Finally, I can Retire, Or so I Thought

After an entire day of repairs, the magic tower was finally restored to working order, and the city’s protective barrier flared back to life. But the three approaching giant monsters had already emerged from the forest. Johan, having climbed back up onto the ramparts, raised his hands. Below, the sizable horde of undead soldiers marched forward to meet the three advancing titans.

”Groooo...”

Their groans echoed across the field, accompanying the clatter of their armor and the scraping of weapons dragged along the dirt.

”Groaaaar!”

One of the cyclopes roared, swinging its foot out in a massive kick that sent dozens of undead flying backward. 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

”Pawoooo!”

The behemoth in the center raised its trunk, trumpeting loudly before charging headlong into the fray. It scooped up dozens of undead with its massive pair of tusks and tossed its head, scattering dismembered limbs and broken bodies in every direction. Yet even as they were sent flying, trampled, or torn apart, the undead rose once more. Any severed limbs seamlessly fused back together, reassembled by the green flames coursing through their bodies.

Seeing the monsters closing in, Olga turned toward the ten soldier golems beside her. She raised her hand, and all ten golems instantly dropped into firing stances, while the archers drew their flaming arrows skyward and the two watchtowers rotated their cannons toward the three oncoming beasts.

”All units... FIRE!”

Olga shouted, swinging her hand down. Blam! Psiuuu! Thump! Every unit atop the wall opened fire simultaneously, the golems discharged their cannons, and the archers released their volley.

”Blam... blar... blam!”

The golems’ salvo scored direct hits on both cyclopes and the behemoth, followed immediately by heavy cannon fire from the watchtowers. A moment later, a rain of flaming arrows showered down upon the three monsters. But as the smoke cleared, far from being stopped, the three beasts hadn’t so much as uttered a cry of pain. Their massive silhouettes stepped through the lingering haze completely unharmed, with nothing more than flaming arrows embedded or rather, stuck harmlessly in their hides.

”Boom... boom!”

They continued their forward march, sending violent tremors through the ground. ”Fire!” Olga screamed once more. Another relentless salvo erupted from the ramparts, passing through the magic barrier. A second series of explosions detonated across the beasts, but the result was identical. When the smoke cleared, they were still advancing. The faces of Olga, Evelyn, Haruto, Johan, and Astrid turned deathly pale. The ancient weaponry that possessed such immense destructive power didn’t scratch the three titan-class monsters heading their way.

”Wh-What do we do now?” Astrid asked, her voice trembling with fear.

”Leave this to me,” Johan declared.

He raised both hands high, his entire body instantly engulfed in green flames. Below, the entire horde of undead soldiers was pulled toward Johan’s position like a magnetic force, merging together into a single, utterly sickening mass of corpses and severed limbs. Its size grew immense as it blocked the path of the three monsters, who halted before the squirming, black ball of corpses burning with green flame and assumed wary stances.

”Graaaaaaaaaah!”

A deafening roar split the air. Olga, Evelyn, and Astrid recoiled in disgust as the pulsing mass of corpses slowly coalesced into a headless titan. The creature possessed a wide, extraordinarily muscular frame lacking skin, looking like an exposed network of raw muscle fibers with bones arranged like armor plates across its body.

Its neck ended in a smooth, semicircular arch, and embedded in its chest was a horrifying face with large, curved fangs protruding from the top and bottom of its mouth. Its two massive, vein-swollen arms ended in two fist-like hammers of solid flesh, with its entire body wrapped in green fire.

Boom!

The giant corpse golem stood before the three beasts, matching them in height and blocking their path entirely.

”Hold them off right there, Flesh Titan!”

Johan roared. The golem seemed to understand his command, dropping low, widening its stance, and raising both fists like a boxer setting a guard.

”Johan, if you had a spell like that, you should have used it from the start!” Evelyn blurted out.

”I’m sorry, Your Highness... it looks big and strong... but compared to those three monsters... I’m not confident. My creation is only an S-rank Flesh Titan, even if I’ve expanded its size,” Johan rasped, gasping for air.

Seeing Johan turn pale as blood trickled from his lips, Astrid immediately supported his weight, wrapping an arm around his waist.

”Don’t push yourself! Your mana is almost completely spent, and you only recovered a little from fixing the tower! Why did you unleash your ultimate spell now?” Astrid asked, her voice tight with worry.

”I... have... to... We have to hold the line,” Johan wheezed.

Astrid reached into her pouch and pulled out a vial filled with a green liquid, a mana replenishment potion. Plop! She popped the stopper and poured the contents down Johan’s throat. Johan downed the liquid offered by his wife and refocused his concentration. Once it was empty, Astrid pulled out another vial and poured it into his mouth. Seeing what Astrid was doing, Haruto stepped forward and placed a hand on her shoulder.

”Hey, drinking too many mana potions at once is dangerous. It can knock him into a coma for days... and if he overdoses, he might never wake up,” Haruto warned.

