Every adventurer and town guard gathered near the gates as the emergency bells rang throughout the village.
“Hurry up! Set up the line!”
“Barricade the gates!”
“Archers on the wall!”
“Sea monsters are coming! Ready the harpoons! Right, Lala?!”
“Stop fooling around! You’re adventurers, aren’t you?! Get to the line!”
“Yes saah!”
“Adventurers in front!”
“Guards, raise your shields!”
“Adventurers behind the guards!”
The entire gate district descended into organized chaos.
Guards dragged wooden barricades into position while archers hurried toward the walls with quivers rattling at their sides. Civilians rushed deeper into the village carrying children and supplies. The air itself felt tense.
Not long after, Theron’s group arrived.
Behind him were twelve town hunters, twenty trainees, and Captain Boom Boom.
“Lambert, we’re here. What’s the situation?”
Lambert kept his eyes fixed beyond the walls.
“I sent the scouts back to assess the distance. Based on their reports, they’ll arrive in around twenty minutes.”
“How many?”
“Roughly a hundred goblins.”
A brief pause.
“And around the same number of wolves.”
Theron moved beside Lambert and lowered his voice.
“…Goblins? Around a hundred? And wolves too?”
His eyes narrowed slightly.
“You could wipe that out yourself in ten minutes.”
“So what’s all this for?”
Before Lambert could answer, Gayrum arrived from the rear.
“What’s with all the commotion over goblins?” he grumbled.
“With you and the town guards here, this should be more than enough.”
“Training.”
Gayrum frowned.
“…Training?”
“We need to show the trainees the basics of a real battlefield.” Lambert crossed his arms. “This is the perfect opportunity.”
Gayrum’s expression hardened.
“Do we really have to risk people’s lives for that?”
“Gayrum.”
Lambert’s voice turned calm.
“After the goblins…”
His eyes drifted toward the distant horizon.
“I’m pretty sure you already know what comes next.”
Theron frowned.
“…What do you mean?”
Lambert slowly gripped his spear.
“You’ll know soon enough.”
He then glanced toward Gayrum.
“Stay with the trainees at the back.”
“Why do I have to babysit your kids?”
“Just do it. I’ll check on the town guards.”
---
Amidst the chaos, the town guards and adventurers quickly formed defensive lines near the gates.
Heavy shields locked together.
Spears lowered.
Archers positioned themselves along the walls.
The atmosphere slowly shifted from panic… into preparation.
Lambert stepped forward.
“Listen carefully!”
The noisy crowd immediately quieted.
“You all know this is not a major emergency.”
Several adventurers exchanged confused looks.
“But we are going to treat it like one!” Lambert roared.
His voice echoed across the gates.
“This is for the future of this village! For your fellow trainees! These children have never seen a battlefield before!”
He pointed toward the younger trainees gathered near the rear.
“We need to teach them the fundamentals of tactics and discipline before a real disaster arrives!”
“Today, we focus on line discipline and spear walls!”
“That’s too boring for Captain Boom Boom!”
Boom Boom raised his oversized hammer dramatically.
“Let me use the Hammer of Justice!”
“Right, right!” Lala shouted while waving her umbrella.
“Let me use my fishing rod in case sea monsters appear!”
“Participate properly and I won’t kick you out!” Lambert barked.
“Yeah saah!!!”
“Archers on the wall! Focus on the wolves!”
“Guards, target the goblins!”
“Any adventurer with ranged attacks, support the archers!”
Lambert pointed his spear toward the horizon.
“No flashy spells! No unnecessary risks! Just show the trainees how it’s properly done!”
“WOOOOAAAHHH!!!”
A few moments later, a massive cloud of dust appeared in the distance.
Then came the sounds.
Low growls.
Goblin screeches.
The pounding of countless feet against the earth.
The horde slowly emerged from the dust.
At first, the trainees could only make out vague moving shapes.
Then the details became clearer.
Dozens of wolves sprinted at the very front of the horde.
Their fur was rough and matted with dirt and dried blood.
