*Rain Falling Down~* *Rain Falling Down~* Just before Angus could reply, everyone heard a familiar childish voice. At this moment, everyone noticed three small girls wearing ritual clothes, dancing around, and continuously chanting the same thing.
"Ahh... Meat!!" exclaimed the other Anna before charging toward the real Anna.
"That twin!!" exclaimed the two female Dwarves.
The real Anna pouted at the sudden intrusion, but when she saw it was the other Anna, she didn't mind and continued eating. The two Annas ate as fast as they could as if they were in competition.
Within a few minutes, the mountainous food is empty into nothing. Right after finishing their voluptuous meal, the two Anna merge together.
"Yay!! Anna is back!!" exclaimed Anna before blinking a few times.
As if noticing the little girl's sudden distress, Jayna immediately embraces Anna and strokes her head.
"Mommy..." called Anna meekly.
"Hush... It's okay. It's okay." said Jayna lovingly.
"Hic.. Hic... Mommy!!!" cried Anna loudly.
During this moment, Angus and Jayna also communicate with each other silently. Angus is quite surprised to find that Anna actually gets a mental shock just after merging together. According to Jayna's explanation, the little girl is in shock after doing all the terrible things she did last night.
'It seems if she does it moderately, she will not be affected too much by it as she is quite forgetful. But, when she feels all the horrible experiences at once, she will get a shock. Guess she is still fragile regarding emotion and feeling.' thought Angus inwardly.
Angus assumes Anna will not feel all the horrible she did last night if she did it one at a time. But, all at once, it is still too much for her fragile mental fortitude. Although Anna's mental state has developed significantly these years, she is still weak in some areas.
Her monster-minded people trait also makes her mind and mental state more vulnerable. She may snap and go berserk anytime if not taken care of carefully. nOVE.LB.1n
'*Sigh* Fortunately, Jayna could feel her emotion. Otherwise, she may have buried it under her cheerfulness as usual, which would only have burdened her later. Nothing good will come of hiding burden and emotion,' thought Angus inwardly.
"Boy, what the hell happened? Why did she suddenly cry out loud?" asked Nabe.
"Nah.. It's nothing important. Now, let me explain what we need to prepare." said Angus.
The two sharp minds begin their discussion, ignoring the noise around them. One is Anna's loud cry, and the other is the two furious dwarves trying to catch the twin Gemini, who is repeating the same thing repeatedly.
In contrast with Angus' group situation, the Guardian is still perilous in facing the Gram Wave onslaught. They also couldn't understand why the Gram kept coming non-stop like an endless tide.
Even after a whole night, they couldn't see a sign of the Gram Wave's end. Normally, the Gram Wave lasts up to an entire night at most. The longest Gram Wave ever recorded lasted 12 hours before the Gram stopped pouring out from the Basin.
Yet, it has been more than 12 hours and there is no sign for the Gram Wave to stop. This situation pressed the Guardian further.
Even the Respected Ones that stay in the Glass Fortress, such as Respected Erhan, Respected Havras, and many other retired Guardians, are forced to join the fight.
However, it is still insufficient to hold the endless number of Gram. If it were not for some new magic weapon secretly supplied by Count Flamewaver, the Glass Fortress may have already been razed to the ground.
"Bring more mana stone!!" shouted the injured Respected Havras.
"Medic here!!" shouted another bloody injured Guardian holding another bloody injured body.
"Arrghhh!!" Various similar cries could be heard all over the Fortress.
Despite the desperate and devastating situation, the Guardians still hold their ground and defend the damaged Glass Fortress. Everyone is pressed to their limit, but none will give up on fulfilling their duty one last time.
As time passed, Anna's cries finally ended as she fell asleep in her mother's arms. On the other hand, the two female dwarves are breathing roughly on the ground from trying to catch the two mischievous Gemini.
As for Angus and Nabe, they are still discussing the forging process and continuously improving it. It completely contrasts with the Glass Fortress and Guardian as the Gram is on the other side of the Basin and completely ignores them.
Angus used this opportunity to consult with Nabe about his plan. With their current resources, they didn't lack any material. However, compared to Nabe, Angus still lacks some experience in forging weapons.
