Re: Tales of the Rune-Tech Sage

Chapter 507: Beast Tide II

CH507 Beast Tide II

***

Crunch!

Alex’s attention snapped back to the battlefield as a vivid crunching sound echoed beneath him.

He realised Dread wasn’t merely charging through the gap carved open by the orcs and barbarians. The predatory horse was actively crushing and stomping any beast or monster that had survived the initial charge.

Alex could feel Dread’s bloodlust rising— no less ferocious than that of the orcs and barbarians.

Instead of restraining him, Alex encouraged it.

Dark mana thickened around Dread’s hooves, swirling more densely as the horse’s killing stomps grew heavier and more destructive.

Together, rider and mount tore through the beast tide and burst onto the frontline.

”Spellcasters, out!” Alex commanded.

The formation opened instantly. Spellcasters and archers peeled off and rode behind the line of defenders, while the melee unit wheeled around to face the beasts head-on.

As if forgetting that he himself was technically a spellcaster, Alex spurred Dread forward, joining the melee unit’s second charge with his Draconic Baton already in hand.

”Zora, do it!” Alex ordered through the comms, his voice cutting cleanly through the chaos.

[Special Warfare Spell: IceFall]!

Zora raised her arm almost casually and overcast the spell.

High above the battlefield, a spell circle formed subtly within the clouds. Acting on impulse, Zora fed Yin energy into it. The formation expanded by nearly half, stretching to over three metres in diameter.

Boom!

A massive ice boulder plunged from the sky.

It slammed into the battlefield and shattered violently, exploding into shards of ice and freezing frost. Beasts at the centre were impaled or frozen solid in an instant, wiping out nearly a quarter of the beast tide in a single strike.

Panic rippled through the horde as the remaining beasts scrambled to escape the spreading frost, desperately trying to avoid being frozen alive.

Alex seized the moment.

He issued rapid commands, splitting the melee unit into four subunits that broke off in different directions.

Their objective was clear—strike at vent points within the beast tide. Locations where breaking through would relieve pressure on the frontline defenders.

Using Senu’s shared vision and location data, Alex pinpointed these weak points and relayed them to the subunits through the comms with ruthless precision.

Alex, flanked closely by Udara and leading several orcs in his subunit, punched through a vent location and began pulling back— Only for a mixed group of monsters to suddenly converge on them.

Steam flared violently from Dread’s nostrils.

The excited nightmare horse let out a feral snort and recklessly charged straight at a Dune Croc.

The massive reptile twisted its body and swung its thick tail toward Alex and Dread.

Unfazed, Dread didn’t slow. Instead, he surged forward even faster, the dark mana cloud around his hooves thickening as it fed on his momentum.

Just as the tail swept overhead, Dread slid low across the sand, horse and rider narrowly dodging beneath the attack.

The manoeuvre exposed the Dune Croc’s soft underbelly.

’OmniRune!’ Alex prompted inwardly.

Immediately, a newly restored Rune-Tech spell launched.

[Electric Lance]!

A bolt of lightning speared from Alex’s hand, piercing straight through the Dune Croc. The current surged through its body, racing directly to its heart.

The beast stiffened—then collapsed lifelessly into the sand.

But Alex and Dread weren’t safe yet.

The Dune Croc had merely been cannon fodder sent ahead by the lizardmen. The moment Dread slid past the corpse, several lizardmen lunged from both sides.

Any other spellcaster would have been hard-pressed to respond in time.

Alex was not most spellcasters.

Recycled mana surged back into his arms from the Plate of Happenstance. Without hesitation, Alex channelled it into his Draconic Baton, which extended into a spear-length weapon as he swung.

A crescent of spear-light tore through the air, blasting the lizardmen backward.

Before they could recover, Udara appeared.

Like a silent spectre, she slipped in and out of notice at will—even while mounted. Her blades flashed, and the lizardmen that had been sent flying were cut down before they could regain their footing.

At the same time, the orcs finished off the remaining monsters and beasts nearby as the subunit regrouped and withdrew toward the frontline.

To the defenders’ credit, they immediately capitalised on the reprieve created by Zora’s Special Warfare spell and the melee unit’s venting manoeuvre.

