The heroes fought on.
With stronger enemies emerging, none of the raiders were allowed to rest.
Even the heavily injured hero from Party 10 was forced back to his feet as soon as his gaping wounds had been closed with a healing elixir.
No hands could be spared anymore.
Impianas and other dangerous creatures were swarming down from the sky. Double those number, hordes of monsters were rushing toward the fortress from all over, with some large beastlings able to completely jump over the walls.
Huge golems were rampaging outside the fortress, taking down dozens of monsters at a time.
But every hero was still constantly fighting each second. Coordinated by the advanced heroes whom were each tasked to hold their front of the fortress.
[Ansel, Emmar, take down anything that got past me! Call Namira for help from the tower if necessary! Erinne, Tomal, guard the central tower and prevent any monster from getting to the mages and the archers from the ground!]
Celeste ordered her party comrades as well as the ones from Party 8.
Five Prime Beastlings were charging toward the fortress, preparing to leap over the walls as they sneaked past the golem on that side.
The mage-swordswoman quickly sounded a chant which caused her long sword to glow with silver light.
She then swung her weapon toward the leaping beasts ten steps above her.
The glow on her long sword jumped from the blade into a shining silver arc. It sped toward the beastlings and separated their torsos from their hips.
A basic mage-swordsman technique to echo their sword strokes with mana which allowed them to attack from long distance.
On the west entrance, four Prime Beastlings attempted to jump over the walls as well.
But Gaoling leapt to the air following them and shredded the monsters with furious twirls of her glaive.
[Johaime, throw your daggers at the beasts that I missed! Vanse, keep watch for our rear! Warn Meifa and Lutor at the tower if any of the monsters breached our line!]
At the east, Sigmund was butchering a dozen monsters with his battle axe, holding the front on his own. His three ground comrades of Party 9 were battling the Prime Beastlings that got over the wall.
The same on the south.
Dharma blocked most of the monsters with her shield and crushed them with her spiked mace. Her comrades of Party 10 took on those that jumped over the walls and breached the dwarf's line.
[Janis, use your throwing spears at the beastlings before they land! Salana will help you from the tower! Ruford, Mannel, don't let the monsters get past our party!]
Sigmund shouted.
Dharma's voice almost overlapped his.
[I'll hold most of them off! Quickly kill every monster that got inside! Lillie, stay close to Turc! He's not fully recovered yet! Karell, if Oliberr is too preoccupied on the tower, you have to chase down any monster that tried to run off beyond our line!]
On the top of the central tower, Aludra had taken charge of commanding the long-ranged combatants.
[Kiran, four Impianas approaching from northeast! Prepare your spell! Meifa, three straight from the south! Ready your ballista! Ahsan, use yours to take on the two from the west! I'll blind all of them for you once they got close enough!
[Namira, Lutor, Salana, Oliberr, use your explosives to reduce the lesser monsters while they're still outside the fortress! Switch to wind arrows to kill any inside the walls! Pay attention to your party on the ground! Aid them if they seem overwhelmed!]
The raiders managed to put on solid resistance under the advanced heroes' leadership.
Though the monsters were many and overwhelming, the raiders could repel them as the monsters reached their front.
That was until huge colorful flower buds began to emerge all over the vines that crept throughout the fortress walls.
The flower buds bloomed and flared their giant petals. Yellowish-purple gas plumes burst forth from the flowers and filled the air throughout the fortress.
Each of the giant flowers wilted and fell off the vines right after. But the plumes remained.
All the heroes were affected by the plumes given the sudden shift in their expressions.
[My vision is blurry! I'm seeing double!]
Shouted a hero at the same time as another.
[The ground is spinning! I can't see straight!]
Poisonous plumes which affected vision.
I expected nothing less from the deadly Phirdaus.
And the timing must be on purpose as well.
Crash!
The earth beneath the fortress cracked open, forming into large gaping holes.
Several Gatormole monsters had finally dug through the bedrock beneath the fortress walls and got through.
If the infiltration was already bad enough, the Gatormoles also seemed to had grown twice its usual size.
[Prime Gatormole Lv.30 x3]
More monsters emerged from the large holes.
Hound-sized spiders and several Prime Beastlings leapt out and started ambushing the heroes' back lines.
With the poisonous plume disorienting their senses, the heroes could not offer much resistance.
['Turc (★★★)' has returned to the Goddesses' embrace! His fighting spirit will be remembered forever.]
['Ruford (★★★)' has returned to the Goddesses' embrace! His fighting spirit will be remembered forever.]
['Lillie (★★★)' is on the brink of death. Her life is in danger!]
