The twin moons cast an eerie glow upon the City of Stardale as hordes of magical beasts flooded through the gates. Among them were trolls, ogres, and orcs. They gazed at the people within the walls with sinister intent, intending to massacre every last one of them.
Deafening roars shook the very foundation of the city as the beasts began their slaughter, ripping to shreds anyone that stood in their way.
The Magi that had been stationed on the walls scrambled to defend the city, launching spells and clashing swords against the thick hide of the beasts.
However, for every beast that fell, two more took its place, and soon the defenders found themselves overwhelmed. Moreover, it didn't help that the orcs, ogres, and trolls joined the fray.
It was complete and utter chaos.
When the city gates had been blown to smithereens, Lisa and Galriel just so happened to be stationed on the wall nearby. With the destruction of the gate, the surrounding walls also crumbled.
The two of them lost their footing and found themselves miserably falling to the ground, surrounded by a hail of falling debris. Boulders and rubble rained down on them as they crashed to the ground below.
Lisa managed to shield herself by erecting a barrier of frost around her in the nick of time, however, Galriel wasn't so lucky. A massive boulder came crashing down, pinning her to the ground, the weight of the boulder brutally crushing her leg.
"Ahhhh!!" The young elf screamed in agony as she tried to free herself. However, just a slight movement would cause pangs of pain to radiate throughout her body, leaving her defenseless.
After deactivating the spell, Lisa scrambled to her feet, her eyes wide with panic as she looked around for Galriel. When her gaze landed on the elf, she froze in disbelief. "No! Galriel!"
Without hesitation, she rushed toward the elf, at the same time, casting a spell to remove the large boulder that was trapping her. "Hold on, I'm going to get you out of there!"
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})Vines shot out from beneath the ground and coiled around the boulder. Then, slowly but surely, they lifted the boulder. Meanwhile, Lisa crouched beside Galriel and dragged her out of her predicament.
The elf's breathing was ragged and deep wounds covered her body. However, the biggest injury was on her left leg which had been completely squashed by the boulder. She looked at her leg and bit her lips, trying to come to a decision.
Shen then glanced at Lisa and spoke with a trembling voice, "L-Leave me… I'll only hold you down."
"Never!" Lisa screamed as she helped the elf to her feet. She supported her and slowly moved away from the destroyed city gates. The sounds of battle and the scene of the bloodbath enveloped them as they slowly staggered away.
Lisa was having an extremely hard time as she had to protect Galriel and fight the beasts that were attacking them at the same time.
In her mind, she desperately called out, Ennea, where are you? I need you! Hurry!
By now, she was injured from head to toe as she constantly waved her staff around and cast spells to keep the vicious beasts at bay. Galriel too was casting spells, albeit she was not that efficient.
The two were at the most dangerous place in the city currently. They had to get out of here as soon as possible, or it would only be a matter of time before they died at the maws of the beasts or succumbed to their injuries.
Galriel's heart was filled with overwhelming guilt as she knew she was holding Lisa back. She knew that Lisa would be easily able to escape this place if she didn't have to look after her.
But at the same time, she was deeply scared. She knew that if Lisa left, she would be dead. She didn't want her to leave. Torn between these two difficult choices, Galriel could only grit her teeth and helplessly sob.
"I'm sorry, Lisa… forgive me… forgive me…"
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})"Don't talk nonsense!" Lisa roared as she waved her staff and swatted a beast away. "If you have the time and energy to speak, then you might as well cast a spell!"
Galriel nodded with determination as she wiped her tears away. Her eyes shone with newfound determination and hope. She didn't want to die. There were so many things that she still had to accomplish. She didn't want to give up.
Suddenly, a towering shadow loomed over them from behind. Even the beasts that were attacking the two stopped in their steps and retreated a few steps.
Lisa and Galriel slowly turned around, and when their gaze landed on the figure behind them, their hearts tightened. Their bodies shuddered as fear gripped them.
Behind them stood a troll!
This creature, although had a severe hunchback, stood at three meters tall. It had a thin body with a thick, rubbery hide that was a shade of brownish-green. It possessed long, hanging arms that ended in sharp claws.
The troll glanced at the two girls with bloodthirsty eyes. It tilted its head slightly and released a deep, guttural growl. The next moment, it raised its hand that was holding onto a wooden club and swung it at them.
Lisa and Galriel were frozen in terror. However, at the last moment, the former hurriedly weaved hand signs and erected a mud wall before them. But alas, it still proved to be useless.
The troll effortlessly destroyed the mud wall with its club and viciously smashed the two girls into the distance. The two of them spat mouthfuls of blood as they flew for tens of meters. Fortunately for them, the direction they flew in was away from the city gates.
"Geegee," the troll foolishly chuckled as it saw its prey fly away. It scratched its chin playfully and then started jogging toward them, dragging its club on the ground.
"Ughhh!" Lisa could feel that a few of her ribs had cracked from the attack. She vomited blood and innards as she slowly got to her knees. She then glanced at the troll who was slowly approaching them and panicked.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})"Galriel, we need to leave…" She patted the elf lying down beside her. "Trolls have extremely strong regeneration abilities. We can't deal with it in our current state."
All of a sudden, she realized that her friend wasn't responding. She glanced at her and the next moment, her pupils dilated.
"…Galriel?"
The light in the elf's eyes had already dimmed at some point. Her cold body lay beside Lisa with no signs of life. A drop of tear slowly trickled down her face that was marred with deep unwillingness.
"G-Galriel… wake up…" Lisa muttered weakly but received no answers from her. Everything around her faded into nothingness as she glanced at the expression on Galriel's face.
There was a hint of sadness in her eyes, as well as a hint of fear.
There was a trace of reluctance, as well as regret.
"Galriel, no!!" Lisa screamed as she tightly embraced the elf. "Wake up! Please, wake up!"
Meanwhile, the troll had already appeared before them and raised its club once again. Its eyes flashed with killing intent as it hammered down the club at the two girls.
But suddenly!
A figure dressed in all black appeared in front of the troll and grabbed the club with his bare hand. A strong gust of wind blew in all directions from the point of impact.
Lisa raised her head in a daze and saw a familiar person standing before her. Her eyes moistened and she involuntarily started crying.
"Adam..."
