It was pitch black when I was shaken awake. There wasn’t even the slightest hint of a sun on the horizon. The moon was low in the sky and would soon be out of sight completely. I felt alert and refreshed.

The main force of the tide of monsters was merely several hours away, and the front-runners had already started to reach our location. I was told that beasts had been spotted traversing the forest around our camp. They had shown an interest in the lack of trees and barren land, but so far none had approached the camp or fallen into the pits.

Most of the camp was still sleeping, as the threat of attack right now was low. We were still under camouflage magic, and that would do well enough until a massive amount of beasts populated the area. Eventually, our cover would be blown and the fighting would break out.

The camp seemed desolate as I made my way to the north wall. Very few people were up and moving around. I was fortunate enough to feel the presence of the Adventurer’s Guild Master on my way, though.

I sought him out, to find he was in a tent in the presence of a small handful of people. A few faces I recognized, but most were unknown to me. They were actually finishing up their conversation when I poked my head in.

“You can come in,” the Adventurer’s Guild Master said. He was still sitting his chair behind a makeshift desk. There was paperwork there, and a map.

I leaned my head low and entered into the tent, making my way past those leaving. There was nowhere for me to sit, and so I stayed standing. “Did you find the seed?” It was the only question I cared to ask.

“No; I found nothing. Not a trace.” His mood seemed to grow darker with each word he uttered. “I have searched most of the locations outlined on the map Corbin has drawn up for me.” He span the parchment around and showed it to me.

It was the same map Corbin had filled by asking each and every group of their discoveries. Most of the dots marking the caves and crevices that had previously been explored had shifted colors, and very few still remained unchecked.

“Is there any hope?” I asked.

“There is hope if you have it. Otherwise there is none. Regardless of the outcome today I will be staying. If I have to run and hide in trees and old basements, I will do so until the seed is found.”

“Is that what those people were here for?” I asked.

“Some, yes. There are several of us that have volunteered to stay in the worst case. Enough for a party.” He looked me directly in the eyes, “What are you thinking?”

“Oh, I was just thinking of what it would look like if we were overrun—I’m still tired.” I mused. The reality was that I was thinking I wouldn’t retreat either. I think the Adventurer’s Guild Master knew that, but didn’t push me. He would be obliged to tell me to return to Arturii, but I wouldn’t listen, and he knew that, too.

“Get to your station, there’s not many on the walls at this hour. We need to be prepared for anything.”

I nodded and turned to leave. There were no parting words to be said. The Adventurer’s Guild Master was usually like that, speaking words that carried the weight of the world, and without any unnecessary ones.

My steps were light as I approached the north wall, and climbed the scaffolding allowing me up top. It wasn’t neat by any means, but it would do enough for us to get up and down quickly. The magical wall of dirt held fast under my steps and I peered out into the abyss.

It was dark, and vision past just a few meters was pitiful. It would be even worse without the torches lining the side. I looked to my left and right to find barely anyone on the wall, probably fifteen people at most on lookout.

The rest of my party wasn’t awake yet, and it was just people I didn’t know nor recognize looking out into the darkness with me. No one was in the mood for talking, as eyes were glued into the darkness. No one wanted to miss the slightest intrusion.

Fortunately, I could feel the soul signatures of those beasts moving past. Unfortunately, that just made me anxious and filled with stress. There were already at least five or six strong creatures moving through the forest on this side of the camp, and this was supposed to be just the smallest percent of the main force.

It was then that I knew we would be over-run. Most likely this would end in many deaths and a retreat, and what that would mean for Yetera was unknown. The voice urging me to hurry and find the seed was itching at the back of my neck. We didn’t have as much time as we thought, that was for sure.

As the moon disappeared, the sun rose to take its place. The next two hours were uneventful, besides listening to the other Adventurers waking and rushing about making preparations. No one was allowed to sleep any longer, and the remaining food was served as breakfast.

“I’ve brought some rice for you.” This was Luther, holding a bowl of rice topped with a meaty stew. He sat down next to me and set my bowl of food down in front of me. He didn’t give me any time to speak, “I’ve always considered you a good friend, and I hope you know that.”

I picked up my bowl of food and began stirring the rice and stew, “I do, and I consider you a good friend as well.”

He smiled, “You probably feel betrayed, but I hope you understand how they felt too. It was a shock to lose Cid that way, and then to see you slice the enemy apart in a single attack…” He paused, “Cid was in our original party… from the time we began adventuring, we were all childhood friends.” I nodded and let him finish speaking. “Cid was someone we knew for more than a third of our life, someone we spent time with daily.” He turned to me, “You probably know what it feels like to lose someone close to you.”

I immediately thought of Aaron and Isabelle, the two people I was undoubtedly closest to. How badly it had hurt to lose them, and how angry I was at the world on their passing. I tried to imagine how I would have reacted if I had felt Briele or Bryan may have been able to save them—even hypothetically. How I would have viewed them in that moment.

