Kill! Kill! Kill!

"It's not the right time yet..."

The Greater Griffin concealed its aura, crouched down with its sharp claws, and hovered beneath the starry sky like a ghost in the night.

Its lion-like golden eyes coldly observed the turmoil in the mountains and forests.

"Yes, it's not the right time yet, far from it." Ailin gripped the Greater Griffin's rough mane and took a deep breath.

The Witcher's keen eyesight allowed him and Vesemir to clearly see Sala's anger and struggle.

Moreover, thanks to the Cat Eye Potion, they could see even more clearly than Sala, who was on the battlefield.

Countless ghouls lurked silently in the forest. Besides Ghoul, there were also Rotfiend and Giant Ghoul, and even two spiked Spiked Fiend crouching down, waiting for their chance to strike.

The situation was far more dangerous than Sala had imagined.

Two witchers have the ability to do something.

The Greater Griffin can handle one Spiked Fiend, and he can handle another. In this narrow terrain, with his silver sword and Igni in hand, Ghoul, Rotfiend, and Giant Ghoul simply cannot get close to Vesemir.

But there's nothing they can do.

Sala, or rather all the lights that lit up the earth, represented every single person—whether ordinary human, priest, or Sorceress —whose purpose in the plan was to lure away the carnivorous creatures near the "ritual" as much as possible.

Their appearance at this time can only save people temporarily, but it will make the Evil God's ritual more vigilant.

Perhaps because of their escape during the day, the Evil God's ritual has become alert, which is why it has abnormally expanded the range of the cannibalistic creatures' activities.

But once they appear at this point, the expanding carnivorous creatures might shrink back to the area around the ritual, interrupting it and making the expulsion of the Evil God a pipe dream.

"This is a war," Vesemir said softly. "In war, everyone is a bargaining chip for victory, including you and me, who can be sacrificed as long as we win."

He paused, his right hand pressing down on Ailin's shoulder, his dark golden Cat Eyes gleaming in the darkness.

"If we lose, no matter how many people we save, death will once again seize them, and it will implicate even more people..."

"I understand." Ailin took a deep breath and nodded.

Actually, looking at it from another angle, although the ghouls' abnormal behavior disrupted their attack plan, ordering the monsters not to attack and deterring them from leaving can also explain a lot.

If they weren't afraid, worried about the ritual being disrupted, and if they didn't have monsters roaming the mountains and fields, why would Evil God want to intimidate humans?

Thinking of this, Ailin's heart calmed down considerably.

Then suddenly.

"Roar~"

The roars of beasts echoed through the forest.

Ailin's heart stopped for a second, and he quickly looked down.

A large horde of Ghoul emerged from the darkness, crawling on all fours, baring their foul-smelling, yellowish fangs, and approaching Sala and the Monster Hunter Army step by step.

Sala and his soldiers were as weak as ants in the face of those monsters.

"This is war," he said to himself again. "People die in war."

"Crunch, crunch~"

Vesemir's teeth were grinding together, and his fists were clenched tightly.

"Eh~"

The two witchers sighed in unison and then looked at each other.

I understand all the big principles, but watching someone I know get killed right in front of me...

They can't do it.

Closing your eyes and not looking won't work either.

"Never mind." Ailin sighed softly, walking to the base of the Greater Griffin's wing. "As long as we don't expose the Greater Griffin and are careful, there shouldn't be any problems..."

Vesemir did not refute, but silently followed behind him.

How could there possibly be no problem?

Greater Griffin are easily spotted when they land...

Even seizing the opportunity to escape the chaos and fly to the ceremony location is difficult...

Even with soldiers all around, and you're completely absorbed in the fight, finding the right opportunity becomes a problem...

Besides, just because you're soft-hearted now doesn't mean you won't be later, right?

However, Vesemir said nothing, not only because the Greater Griffin beneath him only obeyed Ailin's orders, but also because he did not reject Ailin in this way.

Vesemir was even proud of him.

Even if a fourteen-year-old is very strong, it is difficult to control them without a soft heart.

Like the School of the Cat, aren't they strong?

To be honest, at the same skill level, the School of the Wolf witchers are no match for those School of the Cat scum.

But in the end, it was the cat, not the wolf, that fell apart.

If you're willing to sacrifice anything for a goal, then perhaps even the goal itself will be sacrificed in the end.

"Good Girl, fly a little lower."

Ailin drew Elsa and whispered the command in his mind.

The Greater Griffin responded obediently in a low voice and slowly descended.

"Etc!"

