Finally, I can Retire, Or so I Thought

Two days later, around noon, in the mountainous region west of Lutherias, accessible via the western gate, Luna, Mei, and Cleo strolled casually up a gentle incline at the foot of the mountains after a half-day’s trek from the capital. Cleo, walking between Luna and Mei, turned to look at Luna, who was holding a quest paper from the guild.

"You took a B-rank quest to hunt 30 mountain orcs too?" Cleo asked.

"Yep! Good thing we dropped by the adventurer guild yesterday," Luna replied cheerfully.

"Hmm... the reward isn’t bad at all. It’ll fully cover what we spent on our new clothes and yesterday’s groceries if we pull this off," Mei remarked, glancing over at Luna.

"That’s exactly why I snapped it up!" Luna said brightly.

"But don’t mountain orcs usually swarm together? They’re smart enough not to attack solo. Can you guys handle that?" Cleo asked.

"We have you and Dion with us! Besides, Mei and I aren’t pushovers either. Don’t forget, we’re both SS-rank," Luna boasted proudly.

"Hmm... fair point," Cleo muttered.

"Don’t worry, you’ll get your fair share of the cut, even if you are a royal mage," Luna added, patting Cleo’s back.

"Alright, thanks," Cleo replied with a smile.

"But are the rumors about the stampede at the guild yesterday true?" Mei asked.

"Logically, yes. If Gemmeth’s seal breaks, a stampede is bound to happen because the monsters will definitely run downhill to escape him," Cleo answered.

"Don’t worry, we’ll check it out, and if it’s open, we’ll just seal it up again, right Cleo?" Luna asked.

"That’s right, and then the four of us will head back to the city with Dion," Cleo replied.

"Speaking of Dion... where is he?" Mei asked, looking around at Luna.

Without saying a word, Luna simply pointed behind her with her thumb. Cleo and Mei glanced back over their shoulders as they kept walking.

"Huff... huff... huff..."

They spotted Dion trailing far behind them, stumbling along. Even from a distance, his face looked deathly pale with a greenish tint, sweat was pouring off him, and he looked like he was about to drop dead.

"Hey... he’s exhausted," Mei said, stopping in her tracks and turning around.

"Yeah, we should probably help him. Maybe he’s got altitude sickness," Cleo added.

"Hmm... I’m pretty sure he’s faking it, but fine," Luna said nonchalantly.

The three girls turned back and walked toward Dion. As soon as he saw them approaching, Dion stopped in his tracks. He bent over, resting both hands on his trembling knees, before "thud," he collapsed onto his butt, legs stretched out in front of him, and let out a heavy sigh. Mei immediately squatted beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Are you okay, Dion?" Mei asked anxiously.

"I’m... fine... don’t worry, hahaha," Dion stammered between ragged gasps.

"Want to take a break first?" Cleo asked, stepping up to stand in front of Dion.

"No need, just let me catch my breath for a second," Dion said, taking a deep inhale.

Luna stepped forward and slowly helped Dion to his feet, supporting him as he slung an arm over her shoulder.

"Thanks, Luna," Dion said.

"Yep. If you can’t push through, we can rest. It’s noon anyway," Luna said.

"She’s right. How about we sit down for a bit?" Mei added, standing up and dusting off her knees.

"No need. Is the location much further, Cleo?" Dion asked, turning to face her.

"Hmm... about another hour and a half on foot. It’s not all the way at the peak," Cleo answered thoughtfully.

"Ugh... okay, let’s not waste any time then," Dion said weakly.

"Are you sure?" Luna asked, concerned.

"Positive. Let me lead the way... just don’t set a crazy pace, hahaha," Dion replied.

They resumed their trek, but this time the three girls slowed down, matching their steps to Dion’s sluggish pace. They hadn’t been walking long, however, when the ground suddenly began to tremble. Dion, caught in the middle, instantly threw his arms around Luna, Cleo, and Mei all at once.

"W-what’s this?!" Mei asked.

"Oh no... the seal is completely breaking. Looks like... we’re too late," Luna said, staring ahead with an anxious face.

"No... this shaking... it’s not Gemmeth... It’s... a monster stampede!" Cleo declared, staring straight ahead and gripping her staff with a deadly serious expression.

Cleo was right. Up ahead, massive clouds of dust billowed down the mountain. The surrounding forest trees were falling like dominoes, accompanied by the thunderous roar of countless marching footsteps.

"Here they come," Dion said.

Charging down the slope were stone-skinned mountain orcs, Rank-A one-eyed ogres, Rank-A wyverns soaring through the sky, Rank-A inferno grizzlies, hundreds of Rank-D black boars, Rank-E ice goblins, Rank-E forest goblins, Rank-B dire wolves, and countless others, all stampeding down the mountain as if fleeing for their lives.

"How did this happen?!" Mei asked, drawing her dual swords.

"Gemmeth is on the verge of breaking free. They’re all terrified," Cleo answered, getting into a combat stance.

"Um... should we fall back to the city and call for backup?" Dion asked.

"No time! Besides, the adventurer guild has been scrambling since yesterday to prepare for this. They’re probably already gathered at the west gate," Luna answered, drawing her weapon.