”It’s fine, Lord Sion... I’m used to it,” Johan gasped out.

”I understand, but please, even in an emergency like this, if you collapse, everything we’ve done will be for nothing,” Haruto reasoned, well aware that if Johan passed out, the monster out front would disintegrate back into a heap of corpses.

”Groaaaaar!”

A sudden, fierce roar shattered the silence of the night. Evelyn and Olga whipped their heads around toward the front.

”They’re attacking!”

Evelyn shouted, and every eye locked onto the field. Both cyclopes charged the boxer-poised golem, swinging all four of their arms. But the golem held its ground, parrying their blows and even landing a heavy hammer-jab right to the face of one cyclops. Still, it took scratches and heavy blows in return.

”Blam... blam!”

Ganged up on by two four-armed cyclopes raining down punches, arm slashes, and kicks, the golem was forced back a step despite its sturdy frame and counterattacks. It planted its feet, stabilized its stance, and kept fighting back.

”Groaaaah!”

One of the cyclopes took a clean uppercut from the golem and tumbled backward, crashing onto its rear. Boom! A massive shockwave rippled through the earth as it hit the dirt. But immediately after, the golem took a massive double-fisted strike from the other cyclops directly to the face on its chest, knocking the golem back. The golem wiped the chest-face with its forearm, stepped forward, threw a jab, and spun into a heavy backswing with its hammer-arm.

Blam!

The cyclops was sent flying from the direct hit, causing the ground to tremble once more as it crashed down. Seeing the golem gain the upper hand, ”Yes!” Evelyn cheered in delight. Astrid, still holding Johan, smiled, and Olga looked noticeably relieved. But the expressions on Johan and Haruto’s faces remained tense and full of concern. Their worries were quickly validated.

”Pawoooo!”

The behemoth broke into a charge and gored the golem with a headbutt. The golem managed to catch its tusks, but was forced backward, skidding across the dirt until blam! it slammed into the city’s magical barrier. The shield cracked under the impact, though it managed to hold. Thud... thud... thud! The behemoth didn’t stop, continuing to push forward relentlessly. Atop the wall, Johan looked to be in absolute agony, his jaw clamped shut, his teeth grinding, and blood trickling from the corner of his mouth as he commanded the golem to withstand the battering-ram assault.

”This is bad... Fire! Keep firing!” a pale Olga screamed.

Every soldier golem and watchtower opened fire once more on the behemoth, which was now separated from the city barrier only by the golem’s body.

”Hah... hah... hah...”

”Hang in there, my love!” Astrid urged, her own face pale as she held onto Johan.

Johan looked completely exhausted. The faces of Olga, Evelyn, and Haruto turned pale as they watched the golem and behemoth lock horns in a battle of raw strength while everything on the ramparts capable of shooting rained fire upon them. Meanwhile, the two cyclopes pushed themselves back up and strode toward the struggling monsters to join the fray.

”Lord Dion... please come quickly... we’re being pushed to the brink,” Olga prayed in her head, her face fraught with anxiety.

The situation turned dire. Crack! The magic barrier began to fracture. The golem was pushed further back into the barrier as its feet broke through the shield. The two cyclopes began hammering away at the golem, which was completely immobilized as its hands remained locked onto the behemoth’s tusks.

”Crack... crack... crack!”

The barrier fractured further, on the verge of shattering at any moment. Evelyn drew her sword, her face pale, while Haruto pulled his mask up over his equally pale face, bracing himself for combat. Dread hung over everyone. Behind the city gates, the line of knights stood ready, though the metallic clatter of their armor betrayed their trembling bodies.

The archers atop the ramparts fired relentlessly, while the mages who had climbed back up cast spell after spell until many collapsed from mana depletion. The Shadow Hand agents stood with weapons drawn, drenched in cold sweat.

”Grooooooo!”

The golem was pushed back even further, its body beginning to crumble, while Johan stood on the verge of passing out from mana exhaustion. Just as everyone thought all hope was lost,

”Sorry to keep you waiting. Leave this to me.”

”Boooom!”

”Groaaaaaaar!”

Out of nowhere, a massive black dragon clad in iron armor landed directly behind the two cyclopes. The dragon instantly unleashed a torrent of flames, incinerating one of the cyclopes before it could even let out a roar, then snapped its jaws around the head of the other cyclops from behind, severing it completely.

Staring at the colossal, armor-clad dragon, Olga, Evelyn, and Haruto stood frozen in shock. But when they caught sight of the imposing man wearing magnificent armor and a tiara-like helm riding the dragon like a sovereign king, accompanied by five girls seated behind him, the eyes of Olga, Evelyn, and Astrid filled with tears on the verge of falling.

Dion, riding atop Gina in his Calamity Supreme Monarch Persona alongside Luna, Sheila, Mei, Cleo, and Aria, had finally arrived, followed by the zeppelin appearing shortly after to hover over the city.