“Just know that their anger was misdirected at you—misguided… They were lacking crucial information, but in their grief and rage disregarded that entirely. People do not act rationally in those situations. That’s all I really wanted you to understand.” He finished and finally began eating his food.

I understood that I was also being foolish. That if I was in their shoes I would most definitely have reacted similarly. It was harder for me to see it, harder for me to remove the gauze covering my eyes… because I was numb.

I was numb to Cid’s passing, and even numb to the thought of losing my closest friends. It didn’t hit me as hard as it should have, and that scared me. “You’re right.” I said to Luther between bites. “I know I can forgive them, and I will. It will just take me a bit of time to break down that wall.” It still felt like there was a barrier there, though.

He put a hand on my shoulder and smiled, a bit of stew gravy on his face. “That’s all that needs to be said. We need to work as one if we wish to survive this.”

“Right.” We heard a ruckus from below almost immediately after. It was my entire party making their way up the scaffolding with bowls in hand. No one was missing, and the mood seemed relatively good. This would be our last supper of sorts.

Our meal didn’t experience any interruption and the sun was only now rising over the horizon: if I would guess it was sometime around 6 A.M. It would be another two hours before the expected tide of monsters arrived.

When it took place, the first battle wasn’t on our side, but at the front wall. A relatively nimble and small beast decided to cross the barren land and maneuver through the miniature pathways. It ended up walking directly up to the barrier screening the camp and head-butting it.

At first the monster was confused as to why it walked into air and received a knock on its head. Then it became determined to bust through. It jumped directly up onto the wall and entered inside the barrier only to see dozens of battle-ready faces staring it down.

The creature didn’t last more than ten seconds with the hail of blows and spells that pummeled it; but this was definitely the beginning. Within ten minutes of its death another beast grew curious.

From the way it sniffed the air, I got the impression this one had a feel for the presence of magic, and it wandered close to our camp. This one had to be killed outside the barrier and camouflage before it communicated its concerns. But that fight was likely to draw even more attention to us.

Anxiety started to rise and the tension in the air could be cut with a knife. Everyone looked outward with trepidation as bodies began to pile. This was only the beginning; the main force weren’t expected for a while yet.

Each new monster dying at our doorstep increased the number of subsequent encounters. The smell of blood, the presence of magic in the air: it was a beacon of light in the morning darkness. We had hundreds of people currently, and so the pace of battle was bearable for now.

Every lone beast that wandered too close was slaughtered in seconds. Over fifty people along the wall using spells and arrows made quick work of them. It was obvious though that this wouldn’t last for long. We would eventually be under siege by hundreds of beasts pounding into the wall, from multiple sides.

These beasts weren’t stupid, and we’d passed the point at which any of them would leave the area. Every one of them could tell something was amiss.

We had only about fifty people on the north wall, as the action was focused mostly on the front. But that changed shortly. Mobs began to come from each side and none was spared.

“Orders are that melee remain on the wall and ranged will deal with any encounters until melee are needed,” Bryan said. The phrase ‘until melee are needed’, most likely meant when we were literally being overrun.

It was easy to dispatch the first beasts that came curiously towards us. They weren’t prepared for a hail of spells or arrows puncturing them from invisibility. Unfortunately, the mirage spell was not impervious.

Casting spells through it and the beasts attacking through it had weakened it considerably. Eventually, it disappeared like a wisp of smoke in the air and we were finally revealed. Every beast in the vicinity turned their attention to this wooden fortress that no doubt they found completely out of place.

Even if they weren’t acting at the direction of a master plan, we were a source of food for them. The numbers of beasts coming our way multiplied rapidly. It wasn’t possible to fight a single beast with fifty Adventurers anymore. We were now fighting in our respective groups.

Fortunately, Corbin was on our side of the wall. “Pick them up based on location from left to right! Only after you’ve defeated your own can you look to what’s happening with other groups!” Corbin yelled. Our battles varied greatly depending on what type of beast we faced.

Our first pull, fortunately, was a crocodile-type of monster that simply couldn’t reach us on the wall. Bryan didn’t even have anything to tank as we pummeled it from above with ranged weapons and spells. It rushed off into the forest covered in wounds as soon as it realized retaliation was impossible.

“I think we’ll be forced to go down among them sooner than later,” Bryan said. “As more come, we won’t be able to kill them, since in our group we have more melee than we have ranged. If we are down among them they won’t be able to flee, either.”

As if learning their lesson, only beasts that could scale the wall came forward into the exposed area beyond the wall.

Corbin’s group managed to kill their foe before the next beast ran towards us. Even then, it was terribly close. More and more started to appear from the edges of the forest. “Is this… really only the front-runners?” Zachary couldn’t help but ask. The strength of these creatures was already terrifying.

