"It seems we'll have to part ways once more, Valyr." As Tristan said those words, a solemn expression could be seen on his face as his body started to radiate a faint red light. Soon after, his eyes gained a slight crimson hue to them, making him seem as if he were going to go berserk at any time.
"[Battle Mania]."
Whoosh!
At the very moment he had uttered the name of the skill, the red light surrounding him instantly intensified, transforming into a billowing flame that gave off the feeling that it could burn anyone who touched it.
"I'm sure Damian will say something later, but let me give you a head start." Cracking his knuckles, Tristan eyed the monsters that he would target, licking his lips before letting out a slight maniacal grin as he spared a quick glance towards Valyr.
"Fight like your life depends on it."
Swoosh!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Utilizing his stats to its maximum potential, Tristan seemingly disappeared within Valyr's field of vision, appearing a second later beside the head of a monster before punching it off not long after. As the monster's decapitated head flew in the air for a while, a string of red energy came out of the headless body, which Tristan surprisingly absorbed as the aura emanating from him experienced a slight increase.
Lightly cackling, he continued to land attacks on any monsters he chose to target, the power he exuded gradually becoming more terrifying the more monsters he killed.
Watching this scene unfold from afar, Valyr could not help but let out a sigh of awe as he wryly smiled soon after. Gripping tightly onto his spear, he then eyed the monsters in his surroundings, eventually choosing one as he gave it a swift death through [Strong Pierce]. 'Well, I can see why Tristan chose to get Battle Junkie as his subclass.'
'But with him activating [Battle Mania]…'
"It seems we're going for one more push before the final bout." Realizing this, Valyr took in a deep breath as his eyes gained a slight chill to them. From this point onwards, he was going to contribute as much as an anomalous Level 10 being like him could in this wave.
After all, the fight with the Tidemother was still something way out of his league.
…
Thud! Thud! Thud!
While everyone was still engaged in battle against the monsters in their vicinity, some of them cursing out that some monsters in their grasp had escaped, the large entity at the other end of the battlefield had finally started to move, taking steps closer to the battlefield where Valyr and the others were.
Noticing this, Tristan sharply inhaled air as his attacks were sent out at a greater speed for an instant, quickly killing all the monsters in his surroundings. Then, while still in the process of whittling down the number of monsters in the battlefield, he mustered up the loudest voice he could, directing his message towards the other person who had accompanied him.
"Hey, Damian! The Tidemother's starting to move!"
"I know! You don't have to tell me!" In response to his words, Tristan received a loud snarl from another side of the battlefield, eliciting a light smile to appear on his face as he continued to kill more monsters.
On the other hand, the recipient of Tristan's words could not help but let out a long sigh before shaking his head. Nevertheless, Damian knew that Tristan wouldn't just say those words out of nowhere, prompting him to take a look at the horizon beyond the battlefield, confirming that the entity known as the Tidemother was indeed making its way to where they were.
Getting into a battle stance, Damian took a deep inhale as his sword started to shimmer a faint blue light on its surface. Leaning his body a bit more, he then darted towards a monster, inflicting a long yet deep gash on its abdomen before moving to the monster adjacent to it, ducking before landing a brutal slash across its throat.
"[Flowing Sword Dance]."
Thud! Thud!
While he continued to move throughout the battlefield, his every slash rendering a monster incapable of fighting any further, his voice soon echoed to the far ends of the area as he bellowed out, "Men, heed my words!"
"Increase your killing speed! Go all out! This next move shall dictate whether our village lives to see another day or if it crumbles under the wrath of the Tidemother!"
Hearing the word 'Tidemother' enter their ears, almost everyone in the battlefield slightly shuddered for a bit. Though, in exchange, the speed at which they fought against their enemies experienced a sharp increase, their minds thinking that they needed to follow Damian's words, lest they wanted to witness the wrath of the Tidemother firsthand.
And so, with Tristan employing [Battle Mania], Damian employing [Flowing Sword Dance], and most of the people on the battlefield spurred on by Damian's words, the number of monsters on the battlefield quickly reduced in a matter of minutes. At that moment, most of them did not care whether their bodies felt like it was on the verge of breaking. In their minds, there was no other goal than to kill the monsters making up the wave as soon as possible.
Fortunately for those fighting in the battlefield, the speed at which the Tidemother moved towards where they were was negligible. Though it was able to cross a great distance due to its massive body, the distance separating the two of them negated this advantage. Of course, those in the battlefield took advantage of this, rendering all monsters unable to continue fighting just as the Tidemother was only a quarter of the way to where they were.
As each and everyone on the battlefield let out cheers of joy, as well as sighs of relief after finally being able to clear the fourth wave, Damian commanded everyone to congregate to where he was. By the time a couple minutes had passed, everyone who had been tasked to fight in the frontlines had appeared before him, their appearances at various levels of dishevelment.
Looking at those who had sacrificed their time and energy to help the village in defending against the monster tide so far, Damian thanked each and everyone of them, prompting smiles to appear on the faces of the others, no matter how tired they felt or how battered they were. "As we've cleared this wave quickly enough, the only remaining enemy we have to face against until we successfully clear the monster tide is the Tidemother heading our way."
Listening to Damian's words, almost everyone looked far beyond the battlefield, noticing the massive spider-like entity gradually make its way to where they were with every passing step. However, knowing that Damian still had more to say, they redirected their attention back to him.
However, what they did not expect were the next few words that came out of his mouth. "Since you've all worked hard so far, although it may be difficult for us, we would understand if you choose to return to the village and aid those in the defensive lines instead."
"Of course, should you choose to remain here and help us fight against the Tidemother, we'd highly appreciate that."
"You'll given a couple minutes to make your choice before Tristan and I move to face the Tidemother." Saying those words, the entire surroundings went silent for a bit. Everyone in that area looked at each other for a while in silence, the gazes they gave each other unsure as to whether they would leave or stay. Though, as time passed, the gazes in everyone's eyes eventually leaned towards a certain decision.
A decision that made Damian gave the others a rare smile.
"I see you've made a decision," he said with a nod, noticing that not even one among them had made the decision to leave. Even Valyr, which he wouldn't be surprised if the latter decided to leave, was still there, his gaze filled with determination just like the others.
Turning around to look at the Tidemother with a solemn expression, Damian then turned back to face the others, an intent to kill the Tidemother brewing within him.
"This shall be our final bout. I don't know whether all of us would be able to leave unscathed, but I will do my utmost to make sure everyone can return to the village safe and sound."
"For now, lend me your strength. Let us fight to live another day!" he exclaimed.
"To live another day!" everyone exclaimed back in unison.