William glanced at his grandfather to see his reaction. He wanted to know if they were in grave danger. Contrary to his expectations, the old man seemed unfazed by the sheer numbers in front of him.
Feeling his grandson's gaze, James turned his head as he gave William some words of assurance.
"They are just small fries," James said like it was no big deal. "The real problems are the Centennial and Millennial Beasts. Those bastards are very sly and won't face us head-on. They will first use their cannon fodders to tire us out before making their move."
A lightning bolt flashed in the sky followed by the shriek of a hawk. John and his sidekick Blitz were having a long-range battle with the Thousand-Men Beast.
James walked up to Marcus to discuss their plan of action. The wolves had regrouped like an army waiting for their general's order. Howls echoed in the valley as thousands of Dire Wolves made their presence known.
"Boss, what's the plan?" Marcus asked. He noticed William and Ella in the distance, but he didn't say anything. Clearly, James brought his grandson with him for a reason.
James stood in front of everyone as he surveyed the surroundings. Excluding William, there were nine fighters present. All of them were looking at the Wolf Tide with complicated expressions.
"It seems that we are fighting the losers of the pack," James replied after observing the wolf tide. "These wolves are the old generation."
"Is it that time of the year again?" Marcus asked.
"If I remember correctly, it had been three years since the last Beast Tide," Jekyll commented. "It seems that the competition this year is quite intense."
All of them were thinking the same thing. Since a beast tide had appeared here, it meant that other villages and towns around the Kingdom were also suffering the same fate.
"Don't worry. Even if the sky falls, Lont will be safe from harm," James announced.
Everyone present nodded their heads in agreement. This was something that they never doubted.
William listened to the conversation with a serious expression. He had been observing the adults, but none of them seemed too troubled by the current situation. What William didn't know was that the only thing that had troubled the adults earlier was the safety of the kids.
Since the kids were already back in Lont, the adults no longer needed to worry about holding back. In fact, they were very eager to face the wolf tide like it was some form of special event.
"Sir, is it okay for the Young Master to be here?" Helen asked.
James grinned as he gave William a side-long glance. "Don't worry about him. He's just here to gain some Experience. However, let's not overestimate him too much. Stay by his side and make sure that he doesn't become wolf poop."
"As you command." Helen bowed.
James faced everyone and told them his battle plan.
"Let's take out the two Centennial Beasts first, but make sure not to kill them," James announced. "Cut off their limbs, so that they can't run around."
"Does the old rule apply?" Ava raised her hand. She had a bloodthirsty look on her face as she hovered above the ground. Wind blades danced around her as if they were part of her wardrobe.
"Of course." James nodded his head. "Whoever kills the most wolves will get the Beast Cores of the two Centennial Beasts."
"Alright!"
"Now we're talking!"
"Haha, sorry boys and gals, those cores are in the bag."
"Shut up, Marcus. Those cores are mine."
Everyone started to get rowdy as they prepared for battle. James looked at his grandson and nodded his head. William also nodded his head in acknowledgement. The two of them had discussed a few things along the way.
William was not allowed to join them in their advance against the Wolf Tide. James had explicitly told him to only act after receiving his order. The boy knew that this was not the time to play Hero. his grandpa had already prepared the stage for him. All he needed to do was play his part and reap the benefits.
James summoned a giant War Axe and held it with both hands. A fearless smile hung on his face as he started to run towards the countless wolves in front of him.
"Charge!" James ordered as he raised his axe to battle.
The others ran behind him with the exception of Jekyll. The dentist shook his head and walked leisurely towards the battlefield.
"Such hot-blooded people," Jekyll commented. Even though he seemed to be admonishing his comrades, there was an excited glint in his eyes.
"Young Master, don't be surprised about what you're going to see," Helen said with a sweet smile on her face. "It's been years since I've seen them this lively."
William didn't say anything in reply. He already had an idea of what his Aunt Helen was hinting at. After seeing the battle in the forest, he realized that the people of Lont weren't as simple as they seemed.
Right at that moment, a mighty roar echoed in the valley as James jumped high up in the air. The muscles in his body bulged as he dove fearlessly into the center of the beast tide.
Like a meteor falling from the sky. James slammed his Battle Axe on the ground. What followed next was an explosion that blasted the bodies of the wolves into meat paste.
A mighty squeal reverberated across the valley as Thunder, the Wild Boar, charged straight through the sea of wolves like a bulldozer. Everything that blocked his path was torn to shreds.
Ella watched this scene and bleated. Her hooves pawed the ground as if she was raring to charge into the wolf tide as well.
"Calm down, Mama," William said as he patted her neck. "Our time will come."
"Meeeeh!"
Truth be told, William knew that Ella was still not at the level where she could charge through the battlefield and slay everyone on her path. Even so, he believed that there would come a day where she would be able to walk unhindered across the land.
William would strive to make that happen. Ella understood what William was thinking. Although she was disappointed, she stopped pawing the ground. She stood in place to watch the battle with determination.
Suddenly, two unique wolves appeared on the battlefield. They were four meters tall and their blue fur made them stand out from the crowd. There were two horns protruding out of their heads and they were glowing with green light.
"The two underlings have arrived," Helen commented. "Young Master, take a good look. Those two are Centennial Beasts. As the name suggests, they are as strong as a hundred men. If you ever encounter them during your travels, please, run as far as you can."
"Don't worry, Aunt Helen," William replied. "I will only fight them when I'm confident that I will win."
The Two Dire Wolves roared and a powerful shockwave sweeped the battlefield. James and the others were pushed back, but they were undeterred. In their eyes, the two wolves were not a big deal.
"Remember, don't kill them." James reminded everyone. "Just cut off their limbs."
"I'm on it!" Shawn, the Baker, laughed as the rolling pin in his hand extended up to ten meters. The closest Centennial Beast was hiding behind the cannon fodders, so he decided to use the rolling pin as a pole vault to reach it.
William watched with sparkling eyes as Shawn flew across a hundred meters in the air. Shawn was about to unleash his killer move when he saw a purple flash at the corner of his eye.
"F*ck!" Shawn immediately retracted his rolling pin and used it as a shield to block the lightning bolt that was launched in his direction.
A resounding clap was heard as Shawn was blasted across the valley. Everything happened so fast and everyone was caught by surprise. Shawn's body catapulted through the air and crashed in the forest behind William.
As if announcing its arrival, a ten-meter-tall purple wolf howled in anger. Four horns protruded on its head and tendrils of lightning danced around their tips.
A tune played in the background as the system announced the arrival of the Last Boss. William could only swallow his saliva as he gazed at the Boss Monster in front of him. He knew that at his current level, defeating this boss was merely a pipe dream.