Chapter 84: Fighting the Monster Horde [2] Moon positioned himself at the wall’s edge, his staff raised and mana already gathering. Despite joining the coordinated defense, he kept his original plan firmly in mind: maximize usage of Explosive Flame to push proficiency as high as possible during this battle. The enemy wave crashed against the eastern wall, a mixed force of beasts and human attackers working in disturbing coordination. Moon could see the pattern now that he was observing from a defensive position: the beasts served as shock troops and living shields, while human mages provided supporting fire and direction. "Fire!" the mage captain commanded. Moon released an Explosive Flame alongside the other mages’ attacks. His fireball struck a cluster of three creatures scaling the wall with claws and climbing gear, detonating with satisfying force. BOOM! The explosion threw two of them backward, their bodies crashing into allies below. The third clung desperately to stone before an archer put an arrow through its eye. [You have killed a level 17 Climbing Beast.] [You have gained 15 Lives.] Moon immediately began charging another spell, his hands moving through the familiar compression technique he’d practiced during travel. The more he used Explosive Flame in actual combat conditions, the more intuitive the process became. "Burrowers incoming!" someone shouted from further down the wall. Moon’s eyes snapped to where several quadrupedal creatures with armored hides erupted from the ground inside the defensive perimeter. They must have tunneled beneath the walls while the main assault provided distraction. [Gorrak] [Level: 18] [Details: Quadrupedal predators with armored hides studded with jagged bone plates. Their glowing red eyes provide excellent low-light vision. Can burrow short distances through most soil types to launch surprise attacks from below, making them dangerous ambush specialists.] Three Gorraks had breached the inner courtyard, immediately attacking defenders who’d been focused on the external threat. "Mages, redirect! Interior threats take priority!"" the captain commanded. Moon didn’t hesitate. He turned and launched an Explosive Flame at the nearest Gorrak, which had just torn through a warrior’s leg with its bone-plated jaws. The warrior screamed, then immediately drove his sword through his own heart, choosing to respawn rather than suffer further. His body dissolved into light, reappearing moments later with a fully intact leg. But his face was deathly pale, and he collapsed to his knees immediately, barely able to support his own weight. Those who took massive damage that left them without body parts—legs, hands, entire limbs—suffered from a severe debuff upon resurrection. It was another mysterious aspect of the system that prevented exploitation. Humans couldn’t game the respawn mechanic by killing themselves to instantly restore health, stamina, mana or lost limbs without any consequences. The sanctuary imposed a proportional penalty based on the severity of injuries sustained before death. When Moon had died to the beast in the hidden realm while fighting alongside Selene, he’d only suffered from blood loss and a deep chest wound. Upon revival, he’d felt incredibly tired but still functional. He could only imagine what warriors who lost entire limbs experienced—the warrior before him was in no condition to stand, let alone fight. He’d be useless for at least an hour, possibly longer. The system enforced balance through consequences that couldn’t be circumvented. Moon’s fireball struck the Gorrak’s exposed flank, detonating with a massive explosion that shook nearby beasts off their feet. The creature’s armor absorbed some damage, but the blast was powerful enough to crack bone plates and burn through the gaps in its natural defenses. The beast heavily injured, roared and turned its body towards Moon, its amber eyes locking onto him with pure hatred. But before it could pose any threat, Moon was already casting again. BOOM! The second explosion caught the Gorrak directly in the face as it charged, stopping its momentum entirely. The creature collapsed forward, smoke rising from its ruined head. [You have killed a level 19 Gorrak.] [You have gained 50 Lives.] [You have reached level 20!] [ Name: Moon ] [ Race: Human ] [ Class: Classless, Pyromancer ] [ Level: 20 ][ 1% ] [ Lives: 4779 ] [ Strength: 29 ] [ Agility: 31 ] [ Constitution: 34 ] [ Mana: 41 ] (+5 to all stats) [ Attribute Points: 10 ] [ Skills: Elemental Attack, Five Element Affinity, Tenacity, Silver Skin, Pyromantic Affinity, Explosive Flame, Heat Sense(Limited Time) ] [ Talent: Grim Reaper ] [ Class Skill: Class Slot {1/1} ] With ten allocatable attribute points available, Moon immediately decided to use them. [Mana: 41 → 47] [Strength: 29 → 31] [Agility: 31 → 33] Although having higher constitution helped with survival, Moon’s massive lives reserve meant that raw defensive stats were less critical than offensive capability. Strength and agility were his weaker attributes and needed improvement. Mana remained his most important stat as a primarily magical combatant, so it received the largest investment. [Explosive Flame] [Rank: Rare] [Proficiency: 51%] [Details: You can conjure flames that detonate on impact. The size of the explosion scales with mana invested. Detonation radius: 2 meters. Explosions affect all targets within the radius, including the caster. +100% Damage.] Satisfied with his progress, both in level and skill proficiency, Moon grew more excited to continue the assault. He immediately drank a mana-restoring potion, feeling his reserves slowly returning back toward maximum capacity. With every cast, Moon managed to one-shot beasts below level seventeen entirely. Those above that threshold were severely injured, often crippled enough for other defenders to finish easily. His explosive output had essentially doubled since he’d started using the skill hours earlier. The damage bonus alone was devastating. The displays of power didn’t go unnoticed. Both the team leader and the mage captain had been unable to ignore his overwhelming performance, their expressions showing growing respect. "Hey! Join me over here." The mage captain called out, gesturing sharply towards Moon. Moon moved to her position without argument, taking a spot beside the captain on the reinforced rampart’s highest point. She had clearly noticed his firepower, and it exceeded even her own output in terms of quality and quantity. She couldn’t possibly keep someone this capable with the standard mage rotation. "You should’ve told me you were a veteran awakener. I wouldn’t have placed you with the basic squad," she said, rolling her eyes even as she continued hurling spells towards the enemies below. "What base did you transfer from? I’ve never seen you before." Moon launched another Explosive Flame, obliterating a cluster of climbing beasts. "From a low level base. I only registered at Ironpeak yesterday." She stared at him for a short, brief moment, reassessing everything she’d assumed about the young awakener beside her. Then she laughed despite the chaos brewing around them. "Well, shit. No wonder Roland sent you up here. What’s your level?" The question had become more popular than asking for the name for awakeners. "Twenty. Just hit it a moment ago." "Twenty." She shook her head in disbelief. "I’m level twenty-four and you’re hitting harder than I am. What the hell kind of class do you have?" Moon smiled slightly but didn’t answer, instead launching another explosive attack that cleared a section of wall being overrun. The captain grinned. "Just keep doing what you’re doing. We need that firepower." She pointed toward where a concentration of human attackers was establishing a forward position. "Focus there. Break their formation before they can coordinate a proper assault."