Part One Hundred and Six

“Erhem, let’s begin. We have ten hours until the monsters conduct their final attack, and much to do.”

So spoke the Commander upon starting the meeting. Considering that the general consensus around the fort was that the upcoming Boss fight would be easy, this was fairly shocking. But we really should’ve known better. Nothing was ever easy around here.

“Uh, aren’t there like less than ten thousand monsters left? I kinda thought that that meant that the monsters wouldn’t stand a chance against us tomorrow.”

“And that’s the kind of behavior I was worried about! Have you forgotten that this is a Monster Army!? The leader will be far more dangerous than even the Cyclops you defeated. No matter how powerful a single monster is, they will never match what this thing is capable of!”

“Erherm! Commander? Perhaps it would be best to let me take it from here?”

“Ah, yes, of course Aliver. I forgot myself for a moment.”

“Understandable under the circumstances, sir. But please keep in mind that none of these fine warriors are familiar with how Monster Armies operate.”

“Yes. Yes, you’re right. Very well. Then I shall away to oversee the soldiers preparations. Gooday.”

I’ve got a really bad feeling about where this is going. The air feels charged, like a powder keg about to blow. We’re about to have something absurd dropped on us, aren’t we?

“Erherm. So to start, I should expect that none of you are aware of why we use the term Monster Army? Well, I suppose beginning from there is appropriate.”

“As many of you no doubt know, monsters are ferocious creatures, possessed of a bloodlust second-to-none. No other form of life is more combative, except for perhaps the Undead, though whether they qualify as life is an argument for a different time.”

“The issue arises from the fact that monsters are unwilling to work with those outside of their own clans or tribes. They’ll even attack members of their own species if provoked enough. However, there are occasionally specimens that overturn this principal, either coercing or dominating other monsters. How they do it doesn’t matter. The end result is almost always a Monster Army, or as they are sometimes called, a Stampede.”

“Now unlike mortal armies, Monster Armies do not have chains of command, or not to the same degree we do. Killing the monsters in charge will make some flee or turn feral again, but the Army will just replace them eventually so long as the monster at the source remains. Killing the leaders helped to stall their efforts to attack us, letting us receive reinforcements to survive what comes now. But one fact remains unchanged.”

“With all of its lieutenants in charge of maintaining order now dead, the Army’s Progenitor has revealed itself. And unfortunately, it has brought its guards as backup, a force of close to twenty thousand.”

Just about all of us gasped at that. We’d all expected for the Boss to have guards, but that many was beyond even the most cautious estimates. It was basically like having a fifth of the Army come back to life.

“Now you know why the Commander was so frustrated. But it gets even worse, I’m afraid. This new force is composed of the Progenitor's strongest forces. Most of the monsters will be C-Rank, with a handful of elites possibly rivaling the leaders we already eliminated. In addition, the Progenitor most likely possesses some ability to strengthen its subordinates even further.”

Crap! Why are my bad hunches always right!? Guh, this is going to end badly.

“However, we fully expected that this may happen. Our espionage efforts have already revealed the Progenitor’s identity. That’s where you all come in. We will turn the tables on the monsters, and eradicate them!”

Oh shit, now even the Archmage is getting worked up! Come on dude, stay in character!

“The Progenitor and its reinforcements are all Baculth, the sheep-like Demi-Human race that excels at both pack tactics and individual combat. The presence of a Progenitor will only reinforce these traits, making a frontal confrontation extremely disadvantageous for us. However, it is highly unlikely that they all belong to the same pack, meaning that so long as the Progenitor is dealt with, then the Army will fall apart with minimal effort on our part.”

“Which is why we’ve chosen to launch a preemptive attack, one which you all will be leading.”

Those words hung over us, dark and threatening. It was almost like being told to go on a suicide mission. Or maybe exactly like that.

***

[Jansen’s POV]

“Gahahahahahahahaha! I must say, I didn’t think those drones could come up with such a gutsy move! To think that this is their plan! Ahahahahaha!”

“Well I’m glad you’re amused. Can you keep laughing like that when it’s our asses on the line later?”

