Violent And Angry Mage

The Second Wall was like a replica of Risadel's First Wall. Unlike the First Wall, everything here was bare and decrepit. The docking areas were destroyed in the aftermath of the last Monster Wave, and whatever brick and wood that remained had long since rotted away. A bridge still connected the two sides of the river, but it was held up together by hopes and a dream—anything more than five people could topple the delicate balance and bring an end to decades of vigil.

Under the shadows of the Second Wall, the facilities that once housed Rosarium troops and adventurers lay empty and quiet. Half of a flag still hung from the triangular roof top of a building, still singing its lonesome song of patriotism with what little wind it could catch. It rang hollow amidst the decay.

The massive arch of the Second Wall, cradling the shattered remains of the gigantic river gate, which once served as an on-demand dam, obediently allowed the river passage into the Evil Lake beyond, like a broken loser forced to feed its oppressor. Even the Second Wall itself was littered in moss and vegetation.

The party was trotting down the brick-paved road on their bird mounts, slowly taking it all in. Aire took point while Anna and Willow followed closely behind. Everyone kept their eyes and ears peeled; there were enough abandoned structures around for monsters to cultivate their nests. Though Willow had already sent a 'pulse check' for hostiles, it paid to be careful.

Willow noted how the Magic Fencer and Wind Mage's faces turned solemn at the sights, a certain maid especially. For most adventurers, it was old history, just a curio on the map to remind them of the cruel inevitability of the Evil Lake. But Anne seemed to take something deeply personal from the state of the Second Wall as she looked on in unblinking horror.

"How could this be?" Anne whispered. "When the Kingdom claimed how the old adventurers of Roxidel still lived, that the fortress would stand among the finest and proudest against the Evil Lake, I had imagined a place where valor would burn as bright as that of Venfort. But this..."

"It's considered bad luck to say the name of a fallen fortress," Willow warned. "I don't mind it, but others will. Try not to make it a habit while you're here in Risadel."

"I-I'll keep that in mind."

Somewhere along the river, something finally gave out and rubble splashed into the waters below. Quartz and Ruby, the riding birds, let out a startled cry before their owners soothed their hackled feathers and told them there was nothing to worry about.

"Disgraceful," Aire said, and for once she had set aside her heroic posturing. "Were there not enough soldiers to spare? Without anyone manning the Second and Third Walls, Risadel is down to its last line of defense. How could anyone by the First Wall live comfortably like this?"

"We don't," Willow said. "Risadel was... doing relatively okay as a trading hub before the Wild Hunt appeared and cut us off from the mainland. The guild is struggling to organize a response. Now, we're just waiting for help from Providence to arrive and to organize a hunt to take back the roads. Fingers crossed we could still feed everyone before then."

There was a fissure in the road. Everyone had to hang on as the riding birds gave it a hop, a skip, and a jump. A few bricks cracked. There was a slight stumble before their training kicked in, righting themselves with a flap.

Aire relaxed the reins. "But if misfortune befalls Risadel and a Monster Wave appears..."

Willow shrugged. "Then I guess we'll die."

It got quiet for a moment. From where the White Mage sat, her two charges shared a concerned look—and mimicking their owners, so did Ruby and Quartz—before Anne bit her lips, her eyes downcast under her bangs. "And what of the other branches of Dragon Tale?"

"Don't know. Same for the rest of the Support Corps: they're either too busy or too far away. Everyone has their own problems, after all."

"I heard parties like the Azure Dragons travel around the Kingdom to alleviate pressure at the battlefront." Anne seemed to be talking to herself as her voice lowered into a barely audible utterance. "Maybe if we send a letter, we could..."

"Like you two?"

"H-Huh? What do you mean?"

"Neither of you were exactly inconspicuous. Let's just say even Master Gerald had heard about you two."

The maid flushed. "Oh, dear..."

Aire laughed. "It seems that our efforts shine through even in this gloomy corner of Rosarium. Why, perhaps they could use a speech. 'Even if the walls were broken, the valiant shall never fall,' that's what I would say!"

"Quoting Master Hera of Venfort, are we?" Willow droned. "At least she had a full three Walls to work with."

"Confidence, friend. It's all about confidence! Rosarium did not hold the Evil Lake at bay for hundreds of years with mere tactics and an iron heart." Aire grinned and thumped her fist onto her chest plate. "Have some wonder. I'll make you a true paramour of the literary arts yet!"

Willow looked over Anne's shoulder to quirk a brow at the Magic Fencer. "Even if it's from wrist-deep inside teeth and monster guts?"

"Even then! We'll start by slaying the foul beasts that infest these sacred lands!"

"...Well," Willow pointed. "You might've spoken too soon."

Because the moss on the Second Wall? It wasn't moss.

They were close enough now to actually see it, feel it. The air had grown stale, and the color of the water had turned dark. The river moved like molasses, passing under the bridge and toward the mouth of the Second Wall.

It was pitch-black, oozing, and it was scattered around the mouth of the Second Wall like mold—an infestation.

Things emerged from the Demontide.

Arms and legs tried to pull themselves out, but it was like they were growing from the Second Wall itself. Some fell into the water. Some managed to cling unto the stone and swing themselves unto land, where the fresh ichor dripped from their bodies and corrupted the ground.

They raised their reptilian-like heads and snarled with red, beady eyes.

"Kobolds, huh?" Willow muttered.

"T-That's a Monster Spawner?" Anne looked ill, struggling to even keep her eyes up. "It's hideous..."

Ruby, sensing the agitation of her owner, dug its feet against the ground. Willow had to clutch the bird's tail feathers to keep herself from slipping off.

"This wasn't in the report," Aire whispered, her eyes hardening.

"It wasn't," Willow said. "Must've appeared just today..."

Monsters often appeared around the Second and Third Walls. The guild made sure teams were often sent out to clear them to ensure the safety of Sailors coming in from Sarnaught. The Sailors had it hard enough over there, or so Secretary Layla had once said.

This was supposed to be a routine quest. Just their luck that there was suddenly a Monster Spawner.

Willow sighed. The guild wasn't going to like this. "Let's head back," she said. "We'll organize a raid team, and, hopefully, we could have this resolved by next—why are you two looking at each other like that?"

The kobolds had seen them. As if their presence had triggered an immune response, more kept on spawning; the river rippled with the bodies of their kin, and the Second Wall soon had a dozen running at them with even more on the way. They were like rabid animals, too newly formed to have a functioning mind.

But neither Aire nor Anne budged. They nodded, coming to an unspoken agreement, and...began to dismount.

Willow shook her head in disbelief.

"No. No. We are not doing this."

"Oh, we are." Aire had swung her hips off of Quartz with a flourish, landing perfectly on her feet. "And we will. It would besmirch my good name to turn my back on this injustice!"

"You said it yourself: the guild is struggling," Anne said. She had Aire's help coming down, barely keeping her own cloak from getting caught on the saddle. "We cannot in good conscience allow Risadel to burden itself anymore than it already has. We must handle this ourselves, here and now, before the Demontide spreads."