"Raaagghh!!!"
"Brothers, kill!!!"
"Kill!!!"
"Do not let them through!"
"Kill them all!"
"We are the protectors of our home! Invaders, die for me!!"
War cries erupted. The great earth trembled before the clash of Humanity and the Invaders.
From a single glance, things aren't looking good for Humanity. They are severely outnumbered so they were getting swarmed by the invader army. That being said, Humans showed a surprising level of tenacity against them.
Divine light surrounded each and every single one of them as if the Heavens themselves gave Humanity its blessing to drive the invaders away.
And in a sense...that isn't far from the truth.
The divine brilliance surrounding them was the result of Ashton's Divine Blessing. Ashton is the most powerful White Mage to ever exist in the annals of Human History.
So, despite being severely outnumbered, Humanity was neutralizing their advances, not allowing them to pass through.
Justin looked at his surroundings. His ears rumbled with the many sounds going off around him. The war cries of his kind rumbled in his chest, igniting a blaze in his heart that he never thought possible.
As a personal student of the Guild Master, Justin learned all about the outside world from Ashton. He heard his story and his excerpts back when he has transported away from Last Bastion.
And just like Blake, Mary, and Alice, he too entered the Virtual Reality based on the experiences of Ashton.
The memories were still fresh in his mind. The amount of humiliation and anger he felt when he learned about what the invaders thought of Humanity in general, was immense.
This event just strengthened his resolve to become even stronger. And if there's one thing that was etched in this his mind during that experience...
It'd be the fact that; no one hates the invaders more than the Guild Master does.
And he's clear with his intentions. Ashton never deceived him or anyone. Justin was aware that Ashton was raising warriors to fight against the invaders.
Those warriors included him, of course. And, just as how Ashton never hesitated to use all resources available to him to raise them, Justin too shall not hold back in fulfilling his sworn duty.
Bzzzt! Boom!
Pale lightning and thunder rumbled from his body. Justin's hair turned platinum blond and his eyes turned all white. Pythons made out of lightning slithered around his body, some coiled into his sword.
His sword intent screeched and made itself known. His gaze swept past the horde of invaders threatening the safety of their home. A sneer escaped from his lips before his body leaned forward and promptly disappeared.
He turned into a lightning bolt, flying with a blinding speed and passing through several enemies, leaving some gaping and burning holes in their bodies.
Justin reappeared and pointed his sword to the sky, what followed were several pillars of pure lightning purging the invaders, reducing them to mere ashes.
Due to his effectiveness at killing enemy troops, he attracted the attention of both his allies and the enemy.
In mere seconds, the enemy started swarming him, attempting to drown him into oblivion.
As a response to this, a wide electrical field emerged with Justin at its center. Enemies who came too close were fried to crisp. This prevented the rest from stupidly trying to get close to him.
Justin also didn't have any problems in dealing with ranged attackers, his speed was to fact and his reaction time was even faster. This is the result of Ashton's heavy training and his personal efforts combined.
Truly, Justin was raised to become an absolute menace to the opposing army. Especially since his lightning wasn't any ordinary lightning. It is the Heaven Punishment Lightning and Thunder, which has the same purifying qualities as Ashton's white flames, albeit more painful for the invaders.
To top that off, Justin was also talented with the sword. In the entire guild, he's only second to Alice when it comes to Sword Supremacy.
He had spent a good amount of his time challenging at the Sword Palace, therefore his swordplay had seen some drastic changes.
And while his battle might be a decisive battle for survival, it's also an opportunity for most people.
This is a live battle, a do-or-die fight. They're not experiencing mere pressure, it's an outright threat to their lives. Due to that nature, the latent potential that is slumbering from their bodies will be forcibly roused into activity.
Justin's growth won't stop here. In fact, not only will it not stop, it will become even faster. That's the perk of being young and talented.
'Those who threaten the peace of my home deserve to die!'
Back in the Morning Sun Federation's Headquarters, at the President's office...
Ashton sat on his chair, leaning back while watching the windows.
Said windows are, in truth, functioning as CCTV's, monitoring the state of the war and providing real-time feedback to him.
Seeing how Justin danced around the battlefield while brandishing his sword covered in lightning, puts his heart at rest.
'...the hesitation in his eyes finally disappeared. That's good.' He mused inwardly.
Ashton grabbed a vial right next to him and downed its contents in a single gulp. The vial contained a blue liquid which didn't look safe at first but in truth, it was a Mana Potion, so it was fine.
While Ashton might be a Child of Mana, supporting this many people was still burdensome for him.
Yes, he is supporting an entire army even though he was way back here. The ARC Fantasia is conductive, and since this is his domain, his influence here is the greatest. There are several tools here that helped him extend his casting range, allowing him to support people at any time possible.
They were indeed being held just outside of Last Bastion but that was not a problem since the distance was just far enough for him to reach them.
Aside from Ashton, Aria, Felicia, Doug, and other consultants are also present in the room. They too were watching the war unfold. As a matter of fact, Fantasia as a whole was watching everything unfold since this is bring broadcasted on all networks available.
Ashton decided to sign off the broadcast due to a few reasons. But for the most part, he just thought that there was no reason to filter the information anymore.
The citizens had every right to know what was happening around them. There's no point in hiding the existence of the invaders since that benefits nobody.
Plus, it's just overall better for the morale of Humanity as a whole to see that they have a fighting chance.
Ashton momentarily peeled his gaze away from the monitors and looked at his side. There, he saw a System Prompt that he had yet to close.
[The Twisted Heavenly Tree's evolution, happened and succeeded because of you, it has now become the 'Twisted Heavenly Bulwark'. ×500 Benefactor's Return, triggered! You received: Horace the Golem, and 250 Skill and Spell Points.]
[Twisted Heavenly Bulwark]
Type: Defensive Tool (World-Class)
Description:
: An evolved form of the Twisted Heavenly Tree. It has the same qualities as one but with massive improvements across the board.
: It no longer needs sacrifice for maintenance. Instead, it now absorbs Law and Aether Energy and uses them as fuel.
: Heavenly Bulwark — a protective barrier that encapsulates the entire planet and preserves its natural state. Highly durable and reflects 150% of all manner of attacks it receives back to its sender. You as its master can also determine the shape of the bulwark.
: Last Stand — Activate this effect to turn the Heavenly Bulwark invincible for an entire month. Heavenly Bulwark enters a swift recovery mode while it's invincible (recovery speed depends on the vitality of the world and the richness of Laws). Can only be used once a year.
: Twisted Heavenly Chains — Those who aren't born of the world that the Twisted Heavenly Bulwark was protecting, will experience a massive suppression. Invaders who possess enough power to threaten the world will be struck by chains that cause them immense pain and agony while also draining their strength.
'Thank the heavens the gamble paid off.' He muttered inwardly.
With the new and improved protective measures for this world, the army of invaders should face an even more difficult time forcing their way in the future.
And since he could now determine the shape of the bulwark, he could also create openings from it, which might prove useful in the future.
When Alice told the invaders to fuck off, that was his intention. Alice very much wanted to end them right then and there but Ashton had his reservations.
Well, it ended up being useless anyways since Labolas and St. Francis were too arrogant to back down.
Due to that, he had no other choice than to make them suffer for underestimating them. The Twisted Heavenly Chains surely made quick work out of them.
Ashton closed the System Prompts and continued monitoring the war. He could still feel mana being drained from his body due to the sheer amount of healing he needed but that was fine by him.
'Go on, everybody. Continue with your work. I am and will always be watching over you.'
