Chapter 64

As Galdrat rushed in, Blakul's torso was severed horizontally.

Telep, who was beside Blakul, had both front legs cut off and rolled forward on the ground, while Galdrat pressed forward.

Like a whirlwind wrapped in blades, Galdrat swiftly split the crowd of Blakul and Telep to the left and right, advancing toward the defense team on the drawbridge.

Blakul and Telep were not idle. It was clear from their movements that Blakul, the commander, was erecting white ceramic walls and ordering his companions to launch a wave attack. He understood the risk of the defense team regaining coordination better than anyone.

However, even as they tried to launch a wave attack, Galdrat was simply too strong. As expected of the Shirouz style, which excels in counterattacks, his techniques not only remained unbroken but also shone brilliantly, even when attacked from all sides.

The lower-ranked adventurers, who had been unable to advance, cheered.

"Follow behind Galdrat! Break through the gap!"

At Jaggi's command, the lower-ranked adventurers surged forward along the path Galdrat had cut open.

The defense team on the drawbridge, sensing the commotion, also raised their morale.

Hearing the approaching footsteps, Rio wiped the blood from his forehead, cleared his vision, and turned toward the sound.

"Rio! You need to treat your injuries!"

Seeing Rio, Shiraha's face turned pale. Rio waved his hand lightly to show he was fine.

"Don't worry. No bones are broken. It's just a cut on my forehead that's bleeding profusely. Can you lend me a handkerchief to press on the wound?"

"Don't move."

Rio, who was pressed down and made to sit, had a handkerchief pressed against his forehead.

Young guild staff members, who seemed to have followed Galdrat, were seen approaching with a first-aid kit.

The situation had completely tilted in favor of the human side due to Galdrat's intervention. Although the state of the defense team was unclear, they would likely recover once their retreat was secured.

Rio was about to sigh in relief but noticed something odd about the young staff members' expressions.

They seemed anxious about something.

He thought they were panicking due to the unexpected number of injuries, but their gaze was fixed on Galdrat.

"Is something wrong?"

When asked, the young staff member, who was about to treat Rio with the first-aid kit, opened his mouth with a face that looked like he was about to cry.

"Mr. Galdrat still has his collar on."

"…What?"

Rio hurriedly looked at Galdrat.

Indeed, Galdrat, who was running and cutting down Blakul and Telep, still had the slave collar around his neck. The chain, which had been roughly cut, was swinging.

When they passed by, he had only seen one eye, so he hadn't noticed, but the slave collar was activated.

"Doesn't that collar tighten the more you move away from the training ground…?"

"He's resisting with body enhancement. We only noticed after he burst out of the training ground."

"Why didn't you take it off!?"

"Who would have thought that someone so calm would change so drastically at the sound of a bell?"

Galdrat likely learned of the emergency from the bells that rang throughout the town when the surprise attack by Telep and others on the wall was successful.

He couldn't stand it and burst out of the training ground.

While Shiraha was wrapping a bandage around Rio from the first-aid kit, she asked the young staff member.

"How do you remove it? Is there a key?"

"It's enchanted, so a removal ritual is needed. It takes about half an hour, which he couldn't wait for."

Indeed, if Galdrat had arrived half an hour later, Rio would have died, and the defense team on the drawbridge would have been annihilated.

Galdrat's decision was commendable.

However, it was a temporary solution.

For the adventurers of Rehlan, Galdrat was both a mental pillar and the strongest combatant. If Galdrat fell, morale would collapse, and even if they didn't abandon their posts, the battle would become much harder.

Rio turned his gaze back to the battlefield.

Beyond the crowd of Blakul and Telep, the defense team could be seen. Jaggi and the others, forming a triangle with Galdrat at the apex, had secured a retreat path, and the defense team, having been pushed back to the base of the drawbridge and the wall, seemed intent on regrouping with Galdrat and the others.

Blakul and Telep had also stopped the pincer attack and were returning to the wall. Contrary to Rio's expectations, Blakul was blowing black wax onto the wall to create makeshift footholds, which Telep was climbing.

The mages and hunters on the wall were almost completely annihilated. Yomban was nowhere to be seen, and only an old man with a hidden staff was leading the remaining vanguard.

Rio frowned as he searched for the white Telep.

He was concerned about the white Telep, who had appeared just before he finished off Blakul, the commander, and who was always aware of the battle situation.

"…He's waiting."

The white Telep was looking down at Galdrat from the wall. His white fur fluttered in the wind, and his eyes, filled with malice, coldly surveyed the battlefield.

Behind the white Telep were Blakul, the commander, and the more physically imposing Telep, along with Blakul, who were mounted and made no unnecessary movements.

They understood that Galdrat's time was limited and were preserving their decisive forces.

Finally, Galdrat joined the defense team.

Ignoring the cheers of the defense team, he rushed across the drawbridge and arrived on the other side, standing with his sword held horizontally.

The stance he took was the same as the one his master, Nac Schwarkar, had used in his final moments, as Rio had seen in the training ground.

Seeing Galdrat's determined stance, the defense team and Jaggi and the others, who had joined them, quickly regrouped, and those with spare capacity rushed up the stairs to join the forces on the wall.

The white Telep, observing the human side's movements, let out a cry, turned around, and disappeared outside the wall. The commanders of Blakul followed, retreating from the wall.

The Telep side was making extremely calm moves in contrast to the energized adventurers.

The white Telep likely judged that it was better to wait for Galdrat to exhaust his strength rather than engage in battle now. Given that the mages and hunters on the wall had been almost completely annihilated, the importance of holding the wall had diminished.

The adventurers who had climbed the wall immediately started running along it, looking down outside. There was a possibility that Telep would launch surprise attacks from various directions, so they had to disperse their forces.

Moreover, the adventurers, who were busy with the battle, were not worried about the overwhelmingly powerful Galdrat and had not noticed that the slave collar around his neck was activated.

Even if they had noticed, there would have been nothing they could do. If Galdrat fell, the battle line would collapse.

Understanding this, the young staff members, who seemed to have followed from the guild, could not even call out to him.

Injured members of the defense team were being carried away one after another. Many were severely injured, and the young staff members rushed to help them.

Shiraha stopped wrapping the bandage and looked at Rio.

"…What are you thinking?"

—The final moments are approaching.

"Rio, let go of your sword."

—His body is in intense pain.

Realizing that Galdrat's time was limited, the elite white Telep and others had gathered outside the wall and launched an assault.

Galdrat, maintaining his stance, turned to the surviving defense team, who were regrouping, and smiled in satisfaction.

Seeing that smile from a distance—Rio's blood boiled.

"…Rio!?"

Shiraha's hand was pushed away, and Rio, sword in hand, rushed forward.