"What the fuck?!"


    The instant Karteira and May walked out of the portal, May noticed the massive rift opening at the south of Turric.


    A crack in space, leaking out beasts of the past that should have died long ago. Giant corrupted, alongside thousands of smaller creatures, invaded the present.


    Compared to the corrupted Miasma created during the last thousands of years, those were similar to the constant invasion of the southern border.


    But, it didn''t change the fact that hundreds of corrupted giants walked out of the rift, terrorizing the civilians who laid eyes on them.


    Without knowing what had happened to Miasma and how he managed to bring such forces to the present, it would be impossible to understand exactly what these creatures were.


    The only thing they knew was that these giants looked like reptiles. Some of them closely resembled other creatures, like spiders, rodents, and even flying ones that were unfamiliar to the people living in Triazils.


    From the looks of it, they were past a hundred meters tall, contesting even the tallest being ever seen, which was Velridar.


    Only his size was undisputed. The fallen dragon remains the largest and longest entity to ever set foot on this earth.


    While this was happening in Turric, the same circumstances were happening near the other three cities that remained unaffected by the corruption during Miasma''s attempt at destroying the continent.


    *


    With Turric, Noctelagia, Lahro, Albriar, and Hocride, the other parts of the continent remained untouched.


    Turric became the responsibility of Karteira and May, who chose to fight alongside Eric. Elliott, who had already left the city to fight the giants with Layla, had already thought about his plans to deal with the invasion.


    Noctelagia, which was Olivia''s city, was in her hands. Alongside Senia, who decided to help her, they walked out of Horizon.


    Albriar, at the center of the continent, was in the hands of Florian. Now that he has recovered, thanks to Karteira''s light magic, he went to defend his city.


    Lahro was Deveralna''s responsibility. She went alone, with the anger she had sealed inside her, to deal with the ones trying to trample her city. With the power of the Remnant of Strength in her, none of the girls felt the need to worry about her.


    And, lastly.


    Hocride, the coastal city in the Parsmata Desert, was Kamala''s domain. Normally, no one would volunteer to help such a secluded city, far away from any other city.


    Even though she was readying herself to deal with a new threat, two fairies walked out of a portal near her house. Dramia and Drania, who had made a pact of alliance with her, came to help.


    Not out of obligation, but simply as a gesture of friendship. Orion''s friends, who proved to be loyal to him, were also trustworthy to them.


    Kamala had proven to them that a world where humans and fairies lived together in peace wasn''t simply a dream but a potential future for both factions.


    All parts of the continent were defended by the members of the Agathion faction. Their name spread like wildfire during the war, thanks to May''s powerful speech at the beginning of the conflict.


    Still, the real introduction of corruption happened with the appearance of corrupt humans who wrecked havoc in cities where the Apostles were missing.


    More than ever before, the threat of corruption was visible to everyone. A plague that has been hidden from everyone since the beginning of civilization.


    *


    Shocked by the sight in front of her and by the fact that Florian''s words were actually true, Karteira frowned.


    "May! And... Karteira, right?"


    A muscular and tall man walked out of the house behind them before calling the two women out.


    Turning around, they were met by Eric Layman, Lord of Turric and protector of the continent since taking the title of Apostle.


    "Eric. How are you doing?"


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    May walked to the man with a serious expression. Karteira recalled Florian''s words about his condition and approached without showing concern. He was a trusty man who participated in the defense near Eogis.


    Karteira respected people who showed their bravery and despised cowards. Eric was a human she could respect in that sense.


    "I''m not in perfect condition, but time is of the essence. Everyone is starting to panic after seeing those monstrosities appear out of nowhere."


    May and Karteira listened to the panicked voices of the citizens, with some packing their stuff and running away from the city.


    ''What does running away do when the entire continent is like that?''


    Karteira thought.


    What she had forgotten was that the information about the invading giants had taken place on a large scale, unbeknownst to the common people.


    "I see. How long has it been since their appearance?"


    Asking that question the instant her eyes fell on the beasts, still dozens of kilometers away from Turric, Karteira turned to him.


    "Around thirty minutes. We''re at a loss for words about what to do. Simple infantry is no use against such an... army of giants."


    The hesitation in his voice told them everything they needed to know.


    ''His men are terrified to go into battle.''


    May acknowledge the problem.


    ''It''s no wonder. This is like sending them to their deaths. There''s no coming back after entering such a battle.''


    This wasn''t like the conflict a few hours ago. Even though they were fighting larger beasts, they were still easily dispatched by trained soldiers.