Some were lean and fast.
Others were massive enough to rival grown men in size.
Foam dripped from their mouths as they snarled wildly while charging forward.
Several carried old scars across their bodies.
One wolf was missing an eye.
Another still had a broken arrow lodged deep within its shoulder.
Yet despite their injuries—
They continued charging.
Behind them came the goblins.
Hundreds of small green figures poured across the plains like a filthy tide.
Some wore rusted armor pieces stolen from dead adventurers.
Others barely wore anything besides torn animal hide.
Crude weapons waved wildly overhead.
Rusty swords.
Stone axes.
Crooked spears.
Broken shields.
The goblins screamed and laughed while running forward.
Some shoved each other aside.
Others climbed over fallen wolves without hesitation.
A few even fought amongst themselves while charging.
But despite their chaos—
They continued moving together as a horde.
Among them stood larger variants.
Gremlins darted rapidly between the others while carrying curved knives.
Hobgoblins marched with noticeably heavier weapons and rough leather armor.
Several Red Caps dragged oversized cleavers behind them while twitching excitedly at the sight of the village walls.
One particularly large hobgoblin suddenly grabbed a smaller goblin beside him and threw it forward like bait toward the charging wolves.
The smaller goblin screamed in confusion before getting trampled by the horde itself.
The trainees stared in horror.
“…They’re monsters,” one child whispered weakly.
The goblin screeches slowly grew louder.
And louder.
And louder.
Until it sounded like the entire plain itself was screaming.
Dozens of wolves charged ahead of the goblins while smaller green figures poured behind them in massive numbers.
Gremlins.
Hobgoblins.
Red Cap goblins.
And several other variants mixed throughout the horde.
The trainees immediately stiffened.
“Adventurers! Guards! Position!”
“Raise your shields!”
“Hold your positions!”
Lambert stood at the very center of the formation.
Shield-bearing guards formed the first line while spear users stood directly behind them.
Additional rows waited behind the spear line, creating a layered triangular formation.
Behind them stood the adventurers.
Davion.
Siegfried.
Elmharn.
Reinhart.
Several mages gathered farther back near Unit 42.
Captain Boom Boom rested a massive boomerang over his shoulder.
Lulu and Lala held their absurd weapons proudly.
Mordo dragged his giant club against the ground.
Edward twirled a thick lasso around one arm.
“Almost hero-sama! Almost hero-sama!” Lala shouted.
“Where are the scouts? Did the sea monsters eat them?!”
“If you sent me with them earlier, I could’ve hooked them out of danger!” Lulu added proudly.
“Should I bring out the harpoon?”
“Shut up!”
“Fidly, gather the trainees.”
“Yeah!”
Fidly immediately turned toward the younger recruits.
“Trainees! Line up!”
Around thirty children and younger recruits quickly gathered together.
Leon stood among them.
The town blacksmith had already prepared proper equipment beforehand.
Five-foot spears sized for children.
Real sharpened spearheads.
Short side swords.
Not training weapons.
Real ones.
The older trainees carrying shields stepped in front of the younger children, forming a secondary protective line.
Some of the younger recruits looked excited.
Others looked pale.
Most of them were trembling.
Fidly’s expression hardened.
“It is time.”
His deep voice cut through the noise.
“Today, the guards and adventurers standing before you are risking their lives for this village.”
He pointed toward the defensive line.
“Watch them carefully.”
“Watch how they fight.”
“Watch how they protect others.”
“Do not look away.”
Several trainees swallowed nervously.
“This is reality.”
“This is what adventurers and town guards see almost every day.”
He raised his voice.
“If you wish to protect this village in the future…”
“Then learn.”
“Future adventurers!”
“Future guards!”
“Future heroes!”
“Brace yourselves!”
The horde continued getting closer.
The growls of the wolves became louder.
The goblins screeched wildly while waving rusted weapons overhead.
The earth itself seemed to tremble.
Several trainees unconsciously stepped backward.
Leon tightened his grip around his spear.
His palms were already sweating.
