I was utterly taken aback. My mouth hung open slightly. “Because you, the prince, are the biggest troublemaker in the Empire!” Evangeline’s response to why she had become a fan of mine left me speechless. “…” Was she pulling my leg? Unsure of the audacious teenager’s true intentions and feeling perplexed, Evangeline waved her hands…

Ding! Ding! Ding! The rating slot of Lucky Strike whirred madly, eventually settling on the fateful numbers 777. Triple Seven. The full power of this whimsical weapon had been set loose. “What on earth, why now?!” I was the one who had made the attack, yet I was the one yelping in panic. No, no!…

The anonymous girl’s lance struck directly into the carriage’s wheel. Thwack! Crash! The carriage wheel, decimated by the unforeseen attack, scattered across the vicinity. “Aaaah?!” The wheelless carriage scraped along the road before it came to a grinding halt. The startled horses let out terrified neighs, dispersing in all directions. “Ah, oh my… what on…

Three days following the wrap-up of Stage 2. The fortress town of Crossroads hummed with activity, yet a sense of melancholy pervaded the air. Throughout the town, funeral flags fluttered in the breeze. White banners were raised voluntarily by the townsfolk, waving from dwelling to dwelling, besides being hoisted on the town gates and administrative…

The sewer rats had been entirely eliminated. The monsters, lured by the Margrave, all left their backs vulnerable to us. With the castle gates flung wide, Lucas and his troops attacked from the rear, and the volley from the castle walls persisted. The sewer rats were impaled from the back, clear to the core. Sporadic…

Charles Cross had spent his entire existence battling something. He was born in a fortress whose purpose was to keep monsters at bay. Even before he could grasp much, he trailed his father to the front lines and matured amidst the gore of monsters attempting to breach the fortress walls. When his father passed on,…

On a barren hill, far southeast from the walls of Crossroad, stood a lone figure. An old man, seated on his steed, analyzed the defensive proceedings with a grim demeanor. This was Charles, the Margrave of Crossroad. “…” A life spent in battle against monstrous threats and leading defenses had honed his instincts. He knew…

Hostile NPCs. As the name implies, they were characters that posed a danger to the players. These devils would infiltrate the stage and put players through hell, mainly in two distinct categories. Firstly, the kind that directly engaged in battle. Just like playable characters, they boasted skills, special moves, and unique characteristics. Typically, these devils…

Far too many. An overwhelming quantity. As I observed the tsunami of rats surging towards the castle wall, I swallowed my dry saliva. It felt as though I were standing on a seafront rather than a wall. A seafront that was on the verge of being assaulted by a turbulent, rolling tide. Squeak! Squeak! The…

Two days had passed. The dawn of Stage Start Day arrived. At long last, the city wall repairs were finished. “There were many areas where we had to hurry because of time, but it should hold up as a city wall.” I laid a comforting hand on the shoulder of the Mason Guild leader, whose…