I stood on a high hill near the village, looking down at the endless tide of monsters below. Thousands of creatures rushed across the land like a living flood — brutal, hungry, terrified, and completely out of control.
They only has one goal.
Escape the army chasing them from behind.
But at the same time, hunger burned inside them like madness.
The moment they sensed the weaker human auras coming from the village, their instincts completely exploded. Bloodthirsty roars echoed across the battlefield as the entire monster tide changed direction and charged toward the settlement.
Then I turned my gaze toward the village defenses.
Around one thousand F- rank village guards stood behind the walls in organized formation, alongside nearly three hundred F rank squad leaders.
Every guard held a bow tightly in their hands, arrows already nocked and ready to be released at any moment.
Beside them stood Harold and the other F+ rank leaders, their expressions tense as they watched the approaching horde.
My eyes soon shifted toward Orion.
He is standing beside a figure completely covered in robes and a large mage hat.
At first, I couldn’t tell who it is, but after focusing carefully with my Far Vision skill, I realized the person is a woman.
Beneath her feet is a massive glowing magic circle spreading across the ground.
Though I has no idea what kind of spell she is preparing.
Without wasting more time, I summoned all of my undead.
Dark portals began opening across the hill one after another as my undead servants emerged from within. Even now, some of them continued transporting massive trees and heavy stones, piling them nearby for future use.
I equipped my armor beneath my clothes. After that, I purchased a long black coat from the system shop — the kind usually worn by leaders of mysterious organizations.
Then I climbed onto Vargan’s back and silently waited for the monster tide to arrive.
Soon, the first wave entered the archers’ attack range.
"Release!"
SHHHH—!
Thousands of arrows shot into the sky simultaneously, producing sharp whistling sounds as they cut through the air.
For a brief moment, the sky itself seemed to darken.
The monsters noticed the shadows descending upon them, but none of them stopped charging.
To those crazed creatures, the humans ahead are nothing more than food.
THWAK!
CRACK!
The rain of arrows crashed into the monster tide mercilessly.
Countless monsters were heavily injured as arrows pierced through flesh, eyes, throats, and hearts.
Some creatures are instantly killed, while others were pinned to the ground and trampled by the monsters behind them.
The entire tide fell into chaos.
Many monsters lost their footing and collapsed as the charging horde crashed into itself.
However, most of the casualties are among the weaker F- rank monsters.
The stronger F and F+ rank creatures barely slowed down. Their tough hides and hardened bodies blocked many of the arrows entirely.
Soon, the second volley also released.
Then the third.
More monsters fell with every barrage, their corpses piling across the battlefield.
By the time the monster tide reached close range, its numbers has already been reduced significantly. Most of the weaker monsters has died during the advance.
But the surviving creatures continued charging forward blindly.
And then—
The ground collapsed beneath them.
The monsters never noticed the traps hidden ahead.
Large sections of earth gave way as countless monsters plunged into deep pits lined with sharpened wooden spears.
AWOOOO—!!
Painful cries echoed everywhere.
The impaled monsters struggled desperately, but escape is impossible. Blood rapidly filled the pits as the creatures slowly bled to death.
At this point, nearly two-thirds of the monster tide has already been wiped out before even reaching the village walls.
As a border village, this place possessed far stronger defenses than ordinary settlements.
And more importantly...
They have survived monster tides many times before.
This battlefield has been prepared long ago.
"Charge!"
The moment the command is given, all the guards immediately dropped their bows and grabbed the long spears positioned behind them.
Then they surged forward together like a steel wave.
At this point, only a few hundred monsters remained alive, and most of them were already heavily injured from the earlier barrage. Among them, barely twenty to thirty were F rank monsters while the rest were weaker creatures below that level.
THACK!
The moment both sides collided, dozens of spears pierced through flesh simultaneously.
Many monsters died instantly before they could even resist.
The injured creatures stood no chance against the disciplined formation of the village guards.
Within only five minutes, the battlefield became completely silent.
Every remaining monster has been slaughtered.
And surprisingly, not a single guard have died.
Soon, the soldiers calmly returned to their positions and once again picked up their bows.
Because the real battle is finally arriving.
The Goblin Army.
As I observed the approaching horde carefully, my expression slowly turned serious.
There were approximately fifty thousand F- rank goblins charging across the land like a green tsunami.
Behind them were nearly ten thousand F rank goblins.
And among the main force, I could sense around two thousand F+ rank goblins.
I narrowed my eyes.
