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The reconnaissance team moved cautiously forward.

They pushed through the bushes, slowly advancing deeper into the forest.

The only relief was that after encountering the first group of monsters, they hadn’t come across any others.

However…

‘…What is this? This can’t be all of them…’

Damian felt an unsettling sense of foreboding.

There was a palpable tension, yet there were no monsters in sight.

Woooooong.

Damian maximized his magical energy, sharpening his senses to the fullest.

But there were still limits, as he had yet to reach the third stage of his training.

‘Damn… I need to reach the third stage quickly.’

The Delft Magic Training Method had distinct differences between the first, second, and third stages.

To have reached the second stage in less than half a year was remarkable progress and a testament to his talent.

Yet, Damian was dissatisfied with his current state.

‘I’ve even taken elixirs…’

The problem was that his magic core wasn’t growing fast enough to contain all his magic.

With a small vessel, he couldn’t progress to the next stage.

‘Focus.’

Damian focused.

He knew his own shortcomings well.

That’s why he intended to compensate with even greater concentration.

Step, step.

The reconnaissance team moved further into the forest. As they peered beyond the dense foliage—

“…Holy…”

“Whoa… What the hell is all that…?”

Bex couldn’t hide his shock at the massive number of monsters before them.

The other members of the reconnaissance team were just as stunned.

“…There must be over a hundred of them, easily.”

Their voices trembled.

It wasn’t just the numbers that were the problem.

“Trolls… Black Bears like the ones we saw before… and what’s that? Why are they so huge?”

It was as if they were waiting for a starting signal—an overwhelming number of monsters standing by.

Damian immediately realized what this was.

‘Damn… This cursed… forest.’

It was a monster wave.

They couldn’t tell what was controlling these creatures.

But it was clear that ‘it’ was as cunning as a human.

‘What the hell is it?’

According to what was known, it was said to be an object imbued with magic.

But if it wasn’t an object, and instead the work of a human—

If, as the temple feared, a dark mage had reappeared?

Damian chose to focus on the immediate situation rather than speculate about unconfirmed possibilities.

“These monsters are of a much higher tier than the ones we saw earlier.”

Nod.

Bex nodded at Damian’s assessment.

If the earlier monsters were level 1, these were level 3 or higher.

“Their plan is to exhaust us first and then completely wipe us out with stronger monsters.”

It was a simple but effective strategy.

The monsters would likely move once the earlier battle was near its end.

That’s how monster waves worked.

The key was to relentlessly push without giving the enemy any breathing room.

Releasing a smaller number of monsters initially was a matter of spatial efficiency.

It wasn’t out of any consideration for their enemies.

“…Damn, this is overwhelming.”

Bex said, feeling the weight of the situation.

With their current numbers, the subjugation force had no way to handle this.

‘Even if we kill all of these, we’ll be wiped out.’

Another subjugation force would be formed eventually, but that wouldn’t matter to them—they’d all be dead.

“Let’s head back. Reporting this and retreating should be our priority.”

They couldn’t fight.

There would be casualties during the retreat, but it was far better than being annihilated.

The other members nodded at Bex’s command.

But at that moment—

“…Huh?”

Damian’s gaze suddenly shifted elsewhere.

A strange energy had caught his senses.

‘What is…?’

Whoosh!

“Damian!”

Bex called out urgently.

But Damian was already sprinting far ahead.

Whoosh, whoosh!

Damian quickly pushed through the bushes, running towards something. And before long—

“…!”

Damian stopped as he caught sight of something ahead.

“What is…?”

“You crazy idiot!”

Bex, who had hurriedly followed, grabbed Damian by the back of his neck.

His expression suggested he was on the verge of hitting Damian, but Damian pointed somewhere with his finger.

“Bex, look over there…!”

“…?”

Bex, his face twisted in frustration, turned his gaze to where Damian was pointing.

“…What?”

Bex’s eyes widened in shock.

And the other reconnaissance members who had caught up also saw it.

“…What is that?”

They could only swallow nervously in silence.

* * *

“Screeeech!”

“Aaaaah!”

“Let go, let go! Aaaagh!”

A crazed goblin, even as it was stabbed with a sword, bit down on a soldier’s leg.

A comrade beside him chopped off the goblin’s neck, finally pulling it off.

“Are you okay?”

“Damn… It feels like my flesh got ripped off. These bastards…!”

“There are too many of them. Where the hell are they all coming from?”

Hundreds of monsters had poured out.

Fortunately, they were somewhat prepared due to the reconnaissance team’s report before the attack.

But with these numbers, it wasn’t a matter of being prepared or not.

They were just killing endlessly, fighting off the never-ending wave of creatures.

“Hyaah!”

Slash!

Aaron decapitated a Steel Wolf, barely having time to wipe the blood off his face before shouting.

“Captain! Do you think the reconnaissance team is okay?”

“Bex went with them; they should be fine. But we need to focus on the left flank first.”

“Where are all these monsters coming from? And…”

There were so many different types mixed together.

Could magic really enable something like this?

And then—

Shwooooosh!