Those at the front of the camp were dealing with several times more pressure than us, and we already had at least fifteen beasts approaching. In terms of numbers, that would be merely three people per beast. And was only going to grow worse…

Some of the beasts approaching fell into the pits below which alleviated a bit of pressure. Their moans and cries could be heard as they hadn’t died instantly, but were slowly bleeding out. Archers lit fire arrows and sent them flying out and into the pits, adding to the monster’s woes.

The time for strategy was disappearing quickly. No matter how we fought, or how organized we were, eventually it would be all out mayhem. Our group’s next foe was a gigantic furry foxlike beast that offered itself up on a silver platter.

Its burly body pushed into the wall and reached up over, as if resting its gigantic chest against the wall. All that was in front of us was a head and two gigantic and dangerous claws. It’s only source of attack was dragging the claws across the wall and swatting at our feet.

If there was anything that I learned from Cid’s mishap… it was to no longer hold back. Holding back would get people killed, and now was definitely not the time. I summoned Mana Scythe at half my MP.

I would usually cast Inspect, but there was no strategy involved in this fight at all. It was all our melee swinging wildly without any sophisticated tactics. We didn’t have any room to maneuver or plan optimum flanking positions. This would be a brawl.

Bryan and Zachary rushed forward and began slashing and stabbing at the two claws while Briele and Rot assaulted the fox-monster’s eyes. Vichi had summoned an ally, which was outside the wall on the floor below, stabbing wildly at the beast’s exposed back and lower limbs while Pixie floated above it.

The beast really was set up to be hit hard, and I opted for a completely different approach to my usual one. I Phase Stepped directly towards its face and slashed across its neck. Mana Scythe seared flesh and sliced deep.

Blood exploded outward and splattered across my face up until Mana Scythe could no longer be moved. By that time though, half of the monster’s neck had been severed and the beast was dead. Its flesh smoked as I dislodged Mana Scythe with a jolt. I cast Harvest Soul immediately afterwards.

Congratulations! You have reached level 52. As a reward for leveling up, you have been granted three stat points!

A message I was not expecting at all welcomed me. I quickly opened my stats.

Current EXP: 22740/150000 LEVEL: 52 Soul Harvester Eternal

HP: 4145/4145 MP: 1509/2958

STR: 45+5

AGI: 54+18

DEX: 40 +5

VIT: 30 +6

INT: 55 +21

Available: 3

Harvest Soul: 1129 HP: 2482 MP: 2482

I was baffled for a moment before it hit me: I had never checked my status after killing the Dragon Eel. That victory must have given an extraordinary amount of EXP that put me right on the cusp of level 52. Still, that meant this fox in front of me was worth a little over 23k EXP.

I wasn’t really lacking in anything at the moment, and ended up putting all three points into STR. My weapon was incredibly sharp, it was my own physical power that was stopping me from making deeper cuts. If I was stronger, I could have lopped the head off that beast in one swoop instead of only cutting halfway through.

Bryan walked forward and placed a hand heavily onto my shoulder, “Good to have you back Joseph. I’m also sorry about before.”

I smiled, “It’s good to be back.” I would hold nothing back for the sake of my friends. It was the least I could do for the support they’d shown me. They’d given me hope and a goal back on Egestor when I was nobody.

“Enough with the reunion.” Zachary barked, “help me with this.” He was currently struggling to get the corpse of the beast off the wall. “I’ll take the right arm, Bryan you take the left.”

Bryan nodded and grasped the left, I stayed directly in the middle and placed my foot on the beast’s mangled face, “PUSH!” He yelled. With all our effort we managed to dislodge the body from the wall and send it hurdling backwards. It smacked hard into the pathway before awkwardly slipping into a pit and disappearing into the flames below. A smell of burnt fur quickly filled the air and soured our faces.

There was no time for any celebrating. Behind that single beast were ten more waiting to approach. Things were getting ugly, and fast. The fighting continued in a similar fashion and the EXP was coming in quickly.

The beasts were mindlessly throwing themselves at the wall and at us with seemingly no hesitation or thought of retreat. Their diversity was growing now too, and there was a line of monsters proficient in ranged attacks shooting spells and projectiles at us from the ground.

“The walls are no longer key! If you are losing a ranged battle, feel free to take the fight to them! Hold nothing back!” Corbin yelled along the lines. The real battle was starting now.

“Are we ready?” Bryan looked over everyone. “Some of us may not come back up onto this wall,” he said with a voice stern.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” I replied. Everyone else echoed my sentiment unwaveringly.

“Alright, it’s on you Briele,” Bryan said. She nodded her head and then cast Slow Fall on the entire group.

“Here we go!” Bryan yelled before jumping over the walls edge and levitating to the ground below. We followed behind him and landed on a ground caked with blood and pieces of flesh.