Although Nabe is also not too expert at forging weapons, she still knows more than Angus due to her long life experience. Combined with her knowledge as a researcher, she could suggest various or better methods for the forging process.
"I see... This may be a better way to trap the fire elemental." said Angus.
"Yes. Though I am quite surprised you somehow got the elf liquify forging technique. This unique technique gives me a lot of ideas and feasible methods for my abandoned project. You have my huge gratitude for sharing this knowledge with me." said Nabe.
"Don't worry about it. Besides, I acquired this knowledge without those elves' permission. If they had given it to me and made me promise or sign a disclosure contract, I may not have been able to share it with you. But, well... It's not my loss in the end." said Angus with a smirk.
"Hahaha... Certainly, you are a bad boy." laughed Nabe.
"Anyway..." said Angus before stopping.
"Master, something is coming from the Basin." a telepathy voice heard inside Angus' mind.
*BRRRRR* Suddenly, the whole frozen lake shook heavily. At the same time, everyone with a keen perception immediately looks at the Everwhite Basin.
They could feel something dreadful and dangerous come out of it. *GROOOARR* A loud beastly cry could be heard through the land. It is a beastly roar that is accompanied by a terrifying aura.
"Silvia, what's happening?" asked Angus.
*Cling* Silvia appeared beside Angus with a surprised look.
"Master, Monster Overlord suddenly appeared from that bottomless Basin. I suggest we retreat first." said Angus.
"Monster Overlord?! Is it newly spawned?" asked Angus.
"No, Master. It is a full-fledged monster with the Gram trait, along with a horde of high-grade monsters." replied Silvia.
"I guess they are also full-fledged ones, not just newborns, right?" asked Angus.
"Yes, Master." replied Silvia expressionlessly.
Hearing this, everyone knows the situation has already turned worse. Yet, no one complained about it since everyone had confidence in their ability to escape. Angus didn't say anything, just glanced at Jayna.
The young couple converse through their bond for a few seconds before nodding to each other.
"So, what are you gonna do, boy?" asked Kusibella with a grin.
"Nabe, you said the Winter Solstice will happen in the next few days." asked Angus.
"In four days to be exact." said Nabe calmly.
"Tch... Nabe reinforced the whole area. Make sure you secure it. We cannot miss the winter solstice and this spot no matter what." said Angus.
"Sure. Did you also need help to take down the monster overlord? I don't mind helping you." said Nabe.
"Since we are facing a monster overlord, I doubt it will ignore us like the other Gram. But you, Kusibella, and Bornja will reinforce and protect this place. Ensure to reinforce it so it does not obstruct the forge design. The others will help me to fend off those monsters." said Angus.
"Are you sure about that?" asked Nabe again.
' If you are the one who fights, we may win, but those materials and magic items may get destroyed. My skills and spells are not good enough for protection. I need you to stay behind to protect our stuff, ' said Angus.
*GROOOOARRR* Before Nabe could reply, another monster roar was heard throughout the area. At this moment, Angus and the others could see a humanoid jagged frost-white monster standing on top of a giant frost-white scaled flying lizard.
The previous loud cry came from the winged lizard, yet Angus and the others focused more on the humanoid monster. Through their sharp perception, they knew the monster overlord was the humanoid monster, not the unknown-winged lizard.
The humanoid monster overlord momentarily hovered above the bottomless basin before directing its ride towards Angus' group.
"Lilith, Brigida, protect Jayna and support me from behind." ordered Angus before jumping into the air.
*BOM* *BOM* *BOM* A loud airwave sound is heard as Angus steps into the air and travels away at a fast speed [Air Walk]. It is Angus' personalized skill that he specially created to fight in the air.
Using [Air Walk], he could eliminate the speed problem in aerial fights, though it is very crude and inflexible.
In a few seconds, Angus faces the humanoid Gram, who is holding a white lance. Brandishing his Lava Twin Sword, he clashed with the monster overlord and created a massive shockwave to the surroundings. *CLANG* *BOOOOOM*
The monster overlord and Angus clashed briefly in the air before retreating a few meters away.
'This will be a hard fight.' thought Angus inwardly.