Chapter 261
Chapter 261: This Number Should Be Enough. (2)
As the number of following hunters increased, Kaor asked Ghislaine.
“It’s good to have so many subordinates, but is it all right? They’re all rough types, so handling them might be tough.”
“You’re getting scared again, aren’t you?”
“I’m not scared!”
“The more people who can fight, the better. That way, we can gather leather quickly, and it’ll come in handy later. When I return, you’ll have to deal with them well. You can manage that, right?”
If it were anything else, Ghislaine wouldn’t have entrusted it to Kaor. However, since Kaor had led a small mercenary group, he trusted his experience.
Hunters are similar to mercenaries. In fact, they tend to obey the strong even more than mercenaries do.
A hot-tempered Kaor could definitely lead a few hundred hunters. He had won against Doncard and gained fame in an instant while showing off his skills.
Sure enough, Kaor smirked confidently, puffing his chest out.
“Don’t worry. Even if I have to beat them every day, I’ll ensure they’re well under control.”
“Right, those types resist small fears but submit before great terror. Don’t forget that.”
At those words, Kaor nodded with a bit of tension. He seemed to understand the meaning a little.
After all, wasn’t he himself currently at the mercy of the colossal violence that is a lord?
“Ugh! This is humiliating! I swear I’ll have my revenge one day.”
Kaor fueled his motivation by puffing up once again. He wanted to surpass not just Gillian but Ghislaine someday as well.
Isn’t that the path of a man?
Regardless of Kaor’s fiery motivation, Ghislaine didn’t care. There was much to handle before the Monster Wave struck.
He went to find the Knight of Turian who managed the fortress.
“It’s best to prepare since the Monster Wave is starting soon.”
“……But it’s still more than six months until it starts, right?”
The Knight of Turian didn’t hide his cynical attitude.
They knew better than anyone about the cycle of the Monster Wave. It was merely funny for Ghislaine, who had just arrived, to say such things.
Regardless, Ghislaine conveyed his message and left.
“Don’t regret it; just prepare well. There have been many who didn’t listen and ended up regretting it.”
After Ghislaine left, the Knight of Turian fell deep in thought.
If the knight were from another kingdom, he would have dismissed Ghislaine’s words. It was obvious he would only think, ‘Here comes another crazy guy spouting nonsense.’
But the people of Turian were different. They had built fortresses and were cautious enough to prepare for monsters.
Grant, the Knight of Turian and fortress commander, was troubled.
“He’s still new here. He probably just picked up random hearsay and is blabbering.”
“But his achievements aren’t ordinary. He seems far more knowledgeable than many hunters who have been here for a long time.”
“Does he know something?”
Preparing for the Monster Wave wasn’t simply about increasing alertness. The fortress would be sealed off, and all logistics would be disrupted.
The fortress would attract external merchants using the byproducts of the monsters as bait for economic activities. If logistics were blocked, it would be difficult to last long.
Secondly, they had to inform the royal family and nearby fortresses to enter a war-time system. They needed to be ready if the fortress were breached.
In other words, preparations for war would start not just here but everywhere.
Thanks to such a thorough system, the Kingdom of Turian could withstand the onslaught of the immense monsters from the Shadow Mountain Range.
“If this is nonsense, it could lead to substantial financial losses.”
The cycles of the Monster Wave were almost constant. Because of this, each fortress had been planning and preparing according to that cycle.
Such a sudden shift to a war-time system hadn’t happened since the fortresses were built.
It was too burdensome to make a decision based on the words of a madman.
Grant, who had tossed and turned sleeplessly all night, spoke to his subordinate knights as day broke.
“……Prepare for the Monster Wave.”
It wasn’t because he fully trusted Ghislaine. His obsessive caution kept him from dismissing even nonsense.
“Also, initiate surveillance on Count Penris. If the Monster Wave doesn’t occur within a month, he’ll be held accountable for the losses.”
No one knew how much he would lose, but to compensate for that loss, they would likely have to hunt monsters here for a lifetime.
As soon as Grant issued the command, the fortress entered a state of heightened alert. The entrance to the fortress was sealed, and hunting by hunters was prohibited.
