[Mission Objective: Defeat Shadow Army Wave 1/10]

  Out of the deep darkness, they emerged bit by bit—wild boars wrapped in shadows, their eyes burning with a hateful red light. Slowly, their numbers grew, until a swarm of them began rushing straight toward Rondo.

  "Rondo, behind you!" Kenta shouted.

  Rondo spun around and drove his sword into the shadow boar. The beast dissolved into dust the moment the steel pierced it.

  "Stay sharp! We can't let a single one get past us!" Rondo said, already busy slashing at the group of shadow boars surrounding him.

  Kenta grabbed his bow and arrow. He saw more beasts sprinting toward him. He took a deep breath, locking his gaze on the targets. He grabbed an arrow and loosed it at the pack. Mid-air, the single arrow duplicated splitting into three, then five, then seven, fanning out as they flew.

  Meanwhile, Tira held her magic staff horizontally. Her lips moved fast, chanting a mantra. Her eyes glowed a bright purple, and her hair whipped around in a sudden, fierce wind.

  "Ila litho portu fokusie. Brim hador brim hador litho godhia axpartua!" Tira shouted, aiming her staff forward.

  A beam of intense purple energy blasted out. It was so powerful it toppled trees and sent the shadow boars squealing in agony. Within moments, the monsters faded into dust.

  But Tira let her guard down. One last boar lunged at her from the left.

  "Crap, that one!"

  Rondo intercepted it, driving his iron sword into the shadow beast.

  "Relax, I can handle this one," Rondo said.

  They looked over at Kenta, who was still struggling with the stragglers. They ran to help him. As soon as the enemies were cleared, Kenta's legs gave out and he collapsed. Tira caught him, letting him rest his head on her lap.

  "Thanks, Tira," Kenta mumbled, his voice weak.

  "Don't thank me yet. We still have nine waves to go," Tira said, her hands glowing as she used healing magic on Kenta's legs.

  While they rested, Rondo pushed forward into the forest alone. He faced the shadow boars there by himself. Clang! Clang! The sound of metal echoed as the boars tried to bite him, but their teeth just bounced off his iron armor.

  Rondo swung his sword with speed. He skewered several shadow boars like they were roast pork satay. The monsters pierced by his blade vanished like dust in the wind, leaving no trace. He sheathed the sword in his right pocket.

  Suddenly, a UI pop-up appeared in front of him.

  [Mission Objective Wave 1 Success!]

  [+350 Exp]

  [Next Mission Objective: Defeat Shadow Army Wave 2/10]

  "Still... so many left?" Rondo thought to himself.

  He stared seriously at the UI until it closed automatically. Giant shadow bats and more glowing red-eyed boars began to materialize in front of him. But before they could attack, three arrows whistled past Rondo, striking the monsters.

  Rondo looked back.

  Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

  "Hey, don't have all the fun by yourself, Knight," Kenta said, smiling with his bow in hand.

  The shadow monsters appeared in droves now, attacking the trio in a massive swarm. Tira chanted her spells, her lips moving rapidly. Small bursts of purple energy fired like a machine gun, hitting the shadows again and again.

  Kenta followed up, drawing his bow. This time, the arrows carried spreading electrical energy—stunning the monsters instantly. Rondo moved in to execute the fallen ones.

  The more the monsters attacked, the more skilled the trio became. Tira fired magic relentlessly. Kenta cycled through different energy arrows. Rondo swung his sword faster and faster, dancing with his blade among the shadows.

  Rondo spun his body, the path of his sword unpredictable—piercing the monsters with steel that moved like the wind.

  After fighting non-stop for a long time, silence finally returned. The monsters stopped appearing. The three of them gasped for air, sweat soaking their bodies.

  "Phew, wave two is finally done. If we keep this up, we can actually make it to wave ten, right?" Kenta flopped down onto the grass.

  "Haha, maybe. Let's hope. Anyway, drink this first," Tira said, tossing a bottle of blue liquid to Kenta. He caught it.

  "What is this?"

  "Mana Bottle. Drink it so you don't run dry," Tira said, opening one for herself. They both gulped down the liquid and capped the bottles.

  "Fresh, right?" Tira asked.

  "Taste is kinda bitter," Kenta grimaced.

  "Haha, of course it is. By the way, where did Rondo go?"

