The beasts were coming again, and Lucas was still on the verge of waking, we didn't know what was holding him up.
The 3 5th tier monsters confirmed near our area were no longer sleeping and were once again knocking at our walls.
Harry confirmed that the monsters here didn't adhere to a regular sleep timing, and instead opted for more short naps.
This was becoming a little dangerous, with the amount of 5th tier beings at the southern camp, driving the weaker 5th tier beasts towards us.
The 3 had become 4 which became 6 which became 10.
I moved towards Lucas' room.
"Hey Aurelia, how is it going?"
"Lauren, Aisha, and Celeste have been relieved from duty, as he's beginning to wake up."
"Any reason he's not right now?"
"It's almost like his body is storing mana away near his mana heart, I can't tell why."
"Does Charlotte know of the abnormality?"
"She does."
"What does she think about it?"
"She thinks his body is trying to use healing magic on itself."
"A good guess."
"True, but it's just as unsubstantiated as every other one."
"A fair point."
"All we can do Rose, is hope that he wakes in time. With the beasts and the other student camp, there's just too many dangers."
I nodded and left his room, to look for the newly freed healers.
I met with Aisha first.
"Aisha are you okay to help during this horde?"
"Yes."
"For all of it, or some of the waves only?"
"I need rest in between, but I should make it for the first waves, and the last ones."
"Great, now if you'll excuse me I need to see Lauren."
"She's at the treatment area."
I waved back to Aisha to show I heard her as I walked to the building.
I walked around inside for a few minutes before I spotted Lauren healing someone with a minor bruise and cut on his arm.
"Lauren, can you make it through the wave?"
"I probably, can't make anything aside from the few in the middle as I was supposed to rest and hour ago."
"Yikes, Lauren go break, I'll get someone to handle this."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, please go rest."
With that Lauren took one of the beds in the building and lied down to sleep.
"Nurse, could you arrange a healer to relieve me here?"
"I think Korin should be awake now, I'll fetch him."
"Thank you."
A minute passed as I finished bandaging the person's arm.
"Ma'am."
"Korin relieve me here."
"Yes."
With that he took over looking at the patients while I left to find Celeste.
"Maria, get me a location update on Celeste please."
"No need Rose, she's with me."
"Great I'll come to you."
I left for the wall.
"What happened?"
"Why is Celeste here of all places?"
Maria began to speak.
"One of the students watching the entrance got sloppy and was charged by a monster, he was too slow and got grazed and knocked to the ground."
"It then started to rampage hurting 3 more of my boys."
"Wow, Maria that's not good, do you have the replacements for them yet?"
"Yes they're standing outside currently."
I leaned into the office where Maria and the other attendants were supposed to be.
"You boys didn't get enough sleep did you?"
"No ma'am we're sorry."
"Celeste, you didn't give them too much attitude did you?"
"Only as much as those who are responsible for the safety of the camp shoudl recieve."
So all of the attitude then?
"It's alright, you don't have to move to face me."
"Stay in whatever position keeps you from being hurt."
"Celeste, what beast did this to them?"
"Mutated 3rd tier near 4th tier Blast Boar."
"I understand."
"You boys should be moved to the medical ward, take multiple hours off to recover, once you can be moved without hurting too much."
"Yes ma'am."
I pulled Celeste out of the room with me.
"How much of the horde's waves do you think you'll be awake for?"
"I was ejected from Lucas' room right as my shift started, so all of it."
"I see, then I'll begin with medic rotations for the upcoming waves."
"Alright, I'll see you when the first wave starts?"
"Yeah, everyone who can, will fight on the walls this time, we think the monsters have been enboldened by the large swath of 5th tier beasts."
"How many?"
"By some scouts we've confirmed around 1200, but it's likely to be closer to 1500."
"So what you're saying is get ready for a long day and night?"
"Yes."
"I see."
***
*Lucas' Pov*
'da.....'
'daddy.....'
'Daddy......'
'Daddy!'
Where? Where am I?
'Hello master.'
'Isla?'
'Aurelia and I have made contact with each other, she along with Charlotte von Masvis and Rose Castellan pulled you out of the wall.'
'Thank Nyx above, I wasn't eaten.'
'Your strategy of avoiding dispersing in a dungeon worked.'
'What exactly happened while I was out.'
'Daddy, Daddy, I'll tell you.'
'Alea?'
'Yes, Daddy?'
She turned her head to the side.
'Come here.'
As the baby dragon in her dragon form came closer I saw her true self.
A maybe 1 meter tall black dragon.
She crawled into my arms as I hugged her.
'Master, not to alarm you, but you have been asleep for almost a day.'
'What?'
'Yes, Daddy, I lost my feeling in my heart that connected me to you.'
'I was scared.'
I stroked the dragon's head.
'I'm sorry Alea, I didn't know what would happen to me if I dispersed inside a dungeon.'
'Don't worry Daddy, Mommy's anchor to you won't allow you to get lost in or between dimensions.'
What.
I get Fiadh was the dragon of spacetime, but that overpowered is nuts.
'Daddy can also summon me like a spirit across dimensions.'
'Really?'