“Theron!” Lambert shouted.
“Right!”
“Archers!”
The bowstrings tightened.
“Draw!”
Creak.
“Aim!”
The wolves entered range.
“Hold…”
The trainees held their breath.
“Hold…”
The charging wolves rapidly closed the distance.
“Release!”
FWEEEEE!
Dozens of arrows flew through the air at once.
The first wolf at the front was struck directly in the eye.
The arrow pierced through its skull before the beast violently rolled across the dirt.
Another wolf twisted its body and barely avoided a fatal shot—
Only for a second arrow to tear through its open jaw.
Blood exploded from its mouth as the beast crashed sideways into another charging wolf.
A third wolf had its neck pierced clean through.
The force of the impact nearly snapped its head backward before its body collapsed and slid across the plains.
Similar scenes unfolded throughout the battlefield.
Bodies rolled through the dirt.
Arrows punched through flesh.
Wolves slammed into the ground while howling in pain.
One wounded wolf continued charging even with three arrows lodged in its side before another shot pierced directly through its throat.
The beast choked violently on its own blood before collapsing only a few meters from the shield wall.
The goblins behind them did not stop.
Some simply stepped over the dying wolves.
Others grabbed wounded beasts and shoved them forward like living shields.
One goblin suddenly tripped over a corpse and fell directly beneath the feet of the charging horde.
Crunch.
Its body disappeared beneath dozens of feet.
Another goblin got struck by a stray arrow through the shoulder.
Before it could even scream properly, another goblin ripped the arrow out and shoved the injured creature forward toward the frontline.
The trainees stared in horror.
Blood splattered across the dirt.
Broken teeth scattered near the advancing horde.
The screams of wounded monsters mixed together with snarls and shrieks.
The smell hit them next.
Fresh blood.
Wet fur.
Rot.
Death.
The trainees froze.
Several immediately vomited.
Some gagged violently.
Others nearly collapsed while clutching their stomachs.
One younger child dropped his spear entirely while crying.
Another trainee turned away only to immediately throw up beside the barricades.
The smell of blood mixed with dirt and sweat spread heavily across the gates.
Leon’s stomach twisted violently.
“…This is a battlefield?” he muttered weakly.
“If I become an adventurer…”
His grip tightened.
“…Will I have to slaughter creatures like this too?”
A calm, deep voice answered beside him.
“Brat.”
Leon turned slightly.
One of the older dwarf adventurers stood nearby with his arms crossed.
“It’s better to give up now than die later as an unprepared adventurer.”
The dwarf lightly patted Leon’s shoulder.
“I know you admire swords and weapons themselves.”
His eyes drifted toward the battlefield.
“But this is what weapons are for.”
The dwarf’s expression remained calm.
“They are made to kill threats.”
Another wolf collapsed after getting pierced by multiple arrows.
“Do you have the stomach to take the life of your enemies?”
“If not…”
The dwarf looked directly into Leon’s eyes.
“Then give up.”
“You are not fit to become an adventurer.”
His voice did not sound mocking.
If anything—
It sounded honest.
“I’m telling you this while you still have a way out.”
“Guards!” Lambert roared.
His voice thundered across the battlefield.
“Brace!”
The shield line tightened.
Spear tips lowered further.
“If you have the guts,” the dwarf continued quietly, “then watch carefully.”
“Watch Lambert.”
“Watch the guards.”
“Watch the adventurers.”
“Learn from them.”
“Do not look away.”
The goblin horde drew closer.
“This is the reality you will see almost every day as an adventurer.”
Leon’s legs trembled.
His stomach still churned.
But slowly—
He tightened his grip on the spear.
“What will you do, brat?”
Leon stared toward the battlefield.
Toward the charging wolves.
Toward the screaming goblins.
Toward the veterans calmly preparing for impact.
Then he swallowed hard.
“I’ll watch.”
His voice shook.
“Even if I puke.”
His legs continued trembling.
“Even if my legs crumble…”
He gritted his teeth.
“I will become an adventurer.”