"Ladders! Remove the ladders first!"

"It's the shaman's magic! Keep your heads down!"

Kwaang—!

The attacks thus far seemed like mere antics in comparison; Al-Ghurad's promised all-out assault was relentless. Orc chieftains who hadn't revealed themselves before now appeared in force, and the numbers of orc warriors and shaman pouring forth were staggering.

"Archers! Focus fire on the lancers!"

"Wizards! Provide firepower support at three o'clock!"

On the battlefield turned chaos, the mercenary Bilton, who had been hired as a guard, darted around with a pale complexion, responding mechanically to orders. "Stab!"

Using the spear he had been supplied with from the fortress, he stabbed an orc climbing the ladder.

While it would be great to pull the ladders down, the weight of the orcs who had already climbed made that an impossible task.

Bilton continued mechanically stabbing with his spear, even though he wished he had not come.

He had been regretting it for a few days now. He already had the contract drawn up, and running away would be considered desertion. He couldn't make the decision to flee.

Still, a few figures had taken the opportunity to desert. At first, Bilton had sneered at them, but now he regretted not following suit.

"Warriors are coming up!"

"Get, get the knight!"

Thump!

On one side, an orc warrior with spears embedded all over its body came climbing up, easily tossing aside soldiers. The unreal scene of heads exploding like watermelons with every swing of its heavy mace made it feel like a dream.

Before long, after the orc warrior had killed all the soldiers blocking its path, it approached Bilton with long strides.

"No, no!"

"Run!"

"Don't leave your post! If we all team up, we can defeat one warrior!"

The commander's shouts were audible, but the disheartened soldiers continued to dwindle in number.

Even Bilton, overwhelmed by the atmosphere, stood frozen in place. However, he couldn't muster the thought to escape.

Seeing this, the orc warrior accelerated suddenly and charged toward him.

"Now! Raise your spear upwards! Don't think of stabbing, think of blocking, and put your strength into your lower body!"

Clutching his supply spear tightly and standing like a statue, Bilton heard a voice that wasn't the commander's resounding in his ear.

Without realizing it, he followed the voice's instructions, raising his spear and bracing himself.

Thud!

Then, a tremendous shock hit him, and Bilton felt as if his entire body was breaking apart, tumbling backward.

'Am I going to die?'

For a moment, he let out a nervous chuckle, but then the voice spoke again, snapping him back to reality.

"Nicely done."

Turning his head, he saw the man who had told him to raise the spear now cradling his falling body.

"Ba-Barry Sanders."

"Look at what you accomplished."

Bilton gazed ahead and saw the orc warrior with a spear sticking out of its neck, writhing in agony, dying.

"Did I... kill the orc warrior?"

"The war isn't over yet."

The masked man stood Bilton upright and spoke.

The masked man was already drenched in blood, indicating how many orcs he had slain.

"It's not over yet. Hang on. We can definitely win this war."

With those words, Bilton watched the man run forward and out ahead of him, dazedly.

Would a flower blooming in the midst of despair be like that?

Though brief, the intense experience prompted Bilton to draw his own sword.

As the masked man said, the war wasn't over yet.

.

.

.

.

"It's endless."

The number of orcs was overwhelmingly large.

Even though their seemingly infinite numbers were exhausting, the frenzied actions of the many shamans turned even ordinary orcs into berserk warriors.

Even seeing orcs charging with foaming mouths, soldiers weren't exempt from despair.

Splat!

—Crunch.

As soldiers struggled to handle a formidable warrior, another warrior had been taken down. Looking around, there were few sections of the wall left without ladders.

Though dozens of orcs fell with every spell cast by the wizards, the overall situation wasn't greatly affected.

'Still, it's not time yet.'

He waited.

Just a bit longer, and then...

'But maybe I can speed things up.'

Crack!

Kwaang—!

In the distance, the sounds of Luna's rampage reached his ears.

Given the sound's direction, it seemed she had gone out of the fortress to fight. So far, there was no sign of Al-Ghurad joining the battle.

After deciding on my plan, I quickly severed the necks of the orcs climbing up the fortress walls.

Then, I threw myself down, joining Luna, who was undoubtedly fighting far off.

"Sir Sanders!"

Urgent cries reached him, but he ignored them. Landing gracefully on the ground, he felt the puzzled stares of the orcs fixed on him.

With a swift motion, he drew his sword, answering their gaze with a deadly dance.

Swish—!

Crack!

The sword's edge sliced through the orcs like a mist of blood.

