Is this really a Game?!

Wolf's roar echoed through the chamber as the giant head of the guardian was severed from its body, hitting the ground with a thunderous crash while the body followed, collapsing with a final, earth-shaking impact. As the guardian fell, the entire fortress seemingly started to tremble, the chains of the guardian ratting one last time before they fell silent.

For a moment, the battlefield was silent, only the sound of heavy breathing coming from Reign and the others present as they stared at the guardian's body, still not relaxing as they knew that the monster had immense vitality, even stabbing through its heart had not been enough to kill it mere minutes ago.

And yet, as the giant continued lying down on the ground, no sound or movement coming from it, they realized that they had done it, the guardian of the fortress, a creature of great strength that had taken them everything they had in their normal forms to battle, was finally dead, defeated by their hands.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

The heavy aura present around them, since they entered the fortress, began to lift as a sense of hard-won relief settled over them.

Reign and the others ceased to control their mana, dissipating their abilities and allowing themselves to relax for a moment, to finally get some rest. They had used up quite a bit of mana and were already tired, but they had accomplished their goal, they defeated the monster without using their marks.

"I can't believe we actually did it without any of us using their marks," Mia said breathlessly, her icy aura dissipating as she softly dropped to her knees, breathing deeply and allowing her weary body to rest. She looked around at her teammates, who were all showing signs of fatigue but had victorious expressions on their faces.

"Yeah," Wolf said as a tired smile appeared on his face. "We took the bastard down, not that it was easy, my arms are numb from that final attack."

Wolf dropped to the ground as he was drenched in sweat. He had put everything into the final attack, his muscles aching from the strength he had used.

"That … was not easy," He muttered, grinning despite his tiredness.

"Yeah, but I bet it felt good to cut that thing down in such a way," Shadow said as he sat down next to him, causing Wolf to chuckle and nod his head.

"It did."

Laura, Jin, and the others gathered around, all looking similarly worn out. Even Tank and Greenie, who had borne the brunt of the guardian's attacks, were breathing heavily, their bodies showing signs of wear and tear.

"Hey, was I just imagining it, or were we close to losing at one point?" Shadow remarked, his voice calm but with an underlying intensity.

Reign nodded, knowing full well how close they had come to being overwhelmed. "It was," he agreed. "But we're not done yet. This is just another part of the trial, we need to be ready for whatever the system is going to throw at us next."

As if on cue, the system's voice echoed throughout the chamber.

[ Congratulations, participants. You have successfully defeated the guardian of the Fortress of Despair. ]

[ You will now be given a brief period to rest and recover before the final of the trial begins. Use this time wisely. ]

A soft light filled the chamber, washing over each member of the team. The light was soothing, easing their pain and fatigue slightly, though it was clear it wasn't a complete healing. It was more of a temporary relief, a small respite before the next challenge.

"It actually gave us some time off and even healed us a bit?" Shadow asked as a nervous smile appeared on his face.

"That can't be good, right?"

"Yeah, the system has never done such a thing, which means that whatever is coming next is going to be incredibly difficult."

"Five minutes of rest, huh?" Jin said, glancing around as he rolled his shoulders, feeling the tension in his muscles ease slightly.

"It's not much, but it's better than nothing, not to mention that I agree with you Reign, since the system deemed it necessary to heal us a bit and give us some time off, the next part of the trial is definitely going to be more difficult than what we went through now."

The group spread out, each taking a moment to catch their breath and gather their thoughts. Tank and Greenie leaned against the walls of the fortress, conserving their energy, while Mia and Laura sat cross-legged on the ground, focusing on recovering their mana as quickly as possible.

Reign took a deep breath and closed his eyes, focusing on restoring his energy. The battle had drained him, especially with the powerful fusion skills he had used. He knew they couldn't afford to go into the next phase without being at their best.

"Reign," Wolf said, sitting down beside him. "What do you think the next part is going to be?"

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"Well, I have an idea of what it could be, but I'm sure you are thinking the same thing as well, aren't you?"

Wolf chuckled and then nodded thoughtfully. "Yeah, this place … it's called the Fortress of Despair for a reason. We took it down, but now we'll probably have to hold it against whatever enemy this place can throw at us."

"Sounds about right," Aelrinder chimed in, his voice calm and collected. "The fortress was a stronghold where those abominations had been in, and now that we've taken it down, it's likely that those same creatures will try to take it back, only that this time, I think there will be even more of them, and there will be more powerful ones present amongst them too."

"Yeah, I think so too." Reign said with a chuckle before shaking his head.

"This time, however, it's the final part of the trial, so we can go all out, no need to worry about conserving strength, at least we have that going for us."

The others all nodded, understanding the gravity of the situation. They had fought together through countless battles, but this trial was testing them in ways they hadn't anticipated.

The five minutes passed quickly, and as the system's voice echoed through the chamber once more, the atmosphere grew tense.

[ The rest period is now over. The final phase of the trial begins. ]

[ Defend the Fortress of Despair against the incoming horde, either survive long enough or deal enough damage to the horde to force them to retreat. ]

As the system's voice echoed through the chamber, Reign and his team quickly took their positions. The fortress, now their stronghold, would soon become a battlefield once more. They had little time to prepare, but they used every second to ready themselves for what was to come.

Reign stood at the forefront, his swords ready and his aura already flaring with dark and light energy. His heart pounded in his chest, but his mind was clear. They had fought hard to reach this point, and he knew they couldn't falter now.

The air began to hum with strange energy as the ground started trembling, at the start it was faint, but it became stronger and stronger. The eerie red sky above the fortress darkened even further as if the heavens themselves were preparing for what was about to happen.

And then, they saw it.

As Reign and the others stood atop the walls of the fortress, they first heard a low, rumbling sound that started to grow from the distance before it swelled into a powerful roar echoing through the entire area of the fortress. Debris and dust were being kicked up on the horizon, and from the darkness that was present in the wasteland that surrounded the fortress, a massive horde emerged.

The abominations they had fought against before were only the front line of a much larger army filled with even more twisted and grotesque beings whose bodies were warped and fused with metal and bone in twisted, unnatural ways.

The creatures came in all shapes and sizes, their bodies twisted and deformed beyond recognition. Some were massive, hulking beasts with jagged spikes protruding from their bodies, while others were smaller but more agile, darting across the ground with unnerving speed.

Their eyes glowed with the same sickly red light as the guardian's, and their growls and roars filled the air with a cacophony of terror.

In the middle of the giant army were giants with multiple limbs, their bodies covered in spikes and jagged armor. They were so large that each step allowed them to cover a distance of over ten meters, and some of the abominations present in the army would be squashed each time they moved.

And finally, at the back of the army, Reign and the others could sense even more powerful abominations, creatures that radiated auras of pure malice and hatred, their auras almost on par with the guardian they had faced before.