Proofreader: M_W Miss Fierce

When the moon slowly rises to the sky, Leo and everyone proceeded to set-up a camp above a sandhill. They have purposely chosen this location as they required the high-ground advantage during the night.

All of them were aware of the fact that in a desert biome the nighttime was the most dangerous time.

At this moment, there were five tents set up above the sandhill, specifically four of them were surrounding a big tent in the middle. Nearby this tent was the horse's stables, the cooking area, their temporary dining table, and also four 10 meters tall watchtower, all of these structures were made through the help of the Elementals

500 meters away from the camp were 8 Earth Elementals patrolling the area, with 2 Nature Elementals setting up a perimeter at the 1-kilometer distance made up of thorny stems and roots. This was to slow down the Magical Beast once the battle begins.

It wasn't only that, there were also random thorny scrubs put around the insides of the perimeter, to further slow down the Magical Beast.

Torches were also set up inside the perimeter to give light to the place.

Aside from that, there were also tens of traps secretly set-up by the Elementals to kill any unfortunate Magical Beast that falls into it.

"Let's start preparing for the upcoming battle tonight," Leo said as he gathered around everyone on the dining table. He then continued, "As we have already expected that the Magical Beasts will definitely attack us tonight, hence we've set-up a lot of countermeasures to defend against them. But we all know that it isn't enough to really hold them down. We are still required to personally fight. Though, at the same time, we also can't just lose our sleep in order to fight against them."

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement after hearing Leo's words.

What Leo has just said was indeed correct. They would be fighting against the Magical Beast soon, which means they can't afford to sleep. However, tomorrow they would most likely be arriving at Sandy Town, that's why they also need to rest and recuperate their lost energy and stamina, as they already expected that they would be doing a lot of things at that time. That's just pure assumption though, but still, it's much better for them to rest.

"So, I would be dividing everyone into two groups," Leo paused as he observed everyone. He then continued, "The first group would be led by me, with Cassandra, Elizabeth, Angel, Veronica, Ash, Charlotte, Sebastian, and Dan in the team. And the second group would be led by Ethan, with Elaine, Edward, Sele, Chief Lago, Old man Torre, and Steve in the team. The two groups would be switching every five hours, meaning there would only be two shifts before morning comes. Any questions?"

"No questions!" Cassandra, Elizabeth, Angel, Veronica, Ash, Charlotte, Sebastian, and Dan said in unison.

"No problem!" Ethan, Elaine, Edward, Sele, Chief Lago, and Old man Torre nodded their heads to express their affirmation.

At the side, Steve slowly raised his hand as he asked, "Am I really needed in this fight?"

It was a clear fact for Steve to see that almost everyone here were powerful Mages. So, he, as just an ordinary person, was really of no use. Whether he is present or not, it wouldn't be able to affect them that much.

"Even if you can't fight, you can still go up one of the watchtowers and act as everyone's eyes on the battlefield," Leo said while nodding his head.

"Oh, okay!" Steve immediately understood what Leo meant. To simplify Leo's words; in this fight, everyone can help, even if it's not in the battle.

"Then let's prepare," Leo said as he stood up from his chair and walked towards one of the watchtowers.

Cassandra, Elizabeth, Angel, Veronica, Ash, Charlotte, Sebastian, and Dan also choose their own position, specifically Cassandra, Elizabeth, and Veronica went to one of the three remaining watchtowers, while Angel, Ash, Charlotte, Sebastian, and Dan went down the sandhill to prepare themselves for a fight.

On the other hand, Ethan and every one part of the second team went inside their tents to sleep.

Truth be told, Leo had purposely allocated a few manpower on Ethan's since he was a 1st Galaxy Mage. Not to mention, Edward and Chief Lago are also part of his team, specifically two 9 Star Mages, so there's absolutely no problem with having fewer people only in his team. In fact, letting them guard the camp till morning wasn't even a big of a problem as they could easily handle Magical Beast at the Green Zone of the Sun Desert, even without the help of his Elementals, considering that Mages like them don't usually need a lot of sleep and also they don't get tired that easily compared to them.

The main reason why he didn't do that was simply because he wanted to train Cassandra and the others personally and see for himself their capability and limitations. Through that, he would then know their specialty. And with his Elementals around, they would definitely be safe.

As soon as the moon arrived above everyone's head, Magical Beasts finally surrounded the entire camp.

