Wrock was running towards something.
Upon his arrival on the new continent he was dropped in the middle of a plain. The soft grass underneath him was ignored, for the place he was in was certainly not peaceful. The air was smoky, light highlighting the smog. Shouts could be faintly heard in the distance, and various explosions were occasionally heard.
Wrock was heading towards these sounds. As he traveled he soon gained sight on what caused the noise. Players desperately fighting hordes of monsters in an almost ruined fort. A horn sounded and the monsters retreated, causing many players to collapse on the spot from exhaustion.
He jogged forward, clearing the distance easily. Upon reaching the fort the players spared him only a glance before ignoring him.
The fort was in terrible shape, most of the walls were collapsed and destroyed. The inside looked like it was ransacked by an elephant. A pile of something was smoldering.
A voice reached his ears, "You aren't part of us, did you wander too far?"
Wrock looked at the holder of the voice. A warrior, wounds spread across their body of varying sizes. Their armor looked worn, and their face looked exhausted.
Wrock nodded in response, "You could say that."
"Well you wandered into a war zone. We underestimated this quest, the monster horde is unrelenting. We're considering retreating."
"What exactly is going on?"
"Defense Quest, this fort is owned by a person of high status we've been trying to curry favor with. They gave us the task to defend it from a monster horde rumored to be attacking it soon. If we had known it would be like this."
"Wouldn't quitting be a bad choice?"
"You're telling me! The only reason we're still here is because the higher ups are very insistent on completing the quest. If you ask me however, this fort is as good as gone."
"How close are you to finishing?"
"One more wave, last wave is going to ruin everything however. I suspect a mini-boss monster may appear this wave."
"Would you like some assistance?"
"I don't know how much help you'll be. But if you're willing the west side could use some extra hands."
"Actually I have an idea on what I can do already, just wanted to know if you're willing to accept my help or not."
"Eh? What do you have in mind?"
"I can most likely divert a lot of the attention, if you all can kill the stragglers I bet this could significantly raise your chances."
"You. . . can do that?"
"Only one way to find out!"
The player frowned, "While I doubt your words, we have nothing to lose. Go for it, if you can do as you say then the stragglers won't be an problem."
"Appreciate it then."
"If this succeeds we will make sure you're properly remunerated."
Wrock ignored the last bit as he jumped onto the highest available platform. Surveying the area he gained a rough idea on how things were going wrong.
Players tend to rely on themselves, mostly on their ability to fight. He wouldn't doubt that the latest update significantly dropped their fighting strength. However the lack of traps was also a key factor in the failed defense.
Had they used everything they could, it wouldn't be a pipe dream to complete the mission.
It was too late now, the players are too exhausted and most likely wouldn't take any orders from him. Meaning he would have to attempt something grand on his own.
He felt the mana swirl around him, "Eugh, I never get used to using this as a substitute."
The ground rumbled as the final wave approached. The horde of monsters galloping without care towards the fort. Wrock focused as mana swirled to meet his demand. Slowly a Phoenix of blue flame manifested behind him. This was of course not a real Phoenix, but rather the result of Wrock's effort.
He leapt upwards and extended his arms, the magical Phoenix following his movements by unfurling its wings. Suddenly large balls of blue fire shot out towards all directions. The moment one touched the ground a flame explosion occurred, and a raging blue fire remained.
{Phoenix Path: Fusillade}!
The Phoenix faded as Wrock landed, he shook the strange feeling away as he watched the chaos.
Many of the monsters had been struck by his attack and were now angry at him. Having completed his goal Wrock leapt from the platform and took off.
Seeing the one who attacked them run infuriated the monsters. Causing a large amount of the horde to change path and follow their attacker.
The one who spoke with Wrock was baffled, "He really did it?"
Snapping out of it they shouted, "We have a chance! Kill the ones that are targeting the fort! After we clean up we shall assist our savior!"
The morale suddenly jumped sky high, seeing the massive horde be thinned out made many players regain confidence.
As the players charged to meet their adversaries, Wrock was met with a sudden shock.
The horde was incredibly weak?
Their large numbers were quite menacing, but many of the monsters fell after a punch or two from Wrock.
This unnerved him, as far as he could tell the players he had encountered were certainly First Stage. With the amount of players defending the fort, defeating a horde like this shouldn't be difficult. Even after the update.
Was it just coincidence? Perhaps there was too many waves of monsters, thus they were simply overwhelmed? Was it his technique that simply weakened the monsters to this point?
That didn't seem right, the players were genuinely struggling to fight the monsters. Additionally the monsters didn't seem too injured from his previous attack.
Although his technique was incredibly flashy, it lacked proper strength due to the limits he had to put on it. He rarely used techniques due to these limits. The only reason he used it in this situation was to gain attention.
Wrock didn't have a big head, even though he was aware of how much stronger he was compared to the average player, he wasn't cocky. Yet the only conclusions he could come to was that the players were being weakened, or the strength of the average player on the new continent was lower than the one he was from.
He pushed aside his thoughts, but didn't forget them. Currently he wished to deal with the massive horde tailing him. Not wishing to drag things on Wrock activated his War Sight and swiftly dealt with the enemies.
The players finished dealing with the stragglers and turned their attention to Wrock. Immediately one shouted, "A boss caught up to them!"
"Quick! Lend some assistance, we can let them die!"
"Mages! Bombard the boss to distract-"
Many players were stunned silent as Wrock proceeded to one-shot the boss. To them it seemed like it had died from a singular punch.
But realistically Wrock had used [Mastered Basic Punch] and [Untouchable Power].
Still, to one shot a boss was no small feat. Which is why it dumbfounded the players.
"Did. . . did we just gain the help from a peerless expert?"
"What kind of price did our Guild pay to receive help from this guy?"
The one who spoke to Wrock shook his head, "We didn't pay anything, he offered to help just casually."
"Someone like him. . . offered to help? For free??"
"As crazy as it sounds."
". . ."
Wrock stood among the pile of monster corpses with a troubled look. He had completely dealt with the horde with ease.
As his War Sight faded he walked back to the fort. It had remained untouched during the final wave, despite its poor condition. While approaching the fort he saw as the players stared at him with admiration and caution. Which troubled him further, for he hadn't intended for things to end like this.
The one who had spoken to him before approached him, "Thank you! Although the fort is in terrible condition, we can repair it with some effort. However this quest was saved thanks to you!"
Wrock downplayed his efforts, "Ah, it wasn't that big of a deal."
"May I know if you come from a Guild? We would like to repay this favor in any way we can."
"No, I just travel with some friends. We got split up and I happened to stumble across all this."
Murmurs spread across the players. Yet the individual continued, "Then that makes things simple! Please accept our invitation, our higher ups would like to meet with you."
Wrock weighed his choices. Accepting the invitation could perhaps be a chance to obtain some information. Right now his current goal was to familiarize himself with the new continent. If the Guild he had helped was of high status, it could speed things up in his plan.
Declining the offer could also assist in keeping his profile on the low. It wasn't a good choice to rise in fame immediately, for he lacked a background in the continent. If anyone looked into him they would find nothing. As if he appeared out of thin air.
He then made a decision, "Alright, I can do that much."
"Thank you! I'll lead you right to them!"