I was unsure how well the city wall would hold up, it was gigantic but what magic and what monstrous strength did it face?

There was another cracking sound as the wall was bashed into again. How big a beast was hitting into it, to make the entire city tremble? Regardless, that wouldn’t be my battle to participate in.

“What should we do?” Luther asked.

“Nothing, we wait here!” Bryan said. “We weren’t delegated an area, so we wait for orders.” Rhea knew where to find us when needed, as did the Adventurers’ Guild.

People rushed past us by the hundreds. It felt as though the situation was confused and hectic but I could see that as people arrived, they were quickly sorted and organized near the wall. The guild leaders in charge seemed to have great faith in the city walls.

“Should we be worried?” I asked. Every impact from the far side caused the entire city to quake.

“This wall has never been breached.” Briele reaffirmed.

“Right.” Bryan chipped in.

It was then that another crashing sound rang out like that of a giant whip. That wasn’t the surprising thing though. The wall they worshiped as unbreakable cracked. A hairline fracture raced from the center of the wall before traveling up and down to the top and bottom.

“Guys…” I said. “This... doesn’t seem good.” Without the wall to protect us we would be over-run by the horde of monsters.

Bryan believed in the wall, but definitely wasn’t naïve enough to be blind. “Prepare for battle.” His face instantly grew serious. There was another crack and a chunk of the wall blasted in. A gigantic hand reached inside that made Naztasha – the Shadow Prowler at the farm we’d guarded – look like a baby.

“It’s back…” Briele suddenly said. It seemed like this was the boss they fought far west and driven away. It must have recuperated from that encounter. “This is what they were waiting for.”

A second arm came through the crack and then ripped a large chunk out of the wall, creating enough of a space for beasts to start pouring through. At first the onrush was small, and those Adventurers in front of the breach were enough to handle it. Tanks charged into the oncoming horde and casters backed them up.

It wasn’t long though, before beasts started to get around the melee at the broken wall and we realized we couldn’t wait anymore. They were going to over-run the city, and not everyone was an Adventurer high enough level to fend for themselves.

A giant tiger was looking our way and the monster suddenly raced towards us, “Is everyone prepared? This is it!” Bryan yelled.

I pulled the mana-pulsing rod from behind my back and used Mana Scythe. This wouldn’t be the first time guild members had seen my magical weapon, but it was the first time I would be using it in front of them in earnest.

This first encounter was a huge cat-like beast. Nothing I’d ever seen before. Nothing we couldn’t handle though.

Inspect!

Goliath Saber Tooth* LEVEL: 47 BEAST Neutral

HP: 43519 MP: 25

STR: 55

AGI: 62

DEX: 35

VIT: 31

INT: 19

An overgrown saber tooth, its two teeth look like gigantic tusks.

The level gap between the monster and me was large but I didn’t feel any fear. Bryan had demonstrated to me his tanking abilities many times before. I didn’t even need to hesitate or hold back at all.

Bryan let out a battle shout that caused extreme distress to the Saber Tooth and sent it reeling in discomfort. Its eyes immediately locked on his burly body and let out a roar that shook the air.

Our tank didn’t wait for its charge and instead met it halfway, his shield slamming into the large paw that seemed to strike out at him with lightning speed. His arm didn’t budge, his feet didn’t budge. Bryan was an immovable mountain in front of this beast.

Everyone trusted him completely to hold aggro and make the right decisions. Even in the short amount of time I had known Bryan, I had earned that it was best to follow his orders. Particularly eye opening was Bryan’s ability to properly decipher the weak point of an enemy. “Focus the back left leg!” he yelled.

I didn’t need to think about my decisions when Bryan was tanking. He positioned himself in a way that the Saber Tooth could never retaliate against me, as long as I was following Bryan’s instructions. Because of that, I could go all out every fight and hold nothing back.

Despite the monster being level 47, we made quick work of it. Its movement speed was its greatest defense, and with a damaged back leg that didn’t work, it was a sitting duck. Despite my lack of battles, my EXP was slowly climbing towards level 39. Even better was the fact that I could still Harvest Soul with my group as long as I did a meaningful amount of damage.

