Chapter 129
Meanwhile, on the Monster Faction's side.
[Players will be assigned to each Wave according to their ‘measure of strength’.]
[The First Wave will consist only of ‘monsters’, with no Players participating.]
Tens of thousands of orcs stood in imposing formation.
They were divided into units of warriors, archers, and shamans.
Dense killing intent poured from them, as though they might charge at any moment.
At the center of that army stood one man, rubbing his chin as he stared toward the castle with a troubled expression.
"Hah."
"This is annoying."
"I picked this side because I wanted to fight Lee Suhyeok for once..."
"And now I don't even get to fight him."
It was Lee Baekho.
The man who had picked a fight with Suhyeok and his companions back at the Banquet.
[The Monster Faction Commander may personally participate in battle starting from the ‘Fifth Wave’.]
[As the Waves progress, the Commander's power will continue to increase.]
"What the hell kind of commander is this?"
"Can't I just fight?"
"This complicated crap is gonna kill me before anything else does."
His body was clearly itching for battle, but he forced down his surging desire.
"Still..."
"I can feel myself getting stronger, so I guess it's working."
"If I'm already like this now, then by the Fifth Wave..."
A vicious grin spread across his face.
"Kuh."
"Maybe I'll finally be able to kill Lee Suhyeok."
Ding!
[The System intervenes.]
[For unknown reasons, the monsters in each Wave become significantly stronger.]
Lee Baekho looked at the sudden message.
Instead of showing surprise, he smirked.
"So you're the one who's been echoing inside my head since earlier?"
"If you're worried I'll fail, relax."
He cracked his neck.
"I'm planning to chew through them nice and slow."
Less than thirty minutes remained before the invasion began.
Every soldier stood atop the walls with determination burning in their eyes.
The orc army had already moved close to the fortress.
The soldiers swallowed unconsciously and tightened their grips on their weapons.
Seeing the enemy in person made the sheer scale feel overwhelming.
None of them had probably ever experienced anything like this.
The Beast Forest lay relatively close to Waven Castle.
And the monster most commonly seen there was the orc.
Each individual was physically powerful.
But their intelligence was said to be around that of a seven-year-old child.
And while they lived in groups, their strong individualism supposedly made them incapable of fighting as a coordinated army.
At least...
That was what everyone had believed until now.
"...How the hell is that possible?"
"They're monsters."
"How can they form ranks like that...?"
An orc army stood before them in proper battle formation.
Normally, it took around four trained soldiers to deal with a single orc.
And there were clearly tens of thousands of them.
That wasn't all.
The orc archers and shamans were every bit as troublesome.
In a siege like this...
Those two units were arguably even more dangerous than the warriors.
Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom.
"Hah."
"Again?"
"Those damn orcs are getting annoying...."
"Everyone stay focused."
"There's almost no time left...!"
A rough drumbeat sounded every ten minutes.
Only two remained.
Once the final drum sounded...
The entire army would charge the walls.
The moment had arrived when neither monster nor human could retreat.
Clop. Clop.
Meanwhile...
Wayne rode out through the rear gate and circled toward the Beast Forest.
Three knights followed behind him.
"Commander."
"Do you really think this will work?"
Vice Commander Raymond spoke anxiously.
"If we leave like this, only Karak, Tarik, and that mercenary will remain."
"By the time we get there, the castle might already be destroyed."
Wayne's gaze never wavered from the Beast Forest ahead.
Raymond looked back at the fortress growing smaller in the distance.
Then urged his horse closer.
"What if we turn back now and help defend?"
"Or at least let only you and me continue."
"If this goes wrong..."
"Everyone could die."
Wayne fell into deep thought.
He remembered Hail.
Until just recently, the Grand Duke had stayed locked inside his room, trembling in fear.
At this rate, things will become dangerous.
Your Grace, if you would only order me to execute those retainers-
SLAP!
S-Shut up!
How could I possibly do that?!
If I do, you'll die too! Everyone around me will die!
And the last one will probably be m-me....
Hail hadn't always been that way.
When he was young, he'd resembled the previous Grand Duke.
Strong.
Brave.
More like a warrior of the north than anyone else.
But it hadn't lasted.
When the previous Grand Duke died during a monster wave...
The retainers seized their opportunity and began devouring House Waven from within.
Hail became their victim.
Over countless years, repeated assassination and poisoning attempts nearly destroyed his mind.
And as if to teach him what happened to those who resisted...
The people around him died gruesome deaths.
Even the woman he'd loved most.
...I'm sorry.
I'm nothing but a useless puppet of a Grand Duke.
You may hate me for it.
But please...
Please leave me alone.
Wayne had been unable to act without his master's order.
All he could do was hope that Hail would one day return to the person he'd once been.
Five years passed like that.
House Waven rotted to its roots.
The retainers grew more powerful with each passing day.
The north deteriorated.
They sucked the blood from the common people.
Their soldiers abused that authority and ran wild.
And now...
Hail had suddenly become someone completely different.
What had happened?
Was the man he knew truly still his Grand Duke?
The mission they'd received was simple.
Sneak behind the monster forces.
Block their retreat.
Then install the strange item Hail had given them.
The problem was...
Until they finished, the people inside the castle had to hold off that ridiculous army on their own.
At first, Wayne had pleaded that it was impossible.
But Hail had only said one thing.
Trust me.
I will trust you as well.
Trust.
When a master swings a sword, the sword's own will doesn't matter.
It simply accepts the motion and follows.
"...Even if the castle falls..."
"We still have to do it."
Wayne's eyes hardened.
"That is the order His Grace gave us."
He kicked his horse forward.
"Move faster!"
Clop! Clop!
Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom.
At last...
The final drum sounded.
Everyone tensed as they realized the battle had begun.
Then...
"W-What the hell is that?!"
The orc shamans released ominous energy and formed a wide circle.
They began chanting.
The north, where violent storms usually never ceased, slowly began clearing.
It was clearly caused by the energy pouring from the shamans.
FWOOOSH!
A massive flame erupted.
It gathered into a gigantic sphere.
