Chapter 112.1

Monster Wave (1)

A blizzard raged across the extreme northern tundra, where humanity’s last bastion, the Northern Great Wall, stood tall and steadfast.

Stretching over tens of kilometers, this massive wall marked the boundary and battlefield between humanity and the monsters.

“Fortify… Fortify…”

“Blind their sight, slow their steps…”

Above the wall, the incantations of witches reverberated in the frigid air.

The magical light emanating from their fingertips coursed along the wall, strengthening the pre-existing defensive spells and barriers.

“Ha-ha-ha-ha! Yes! Once in a while, it’s nice to enjoy a proper defense battle!”

“Check the enchantments on your pauldrons, everyone!”

The knights tightened their Northern Black Iron armor and gripped their weapons firmly.

“Centurion! Are we ready?”

“Aye!!”

“Are you ready to feed these bastards arrows and spears made from Northern Black Iron?!”

“Ayeee!!”

“Renslet! Rune Renslet!”

“Good! We have more than enough Black Iron weapons to spare, so don’t hold back! Kill as many as you can!”

Under the Centurion’s command, the soldiers nocked their arrows and kept a sharp eye on the enemy’s movements.

Grrrrr…

Then, it began.

“That… that thing…!”

One soldier muttered in a trembling voice.

Kuuuoooooouuuuuuuu!

A massive tremor shook the ground, and an unearthly roar rode the icy wind, crashing into the wall.

Right before the barrier, something enormous broke through the white tundra.

“A white serpent…!”

“The legendary white serpent! Jörmungandr!”

Through the blizzard, a colossal figure emerged—a white serpent, approximately 300 meters long. It was the legendary monster, Jörmungandr.

-!

The black eyes of the white serpent gleamed with a dark light.

“Eeeeek!!”

The soldiers atop the wall trembled as an icy fear seeped into their limbs.

Kooooooo…

The roar and piercing presence of the legendary monster froze the snowy plains and sapped the strength from the legs of those standing on the wall.

Even the most stalwart among them felt a chill of dread, while the faint-hearted would simply faint.

“That damned white snake!”

“What are you staring at it for? What’re you gonna do, huh?!”

But this was the North.

The land of the Renslets, where one must battle savage beasts and merciless winters from birth to death.

“No one’s wet themselves, right?!”

“Hey, I think Milis might’ve pissed a little! I smell it!”

“I didn’t!”

“Ha-ha-ha-ha!”

Jörmungandr’s first roar and its oppressive aura made the soldiers shudder momentarily, but only for a moment.

“Impressive! Renslets, you’ve made me proud!”

“Renslet! Rune Renslet!”

Even without the knights rallying them, the elite soldiers of Renslet regained their composure and raised their morale even higher.

“Prepare for battle!”

From the Centurion down to the Decurion, every unit commander stationed on the wall bellowed their orders.

“Renslet! Rune Renslet!”

The fervent war cries and shouts echoed like a storm between the wall and the High Tower.

Thud—

Shuffle, shuffle, shuffle.

Meanwhile, around Jörmungandr, the Northern Orc Legion began to appear.

Unlike typical monsters, these orcs did not charge recklessly. With their innate intelligence, they marched in formation, their steps synchronized.

They were clad in armor as cold and unyielding as ice, the imperial gear of their kind.

Uoooooooh!!

Tshhhhhhh!

The orcs’ war cries mingled with the howling wind, creating an eerie, chilling cacophony.

“Halrut! Halrut!”

“Paso! Paso!”

Amid the orcs, barbarian druids emerged.

They shifted seamlessly between human forms and those of enormous bears or savage wolves, disorienting the soldiers aiming bows and crossbows.

Half-human, half-beast, these druids moved with chaotic savagery, far less disciplined than the orcs.

Wooooooo—

Kuuuuuu—

But their true menace wasn’t merely their ability to shapeshift into beasts.

Druids could command nearby animals—and even monsters—with terrifying ease.

Graaaaah!

From the tundra came eternal snow ogres.

Grrruuuuur!

Icy sea drakes.

Kiiiiiiiek!

Snowfield basilisks.

Kraaaaaah!

And frost trolls, all acting as siege engines for the monster army.

“How… How are they controlling high-tier monsters? No matter how skilled druids are, this shouldn’t be possible!”

A young mage muttered in shock.

“It’s Jörmungandr. The white serpent is controlling the barbarians, the orcs, and the monsters. The druids are merely fine-tuning its commands.”

An older mage standing nearby explained.

Though he had not lived as long as Isabelle, and his rank was limited by his lack of talent, he had spent nearly a century in this land, gaining wisdom and experience from countless encounters with the demonic lairs and the wilds. ȓἁ₦о₿Ę𝙨

“The black sorcerers… There they are. Truly insane. They actually managed to revive and awaken the white serpent.”

The elder mage focused his weary eyes on Jörmungandr’s gleaming white scales.

“Are they the last black sorcerers left on this continent?”

Several of the few remaining black sorcerers clung to the back of the white serpent.

Koooooo…

For a fleeting moment, silence fell between the wall and the frozen tundra, a tense standoff filled with anticipation.

The northern blizzard swept unrelentingly between the two opposing forces.

Bwoooooo—

And then, the deep blare of a massive war horn signaled the start of the battle.

“Fire!”

On top of the wall, the first volley of ballista bolts, arrows, and spears was unleashed.

“Just keep shooting! The mages will handle the rest with their spirits!”

Though the distance made it difficult for human hands to hit accurately, the power and precision of the barrage left nothing to worry about.

Thwack! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Charging barbarians and orcs fell, pierced by relentless arrows and spears that tracked them with unnerving persistence, leaving many dead or incapacitated.

But the battle was far from over.

“Prepare the Magic Battalion!”

This was the ace force, meticulously prepared for this expedition.

A battalion formed from soldiers who could sense even the faintest traces of mana appeared at the center of the wall.

Step, step, step.

Each soldier held arrows and spears embedded with low-grade magic stones.

These weapons were the same ones Arad had once developed for personal defense during his Golden Caravan operations in the Demon Realm.

“Renslet! Rune Renslet!”

The Magic Battalion soldiers, their faces brimming with confidence, took aim with their enchanted weapons.

“Let them taste the craftsmanship of our spellwrights!”

Whizz-whizz-whizz!

A storm of projectiles, charged with magical circuits, was launched.

Cackle!

Spirits of wind summoned by the mages guided the magic stone projectiles unerringly toward the enemy’s vital points.

Boom!

Massive explosions of flame erupted.@@novelbin@@

Crackle!

Amid the biting cold, freezing detonations—far deadlier than fire—burst across the battlefield.

“Block it! Stop the spirits!”

Black sorcerers mounted on Jörmungandr, along with orc shamans and druids on the ground, scrambled to dispel or reverse-summon the spirits.

“Time for the Renslet Order to shine!”

“Renslet! Rune Renslet!”

But the Renslets had no intention of letting them succeed.

The priests of the Renslet Order, who had spent years honing their sacred powers, began to unleash divine energy they had painstakingly prepared.

Wuuuuuuuum—

Holy light radiated from various points along the Great Wall.

“Ugh…!”

The divine power heavily suppressed the black sorcerers’ influence.

Thus, the battle truly began.

***

As the monster wave reached the wall and the defenders unleashed their pent-up attacks, a different group stood atop the battlefield, watching.

“Are you ready?”

“Of course.”

“Let’s go!”

Sun, Isabelle, and Balzac gazed toward a specific point on the battlefield.