[At that time, in the northern region of the Marquisate of Ludvecia. The ‘Great Wall’.]
“Oh my~”
Marchioness Ludvecia, a stunning woman dressed entirely in black from head to toe, stood atop a 30-meter-high fortress wall, gazing northward with a troubled smile.
“It’s been nearly ten years since the monsters started running rampant like this… after he died and Regif disappeared.”
Under her slit-like eyes, which briefly glimmered red, her gaze quickly reverted to an obsidian-like hue.
“This is truly problematic.”
As the Marchioness rested her cheek on one hand, smiling wryly, dark shadows began to ripple across the plains, moving toward the towering Great Wall.
“I don’t know what kind of monsters they are, but there doesn’t seem to be any particular reason for this kind of mass outbreak.”
There were no signs.
There hadn’t been any sudden massive magic stones falling from the sky, awakening a nearby monster to an A-rank threat after consuming it.
Nor was there an ancient demon or S-rank monster sealed underground that had been awakened, causing nearby demons to flock and rampage in subservience.
The monsters simply appeared, like a gust of wind, without warning.
This was the northern area of the former Habsderk territory, once known as the “Demonic Land”.
The very place where the S-class monster that made Marchioness Ludvecia wear mourning clothes had emerged.
The same location where her husband had perished and her son Regif had gone missing.
Now, a massive Monster Wave was occurring there, compelling the Marchioness to personally climb the Great Wall to inspect the situation.
“Ten years ago, they gave me so much grief for building this, but now… here we are. Hehe…”
The Great Wall itself was a grand defensive structure constructed under her direction after she became Marchioness of Ludvecia.
The S-rank monster had vanished without warning, and most of the remaining monsters in the area had scattered. Over time, weaker monsters gradually filled the void, eking out a marginal existence.
The region had become so tame that it was even considered as a hunting ground for Esdinas Academy students during their practical training.
But just in case a major monster or wave ever appeared, the Great Wall had been erected—and now, its immense budget was finally justified.
Beep-beep.
The magic pad on the Marchioness’s wrist lit up.
With a practiced gesture, she swiped her hand over the pad, and a rectangular magic display appeared in front of her.
“Hello there. How’s my daughter doing?”
[Mom!!]
On the other side of the display, a young girl with platinum blonde hair tied with a butterfly ribbon, clad in the Esdinas Academy uniform, yelled.
[You’re not seriously—]
“I’m the Marchioness, remember?”
[It’s dangerous! Get inside now!]
“My dear daughter, Seia. Are you worried about mom? I’m so touched~”
[Mom!!]
“Don’t worry, don’t worry. I’m perfectly fine.”
Smiling, the Marchioness turned her gaze back toward the horizon, which was now completely blackened by the wave of monsters.
“I’ve been waiting for this day for a long time.”
* * *
A large outbreak of monsters.
There are various scenarios, but in the context of the Bread Academy game, this is a type of “subjugation quest”.
“Defeat 20 Tentacle Frogs and the named Tentacle Frog Boss!”
“Damn it!”
It reminded me of the time I was training in battle simulations under Changyeom’s orders in the Demon World.
“Why are you complaining? These were all quests cleared by our ‘Players’ back in the game!”
“Who sets a quest to kill 20 B-rank monsters and one A-rank named boss, but then releases 300 C-rank minions as fodder!?”
I was subjected to “realism adjustment”.
Everything Changyeom created was illusory and fake, but she tailored the battle environment from the game to the reality of this Bread Academy world, materializing the monsters as vivid illusions.
“Except… this is reality!”
For example, in the quest to subjugate the A-rank named boss [Tentacle Frog].
“In the game, you only fought 20 B-rank minions, but the battle background hinted at hundreds or even thousands of tadpoles swarming around!”
“That doesn’t mean you have to manifest all of them!!”
I honed my combat skills by clearing monster mass-spawn quests, which had been heavily adjusted for realism.
“This calls for wide-area magic!”
There was no solid ground to step on.
Each time I placed my foot down, a sickening squelch echoed, accompanied by the sensation of crushing something squishy and wet beneath my sole.
Not just flesh—there were also tiny hard stones—magic stones—embedded inside, making the tactile experience indescribably grotesque.
The problem wasn’t just that I felt this sensation with every step.
If that were all, I could simply stand still or burn away the area around me to carve out some space.
Ribbit-ribbit-ribbit!
“Wave incoming!”
“Tell them to stay away!!”
