Book 1 Chapter 958

958.

Leysar fell into chaos due to the conflict between Arion and Azonia.

Fortunately, there were no casualties.

Considering the scale of the fight, it was close to a miracle, but it wasn't a mere coincidence.

It was possible because the battle took place in the realm of supersenses.

While Leysar was in chaos.

"Whew. Suppression complete."

Celia, who had occupied the city walls, let out a light sigh.

Most of the soldiers guarding the city walls were ordinary people.

The excellent knights, mages, and summoners who protected the city all resided in the lord's castle.

Among them, the lord's closest aides, known as Leysar's guardians, didn't appear on the city walls themselves.

So, they were helpless against the hero candidates.

The commander of the defense shouted.

"Gah! Do you think you'll be safe after doing something like this?!"

The soldiers guarding the city walls, led by the defense commander, wore enraged expressions.

Seeing them, Celia said.

"First, please listen to me."

"Monsters of Tartarus have recently appeared in the city, is that also your doing?! How can you make a pact with Tartarus while wearing a human guise! How many people in this city…!"

"So, I'm asking you to listen to me, okay?"

Celia remained calm, not getting swept away by the excited emotions of the defense commander.

Whatever the reason, from their perspective, it must have looked like they suddenly appeared and occupied the city walls.

However, from the hero candidates' perspective, there was a reason why it had to be this way.

'Leysar was said to have collapsed instantly under the onslaught of invading demons and monsters.'

Celia glanced at Leysar's city walls.

Celia, originally from the Lodren Empire, had grown up seeing countless city walls and fortresses.

Strong and tall city walls built with the empire's overwhelming national power.

But no city walls of Lodren could compare to Leysar's city walls.

From the beginning, it was a city wall that, along with Gadthron during the Age of Calamity, had long repelled attacks from Tartarus.

Throughout world history, city walls with such defensive power would be few and far between.

Yet, Leysar's city walls collapsed so easily, almost absurdly.

What that implied was simple.

'Lady Azonia said that traitors opened the city walls.'

That's why it collapsed without being able to offer proper resistance.

It was a situation where no one knew who the traitors were.

That's why it was necessary to occupy the city walls.

"This is the city wall protected by the Guardian of the Azure Sky! Lord Agon! Do you think we would just hand it over to people like you…!"

"There will soon be a massive invasion from Tartarus."

Celia said calmly.

At her words, the defense commander paused.

"We came to help Leysar."

"Then why did you subdue us?!"

"There's a reason."

"A reason?"

Distrust didn't leave the defense commander's face.

Now an old man, he had guarded Leysar's city walls for many years.

Since the time the Guardian of the Azure Sky protected Leysar.

He had no talent for magic or summoning.

Nor did he possess exceptional aura talent.

He could use aura, but only to a weak extent.

Yet, despite that, he had survived, guarding the city walls in this desperate era.

To have survived means to be strong.

Though his objective power might be weak, his senses were exceptional.

And those senses were telling him that the girl's words were not a lie.

'No, it's strange from the start.'

He felt a peculiar elegance from this girl.

A forgotten word in the Age of Calamity.

It reminded him of nobles from ancient times.

'And those eyes.'

They shone brightly.

It was a look rarely seen in this day and age.

'She resembles the heroes from Gadthron who came last time.'

They might not be enemies.

That thought crossed his mind, but he didn't lower his guard.

At that moment.

Whoosh-!

"Celia. How's it over here?"

"It's mostly done. How about your side?"

"Same here."

Abbad flew over.

The defense commander, having overheard their conversation, realized that the city walls in other sectors had also been subdued.

'What in the world is happening? Great chaos is breaking out within the city, and the city walls are being subdued by these unidentified people…!'

The defense commander felt anxious.

At that moment.

Woo-woong-!

A massive summoning circle unfolded in the sky above Leysar's outer walls.

Soon, the undead began to pour down like rain from the crimson-black summoning circle.

The defense commander's face turned pale.

"The, the Lich King…!"

It was the summoning circle of the Lich King, the supreme commander of Tartarus.

