Two figures weaved through the rubble and city ruins. Looking at their surroundings, it was hard to believe that this was a thriving city merely a week ago. However, the smouldering ruins and strewn corpses proved otherwise. Sebastian had to breathe deeply a few times to refocus himself. He had to remind himself that he was in another world named Kalonia and that the world was currently under siege by new types. He wasn't in Earth anymore, and he wasn't in a war zone no matter how hauntingly familiar the scene was to him. Zestaria noticed his subtle changes from time to time.
"Do you want to rest here Sebastian? We're almost out of the city so we might need to run without stopping soon. We should catch our breaths here."
Sebastian took a swig from his water canteen. "That's a good idea. If needed we can wait until daybreak tomorrow. It will be more dangerous in the dark without a light source. We don't want to attract unnecessary attention also."
Without waiting for Zes to answer, Sebastian raised his finger to his lips, shushing her. He stuck close to the broken wall and ducked under the window. Seeing her master move quickly and stealthily, Zes followed suit. She waited on bated breaths and held her magick weapon closely. She didn't even course her mana through it for fear that even the humming would attract unwanted attention.
Moments felt like hours as the pair stayed in their crouched position. Huge footsteps lumbered outside the broken house they were staying. When the wolf new type passed by, Zes was about to sheath her weapon and let out her breath. Sebastian immediately tensed up and motioned for her to stay still.
Realising that something was not right, Zes continued to brandish her weapon and was about to run her mana through it when Sebastian held her hand and shook his head. He was clearly indicating that fighting was not an option. Zes also briefly considered their options and came to the same conclusion: they wouldn't have any chance at all if they fought against multiple new types with just the two of them.
Only when Sebastian signalled for her to relax did Zes do so. She finally let out a sigh and sheathed her weapon.
"Sorry Zes but I only noticed them when they were near. I was trying to conserve mana with my heightened senses. Let's rest here for tonight. I'll keep my augmentations active in the meantime."
"Understood. Let me know if you feel tired. I can always use [Second Wind] if needed. My mana will recover overnight so don't hold back."
Sebastian nodded and prepared to camp. After checking that the roof wouldn't cave in easily, they took out their sleeping bags and rations. Fearing that they might alert the new types around them, they didn't even bother to create a campfire, choosing to eat their cold rations instead. Since it was only the two of them, they spread out their watch times as long as they could.
"Then you take the first watch Zes. I'll take over when the moon's position is on top of that building. When daybreak comes, I'll wake you up and we make a run for it."
Zes nodded as she ate her bread in silence. With the tense atmosphere, they fell asleep quickly. Except the quality of their sleep was terrible, and they would wake up exhausted.
***
Sebastian was nodding off as he sat in the darkness. '[Augment] Steel Mind and Body, Hyper senses, Mage Killer Set.' He heightened his senses and his mana perception as he peered into the darkness. He didn't want his glowing eyes to be seen so he closed his eyes behind the wall and used his other senses. He was able to detect faint movement, but they weren't anywhere close. In fact, the new types seemed to be walking in certain patterns.
'It's almost like they're patrolling.'
He thought to himself but he shook his head. That would indicate that they had a form of hierarchy and a higher level of intelligence. It sent chills down his back when he continued that train of thought.
He looked at Zes who was sleeping in her sleeping bag. He felt sorry that she was dragged into his own forays and adventures. If she never met him then she might still be working in the monastery.
'That is if somebody else rescued her in Erimead Village.'
While he was being nostalgic and sentimental for no reason, he picked up subtle traces of temperature change in the surroundings. Opening his eyes, he finally noticed that dawn was approaching. The light breaking through the horizon was heralding a new day. For some reason, Sebastian wanted to have coffee at that specific moment.
'I'm going mad.'
He chuckled to himself while he shook Zes gently. It only took a few shakes before she got up. Even though she was a light sleeper, it was almost as if she didn't sleep overnight. Her eyes still bore the signs of exhaustion.
Without saying anything, the pair nodded to each other. They immediately packed their sleeping gear and made preparations to dash out. Before they were able to do so, Sebastian raised his hands once more to indicate that something was wrong.
Zes woke up from her stupor and prepared to hold her weapon again. It felt faint, but the ground seemed to be vibrating.
boom boom boom! Boom! BOOOM!
It started off in the distance, but it was becoming louder and closer.
Zes looked at Sebastian with shock. With a hushed voice, she exclaimed. "It's coming from -"
"The monastery." Sebastian finished her sentence with a dark expression.
After a few moments of silence, Zes turned to Sebastian. She was confused with the whole situation and turned to him for answers.
As if expecting, Sebastian began to speak. "There's severe fighting from the monastery area. The explosions we heard were most likely from the new types exploding."
"Should we go back?" Zes didn't want to overstep her bounds as a slave so she formed her suggestion into a question. Yet Sebastian could pick up the worry in her voice.
