A Familiar Feeling
Asherah, get ready.
Yep, I'm all set!
After the commotion outside died down, Asherah and I steeled ourselves and stood before the door.
We hit it together on three.
One...
Two...
Just as I was about to bring the Star Piercer down...
...? Did that sound come from the door...?
I heard what sounded like the lock clicking open.
I carefully pushed the door open, and it opened without resistance.
It's open...? Who unlocked it...?
I stepped out into the corridor, but there was no sign of anyone.
It wasn't just the corridor. The entire building had gone silent.
How did it open...?
We slipped out of the garrison and made our way along the road running inside Raven Wall but didn't encounter a single person.
I was prepared to force our way through if we had to. Instead, the massive iron gates stood wide open, with no guards in sight.
Still, something's off. They'd normally leave at least a few guards behind, wouldn't they...?
Combined with the door unlocking on its own earlier, it almost felt as if someone was leading us exactly where they wanted us.
Asherah and I ran on, following the tracks left across the dry red earth.
Before long, a familiar sound drifted toward us from somewhere ahead.
The cries of the Voidborns.
The clash of weapons. The rumble of the ground. People shouting.
As we crested the hill, the battlefield spread out before us. The Western Liberators and the Voidborns were locked in fierce combat.
Split into three units, the Liberators held a solid battle line against the surging Voidborns.
It looked like Ceres, Lydia, and Besta were each commanding one unit.
The Voidborns surged forward in waves, the largest force I'd seen yet. But the Liberators held their line, advancing inch by inch.
At the center of the horde stood a colossal Voidborn.
Its massive frame was visible even from afar.
Moving with ponderous slowness as it commanded dozens of Voidborns, it was clearly no ordinary Voidborn.
That Voidborn... looks stronger than any we've faced so far.
That thing must be the final boss here.
Final boss...?
Inch by inch, the Western Liberators fought their way toward the colossal Voidborn until they finally stood before it.
Got it! Leave it to me, Captain!
Just as we were about to rush in...
Something changed at the edge of the battlefield.
Over there...!
The defensive line of the unit holding the left flank was collapsing.
It was the unit under Deputy Commander Lydia's command.
Whether the Voidborns had concentrated their assault on the left flank or something else had gone wrong, I couldn't tell. But the outcome was clear.
Seizing the opening, the Voidborns poured into the Liberators' formation.
That unit's been completely overrun!
Where's the commander...? She was right there a second ago...!
At some point, Lydia had vanished from the battlefield.
With their commander gone, Lydia's unit collapsed almost immediately. Their formation shattered, and the Voidborns quickly surrounded the Liberators.
Their formation broke!
...Where's Ceres?
I narrowed my eyes and scanned the battlefield.
Amid the surrounded Western Liberators, a girl was cutting her way forward, her blade flashing.
It was Ceres. She had already broken through the wall of Voidborns and was charging straight toward the colossal one.
All units, regroup and form a defensive line!
I'll hold Olberos off!
Captain!
Let's move!