They surged forward in a coordinated counterattack.

Quickly realising that Zora’s spell had frozen many beasts without killing them outright, the defenders focused their attacks there first— shattering the immobilised creatures and finishing them off decisively.

At this point, it became only a matter of time before the defenders fully repelled the horde.

Seeing the tide break, Alex ordered the melee unit to tactically pull back to the backline, rejoining the archers and spellcasters who continued launching long-range attacks. Soon after, they regrouped with the rest of the expedition party.

The defenders gladly welcomed them at the line. It was clear to everyone present that the expedition party’s intervention had been integral in containing and diffusing the situation as quickly as they had.

Within a couple of hours, the fighting gradually died down.

The surviving beasts, no longer driven by frenzy, began pulling back and retreating into the desert.

The expedition party was resting together when a short, middle-aged, dwarf-like man approached them.

”Hello. You are the powerful party everyone is talking about,” he said with a genial smile. ”My name is Wayne Achard. I am the branch master of the Adventurer Association here at our here Dragonstone Oasis.”

He paused, then added with a practiced sigh, ”And I am not a dwarf. I am just a short human.”

”I can tell,” Alex chuckled as he dismounted from Dread.

”You can?” Wayne raised an eyebrow in surprise.

”I can. I’m quite familiar with dwarves, actually,” Alex replied. ”Since you’re the branch master of the Adventurer Association, does that mean you can help my party with registration?”

Wayne’s eyes flashed with surprise, but he didn’t comment. Instead, he motioned for a subordinate to come over.

Alex nodded to Zora and Eleanore, and both women stepped forward to speak with the branch staff while he continued his conversation with Wayne.

”Are the other entrances safe?” Alex asked.

”They are,” Wayne replied. ”The settlement’s defences are quite strong. Of course, this gate is in the best condition.”

He smiled faintly. ”We have you to thank for that.”

”We only did what needed to be done,” Alex downplayed. Then he asked, ”Is a tide like this normal?”

”No, it isn’t,” Wayne admitted. ”It caught us completely unawares. Our branch regularly ensures the three nearby nests are sufficiently trimmed, and we actively hunt and cull beasts that wander too close to town too.”

He frowned slightly.

”So this tide is... shocking. It’s as if something attracted all the nearby beasts and monsters toward Dragonstone.”

Wayne’s casual words caused Alex to frown.

’First, a nest that leads to a Navi’s divine domain. Now, a beast tide appearing out of nowhere?’ he thought. ’Strange things have been happening ever since we entered the Wildlands.’

A chill suddenly ran down Alex’s spine.

’Wait... don’t tell me some world-changing treasure is about to be born, or a secret realm that hasn’t opened in a thousand years is about to be revealed or something.’

He recalled a popular meme from the old cultivation stories of his previous life— those infamous plot-driving clichés.

’That can’t be it... right?’

The more he thought about it, the more uneasy he felt.

”Are you okay?” Wayne asked, pulling Alex out of his thoughts.

”I’m fine.” Alex shook his head. ”I’m just not used to the evening chill yet.” He offered the first excuse that came to mind.

”In that case, you should head into town and find a good inn to rest,” Wayne said kindly. ”Feel free to drop by the Association building later.”

”Will do.” Alex nodded. ”Any inn recommendations?”

Wayne’s smile widened as he gave one without hesitation.

”I’ll also have your share of the loot delivered to the inn,” Wayne promised.

”Thanks.”

The expedition party finally entered Dragonstone Oasis.

Unlike Camp Red Rock, this was a major settlement within the Hollowcrest Wildlands, and it showed. The oasis was larger, cleaner, and far more organised.

Dragonstone Oasis gained its name from the long stretch of water cutting through the region, with the entire town built along both sides of the oasis.

Unlike Red Rock—where raw strength determined access to water—the local administration had introduced magical irrigation systems, ensuring water was readily available throughout the settlement.

After settling into their rooms and suites at the inn Wayne recommended—which, unsurprisingly, was owned by the Adventurer Association—Alex prepared to tour their new surroundings with his wives.

Before he could leave, however, a prompt appeared on his Beta Bracer.

’Oh?’ A smile crept onto his face.

’Looks like our potential collaborator took the bait.’

***