Current EXP: 64500/115000 LEVEL: 38 Soul Harvester Eternal

HP: 2595/2595 MP: 708/1408

STR: 30+2

AGI: 35+11

DEX: 35 +5

VIT: 30 +4

INT: 55 +21

Available:

Harvest Soul: 362 HP: 832 MP: 832

The gains from being in a group were astronomically better than playing alone. As long as I met the damage threshold for Harvest Soul, I could progress much faster than everyone else. I still hadn’t revealed this information to anyone yet. I wasn’t sure how people would react to a class with seemingly infinite scaling.

Despite the first quick battle, we didn’t have any time to rest. The encounters were actually getting faster, and from what I could see and the screams I could hear, the engagements at the wall were not looking good.

Our highest level Adventurers were only now appearing to battle the boss, but the damage it had dealt was already significant. Its high intelligence was clear as it didn’t attack anyone, but simply destroyed the city wall as much as possible.

It had a singular goal in mind, to release as many beasts upon Arturii as possible. Up until now, it was easily succeeding. Beasts continued to pour into the gaps and started to over-run those hoping to stop them.

Everything getting past them was coming in our direction, and the city with civilians behind depended on us to stop their assault. Fortunately enough, we weren’t alone. The other groups stationed outside were also on standby and picked up the remaining slack.

“Can you take that one alone Joseph?” Bryan yelled at me. There were three foes in front of us, and while Bryan could tank all three, it would be harder for him to hold aggro. With only two they could focus fire one down and make quick work of the second.

“Got it!” He didn’t know the extent of my abilities, and I had yet to really be pushed in any encounter. So far the group battles had been straightforward, and only now was there any need to use my skills to the maximum.

The beast in front of me was nothing extraordinary. It looked like cannon fodder, and was most likely the reason Bryan asked me to hold it. I termed it cannon fodder, but to any normal level thirty-eight, this would be a considerable threat to their life.

King Salamander* LEVEL: 41 AMPHIBIAN Water

HP: 26430 MP: 75

STR: 45

AGI: 25

DEX: 21

VIT: 51

INT: 9

A giant salamander from the royal bloodline.

A level forty-one elite was nothing to scoff at, and most Adventurers of 38 would do all they could to hold on until their party could assist, but not me. I used Phase Step for the first time since my cave battles.

From the perspective of the salamander, it must have seemed as though I had disappeared, but I had Phase Stepped to its side and Mana Scythe was already slashing down. Unfortunately, it had the superb instincts of a wild beast.

Despite my sudden attack, the salamander’s tail lashed out like lightning and deflected my incoming attack. I was surprised, not at its reaction, but the unique jelly-like substance coating its body. Really, I should have slashed through the salamander’s tail like butter.

A thick goop on the monster’s tail acted like a cushion, and slowed my attack to a complete standstill. How could something so sharp be warded away with such minimal effort? Even worse was that the goop reformed, and it was clear any damage I was able to the jelly had no bearing on the salamander’s health.

Its counter-attack was on the way as its mouth opened wide. I was expecting poison to shoot from its maw, but instead a burning ember grew in size. Phase Step was a definite solution, but I had other options, too.

Glacial Spike jutted from the ground between us and caught the fireball like a mitt. I could see the burning ember forcing its way inside the obstacle of ice before burning out in the melted hollow it had created. I had neutralized the salamander’s attack with minimal MP usage and was pleased with my efficiency.

For the first time, though, I felt that I had been let down by Inspect. A water amphibian using fireball was something I’d never have expected from the description. It was a reminder that my knowledge of this world was still very limited.

I activated Phase Step again and went in for another attack, this time choosing the same method I used on the Yeti from the Frozen Wastelands. Plunging the tip of the Mana Scythe into the salamander’s side, I felt the resistance of the goop but also that I’d penetrated to at least deliver a small amount of damage to the salamander.

This was a small victory, immediately followed by a large defeat. The blood that started to drip was immediately stopped, as the goopy substance acted as a seal. There was essentially no wound at all, and I had made zero progress in this battle at all.

It was becoming clear brute force physical attacks would not work. Lightning was the bane of water-type creatures, and that was my next approach. Launching Ball Lightning, I saw bolts of electricity snaking across the air.

My hair stood on end and the salamander in front of me hesitated. My hopes rose, and then crashed into the earth immediately. The burning and sizzling I’d anticipated simply didn’t happen.