After being deep in thought, he placed his rucksack down. He also took off his satchel which they prepared for emergencies. If needed, they were prepared to leave their rucksack behind as a trade-off for mobility in escaping and for their expedition. Seeing Sebastian place these down, Zes couldn't understand what her master was trying to do.
"We leave our expedition supplies here. Bring only your weapon. We go back and help them. If - " Sebastian shook his head to correct his way of thinking. "When we clear them out, we go back here and continue with our expedition. Is that alright with you?"
Zes didn't need to reply out loud. She already placed her rucksack and satchel down on the ground as well. She drew out Pertinax and waited for Sebastian's signal to course her mana through it. Surprisingly, Sebastian shook his head to indicate that it wasn't the right time yet.
"We prioritise speed going back to the monastery. Don't engage them yet. If it's just the two of us, we'll most likely die. However, when we go back to where the remaining adventurers and guards are, we might have a fighting chance."
The pair slipped out of the house with as much as a whisper between them.
'[Augment], Steel Mind and Body, Hyper Senses, Hyper Senses!'
Sebastian relied on his senses to steer away from the new types near them. With the current route they were taking, they were going around in a wide arc going back to the monastery. They relied on hand signals for communication, used rubble for cover, and even the occasional explosion to mask their movements. Even though they were taking the long way back, they showed their urgency through their speed.
***
Clang! Boom!
"[Spear Slash]!" "[Power Shot]!"
Jin severed the limbs off a new type while an archer aimed for the mutated beast's head. They decided to go with two-pronged attacks each time, to prevent them from exploding. Although the earlier attacks caught them by surprise, the defence force quickly recovered. However, half the survivors had already fallen before they managed to sort out their ranks.
"Good job Jin!" The adventurer with the bow patted Jin's shoulder. Jin quickly shrugged it off.
"Now's not the time! It's not over yet!"
A bleeding new type ran close to the conversing duo and started to glow brightly. From their experience, it was only a matter of seconds before the new type would explode!
"[Cross Slash]!" A beastkin with flowing mane weaved through the battlefield and cut down the glowing new type before it even had the chance to breathe.
"Don't drop your guard!"
"Yes, Elias!" The two adventurers responded crisply before facing the other new types. The beasts poured in from all sides, giving everyone no chance to rest or even escape.
"[Ice Shards]! [Lighting Storm]!"
Rivie cast her second-tier spells one after the other, unleashing her spells in the crowded areas for maximum damage. She was tasked to stay with the civilian survivors, however, with their backs against the wall, she couldn't afford to stand back and watch the defence force dwindle further.
Encircling the broken monastery, the defence force placed the civilians inside. It was one of the tallest buildings near them - even though there was literally half a building left. The archers and some of the mages occupied the higher floors and ceilings to launch their ranged attacks, while the close-range fighters created the barrier outside. The battle was getting desperate for the Kalonians while the new types seemed to never end and continued to pour in.
Elias noticed the dire situation they were in. "LEO!!" He bellowed on the battlefield. He wasn't sure if the guild master was nearby, so he had to rely on his shout to summon him. An elven mage quickly ran up to his side while shouting spells.
"[Ice Lance]! [Heal]!"
He was combining offensive and defensive spells, indicating his extreme situational awareness.
"Elias, I'm here."
"Leo we need to evacuate this place now. We can't hold on for long against the waves of new types. We need to go now!" He didn't hide the urgency in his voice. He vented his frustration to the new type in front of him, which was cut in half with a single swing of his greatsword.
"Got it."
With those two words, Leo quickly transformed into an owl and flew up into the air. Even in the midst of the battlefield, the two individuals managed to plan their next move - a testament to the amount of experience they had.
As soon as Leo flew to scout their surroundings, Elias issued commands to the remaining defence forces.
"Form up the ranks! Don't let them come through at all costs!"
""AYE!""
From the distance, Elias could see two stragglers from outside the defensive circle make their way through. The duo evaded the new types while cutting down whatever they could. Mutated beast limbs flew in all directions as the familiar duo got closer. Elias was worried that they were merely wounding or maiming the new types. They didn't know the briefing the defence force had last night to quickly deal the killing blow, giving the new types no chance to explode.
He pulled Rivie close to him, almost to the front lines. "Please focus your spells on the new types those two are maiming. If we leave the injured ones for long, they will explode. They might do more damage than good."
Nodding, Rivie focused her attention to Sebastian and Zes making their way through the horde. "[Ice Lance] [Ice Lance]!" Using single-target spells, she finished off the new types the pair injured along the way.
***
Above the skies, Leo strained his owl eyes to find an escape route or structure they could use as a bastion of sorts. What he saw instead, almost made him faint.
He only saw new types, continuously pouring into the broken city.