Knights and soldiers moved busily, preparing to fight against monsters.
“Quickly move!”
“Check the quantities of arrows and stones!”
“From today, double the number of guards!”
Large ballistae and catapults were being inspected, and strategic supplies piled up around the castle walls.
As a result, the roads and various areas inside the fortress began to be controlled. Economic activities shrank, causing life to become tough and raising the tension among people.
Naturally, some people started to voice their grievances due to the unexpected sudden change.
“Why is this happening all of a sudden? The Monster Wave is still far off, right?”
“That Ghislaine or whatever his name is said it was coming soon.”
“What nonsense is that? How does he know?”
Not being able to hunt meant they couldn’t earn money. Naturally, the hunters directed their dissatisfaction toward Ghislaine.
However, those who were gearing up to confront Ghislaine couldn’t even approach him and turned back. Monsters indeed came pouring in just a few days later.
Kroooh!
Countless monsters rushed toward the fortress without discrimination. No one knew how those that typically preyed on one another suddenly marched toward the fortress as if in unison.
The Knight of Turian and soldiers all flocked to the castle walls. The hunters did the same.
These and the fortress were essentially one and the same on this day. And since the Monster Wave had begun, there was no running away.
The number of monsters visible to the naked eye easily surpassed ten thousand. The hunters stood there, dumbfounded.
“What the…? Why are they coming so suddenly?”
“The cycles have almost never been wrong for years. The margin of error was only a month or two at most.”
“How on earth did he know this?”
Not only the hunters but also Grant, the commander, stood there flabbergasted. Thankfully, they had been prepared, but to think it would actually come to pass!
While feeling relieved inside, the danger had certainly not disappeared.
“Combat preparation! Hunters, prepare for battle!”
Screech!
As soon as Grant snapped out of his daze and shouted, the soldiers began loading the large ballistae and catapults. The hunters all armed themselves as well.
Since there were flying monsters, they had to be ready for aerial battles in addition to ground combat.
Ghislaine stood atop the castle walls, gazing at the approaching monsters. Behind him, the knights of Penris and about 300 newly recruited hunters had gathered.
Even as the other hunters prepared for battle, they frequently glanced over at Ghislaine.
“Kaor is over there.”
“That’s the guy who beat Doncard, right? Being near him should increase our chances of survival.”
“Let’s move a bit closer over there.”
The hunters subtly slid their positions toward Ghislaine. The fortress commander Grant saw this and shouted.
“Stay in your positions! You idiotic fools! I said to hold your ground!”
Monsters don’t use ladders. However, countless monsters could easily scale walls like those of the fortress.
Those with excellent motor skills could leap over even a small pile of corpses. Therefore, the hunters also needed to hold their ground.
But the hunters ignored Grant’s words and moved toward Ghislaine and his crew. Getting close to a strong ally took precedence.
In the past, Doncard was the strongest here. He was the best at monster hunting and had always displayed the most outstanding feats.
And now, it was Kaor who defeated such Doncard. Sticking as close to him as possible increased their survival odds.
Kaor flicked his hair back, wearing a proud expression.
“Hah, they know who the strongest is. This is troublesome, indeed.”
Even with monsters approaching, he didn’t feel tense. He just wanted to bask in the glory for now.
The hunters who had already made a pact with Ghislaine wore expressions brimming with high spirits. It was clear they felt envious.
“That’s why you should move quickly!”
“Jealous, huh? Who told you to have so much pride!”
Ghislaine glanced at the hunters gathering nearby and spoke up.
“Hey, do you all want to fight alongside us?”
All the hunters nodded vigorously. They wanted to fight without getting hurt too much.
Ghislaine happily obliged their request.
“Alright, since we’re busy, let’s make it a verbal contract for now. Just fight hard with us. With Kaor here, who beat Doncard, you don’t have to worry!”
“Wow!”
The hunters’ morale skyrocketed.
In the past, it was quite tough to even get close to Doncard. His party, which hoarded monster corpses, didn’t readily accept those who tried to edge into their territory.
But whether the new guys were generous or ignorant, they would accommodate anyone who asked. There couldn’t be anything better for the hunters.
