"Listen here, everyone!"
A firm voice without the slightest hint of fear or hesitation sounded loud enough for many around to hear.
Everyone snapped their gazes to see the man who had spoken.
He was a well built man in his thirties. A simple way to describe him would be to say that he looked like someone who had served in the army.
His long black hair fell over his eyes. His gray eyes were half-lidded like one who barely slept, and his beard, though unkempt, suited him well.
Dressed in a black and gold leather coat, the smile he put on made everyone feel a bit less grim about their situation. His left hand was rested on the hilt of a greatsword which he allowed the tip to rest on the ground.
When Sami narrowed his eyes to the man’s right hand, he could see that he was holding a playing card.
"I’ll get to the point since we do not have time," the man continued, raising his card higher so that those far behind could see.
"Name’s Marcus. As you can see, 10 of Clubs. I walk the second Path of the Warrior Tree. (Paladin)."
The moment the man spoke, murmurs spread out among the people nearby.
Even Sami was genuinely impressed as this was his first time actually seeing the Card of a high-numbered card player.
It seemed that if people wanted, they could take out their cards to show people.
There was another interesting thing that caught Sami’s attention. For some reason, the man’s voice seemed to boost his confidence, instilling some sort of courage in him.
’Is that also a part of his power?’
Oblivious to his thoughts, Marcus looked around and continued quickly. "Since we do not know what we are expecting, I say it’s better if we work as a team rather than run around like headless chickens. And if no one has any objections, I’ll give the orders."
Even louder murmurs broke out, but before anyone could even think about objecting, the man raised his voice again to cut through the noise. "All Clubs should be at the defensive line, followed by the Spades. The Diamonds should be protected within the line, but the ones with the most priority for defense are the Hearts."
He had barely concluded the order when the ground began to rumble slightly. A beat later, the howls of monsters, followed by the screams of people yelling, "Look over there!" drew his attention.
Everyone snapped their heads to the source of the chaos, including Sami. When the terrifying scene reflected in his eyes, his lips parted in shock.
"Holy..."
Dozens upon dozens of nightmarish creatures could be seen coming out of an alley. Some were running on the ground, while the others were running along the walls.
’I’m guessing those are the Calamities?’
They looked like black furry wolves, with extremely long furry tails. However that was where the similarity ended. They were slightly larger than wolves, and their long necks ended in a round face that had no eyes and nose, only a large round maw. The round maws were open revealing blade like teeth, though the sounds coming from them did indeed sound like wolves.
Upon seeing the swarm, Marcus’s face darkened slightly and he yelled. "Everyone, get into positions now and prepare to defend the Sector!"
He didn’t even need to finish the order before people scrambled into positions. Those with long ranged weapons had already begun opening fire at the creatures. Some creatures were quick and dodged by leaping out of the way, while others got hit and dropped to the ground.
"This is some really crazy stuff," Kenji mumbled. His face had an expression that made it hard to tell if he was smiling or grimacing. Turning to Sami and Momoka, he brought down his spear from his shoulders and readied his stance. "I’ll see you guys later then. Stay safe."
While Momoka nodded back, Sami extended a hand slightly to stop him from leaving. "Wait a second."
"...?"
Sami smiled and pointed to the ground between Kenji’s and Momoka’s feet.
Suddenly, a mild holy light radiated from his body as he activated [Healing Field] and [Holy Inspiration]. In the next instant, a large bright colored magic circle appeared on the ground and the bright light shone outward on the siblings.
Just as the name implied, Healing Field was a skill that could create a small field that cast a healing spell on those within the field. Holy Inspiration, on the other hand, created a field that buffed the physical stats, mental strength, and Prana potency of those within it.
The current limit of both fields for the 5 of Hearts was around ten meters. Of course, Sami could also create multiple fields if he wanted at the cost of even more of his Prana.
A wide smile spread across Kenji’s lips when he felt the hangover that had been eating at him suddenly fade away. He also felt strong and full of energy.
"Ha! You are a wielder of Hearts?"
But then, that smile of his turned downward and he scowled, then jabbed a finger at Sami. "Wait, wait a minute... you are a wielder of Hearts, yet you watched me suffer and pour out my guts earlier!"
Sami’s lips twitched and he scratched his cheek with an awkward smile. "Heh. Sorry. I swear I didn’t even know I wielded Hearts until now."
Kenji hissed and wanted to retort to the nonsensical statement, but the ever growing howls, the battle cries of the players around, and the chaotic sounds of magic in the air reminded him of the urgency of the situation.
"See you later, bastard!" Without wasting much time, Kenji turned and ran to join the other Warriors fighting at the defensive line. As he moved, his body seemed to emanate a red Aura, which made him look even more vicious than before.
Not far from Sami, Momoka summoned a small glass bottle from her inventory. The bottle was filled with what looked like small seeds.
She then smiled sheepishly and waved at Sami as she began hopping away to join the fray as well. "See you, big bro!"
Sami smiled. Looking around at the chaotic scene, he raised his loaded crossbow and muttered. "Well, here goes nothing."