Chapter 177: A Lioness Faithful to Instinct (4)
Thinking about the pre-war defense, where all I had to do was command safely from the rear, I realized things had just gotten a lot harder for me.
This did nothing but make me feel sad.
Still, to some extent, it felt like the situation had been cleared up. However, this did not mean that I was free to feel at ease. There were still many unstable factors. There was still the western wall that was scheduled to collapse in advance, as well as the existence of a raid monster that would probably be classified as legendary, at the very least.
Of course, remembering that time has passed since we first heard the howling, I had good reason to think that our troops were holding on well enough. The side where Kim Hyunsung had gone would regain its vitality with his help. Thus, our pre-war preparations would not be for nothing.
‘However…’
It was always natural to think of the worst-case scenario. One would never know for sure when and how a war situation would change. Cha Hee-ra had changed unexpectedly, for one, as well as the baby monster’s howling.
‘Therefore, the more insurance, the better.’
To successfully solve this crisis, I had to keep thinking hard. With my limited skills, I had to rack my brains out to find more solutions.
As I mulled these over, the battle in front of me continued to rage.
Shaolin was strong enough, but I began to understand why she didn’t seem confident about being able to kill Cha Hee-ra.
Sure, her legendary item Woold was certainly powerful, enough to sweep away small buildings with one whip. However, Cha Hee-ra had successfully managed to stay on guard right after the first surprise attack.
“Grrrrrr!”
Bang! Bang! Seeing Cha Hee-ra being able to dodge all incoming attacks didn’t seem to be the work of someone who had a 90 agility stat. This only proved that she had indeed lost all reason, and all that was left to her was instinct. I could see all of this with my own eyes, and yet…
‘It’s sense.’
She had both sense and instinct. Cha Hee-ra couldn’t have possibly reached that area if it weren’t for all her training.
Just like Jung Hayan, she was also a kind of genius. Of course, it would be faster to find a player who did not have a special talent among the players who have reached that level, but in my view, Cha Hee-ra was clearly unwise.
Shaolin somehow managed to keep their former distance in an attempt to tie her up, but the beast would never follow the trainer, and so, the battle ensued.
‘She’s holding on well so far.’
Contrary to my opinion, however, I felt like Cha Hee-ra allowed Shaolin to keep that distance. Though the presence of magic could offset the weapon’s shortcomings, the fact remained that it was still a whip. This meant that engaging in close combat would be very disadvantageous, especially if the opponent was Cha Hee-ra, someone who specialized in close combat.
When the beast rushed right in front of Shaolin with murderous intent, the other woman ended up dropping her whip.
After settling into a strange posture, she struck Cha Hee-ra’s arm before striking her solar plexus using her elbow.
‘Martial arts?’
Seeing Cha Hee-ra bounce off from the impact looked very much unrealistic to me.
‘Fuck… what’s with those moves?’
It would be natural to think that a person wielding a melee weapon would lack combat power. However, I was surprised to find that this was not the case at all.
‘Why is she so strong?’
No matter how fast Kim Hyunsung himself grew, he still struggled to keep up with Cha Hee-ra.
Shaolin was the kind of person who could be classified as a strong woman. She perfectly accustomed her body from medium to long-distance battles and even super close-battles using legendary weapons.
Although her stats seemed to be a little lower, she seemed better than Ito Souta. After all, she managed to fend off against Cha Hee-ra pretty well.
However, it appeared that Shaolin did not think the same. I could see her displeasure at having only inflicted this much damage on her opponent. Following her gaze, all I could see was the red-haired beast once again standing, this time holding two cheap-looking weapons. It appeared that Shaolin had struck her right into a weapon shop.
‘Come to think of it…’
This was definitely the first time I had seen Cha Hee-ra wielding a weapon.
Yes, this was definitely the first time. I didn’t know why she, who had acquired knowledge of advanced dual weapons through her class’s effect, did not carry her own armament, but the fact that the tides of battle would change from here on out was apparent.
I started to worry about Shaolin.
“Isn’t she dying, just keeping up like that?” I found myself wondering out loud. Someone answered me, however.
“It will be dangerous. Sure, she’s strong…”
“You scared me!”
“Ah… I’m sorry.”
“No. You came sooner than I thought.”
It was the Red Mercenary I told Kim Hyunsung to bring over. He was currently standing behind me, staring right at me.
“Currently, there aren’t a lot of troops on the wall, so I brought six members along. We came because they said that we had something to do together… I guess now I know what it is.”
“Yes. That woman with a whip is now fending against Hee-ra. I would like you to watch her so that other accidents do not happen. I was worried that she might get hurt…”
“You don’t have to worry about that… First of all, it is our job to protect the master, so we will follow your orders with gratitude. What about that other woman?”
“It’s confirmed that she has subordinates with her. They’re about five. They seem to be from the Republic, but they have decided to cooperate with us, so please take care of their safety as well. Make sure that they don’t die to the best of your powers.”
