At the same time, the southern wall.
"Ha, ha, ha, ha!"
Damien gasped heavily.
His whole trembling body was drenched in sweat. There was darkness under his eyes, and his fingertips were spasming.
Damien possessed six magical guns in total.
The rifles [Black Queen] and [Hunter's Revenge]. The automatic [Woodpecker]. And three handguns named [Cerberus].
Among them, only the Black Queen and Hunter's Revenge were capable of long-range firing.
To fend off the Wolf King, he had used up all the ammunition in both guns, and now he was converting his own magic power into bullets to shoot.
But he had reached his limit.
From the beginning, Damien's passive skill [Magibullet Refinement] wasn't an efficient skill.
He had been squeezing out his magic power to form and shoot bullets, but as time went on, their power decreased and the exhaustion was extreme.
'But if I don't shoot...!'
The situation was too dire.
After the fierce battle at the north gate had temporarily calmed down, now both the east and west gates were under simultaneous attack. Eventually, the west gate fell.
Werewolves were rushing into the city.
If he couldn't stop them, who knew what damage would occur within the city...!
"Ugh, huk...!"
Desperately, Damien spread out his right hand, trying to gather magic.
White magic started to form in the palm of his hand, looking as if it might form a bullet, but in the end, the magic dispersed due to insufficiency.
Coughing up blood, Damien knelt, pressing his forehead to the ground.
"Pull yourself together, Damien. Just focus. You can do this. The Prince trusted and relied on you. So you have to do it...!"
As Damien murmured with his eyes closed,
Thud.
Someone placed a cold magic potion in front of him.
"...?"
Startled, Damien looked up.
"Take a 5-minute break, Damien."
It was Lucas.
With a typical Lucas expression—meaning, cold in Ash's absence—he flatly ordered.
"You're no help in your current state. Rest and regroup."
"But... the city's situation...!"
"Better to take a quick rest and then shoot ten times than to shoot once, vomit blood, and completely collapse."
Lucas was right. Damien bit his lip.
"You're important, Damien. Don't fight to the point of sacrificing yourself."
"..."
"Being a sniper isn't just about seeing from afar. Also, anticipate the battle situation multiple moves ahead."
Lucas signaled, and ten reserve party members rushed over.
"Team up with them. After a 5-minute break, enter the city. Focus on exterminating the infiltrated wolves."
"But, Sir Lucas, if we do that, the defense of the southern wall...!"
Already, on Lucas's command, the defense force of the southern wall had sent out as many people as possible to other walls.
If they also pulled out ten more hero reserves from here, the defense of the southern wall would thin even more.
"Why worry?"
A faint smile appeared on Lucas's face.
"I'm here."
"..."
"I'll do my job. You do yours."
With that, Lucas turned and headed back to the wall.
Damien wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and quickly downed the magic potion that Lucas handed him.
"Sir Lucas."
As Lucas returned to the edge of the rampart, Fox, the leader among the quartet of the mage brigade, approached and said,
"I have no idea what kind of confidence led you to withdraw all our troops and redirect them elsewhere."
"..."
"At this rate, these walls are at risk. You do realize that, right?"
Lucas took a deep breath and looked down at the southern wall.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Expertly dodging the rain of arrows and cannonballs, hundreds of werewolves were almost right up to the southern wall.
They were about to start climbing the wall.
While there were plenty of artillery left, all the heroes and soldiers capable of hand-to-hand combat had been sent to another wall.
If those creatures managed to climb over, the southern wall would surely fall.
Lucas briefly locked eyes with the approaching werewolf monsters, their eyes glowing a fiery red, and then asked in a low voice,
"Is the magical support ready?"
"Of course, but even if we four are part of the mage brigade, this number of werewolves..."
"I'm not asking for a miracle. Just provide cover."
Fox looked puzzled.
"Cover? For whom?"
"For me."
Clank!
From behind the visor of his helmet, Lucas's blue eyes blazed like fire.
"I'm diving in."
"What...?"
Before the bewildered Fox could grasp Lucas's intentions, Lucas placed his foot on the edge of the wall.
"So, please cover me."
Whoosh!
And then, without a moment's hesitation, he hurled himself off the wall.
"What, what, what madness...?!"
In shock, Fox leaned over the wall, fully expecting to see a suicide jump.
But he was wrong.
Whooooosh!
Lucas was gliding down the wall.
His steel boots struck sparks against the wall as he slid, making it look as if he were running amidst flames.
The ground approached quickly. At the base of the wall, the first werewolf was starting to sink its claws in and climb.
Rrrr? Rrrr?
Having not expected to encounter a human from the wall, the werewolves stared dumbly at the approaching Lucas.
Without hesitation, Lucas swung his drawn longsword.
Slash!
The heads of the werewolves flew simultaneously.
At the same moment,
Whoosh!
Using his foot to push off the wall, he soared through the air.
From Lucas's back exploded a radiant golden aura.
It appeared as wings, yet also resembled a cloak, shining brilliantly like his hair.
Roaaaar!
The golden aura erupted and soon enveloped Lucas's entire body.
With that radiant glow, Lucas, amidst the pack of werewolves, dropped like a bomb.
Boom!
A thick plume of smoke enveloped the area. The startled werewolves gawked at the epicenter of the explosion, where the human missile had landed.
From that height and at that speed, one would expect him to be out cold.
Thud, thud, thud...
As the smoke cleared, Lucas stood unscathed.