"The number of F- ranks is higher than I expected..." I muttered quietly.
There were at least fifty E- rank goblins hidden within the army.
And above them—
Five E rank goblins.
Then finally... their leader.
A massive goblin sat atop a gigantic jackal-like beast while overlooking the battlefield with cold eyes.
Its aura alone far surpassed the others.
E+ Rank.
I immediately used Appraisal on it.
***
[MONSTER: HOB GOBLIN WARLORD (E+) — ELITE]
An elite monster standing at the peak of E rank.
***
My expression darkened slightly.
This is going to be a dangerous battle.
Not only did I need to survive...
I also needed to profit from it.
As the goblin army continued advancing, I noticed fear slowly spreading among the village guards.
Some soldiers were already trembling slightly, while even several squad leaders wore ugly expressions filled with tension.
But I ignored them.
Then, after waiting another five minutes, the goblin army finally entered attack range.
"Annihilate them."
The moment I gave the command, all nine E- rank undead gorillas moved simultaneously.
Each of them grabbed massive trees nearly ten feet long and hurled them toward the marching goblin army like gigantic cannonballs.
But their leader is even more terrifying.
The enormous undead gorilla picked a tree over twenty feet long before throwing it with monstrous force.
BOOOOOOM!!
BOOOOM!!
BOOOOOOOM!!
The trees crashed into the battlefield like falling meteors.
The ground exploded instantly upon impact as dirt, stone, blood, and broken bodies were blasted into the air.
Hundreds of goblins were crushed to death immediately.
And the destruction didn’t stop there.
The shattered trees splintered apart after impact, sending countless deadly wooden fragments flying across the battlefield and impaling nearby goblins like arrows.
Screams echoed everywhere.
The same devastating scene repeated itself across multiple locations as the undead gorillas continued their bombardment.
Both armies were stunned.
One moment, the goblins has been marching confidently forward.
The next moment, explosions began erupting throughout their formation without warning.
Chaos spread instantly.
Soon, many people finally noticed the undead wolves standing atop the distant hill.
To the villagers, it looked like a gathering of more than a hundred E rank monsters.
Then their gazes slowly shifted toward the figure sitting atop the giant wolf.
But they can’t able to see clearly who is sitting on top it.
Only the mage woman able to see clearly.
A young man with blue eyes and black hair.
"Who is he?" she thought.
Meanwhile, I silently observed the destruction below as the goblin army slowly began marching toward my position.
Then the undead gorillas launched the second wave.
More gigantic trees descended from the sky.
BOOOOM!!
Entire sections of the goblin army vanished instantly beneath the devastating impacts.
The goblin E- ranks immediately became anxious.
Soon, thousands of goblin archers retaliated.
Around ten thousand arrows shot into the sky simultaneously, blotting out the sunlight itself.
The rain of arrows rapidly descended toward my location.
Yet I didn’t move.
I simply waited calmly for the perfect moment.
"Vargan."
My deep voice echoed softly.
"HOOOOOWL!!!"
Vargan unleashed his racial skill instantly.
Storm Howl [E].
A terrifying howl exploded across the battlefield, infused with violent wind and crackling lightning.
The surrounding air erupted violently.
Every arrow within nearly a hundred-meter radius is blown away instantly, while even the arrows farther away were pushed off course by the overwhelming shockwave.
When the howl finally ended—
Not a single arrow have reached us.
That is the terror of an elite monster possessing dual elemental affinity.
The undead gorillas became even more enraged after the attack.
This time, they reached toward massive stone boulders scattered nearby.
Some were over ten to twenty feet large.
Slowly but surely, the monstrous undead lifted the enormous rocks into the air.
The goblin army’s expressions instantly turned pale.
First, their arrows has failed completely.
And now this?
"KREEEEK!!"
Terrified screams erupted everywhere.
The goblins finally broke.
Many began turning around and fleeing in panic, desperately trying to escape from the monstrous undead.
Their once-organized formation instantly collapsed into chaos.
The E- rank goblin leaders screamed furiously while trying to restore order, but it was already too late.
Before the goblins could escape far enough—
BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
A catastrophic explosion shook the entire battlefield.
Even the human soldiers subconsciously stepped backward in fear, while some guards nearly retreated behind the wooden gates.
Fortunately for them...
They weren’t the targets.
Whenever the gigantic boulders struck the ground, the impact is so overwhelming that it felt like small earthquakes are erupting across the battlefield.
The goblins lost their footing repeatedly as the earth trembled beneath them.