There were all sorts of different species of Magical Beast present right now, the majority were those living under the sand and the few minorities were those flying Magical Beasts.

The most common amongst the group of Magical Beasts were Sand Worms, Spiky Scorpions, and Red Lizards, specifically a weak bunch of No Star to 2 Star Magical Beast.

Sand Worms, just like what its name suggested, were worms living in the sand. Their species mostly likes to eat sands and stones only, but if there is really meat on their plate, then they don't mind eating that as well. They have a 5 to 10 meters long body, elastic but at the same time, tough, so ordinary weapons like iron and steel can't easily wound them. The way they attack is by either using their mouths with hundreds of teeth that can turn anyone defenseless into pieces, simply slamming their own body to squash their opponents, and spitting some sticky substance out of their mouth from time to time.

Spiky Scorpions have a form similar to those of scorpions, the only difference is their entire body is covered by long and really sharp spikes. Their species normally likes to attack whatever comes in their way, even if it's much stronger than them or just simply weaker than them. They have a 20 meters long body if including their tail and arms, specifically 5 meters for their body, 5 meters for their arms, and 10 meters for their tail. The way they attack is by either using both their arms that could snap iron and steel into half, their 6 feet that can easily pierce metal and steel, their mouth that can easily tear opponents weaker than them, their long tail that can extend for up to 10 meters range and also by shooting spikes around their body.

Red Lizards are simply lizards but with red-colored skin, obviously due to always being exposed to the sun, hence causing their skin to turn red. Their species, unlike every other lizard, don't eat bugs, specifically worms, ants, scorpions, and many more, but rather only those that have meat within them. They are 15 meters long, including their 5 meters long tail, their hands have really sharp claws, and their tails can create fire. The way they attack is by either using their mouth that can chew anything as long as it's meat, slamming their bodies to squash their opponents, claws that can easily mutilate into pieces those weaker than them, and lastly their tail that can create fire and melt even metal and steel.

While the powerful ones were a few Yellow-Eyed Vultures and some four-winged Owls, specifically a bunch of 2 Star to 3 Star Magical Beast.

Yellow-Eyed Vultures are predators amongst the predators of aerial Magical Beast living in the desert. Their species likes to be involved with practically everything as long as there are masses of 'food' gathering in one place and they can also eat whatever kind of food presented on their plates, they are really not picky when it comes to eating. They have a 20 meters long body, including both their wingspan of 5 meters each, they have this feathery neck to help defend their weak spot, their beaks are so strong and sharp that it's still a big question whether it's used for piercing or for breaking, and lastly, their extremely sharp claws. The way they attack is by either using their beaks that can most likely pierce and break metal and steel, claws that can squash, cut, or even tear opponents weaker than them or by releasing a powerful gust of winds through their wings.

Four-Winged Owls are nocturnal Magical Beast of the sky. Their species are always active during the night and can see as far as 10 kilometers with their eyes in 360 degrees as their heads could turn in a full circle. They have a 20 meters long body, including their wingspan of 5 meters each, their beaks are strong that they can break bones, and their claws are so sharp that they can easily cut Magic Steel. The way they attack is by either using their beak to break anything weaker than them, claws that are really powerful, and wings that can even cut metal and steel into halves.

Seeing all these Magical Beasts outside their 1-kilometer perimeter, Leo gripped his Death Wake Dagger tightly, preparing for the incoming fight.

As far as his eyes could see, there were practically hundreds of Magical Beasts surrounding them right now. All of them were thirsting for their blood and craving for their flesh.

Cassandra, Elizabeth, and Veronica on top of the three watchtowers quickly began preparing for a Magic spell to use in this battle. Their Stars inside their consciousness were anxiously absorbing Mana in their surroundings, preparing for continuous casting of Magic spells.

On the ground below, Angel, Ash, Charlotte, Sebastian, and Dan each took out their Magic weapons as they then quickly equipped their Magic equipment to prepare for a close-combat.

The 8 Earth Elementals further from them positioned themselves with huge rocks on their hand and much more to their side, ready to throw it straight to the middle of the Magical Beast formation. While on the other hand, the 2 Nature Elementals began spreading sharp roots on the ground nearby their wall to restrict, injure, and perhaps even kill any Magical Beast that they can catch.

ROAAAAAAR!

With a loud cry from one of the Magical Beasts, all the Magical Beasts soon after followed before quickly charging towards the wall made out of thorny roots and stems.

"Prepare!" Leo exclaimed on top of the watchtower.