“Screeeech!”

“Groooaaar!”

As a bright light spread in all directions, the monsters tainted by the magic screeched and began to hesitate.

“Everyone, now is the time! Attack them while they’re weakened…!”

With the priests’ prayers, holy power spread around.

As the monsters staggered, the subjugation force soldiers charged at them with ferocity.

“Dieeeeee!”

“Just die already, you bastards!”

No matter how many they killed, the monsters seemed endless.

Tarion’s arms were trembling slightly from the hours-long battle.

‘If there’s another attack after this…’

That was his real fear.

Not this current battle, but the possibility of another wave of this scale.

If that happened, it could truly be the end.

Tarion continued fighting the monsters, unable to hide his unease.

But then—

“Captain, to your side!”

“Graaaah!”

An Ork suddenly lunged, raising its axe high.

It was a creature they thought was dead, now rising again to attack.

“Captaaaaain!”

“Commanndeeeerrr!”

A life-or-death moment.

Just as the Ork’s axe was about to strike Tarion—

Thunk!

“…!”

With a dull sound, a dagger pierced the Ork’s head.

Thud!

Blood spurted from the creature’s skull, splattering onto Tarion.

He looked down at the fallen Ork and then raised his gaze.

“Are you alright?”

Damian asked Tarion.

Covered in sweat, it was clear he had run a long distance without stopping.

“Commander!”

Bex and the other reconnaissance team members arrived, panting heavily.

“Huff… Huff… I have… something to report… Huff…”

“A report?”

Bex struggled to catch his breath.

Damian stepped in to explain.

“We’ve located the cursed object harboring the magic.”

“…!”

“But there’s more…”

Damian’s continued explanation made Tarion’s expression tighten.

* * *

The battle raged on.

It was inevitable.

There were hundreds of monsters—far beyond just a hundred.

But amid the fierce fighting, Tarion urgently sought out Wilkis and requested an emergency meeting.

“Is this true?”

“The reconnaissance team discovered it. But… there’s a problem.”

“What is it?”

Wilkis asked, and Tarion glanced at Damian.

Damian stepped forward.

“Neokalitz unit member, Damian.”

“He was the soldier who led the reconnaissance mission and found the cursed object.”

“Impressive. But what’s the problem?”

“I will report.”

Damian addressed Wilkis and the surrounding officers.

“In the center of the forest, the cursed object is… a crystal about the size of a human.”

“A crystal?”

“Yes.”

Damian went on to describe the mass of monsters gathered around the crystal.

“There were at least a hundred monsters stationed in the front line alone. Among them were Trolls and Black Bears, much larger and stronger than the ones currently attacking us.”

“Trolls and Black Bears…?”

Everyone’s expressions hardened.

Even just considering combat power, it was clear that a dozen of the current monsters were equivalent to just one of those creatures.

“You’re saying there are a hundred of those monsters?”

“Yes.”

While the numbers were smaller, their combat power was easily two to three times greater.

Wilkis and all the officers’ faces turned grim.

Basil spoke urgently.

“We must retreat. If those forces attack us in our current state, we could be annihilated.”

“Retreat because of a mere hundred monsters? We are elite soldiers!”

“They’re not just a hundred monsters!”

Basil shouted.

The severity of the situation warranted such urgency.

But as Basil raised his voice, Wilkis shouted back, his eyes blazing.

“How dare you raise your voice at me!”

“Commander, you don’t grasp the seriousness of this. A single Black Bear can contend with ten soldiers!”

Basil pointed toward the battling soldiers.

“Look. Even without the magic, they’re already far stronger than they were. Even a lowly goblin can fight evenly with a soldier.”

“Silence! That’s because you’re weak!”

Shing!

Wilkis drew his sword and pointed it at Basil.

“Speak one more word, and I’ll separate your head from your body.”

“…”

Basil bit his lip.

How could he be so blind to the situation?

But then—

“Is what you’re saying true?”

Homen, who had been quietly listening, asked Damian.

Damian nodded.

“I swear on my life that there’s not a shred of falsehood.”

“Hmmm…”

Homen let out a soft sigh.

If the reconnaissance team’s report was accurate, retreating was the correct decision.

The first wave of monsters had already claimed a significant number of lives.

Not to mention the injured.

If even stronger monsters attacked next—

“Even if we manage to kill all of them, we’ll still be wiped out. Retreating is our best option.”

“There will be no retreat.”

Wilkis spoke firmly.

Basil and Tarion frowned at him, but—

“There will be no retreat. The subjugation must succeed.”

Wilkis’s face was filled with desperation.

He, too, understood that retreating was the right choice given the circumstances.

But Wilkis couldn’t retreat.

As the commander of this subjugation force, his position was not only a command but also a demotion and a test.

Gritting his teeth, Wilkis knew that if they didn’t retreat, they might all die here.

A dilemma with no easy answer.

Wilkis’s fists trembled.

But then—

“There is a way to ensure the subjugation succeeds.”

“…?”

Everyone turned their gaze to Damian at his unexpected statement.