As the sun slowly dipped below the horizon, the sky was dyed a shade of orange and red. The City of Stardale, a stronghold fortified on all five sides was being besieged by the onslaught of the magical beasts.
Although the war had only just begun, the intensity had already reached such height. Moreover, this was only the first wave.
The towering walls of the city made sure that no beasts could scale it. Magi were positioned all along the walls, hurling spells of all kinds at the beasts below.
Just outside the city walls, the corpses of the beasts had gathered on top of each other and formed mounds. Despite that, the other magical beasts continued to recklessly charge at the city walls.
Meanwhile, inside the city, the streets were alive with a commotion unlike any other. The mortal residents of the city had taken it upon themselves to help the Magi in any way possible.
Women and children could be seen running around carrying supplies and bandages, rushing toward the makeshift infirmaries that had sprung in the wake of the beast tide.
Whereas, the men of the city worked tirelessly, their muscles straining as they undertook tasks that required greater strength. They repaired damaged structures, reinforced barricades, and made sure that the Magi were given full support.
Despite the dangers that unfolded outside the city walls, the city was united. The spirits of the residents remained unbroken as they stood shoulder to shoulder with the Magi, which during peaceful times would be something unheard of.
As the sky slowly started to darken, a deep and resonant trumpet call echoed from the direction of the Murky Mountains. This sound reverberated through the air, reaching the ears of friend and foe alike.
The rampaging magical beasts, their eyes filled with madness and bloodlust, immediately stopped their attacks upon listening to the sound of the trumpet.
"They're retreating again!"
"We've made it past another day!"
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})"Here, here!"
The Magi stationed on the walls were filled with exhilaration. They had been tirelessly fighting throughout the day, fending off the enemy attacks. Thanks to their efforts, the City of Stardale stood strong.
When the residents inside the city heard the mysterious trumpet call, all of them dropped down to their knees and smiled in relief. Although times were truly desperate, they lived to fight another day.
The Magi watched with bated breaths as the beasts slowly receded into the Murky Mountains. Even the flying magical beasts that posed the most danger to them during their battle were now retreating.
Suddenly, one of the Magi stationed atop the walls found something very peculiar in the darkening sky. Although all the flying beasts were withdrawing, there was one, however, that seemed to be flying straight in the direction of the city.
The Magi squinted his eyes and saw that it was a green, winged serpent!
Not willing to take any risks, he informed of this occurrence to his fellow Magi, "A flying beast is heading our way. Gather the aerial squad, and have them intercept it."
The person who had just spoken was a Rank 2 Magus and had seniority here. So the other Rank 1 Magi naturally had to comply.
At once, four Magi hopped onto their respective flying mounts and took flight, ready for battle. After all, they didn't know whether this newcomer was an ally or an enemy.
Although that mysterious trumpet had already been blown, they still didn't wish to risk it.
...
Sitting atop the flying serpent, the students of Clover Academy glanced down at the battlefield below and couldn't help but gulp nervously. They had never witnessed such a gruesome sight, to say the least.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})Even Adam, who had had his fair share of killings over the past five years, was greatly repulsed by the blood and gore. He looked around the city and saw that there were only corpses, no living beasts.
Seeing this, he was puzzled. He glanced at Professor Kimberly and asked, "Why did the beasts retreat? Is it related to that trumpet call we heard earlier?"
Professor Kimberly was also wondering the same thing. She had received intel from the academy that the orcs were able to manipulate a large number of beasts through some artifact. However, she wasn't sure about the extent of this manipulation.
"It could very well be because of that trumpet call." Professor Kimberly nodded.
Adam stroked his chin, deep in thought. So the orcs can control the beasts to this degree? Could it be the same artifact from the secret plane? Or is this trumpet something entirely different?
Suddenly, he heard the loud screeches of flying beasts and instantly became on guard. Thinking it was another enemy attack, he hurriedly got to his feet and prepared to cast a spell.
"Calm down, Adam." Professor Kimberly waved her hand. "We're not under attack."
"Huh?" Adam was puzzled, and so were the other students.
The next moment, four wind falcons came into view as they slowly flew toward them. The wind falcon was one of the fastest Rank 1 magical beasts.
Its feathers were light green and were as delicate as the breath of wind. At the same time, they were as strong as tempered steel. Its eyes, a piercing yellow, were sharp and keen. While its beak, dark and slightly bent, made its presence formidable.
Magi rode these wind falcons as they made their way toward them. One of the falcons hovered before the flying serpent, and the Magus riding it gazed at Professor Kimberly with alertness.
"Show your identification, Magus!"
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})Although this newcomer was a Rank 1 Magus, Professor Kimberly didn't blame him for the lack of etiquette. After all, they were in the middle of a war and everyone was on edge.
She simply smiled and tossed a token and a scroll at the Magus.
The Magus grabbed it and then quickly read through it, while the other Magi observed the group with vigilance. The next moment, the Magus' eyes widened and he hurriedly bent over. "Please forgive me, Magus Kimberly."
"It's alright." The auburn-haired lady waved her hand. "Lead the way."
"Right away!" The Magus nodded and then directed the wind falcon to descend. Meanwhile, the other Magi respectfully escorted the flying serpent.
As the group neared the city, Adam's gaze was fixed on the heaps of corpses lying outside the city walls. Suddenly, his eyes lit up as he thought of a terrifying possibility. As soon as they landed in the city, he hopped off the serpent and rushed toward the nearest city wall.
"Wait, where are you going?!" Professor Kimberly reached out to him but the youth had already disappeared amidst the crowd. Seeing this, she couldn't help but feel that another headache was coming.
The youth did not respond to her call. He hurriedly made his way through the crowd and approached the towering city wall, his heart beating with excitement.
Then, he agilely scaled the city and finally reached the top. The surrounding Magi were slightly surprised by his sudden appearance, but seeing that he was wearing the cloak of the Clover Academy no one found it strange.
Adam put one foot over the railing, the grin on his face becoming wider and wider as he gazed at the heaps of fresh beast corpses. The next moment, he closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, he had arrived at the mysterious space inside the white lotus. He glanced at the boundary of this ethereal space and finally confirmed his speculation.
"As I thought!"
