The roar of displaced wind echoed across the battlefield as the smoke cleared, unveiling a broken landscape littered with ash, debris, and shattered stone.
The sky above had begun to shift, a swirling blanket of clouds pulling toward the heart of the chaos like a storm answering a silent summons.
"…Garron?"
Kai's voice was hoarse, filled with disbelief.
The massive figure stood like an iron bulwark, his tower shield half-buried in the ground where it had absorbed the full brunt of Malraketh's energy cannon. Steam hissed off the melted edges. His armor was cracked at the joints, and blood ran from a fresh gash across his shoulder, but he was standing. He had endured.
Behind Garron, two more figures stepped forward from the veil of dust and fire.
The first, with red short hair, a long staff in hand crackling with faint sparks—Darin, whose loud and brash nature was nowhere to be seen now, replaced by the hardened poise of a seasoned mage.
The second, her battle robe whipping in the breeze, blue sash wrapped around her waist—Lena, eyes sharp with focus and resolve, hands already radiating soft arcs of healing magic.
Trinity Blade had arrived.
"…We made it in time," Lena murmured, voice low but determined.
Darin scanned the wreckage of the battlefield.
"Gods… this is worse than we thought." His gaze fell on Kai. "You look like hell."
Kai was too stunned to respond at first.
"What are you guys doing here? I thought you were stationed at the perimeter with the defense squads."
"We were," Darin replied grimly. "Until the world... shifted. I don't know how to explain it exactly. One moment the frontlines were overwhelmed with monsters—the next moment, they just… stopped coming. Then we felt it."
He tapped the side of his temple.
"A pulse. A wave. Like something ancient and furious just woke up in the depths of this dungeon and screamed without sound. It hit us like a wall of pressure. It made my spine go cold."
Lena nodded. "It was centered here. There was no doubt. So we came. The outer perimeter is holding, barely—but whatever's happening here... this is where it ends."
Garron's head turned, his eyes narrowing toward something half-buried beyond the smoke and rubble.
He saw her.
"…Belle."
Kai followed his gaze and felt a sinking weight drop in his gut.
Belle lay crumpled among the ruins—half-covered in dust, her body limp, silver hair stained with soot and dried blood. Her limbs were still. Her aura was dim. Clerics and healers were pouring mana into healing her.
Darin's breath caught in his throat.
"No way… that girl? She's—?"
"She fought it alone." Kai said quietly. "She stood her ground while the rest of us were out of the fight."
The silence that followed was crushing. No one needed to ask what kind of power it must've taken to bring her down.
Garron turned to Lena, speaking just one word.
"…Go."
He didn't need to say more.
Lena broke into a sprint, robe trailing behind her like a wing. The battlefield blurred past her—craters, broken weapons, trails of flame—all as she raced toward Belle. Her boots slid against the broken stone as she dropped to her knees beside her.
The healer she replaced sat slumped, utterly drained, barely able to breathe.
Lena caught Belle's wrist, felt a faint pulse.
"She's alive," she whispered.
She placed both hands over Belle's chest, her fingers glowing with layers of frost healing magic.
"But her body's in shock. She forced her limits too far—whatever power she tapped into, it pushed her beyond what a human should handle."
Soft waves of light began to pulse through Belle's body—slow at first, then steadier, pushing the damage back cell by cell.
Stay with us, Belle. Don't go dark now. We need you.
Back near the center of the battlefield, the others regrouped.
Kai's expression had hardened. He looked at the monstrosity looming in the distance, its mechanical frame twitching unnaturally as if recalibrating its senses.
It had paused—but only for a moment.
CRUNCH.
A mound of collapsed stone shifted violently. From beneath it, a familiar armored gauntlet punched free.
Roderic rose with a low groan, his dented armor groaning with every movement. One arm hung uselessly at his side, his cloak torn in half.
"…Guess I'm not dead after all," he muttered, wiping blood from his jaw with the back of his gauntlet.
"Goddess, I'm too old for this."
A gust of wind swept past.
From the ruins behind him, another figure strode forth—his silver and dark blue armor gleaming faintly under the corrupted sky, his sword engraved with intricate patterns resting on his shoulder.
Gale Valtor.
Vice-Captain of the Dawnstead Knights. Calm, relentless, and deadly.
"You've lasted longer than I expected, Kai," he said, his tone neutral but firm.
"I see you didn't disappoint. Good work for staying alive."
Kai gave a pained grin, half pride and half defiance. "Nice to see you too, Gale…"
Gale didn't smile.
His eyes locked onto Malraketh, narrowing with deadly focus. "What is that thing?"
"A goddamn nightmare," Roderic muttered.
Gale got into an offensive stance.
"We're not beating that thing in a head-on assault, aren't we?"
"No, we don't," Kai rumbled, stepping forward beside them.
"We buy time. We hit it from every angle. And we wait… for Belle to wake up."