    But now, they would be against titans, with no weapon actually being useful against them. It''s not like they could use magic, either.


    And, to make matters even worse, they were all exhausted, dealing with the pain of the losses that this war caused.


    "But knowing that you two are here eases my worries ever so slightly. I''d rather not depend on you too much, so help however you want."


    The tragic expression on his face said that even if he had to, he would fight alone against this horde of monsters.


    May and Karteira''s sensitive hearing picked up the faint sobbing of a woman inside the house, even through the thick, closed door.


    "Turn around and ease Caroline''s concerns. Don''t make her suffer; it''s not yet a good day to die."


    Pushing him slightly, May ordered Eric to go back inside, which he did without objecting.


    The door closed, and Karteira was left with May, who watched the dreadful march of monsters.


    "!"


    Suddenly, following an earthquake and a loud rumble, half of the giant monsters died, exploding after a massive burst of energy.


    From the looks of it and from the cloud of steam released afterward, water magic was the catalyst used for such a terrifying nightmare.


    "That was... Layla, right?"


    "Probably. If I had to guess, it might be a joint attack. I don''t think she would have been able to do that herself."


    The shockwave of the blast dragged droplets of water with it, which fell on the city a few seconds later.


    "...!"


    Karteira touched her cheek after a drop of water fell on it. The water was so hot that her skin burned.


    It was only a bit uncomfortable, with no real threatening property, but it was still enough to melt the snow inside and surrounding the city.


    Eric suddenly ran out of the house.


    "What was that?!"


    "Elliott and Layla."


    May glanced over her shoulder and answered him.


    "Seriously?! Those two?"


    Looking toward the source of the explosion, Eric noticed that half of the invading giants were wiped out with this single attack.


    "This is... ridiculous."


    Karteira took the chance to grab Eric''s injured arm. Wrapped in a bloodied and filthy bandage, it wasn''t too difficult to spot the wound Florian was talking about.


    "Hey! What are you-"


    "Relax."


    Light began to shine on Karteira''s hand, bringing memories of something similar to Eric''s mind.


    Orion''s healing light came to mind. Since she was his ally, Eric relaxed as asked, letting Karteira do her magic.


    After a minute, the painful feeling in his arm vanished. With a frustrated expression, he looked at his arm.


    "Thank you. Without this, I don''t think I would''ve had a chance on the battlefield."


    Moving it back and forth and up and down, Eric smiled at the lack of pain. His arm was back to its former state, free of continuous pain and the inability to move it.


    After healing him, Karteira turned to May.


    "I''m leaving."


    Shocked by the abrupt words, both May and Eric looked at her.


    "Wha- Wait, why?!"


    "Did you not come here to help us defend Turric?!"


    A hint of anger appeared on May''s face. The woman trusted Karteira immensely after all she''d done, but suddenly, she changed her mind?


    The disappointment was slowly building inside her.


    "Let me get it straight."


    Karteira looked at her, then at Eric.


    "Me, May, Eric, Elliott, and Layla."


    Counting five on her fingers, she continued.


    "That''s the number of people defending Turric right now."


    "That''s right."


    "Someone came to us and told us to defend Turric, but he never asked anyone to help him."


    "..."


    May''s face suddenly crumbled in shame.


    "If I''m reading between the lines, Olivia and Senia are in Noctelagia, and the twins are in Hocride. Deveralna is definitely sticking to her city, and both of us are here in Turric."


    Eric nodded.


    "Nobody''s helping Florian..."


    With an apologetic face, May looked down.


    "I don''t blame you for thinking badly of me; it''s not like I explained before saying that I was leaving."


    "There''s simply no reason for me to stay when Elliott and Layla just... remove half of the threats in one attack."


    "I suggest you stay away, just in case. From the looks of it, smaller enemies are on their way to invade the city. It might be best to focus on that."


    As a past commander, Karteira knew exactly what to do in these situations.


    "We''ll follow your advice. You should hurry to Florian, since I have no idea how bad it is for him at the moment. It would break my heart to lose another precious friend now."


    Karteira smiled. With a nod, she walked back to the portal, but stopped right before going through.


    "Orion''s... not dead yet."


    With those words, Karteira vanished inside the portal, which closed behind her. Only people affiliated with Horizon and those given authorization could enter after Sirius stumbled through Lahro''s portal.


    Eric opened his eyes wide, before a faint, proud smile developed on his face.


    "That''s one tenacious man right there."


    Silently, May nodded with a smile on her face.


    ''He is.''


    With Karteira leaving for Albriar, Turric''s defense against the invasion began.