“Of course! After all, you need to send the best to make the insane happen!”

“Haaah, why’d I bother?”

Sampson had been like this the entire time since they left the meeting, greatly annoying Jansen. It seemed like the man simply thought of this as yet another opportunity to show off, something he was quite eager to do.

“Hahahaha! I can’t wait!”

I think your brain has finally rotted through.

***

[Braddock’s POV]

“This plan seems… rough, to say the least. I’ve come to expect more from the NPCs.”

“Just goes to show that even they aren’t perfect. Not that I really blame them for this either. From what they’ve said, there’s a good chance the monsters would break through the wall if we tried to fight them the same way we’ve been doing.”

“It won’t be pretty, that’s for sure. There’s going to be more than a few deaths. I can already see Kalia working herself to the bone to keep everyone up and going.”

“Tch, the girl needs to learn when to let go. I’m surprised she hasn’t tried to talk to Jansen since he bailed on us.”

“She did, actually. It went as well as you’d expect. Granted, she did only try the one time, which is odd for her. She’s more stubborn than she appears.”

“Hmph, so you say. All I see is a naïve little girl. Well, should we be going? We still have an appointment to make.”

“Aye, let’s get to work.”

***

[Brad's POV]

“Huh? You wanna what!?”

“You don’t think it’s a good idea? I think it gives us a sort recognition that no one else will have. Think about it.”

“I have. The concept is sound, and would certainly help people recognize who were are right away. And bringing in more people would allow us to do much more than we’ve done until now. But we should be much more careful about picking a name. We definitely shouldn’t pick something that focuses on a trait we all share. That would exclude other people from joining us.”

“Ah, yeah, you’re right. Huh, I guess thinking up a name will be harder than I thought.”

“Don’t worry about it. We’ve got plenty of time to do that. Besides, we still haven’t done anything of note yet. We can’t exactly go about recruiting when we’ve got nothing to show off.”

“Hm, good point. Think we can pull something off against the Dungeon Boss?”

“Uh, maybe? There’s a lot of competition though. The kid's group, Sampson and his growing army of berserkers, there’s even that battle obsessed nutcase. And who knows whether we’ll actually get to fight the Boss.”

“Ugh. Why’d they have to make this so complicated!?”

“They’re just trying to increase our chances of winning. We’ll just need to find a way to show off regardless of what happens. And I may have a way to even up the odds a little.”

***

[Tavin’s POV]

For Tavin, talk of an impeding suicide mission was just business as usual. In fact, it just riled him up even more. After all, if the NPCs had decided that their best chance of winning was basically a gamble, then this would definitely be a fight worth waiting for.

However, there was an undeniable fact that Tavin was but one person. He might be able to handle groups of monsters on his own, but an entire army was out of the question. He’d need someone to guard his back, someone who could stand side-by-side with him.

With is exactly what led to this.

“Please! Take! Me! With! You!?”

“…Why was that last one a question? And why are you asking me? I thought you were obsessing on Michael.”

“Of course!! He is my destined rival!! My eternal foe!! But I cannot ask such a favor of him! And so I have come to you, so that you may beseech him on my behalf! Please fair maiden! Grant me this humble request!”

“Okay, okay! Just, stop shouting! Yeesh, now I see why Michael is so annoyed by you. Haaah, fine, I’ll talk to him. But don’t get your hopes up. He’s really against working with too many people.”

“That is more than enough! I’m certain that even he cannot go against one close to his heart!”

“Uh, what? Er, whatever. Just follow me.”

And so Alicia led him away from the training grounds, where she’d been practicing until he’d accosted her, and guided him to Michael’s room. He’d told her that he was going to go get a nap in before the battle, so he was sure to still be there now.

However, when the two turned the final corner, what they saw was quite shocking. Michael was standing in the hallway, and a group of men were all kneeling on the ground before him.

They both wondered whether or not Michael had beaten them up for a moment, until they heard one of them practically scream.

“Please, take us with you!”

There were people who thought the same thing I did?

Thus thought Tavin, a weirdo who at least knew he was a weirdo.