Her ears rang. Her vision was washed white. Even on the mage tower, the impact left her head pounding, and her mental strength was finally at its limit.
That old man's firecracker was truly something else. Feltz could not help but face the gap between herself and her mentor. This spell was not just an oversized Fireball.
At its core, it was a spell construction platform meant for support. In Lord Xion's hands, it could become a true artillery piece, unleashing firepower enough to burn an entire city and melt all major structures. Worse still, he could control more than one at the same time.
She could only use it as a one-time blast, like setting off fireworks. Even handling it briefly through a scroll was a struggle. The difference was painfully clear.
"Is it… finally over?"
Her body hurt, and so did her mind. Many others thought the same. That single spell wiped out more than half the monsters in one strike, and while the Beast Tide still charged forward, it no longer seemed unstoppable.
Then a distant howl rolled across the land.
A massive figure appeared on the horizon, leading a surging herd of gigantic, twisted beasts. Another roar followed, deep and heavy.
Everyone fell silent.
What Is Despair? We will not talk about the exact meaning of the word, but it always contains one part. It is like facing a math problem where even if you use everything you have, you still cannot solve it. No matter what you do, you cannot write an answer, and even betting your life cannot stop the result. That is despair.
Was it a crocodile, a lizard, or even something shaped like a human? It could no longer be described with a single species name. A terrifying thing appeared on the battlefield with a wailing sound like ghosts crying.
Its body was enormous, dozens of meters long, and even when lying flat it stood as tall as several buildings. A foul stench and black aura poured off it. Its head was covered in tangled black hair, its eyes impossible to see, and from one head strangely split three forward-jutting mouths filled with teeth.
Its upper body had thick, human-like arms and extra limbs, covered in uneven scales. Lumps and spikes grew at random angles, and the lower body was even worse. It looked as if it had been torn apart by Rend.
Scarlet, murky blood spilled out as its intestines hung exposed in the snow, writhing like tentacles. A spine ending in a tail dragged behind it, and the corrosive blood burned a trail into the ground. It crawled forward on its forelimbs, dragging its huge body as its three mouths greedily swallowed nearby monsters.
Behind it came several other frost-covered creatures that were weaker in presence but still powerful. The leading monster felt completely different from the earlier fodder. Its size and pressure clearly placed it far above them.
"Quick, hurry!" Soldiers on the wall rushed to aim ballistae at the giant monster, while mages and Warrior with strength left raised their Magic Staff and swords. The creature crawled in slowly from the edge of the battlefield, casually grabbing monsters to eat as it moved.
Only after it advanced some distance did cannon fire, Magic, and slashing attacks fall on its body. The ground split open, huge cracks trying to swallow it. Water and wind froze together to bind it in ice, followed by fire and lightning.
Surprisingly, it worked. The monster was quickly torn open, flesh flying, and it let out a painful howl. But it did not die.
From the buried ruins, a bloody hand suddenly shot out and grabbed a Silver Rank Warrior who had jumped down to try for a killing blow. The hand closed, then pulled back into the rubble. A cracking sound followed, along with a faint scream.
When it emerged again, its wounds were already healing at a frightening speed, and its shape had become even more twisted. It raised its heads and let out three thunderous roars. Black Magic crackled with lightning as it spewed a glowing mass like plasma.
The beam tore across the battlefield and slammed into the city wall. Even with layers of Magic reinforcement, the wall collapsed and began to fail. The remaining force shot deep into the city, destroying houses like toys and erupting into a second explosion that formed a small mushroom cloud.
In the end, a massive crater dozens of meters wide remained, its base fused by extreme heat. Someone raised a shield and formed a barrier, only to be burned to charcoal along with it. The already failing wall was blasted open, leaving a scorched path behind.
This strike was close to Gold Rank level. After releasing its breath, the monster looked drained, smoke rising from its mouths and blood pouring from its wounds. Yet it began shoving nearby monster corpses into its mouths, healing at an alarming speed.
It even started killing nearby monsters to recover faster. Worse still, the other mutated creatures and the already frenzied horde rushed toward the breach. The defensive line and morale both began to collapse.
The monster, having regained some strength, crawled toward the wall again. As it ate corpses, the last scraps of courage on the line vanished with them. Its massive body pressed down on everyone like an unstoppable weight.
Feltz shakily poked her head out from the mage tower. To be honest, she had just slipped and fallen hard. Her lips trembled as she ignored the glasses that had fallen to the ground.
"What is that thing…" She was on the verge of tears. She had already used almost everything she carried, and she had no second scroll like the one before.
Spell-bearing scrolls were insanely expensive in both material and craft. All she had left were support spells for escape, mostly wind-based. In this situation, there was nowhere to run.
"If only I had held on a bit longer…" Already exhausted, Feltz almost lost her grip on her Magic Staff, and her legs nearly gave out. A huge crash followed as the monster's mouth glowed again.
The mage tower beneath her was destroyed by Magic attacks from other monsters, then snapped in half under the second blast. She swung her Magic Staff and raised a soft earth platform to catch herself, landing awkwardly on the wall.
Something warm ran down her head, and her arm pressed against something cold. When she opened her eyes, she saw blood. Some of it was hers, some not, and in her hand was a cold, bloodstained sword.
She climbed to her feet and picked up the sword. Its owner could have been any of the bodies nearby, a soldier, an adventurer, or a pressed civilian. She cast an ice spike that pierced a monster climbing the wall, then struck with her staff to raise stone pillars that blocked wind blades and knocked several enemies off the wall.
A flying beast dove from above, bloody talons flashing. With a single swing, it split cleanly in two. Feltz lowered the sword, reminding herself that a mage was not helpless without a staff.
"Ah, hey, you there, run!" A man with a broken leg lay on the ground, blood spilling from his mouth as he shouted at her. Snow wolves charged toward him, only to be impaled by rock spikes from the ground.
"It's fine for now. Your injury is not too bad. I can help you…" Feltz set down her Magic Staff and stepped forward, but the man shouted her back. "No, not that. I mean that monster. It's too late."
She froze as a massive shadow covered her from head to toe. Foul saliva dripped beside her feet, corroding the stone. Heavy, ominous Magic pressed down, darkening even her vision.
A deep roar like distant thunder sounded behind her. "It's over," the man muttered, his eyes filled with despair as he stared past her. Feltz felt her body shaking, but forced herself to turn.
A giant mouth loomed close, lined with teeth like spears and swords. Bones and flesh hung from it, and a human hand was still caught between the teeth. The stench hit her first.
"So smelly…" That was the first thing she said, avoiding the reality in front of her. The monster growled softly, the sound almost knocking her off her feet.
Her vision flickered as if her life were replaying. The monster before her also trembled, shaking even harder than she was. It had smelled something.
Feltz remembered her life. She grew up in an orphanage where food was scarce but survivable. Later, she relied on talent and effort to enter a Magic academy, hoping for a better future.
Without backing or resources, life only became more exhausting. The turning point felt similar to now. She once saved an unreliable old man named Xion, her current mentor.
He was odd, but capable, and her rise to Silver owed much to him. She had once faced a dragon, later learning it was only a Wyvern, yet it terrified her. Somehow, she had still found the courage to escape.
Now felt the same. The image of that Black Dragon overlapped with the monster before her, even the roar matching her memory. Was this what people saw at the end?
Feltz clenched her teeth. Fear left her unable to cry. She gripped her Magic Staff and forced out the last of her Magic and nearly empty focus.