Vesemir suddenly spoke up, his expression immediately changing drastically. "Quick! Quick! Quickly promote the Good Girl!"

Ailin hesitated for a moment, but still obeyed his words and made the Greater Griffin flap its wings and fly into the sky.

"What happened..."

Before he could finish speaking...

A loud chanting of incantations came from the ground.

"Tissaia's voice!" Ailin immediately recognized the tone and squinted to look in the direction of the sound.

In the latter half of the fiery dragon, a graceful figure hovered half a meter off the ground, surrounded by a mysterious pale purple mist.

"Not enough! Fly higher, quick!" Vesemir shouted anxiously.

Not enough?

Ailin instinctively gave the command in his mind, then tilted his head and asked, "Do you know what kind of magic that is?"

"Of course, I saw it with my own eyes," Vesemir stared intently at the humans on the ground, now resembling ants in the howling wind, "Geoffrey Monk's Flame Wind..."

"Buzz!"

"Buzz!"

Intense magical energy surged from the ground, like boiling steam.

The loud buzzing of the School Emblem interrupted Vesemir.

"Roar! Roar!"

Amidst the unease and roars of the ghouls.

A thin, vertical line of fire, five hundred meters high, was precisely generated in the center of Sala and the approaching horde of Ghoul.

The moment it was created, it rapidly grew thick and twisted with the mysterious incantation of Tissaia.

"Whoosh~"

Almost instantly, before the ghouls could react, the curved line of fire suddenly expanded into a fiery tornado that stretched from the sky to the ground.

The wind howled, and sand and stones flew everywhere.

The fiery tornado dispelled the darkness, rushing straight into the Ghoul horde and igniting the Rotfiend hidden behind the Ghoul, revealing the location of the Giant Ghoul and the Spiked Fiend.

"Ah--"

The fiery red tornado exerted a powerful attraction, instantly sucking in all the surrounding Ghoul, along with the rocks and trees they were clinging to, all swept up by the immense force.

The Ghoul spun upwards, its shrill screams abruptly ceasing after climbing only ten meters.

The grayish-brown skin was ignited, burned, turned into black charcoal, and then turned into fly ash in the centrifugal rotation.

Wherever the fiery tornado passed, grass, trees, and shrubs were instantly ignited, uprooted, and left behind a black, scorching path of gravel.

Apart from this mountain road, no other places were affected.

"Such powerful magical control!"

Ailin couldn't help but admire them, then ordered the Greater Griffin to fly a little further away to prevent the firelight from revealing their location.

The magic released by Tissaia saved him from the predicament, allowing him to breathe a sigh of relief for the time being.

"Joffrey Monk's Firestorm," Vesemir breathed a sigh of relief, returned to the back of the Greater Griffin's neck, and grabbed its mane. "It is the most prized spell of Joffrey Monk, the founder of the Brotherhood of Sorcerers who liked to capture spirits, and also the most famous of the fire spells, known for its power and difficulty."

"Have you seen Tissaia cast this spell before?" Ailin asked curiously.

"Not Tissaia," Vesemir paused for a second, then sighed, "It was another Sorceress, another arrogant and conceited Sorceress, who also died from this spell..."

There's a story behind this... Ailin raised an eyebrow, wondering if he should ask a few more questions.

"Roar~"

The roar from the mountains and forests interrupted him.

Driven by the Firestorm, the ghouls, enraged by the humans' insolence, roared and bypassed the raging Firestorm, charging at the Monster Hunter Army once more.

However, a Firestorm cleared the way ahead, and the narrow mountain path forced them to detour around the steep slopes on both sides.

Although Ghoul occasionally slipped and fell off the cliff, their Ghoul numbers meant that many monsters still managed to attack the human army.

pity...

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

Explosions, collisions, and lightning strikes echoed one after another.

Flames, lightning, boulders, and Ice Spike surged towards the onrushing carnivorous creatures like a tidal wave, instantly overwhelming them and forcing them to retreat in disarray.

Sala ordered the frontline Monster Hunter Army to advance following the scorching heatwave, clearing a small patch of open ground.

Teleportation portals, flashing with orange-red light, suddenly appeared, and the first group of Sorceress arrived at the front lines riding strange alchemical beasts.

"Fire magic, aim at the Rotfiend..." The moment Tissaia stepped out of the portal, she directed the Sorceress's battle, "Ice Spike and Lightning Bolts, aim at the Giant Ghoul's eyes. They are the brains of the ghouls; don't let them see the situation..."