Gale turned, his gaze flicking briefly toward Belle, then back to his team. He didn't speak a word. His grip tightened around his sword. Furious.
Malraketh stirred.
The corrupted titan let out a low-frequency hum, its voice like bending steel and cracking earth. Its cannon retracted with a sharp hiss of vacuum, and in its place—twin blades emerged from its arms, screeching into form.
Its wings snapped wide. Dust and ash exploded outward like a detonation.
Lena called out from the rear, "She's stabilizing—but still unconscious. I'm keeping her body from shutting down, but I don't know how long I can stall it. You'll need to give me time."
"Then let's give you time," Gale said simply.
Garron slammed his tower shield into the ground, his boot carving a glyph circle into the dirt. Runes burst to life beneath his feet, rising around him like glowing threads.
A protective barrier dome expanded outward, shielding the center group with shimmering light.
"Formation," he barked. "Darin, you're with me. We hold the front. Kai, Roderic—take the left wing, hit hard, move fast. Gale, rotate with me and cover the right. If it locks on to any one of us, break its focus. We rotate. We adapt. Don't let it focus its fire on one of us too long."
Darin let out a breath, gripping his staff.
"This thing's way above my pay grade."
"You're not getting paid," Garron grunted.
"Oh right. Then let's not die here."
Roderic moved up beside Kai, slinging his battered greatsword across his shoulder.
"You still good to fight?"
Kai lifted his katana, its blade now coated in a tighter, pulsing flame.
"Not really. But when has that ever stopped me?"
Malraketh's core pulsed. Its wings flexed like blades slicing the wind.
The clouds above twisted harder—light dimming as if the sky itself recoiled from the clash to come.
Then—it charged.
The ground shattered under the force of its sprint.
And with it, the entire squad burst into motion. Blades clashed with metal limbs, spells tore through corrupted air, barriers flickered as they held under immense strain.
No one fought alone.
Every movement, every strike, every breath—they weren't trying to win. They were stalling fate itself.
And somewhere behind them, a silver-haired girl fought in silence—between the waking world and the abyss—gathering herself for the moment she would rise again.
The world held its breath. And hope… trembled on the edge of awakening.
The battlefield had become a storm of ruin and fire.
Malraketh's rampage cracked the land like an angry god tearing through creation. Its obsidian armor glinted with blood and magic under the fading light, eyes burning like twin suns forged from hatred. Its every movement sent tremors through the earth, dust rising in waves as if the land itself recoiled from its presence.
And then—steel met void.
Roderic charged forward like a war anthem made flesh, his once-polished armor now charred and dented, a testament to countless battles. He didn't hesitate. With a furious cry, he drove his greatsword upward to meet Malraketh's descending arm-blade.
BOOM!
The impact cracked the air. A tidal shockwave exploded from the clash, sending shattered rocks and swirling dust high into the sky.
For a moment, it looked as though the world had gone silent—then the echoes roared back like thunder rolling through a canyon.
Roderic's legs shook. Blood trickled from the edge of his mouth, but he didn't falter.
Then Gale appeared—a flash of wind and metal.
He didn't charge blindly. He moved like a ghost, flanking from the side, blade dancing with surgical grace. He targeted seams, joints, and vents between the beast's living armor.
Sparks flew as steel bit into the exposed flesh beneath, each strike an attempt to unmake the indomitable. Yet the miasma lingering around the beast began sealing each gash within seconds.
"It's healing too fast," Gale hissed, his voice low and sharp as he flipped away from a retaliatory claw swipe. "We're playing chess with a hurricane."
On the left, Kai and Darin exploded into motion.
Kai, his eyes burning with firelight and fury, weaved between Malraketh's strikes like a living flame. Every arc of his katana left searing afterimages, his flames roaring with righteous vengeance.
"I've got your opening, Darin!"
Darin responded with a focused chant, channeling molten lances through controlled spell circles.
"Combustion Pattern—Pulse Three!"
His voice resonated with arcane energy as twin explosions detonated near Malraketh's flank.
Malraketh snarled, staggering for the briefest second as the heat singed its exposed tissue.
Kai surged in, fire trailing from his feet as he leapt and slammed his katana into the weak point.
"Burn!"
BOOOOOOM.
A fiery shockwave erupted. The attack pushed Malraketh back a step—but only one. The creature roared in fury, swiping at Kai with a blade wide enough to split a house in two.
"Get back!"
Roderic barreled in to intercept, clashing steel with the beast once more, the resulting impact shaking bones.
And holding the center, the unshakable shield—Garron.
His taunt activated, constantly drawing Malraketh attention onto himself while indirectly creating openings for the others to strike.
Runes etched into the earth around his stance pulsed with earthen light. His tower shield radiated layers of magic, glowing like a bastion of hope against the darkness.
Malraketh's cannon charged and fired—a streak of void energy screaming toward the group.