Seeing Ghislaine grant this favor to the hunters, Grant gave up on trying to control them.
After all, hunters aren’t soldiers. Trying to force them to change positions would only breed resentment, and it wouldn’t work anyway.
“Damn, ever since that guy showed up, everything feels off.”
Both the unexpected Monster Wave and the gathering of hunters seemed to give the impression that the entire fortress was being manipulated by that guy.
Kaor!
There was no longer room for idle thoughts. The monsters had entered the range of the catapults and ballistae.
“Attack!”
At Grant’s shout, the ballista and catapult fire commenced.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Kroooh!
The monsters burst and were shredded apart. The ballista was particularly effective against large monsters.
However, even after several attacks, they couldn’t fend off all those many monsters. The monsters entered beyond the range of the large weapons, making it impossible to strike back anymore.
“Archers! Attack!”
Compared to the siege weapons, the archers’ attacks, which were relatively easy to control, began.
Whoosh!
A rain of arrows poured down. Some of them even aimed at the flying monsters.
While they didn’t deal much damage to the thick-skinned ones, they delivered considerable blows to the numerous smaller monsters.
“Shoot! Keep shooting!”
Until monsters cling to the walls, they need to keep launching arrow attacks. A few mages who had drifted here due to past circumstances best squeezed out their strength to cast long-range spells.
Krooooh!
The earth-shaking sounds grew louder. The monsters’ roars became painfully close.
Ghislaine assessed the number of monsters and their distance from the wall, nodding as he said.
“Okay, let’s jump down now. Everyone prepare for the ‘survive while just breaking one arm’ falling technique.”
At those words, the hunters around looked puzzled, while the knights of Penris wore gloomy expressions.
‘I knew this would happen.’
‘Of course, he wouldn’t just fight normally.’
‘Now I’m lost. I don’t even want to think.’
Regardless of the approaching monsters, the knights had already given up entirely.
They didn’t even resist and retrieved ropes from their waists. Ghislaine chuckled at the sight.
“Now, you’re preparing well, aren’t you?”
“Yes, yes. I just don’t want to jump straight down. My shoulders hurt.”
The knights answered vacantly, hastily tying ropes around the castle’s edge and quickly making their way down. Each of them carried enormous wooden boxes on their backs.
The hunters, upon seeing this, exclaimed in astonishment.
“What are those guys doing?!”
“Are they crazy? Why are they going down?!”
“Wait, are they really going down? Are they out of their minds?”
Who in their right mind would jump to their death just because their leader said so? If they were to die anyway, wouldn’t the sensible thing be to take out the one who gave the order first?
Grant, witnessing this, yelled again.
“You fools! What are you doing? Come back! Come back if you don’t want to die from friendly fire!”
Even as monsters closed in, the arrow attacks would continue. Arrows could be shot straight downward.
However, if there were allies below, that wouldn’t be possible.
No matter how much Grant protested, Ghislaine paid no heed. He merely looked at the confused hunters who chose to follow him and said.
“What are you doing? You guys grab the ropes and come down.”
“……Why do we have to do that?”
“It’s not always advantageous to fight from the walls. That only applies when the opponent is human. When facing monsters, it’s better to arrange formations and fight in a wider space. Many monsters don’t even care about the walls, anyway.”
“Still, isn’t the wall safe…?”
“I’ll kindly explain it again since it’s your first time. When facing monsters to that extent, it’s better to go down and fight. And there’s more important reasons.”
“What is… that?”
“The more you take down while down there, the more we all get, right? Alright, that’s enough explanation. Hurry and get down.”
“……”
The hunters couldn’t say anything. No matter how they thought about it, it sounded like a joke, yet some of them had already jumped down.
They couldn’t grasp how the situation had unfolded.
As the hunters stood dazed and confused, Ghislaine looked down and shouted.
“It seems these guys aren’t grasping the situation, so I’ll just throw you. Catch well!”
An exuberant shout echoed from below.
“Monsters are coming! Throw now!”
“Right, let’s start now.”
With that, Ghislaine grabbed a nearby hunter and tossed him straight down.