And within the sword's edge lay the combined magic, Blood Curse, that weakened the orcs' bodies upon contact.

'It's even more powerful putting Blood Curse in the sword, rather than just casting it alone.'

A curse spell from the Forbidden Black Grimoire.

When used by itself, it barely had an effect, enough to make one doubt if it even worked. However, when infused into the sword to strike opponents, its impact was tremendous.

This had easily defeated the orc chieftains in duels as well.

—Kahatu!

The orcs charged like enraged bulls, but their chaos only caused them to trip over each other, not a wild rampage.

With focused attacks on their weak points, I danced amidst the battle, fully engaging my combat skills.

At the same time, I shattered some ladders with sword strokes, causing the orcs to tumble to the ground.

"Sir Sanders! Are you all right?"

Despite hearing someone express concern, I moved through the orcs like a fish finding water after a long drought. It wasn't time yet. I needed more bodies.

—Tootuga!

Finally, orc chieftains and warriors rushed to stop my rampage. They tossed aside the ordinary orcs in their path to clear the way.

"This is a bit..."

Even I thought it might be too much, so I quickly climbed the remaining ladder.

Feeling pursuit from behind, I reached the top of the wall and immediately severed the ladder to prevent them from following.

"Sir Sanders, are you alright?"

As the commander asked, I scanned the situation. It seemed to have improved slightly from before. But despite this, the number of soldiers seemed to have decreased.

"Looks like the number of soldiers has decreased a bit."

"The enemy's commander has entered through the southern gate. We urgently requested reinforcements. Plus, Sir Sanders, you've also been called."

Luna seemed to be struggling even with the reinforcements.

By the way, has the Orc Lord still not shown himself?

"Orc Lord spotted near the southern gate!"

As if reading my thoughts, a messenger burst forth with news. I turned my head to face him.

The southern gate was where Luna had been stationed. It appeared that Al-Gurrd was genuinely heading toward the southern gate, just as the commander was reported.

"Sir Sanders, you should probably go there right away."

At the commander's words, I examined the situation around the eastern gate for a moment before nodding.

Luna was a Named Character. She wasn't someone who would die easily, even in a place like this.

Still, if the enemy commander was near the southern gate, there would likely be a pile of bodies there.

'Aura Master Orc? I'm curious too.'

Quantity versus quality.

Who would come out on top?

.

.

.

.

Quaaddduk!

As a massive scythe swung in an arc, more than ten orcs were cleaved at once.

In the space where blood and flesh splattered, except for one human, no teeth dared approach nearby.

"Sir Sanders was amazing, but that one is a complete monster."

Hearing someone mumble, those looking at Luna Pendragon nodded in agreement.

Luna's combat prowess was overwhelmingly powerful, demonstrating the potential of a few strong individuals to change the course of war. Luna retrieved her scythe without a drop of blood staining her body.

"A bit disappointing."

Contrary to her high expectations, Luna was struggling due to the lower-level orcs. Although she was currently killing off the approaching orcs with ease, the orcs had stopped coming close to her.

If the orcs weren't approaching, perhaps Luna should go outside the fortress to fight.

Thanks to that, the situation at the southern gate appeared stable, separate from the ongoing assault.

Kuwoong!

Suddenly, a tremendous roar changed the atmosphere among the orcs. Even without getting close, the soldiers at the fortress felt their hair stand on end as they sought the source of the roaring.

"Oh, the Orc Lord!"

The Orc Lord, Al-Ghurad, was charging with a massive mace.

Larger than regular orcs and visibly standing out from a distance, Al-Ghurad's charge alone was enough to pale the faces of those watching.

Krkhahaha!

Al-Ghurad's booming laughter echoed as he reached the fortress, swinging his mace towards Luna, who was currently slaughtering orcs.

Quaang!

With a tremendous boom, Luna was sent flying.

However, she landed lightly and blinked her eyes, showing no serious harm.

"Orc Lord! Hehe, you're my friend and I'll treat you well."

—Krkhaha! I didn't expect someone better than the warrior I saw before. It will be an honorable battle!

Laughing like thunder, Al-Ghurad quickly reached the vicinity of the fortress, attacking Luna, who was slaughtering orcs.

Their incredible battle led to a temporary lull in the fighting on the fortress wall.

"It's useless. Aura Masters are monsters."

"Well, I have only heard about Aura Masters before, but I never thought they would be at this level."

