Book 1 Chapter 675

675.

Crack-!

"Grawwwwwwr!"

The gigantes, with its hand on the rampart, roared.

Swish-!

A flash of light flickered and severed the gigantes' wrist.

The gigantes, climbing the wall, screamed and fell to the ground.

As Aina, who had severed its wrist, readjusted her grip on her sword.

Kiiiiiaaak-!

A swarm of Fafnirs in the sky screeched and targeted Aina.

Chaaak-!

"Where do you think you're going!"

Iliana's sword moved at tremendous speed, bisecting the Fafnirs.

Iliana, who had blocked them on the rampart with light footwork, smiled at Aina.

"Are you hurt?"

"No."

Iliana nodded, seeing Aina's typically expressionless face, and raised her hand.

Jiiiing-!

A magic circle formed on her palm, and a beam of light shot out, sweeping away the monsters rushing towards the rampart.

"As expected, Senior Iliana is amazing."

Luke admired the sight.

Even though she chose the Knight Department, Iliana was a Sword Mage.

While her own aptitude was more specialized in swordsmanship, her pure talent as a mage was no less than her talent as a knight.

There was a difference between her and Luke, who focused on enhancing his swordsmanship with magic, even though they were both Sword Mages.

Just then, Haviden, holding a spear, flew in quickly and thrust it at a demon.

"A mere human…!"

"What are you if you're going to die by that human's hand?"

Haviden, scoffing at his opponent, swung the spearhead diagonally and cut down the demon.

"Archers! Now!"

At Kal's shout, the archers waiting behind emerged from the rampart and drew their bows.

Pababababat-!

Arrows shot by dwarves and beastmen rained down on the monsters climbing the rampart.

However, there were monsters that did not fall even under that barrage of arrows.

"Next, artillery! Fire!"

Kwagagagang-!

At Kal's command, the magic cannons unleashed their fire.

Grawwwwwwr!

Giant demons, beastmen, and monsters fell, covered in blood.

Haviden clicked his tongue, watching the scene.

"Senior Kal's eyes for reading the flow of battle are incredible."

The section of the rampart currently defended by the hero candidates was maintaining a very stable defense line.

When the vanguard, composed of hero candidates, pushed back the Giant King's army clinging to the rampart, arrows and magic cannons flew into the gaps.

Due to Kal's coordination, they were achieving results far beyond their limits.

Tatataatat-!

Pabababapak! Kwajik! Kwadeuk-!

"Waaaaaaah!"

"Ennihah!"

At that moment, cheers erupted.

The only elf on this battlefield, Ennihah, was slaughtering the demons threatening the rampart as she ran along the outer wall.

Her movements were literally artistic, close to divine.

Wheeeek-! Tak-!

Leaping from the rampart, Ennihah landed on top of it.

"Wow, that's amazing!"

Luke exclaimed.

"Thanks. But…"

Ennihah looked up at the sky.

Flash! Kwagagagang-!

Riding a Pegasus in the sky, Leo was sweeping away the monsters on the ground with magic.

"Didn't he say he was an all-class? Wow… are surviving heroes like that?"

Exclamations of admiration escaped Ennihah's lips.

Leo was one of the two pillars supporting this battlefield.

Of course, the other pillar was…

"Khaaaahhhap!"

Dwenno, who leaped high from the rampart, flew towards the ground.

Flames of gold erupted around his body.

Like a meteor, Dwenno's body plummeted to the ground.

Kwagagagagagang-!

Dwenno, who had swept away the Giant King's army with the shockwave, began to hack at the demons with his axe at a terrifying pace.

Just then.

Buu-!

A horn sounded high in the sky.

With that sound, the Giant King's army began to retreat.

"They're running away!"

"They're retreating!"

"Waaaaaaah!"

Cheers poured from various parts of the rampart.

Their morale soared at the fact that they had repelled the Giant King's army.

"Long live Lord Dwenno!"

"Long live the Ironclad Gatekeeper!"

Cheers praising Dwenno echoed from all directions.

He had executed Kimieon, notorious as a traitor, and had made a conspicuously significant contribution to defending the rampart.

Leo silently watched the retreating Giant King's army from the sky.

"We won."

Eliza, who had been defending the sky with Leo, flew over.

Leo said in response to her words,

"Yes."