The silver arcs struck the Salamander, but the strange goop coating its body was like insulation. I could even see blue flashes of electricity passing through the goop and arching across the salamander’s body, but never coming into contact with its skin.

This moment of frustration brought forth a plethora of ‘what-ifs’ and ‘is-this-possible?’ thoughts. Surely the goop was water based, as per my Identify, and so lightning should have been the most natural choice to deliver damage.

The salamander was definitely water based in some way, and so extreme heat might also do the trick. Cremation should make quick work of its defenses if I could keep the salamander inside the spell’s area of effect. There was no way this level 41 Elite was impervious to physical and elemental attacks.

I suddenly had a fascinating idea. Could I somehow funnel my fire element into Mana Scythe? Would it be possible to turn this blade of mana into a blade of fire? If so, I could take the best of both worlds. Strong physical ability and elemental magic.

I held Mana Scythe tight with both hands and then began summoning a fireball. It felt forced at first, almost like there was something blocking up the action. The fireball would not form, and so I pushed harder.

There was a pop, and then flames burst forth from my arm before racing through the mana-pulsing rod. It was on fire, but it was not burning. There were flames intertwined in my mana that let out an intense heat.

This was what I was looking for. Why had I not done something like this sooner? It felt like the natural course of things in my progress. Elements could be imbued into weapons and armors and shields, why couldn’t I do it on the fly?

The salamander instantly realized its perilous situation and let out a loud hiss. Its feet stepped back slowly and for a moment looked to be retreating. I would not give it that chance.

Casting Phase Step twice I closed the gap instantly. The resistance I felt before had entirely gone as the goop disintegrated into a grey smoke at the touch of the burning metal. My burning Mana Scythe came across its gut like a hot knife and bisected it diagonally.

Guts began to pour through the reptilian skin and its body jittered as if struck by electricity. The goopy substance coating the rest of its body slowly melted away and formed a puddle beneath its body. Blood began to mix until the entire floor was a mess. The monster didn’t last much longer before its inevitable death came.

I turned my attention to my party, just as they were finishing off the other beast. “Joseph, sorry that took so long, are you go—” Bryan span around urgently, then caught himself as he saw me standing over the now deceased corpse. “Looks like I underestimated you!” He rushed to my side.

Bryan’s hand came down hard on my shoulder and he shook my entire body. Only then did I understand it was over, only then could I relax. The flame receded back inside of me, as did the burning heat.

“Is everyone good?” I asked while breathing a large sigh of relief. This battle had been short, but I had learned a tremendous amount from it about mixing elemental forces with my Mana Scythe. There was no time to fully digest this though, as more beasts were rushing in our direction.

For what felt like an age, but was probably only ten minutes or so we were busy taking down a wide miscellany of monsters. While these battles felt good to win, there was a greater problem at hand. Beasts of all kinds began to by-pass the defensive positions in which groups of Adventurers were stationed, and these monsters disappeared down the streets of Arturii. We could only do so much to stop the onslaught. The situation was coming to an unsalvageable point, and my optimism was waning.

There was suddenly a calming voice in my ear, “Everyone, please retreat.” And then a bluish barrier appeared like a dome, encasing the broken wall and hundreds of meters into Arturii, our group included.

I was immediately confused, and realized my understanding of barriers was clearly insufficient. How could I retreat? Wasn’t I trapped inside? Bryan noticed my confused expression, “Don’t ask questions, just run!”

We turned tail as a party and sprinted away. I couldn’t help but hesitate, anticipating an impact as I rushed towards this blue translucent wall. The resistance I was expecting didn’t come, and instead it allowed me passage directly through.

When I turned back, every group was rushing away, and only those of high level were still fighting at the breach. Something peculiar had happened to the beasts that were among the first to have rushed through the wall and were attempting to wreak havoc on the streets of Arturii. Most of them, if not all, were flat on the ground, muscles bulging and with pained expressions as they tried to move.

What was happening? It was only then that I noticed a man high in the sky. His blue gothic coat blended in with the sky above. His brunette hair was tied neatly back into a ponytail. His soul signature—his soul signature was frightening.

“What’s going on?” I needed answers, immediately.

“Gravity magic…” Briele replied. “I’ve heard about it before, but this is my first time seeing it.”

