Part Twenty-Five – Counterattack

I spun around, slicing the heads off of several Goblins, then launched a [Rot] at an approaching wolf. Geez this is irritating. We’re only halfway down the ramp and we’re already being swarmed by the monsters. This has turned into a slog.

I had to start considering to pull back, as their resistance was fiercer than I’d suspected it would be. We’d only gotten this far because the monsters were so spread out along the wall, but as we approached, more and more monsters headed our way.

This isn’t quite how I wanted to do this, but we’ll start to have casualties if this keeps up. Guess it’s time for plan B then.

“Fre-. Brad, hand those Combustion Bombs out to everyone! Then set them to thirty seconds and roll ‘em down the ramp.”

While they were doing that, me and Cameron held off the remaining monsters. Including a pair of Minotaurs that were late to the party. Cameron shoved his backwards off the ramp with his axe, while mine got a [Rot] to the face.

“Kid, we’re ready to go!”

“Then hightail it outta here! It’s about to get a little warm.”

*FWOOOM!*

I’d kept a single Combustion Bomb on me so I could make a little room for us to flee. The blast sent all the nearby monster tumbling backwards, but didn’t set the ramp on fire. Though that was fine. What I had planned for them next would solve that problem for me.

*FWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*

We’d managed to make it back up the ramp in time to watch the fireworks. The blast wasn’t as good as the time with the Orc General, but it was still impressive in its own right. And at least one or two must’ve fallen off of the ramp, as there were explosions alongside it. Most of the monsters not on the ramp were instantly incinerated, with only a few surviving the conflagration.

“Alicia, did we get ‘em?”

“No, they have some kind of barrier that keeps anything from hitting them.”

Damn, I was certain that would work. They must be skilled mages if they can block that. I guess I’ll have to give up on dealing with them this time around.

Those robe-wearing monsters were the ones responsible for deflecting the mages' spells. I’d wanted to try and kill a number of them, so as to improve our chances of surviving.

They must’ve been more cautious this time around. During the last attack I managed to actually blow up the ramps along our segment, but this one doesn’t even look all that damaged. Those things are smart. I’ll need to think of a better plan for next time.

“What do we do now kid?”

“Finish these monsters off. We can at least kill as many as possible.”

***

*Clang, crash…crack!*

“Gyaaaaa…….”

“Mraaa……”

“Haa…haaa..is that the last of them?”

“Yep. We’re done here.”

After having been nearly wiped out, the monsters had retreated. Though this time they’d abandoned the ramps. I’d already heard the NPCs talking about dismantling them.

This part doesn’t make sense to me. I know that I don’t really know anything about siege warfare, but why do they keep attacking in such small waves? Wouldn’t you want to throw your entire army all at the enemy at once? Or at least a significant portion? Breaking it up piecemeal like this seems inefficient. But then again, this is a Dungeon. There’s no telling what exactly any of these monsters are thinking.

Either way, we’d successfully repelled the monsters again. Which of course meant one thing. Loooooot!!!

“And where do you think you’re going?”

“Oh, hey Alicia. Would you believe I’m going to the bathroom?”

“Not even a little. You know we have to report after we fight, so why are you trying to run off for something you could do after?”

“Because I don’t want to do that?”

“Yeah, that’s what I figured. Come on Michael, you’re not getting out of this.”

Damnit! I’m starting to hate this Dungeon more than the Labyrinth. It’s way too complicated! What happened to putting us in front of some monsters and telling us to kill them?

Just because it seemed better didn’t mean it was. There was something gratifying about being able to just kill a bunch of monsters without worrying about it. These weirdly bureaucratic meetings were extremely inefficient, slowing the rate we could kill monsters.

There’s a lot of things that don’t really add up here. These NPCs are a little too human, but at the same time aren’t. It’s like someone studied humans and programmed everything they knew about them into a machine. The only ones to seem even remotely normal are the Commander and Archmage, but they’re rarely around. There’s just so many unanswered questions.

The System is incredibly powerful, anyone should be able to see that. But what’s the point of all this? Why go to the effort of making these Dungeons? Does it have something to do with World Decay? I’d put money on it. The way this all started is too suspect. They have to be connected, but I don’t know how.

“Michael?”

“Hm? Oh, what is it Alicia?”

“Stop thinking. I can see you working yourself up by overthinking something, so stop.”

“Yeah, but. Don’t you think it’s weird? We know next to nothing about the System. It’s already been four months, but we’re no closer to understanding any of this.”

“I think that’s fine for now. We don’t have the means to look for answers, we can barely survive at the moment. It probably won’t even be us who figure this all out. You’re just going to stress yourself out if you worry about it.”

“Yeah, you’re right. But since when did you give me advice?”

