Most of the team members had already taken up combat positions.
From the moment the swarm of monsters appeared, they had sensed that a major clash was inevitable.
They moved swiftly and in perfect coordination to their assigned spots.
The mages and some of the ranged classes took their places at the designated turrets.
And the instant they caught Song Cheon-hye’s signal, they opened fire.
Boom—! Boom—!
The turrets fired in alternating bursts, and multicolored explosions erupted among the monsters.
Even so, the creatures didn’t slow down in the slightest. It seemed they feared the volcanic eruption more than the turrets.
Before long, they had reached the base of the hill.
I scanned the composition of the approaching horde.
Almost all fire goblins.
Dozens of tightly packed clusters were moving in formation, centered around shamans.
A few turtles and hermit crabs mixed in, too.
They could swim through lava, so the eruption itself probably didn’t bother them much. But the constant tremors from the earthquakes must have been another matter.
And among the vast monster army, just two figures stood out. They were humanoid shapes covered in red scales.
Dragonscale soldiers.
It didn’t look like they had been targeting the base from the start.
More likely, they had simply drifted this way with the tide.
Regardless of their intent, they were a serious threat to us. I cast Amplification on Seo Ye-in and gave her a heads-up.
“You see those two?”
“I’ll take them out.”
With a small nod, Seo Ye-in pulled out her sniper rifle.
Blue flames repeatedly burst from the muzzle.
Boom—!
One of the dragonscale soldiers twisted instinctively, but not fast enough. Its shoulder exploded apart.
Since their scales were used as crafting materials, their defense was fairly high, but their other stats were average at best.
Leaving them to Seo Ye-in, I turned my attention back to the battlefield.
Boom-boom-boom-boom—!
The ranged classes unleashed a barrage of wide-area attacks.
With dozens of them firing at once, the firepower was overwhelming. The monsters were swept away the moment they set foot on the hill.
The problem was the hermit crabs.
Thanks to the huge rock strapped to their backs, the hermit crabs themselves didn’t seem to be taking much damage.
They paused briefly each time they were hit but steadily continued climbing the hill.
– Kiiruk, kiiuk!
At that, the shamans waved their staffs through the air and shouted, and the fire goblins immediately moved in behind the hermit crabs.
They were using the rocks as cover.
Song Cheon-hye caught on to that and called out,
“Target the hermit crabs first! Focus on the hermit crabs!”
Boom-boom-boom—!
Ranged attacks concentrated on them, chipping and cracking the rocks. But they were so sturdy that completely destroying them didn’t look easy.
The distance between the hermit crab/fire goblin formation and our main force kept shrinking.
It meant close combat was about to begin, and the tension in the air rose sharply.
Beside me, even Park Na-ri looked paler than usual.
I turned to her and asked,
“Do you have any impact-type skills?”
“Impact…?”
“Yeah. The stronger, the better.”
After thinking for a few seconds, Park Na-ri nodded.
“I don’t use it often… but I do.”
“Perfect. I’ll give you a quick demonstration.”
With that, I strode toward the leading hermit crab.
I gathered wind into my hand, compressed it, then slammed it into the rock as if pushing it forward.
Boom—!
As immense physical force struck it, the hermit crab began tumbling down the hill along with the rock on its back.
In the blink of an eye, it picked up terrifying speed, crushing every fire goblin in its path.
I took in the sight with satisfaction, then looked back at Park Na-ri.
“See? Pretty easy, right?”
“……?”
“Give it a try.”
“…….”
Park Na-ri hesitated awkwardly.
She seemed unsure whether she could really pull it off.
Unable to watch any longer, Bum let out a short growl.
“Grrr.”
After nudging his master, he casually padded forward.
As if gaining a bit of courage, Park Na-ri began softly chanting a spell.
A faint green glow enveloped Bum’s entire body, and in that state, it charged toward the leading rock crab.
“Krrrhaang—!”
With a single roar, it hurled its whole body forward and kicked the rock with all four paws.
Bang—!
The powerful impact dented the rock inward, sending it rolling backward down the hill.
I turned to Park Na-ri with a satisfied look.
“Easier than you thought, right?”
“M-Mhmm… it is…!”
While Bum prepared to launch himself again, I glanced over at Son Hyeong-taek and Bukgong Han-seol on the other side.
“Hyeong-taek, you give it a try too.”
“Don’t order me around.”
Maybe because I’d roughed him up before, his response wasn’t exactly polite.
But at a subtle look from Bukgong Han-seol, he followed along without further complaint.
Soon, the two of them stepped forward with swift movement technique toward a hermit crab and thrust out a fist and palm at the same time.
Boom—!
The result was the same as ours.
The other team members also began using their impact-type skills to shove the rocks, and the fire goblins climbing up behind them could do nothing but get crushed underneath.
“Keruk, keruk!”
Some hurriedly tried to dodge to the side, but at best they only bought themselves a few extra seconds.
With their cover gone, they were nothing more than targets for ranged attacks.
Just as a beheader goblin was about to throw a flaming cleaver, a slender stick pierced straight into its forehead.
Pak!
It was a chopstick thrown by Shin Byeong-cheol.
He smirked arrogantly as he searched for his next victim.
“A hidden-weapon prodigy who even outshines the Dang Clan.”
“Want me to tell noona?”
“Aw, come on, let me enjoy this. I’ve honestly improved a lot, haven’t I?”
Pak!
Another beheader goblin fell to a chopstick.
Compared to before, he really had improved significantly.
A bit excessive for a teahouse owner, honestly.
I nodded and slammed another rock with Wind Force.
Boom!
As a similar pattern of battle continued, not a single monster managed to reach the main camp.