The Lich King was not the only one who appeared.

Summoning circles of other legion commanders also began to adorn the sky.

As colossal dark magic began to rage due to the suddenly summoned legion commanders, the faces of those who had been subdued turned pale.

Even the faces of the 1st and 2nd years who were subduing them stiffened.

"Th-those are legion commanders…"

"Gulp."

Everyone looked at Celia and Abbad with tense faces at the appearance of destructive beings far beyond imagination.

The two of them had stern expressions, but no signs of anxiety were visible.

There was only a year or two difference between them and the 1st and 2nd years, but they had experienced different life-and-death situations.

Celia, who had been staring at the legion commanders with a stiff face, let out a hollow laugh.

"Why are you laughing?"

"No. It just struck me that my school life hasn't been very smooth."

Normal 3rd years of Lumen would have frozen in fear.

But Celia and Abbad, even if they felt fear, were not frozen.

Furthermore.

There were not only great heroes here but also heroes of creation.

Celia took a deep breath and said to the defense commander.

"Do you believe us now?"

"…Why did you subdue us?"

To the defense commander's question, Celia said.

"There are traitors. They would have opened the city walls when they attacked."

"That's absurd!"

The defense commander wore an expression of disbelief.

"The goal of those Tartarus bastards is only the destruction of the world! So how could there be traitors?!"

Even if they betrayed and cooperated with Tartarus, if the world was destroyed, they would just burn and disappear with it, so why would they betray?

It was an illogical statement.

But Celia could only manage a bitter smile.

"Indeed. Why would they betray?"

Celia could not understand such foolishness.

At that moment.

"Defense Commander, listen!"

A voice amplified by a loud-speaking spell was heard from below the city walls.

"Gather your troops and head to the lord's castle immediately! The lord's castle is currently under attack by assailants!"

At those words, the defense commander's face showed bewilderment.

Celia glanced at a 1st-year magic student from Lumen.

The 1st-year student released the magic that was restraining the defense commander.

The defense commander, looking at Celia with confused eyes, ran to the city wall and shouted, looking down.

"The legion commanders are invading now! We cannot abandon the city walls so carelessly!"

"Gah! That doesn't matter now! The lord's castle is what's important!"

The mage, who had come as an envoy from the lord's castle, shouted with an angry face.

"…"

The defense commander fell silent.

Leysar's lord and his closest aides.

As it was the Age of Calamity, food and supplies were bound to be limited.

Yet, the defense commander knew that they were living in luxury even in this Age of Calamity.

But he couldn't object to it.

Because the lord's castle's power was central to protecting Leysar.

Still, the defense commander had no doubt that when Leysar was in crisis,

They would be a great help.

But a while ago.

They didn't appear during the large-scale monster invasion.

Instead, it was the heroes from Gadthron who saved them.

The refugee city, strangely enough, had not been invaded by Tartarus.

Thanks to that, it seemed to be enjoying peace, but in reality, it had been rotting for a long time.

The defense commander was not unaware of it.

'Even so… Would they really offer up the entire city…?'

"Why aren't you following orders at once! Lead the troops to the lord's castle!"

"If the city walls fall, people will die!"

"That doesn't matter! The lord is more important than those ignorant commoners! Don't you know that Leysar can only be maintained with him and us…"

Thud-!

"Cough?!"

The mage, who had been shouting with bulging veins, suddenly clutched his chest.

Drip- Drip-

Blood was already dripping from the dagger's hilt embedded in his chest.

"It's quiet now."

Chen Xia smiled faintly.

"Xia!"

Celia urgently called Chen Xia.

Chen Xia, who lightly waved her hand, poked the mage.

Thump-

The mage, who had collapsed to the ground, made gasping sounds.

"Sa-save…"

"I'll save you. But just tell me one thing."

Chen Xia placed her white hand on the dagger and smiled faintly.

"You, including the lord, made a deal to offer Leysar to Tartarus, didn't you?"

"Th-that…"

"I know everything. Tell the soldiers guarding the city walls yourself."

Chen Xia smiled cheerfully, as usual.

But her eyes were exceptionally cold.