CLANG!
Garron caught the blast head-on. His shield cracked, the recoil sending him sliding back, boots carving trenches in the ground. His arm trembled. Blood dripped from his fingertips.
"Shield's weakening…" he muttered, then roared over the din, "Don't let it root itself! Force it to move—NOW!"
Above them, streaks of elemental icicles rained from the sky—Lena's support magic bolstering their strength and speed, ice-infused barriers occasionally flickering into place to absorb the worst of Malraketh's retaliation.
But Belle remained unconscious, still cradled in Lena's protective ward, her breath faint but stable.
Farther out, past the cratered terrain and beyond the smoke, a cluster of adventurers watched in paralyzed awe.
Gregan, the D-Rank adventurer who had once arrogantly suggested Belle to go alone, stood frozen. His shield hung at his side. His face was pale, his voice nearly lost to the wind.
"…Should we… leave it to them?" he asked, his voice barely a breath. "I mean… what can we even do against that thing?"
Silence.
Then, a gruff voice cut through the tension—an older adventurer, scarred and weary.
"That's rich, coming from you again. Few days ago you wanted the girl to fight alone. She did. And now she's down… while they're bleeding to protect your sorry hide."
Gregan flinched. "I-I didn't mean it like that—!"
"You've got no shame," someone else snapped. "You didn't lift a damn finger, and now you want to wait this out again? She bought us time with her life. And what did you do?"
Others murmured—angry, ashamed, scared. Then, a voice rose—clear and commanding.
A tall, red-haired female mage stepped forward.
"We don't have to throw ourselves into its maw—but we're not helpless either." Her hands glowed with power. "All mages, form up in rows! Shield bearers up front! Tankers—protect our backs! Warriors, hold the flanks! Everyone else, focus on support and suppression fire!"
A grizzled knight nodded in approval.
"We're not as strong as Belle or Trinity Blade. But we're not cowards either."
It was the spark.
Like iron drawn to a forge, the scattered adventurers snapped into motion. A formation took shape.
Shields overlapped, forming a solid front. Behind them, mages began casting—arcane circles lighting up the smoke, illuminating the ruins with colors of fire, lightning, ice, and wind.
Healers whispered chants, their magic flowing into the wounded. Buff spells arced forward like comets, latching onto Roderic, Gale, Kai, Garron, and Darin.
"Support the vanguard!" the lead mage barked. "They need speed, shielding, and cover! Use staggered spells to break the monster's footing! Keep their flanks clear—buy them a second, even half a second. That's all they need!"
From behind the shield wall, coordinated spellfire erupted.
Fireballs traced Kai's slashes, doubling the force of his strikes. Wind currents sharpened Gale's cuts and boosted his dashes. Precision lances of light pierced the darkness alongside Darin's combustion barrages.
"Shield wall, rotate on my signal!" came another command as the tankers braced, pushing forward to hold the line even as explosions rocked the battlefield.
Even Gregan found himself lifting his shield, uncertain but trying. He joined a formation of tankers shielding the mages and healers behind them from stray attacks.
Garron looked back, eyes wide with surprised pride. "They're with us...?"
Kai grinned, eyes wild. "Heh. Took 'em long enough."
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Garron grunted as a reinforcement barrier shimmered over his shoulder.
"Don't waste it. Push harder."
Roderic and Gale rotated left and right like twin blades of a scissor, drawing Malraketh's attention in opposing arcs.
"I see a weak point—left joint!" Gale called.
"On it!"
Kai surged forward, katana blazing, striking as a trio of fireballs slammed into Malraketh's side from behind him—courtesy of the adventurer mages.
CRACK!
Malraketh staggered back—its left shoulder joint shattered open by Gale's precise call and the magic-fueled strike that followed.
The battlefield roared—not with panic—but with determination.
Still, Malraketh adapted fast.
Its wings flared, sending shockwaves in every direction. Blades spun, cannons fired in a sweeping arc, forcing the front line back.
Garron absorbed another shot, but this time even he buckled, shield arm trembling.
"Barrier's down! I need a moment!" Garron gasped.
"Cover him!"
Gale and Roderic moved in immediately, tanking the brunt of the beast's retaliation.
Another barrage of magical fire burst from the rear line.
Then, as if fate were watching, late reinforcements burst through from the south A second wave of knights, lances raised, charging with war cries.
"For Dawnstead! Push forward!"
The energy surged. Shields locked tighter. Magic flared brighter. Even Gregan, trembling but resolved, stepped in front of a healer with his shield raised.
And just like that—the tide began to shift.
They still weren't winning. But they weren't losing anymore.
And in the middle of it all, Lena looked down at Belle, her healing nearing completion. Belle's eyelids twitched. Her fingers clenched.
"…Almost time," Lena whispered, eyes narrowing.
Hope hadn't died.
It was rising.
End of Chapter 74