It seemed that even if the outcome of this war depended on their fight, it wouldn't be an exaggeration. However, as their battle continued, the situation seemed to gradually favor the orcs.

"Luna Pendragon being incapacitated is putting us at a disadvantage!" Upon receiving the report from a messenger, Phillion looked down at the battlefield with a grim expression.

The commander, Dawson, was already out there fighting himself.

"This is bad."

While he had only marveled at Luna's skills when she was in action, now that she had left the battlefield, the empty space she left behind became all the more apparent.

The battle between Luna and Al-Ghurad was muffling the screams of the soldiers being slaughtered by the orcs, but the situation was deteriorating.

"Request reinforcements from the other gate!"

"Yes, understood."

Though he had already requested reinforcements a while ago, Phillion felt desperate and clung to any hope.

"Sir Phillion, the outer gate has been breached!"

Soon after, bad news reached them, causing Phillion to shout urgently.

"We must hold on as long as we can! Drop the prepared stones!"

The situation was becoming critical once again.

With no time left to command and a dire situation at hand, Phillion, too, drew his sword, following in his father's footsteps.

As Phillion descended from the watchtower, he realized just how dire the situation had become.

The southern gate had already been overrun by orcs, and now only a few desperate soldiers remained, sacrificing themselves to defend against the onslaught.

"We can't lose this! Our families are behind us!"

"We can't let these orcs defile this land! Defend it!"

Amidst their desperate cries, Phillion found himself feeling the surge of his own blood.

He was beginning to understand why his father had left the command post to fight on the front lines.

"We are the warriors of Endeavor!"

Phillion shouted.

"We, who were born and raised on Endeavor's land! We can't possibly lose to mere orcs! We will definitely defend this land, stained with blood and sweat!"

Phillion's cry resounded clearly through the battlefield, despite the clamor. The soldiers, raising their weary arms, shouted in unison, their spirits rekindled.

"We will defend it at all costs!"

"We are the 12th generation of Endeavor! Our ancestors' spirit lingers in this land, and we won't let it be taken by orcs!"

Once again, the soldiers' morale surged as their anthem of defiance echoed through the battlefield.

It was the ancient anthem of Endeavor Fortress.

As the anthem spread, soldiers fighting across the battlefield joined in, filling the air with the song of their homeland.

"Break their formation! Fight on! Endeavor!"

Perhaps due to the uplifting anthem, the tide of battle seemed to be turning slightly.

"Die!"

Joining forces with the soldiers, Phillion's sword pierced the neck of one of the Orc Warriors.

Just when they thought victory was within reach...

Quaang!

A collision sound unlike before rang out, almost shattering eardrums.

And at the end of that collisionwas a slender figure.

Thump!

That figure crashed into the wall. It was none other than Luna Pendragon.

"L-Luna Pendragon!"

Only now did those who were facing the Orc Lord's direction notice and turned their gaze, witnessing the bewildering sight of Al-Ghurad.

"Orc...Vigii..."

Behind Al-Ghurad's back, a massive orc-shaped figure composed of energy was taking shape.

This figure mimicked Al-Ghurad's movements, and its mere presence seemed suffocating, making anyone who looked at it feel overwhelmed.

"How... how do we beat something like that?"

"Luna Pendragon has been defeated too. It's over."

Some soldiers even dropped their weapons, sinking into despair.

Even Phillion was at a loss for words in the face of such a situation.

'This is an Aura Master... It's the end.'

The hope that had been reignited just moments ago was snuffed out as the formidable presence of the Aura Master, Al-Ghurad's true form, now revealed, left them with a sense of hopelessness.

Contrarily, the orcs' momentum continued to surge endlessly.

Witnessing Al-Ghurad's grand form, they pressed forward with even greater determination.

—Kraha!

And just as the orcs were surging over the walls, an unexpected change occurred.

—Kreuk?

—Thunk!

The bodies that were thought to be dead suddenly grabbed the orcs' ankles.

Unprepared for this, the weak points of the attackers were being pierced by the cold, unyielding iron.

"Ah, ah..."

The soldiers of Endeavor were left speechless.

A chilling sensation seemed to spread.

As if arriving from another realm, the corpses were rising, one by one...

Always, someone was moving alongside the risen bodies.

"Who on earth..."

Phillion managed to force his unyielding lips to move.

The approaching figure at the south gate...

Quietly...

But chillingly...

Yet revealing an explosive savagery...

"From now on, this place..."

With each step he took, undead creatures emerged.

"I will take care of this."

The man's voice was resolute.