More than Five thousand F- rank goblins died instantly during that first bombardment alone, alongside nearly a five hundred F rank goblins.
The front lines of the goblin army has completely disappeared.
Only a field of blood and shattered corpses remained where their marching formation once stood.
But the next moment, the goblins turned around as if their bodies has been set on fire, because the giant undead gorillas has already begun lifting another wave of massive boulders.
"KREKKK!!"
This time, even the goblin leaders became terrified. Panic spread through the army as the commanders immediately gave the order to retreat.
"BOOOOM!!"
Despite retreating, they still lost nearly two thousand goblins in another devastating bombardment.
"Charge," I commanded coldly.
The goblin army still have around thirty thousand F- rank goblins remaining, along with thousands of F and F+ rank monsters and their elite leaders.
To anyone else, charging into that army with only thirty-four E rank undead and sixty-six E- ranks would seem like pure suicide.
But I am not afraid.
After reaching E- rank, normal low-level attacks could barely injure such monsters. And unlike living creatures, my undead possessed endless stamina. They could bleed, lose limbs, or be crushed beneath attacks... yet they would continue fighting until completely destroyed.
"HOWWWL!!!"
"AWOOOOOO!!"
"ROARRR!!"
The battlefield trembled under the terrifying chorus of roars and howls from my undead army.
Fear instantly spread through the goblin ranks as they stared at the gathering of gigantic E-rank monsters charging toward them like a natural disaster.
I rode forward atop Vargan, gripping my Ivory Spear tightly in one hand as cold wind slammed against my coat.
But before reaching the front lines, I jumped down from Vargan’s back.
I already knew what is about to happen.
The elite monsters are about to clash.
And a battlefield between E rank elites is far too dangerous for me to remain in the center.
"HOWLLLL!!!"
Before I could even land properly, Vargan unleashed his racial skill once more.
Storm Howl [E].
A terrifying wave of wind and lightning exploded outward from his mouth, sweeping across the battlefield in a hundred-meter radius.
The goblins caught within the range froze instantly as electricity surged through their bodies.
Some collapsed to their knees.
Others screamed while clutching their heads in pain.
And the weaker goblins completely lost consciousness on the spot.
The battlefield descended into chaos the moment my undead army crashed into them.
Then Vargan’s gaze locked onto the Hob Goblin Warlord, an E+ rank monster with sharp predatory eyes filled with confidence and brutality.
The warlord didn’t feel fear.
He trusted his own strength completely.
But in the very next moment, his pupils suddenly shrank.
Every instinct inside his body screamed at him.
Run.
Dodge.
Or die.
And despite his pride, the warlord listened to those instincts immediately.
Because at that exact moment—
Vargan used his ultimate skill for the very first time.
***
Skybreaker Pounce [E]
(Finisher Skill)
Effect:
Vargan compresses wind beneath his body before launching forward like a living cannon.
The impact releases:
• A devastating shockwave
• A violent lightning burst
• Bone-shattering physical destruction
***
The instant the skill activated, the entire battlefield became strangely silent.
Or at least... it felt that way for a fraction of a second.
Then—
"BOOOOOOOOM!!!"
A deafening explosion erupted across the battlefield like a sonic boom tearing through the heavens.
The ground beneath Vargan shattered instantly as a violent storm of wind and lightning exploded outward in all directions.
Every monster near him is blasted away like ragdolls.
No creature below E- rank survived the aftermath.
Even the nearby E- rank goblins were heavily injured just from the shockwave alone, their bodies thrown across the battlefield while blood sprayed through the air.
And before anyone could even process what have happened—
Vargan is already in front of the warlord.
The Hob Goblin Warlord’s eyes widened in terror as he watched those cold predatory eyes rushing toward him at impossible speed.
But Vargan’s gaze never left its target.
"BOOOOOOM!!!"
Another thunderous explosion echoed the moment the attack connected.
The land itself trembled violently, as if dozens of explosives has detonated at once.
Cracks spread across the battlefield while dust and debris shot high into the air.
For several moments, nobody could see anything.
Then slowly... the dust began to settle.
And the sight that appeared shocked everyone present.
The goblin army froze.
Their morale shattered instantly.
Because the Hob Goblin Warlord is still alive...
But his face has turned deathly pale.
Green blood poured endlessly from his shoulder like water bursting from a broken pipe.
One of his arms is gone completely.
And several meters away—
Vargan stood silently while holding the severed arm in his jaws, the massive greatsword still tightly clenched in the warlord’s hand.