At the bottom of the hill, rocks were piled up everywhere.
– Keruk, kekek!
As if deciding they couldn’t go on like this, a large number of goblin shamans gathered in one spot.
They formed a circle and began chanting in unison.
A large-scale spell.
They were concentrating all their strength on one final decisive move.
Sensing something ominous, Song Cheon-hye pointed at them.
“We have to interrupt them!”
Ranged attacks poured in, knocking several of them down, but the shamans continued their chant without wavering.
Rumbleeeeeeee……
Soon, the piled-up rocks and debris began to rise into the air, clumping together as if drawn by an unseen force. Then they burst into roaring flames as if they were ignited.
Gradually, they took on a humanoid shape and slowly straightened up.
A golem.
With multiple casters involved and an abundance of materials used, the result was huge.
It began climbing the hill step by heavy step with its enormous body.
Thud, boom,
Behind it, the remaining fire goblins trailed along in full force.
The key is how quickly we can bring down that golem.
That was the only way to prevent damage to the main camp.
Song Cheon-hye also seemed to be weighing her options.
After a brief glance around at everyone, she gave her command.
“Target its legs. Focus on the left side.”
Until they found a sure method, the plan was at least to immobilize it.
Attacks rained down on the giant golem’s left leg.
Boom-boom-boom-boom—!
But the fire goblin shamans weren’t just standing by.
They began chanting again in low voices.
Whooooooosh!
The flames blazing across the golem’s body flared up even more fiercely.
It must have been a defensive spell, because the damage was less than expected.
Song Cheon-hye’s face stiffened, but it seemed she had decided there was no other choice for now.
“Keep attacking!”
Boom-boom-boom—!
Perhaps the damage was accumulating after all, as the huge golem began to limp slightly.
But judging by the way it continued to push forward stubbornly, it looked like they would need a decisive blow.
Song Cheon-hye fell into deep thought, her expression grave.
“….…!”
Then, as if something had occurred to her, her eyes lit up.
She walked over to Bukgong Han-seol and asked,
“Can you freeze that?”
“For a very brief moment.”
“I’ll match the timing. I’m counting on you.”
“Got it.”
Next, Song Cheon-hye gave orders to those standing by.
“Protect her.”
They needed to shield Bukgong Han-seol from enemy interference so she could focus entirely on her role.
So several close combat-class members joined in, along with me, Park Na-ri, and for some reason, even Seo Ye-in.
Together, we headed down the hill.
As we approached the huge golem, Bukgong Han-seol began steadily drawing up her internal energy, preparing her ultimate technique.
A chilling aura gradually took hold of the surrounding area.
“Kirrrk!”
“Kekek!”
Sensing the threat, the fire goblin shamans pointed at us, and the beheaders rushed in.
We immediately stepped forward to intercept.
“Break through!”
“Krrrraah—!”
Bum leapt into the midst of the fire goblins, swinging his forelegs.
Chammy also swept past with her wings spread wide, and the goblins’ bodies were sliced apart as if cut by razor-sharp blades.
Meanwhile, Bukgong Han-seol’s body was radiating colder and colder energy.
It’s almost ready.
Figuring I should lend some support, I extended my staff toward the golem’s leg.
Whiiiiing—
A whirlwind gathered and compressed with intense force.
Bukgong Han-seol then sprang lightly into the air and thrust both palms forward, releasing a piercingly cold force straight ahead.
[Glacial Snow Soul Palm]
Crackle-crackle-crackle—!
The golem’s blazing left leg froze solid in an instant.
A moment later, the compressed wind exploded.
Boom—!
Already weakened by the opposing force, and with the spiral explosion’s defense-ignoring effect applied on top of that.
Seizing the opening, Song Cheon-hye shouted from the main formation.
“Now!”
Booooooom—!
As a barrage poured down relentlessly, the golem’s left leg finally gave out and collapsed with a crash.
Yet stubbornly, it still tried to drag itself forward on one leg and both arms.
I turned to Bukgong Han-seol.
“You need to rest, don’t you?”
“For a while, I can’t do anything.”
Well, she had just poured everything into a technique like that.
Still, if we hold out like this and run through another couple of cycles, we should be able to bring it down.
Meanwhile, Seo Ye-in stopped spraying her assault rifle at the fire goblins and formed a mass of light in one hand.
Then she flicked it at the golem.
[Trap Toss]
The trap activated the moment it touched the creature’s upper body, erupting in a blue explosion.
Booooooom—!
A large chunk of rock was blasted away, but perhaps because of its huge size, it didn’t seem to take significant damage.
“……”
Seo Ye-in stared at it silently, then cast Trap Toss once more.
The ball of light flew through the air, and the instant it struck the creature’s chest—
Slash—!
A single diagonal slash carved across it.
It was enough to create the illusion that the entire area had been split in two.
The huge golem stopped even its awkward crawling and remained frozen in place.
Then, it collapsed before revealing a sharp, clean-cut surface.
Creaaaak…….
“…….”
“…….”
The battlefield fell silent, as if doused with cold water.
With everyone’s eyes fixed on her, Seo Ye-in’s gray eyes shimmered as she said a single word.
“……Expert.”
“I-I’ll wrap things up.”
Snapping out of her shock, Song Cheon-hye stammered out an order, and the barrage that had briefly ceased resumed, pouring down on the fire goblins.
– Kiruruk?
– Keeek!
Only then, perhaps finding the unfamiliar intruders more terrifying than the volcanic eruption, the creatures scattered and fled down the hill.
Leaving behind a glittering trail.
Empty crystals and item cards were strewn everywhere.
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