The Massacre Of The Gates

Advancing through the thick trees, Mikhail's eyes darted to the left and right.

Being surrounded by such a thick environment reduced their range of attack and visibility.

So feline monsters had it easy to sneak up on them.

Without stopping, Mikhail turned his head and ran an eye over the people.

'86.'

That was the amount of people he had with him.

For the danger level of the gates, that was certainly low.

However, it was fine as Mikhail alone would be the one dealing with the main problem.

Unfortunately, there was one big problem.

Mikhail's eyes went to the corner of the sky where he could see a woman flying above them.

'Why is she here rather than with Daniel?'

Celine Strathorne had decided to follow Mikhail's platoon instead of Daniel.

For whatever reason, he could not know with that straight expression of hers.

Mikhail resisted clicking his tongue.

'I can't use my Dragma now.'

Before, he could at least hide from the members but as a Dominique, Mikhail had no doubt that she would see it.

Not like something would happen with her seeing it.

But for Mikhail it was one of the major surprise cards he had over opponents.

'Whatever.'

He turned to the front, opening his mouth for the first time after running.

"All the tankers and shielders come to the front. The rest, slow down your pace and give them space."

Having led large parties in the past, Mikhail knew exactly what to do.

He wasn't new to this.

Trusting him from before, the platoon moved according to his commands.

"Form a wall at the front. I want the larger ones standing with even spaces in the row with the smaller ones between them. Keep your shields at the ready."

He could hear some mixed opinions coming from the crowd but they still listened.

'These are the best positions. Walking among the trees, our weakest positions are the corners and sides.' 

This was why he placed the larger guys there.

"Next up, the archers and scouts. Place yourselves between the places of the large tankers with your bows stretched out and your arrows nocked."

Finally, the formation started to make a little sense to them.

Heeding his command, the archers and scouts also came at the front, fitting between the spaces.

"Gun shooters stand behind the large guys, use the shields and their bodies to your advantage to hide and shoot."

Coming to stand in the middle as well, Mikhail completed the second row.

"The remaining melee attackers in the middle. Save your energy for the main battle at the gates. However, keep watching the sides for the monsters there."

Mikhail saw them suppress a gulp. But at least they agreed.

"Switch from time to time to rest and conserve your energy. Don't tire yourself before we even reach there."

Reloading his guns, he gave all of them a cold stare.

To remind them of the reality, the situation they were in.

"Once again, this isn't a drill. This is fight-or-death, just a taste of what would happen after you get out of here. Don't over exert yourself for your ego only to lose your life."

Mikhail turned to the front after finishing his words.

The second he did, he heard movements between the tree branches.

His body wasted no time.

"Shields!"

Immediately, the corner shielders raised their shields at his order.

THUD! THUD!

The very next second, contact was made with the shields. The monsters growled in pain at the sudden interference.

"Archers and shooters!"

Seizing the moment, the ready archers and shooters immediately sprung to action.

As soon as the shields were let down, the arrows and bullets tore through the monsters.

It didn't even take a second for them to die, their lifeless bodies falling on the ground.

Cheers of happiness and awe were let out from the platoon as they realized how effective it was.

Their trust and respect for Mikhail increased even more now.

However, Mikhail knew not to celebrate this early.

Raising both of his guns in different directions, he spoke up.

"Cindralic Morphis. Aqualic Morphis."

BOOM! BOOM!

The very next moment, two high speed bullets shot out from him to the front.

One was enveloped in a trail of fire while the other had a torrent of water surrounding it.

PLUNGE! PLUNGE!

Two large wolf heads flew in the air from the front as the bullets made impact.

Blood and pieces of flesh flew through the air as their lifeless bodies fell down, silencing the crowd.

Mikhail was the first to break the silence.

"Stop letting your guard down and celebrating as if' we've already won. You are just asking to be attacked again."

Click. Click. Cluck. Cluck.

"I'll handle the monsters after you shoot and reload or any large monsters incapable to be stopped by the shields."

Mikhail turned to the front again.

"Now let's move. We are short on time."

The platoon, who understood their mistake now, nodded.

"Understood!"

And they started running again.

***

[After An Hour]

Mikhail could finally see the gates in sight, as the forest came to an end.

"Prepare yourselves. After we're out of the forest, we will have no cover to ourselves."

Reloading his guns again, Mikhail turned to the shielders.

"Prepare yourselves. You will need to face the first brunt of the attack. It's going to be hard."

Fortunately, after killing so many monsters, the shielders were brimming with confidence.

"We understand!"

"Good. Get through this and celebrate all you want."

As his last words trailed off, Mikhail's platoon finally came out of the trees.

'This is the moment. Where at least 300 people lost their lives last time.'

The Gates Of the Massacre, as the academy would later come to call them.

And as he gazed ahead now, he was reminded of his previous life again.

Mikhail could hear the people behind him already lose hope within a second.

Horrified gasps escaped their mouths.

Right where the gates were supposed to be first was now an army of monsters.

If Mikhail had to estimate, at least 400 already.

And more coming out of the forest outside the gates.

'Madness.'

It was the only word that came to Mikhail's mind as he gazed at the monsters that were running towards them now.

Last time, he had been in another location so Mikhail was able to survive this atrocity.

But not this time.

Fortunately, he was not without a plan as well.

There was only one option.

Pointing his guns, Mikhail could already feel the people behind looking as if he had gone insane.

"No don't-" He heard someone beg him from behind.

"Cindralic Morphis. Aqualic Morphis."

BOOM! BOOM!

Two heads and a million growls escaped into the air.

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