29 - Aden In Peril - Reina (1)

 

Three days was the time I spent sitting at the dinner table.

Shortly after Ocien left the house a roar sounded through the city and I was sure he was responsible.

When that roar ended, I felt our connection dissolve.

I was afraid to check the system for hours when the moon was high in the sky and finally I did.

 

[ Companions ]

 

None

 

Ocien was no longer there.

It broke me more than I already was.

I didn't know why I said those things to him. My fears had taken away the most important person in my life.

On the fourth day Miquela came and found me catatonic at the table, she put me to bed and kept me company. I don't know how long I slept, I don't know how long she stayed, I just know that when I woke up she was next to me.

Miquela gave me a tender look without saying a few words.

I cried and sobbed, I gave in to the sadness that took over me.

Not knowing what else to do, I followed her to the hospital and dedicated myself completely to my studies.

I meditated, studied, meditated, meditated, studied, studied…

I started living inside the hospital.

I studied all the medical magic she suggested without even questioning it.

The days passed, I lost track of time when I realized I had reached the 2nd Circle.

She wanted to throw a celebration party but I vehemently rejected it.

I soon received my certification as a doctor, but I continued working as her assistant.

One morning, alarms resounded throughout the city.

A wave of beasts was on the way.

Temporary infirmaries were set up at the top of the Wall and we were allocated the region that the Adventurers Guild would defend.

All Guilds have military power, so the city divided the wall into several sections. Each Guild would be responsible for a session and the City Guard would be responsible for the gates.

Missions were sent as a vanguard to assess the size of the danger and the result went from bad to worse.

Soon we had work.

The number of deaths was high and the number of injured was even higher.

We worked around 8 hours with 8 hours of rest, that is, we worked up to twice in the same day.

The sea of beasts soon appeared near the walls, where the final stand would take place.

We worked until exhaustion, patients accumulated and soon rest shifts were reduced to 4 hours.

A sea of red formed in front of the walls.

When the Marmarite was finally spotted I saw Ocien. He was a red dot amidst the mass of beasts.

Ocien burned, buried, trapped, pierced and crushed everything in his path. The Staff he had purchased in Almage swung across the skies of Aden like an omen of death. Any beast capable of getting close to him received a welcome from the tip of Cold Iron.

He wasn't hiding.

Ocien was demonstrating all his splendor there.

My chest felt empty watching that scene.

The time we spent together was all with the intention of not revealing our secrets to the world.

But there he was.

Fighting with everything he had to protect a city he had only known for a few months.

He was a force to be reckoned with.

Not even the famous adventurers I heard so much about in the infirmary could come close to the damage he was doing.

The efficiency was such that an area of fifty meters was defended by him alone.

A roar rose to the heavens.

“A 4th Circle beast.” – I heard it from a whisper.

The movement of the wave has changed. The pressure was increasing.

“Oh no. The beast that is commanding the attack has awakened spiritual intelligence.” – I heard the voice coming from behind me more clearly this time.

It was Miquela, she arrived next to me on the wall and observed the changes on the battlefield.

“In a normal wave this bastard would appear and the city leaders would finish him off, putting an end to the attack.” – she began to explain.

The leadership of a Beast Wave seemed to function out of fear.

“But he awakened spiritual intelligence. He will wait until the last moment and hide again in the Deep Swamp.” – she continued.

If what she said was true, I would fear for the fate of the city. When the number of beasts is sufficient, another wave will occur.

A new roar sounded.

A new change in the movement of the beasts happened. Places with fewer defenders began to receive even more pressure.

My eyes darted around the battlefield looking for Ocien.

When I found him my body went rigid.

Surrounded by mountains of bodies, Ocien, with one knee on the ground, brandished his staff violently, invoking a circle of flames.

A purple jaguar leaped through the flames and caught up with him. He managed to react in time to avoid a fatal blow. Ocien's left arm was lacerated from shoulder to forearm.

Blood spurted out.

And I boiled.

The saber he had bought to replace my old one was still with me at my waist. My hand wrapped around it and I took it out without even realizing it.

I climbed onto the parapet of the wall and let myself fall. When the angle was right, my aura and mana exploded against the wall and I was ejected towards the battlefield.