Chapter 597: Heroic Rescues at Monskon City

When Ankrastor stumbled back through the gates of the city, covered in the blood of monsters, he had Goralians cheering for him on every side. It should have been the best day of his life, the culmination of everything he had been working for, yet all he could think was that it wasn't enough.

He'd gone out to do his part, taking on the hordes that would have swept over Monskon City. It had been time to pull out all the tricks he had been saving, like the river of molten fire. When larger monsters had overcome those, he'd fought to his limits and beyond, stopping the tide. The armor Tori had worked so hard on had saved his life until it hung in tatters. And now, as he retreated to the defenses, he didn't think the city would survive.

The biggest problem for him was the strange slime-like monsters, which his fire rolled off - they were slow, but he had no solution for when they reached the walls. As he walked back inside, he saw that the city was plagued by flying creatures, a step stronger than the normal monsters.

Rallia was fighting atop the Hunter's Guild, taking down one of the flying monsters with each targeted arrow. But they were mobbing her, and Aglahai could barely keep them at bay - the old man was tough, but he was slowing down from his wounds.

Where were the others? Ankrastor had come to know some of the other hunters who had defended Monskon City alongside him, even if they weren't at the same level. Unfortunately, it looked like they were fully occupied defending the walls, which were under assault at multiple points. It was just too much for them to keep up.

If Kai returned, Ankrastor knew that it would be over in an instant. Part of him still hoped that they'd see that monstrous form show up to save them, yet he knew that the incursion was hitting everywhere at once and the chances weren't good.

"Could you go back out there?"

The abrupt voice made him jump and turn, shocked to see that Gunjin Granfian was standing nearby. He must have come through a portal, but either Ankrastor was too tired to notice or the old man was more subtle than he looked.

"I have rejuvenation potions," Gunjin explained impatiently. "If I give you one, could you keep the horde back?"

"The problem isn't stamina," Ankrastor answered tersely, and not entirely honestly. "I can't take out those slimes, no matter what I try."

"Damn. This is going to be rough."

"What's going on? Why is there such a large secondary wave?"

"Kontlan City fell," Gunjin said grimly. "There was a city-destroyer we missed, a subtle one that melted their walls. It took all the elites we could spare to kill it, and meanwhile entire hordes merged. We sent them here, hoping that Monskon City could stop them..."

"This is all we have." Ankrastor waved a hand over the grim defenders. "Don't you have anyone else? Can Kai spare the time to come here?"

"We can barely keep up in Krysal as it is. No, you have to stop them here or it will get a lot worse for Goralia. Let me see these slimes."

Ankrastor hadn't expected that, but at least he could help in one way. He vaulted up the stairs of the city wall, Gunjin following silently, and they found a good vantage point. There they saw the monsters pushing toward the gates, and it was what he feared: the defenders could kill most, but their Class abilities bounced off the slimes, which were forming a vanguard pushing toward the gates.

"Alright." Gunjin rolled his neck to either side. "You and your friends will surpass me soon, but not everything I've tried failed. I can handle this."

Was the old man actually going to fight instead of just teleporting and coordinating? Ankrastor knew that he actually had a fair amount of power, but everyone always treated him as a failed elite while simultaneously giving him an odd level of respect.

In any case, Gunjin didn't throw himself into battle, he instead extended both arms and began summoning mana. Ankrastor could feel a rush of power that he associated with teleportation, but he didn't see the portals and didn't understand what was going on. Was this mere preparation?

A group of rougher monsters that had been shielded by the slimes roared and charged at the gates, aiming to batter them down. Just before they arrived, green portals opened up in front of them and they vanished inside. Ankrastor was a little disappointed... and then he realized that the linked portals were emerald specks in the sky.

The attacking monsters tumbled from above, falling faster and faster, gaining incredible speed before they struck the ground. Yet Gunjin had placed the height of his portals perfectly so that they fell on top of the slimes. Their ability to resist mana abilities clearly didn't extend to the impacts of monsters falling at such speeds, and the result was a messy explosion. When it was done, an entire wave of the monsters had been annihilated.

