I heard the faint cry of a monster. It wasn’t outside, but inside the city.

“What was that just now?” Cha Hee-Ra asked.

Even as I shook my head at her question, the monster’s cries continued. It was a long, thin high-pitched cry that was too alien to be imitated by a human.

“Kyahhhhh!”

‘Did the monsters from the underground auction house escape?’

It wasn’t completely unlikely, but the cry was a bit too sad for that. Whatever the reason, finding out the source of the cry was the right thing to do. However, just as I was about to speak to her…

“Could you be quiet for a moment, darling?” she asked.

“Huh?”

“Stay quiet for a moment,” she repeated.

Cha Hee-Ra looked as if she was trying to sense something and even though I couldn’t understand her actions, I quickly realized why she told me to be quiet. When I looked down, the ground started shaking as if there was an earthquake while the small rocks started to jump about. It wasn’t just me who felt it.

‘What’s… going on?’

“Get ready,” Cha Hee-Ra said.

“For what?” I asked.

“I think they’re coming…”

“What?” I asked once again.

“I’m not joking. I guess I was wrong. It’s on its way right now, so we need to prepare as soon as possible. They’re still kind of far, but… they’ll reach this place sooner or later,” she explained.

“This is so sudden…”

I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of this situation. I thought they wouldn’t come here until much later since Kim Hyun-Sung didn’t seem like he was waiting for an enemy that would arrive soon even though he looked busy.

‘Maybe it’s happening a lot sooner than in his past life. Did Kim Hyun-Sung already know that the monsters were going to arrive today? Right now?’

As if he had read my mind, Kim Hyun-Sung ran toward us while panicking.

‘He had no idea.’

He wasn’t a very good liar, so when I saw his expression of disbelief, I realized that the monster wave was happening a lot sooner than it had in his past life. He probably thought something was wrong.

“Mr. Ki-Young,” he called out.

“Yes, Mr. Hyun-Sung.”

“We need to quickly prepare… I think the monster wave has started,” he said.

“I see. Got it,” I told him.

Kim Hyun and I were questioning what went wrong. I thought maybe we changed the future somehow, but there hadn’t been anything in particular that could’ve caused this because all we did was form the militia units a bit faster. As I kept thinking, I immediately realized how this happened.

‘The cry just now...’

I didn’t know how its cry reached outside the city, but I was certain that the monster’s cry was the trigger.

“I think it’s… a lot bigger than we imagined,” Kim Hyun-Sung remarked.

“I see. We’ll get ready for battle right away. What will you do, Mr. Hyun-Sung?” I asked.

“I’ll go notify the castle. You can continue to monitor the situation from central command and manage the reserve force. The Blue Guild will move together,” he replied.

“Alright. Then I’ll have everyone ready their arrows, channel their spells, and wait…”

“Okay, and the sound you heard just now…”

“We’re looking into that right now. If I find something strange, I’ll report it to you right away,” I replied.

“Okay, and Mr. Ki-Young?”

“Yes?”

“I believe in you,” Kim Hyun-Sung suddenly said.

“Thank you,” I replied, nodding.

I felt better not because the regressor trusted me. It was all because I realized Kim Hyun-Sung hadn’t said it out of courtesy. This was a monumental event for him, and it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that it was a golden opportunity to obtain experience points. I was sure it hadn’t been easy for Kim Hyun-Sung to put me in charge, but I was grateful that he was quietly supporting me.

I spaced out for a bit, but I knew I couldn't just stand here like this. When I started running while alerting people about the situation, the nearby soldiers did the same and started alerting the others. A bell tolled, and my surroundings quickly became chaotic.

“Get ready for battle.”

“Get ready for battle!”

“Get ready for battle! Get ready!!”

I quietly instructed. “All troops hold your positions, and the mage corps, channel your spells, and wait!”

“It’s the monsters. All troops; prepare for battle! Hold your positions and the mage corps, wait after channeling your spells!”

A messenger yelling out orders for me made things easier.

I guess Castle Rock was doing fine because they looked like they immediately assumed battle formation.

Everyone was readying their arrows and channeling their spells without knowing what was going on, while the tolling of the bell made them nervous. The chaos made me unable to think, but even though it was only for a moment, I recalled the monster egg I had seen in the auction house. The cry I heard earlier sounded as if it came from a puppy looking for its mother.

‘It can’t be, right?’

I couldn’t check it for myself, but it was possible that the egg hatched unless the egg was sold or a guild stored it in their warehouse for some reason.

‘I should’ve looked into it more.’

I should have been suspicious the moment the egg was shown at the central auction house. It was unlikely, but for some reason, it would make sense if the cry from earlier was the reason why the monster wave was happening earlier than usual. Regardless of the reason, I had to find out more about that egg.

“Noona,” I called out.

“What?” Cha Hee-Ra asked.

“The sound we heard from the city just now…”

“Do you want it checked out?” she asked.

