"Sean, my Velvet liquor will be ready this afternoon. Come over tonight and let's drink with the others at my house." Daniel invited Sean to have a small party at his place.
Sean raised an eyebrow in surprise. "The liquor you made last month?"
"Yes." Daniel nodded.
"Sure!" Sean agreed instantly. "I will bring fried potatoes and roasted fish later."
"Great!" Daniel responded.
"Hehe. I suddenly can't wait for the night to come." It had been a while since he tasted Velvet liquor, so he almost could not suppress the excitement within him.
"Haha!" Daniel burst into waves of laughter when he saw Sean's expression.
'Hmm?'
He stopped laughing when the sound of footsteps and something pushing through the bushes reached his ears.
"What's that?" Sean shifted his gaze toward the source of the sound. "Is someone coming to our village?"
Daniel didn't respond and kept paying attention to their surroundings.
A moment later, twenty red goblins and thirty magical beasts came out of the bushes. The one leading them was a 2-star leopard.
The leopard was nearly two meters tall, with crimson eyes and a glowing red crystal on its forehead.
When Sean and Daniel realized what it was, their curious faces turned grim.
"Sean, sound the alarm." Daniel rushed toward the enemies to hold them off.
Sean didn't answer, but he rushed toward the watchtower immediately.
At the same time, Alaric was giving pointers to his disciples. After each sparring match, he always told them their flaws and how to improve.
This way, they would not make the same mistakes and could grow stronger faster.
"Next match is Elara against Julian," Alaric announced.
Just as they were about to walk to the sparring ring, a warning alarm reached their ears.
*TROOOOM…
The sound of a trumpet reverberated in the entire area.
All children and old people were immediately taken to the hidden underground shelter, while the rest grabbed their weapons and rushed to the entrance gate.
Even the non-awakeners also chose to fight because they were willing to sacrifice themselves as long as they could defend their village.
"Let's go to the entrance gate!" Alaric stopped their training immediately.
Without feeling afraid, all of his disciples followed him from behind.
"We will go too," Sofia added.
All of her students nodded in unison.
Boom!
The sounds of fighting between townsfolk and magical creatures filled the air.
Since they were outnumbered, they were at a disadvantage in the war.
But despite that, they still fought bravely because the safety of their children and the village was in their hands.
"Die!" The black-haired man jumped at a goblin and pierced its head with his spear.
But in the next second, two wolves bit him to death.
"Don't charge at them recklessly. Fight in a group and protect each other." After giving an order, Aveline used her only offensive magic.
Sun Needle!
Since she lived in a village far from the city, and most light-element spells were healing magic, she had only mastered one offensive and one defensive spell.
But even so, it was quite deadly because it could kill her enemy as long as it hit the target's vital areas.
'I have to hold them off until the others arrive.'
The moment she raised her hand forward, two needle-like shards of light materialized.
The light needles flew toward two goblins at an incredible speed. It pierced their heads and killed them instantly.
As his underlings were killing the residents mercilessly, the 2-star leopard stood in his place and watched over the war.
He didn't join immediately because his subordinates had the upper hand.
"Aaaggghhh…"
"Aaaggghhh…"
"Aaaggghhh…"
Screams of agony filled the air.
Even though the village guards had fought in formation, they still could not cover the gap in their numbers.
Aveline gritted her teeth as one by one her people were killed by the magical creatures. She tried to protect them, but she could not do much against so many enemies.
As fury enveloped her heart, Alaric and the others arrived.
Some charged at the enemies while the rest helped the injured.
"Village head, we will protect you." Sofia and six people stood in a circle around her.
Aveline nodded and shifted from offensive to support.
Radiant Sanctuary!
The moment she used the Radiant Sanctuary magic, a golden halo hovered above the villagers.
Their injuries healed on their own, and the pain vanished instantly.
Radiant Sanctuary was an area healing magic.
She didn't use this spell earlier because it would make her an easy target.
She could not move from her place and needed to keep channeling her mana, so unless powerful awakeners protected her, she would not use it.
The locals were thrilled when they noticed the golden ring above their heads because the chances of them dying decreased drastically under her protection.
"KILL THEM!"
"Show them the consequences of attacking our village!"
"Annihilate them!"
The roars of the residents filled the air as they attacked the magical beasts continuously.
At the same time, Ren was standing in the middle of the war without doing anything.
It was his first time seeing magical creatures in person, so he felt a mix of curiosity, excitement and fascination.
'They look similar to the ones in the game.'
While he was observing the magical creatures, a goblin rushed toward him.
Elara, who noticed it, immediately screamed, "Ren!"
Ren moved to the side to avoid the goblin's strike.
He didn't stop there.
He dashed toward the goblin and did a counterattack.
Since it was a weak 1-star goblin, Ren could eliminate it easily. Once the goblin's lifeless body fell to the ground, he grabbed its sword and helped the villagers.
Slash…Slash…Slash…
Ren's attacks were fast and deadly.
Every time he swung his weapon, his enemy screamed in pain.
Many heads, legs, and arms flew into the air like debris scattered by an explosion.
The green grass turned red, and the smell of blood filled the air.
The people who happened to see him were stunned for a moment. He had just become an awakener, yet he looked like the god of war who entered the battlefield.
"Amazing!" Elara and the others praised him.
A tiny smile spread across her face as Aveline's gaze fell on him. But she only looked at him for a moment because she needed to focus on her magic.
"Good, Ren! Massacre them! Show no mercy!" Darian shouted happily.
Ren ignored the praise and kept attacking the magical beasts. Even though he was not from the Shadowleaf village, he still did his best to kill them.
They had been treating him very well, so it was his time to return their kindness.
At the same time, the 2-star leopard locked its eyes on him. Ren had killed many of his underlings, so he needed to be eliminated quickly.
Scratch… Scratch… Scratch…
The leopard attacked the townsfolk on its way to Ren.
When the leopard was close to him, it jumped high and raised its sharp claws, intending to rip him apart.
"Dangerous!" Darian rushed toward Ren to save him.