“Yes. I see what you mean. Usually, It’s not easy to stop the master in that state… Until her reason comes back, I think I should support that woman. If she hadn’t come, another accident would have happened. She hasn’t been like that recently…”
‘I can’t say that the cause is me.’
“Has she ever become like that in the past?”
“There have been several occurrences back when she was new here on the continent, and only once when she became Guild Master. Of course, this wasn’t the same feeling back then…”
“Back then?”
“I remember her attacking both enemies and allies with no ability to distinguish them. I’m glad that that part’s changed now, at least.”
If that was the case, then that indeed eased some more of my anxiety. I was still curious about the news on the wall.
“I see. Ah. What is the current situation of our pre-war defense?”
“Fine. Although a legendary-grade named monster appeared, it was a little passive.”
“Aha…”
“Until then, only heroic-grade monsters or sub-species have been sent, but they have not made direct attacks on the walls. If the guy comes in pushing, we would definitely take a lot of damage, but in the previous battle, our wizards saved up a lot of magic, so we can afford to fight. Defeating the monsters all at once on the First City Wall was definitely effective…”
I nodded slightly. I had expected the named monster to stop moving at some point. However, I still didn’t know why it would stop moving. It was not easy to wonder about.
It would be a strange situation if I didn’t smile.
‘I can move comfortably for now…’
My prepared insurance garnered me some additional safety.
“What about the western wall?”
“The western wall also hadn’t faced any difficulties. Although there were many deaths, reserve troops were quickly put in to fill the void. Of course, compared to the other wall, it is true that their power is being pushed down… Is there anything wrong with the western wall?”
“No. Listening to you, I think it will be okay. If you have any problems, you can evacuate to the eastern area.”
“Alright.”
“Are there any wizards capable of voice amplification magic?”
“Ah… Yes.”
Even though the Red Mercenary’s Wizard Squad was weak, seeing him here confirmed that our Kim Hyunsung really felt considerate for my wellbeing.
‘Good.’
“Apart from the wizard, everyone else can perform the mission I just mentioned. If by any chance, after the end of the runaway state, Hee-ra is…”
“There won’t be any other side effects. You can assume that she will immediately return to the same state as before.”
“That’s a relief. Then, I’ll send the signal from this side.”
“What signal?”
“Hee-ra can tell you. From now on, I’ll be heading towards the Little Rock Guild House. It looks like it’ll be safe, so you don’t have to escort me.”
“Please take one more person with you.”
It seemed that they really cared about my safety. I know it was because of Cha Hee-ra’s past orders, but I was indeed thankful. At my nod, a warrior sided up next to the wizard.
’15 minutes remaining.’
It was nice to be able to watch the fight, thanks to Shaolin’s capabilities.
Being able to be escorted like this also made me feel comfortable. Seeing my escort wizard cast illusion magic as we headed out for fear of being discovered, I knew they were afraid of Cha Hee-ra stalking after us. However, the woman in question didn’t seem interested in going after us.
As we moved, I heard explosions and roars resonating from everywhere.
Nevertheless, the situation on our side was very comfortable. It made me feel very good, and it was obvious why.
‘It feels like all the puzzle pieces have been gathered together.’
We made good time moving as fast as we could while Shaolin and the others distracted Cha Hee-ra. Of course, when she realized that I was gone, I could hear a louder roar than before, this time angrier, but I couldn’t find it in me to care.
’10 minutes remaining.’
“Can you hold me and run?”
“Yes, of course.”
I felt sorry for the warrior who would bear the physical burden, but he was way faster than me. It would take us a little more time to reach the Little Rock Guild House because of its location.
‘2 minutes remaining.’
If I had been with Kim Hyunsung, we would have already arrived. Since I was with a warrior who invested in endurance and strength rather than agility, I still found it impressive that we could move at this speed.
Soon enough, the Guild House came into view.
On cue, as if Cha Hee-ra had woken up, the explosions in the western area decreased.
After a few more seconds, I could hear her screaming. I felt like I knew why, but it would be better to pretend that I didn’t hear that.
As I got closer to the Little Rock Guild House, a team member approached us.
“So, you were there?”
“Ah, Lee Kiyoung-nim.”
“Is there anything special here?”
“Yes. Rather than that, why did you come to this place?”
“The newborn baby of the monster, is it here?”
I knew I was being rude, but pleasantries were out of the question. The Red Mercenary members had already wandered around, finding what it was that I was seeking.
The creature looked like a little dragon. The only difference was that its wings had not yet sprouted. To be precise, there was something attached to its forelimb, but no one could see it; I realized it was not meant to fly.
Anyway, its appearance didn’t matter.
As soon as I removed its mouthpiece, the little guy’s sad cry filled the city.
“Kie-e-e-e-e-ee-eek…”
Bang! With this sound, I could see the mother monster smashing the western wall, this time looking directly towards me.
“Oh? What’re you going to do, you bastard? Puhahaha!”