Smoke surrounded us on all sides as all the pits were burning fiercely. Every breeze wafted the smell of death across my face. The air was uncomfortably hot, and ash and sweat quickly covered my forehead.

“We have to push forward!” Bryan yelled. “Hold nothing back! Those five casters are our goal!” We needed to get to a group of range beasts who were currently chucking spells from the top of an earth embankment without opposition. They had already claimed at least three lives along the wall.

Bryan didn’t have any of his usual hesitation. Normally, our goal in every encounter was to minimize damage, but there was no concern for that at all. He rushed the closest beast and smashed into it with his shield before stabbing his sword into its gut with all his might.

The beast landed a clean swipe across his back that rent his flesh. Blood sprayed but Bryan didn’t show the slightest bit of hesitation. He had full faith in Luther, whom quickly cast Heal and topped up his HP.

Zachary and I both leapt into the air and dug our respective weapons into each shoulder of the monster before pulling with all our might. As if performing a combo attack, all three of us fell away from the beast at the same time. A mournful wail of pain and agony escaped the beast’s maw as it collapsed backward. Blood erupted from its severed gut and both arms spun through the air. It landed with a crash and slipped into a fiery pit.

Our destructive power was immense, but the risk was also incredibly dangerous. “Kill them before they kill us!” Zachary yelled. He was like a bloodthirsty warrior and none of his previous reserved demeanor was evident. Kill them fast. Don’t give them a chance to react—a great plan.

“We keep pushing!” Vichi yelled from behind. She summoned several treants and vines from the earth that started to strike and wrap the nearest enemies. One of the foes in front of us was completely caught off balance as several of her vines grasped its legs. The treants rushed it like a line of football players and dragged it into a fiery hell with no regard for their own safety.

The ranged beasts were now just a dozen meters ahead of us, and we were now their full focus. “Briele!” Bryan called from the front.

“Got it!” She summoned a wall of earth ahead of us that completely obstructed their view and blocked any projectiles flying at us. We managed to cover half the distance to the monsters before the wall exploded into dirt and dust.

A miniature smoke cloud was in front of us from the explosion. One of the beasts had shot an exploding fireball from its mouth that held quite the power. We were exposed and still needed several more meters before we could even begin to break up these spellcasters.

“Wait here until I’m set!” Vichi yelled from the back. Her hands were placed together and a low whisper of intangible words escaped her mouth. Her treants rushed forward and blocked as many projectiles as possible before despawning from the sheer amount of damage.

Bryan held up his shield as we all did our best to line up behind him. Spines and spikes whipped by that caused my hair to flutter. Another giant fireball collided with Bryan’s shield, but he expertly bashed it at the last moment and sent it exploding into open air.

“How long?” Bryan yelled. Even if he blocked the next one, the explosion would take an arm. “I’m not confident I can tank another, please hurry!”

“Done!” Vichi yelled from the back. I watched as a wall of vines erupted on each side of the five spellcasting beasts. “AoE them!” The vines intertwined together and formed an impenetrable mesh they couldn’t quite escape from. She spawned treants inside the wall that attacked wildly.

Red and blue runic circles appeared around mine and Briele’s feet. The runes circled and expanded randomly as if pulsing like a beating heart. This was about to be some serious overkill—no mercy.

Briele’s spell formed before mine, and I recognized it immediately. A blizzard spawned above the trapped beasts and began pelting the monsters with freezing cold. The chunks of ice were the size of basketballs and as sharp as spears. Their wails were drown out by the subzero winds.

A moment later, one meteor after the other fell from the sky like bombs. The first impact caused ice and dirt and blood to fly into the sky. “Careful!” I yelled. The ground below us was quaking from the impacts and it would be easy to fall in.

The snowstorm continued and several more meteors fell into the wall of vines. We were all given a massive amount of EXP.

Congratulations! You have reached level 53. As a reward for leveling up, you have been granted three stat points!

Current EXP: 10020/153000 LEVEL: 53 Soul Harvester Eternal

HP: 4145/4145 MP: 1620/2958

STR: 48+5

AGI: 54+18

DEX: 40 +5

VIT: 30 +6

INT: 55 +21

Available: 3

Harvest Soul: 1129 HP: 2482 MP: 2482

It wasn’t just me: everyone was leveling at an incredible rate. Everyone else had already leveled at least once. I didn’t hesitate to put another three points into STR. “Cover me!” I said. Several beasts had already slipped away from Soul Harvest. I didn’t want to miss this chance.

The wall of vines came down slowly at Vichi’s command and the burnt, mangled corpses came into view. I casted Soul Harvest on each one without hesitation and felt a burst of energy surge through me.

My hit point cap was now 4245, MP 3058 and Harvest Soul was contributing 1134 HP and 2582 MP.