Upon landing, Lucas stood atop the crushed bodies of two werewolves. A golden aura stretched long and bright behind him. He was unscathed.
This inexplicable event left both the monsters and the humans on the walls in confusion.
Only Lucas calmly stretched his aching body.
The ultimate skill Lucas had awakened this time: [Divine Descent].
Its effect was incredibly straightforward and, as a result, powerful – it temporarily doubled Lucas's stats and enhanced all his skills.
The passive skill [Man of Steel], originally designed to bolster defense and negate a near-fatal damage once, was now offering a defense enhancement several times stronger than usual due to the [Divine Descent].
Then there was his 2nd skill, [Step of Persistence].
When he activated this skill, kicking the fortress wall with the power of [Divine Descent], not only did it allow him to move more than twice the usual distance, almost like teleporting, but the backlash damage from this rapid movement was also negated by his magic power.
Stat explosion, tremendous defense enhancement, and damage negation. Trusting in these, Lucas had thrown himself below the wall.
Lastly, the 1st skill, [Strike of Will].
Once powered by [Divine Descent], it transitioned from a single-target attack to a wide-area assault.
Flash!
As Lucas casually swung his sword, the blade gleamed brightly.
Boom!
An explosion occurred. Three werewolves that had been within the blade's range were torn apart, scattering in all directions.
Following the trajectory of the blade, a gust swept by, knocking the observing werewolves off their feet.
It wasn't even a sword strike anymore. It was something akin to a blast.
Throughout the dozens of dungeon raids and defensive battles, the diligently accumulated stacks of [Strike of Will] had become the epitome of refined violence.
Boom! Boom!
With several more swings from Lucas, no monster in the vicinity remained breathing.
They just circled at a distance, silently observing this surreal martial prowess...
"Phew."
Taking a short breath, Lucas gripped his sword firmly.
"Alright, this should do."
With his fiercely burning gaze, he assessed the number of enemies and gathered his strength.
'I can't maintain this for long. I need to finish this quickly.'
The duration of [Divine Descent] ranged from 3 to 5 turns. That was 10 to 15 minutes.
Within that time, he would finish them all.
Zoom!
In a lowered stance, Lucas kicked off the ground, leaving a golden trail as he charged towards the monsters.
Even though the light of the full moon brightly illuminated the surroundings, the golden aura emanating from Lucas's back shone so brilliantly that the entire battlefield before the southern wall was illuminated.
It was as if a War God had truly descended, living up to the skill's name.
However,
Rumble! Rumble!
The monsters, they didn't back down.
Whether facing a hero, a war god, an emperor, a slave, a knight, or a wizard - it didn't matter.
Their sole purpose was to kill humans.
Hence, hundreds of werewolves charged at Lucas all at once. Undeterred, Lucas met them head-on, swinging his sword.
Soldiers and mages atop the fortress walls, having regained their senses, began to partake in this legendary battle.
Cannons roared with fire, and protective magic rained down.
The night was still young, and the battle raged on.
Until one side was completely wiped out.
***
In front of the northern wall.
Clang!
Evangeline, with a new shield strapped to her left arm and a spear firmly in hand, called out gracefully.
"I command as the heir to the Margrave of Crossroad and with the authority of an on-site commander!"
The girlish knight's voice rang out clearly for all to hear.
Hearing Evangeline's voice, both the citizens and soldiers looked somewhat startled.
For a brief moment, they could see a glimpse of her father in that petite girl.
"I, along with the Saintess, and three from the Shadow Squad, are reorganized into one party from this moment! We form a temporary Shadow Squad."
"Huh?!"
Saintess Margarita, who was singled out, gulped, but there was no time to reassure her. A healer was crucial right now.
"The Shadow Squad and the Penal Squad, both parties, will hold back this monster."
The 'monster' in question was none other than the Wolf King Lunared.
He was the Nightmare Commander who had declared he would face all humans on the northern wall alone.
Watching the leisurely approaching Wolf King, Evangeline continued to issue orders.
"All forces, excluding our two parties, retreat into the city and prioritize the protection of the citizens!"
Most of the citizens outside the northern gate had almost finished evacuating.
Lastly, Lilly, holding two children, and the reserve heroes stood in front of the fortress gate.
Lilly looked back in desperation.
"Godhand!"
Turning around, Godhand smiled warmly at her.
"Lady Lilly."
"..."
She had called his name, but she didn't know what to say next.
Seeing Lilly hesitating, Godhand smiled again and spoke first.
"Do you remember what I said before I left?"
"...What was it? It's been so long, I don't recall."
"I said, if I return safely, I'd like to see you and apologize."
Godhand grinned.
"It's good to see your face."
"Wha...!"
"I have much more to say to you. Once we safely repel this monster, let's talk."
"Wh-who said you could…"
Lilly, her face turning red and trembling, was quickly ushered inside by other reserve party members and young citizens.
Boom!
The fortress gates closed.
Amidst all this, seeing Godhand flirting, Evangeline grumbled.
"Ah, you're living out a romance novel, I see. I'm a bit envious. I'd like to write one too."
"You'll write an even better romance novel than me, Lady Evangeline."
"Thanks for the compliment, Godhand."
Evangeline growled at Lunared, who had by now approached very close.
"Surviving this monster comes first, though."
It was time for Evangeline to switch the genre of her novel from romance to monster horror.
And honestly, Evangeline was more accustomed to the latter.
"Where are you taking my youth?"
With Evangeline's despairing scream, the Wolf King charged towards the humans.