All of the defenders cheered, but Ankrastor looked to Gunjin, and he saw that the old man was sweating and his fingers trembled. He'd been pushing himself throughout the incursion and there was clearly a limit to how much he could use portals in combat. This bought them time, but...

"You have to handle the rest." Gunjin handed him a set of three slim potion vials. "If you don't stem the tide, Goralia is going to be the surprise victim of this incursion. I'll check with the others... but I don't know what else I can do for you."

With that, he stepped off the wall, falling into one of his own portals. It sounded like they were on their own, and despite the recent turn in their favor, Ankrastor didn't like their odds. There were still a lot of monsters coming toward them, fresh against the weary defenders.

At least he could do a little. Ankrastor drank one of the potions as he ran through Monskon City, using that renewal to burn some of the flying monsters out of the sky. When he reached the Hunter's Guild he offered the other two to Aglahai and Rallia - the old man accepted to heal his wounds, but Rallia insisted that the last one go to a younger hunter who had received serious wounds.

"Gunjin says there might not be anyone else coming," Ankrastor said after finishing his terse explanation. "What do you think are our chances of holding?"

"The question is whether we can finish off the flying ones." Rallia launched another arrow even as she spoke, impaling one more. "There aren't usually so many in the air, so our defenses aren't set up for it."

"Let me take a hand, then."

Ankrastor joined her in the aerial fight, bringing down as many as he could. Because he had strong melee skills as well, his presence defended Rallia, allowing Aglahai to go down to the gates. With a heavy hitter there, the defenders started to get the upper hand.

Soon enough, the skies were beginning to empty of monsters. The horde had split up somewhat around the city, no longer attacking the gates so much. Other cities would have to deal with the remainder, but it looked like a manageable mass to Ankrastor. That had been their job... so why did Rallia look so unhappy?

"Please tell me I'm seeing things," she said faintly.

"What?" Ankrastor turned to look, at first seeing nothing but a stream of monsters. Nothing so large or dangerous, and fewer than before.

And then he realized that she was looking higher up: there was a swarm of flying monsters following the main horde. That had to be double the numbers they had just struggled to fight off. Unless Ankrastor could stop them, they'd savage the walls, crippling their defense and letting even the remaining monsters destroy the gates.

But what could he do? Even his largest wave of fire wouldn't reach that high, and he couldn't take down a swarm like that one at a time. Rallia had a few arrow tricks, but she didn't look confident either. It really seemed like, unless they got reinforcements, they were finished, and yet he knew that no one was coming.

Maybe that was part of being a Goralian too. Some of the cowardly hunters began to lock themselves away, but Ankrastor stood with the others at the city walls as they faced the end of the horde that looked to be the end of them as well.

Before it arrived, another portal flickered not far from them. Ankrastor turned, hoping for Kai, but it was a different muscular man... Lofgan Tonjin?

"Lofgan?" Rallia frowned in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"Saving my home," Lofgan answered in a voice so quiet it was barely audible over the sounds of the battle. He turned away from the city to face the horde.

At first Ankrastor had no idea what to expect - would Lofgan really jump down there and fight the horde himself? Yet he didn't seem to be looking down, instead focusing on the flying monsters. As he waited, Lofgan began to sway, whistling a low tune that was lost in the noises. Something was surging around him, not quite like anything they'd seen before.

Then Ankrastor saw his soul and realized that he had underestimated the man.

<

Name: Lofgan Tonjin

Total Power: 653

Whistlewind Advanced Class: 6 (318)

Waterborn: Oncedrowned (99)

Physique Level: D-0 (200)

Soul Level: 6 (36)

>

Lofgan raised a hand and brought a storm down from the sky, sweeping over the monstrous horde. Water battered them, but the true threat was the wind. Ankrastor saw one of the first flying monsters split in half, as if cut by invisible blades. And as Lofgan continued whistling, far more blades sliced through the air, devastating the incoming swarm.

The defenders cheered and even Rallia clapped Lofgan on the shoulder. For his part, Ankrastor only breathed a sigh of relief and made a new commitment to himself.

Even if Kai Clanless hadn't come on his own, he had trained someone else, part of the chain of Goralian hunters who defended one another. This time, Ankrastor had been the one saved, but in the future, he needed to do the same.