together. Some could be chicken while other behemoths.

'Hopefully, they don't seem too strong.' Alain thought

Alain didn't detect any human figure that, thanks to their technique, were at the top of the chain of demonic creatures. Moreover, he saw no sign of demonic creatures with the characteristics of the primordial species.

Well, actually... creatures like the chicken could be considered in the family of primordial creatures, but their power was negligible. Some of their family even thought of them as a shame, and would not interact with them. They would only stop them from extinction.

Soon, the demonic creatures reached the wall where they got stuck. Some of them were slightly larger than the wall but still couldn't pass it.

Anyways, the biggest ones being also the strongest generally stayed behind, watching how the situation evolved.

Dying seemed a terror even for these things. That was the only argument most people had to specify them as life.

As for the weaker demonic creatures? They had no say in the matter.

''Now'' Alain shouted from atop of the recruiting inn - a position he had taken to see the whole situation.

These particular walls would finally show their strength. During their construction, holes had been left on purpose, holes that allowed humans to easily attack the demonic creatures.

Blood spurted out as some of the demonic creatures died.

---

Now, one might ask why these creatures seemed to have a conscience, and the answer was simple: these were still lives.

The abnormal situation wasn't that they could form a consciousness - although minimal compared to the others - but that they had no regard for their lives during raids. Alain knew it as he had fought in humans' raid.

'Maybe the higher-up knows something about it' But still, he didn't care that much.

- - -

The battle went on, and the ground that had become muddy from the rain weighed more and more on the soldiers' endurance. And although none of them had died yet - killing a significant number of the enemy - their energy was running out. To make it worst, the wall was in a sorry state, weakened by the repeated blows.

'That's when it starts.'

The demons' temptation only begins when the mind is exhausted.