“Yes, but you don’t have to go; no, I want you to protect this place, noona. The Mercenary Queen’s name will help boost the troops’ morale,” I replied, nodding.

“Naturally,” she remarked.

“What about the western area?” I asked her.

“Once the wave starts, they’ll immediately take action, so you don’t have to worry, darling. I don’t have any issues on my side, so you better think about what kind of reward you’re going to give me once this is over. I’m already overflowing with money, so don’t bother thinking that giving me gold coins will make things even between us…”

“Ugh…”

“I knew it. More than that, this is your glorious first campaign… How about a short speech?” Cha Hee-Ra suggested.

“...”

I had wanted to announce my intention for going into this war, but doing it right now was too sudden. I knew the commander’s role was important and although it wasn’t a war against humans, it was still considered a large-scale war, so boosting everyone’s morale was important. But doing that right now was inappropriate because it hadn’t even been that long since they got into battle formation, and everyone was busy doing what they had to do. I thought that the Small Stone Gould would run away, but they were on top of the first wall, surveying the area underneath. The merchant guild delivered arrows and potions, while some of the citizens were either praying to God or trembling in fear.

They could…

‘Probably feel it…’

The earthquake was starting to become even more intense, and I could hear the monsters’ cries now.

‘Oh jeez…’

The atmosphere here was so unrealistic that if someone asked me if I was scared, I would definitely answer that I was scared. I thought things were going to be okay, but I was starting to feel anxious.

‘Shit… I’m scared…’

But I had too many cards to be cowering in fear…

I had our lovely regressor, Kim Hyun-Sung; the meat shield, Park Deok-Gu; my adorable Jung Ha-Yan whose eyes were only on me; and the experienced priest, Sun Hee-Young. Kim Ye-Ri and Sun Hee-Young weren’t as experienced as the others, but they could save me from trouble. The most reliable of them all was standing next to me; it was none other than Cha Hee-Ra. Moreover, since I was observing the situation from the back and had thousands of troops willing to risk their lives for me, my safety was secured.

“I don’t need to worry.”

“Huh?”

“Please activate the voice spell,” I ordered.

“You’re going to say something?” Cha Hee-Ra asked.

“Of course, Hee-Ra noona.”

I spoke quietly as the sound of the monsters rushing toward us was getting louder and louder. However, the voice spell reached the walls and the castle, drowning out the monsters’ cries for a moment.

“This place isn’t our hometown…” I started.

“...”

“To be frank, we have nothing to do with Castle Rock. Some were dragged here, some came here for survival, while others came here to find work…”

“...”

“The environment here isn’t the best, so I’m sure that many of us here have had bad memories of this place. Some lost their friends, while others lost their significant others. There are some who drink the night away because of how exhausted their survival is each day, while others often think about whether they should commit suicide or not…”

“Darling?” Cha Hee-Ra blankly questioned.

“Just for a moment. I want all of you to look at what you have created behind you. You people are the ones who made Castle Rock into what it is today. In the past, Castle Rock didn’t have a military facility, but it all changed thanks to you, the free city denizens. Castle Rock had been a dangerous city that people often avoided, but now, there are many tourists visiting the place, and free city denizens from other free cities even often come here to hunt. This was all created by the friends, lovers, and the family members you have lost…”

“...”

“This is what you all achieved and built. The high castle walls that we’re stepping on, the arrows we’re holding, and the place we’re standing in. This was all possible because of you people. It’s a precious place created from your blood and sweat. This place is our shelter, and our home filled with friends and family that we love…”

“That was a nice speech, darling,” Cha Hee-Ra complimented.

I didn’t respond to her compliment, as I continued. “I would like to ask all of you this. Is Castle Rock really not our hometown? Do you really believe that this place doesn’t have anything to do with you?”

“...”

“Castle Rock is safe. If you raise your weapon with the intention of protecting this place, our hometown will be safe! Everyone, we’re not raising our swords because of the contract we have with the Holy Empire. We’re raising our weapons to protect our hometown. Let’s protect our home together!” I yelled.

My speech had been so sudden, but the effect wasn’t too bad. Humans had always been easily moved by trivial speeches like this during dangerous situations.

‘Even though I’m not from Castle Rock…’

I knew that no one would think of that. Some might curse me for the speech I had made, but the others would scream to get rid of their fear.

“L-Let’s protect… our hometown!”

Just like that…

“Protect our hometown! Let’s protect our home!”

Very nice…

“Protect our hometown!!!”

The small scream started to spread to the different areas of the wall like a disease. I found it quite amusing to see the Small Stone Guild screaming about protecting their hometown.

‘You guys can do that then, you bastards.’

“Rooooooooar!”

We saw the monsters charging out of the forest and even though some of the troops flinched, they unknowingly started chanting about protecting their hometown.

“Castle Rock will be safe today, everyone!” I yelled once more.

“Protect Castle Rock!”

“Ready!”

“Rooooooooar!”

“Fire!”

Magic and arrows immediately covered the sky.