How strong was the person in the sky to be able to do this? To focus his magic on specific targets while allowing those parties to retreat to safety. Was the barrier also his doing as well?

“Who is he?” I looked towards the sky.

“It can only be one person,” Bryan said while following my gaze.

“The Adventurers’ Guild Master,” Luther finished the thought.

While it only half answered my question, it was a start. “I thought the Adventurers’ Hall was just a collection of guilds?”

“It is.” Briele continued, “But he is the head of it all.”

“What guild is he a part of?” I asked.

“No guild,” Cid said.

I continued to look up at the spell caster and realized that neither Rhea, nor even the Tyrant’s guild leader gave me such a feeling of awe in the face of power. In fact, no one I had ever crossed paths with did.

“That strong then?” I asked.

“That strong…” By now, everyone had our eyes trained on the figure in the sky. I couldn’t stop myself from watching as he levitated down and closer to the boss. Monsters of lower levels and mid-levels retreated in haste.

There were only about twenty or thirty people remaining inside the barrier. The various high levels from each guild, and they were now facing off against the boss.

I was expecting something epic, but the result was much more anti-climactic. This was the creature Rhea had challenged with her group originally, and it had escaped then. Unfortunately for it now, the current amount of firepower we had at hand was much more than it could handle.

If the main force of Valkyrie was a match for this boss, then the combined high level Adventurers as well as this super-powered spell-caster were clearly going to have even better prospects. The creature was obviously intelligent enough to appreciate this, for instead of trying to fight, it turned to flee.

Escape for the monster, however, was impossible. The blue barrier was not for show, and it now shrunk considerably. It seemed the gravity inside had increased exponentially as well. The monsters prostrating themselves on the ground started to burst as fountains of blood erupted from their now shattering veins.

The dozens of high levels were going all out, expending any reserves on all the special attacks they could muster, and I thought it was over when a voice rang out, “Wait!” It was the Adventurers’ Guild Master. He shouted loudly and everyone came to an abrupt stop.

I was confused, and from their expressions, so too were my party, but there was no negative reaction from those still inside the barrier who had stopped fighting. I focused even harder and watched the mage closely. His hands were coming together in various shapes in patterns before something erupted from him with tremendous speed.

It wasn’t a tangible object, but almost an energy, or mist of some sort. The connection from his hands traveled directly to the beast now trapped in the wall, and penetrated directly between its eyes.

There was a moment of intense struggle and shrieking pain before those deep red eyes became a lifeless grey. A thread of misty smoke connected the two together. “What is happening?” I asked.

“This… this is Mind-link.” Bryan spoke up. “I don’t know much about it, but I know it’s a unique skill only to him. The name is self-explanatory, but the fine details no one knows…”

“Link… link…” I muttered, “Does that mean the monster can also see in his mind as well?” If their minds were linked, it would make sense that they shared thoughts. I continued to watch the battle with bated breath, as if time had stopped.

Only after several minutes did the Adventurers’ Guild Master come to. The misty energy between the two faded in a flash and the grey hue covering the beast’s eyes faded. “Kill it! Make sure nothing is left of its head at all!” He yelled.

I was keen to see him take further action, but instead he slowly levitated to the ground and the barrier shrank even more. The spellcaster didn’t contribute anything else, as if the unique ability had taken a huge toll on him.

The remaining battle didn’t last more than thirty seconds. A huge guillotine-like axe came across the boss’s neck and cut the head clean off. The tense atmosphere faded immediately.

Those beasts outside the barrier waiting to attack rushed away into the wilderness without daring to look book. The remainder had been smashed to a pulp under the intense gravity.

I couldn’t help but feel this was anti-climactic. That was until I looked around me. There were hundreds upon hundreds of wounded. Human bodies were intermixed with the innumerable amount of beast corpses strewn about.

The destruction had only lasted a brief forty-five minutes, and yet this small area of Arturii was thoroughly ravaged. If it wasn’t contained so well, the slaughter of the civilian population would have been unthinkable. I looked at my party members and felt intense comradeship.

Despite our levels, we really were an elite force. My thought process was cut short when I felt Briele grab my arm, “Let’s go!” She yelled.

“Huh? Go where?”

“Don’t you want to go see?”