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Chapter 87 - Chapter 87 – The Gates of Korvath

Smoke curled into the sky above Korvath, thick and dark, staining the morning light as Yoshiya tightened his grip on the reins of his boar. Omina, astride her own, followed closely, the wind tugging at her hair and the clinking of armor echoing faintly against the forest trees. The goblin army they had defeated hours ago now seemed like a minor disturbance compared to the chaos awaiting them.

"Look," Omina muttered, pointing toward the horizon. Wisps of smoke rose from the city, drifting like warning flags above the crumbling rooftops. "Korvath… it's worse than I imagined."

Yoshiya nodded grimly, scanning the distance. The guild's rallying formations were uneven, adventurers running ahead in some parts, straggling behind in others. It seemed that in their haste, cohesion had been sacrificed. The boars gave them an edge, letting them push forward faster than most.

By the time they reached the city gates, they found that several kobolds were already positioned outside, their jagged weapons glinting in the daylight. The smell of smoke and charred wood hung heavy in the air. Yoshiya slowed the boar as Omina's eyes swept the scene.

"Stay sharp," she whispered. "They're waiting for anyone who dares to enter."

Yoshiya grunted. The gates themselves were scarred from prior attacks. Charred splinters clung to the iron wood, evidence of destruction long before they arrived. Around them, adventurers scrambled, forming impromptu lines. Panic colored the expressions of some; others charged forward without hesitation.

A sudden roar erupted from the city itself, low and guttural, vibrating in their chests. Even the kobolds outside flinched. Yoshiya's grip on the reins tightened as his heart sank.

"They're getting bolder," he muttered. Omina's brow furrowed, her short sword tapping lightly against her thigh.

Movement at the outskirts of the gate drew their attention. Seikaku Entenki appeared with his party, moving with unnerving precision. The rank-5 sniper, flanked by two archers and an alchemist, cut down a kobold with a single well-aimed shot. The arrows zipped past, felling two more scouts before the alchemist unleashed a chemical mixture that sent the remaining kobolds tumbling to the ground.

Yoshiya noticed Seikaku's calm demeanor, a sharp contrast to the chaotic surge of adventurers around them. The man's eyes flicked toward the distant smoke but did not waver. He fired another arrow, whispered something to his archers, and the remaining kobolds were swiftly neutralized.

Omina nudged her boar forward. "They've got the technique, but do they have the heart?" she muttered under her breath.

Before Yoshiya could answer, a deafening roar shook the air, louder than anything they had heard before. From deep within the city, a colossal shadow emerged. It was massive—towering over every kobold, dwarfing even the chieftains they had fought before. Its sword gleamed menacingly, and a large shield hung from its arm like a piece of a collapsed building. The ground itself seemed to tremble with each step it took.

Some adventurers froze, terror rooting them to the ground. Others charged forward, ignoring the monstrous presence. Yoshiya and Omina exchanged a quick glance; both understood the silent warning in each other's eyes.

Seikaku raised his crossbow, his two archers flanking him while the alchemist prepared another explosive concoction. They moved as a unit, ignoring the chaos around them, cutting down kobolds with lethal precision. One of Seikaku's arrows found its mark in a kobold attempting to flank them, and the alchemist's concoction created a small explosion that scattered the remaining enemies like leaves in a storm.

Yoshiya's boar stepped cautiously forward as Omina slashed through a kobold at the gate. The skirmish outside was swift but brutal. The adventurers' formation remained fragmented, with many unable to keep up due to the smoke and debris.

Finally, they reached the city gate. Beyond it, the devastation became horrifyingly clear. Korvath was in ruins, fires devouring wooden structures and smoke rising from collapsed stone buildings. And there, in the center of the destruction, stood the kobold king.

It was a creature of nightmare proportions—four stories tall, its frame immense and covered in jagged scales, its massive sword dripping with remnants of previous victims. Surrounding it were five kobold chieftains, each ready for battle, all converging on a lone figure at the heart of the chaos.

Yoshiya and Omina stopped, taking in the scene. The lone adventurer, a shadow enveloped in a black aura, fought against six chieftains at once, moving with calculated precision and terrifying efficiency. Despite the overwhelming odds, not a single attack seemed to slow the figure down.

"By the gods…" Omina whispered, her voice barely audible over the crackling fires. "It's… enormous."

Yoshiya tightened his grip on the reins, feeling the tension in his muscles. Even with the boars giving them speed, the sheer scale of the threat caused his stomach to tighten. The kobold king's presence radiated danger, and every adventurer within sight instinctively calculated the risk of engagement.

The other adventurers began arriving, some hesitant, some determined, but the fear was palpable. Seikaku's party advanced swiftly, taking down isolated kobolds as they pressed toward the inner city. The chaos of Korvath's gates mirrored the turmoil within their own hearts—hope mixed with fear, courage tangled with doubt.

Yoshiya and Omina exchanged a quick glance before nodding to each other. They spurred their boars forward, cutting through the smoke and debris, ready to face whatever horrors awaited inside.

And there it was: the kobold king. Standing colossal and immovable, with his five chieftains at his side, surveying the destruction and chaos as if it were his domain alone.

The city's gates had been breached, and the Fall of Korvath had begun.

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