  "Dunno. Maybe he stayed in the forest to keep watch."

  "Hmm... he's so serious."

  "He's actually pretty good though. He was slaughtering them earlier."

  "Really? Then let's keep going. I feel bad making him wait."

  [Mission Objective Wave 2 Success!]

  [+400 Exp]

  [First Boss will appear. Do you want to spend your exp to upgrade available equipment?

  [Yes] [No]

  Note: If you tap 'Yes', your current equipment will be upgraded. If you tap 'No', accumulated exp will be converted into Growth Points. Exp will be lost if you die.]

  "Hmm... I guess I need an upgrade," Rondo said, staring at the large UI. He tapped 'Yes'.

  [Upgrade Complete!]

  [Iron Sword → Excalibur Sword]

  Rondo looked at his weapon. The iron sword had transformed into Excalibur—sleek white steel with elegant black accents and a much sharper edge. The grip felt perfect in his hand.

  [Continue to next wave? (2 other players waiting)] [Yes] [No]

  Rondo tapped 'Yes'.

  [Next Mission Objective: Defeat Shadow Army Wave 3/10]

  [First Boss Start! Shadow Giganoa will appear in this phase. Get ready!]

  Suddenly, a heavy roar screamed from the distance. The footsteps made the whole forest vibrate. Trees swayed violently with every thud. The giant monster appeared in front of Rondo. He shouted, his deep voice summoning more shadow monsters. Rondo was small enough to only see the creature's hands and feet.

  The monster tried to smash Rondo. Rondo sprinted, dodging the heavy, slow punches.

  Meanwhile, Tira and Kenta were busy with countless shadow minions attacking from all directions.

  "Hey, looks like Rondo is fighting the big one!" Kenta shouted while shooting arrows at the swarm.

  "Looks like it. We'll help him after we finish these small fries!" Tira yelled, blasting magic to kill the encroaching shadows.

  "But how long will that take? These small ones won't stop coming unless we kill the big one first," Kenta said.

  "If that's true... try to cover me," Tira requested.

  "Cover you how?"

  "Just cover me, whatever it takes."

  "Oh god... fine, I'm on it."

  Tira stood her staff straight, parallel to her body. She squeezed her eyes shut. Her lips began the chant.

  "Espardia axatus la vaillo sour ethornum. Hurikana huricana axantenia!"

  She opened her eyes, purple light flaring. A sphere of energy exploded outward, blasting away the shadow monsters near them.

  "Come on, we have to hurry and help Rondo before it's too late," Tira said, adjusting her grip on her staff.

  ---

  Rondo was still busy facing Giganoa. He tried running up the monster's leg, climbing to its shoulder, and plunging his sword into its body. Giganoa howled in pain. But its right hand snatched Rondo, trapping his body in its massive fingers. His sword fell to the ground.

  The monster squeezed. Rondo grimaced in pain, crushed and suffocating. But a moment later, magic and arrows slammed into the monster's eyes.

  The attack forced Giganoa to let go. Rondo fell from the height. Luckily, he crashed through several tree branches before hitting the ground, so it wasn't fatal. He groaned, clutching his back as he tried to stand. Kenta and Tira ran to him.

  "You okay?" Tira asked, casting healing magic on him.

  "Yeah... I'm okay-ish. But that monster, honestly, I don't know how to deal with it," Rondo answered weakly.

  While Rondo was being healed, Kenta worked to distract the beast. He fired arrow after arrow into its weak spots, making Giganoa scream.

  "Hey stupid! Where are you looking, huh? Is it fun being blind?" Kenta taunted.

  Giganoa roared with a heavy sound. It summoned shadow monsters to chase Kenta. A massive horde began to pursue him.

  "Crap... he so sensitive?" Kenta said, stowing his bow. He started running, dodging the chasing pack.

  Tira heard the sound of the monsters chasing Kenta. They were moving fast.

  "How strong is that big monster? Why don't you know how to handle it? Haven't you been fighting it this whole time?" Tira asked Rondo, who was still lying down.

  "Yeah, I've been fighting it alone. But it's weird. Even though I stabbed it and cut off parts of its body, the flesh just grows back," Rondo said.

  Tira was shocked. Her eyes went wide, unable to believe what Rondo just said.