"Is something wrong?"

"It ended rather anticlimactically."

It was true.

The Giant King's army still had the capacity to fight.

Yet, they retreated.

Of course, the side that held the initiative in the battle was Ivaldi.

'But Giass isn't here.'

Leo's eyes narrowed.

An army needs a commander to exert its true strength.

In other words, the current Giant King's army was only half-formed.

Meanwhile, Dwenno, who was returning to the castle, also turned his head to look at the retreating Giant King's army.

This battle was a complete victory.

But he couldn't shake off a sense of unease.

'He… has something up his sleeve.'

***

"Wahaha!"

"It's a feast!"

As the sun set and night fell, the entire Ivaldi was immersed in a festive atmosphere.

Meat began to be grilled in the wide open space in front of the rampart.

Beastmen and dwarf warriors carried kegs of ale on their shoulders from the warehouse.

Those in the residential areas prepared food.

It was a feast to share the joy of victory.

"Drink! Drink!"

Chelsea, looking flustered at the dwarves and beastmen drinking boisterously, said.

"We won a great victory, but is it okay to be so relaxed?"

This was an era of calamity, an era where Tartarus's demons could invade at any moment.

As such, she thought the atmosphere would always be vigilant.

Indeed, the atmosphere in Ivaldi was tense.

But after a great victory, the atmosphere was completely relaxed.

"Even so, what if the battle starts suddenly?"

Iliana said with concern, and Leo replied calmly.

"We're taking turns guarding the rampart."

Leo said, looking towards the rampart from his seat by the campfire.

"These people here are veteran warriors. They'll shake off the effects of alcohol easily and head to the battlefield."

Snap-

Leo broke a twig and threw it into the campfire, saying.

"Besides, wouldn't they be unable to endure if they didn't have a release like this?"

At this time.

When they repelled a large-scale offensive from Tartarus, all cities held grand feasts.

It couldn't be helped.

They lived each day under the anxiety of potential destruction.

An era where hope was beyond even thought.

Just surviving each day was a cause for gratitude.

After overcoming a great crisis, they had to relax and enjoy themselves like this.

To forget their anxiety, even if just a little.

The other hero candidates tilted their heads at Leo's words.

While they could understand what Leo was saying, they couldn't fully grasp it.

'It can't be helped.'

Only those living in this era would be able to fully understand.

"By the way, there's still a distance between us."

Aina, sitting by the campfire, murmured softly, looking at the dwarves and beastmen who kept their distance.

"It can't be helped. Even though we fought together, the distance won't be closed in an instant."

Chelsea shook her head.

She had been an outsider, suspected just a while ago.

It would be difficult to open their hearts with just one battle.

As she thought that.

"Hey, hey! Look at this! Do you know what I got?!"

Just then, Kal ran over in a hurry.

Beside him was a keg of ale floating with levitation magic.

"I got a keg of booze!"

"Awesome! Kal, how did you do it?"

Iliana clapped her hands in admiration, and Kal puffed out his chest proudly.

"Isn't it all thanks to my abilities?"

"As expected of Kal!"

Iliana gave him a thumbs-up.

Kal, who had managed to obtain a keg of alcohol despite being viewed with suspicion as an outsider.

"Are you planning to drink alcohol as a student?"

Just then, Artian approached Kal, folded his arms, and frowned.

"Gulp."

"Ah, Professor Artian."

Kal and Iliana flinched as they saw Artian's eyes narrowing.

"B-but… with the atmosphere like this, a little bit is okay…?"

"A little bit?"

"I'll just return it."

As Kal quickly backed down, Ar and Driana approached the keg.

"Hoohoo, we're from a different school, so it shouldn't matter, right?"

"Don't worry, Kal. We'll drink it well so your hard work isn't in vain."

Basically, beastmen and dwarves are races that love alcohol.

Looking at the two eyeing the keg, Artian said,

"Even if you're from a different school, aren't you two students?"

"Our school doesn't have a rule against drinking alcohol…"

Thwack-!

"What?!"

Ar and Driana, realizing that a heroic spirit had possessed them, quickly backed down.

They had already seen how frightening Professor Lumern in front of them was.

Leo, watching the scene, said with a smile.

"Let's overlook it for today. Everyone worked hard."

"You're the student council president, you should set an example!"