'Yes, master, your ability to hold your companion within the mind realm indicates, your ability of your soul to withstand the mental pressure they put on you without losing your mind.'
'I see, so how do I summon you Alea?'
'You need to contain mana here, Daddy, you haven't woken up yet.'
'Alright, then what?'
'I can summon myself for now, since you can't speak in dragon tongue perfectly yet.'
'Are you sure it's safe Alea?'
'Mom will keep us both safe Daddy.'
'Alright, then I'll start.'
I began to channel mana, at the same time I begun to feel drowsy.
'Isla?'
'Yes, master?'
'I'm.....'
'Yes, master, you are falling asleep due to the massive mana signature condensed currently, you are experiencing mana saturation.'
'Why can't I wake up?'
'I don't know master, but your daughter may have more answers than I.'
'I see.
***
*Charlotte's Pov*
"Claudia could I get some help here?"
"Yep."
I was below the wall using my greatsword in the first time ina while.
I swiped with wide arcs, ripping apart and pushing beasts back.
"
"Combination
Claudia turned as she let off a massive pillar of water and light off onto the beasts.
"Nice work Claudia, we still got a lot more coming."
"It seems as though these waves are generally going to have-"
"Shit get out of there, a 5th tier beast is down there with you guys."
Rose's worried voice came over all the comms.
"You heard her, get out of here."
The 12 or so of us down below the wall began a mad dash for the wall.
Claudia called out to me.
"Charlotte, someone is getting mobbed over there."
I looked in the direction she was facing.
One of our heavy hitters was being left behind with low mana reserves.
He was drowning in the sea of monsters swarming into the outer camp area.
"Help!"
"We got you."
Claudia said as she began to surf on top of the monster's heads and reached her arm out to him.
As he began to reach for her the rampaging 5th tier beast knocked him into the air.
It sent him flying into the base.
Thankfully we had plenty of mages and healers already waiting to catch him.
Claudia and I turned our eyes on the 5th tier beast, that was alone after running over the rest of the monsters near it.
We looked at each other and nodded.
We began to rampage ourselves letting loose on the beast.
At the end of it all, we had created a killing circle where nothing within 2 meters of us got close, and anything entering in was swiftly decapitated, or pulverised.
There wasn't much to speak of the 5th tier beast, it was a low ranked one.
Weaker than some top tier 4th circle mages.
Truly a weak physical beast.
I opened it's insides up with a slash to find a magic organ in it's body.
I used the comm orb to tell the mages on the wall to move it into the camp.
They did as told and moved it's carcass.
A second 5th tier made it's way out, but by now we had slaughtered over 100 beasts, and they were sufficiently rebuffed for now.
We retreated to the wall, where we saw the effects of the carnage we wrought.
The once yellow-grey walls and floors were dyed in red and purple.
Slashes of magic and aura adorned the guts, and dead monsters.
It looked like something straight out of a battlefield.
"Good work Charlotte, Claudia."
Rose congratulated us, as applause began to break out.
I wanted to see Lucas, then take a nap.
***
I got one of those wishes granted.
Over the few waves that followed we had one 5th tier monster show up half the time.
The waves roughly contained 100 other monsters as well.
Of the ones that didn't have a 5th tier back up, they had few around 20-30 monsters instead.
"This is getting worrying Charlotte."
Aisha said to me in between waves.
"I'm scared for the camp."
"What if multiple 5th tiers come out."
I tried to assuage her fears.
"Firstly, they're too prideful to work together."
"Second, don't jinx us now."
"And, thirdly, as long as it's no more than 3 at a time, we should be okay."
"We've already killed 3 of them, and now have a mana signature lock on the other 7."
Aisha didn't look less afraid.
"Charlotte, you're scaring her."
Claudia came next to me.
She always put me at ease, much like Aura and Lucas.
They were my safe space.
Lucas needed to hurry up and wake up, we need his combat prowess and strategical mind.
"Charlotte, Claudia, we need you two up here now."
Maria's voice rang through our orbs.
We nodded to each other again, and began our fast trek up to the wall.
"Maria?"
"We have notice."
"This wave two 5th tier beasts have been spotted amongst the ranks."
"It's okay."
I bit my lip, a new habit I'd picked up from Claudia.
"Don't get Aurelia we can handle this right now."
"Sure, there is still only 120 ish beasts this time as well."
"Alright, lets focus on clearing the area to fight the 5's."
"You got it, I'll relay that to Rose."
"No need I'm here waiting to assist you all."
"At this point this horde will either make our break our camp."
"Leave it in ruins or solidify it."
"I don't think we'll lose it."
Maria began.
"We have 3 of the highest 5th tier students here with us."
"I believe in you guys."
That was reassuring.
"Thank you for believing in us Maria."
Claudie and Rose nodded in response.
"Alright that's it let's get out there."
"When does this wave start?"
"Should be 5 minutes here."
"Everyone don't forget we've only been here for 29 or so hours, don't lose yourselves now."
I told them.
They looked both rejuvenated, and tired at that statement.
Perhaps it reminded them of the outside world, for the better or worse.
This next horde would not break us.
I wouldn't, no I couldn't allow it too.
There was so much hope riding on this to fail, so I could only succeed here.