"Good point... sigh," Dion groaned weakly.

"Brace yourselves, everyone! Here they come!" Cleo shouted.

Cleo stepped to the front and raised her staff. Frost magic surged from her feet, swirling upward like a blizzard before channeling directly into the blue gem atop her staff. Hundreds of blue magic circles covered in rotating runes opened up to her left and right. Meanwhile, Luna raised her staff toward the sky, summoning dozens of glowing yellow magic circles in the air.

"Blizzard Arrow!"

"Holy Lance Rain!"

Hundreds of massive ice arrows shot out from the blue circles, raining down on the approaching horde like a frozen storm, while a barrage of light lances fell from the sky, devouring both the flying beasts and the monsters charging along the ground.

Kieeeek! Kraaaah!

Screams echoed from the monsters as they were obliterated by the icy barrage and spears of light. Yet their numbers were overwhelming, and they kept pressing forward. Mei surged ahead at lightning speed; every monster she darted past was sliced in half and dropped dead instantly.

Mei held the frontline while Luna and Cleo bombarded the horde with magic. Seeing that the monster numbers weren’t thinning and were actually multiplying despite not making it past them, Dion stood still, his mind racing.

"Ugh... what should I do? Black Knight is out of the question... Shadow Assassin won’t cut it either... let alone Berserk Monk... I need something that can wipe them out in a single hit... but... do I really have to use that?" Dion thought in his head.

"Luna... keep attacking!" Cleo yelled.

"Haaaaah!" Luna screamed, releasing another spell.

Meanwhile, Mei kept darting across the front line like a streak of lightning, weaving from left to right and back again, resembling a black shadow of lightning zipping back and forth before the monster horde. Seeing Luna, Mei, and Cleo starting to get overwhelmed as they continuously cast spells and fought, their breath coming in heavy gasps, Dion finally stopped second-guessing himself.

"This is no time to hesitate... Ancient One... activate," Dion said.

Dion hit YES on the Ancient One persona menu.

["The fate of the world is in the palm of my hands."]

Instantly, a blinding burst of light enveloped the entire area. Luna and Cleo turned back but immediately shielded their eyes, while the charging monsters ground to a halt, blinded by the glare. Mei took advantage of the distraction to land a backward flip, landing beside the group.

Within the radiance, Dion’s figure transformed. He wore a high-collared cape over tight, armored robes, with a glowing tiara resting on his brow. His hair turned stark white, his eyes glowed entirely crimson, shooting off sparks of lightning as his body levitated into the air. A holographic display expanded before him:

******************************************************

Name : Dion von Oswald.

Persona Class : Ancient One. [change]

Rank : SSSS

Time limit : 5 hours (04:59:40 counting down)

Weapon : Hestalia magic gloves.

Armor : Armored levitating black Robe.

Passive : All Element Mastery, Regeneration, Mana Absorb, Levitating and Floating.

Active : Elemental fusion, All Elemental Barrier, Seal Chain, Atomic Nova.

Special : Create Seal, Alchemy, Magic Creation.

Given : Goddess Hestalia Blessing.

******************************************************

Using transform mode ? [Yes] [No]

******************************************************

The blinding light faded. Luna, Mei, and Cleo gaped in shock at Dion’s drastic transformation as he hovered above the ground. Dion remained still, his lips moving silently in incantation as he raised both hands, clad in magic gloves.

"Dion?" Luna, Mei, and Cleo asked in unison.

"All of you... get close to me, quick!" Dion commanded, his voice echoing with tremendous pressure.

Without hesitation, the three girls scrambled toward him. A iridescent spherical barrier expanded around them, locking them inside a protective bubble. Dion thrust his right palm forward, gathering a marble-sized orb of multi-colored light at his fingertips.

"Atomic Nova."

Psiuuu!

The marble of light shot out into the center of the monster horde. The moment it touched the earth, KABOOOM!

A deafening roar shattered the air as a pillar of blinding light, spanning nearly two kilometers in radius, shot straight into the heavens. It expanded into a massive dome of light, engulfing the entire mountain face.

"Whoaaaaaaah!"

Luna, Mei, and Cleo screamed, squeezing their eyes shut against the blinding glare and clinging tight to Dion as he hovered inside the protective sphere.

Meanwhile, back at the city’s west gate, the knights, soldiers, and adventurers who had assembled to face the stampede were blasted back by the shockwave. Whoaaaaah! Their eyes widened in utter disbelief and terror as they watched a massive dome of white light, laced with billowing black smoke, swallow the forest, the foothills, and the entire surrounding terrain.

High up on the palace balcony, a middle-aged man wearing an elegant white royal tunic with a red sash draped across his chest watched the cataclysmic dome pulverize the western horizon. His face drained of color, sweat dripping down his temples, his mouth agape in sheer awe.

"Your Majesty Alexius..." a nobleman beside him whispered tremulously.

"Yes... the kingdom’s legend is true," Alexius said, his eyes locked onto the western sky. "When Gemmeth’s seal nears its breaking point... the Ancient One returns."

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