"Isn't it natural to want to do something more when you're told not to?"

"…"

Artian, who was glaring at Leo with folded arms, snorted.

"Pour me a glass."

"Oh!"

As permission was granted, Kal took out a cup.

The feast began to reach its peak.

Fueled by alcohol, the hero candidates boasted of their exploits.

Leo raised his head.

He didn't see any elves or humans… or dragons.

'Even if it's humans and elves, it's just us and Ennihah.'

Ivaldi was literally a city of dwarves and beastmen.

And it was an isolated city among the cities that survived the era of calamity.

It was the most desperate city.

"Lord Dwenno is truly amazing!"

"Ah… it's fortunate that Lord Dwenno is here."

"To Lord Dwenno!"

Dwarves and beastmen everywhere were shouting Dwenno's name and raising their glasses.

'Right… the people of this city are Dwenno's people.'

Just as Leo muttered inwardly.

"Why are you sitting alone looking so pathetic?"

Ennia, holding a drink, approached with a cheerful smile.

"Where's Dwenno?"

"That dwarf is holed up in his workshop. It's strange for someone who likes alcohol, isn't it?"

Ennihah shrugged and flopped down in front of Leo.

"By the way, aren't you going to play? You kids. They're having quite a bit of fun."

Ennihah smiled wryly, watching Arhti's party, who were betting on who could drink the fastest.

"You have many pretty friends, don't you? Isn't this the perfect time to drink together?"

"They're too young."

"Aren't you young too?"

Ennihah took a sip of her drink with an incredulous expression.

Artian was the fastest to drink.

"Gulp-! This is an adult's drinking capacity!! You brats!"

"Oh! Young lady. You were fiery on the battlefield too! You're quite spirited!"

"You're the best drinker among your friends!"

At that moment, drunken dwarves and beastmen approached.

"Huh?! Who are you calling friends! I'm much older than you guys!"

"Oh? You look about the same age."

"How old are you, miss?"

"Twenty-six!"

"Gasp! You're my elder sister?!"

"Who are you calling elder sister! I'm thousands of years older than you…"

"Hahaha! Professor Artian, drink more. More!"

Kal, sweating profusely, quickly shoved a bottle of alcohol into Artian's mouth.

This was an act he would never have dared to do normally, but it was a drunken act born out of extreme urgency.

Artian also drank it down in gulps.

"Bring more!"

"She's drunk."

Leo clicked his tongue.

Perhaps it was due to the alcohol?

The warriors of Ivaldi began to gather around the hero candidates one by one.

"Hey, you were amazing."

A female beastman with glasses, who appeared to be a mage, approached Chelsea and said.

"You were using magic and suddenly engaged in close combat. You looked like a knight, are you perhaps a Sword Mage?"

"I'm a pure mage."

"What?!"

There was no concept of Battle Mage in the era of calamity.

Therefore, Chelsea's combat style was inevitably surprising.

Perhaps it was the alcohol?

The distance between the warriors of Ivaldi and the hero candidates gradually narrowed.

Watching the scene, Ennihah made a square with her index fingers and thumbs and winked through the square.

"Mmm~ A good picture. It feels like a combination of the new generation and the old."

"Why don't you ask them to be your model?"

"Yes, I will. But you know."

Ennihah rested her chin on her hand and looked at Leo.

"You're the one I most want to be my model right now."

"Me?"

"Yes. You… you're like the sun, and I love the sunlight the most in the world, so I really want to see you."

"That image doesn't suit me."

"Huh? No, no."

Ennihah shook her head and said.

"Will you be my art model?"

'A model for the painter who made Dwenno afflicted with artistic tendencies…'

"If I'm okay with it."

"Really!"

Ennihah smiled brightly and grabbed Leo's shirt.

"…What are you doing?"

"You said you'd be my model?"

"And?"

"Then take it off. Become the form born for art."

Leo stared intently into Ennihah's eyes.

Looking at her eyes, it was clear she wasn't in her right mind; she was drunk.

"Take it off! Take it off!"

It seemed her true nature had surfaced after drinking.

Leo clicked his tongue, watching Ennihah tugging at his clothes.

'Dwenno's elf version?'

No.

Dwenno is the dwarf version of this elf.

'In the end, this one was also a pervert.'