"How many monsters are there? Why is the noise so massive?" someone exclaimed in shock.
Drawing on his experience, Luca quickly made a grim assessment. "At least ten thousand, if not more!"
"Ten thousand monsters?!" The crowd was stunned, their faces filled with disbelief.
A monster horde of this scale was something that only occurred once in several decades, and yet, they had encountered one now?!
Boom! Boom! Boom!!!
In the distance, thunderous rumblings echoed closer and closer, growing louder with each passing second.
Clouds of dust rose as vast swaths of trees were violently uprooted and toppled over!
Panic began to grip the group.
As much as they didn't want to believe it, they knew that such a commotion couldn't possibly be caused by ordinary monsters!
"How could this happen? Why did the monsters suddenly go berserk?" Catherine's lips were tightly pressed together, so much so that she had bitten through her skin, drawing blood.
This was a horde of over ten thousand monsters!
If these monsters broke out of Beast Forest, she couldn't even begin to imagine the devastation they would cause!
The problem was that their Iron Mountain army only numbered in the thousands—there was no way they could hold back such a massive horde!
"I smelled the scent of a monster-attracting potion earlier. Someone must have deliberately lured these monsters here," Luca's calm voice rang in their ears, making everyone's hearts skip a beat.
"That's impossible!" Kaman gasped, "Who could be so insane as to intentionally draw so many monsters here?"
"Could it be… Matthew?!" Catherine suddenly connected the dots, her face a mask of shock.
Silence fell over the group instantly.
Though Luca didn't say a word, everyone knew the answer in their hearts.
In the current situation, only Matthew and his men had the capability and the motive to lure the monsters to attack them.
And more importantly, knowing Matthew's character…
That scoundrel was indeed capable of such a monstrous act!
The young Kaman clenched his bow, his face flushed with anger, and gritted his teeth, "That bastard! When we get back, I'm going to skin him alive!"
Cassman's eyes were bloodshot, and the veins on his forehead bulged with rage.
But he had no time to dwell on his fury. He quickly barked orders to the Iron Mountain soldiers, "Everyone, form up and prepare for battle! We must not let these monsters break through our defenses! Even if it costs us our lives, we have to hold them off until reinforcements arrive!"
Riverfall City was right behind them. If the monsters broke through, the consequences would be catastrophic!
Even if it meant sacrificing everything, they had to stop the horde!
...
Meanwhile, on a nearby hill, not far from the Iron Mountain army, Matthew watched the unfolding chaos from a distance.
Hearing Cassman's orders, he couldn't help but burst into mocking laughter. "Hahaha! Are these idiots serious? They're still not running? Are they planning to stay here and serve as monster fodder?"
Beside him, Freeman sneered as well. "What a bunch of fools, completely overestimating themselves!"
To ensure Luca wouldn't escape, Freeman had used two full bottles of high-grade monster-attracting potion!
Among the monsters drawn in this time, there were two mid-tier Elite monsters and over a dozen rare monsters!
Given Cassman and the Iron Mountain army's strength, even with the addition of those ragtag players, there was no way they could withstand the assault of this monster horde.
This group was doomed to die today!
Watching the overwhelming tide of monsters surging toward the Iron Mountain army, Matthew grinned wickedly and laughed, "Hahaha, since you've all chosen the path of death, you have no one to blame but yourselves. If you want to blame someone, blame that lowborn Luca!"
He laughed heartily, his voice dripping with satisfaction.
In his mind, he could already see the scene of Luca and the others being torn apart by countless monsters.
A lowly commoner dared to humiliate him!
Today, he would make Luca pay the price for his insolence!
Behind Matthew, a few city guards exchanged uneasy glances, shock evident in their eyes.
They hadn't known what Matthew was up to until now.
Matthew actually intended to orchestrate the slaughter of Luca and the entire Iron Mountain army?!
Even if the Iron Mountain soldiers weren't directly under Count Ryanthe, they were still thousands of lives!
And all of this, just because of a personal grudge? Matthew was willing to sacrifice them all?!
In that moment, the city guards felt a chill run down their spines.
This man was utterly insane!
They looked at each other, and in their eyes, they saw shared feelings of shame and determination.