She then gave orders to the second group of Sorceress who arrived.

Under a strange incantation.

"Rumble~"

Ailin saw the trees swaying, the ground shaking, and a brownish magical glow enveloping the land at the edge of the mountain path where the human army was located.

Mudslide erupted on the ground, and the narrow mountain path was quickly widened.

In fact, narrow mountain paths have an impact on both carnivorous creatures and humans.

The reason why a few Sorceress could instantly suppress the ghouls after being teleported out was because of this.

The Ghoul in front retreated and died, blocking the path of the ghouls behind them.

The Sorceress on both sides of the mountain path attacked from above, suppressing them so they could not advance an inch.

Unfortunately, this is a battle of attrition, not a defensive one; humanity must advance while killing and repelling the ghouls.

Moreover, Sorceress ' magic generally requires chanting incantations and calming the elemental agitation after casting spells, so after the initial wave of attacks, the Sorceress all enter a "cooldown period".

In addition, it's quite a distance from here to the first Monster's Nest, and there are even tougher battles to come. They can't afford to exhaust their Divine Power here.

Therefore, during this period, they must rely on human armies to protect them.

"Hurry! Hurry! Hurry!"

Officers were shouting in the army behind the Monster Hunter Army.

A large army that Ailin had never seen before, after the mountain road was widened, did not hesitate to cross the newly widened brown stone road, bypassing the Monster Hunter Army and the Sorceress who were casting spells, and cut to the front line.

"Knock knock knock~"

Each tower shield, as tall as a person and forged with sharp spikes, was unfastened from the back of the soldiers' comrades and placed against the ground in front of them, firmly protecting the Monster Hunter Army hunters and Sorceress behind them.

Between the two shields, only a gap half the width of a person was left, making it easy for the Monster Hunter Army soldiers to weave their silver blades and long axes to encounter the enemy.

Obviously.

Although the arrival of the ghouls came earlier than expected, the three factions still had quick ways to deal with it, and the cooperation between the Sorceress and the human army was surprisingly good.

"It's not over yet!"

Vesemir gasped in surprise.

Ianna, the High Priest of the Temple of Melitele, emerged from the Sorceress's portal, her eyes closed in prayer.

A soft golden light shimmered on her simple priestess robe.

"... Homage to the Mother of All Things, Goddess of fertility, harvest, and childbirth, eternal maiden, mother, and guardian of the old..."

"... Your followers pray for your protection at this moment, praying that the heroes who fight against evil will no longer have to fight naked..."

"Whoosh~"

Ianna hadn't finished speaking.

Like a stone dropped into calm water, dazzling golden light emanated from her, creating shimmering ripples.

Wherever the ripples spread, the outermost garments, leather armor, helmets, and shields of the Sorceress, Monster Hunter Army, and soldiers wielding tower shields instantly lit up with a warm yellow light, as if these garments, armor, and shields were woven and forged by the gods with light.

"... Your followers pray for your protection at this moment, praying that the warriors who fight against evil will no longer wield rusted blades..."

In an instant.

At the same time, the swords, axes, and halberds in the hands of all the soldiers lit up with an incandescent golden light.

"... A carefree maiden will open up a golden wheat field of eternal harvest for the hero..."

"... A loving and maternal pregnant woman will take care of the warrior's offspring and family..."

"... a stern and learned old woman who will punish cowardly cowards..."

With each word uttered by Ianna with her eyes closed, a wrinkle appeared on her smooth face.

But her voice grew higher and higher, more holy and sacred.

The echoes reverberated through the mountains.

It was as if the entire Mahakam was responding to the goddess's blessings and divine gifts.

"... Homage to the Mother of All Things, Goddess of fertility, harvest, and childbirth, eternal maiden, mother, and guardian of the old..."

As the final eulogy ended, Ianna completely shed her youthful appearance and returned to her aged state.

The shimmering priest's robes had also lost their sacred golden luster.

However, around her, every human being was like a sun, their burning flames not from their bodies, but from their fighting spirit that seemed capable of igniting firewood.

"By Meritellie! Kill!"

Sala felt the surging power within her body, her face contorted with rage, veins bulging on her forehead, as she raised her gleaming golden knight's longsword and roared.

exactly.

At this moment, the Firestorm unleashed by Tissaia left behind a final, crimson tail of flame.

Ahead lay only a mountain path, widened and leveled by magic, and a large group of ghouls stunned by the sudden outbreak of the human army.

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

In an instant.

The human army took the initiative, like a surging golden wave, crashing down on the ghouls.