Athena in Tower Defense Game! [LitRPG]

0037 – Sol Kingdom Has Not Fallen

The Galore monster approaches the city, terrifying the people into speechlessness. The commander, seeing the frightened crowd, impatiently orders, 'What are you all standing around for? Open fire!'

'We're unbeatable!'

As the commander's words fall, a sense of relief washes over the crowd, and their fear instantly recedes.

Artillerymen and archers take their positions, while mages stand on the walls chanting incantations.

Alfred furrows his brow, his expression grave. They've all heard rumors about Galore, but this is the first time they've seen it.

In the last defense battle, reports from the front line mentioned Galore among the attacking monsters. They suffered a devastating defeat and gained no useful information.

So much so that later...

This time, they must hold their ground at all costs!

Explosions rend the night sky as enchanted cannonballs are fired continuously. Yet, despite the multitude of attacks, they can't seem to harm Galore in the slightest.

"... " Soundless shockwaves strike, but Athena stands firm, seemingly unaffected.

001 and 002 grimace in pain, while the young mage struggles to control his expression from behind.

Others, or rather, the skeletons, show no reaction at all.

Despite the barrage of attacks, not a scratch is left on Galore. Alfred halts the collective of mages who were about to end their incantations and launch an attack.

Above the mages hovers a massive thunderous orb crackling with lightning, countless currents running through, distorting the surrounding space with pressure.

Alfred surveys Galore for potential weaknesses, knowing the mages can't hold out for much longer.

Previously, the system prompted because the skill was used on Athena and them, but now, even skills activated on others can be investigated with purple font.

Seeing no effect from the prolonged assault, Athena becomes deeply worried.

The task assigned by the system must have anticipated the outcome for one side. If witnessing Galore's demise, that's fine, but if it's Sun City, then it's disastrous.

She's still in Sun City; if it falls, she won't escape unscathed. If Sun City isn't completely destroyed, her mission could be deemed a failure, meaning she can't return, leading to death...

Did the system send them on this inexplicable mission just to meet their demise?

Attempting to use the keyword "Galore" yields the same information as before.

Even the purple font is of no help this time; they have no idea where this guy's weak point lies.

Galore is closing in on them, the distance between Sun City and it shrinking to 24 meters. Alfred's eyes are already bloodshot, but he continues to stare intently, hoping to discover something.

"Mages, follow my command! Aim at the bottommost eye directly in front of me!"

After determining the direction, the thunderous orb is shot out with lightning speed.

It hits, accurately hits!

The eye of Galore is successfully shattered, greenish fluid splattering everywhere, and the remaining eyes begin to disappear one by one.

Success!

"Keep attacking! Don't cease fire!" The previous assault greatly encouraged everyone, and the mages rallied themselves, prepared to expend their magical energy for another round.

Only the commander quietly retreated, standing beside Athena.

Soon, everyone noticed something was amiss; that thing was still moving, it was still alive! The distance was closing in step by step.

"Visitors from the Third World, you're not here to join the battle, are you?"

"Correct."

They couldn't disclose the mission, but the other party guessed it anyway.

Athena wasn't too surprised that their system disguise had been figured out. After all, a living person among a bunch of skeletons was too obvious.

Upon hearing Athena's answer, both 001 and 002 were startled.

What's going on? Is this native actually one of them disguised?

Athena turned to the young mage and asked, "Aren't you coming over?"

Seeing the situation, the young mage dropped the act as well, the fear vanishing from his face as he walked over from behind.

"When did you find out?"

It's unclear whether this question was directed at Alfred or Athena.

No one answered.

At that moment, when they heard their response, Alfred knew the outcome.

In this continent, it was well known that Sun City collaborated with the Third World. People from the Third World would often be transported here to help locals fight monsters, but sometimes they did things that others couldn't comprehend.

Witnessing the demise was one of them. These people had come before...

As Galore approached, Alfred had to once again tear open a Radiant Scroll, successfully driving it back.

"Don't be afraid, Sun City is with us!" He tried to steady everyone's nerves, but only he knew that there were only two scrolls left.

Their power wasn't enough; over the past two years, the highest they had faced were elite-level boss units. They were utterly incapable of dealing with a city-destroying monster like Galore.

Today is the day of its demise, the day of the demise of the Sol Kingdom...

It's like going back to two years ago; back then, they were just as powerless. The king had entrusted him with the kingdom's last legacy. And a year ago, when they failed to protect everyone from a storm, he had used his trump card to turn everyone into what they are now.

But he's still failing the king's expectations. Now, he can't even protect this last city.

Perhaps the Sol Kingdom had long ceased to exist, and he's the only living Sol person left...

Athena and the others stood quietly aside, not disturbing Alfred who had closed his eyes.

As he tore open another Radiant Scroll, Alfred knew time was running out. He slowly opened his eyes, filled with a myriad of thoughts. He seemed resigned, yet in an instant, he lost his soul and aged ten years.

"Come over, everyone, let's stop fighting and have a final chat..."

In an instant, all illusions dissipated; those who were alive moments ago turned into mere skeletons, and the entire city instantly became a dead city.

This sudden change caught 001 and 002 off guard, but fortunately, their psychological resilience was extraordinary, and they quickly adapted.

Alfred beckoned everyone to sit on the ground as he controlled these skeletons.

He addressed the old soldier who loved to wander, "Old Liam, I'm afraid I've misspoken about your promise to visit your daughter."

He spoke to many people, and when it was the female mercenary's turn, he said, "Sorry, Alice Song, we may never be able to go to Flame City together. But actually, we're in a blank land here, the blank land you've always longed for."

But when it came to the swordsman, he said nothing, only controlling the swordsman's skeleton to come to his side.

But Athena knew, the swordsman is the commander's son...

From the beginning, no one truly resurrected; everything was just flesh drawn on these people by this man's memory.

"Thank you for waiting." Alfred said gently.

"Consider this as helping each other once, witnessing the rise of the Sol Kingdom and witnessing its demise, it's also a fulfillment."

He took out a seed, watering it with his own blood. The seed instantly grew into a fruit.

"Eat it."

Athena and the others complied.

Galore advanced once again, but this time, there was something that could stop it. It clung to the city walls, but was stopped in its tracks by a transparent white light.

The white light gradually dimmed, perhaps it wouldn't last long.

"Friends from the Third World, if one day you leave the battlefield, could you tell the world that the Sol Kingdom has not fallen..."

"Sure."

As time passed, the white light disappeared, and suffocating darkness enveloped everything, Galore's eyes had recovered once again.

Athena saw Alfred smiling.

"Don't be afraid, the day is with us!"

Bits of white light floated up from the ruins of the city, and the skeletons sitting on the ground also emitted white light. All the light converged on Alfred.

His body cracked open, but his radiance shone brightly.

He said, "The Sol Kingdom has not fallen!"

In the boundless darkness, an unprecedented light erupted.

Trading the city to destroy the city-destroyer monster, is not a bad deal.