As soon as the adult Tentacle Frogs let out their chorus, countless creatures began rushing toward me.
Half-grown tadpoles with sprouting hind legs dashed like frenzied lizards.
Others, with all four legs grown but still dragging their tails, splattered bodily fluids everywhere as they sprinted.
There were hundreds of them.
Each individual monster was as large as a small dog, making it hard not to feel overwhelmed as a mere human.
“If you don’t eliminate them quickly, they’ll ‘respawn’~”
“Stop saying horrifying things!!”
Changyeom playfully teased me from the side, but her remarks felt more like a briefing from a heroine or supporting character during an in-game battle scenario.
“In the game, infinite respawn meant more XP and duplicated magic stones. You were thrilled back then!”
“That was a game. This is reality!”
“Pfhehehe.”
Infinite Respawn.
In the game, the system was designed so that minor enemies would respawn after a few turns. But here, it was real—tentacle frogs continuously spawned new lifeforms through the egg sacs attached to their backs, fueled by mana. It was enough to drive me insane.
“All magical creatures and monsters are ether-based lifeforms~,”
Changyeom said with a leisurely smile beside me.
“They start as pure ether, but as they absorb nutrients and substances from the world, they develop biological features.”
She explained, her dark-attribute aura letting her partially remain in a subspace. She clearly didn’t want the tentacle frogs’ blood or fluids splashing on her.
“In other words, if you don’t take down the host or the named monster quickly…”
“They’ll keep multiplying like some nightmarish pyramid scheme as long as mana is supplied!”
“Well, it’s more like fractal expansion than a pyramid scheme. Pfhehe.”
Pop! Pop-pop!
The tentacle frogs began scattering eggs from their backs.
Within the translucent egg sacs, tiny, fingernail-sized magic stones shimmered. These stones absorbed mana from the surroundings, gradually forming tissues and turning into living creatures.
“Come on, hurry up! Just follow my instructions; it’s simple!”
Changyeom giggled and gestured for me to imitate her.
“There’s nothing to it. Just close your eyes and strike this pose!”
She tilted her head back, straightened her posture, and raised her arms diagonally toward the sky.
“[Praise the Sun]!!”
She shouted, performing the iconic “Sun Salutation” gesture with unwavering enthusiasm.
“What are you waiting for? Go on, copy me.”
“…”
I stood still, only to feel tentacle frogs crawling up my boots from the ground.
If not for that unpleasant sensation, I might have spent much longer glaring at her.
“Fine… Do I really have to do this?”
“Of course! Unless you’d rather shout something like [Squirrel Thunder]? But you’re neither a squirrel nor lightning-attribute, are you?”
“Hah.”
Squirrel Thunder?
What a ridiculous concept. Yet it might have been better than this—at least I wouldn’t have to perform such an embarrassing “area-clearing” move.
“No choice, huh?”
I reluctantly raised both arms skyward.
“…Praise the Sun!”
I shouted, but nothing happened.
“Master, what was that?!”
“You need to chant the spell correctly.”
“Is it ‘Praise the Sun’?”
“No, not that one.”
“Ah.”
I suddenly realized what she meant.
“Wait, you don’t mean—”
“Oops! The tentacle frogs are ramping up production. At this rate, their backs will turn into spawning pools!”
“…Hah.”
Ahead of me, the tentacle frogs’ backs were indeed becoming literal spawning grounds, spewing out countless eggs.
“If this were the game, I’d be farming those monsters instead of exterminating them.”
In the artificial space created by Changyeom’s mana, the sky was clear, and the sun shone brilliantly.
“I wonder if people on the surface realize that sunlight carries mana along with it.”
“Less talking, more chanting!”
“…Hah.”
I extended my hands toward the sun high in the sky.
“[Azure Flame].”
Fwoosh.
A torrent of blue flames erupted, emanating from me and engulfing the battlefield.
A massive, all-encompassing wide-area annihilation spell.
That was the most effective way to deal with a Monster Wave—a mass outbreak of monsters.
If left unchecked, the monsters would keep multiplying exponentially under the sunlight’s mana.
* * *
“In other words, this is an opportunity to collect a massive number of magic stones.”
“…Hah.”
“And as for the monsters that appeared…”
Yurha brought up a magical display, pointing to the site of the monster wave chaos.
“They’re a new, unidentified species of monster.”
“…”
The mixture of black and mint colors reminded me of a certain minty feline I once knew.
