### Chapter 167: The Battle of Disaster (Part 1)
Whew—
In the swirling winds, a horn sounded from the fortress wall on the southwestern defense line, echoing loudly.
In the distance, black thick fog rolled in, shrouding the mountains in a shadow of d*ath.
They are coming.
Inside the camp, the Iron Hooves of the Horned Horses pounded the ground, the coalition’s flags flapped wildly in the gale, and tens of thousands of troops began to surge towards the defensive fortress and high walls. They formed ranks behind the walls, eagerly awaiting the bellowing of a warrior named Old Henry, who shouted from the front lines, “They are coming—”
“Those who devoured the fertile lands of Silgaya, those ugly, wretched monsters from the Abyss, who intend to spread disaster across the entire Western Continent, to use our friends and beloved families as their meals—this moment, they are finally coming!”
“They come intending to devour everything we hold dear!”
“And you all have been preparing for their arrival for a long time!”
“From this day forward, every warrior standing here, whether you hail from Ethanbel or Winter City, you shall become the heroes of the entire Western Continent, of all humanity!”
“What you are about to do is resist disaster! But please remember this: these monsters from the Abyss are not invincible! In fact, they have appeared for nearly a thousand years and have never once defeated us!”
“And this time shall be no different!”
Old Henry roared like thunder, raising his blade high, while the warriors, including Barry and Ryan, smashed their shields and glared fiercely, erupting with thunderous roars: “Windstorm—”
Boom!
“Windstorm—”
Boom!
“They’re just a bunch of brainless, hideously ugly beasts! Prey! And you have prepared for months to hunt them!”
“It’s time for some field practice! Teach those monsters a lesson! Let them know they are not the hunters, but the hunted!”
“Now, charge the walls—”
“Roar!!!”
Outside the fortress, the black mist surged forward. The soldiers climbed to the tops of the walls, some feeling their hearts race as they tightened their fists in anticipation of d*ath, while others trembled, their eyes revealing unease and terror.
In the northwestern direction, the camp nestled against the mountains, the German wing of the winged knights had already gathered at the valley entrance. Sarah, clad in tightly wrapped armor, with a sheathed longsword at her waist, half of her face hidden behind a mask, stood resolutely atop the defensive wall, her eyes fixed on the movements beyond the valley, flickering with a mix of fear and excitement.
In the camp, a girl named Lilith knelt among the tattered refugees, praying with wide eyes towards the completely darkened southern sky, murmuring desperately, “Oh God, please bless the coalition with victory, please ensure he lives through this…”
Her eyes reddened, on the verge of tears, her helpless prayer uncertain of which deity it was intended for.
In the logistics camp, Daisy, hearing the shouts from beyond the valley wall, paused mid-mixing herbs, her face momentarily lost in confusion and helplessness.
That night—
As darkness descended, the monsters surged out from the deathly fog that seemed to want to engulf everything.
“Roar!”
“Aw—”
They unleashed eerie, bone-chilling cries. It started with one, then two, and within minutes turned into dozens, leaping over mountains and rushing towards the solid defensive lines set up by humanity, sniffing the air for “food,” targeting the densest clusters of people and warriors.
In the darkness, smoke and flames erupted. Skarlij and Little Reikmon stood side by side on the wall, watching the approaching cacophony of howls and rumbles. After a moment of silence, Little Reikmon turned to Skarlij and said, “Your Majesty, the battle is finally upon us.”
“I’m honored to fight alongside you once again, after the Siege of Chieris.”
“I’m honored too, young Duke Reikmon,” Skarlij nodded. “This is a decisive battle for the survival of humanity. I’m glad to see you here on this battlefield, alongside many brave soldiers from Ethanbel like you, which at least shows we have the strength to fight against disaster.”
Reikmon nodded, “I wonder how things are faring over by Her Majesty the Queen. I’d rather all the monsters coming our way be concentrated here.”
“Let’s just see how long we can hold them off…”
Skarlij patted Little Reikmon on the shoulder, “We’ll hold until the fusion at the Holy City is successfully completed, until the entire southwestern border is awash with bl**d, until those monsters are thoroughly frightened, until they pay a heavy price, until they all turn to ashes, or until we d*e right here.”
On the wall, the artillery known as the “Black Eulogy” was pushed into position, its dark, robust barrel extending out from the battlements. Clad in fiery red armor, Annie gazed into the distance, and at the moment she spotted the monsters emerging, their numbers rapidly increasing, she issued commands to the player atop the tower.
The signal flag waved, the horn of assault sounded. In that instant, the gunners lit their fuses, and the cannons fired in unison, accompanied by a deafening roar, like countless flowers suddenly blooming on the walls, illuminating the night in an instant. Huge iron balls traced through the air, crashing down into the mountains beyond the walls.
Faintly, the cries of monsters could be heard.
Behind, the refugees saw the light from the cannons and heard the ear-splitting roar as the shells left the barrels. They froze for a moment before panic set in, but someone must have started it because then the chaos was drowned out by excited shouts.
“What is that—”
“That’s a divine miracle, a miracle created by the coalition!”
“They’re different from the guards of Silgaya! They can hold back those disasters! The deities above, we are saved…”
The refugees cheered for the coalition’s startling tactics, even though they didn’t quite understand what it was, and they really didn’t grasp the true meaning of the Abyss.
On the wall, right after the first round of cannon fire, a second and third round followed in rapid succession. The coalition soldiers heard the monsters emit panicked screeches in the dark, their strange silhouettes and rustling sounds seemed to slowly retreat back into the black mist under this unprecedented display of firepower.
Skarlij watched from afar, and after a moment, he revealed a relieved smile.
“It actually worked…”
Beside him, Little Reikmon relaxed his clenched fists and nodded slightly.
No one expected that the firearms just recently developed by the workshop could effectively harm those monsters crawling out of the Abyss.
These monsters were not an army; they lacked any tight formations, and in the darkness, it was hard to identify specific targets. Given the speed of the monsters’ movements, three volleys seemed mighty, but they perhaps hadn’t even hit one of them.
But it seemed to scare them.
To scare them, to delay their attack, even if just for a few days—that would be enough, if it worked.
“They will fear us; they will hesitate,” Skarlij said. “Against the unknown, they tend to be relatively cautious, contrary to the tales of them just being mindless devourers. I’ve faced the Abyss before, but it’s the first time I’ve seen them retreat.”
Pausing, the man let out a long sigh, “They have a degree of intelligence and emotion, even if that might not be a good thing for us…”