Without a word, they quietly slipped away from the group, heading toward Riverfall City.
This needed to be reported to the city lord immediately—they couldn't let Matthew get away with this!
...
"Roar! Roar! Roar!!!"
The roars of the monsters echoed through the sky!
From a distance, they could already see the seemingly endless horde of monsters!
Gathered together, the monsters looked like a black flood, surging toward the Iron Mountain army in a massive, unstoppable wave!
Seeing this, many people felt their legs go weak with fear.
Even the soldiers of the Iron Mountain army weren't immune.
But their long-standing training and discipline kicked in, and they quickly formed up their battle formations.
Not a single soldier fled from the battlefield—their elite training and resolve shining through in this critical moment!
As for the players, their reactions were a world apart from those of the Iron Mountain army.
"Hahaha! Brothers! The time has come to make a name for ourselves! It's time to defend Riverfall City!"
"Holy crap! The scale, the effects, the atmosphere! This game is absolutely incredible!"
"Hurry, hurry, take a picture of me! I need to post this on the forums and make the players from other main cities insanely jealous!"
"Come on, guys, this is a serious event—can't you be a little more focused?"
"Hey, don't forget to turn on the beauty filter for me!"
"Grab your weapons, brothers, let's take them down!"
...
Despite the approaching monster horde, the players, though their legs were trembling, were more excited than scared.
This left many of the NPCs utterly bewildered.
They had seen people who weren't afraid of monsters before.
But this was the first time they'd encountered people who were actually excited to see them—especially an entire group!
However, the players' enthusiasm had a positive effect.
The previously low morale of the Iron Mountain soldiers began to lift.
If these outsiders were willing to fight for Riverfall City, then what excuse did they have to shy away from the battle?
"Roar! Roar! Roar!!!"
Deafening roars filled the air, shaking the very earth!
The monstrous tide was now less than a kilometer away!
To the naked eye, it looked like tens of thousands of ravenous, terrifying demons were clawing their way toward them, ready to devour everything in their path!
The sheer intensity of the sight sent shivers down the spines of everyone, even Cassman.
This was the first time in their lives any of them had seen so many monsters. To say they weren't nervous would be a lie!
Many found their hands trembling as they gripped their weapons.
Just standing there required more courage than they had ever mustered before!
Beads of sweat appeared on Catherine's fair forehead.
And her palms were slick with perspiration as she gripped her spear tightly, her anxiety palpable.
"Mr. Luca, this place is too dangerous, you should—" Catherine took a deep breath, about to urge Luca to leave.
But when she turned her head, she froze in place.
Luca was staring at the approaching monster horde, his expression completely unchanged!
There wasn't a trace of fear—in fact, Catherine couldn't even detect a hint of nervousness in his eyes!
Catherine felt a bit dazed.
At that moment, she saw in Luca something she had only ever seen in Count Ryanthe—a calm, unwavering presence!
It was the kind of composure forged in the grinding gears of the battlefield!
Just then, she noticed Luca slowly beginning to walk forward.
Catherine was stunned, not understanding what he intended to do.
The wind whipped through, making the hem of Luca's Black Gold Robe flutter.
As he faced the oncoming horde, familiar memories surfaced in his mind.
It was as if he had been transported back to that day on the extraterrestrial battlefield, when billions of monsters surged toward Blue Star!
The difference was, this time, he was no longer the one being protected!
Luca twirled his spear in a flourish, then turned to the bewildered crowd behind him with a smile. "Everyone, this time, I'll be your vanguard!"
As soon as he spoke, to the astonishment of everyone watching.
A golden runes suddenly appeared on Luca's spear, and a green glow enveloped his body.
Wind Walk! Steel Magic Runes!
Then, under the shocked gazes of all present.
Luca's foot slammed into the ground, and in an instant, he shot forward like a bolt of lightning.
Holding his Black Steel Spear, he charged directly into the unstoppable monster horde!
Though compared to the raging tide of monsters, his figure appeared as small and fragile as a lone boat against the current.
There wasn't the slightest hint of fear or hesitation in him. He charged forward with fearless determination!
At that moment, everyone—Iron Mountain soldiers, players, and even Matthew and the city guards watching from afar—stared in wide-eyed disbelief!
Had he gone mad?!