['Tomal (★★★)' is on the brink of death. His life is in danger!]
['Vanse (★★★)' has been inflicted with bleeding. His stamina will be reduced for a period of time.]
['Erinne (★★★)' has been inflicted with bleeding. Her stamina will be reduced for a period of time.]
['Mannel (★★★)' has fallen into the state of fear. All stats decreased by 30%!]
[…]
[Time Remaining]
[25:28]
A beastling clawed the injured Party 10 member to death, which also caused another member to be wounded heavily.
Swarms of spiders gathered around a frightened Party 9 spearman and killed him almost instantly with their venom.
Others were experiencing near-death encounter as well.
Celeste echoed a powerful shout which pierced to the central tower.
[Aludra, cleanse the air! Meifa, help the injured! Kiran, start using Third Circle spells and get rid most of the monsters!]
Even as she sounded those orders, the mages were already in the middle of casting their magic, aware of the crisis and the need for them to step up.
Aludra stretched her long staff over the tower and created a whirlpool of air the size of a grown man's head.
[Hampadam]
All the poisonous plumes immediately gathered at the whirlpool Aludra created. They formed into a colorful spinning ball of air.
With a twirl of the mage-engineer's hand, the colorful ball leaked into a thin stream of air which flowed toward beyond the fortress walls.
['Aludra (★★★)'s Intermediate Enchantment has levelled up to level 6!]
The plumes rapidly dissipated from the fortress as Aludra channeled the poisonous gas out of the area.
At the same time, Meifa was raising her magic scepter high in the air, its enchantment crystal was glowing brightly.
[Arushagni Chakrasukma]
The healer chanted.
Threads of light sped from her scepter to all over the fortress.
Each of the thread touched a hero, no one was missed except for the dead.
Suddenly all the heroes were enveloped in warm light. Their wounds rapidly healed though they had not taken the healing elixir. The odd complexions caused by the poisonous plume rapidly drained from their faces.
['Meifa (★★★)' is casting multiple enchantments.]
[Enchantment casted!]
[All heroes' stats have increased by 5% for a period of time!]
[All heroes' physical resistance has increased by 10% for a period of time!]
[All heroes' ailment resistance has increased by 10% for a period of time!]
['Meifa (★★★)'s Intermediate Enchantment has levelled up twice to level 7!]
['Meifa (★★★)'s Healing Magic has levelled up to level 6!]
As soon as the healer's spell was casted, Kiran was about ready with his.
He raised his silver staff to the sky and chanted.
[Maha Shilajalam]
Cold air gathered above the fortress and formed into a silver cloud.
With a flick of his staff, he activated the spell.
[Fall]
The cloud rained down ice shards to the grounds beyond the walls.
They pierced the charging monsters like arrows.
The elemental mage then proceeded to the next phase of the spell.
[Freeze]
All the fallen ice shards broke down into mist which froze everything in its surroundings.
Kiran thrust his hand forward and activated its final phase.
[Spread]
The pools of ice mist exploded and engulfed the entire ground beyond the fortress.
Man-sized icicles burst forth from the frozen ground the mist created and killed the remaining monsters that survived the previous hail.
With the poisonous air cleansed, their wounds healed, and most of the lesser monsters taken care of, the heroes managed to recompose themselves slightly.
All that was left was to take care of the monsters still inside the fortress.
Celeste, Gaoling, Sigmund, and Dharma rushed to the large Gatormoles that dug a hole behind the walls.
The mage-swordswoman pierced her sword through the eyes of one of the monster.
She sounded a brief chant and her sword burst with electricity, frying the shelled creature from the inside.
Dharma did not rely on such trick and struck their tough shells head on with her spiked mace.
Her weapon shattered enough of the shells around the other two monsters' neck which allowed Gaoling and Sigmund clear passage to behead them.
The rest of the raiders swiftly eliminated the monsters that had infiltrated through the fortress through the underground holes.
Everything seemed well at hand.
Until more shrieks echoed from all over.
[Wave 15]
[Prime Beastling Lv.30 x46]
[Blood Crow Lv.22 x231]
[Prime Gatormole Lv.30 x20]
[Killer Spider Lv.22 x261]
[Poison Stinger Lv.22 x256]
[Wave 16]
[Prime Beastling Lv.30 x46]
[Blood Crow Lv.22 x231]
[Prime Gatormole Lv.30 x20]
[….]
[Wave 17]
[Prime Beastling Lv.30 x46]
[…]
[Wave 18]
[Prime Beastling Lv.30 x46]
[…]