Seeing him hesitate to answer, Chen Xia pressed the tip of her finger firmly onto the dagger.

"There are many others who can talk besides you."

"Th-that's right…! N-no! That's right! The lord promised wealth and glory from Tartarus and decided to offer Leysar to Tartarus…! I, I objected! I…!"

His voice echoed, reaching the soldiers guarding the city walls.

Such incidents were happening not only here but all over Leysar's city walls.

"I-I told the truth, so… Sa-save… Please save me."

"Wow."

Chen Xia exclaimed.

"You tried to kill countless people, yet you wish to live?"

"You promised to save…!"

Thrust-!

"Of course, it was a lie."

"Gasp?!"

Chen Xia's fingertip pressed the dagger's hilt.

The dagger pierced the flesh to an invisible degree.

The mage, who violently vomited blood, died instantly.

Chen Xia stood up and climbed onto the city wall.

By then, the legion commanders and their legions had been summoned.

And in the sky, another massive summoning circle was being drawn by the legion commanders' dark magic.

The raging atmosphere.

What was being summoned could be easily guessed.

Chen Xia looked at the defense commander and said.

"The lord's castle abandoned Leysar."

"…"

The defense commander closed his eyes silently.

He also knew something was amiss.

Still, he had never expected that something like this would be happening.

"C-commander… Do you believe her words?"

"They might have been threatened…"

"Bu-but abandoning the city walls was definitely strange."

The soldiers following him fell into confusion.

'I don't know what to believe. However.'

"Tartarus will soon be here. What will you do?"

The defense commander gripped his sword.

"There is only one thing we must do."

He spoke with firm resolve.

Though his power was not strong.

But having lived through the Age of Calamity and guarded Leysar's city walls, he was worthy of being called a hero.

"Protect the city walls."

Seeing the man who had silently done his best, Celia thought.

'…It was because of people like this that the world didn't perish.'

It wasn't just the great heroes who existed.

There were people who would stake everything for others.

Such individuals, one by one, gathered to create a huge possibility.

And it was because there were great heroes who confronted Erebus with that possibility that the world could finally be saved.

"What a cool old man."

At that moment, someone descended from the air and landed on the city wall.

"I like brave men."

"Lady Azonia!"

"That rotten face is always irritating to look at."

Azonia frowned deeply upon seeing the face of Hell Kaiser in the distance.

Then she stood up.

"The other city walls are almost ready too. Now we just need the reinforcements to arrive."

"Reinforcements? You mean there are reinforcements?"

When the defense commander asked with a bewildered face, Azonia smiled faintly.

"Of course, old man."

At that moment.

Flash-!

A magic circle was drawn in the sky above Leysar.

The beautiful summoning circle, shining in pure white, was a colossal warp gate.

Along with it, a pillar of light descended onto the city walls.

The first to appear were four people.

Upon seeing the beautiful woman leading them, the defense commander uttered her name.

"The hero of Gadthron… Lysinas?"

With Lysinas at the forefront, Luna and Kyle appeared.

Azonia's mouth dropped open.

Celia and Chen Xia unknowingly covered their mouths.

Amidst this, Dryana, who stood beside Dweno, said.

"Lord Dweno. Still, the four of you are representatives, so you should stand together."

"I am not acquainted with those imbeciles."

Dweno drew a firm line with a cold tone.

'No, why do their eyes look like that? Did they fight?'

Unlike their dignified entrance, Lysinas, Luna, and Kyle each had a bruise on one eye.

At that moment, Leo approached Azonia.

"Arion is…"

"Lord Arion is over there… Huh?"

Azonia, who was pointing below the city walls, widened her eyes.

Arion had disappeared with Ar, who had been holding him.

"This guy! He ran away again!"

It was when Azonia's eyes blazed with fury.

Suddenly, a message appeared before their eyes.

All the conquerors widened their eyes at the message that appeared before them.

Leo curled the corner of his mouth as he saw the conquest objective.

"It seems they've resolved to fight."

[Conquest objective has been changed.]

[Conquest Objective (Hidden): Save Leysar.]