When I looked up, I could see it.
Fire.
Water.
Wind.
Massive spells descended toward the colony.
These were not ordinary spells. Even I could tell they required enormous amounts of mana and several high-level mages casting together.
Then—
THUD!
A deafening sound came from the front gate.
My eyes immediately turned toward it.
A giant man nearly six feet tall, built like an orc, charged forward carrying a massive club.
He swung with all his strength.
BOOM!
The gate, which had only been cracked before, finally shattered.
Wood exploded outward.
The entrance collapsed.
At the same moment, several lizardmen thrust their spears through the opening.
Three spears pierced the man's body.
Yet he did not fall immediately.
He stood there for several seconds, blood pouring from his chest.
Then he smiled.
And collapsed.
But his mission had been completed.
The gate had fallen.
At that exact moment, the bombardment began.
Fire engulfed parts of the nest.
Wind blades tore through rooftops.
Water spells crashed down.
Buildings collapsed.
Lizardmen screamed.
Some were burned alive.
Others were crushed beneath debris.
The wooden barricades caught fire quickly.
However, the swamp itself worked in the lizardmen's favor.
The wet ground and constant moisture prevented the flames from spreading too far.
Still—
chaos had begun.
Our long-range units moved closer.
I climbed down from my tree carefully and advanced through the swamp, making as little noise as possible.
Eventually, I climbed another tree much closer to the nest.
From there, I could see everything.
Lizardmen were running everywhere.
Some carried the wounded.
Some fought the fires.
Some organized defensive positions.
Despite the bombardment, they had not completely fallen into disorder.
Then the First Wave entered.
Nearly fifty mounted fighters charged into the broken gate.
Some were aura knights.
Others were veteran knights.
Every one of them was stronger than ordinary mercenaries.
I drew my bow.
Unlike the ordinary lizardmen, many of these defenders wore armor.
The only exposed areas were the neck and face.
I aimed.
Released.
My arrow pierced one lizardman's neck.
He stumbled backward and collapsed.
Even though they noticed our long-range support, they could not focus on us.
The fighters inside the nest kept them occupied.
Thirty minutes passed.
The Second Wave entered.
Most of them seemed to be around the level between squires and knights.
The fighting became even more brutal.
Men were pierced by spears.
Some had their heads crushed.
Others were dragged down by groups of lizardmen.
I noticed several lizardman mages standing farther inside the nest.
I immediately aimed at one.
But before I could fire—
a large lizardman carrying a shield stepped in front of him.
The shield covered the mage completely.
The lizardman looked directly toward my position.
It said something to the mage behind it.
I lowered my bow.
It would be difficult to kill the mage from this distance.
Still, other archers continued targeting them.
The battle slowly shifted.
The lizardmen began adapting.
Archers appeared on rooftops.
Arrows started flying toward our positions.
One arrow struck my chest.
Clang.
The armor Duracal made saved me.
The arrow only scraped the metal.
I looked toward the shooter.
A lizardman archer.
He quickly hid behind a collapsed building.
I pretended to target another enemy.
As expected—
he took the bait.
The moment he exposed himself to shoot again, I changed my aim and released my arrow.
The arrow struck his bow hand.
Before he could even scream, one of the mercenaries inside the nest cut off his head.
Another thirty minutes passed.
My turn was approaching.
Carefully, I climbed down from the tree.
The Fourth Wave.
My wave.
I could see bodies everywhere now.
Mercenaries.
Lizardmen.
Blood mixed with the swamp water.
The earth mages had hardened the ground once more.
The Third Wave charged.
Which meant—
we were next.
For thirty minutes, I waited.
No one in the Fourth Wave spoke much.
Nobody knew what was happening inside the nest.
Nobody knew how many enemies remained.
I closed my eyes.
I adjusted my breathing.
Beast Breathing.
In.
Out.
Slowly.
I remembered every face.
Duracal.
Siena.
Bharam.
Rathen.
Even my mother.
Rusty stood beside me.
Perhaps sensing my anxiety, he released a long breath through his nose.
As if telling me—
I am here.
I placed my hand on his neck.
But the anxiety inside my chest did not disappear.
The horn for the Fourth Wave had not sounded yet.
And somehow—
that silence felt far more frightening than the battle itself.