My (Monster?) Hero Life

Natives screamed and ran for cover as the two sides met in battle. The natives used their knowledge of the street layout to try and flank the monster army. Lilly was relegated to the rear to focus on healing any injuries that occurred on their side.

Grugda led the main force since his earth magic was ideal for defence and holding the enemies back. Sophia had taken a smaller group into the side streets on the left side of the army. She was cutting off one of their opponents flanking manoeuvres.

Kace, on the other hand, led the Tu'Thrag into the side streets on the right. His force had already dove into the shadows to ambush the enemy whenever they appeared. Quite frankly, it was a bloodbath on his end.

Whenever he came across a group, he stormed straight into their midst. Not even giving them the chance to register that they had run into him. While the natives panicked and tried to hold him back, the Tu'Thrag would launch their assault from within the enemy ranks.

Blood, guts and body parts went flying as neither Kace, nor the Tu'Thrag gave the natives any quarter. Screams drowned out the sound of weapons clashing. Kace wiped the blood from his face as he gazed solemnly at the dead bodies of more than eighty natives around him.

'This is too slow. They're deliberately trying to slow us down and tire us out.' Kace quickly glanced around to figure out how far they still had to go to reach the Chamber of Merchants. 'Even if we took out the leaders directly, it would just invite their supporters to further violence. We have to crush the army thoroughly to ensure their surrender.'

As he stood there dripping in the blood of the natives, another group rounded the corner ahead of him. He did not hesitate in the slightest and launched a Plague Spear. As soon as his target cried out, Kace detonated the spell. The spell shredded the poor native into pieces as the shrapnel tore into those around him.

Poison gas quickly spread through their ranks, flooring them with a few moments. Kace walked over the bodies as weapons appeared from the shadows to silence their agonised cries. They continued to press on eradicating the enemies they came across. 'Come on, you fuckers!'

Kace rushed on, only to be halted by a familiar feeling. One that oozed power and that he had come across for the first time quite a while ago now. Lightning suddenly danced on the buildings to either side of Kace as he prepared himself. 'This will be the first time we actually cross swords, so to speak.'

"You! Give me my apprentice Phillip back, and I'll order the retreat of my forces…"

Meanwhile, on Grugda's front...

Sweat poured down Grugda's brow as he manipulated the earth to open small holes in the walls he had created. Screams rose up from the other side as the orcs and goblins jabbed spears through the opening the eljein created. 

Angry roars went up from the other side as Grugda felt strange mana entering into the wall he had created. With a savage grin, he urged the wall to close in around the area with the alien presence. 

The natives were attempting to use their magic that made earth easily passable, but Grugda's own magic was a perfect counter to it. The strange presence within the wall suddenly imploded under the pressure that Grugda was imposing on it.

The other natives who had been waiting for the results suddenly felt disheartened. It was clear that one of their biggest strengths had been sealed. Since they could not rely on it, they had basically invited the wolves into their hen house! Grugda just hoped that they did not try that trick too many times. It was incredibly tiring to put a stop to that ability.

"Push them. Back!" Grugda roared.

Grugda spotted a black-robed figure wielding a bow from one of the holes he had made in the earthen wall. He got the distinct feeling of danger from the mysterious figure. Kace had not given them the details of the attempt on his life. So he was not prepared for what came next. 

The black-clad figure fired off an arrow that changed its trajectory several times mid-flight. It smoothly found its way through the hole and headed directly for Grugda! He was focused entirely on maintaining the defensive wall, so he was unable to protect himself! The black arrow lodged itself into his shoulder, destroying his concentration!

A loud cracking erupted as a fissure appeared on the wall separating the two forces, right before it came crumbling down…

Over on Sophia's side... 

Mini bombs that the goblins carried left a continuous trail of destruction in their wake. Buildings were falling apart as small craters littered the streets. The natives huddled up in ruins. Too afraid to head against Sophia's group head-on.

'Charge, you say? Do we look suicidal? Tell you what. You go first, we'll be right behind you!' Sarcastic thoughts like this resounded in the minds of the natives whenever someone suggested charging the enemy position.

While the goblins kept the force pinned down, Sophia moved like a bloody goddess with a trail of orcs behind her. They took their time picking off each individual group that had become separated due to the explosions.

'Should I feel guilty for enjoying this?' Sophia wondered as she pierced the chest of a native with her bare hand. 'Probably not...'

Just as she turned around to head to the next target, she felt a blade slice through her thigh, catching her by surprise! Sophia cried out as she lashed out at the assailant behind her, only to strike thin air. In her confusion for where her opponent was, blood splattered in the surrounding area as several orcs were beheaded in seconds! Sophia cursed as she tried to make sense of what was going on.

Another wet sound hit her ears as a blade slid into her back and came out of the left side of her stomach. However, Sophia was ready this time! She stamped her left foot on the ground, and a circular area of ice spikes quickly shot up from the earth in all directions!' No matter where you are, this will definitely get you!

Sophia waited for the sound of someone crying out in pain, but it never came. The situation was already dire, but she never expected for this spell to fail her. A couple of tense seconds passed before several more orcs were killed in rapid succession. This time, Sophia saw a dreaded sight. Purple sparks were dancing at high speed between the buildings…

In the rear, where Lilly took charge…

The injured streamed into one of the buildings Lilly had ordered to be cleared out to use as a temporary hospital. She worked furiously to save as many lives as she could! However, with sadness in her heart, she had to make the passing a bit easier on a few of her patients. It was better to be compassionate than to let them suffer for a short amount of time that they had left. 

"No! You just stay right there!" Lilly sternly scolded an orc as he reached for his weapon. "Don't be so stubborn! If you go out there with that wound, you'll probably die before you earn any more glory. If you stay here and heal, then you'll get a chance when we take the fight to the cities on the surface."

The orc stared at her with a glum-looking expression as he considered her words carefully. In the end, he decided that her words made sense for his own goals. He was only here to earn merits in battle, after all. So he was definitely guaranteed to get a chance for more if he waited. This was little more than a skirmish in his eyes. 

Seeing that the orc had agreed, Lilly let out a sigh of relief. She had thought that she was going to have to cross another survivor off of her list. The building steadily continued to fill with more casualties. Trolls grunted as they carried in several bodies at a time. 'These goblins are quite good at helping with the healing, but they need more specialised training. Maybe I should speak with my grandfather about it when we return to Stonefall.'

Lilly watched as a goblin carefully stitched up a wound before wrapping it in some cloth. All in all, she approved of the fine work that she did. 'Ok, who's next?' she glanced around the room at the screaming and writhing figures. She was attempting to pick out those in the most critical conditions. Just then, the orc she had argued with before dove in front of her. 'What the hell!'

Lilly was angry at first, but that only lasted a fleeting moment. A dagger erupted from the rear of the orc's throat and barely missed her face due to being diverted by the orc's mass. Blood painted her face as the orc made horrible gurgling noises before falling to the floor in a heap…