“Hmph, I can be deep too Michael. You don’t know everything about me.”

“And now I’m getting attitude. Yay.”

“Come on, we’ll be late.”

Why do I feel like she’s said that before?

***

“Good work everyone. With every battle, we get a little closer to exterminating the monsters. A little closer to the day we are no longer under constant threat. And on that note, we’ve located a few more targets for elimination.”

Oh boy, more missions for us to do. How exciting.

Call me pessimistic if you must, but I wasn’t exactly eager to go after that disastrous first mission. I know it was my own fault, but I was certain that damn pig would show up again. I know it’s still alive. How was a mystery, some kind of sixth-sense that warned me it was still out there.

“We currently have three assignments to give out. The first is to destroy a production facility that the monsters are running. I’m certain some of you have noticed the robe-wearing monsters during the assaults.” I could swear he glanced at me when he said this. I didn’t do anything wrong, I just wanted to kill those pesky monsters.

“They are a Demi-Human race called Mivians. They’re a particularly dangerous species that excels at the use of magic and Alchemy. They also happen to be extremely intelligent, thus making them our primary target.”

“Next is a repeat of the earlier mission, sabotaging a supply cache. Destroying the monsters' food supply is critical to lowering their moral and weakening their cohesion as an army. If they begin to starve, then they’ll turn on each other, making our job easier.”

I’d rather not pick that one. I know I’m just being superstitious, but there’s a chance that pig will show up and I’m not ready to fight it again. For one, I need to get new armor to replace what broke and for two I want to learn a little more about Grudge Magic. I’m certain it’ll be just the thing I need to kill it.

“Finally, we’ve located a grouping of wolves we’d like killed. There are at least three or four D-Ranks leading packs in the area, making this the priority target. While we have yet to identify the Leader of the Beast Brigade, we have reason to believe it’s a Wolf-type monster. Eliminating its underlings will go a long way towards breaking the pack’s cohesion.”

I’m pretty sure real wolves aren’t that fickle. Why monsters are like that is a complete mystery. Actually, everything about monsters is a complete mystery. If only there was some kind of guide book for these things. A bestiary, like in games. Eh, what are the odds?

“I’ll leave the actual lineups to you. Tomorrow at noon, you’re all to report to the locations designated for each mission. Though I will mention that if for whatever reason you are unable to come to an agreement, there will be punishment.”

After that thinly veiled threat, the Commander left the room. And as if to add insult to injury, everyone received the same notice from the System at the same time.

::Dungeon Scenario Update:

Remaining Challengers: 977.

Mid-bosses remaining: 3 of 3.

Monster Army Remaining: 89.64%

Time until escape is possible: 4 Days 22 Hours 22 Minutes.

The Dungeon Boss will arrive one day after all Mid-bosses and 90% of the Monster Army is killed.::

Welp it’s official, I hate this place more than the Labyrinth.

***

[Forzerenth’s POV]

“Hello gentlemen. How are you this fine day?”

“Oh, Director! We’re fine, thank you for asking.”

“Excellent, Excellent! So how do our mercenary friends fare?”

“So far so good Director. We didn’t time the first attempt, seeing as we hadn’t expected them to fail, but they’ve already gotten past the point where the other attempts failed.”

“Oh that is most welcome news, most welcome indeed!”

Good. If they successfully clear this Dungeon, then I can use it as leverage in later negotiations. The Executive Board is already on our side and I’ve swayed half of the other Directors. Only Wallace and Walters remain.

“Oh Director? You probably shouldn’t stay here much longer. The scouts say a group of monsters will be here soon. I have to say, these periodic attacks are just annoying.”

“Oh tsk tsk. You should be happy you’re not on the Kyushu line. I hear the most disturbing things about what’s happening there.”

“Ugh, don’t remind me sir. I heard a rumor that we might get sent as reinforcements sooner or later. Whatever’s causing all that, I want no part of.”

No one wanted to go there. For most encampments, an attack usually consisted of a few dozen monsters, or maybe two hundred at most. The forts there were experiencing attacks far worse than that.

“Do settle down. I’ll do my best to keep that from occurring. After all, you’re all needed here. Who’d protect the people of Ethiopia if not you?”

“Why thank you Director! That means so much to us. Now if only our superiors could learn that.”

“Ohohohohohohoh. Ah if only. However, you were quite right, I really should be going. I have an appointment tomorrow with Director Wallace that includes some very important negotiations.”

“Very well Director, I’ll escort you back.”

I’ve always said that in times of change, the first to strike is the first to win. We haven’t seen how this will affect the global economy in the long-term, nor how those who hunt monsters will be treated. I’ll take the first shot to ensure that it goes the way I want it to