The Guardian System: The strongest Summoner's quest to save his family-Chapter 378: Straight Lines in a Crooked World (10)

Reidar watched the Ignis advance toward the shadow walls, noting that the creatures moved fast and the distance was closing, which meant he needed more time.

He did not slow the spectral horse as he checked his mana reserves, knowing that while he had done what he could, he hadn't done everything—he still had something to summon. Of course, he didn't stay idle.

First, he called the Twin Obsidian Siege-Breakers. Next, he summoned the Verdant Sovereign. Because they were not batch summons, both of them were stronger than his usual summons but also less effective in containing so many monsters. Of course, that was mainly because of the difference in levels. Killing these summons easily should not have been possible for monsters at the same level, but the Ignis weren't.

To finish his defensive line, Reidar brought out the Avatar of Primal Convergence and the Void-Claw Pack.

Reidar's head throbbed from the rapid mana expenditure, but he couldn't afford to be stingy since his survival depended on it.

He used Overmind Consciousness to send a command to the new groups: "Stall them. Do not let them pass this street."

As he kicked his spectral mount to keep moving toward the city limits, he saw through the shared vision of his summons that they were already taking up positions, blocking the narrowest part of the area's main road.

The Siege Breakers lumbered toward the walls. The Verdant Sovereign planted itself in the middle of the street, and vines began spreading across the ground, creating a network of roots and thorns.

The Avatar of Primal Convergence took up a position near the Siege Breakers, while the Void-Claw Pack scattered, moving to the sides of the street and scaling the nearby buildings.

<That should slow them down at least a little. >

He turned his attention back to the road ahead; the edge of the city was close now. The buildings were sparser here, and the ash clouds were thicker; besides, the visibility was terrible, but he could see the outline of the city's boundary through the haze.

Reidar checked the distance. He was maybe fifteen blocks from the edge, while the Ignis were ten blocks behind him, approaching the shadow walls.

<Just a bit more time.>

He kicked his mount again, urging it to go faster. The spectral horse responded, surging forward and gliding over the ash-covered street.

While the new summons prepared for the fight, Reidar shifted his focus back to the Shadow Sovereigns and the Undying Legion he had left blocks behind.

Through the Overmind Consciousness, he watched the first wave of Ignis reach the shadow walls. The Dread Shields stood in a phalanx, but they were only level 463, and they were not going to last for long. Reidar could only hope their explosions would at least deal some damage to the monsters.

The Ignis, many of which were level 485 or higher, didn't bother with tactics. They slammed into the Shadow Sovereigns' walls with enough force to crack the solidified shadows, as they were just glass.

The Dread Shields, seeing what was going on, moved forward to engage. They raised their shields and weapons, forming a defensive line in front of the wall they were tasked to protect.

The Shadow Sovereigns tried to maintain the Wall of Night, but the Ignis were too strong. Once they got past the few dozen walls, they reached those defended by Reidar's summons, who had had the time to prepare since they knew the Ignis were there thanks to the chaos they made.

It was just that the result was lackluster.

[Your Summon (Dread Shield) has been destroyed.]

[Your Summon (Dread Shield) has been destroyed.]

[Your Summon (Dread Shield) has been destroyed.]

Reidar grimaced but kept watching his summons die and explode due to the Apocalyptic Catalyst perk. The Ignis just pushed through the fire and debris, no matter how strong or how many explosions there were.

The Shadow Sovereigns tried to rebuild the walls. They raised their hands, and the shadows surged up again, forming new barriers in front of the Ignis. But the creatures didn't care. They pushed forward, smashing through the walls as fast as the Sovereigns could create them.

One Ignis turned toward a Shadow Sovereign. The creature lunged, covering the distance in a single leap. Its blade-arm came down, and the Sovereign tried to dodge, but it wasn't fast enough.

The blade-arm struck the Sovereign's torso. The Sovereign staggered, and the Ignis struck again, finishing it.

[Your Summon (Shadow Sovereign) has been destroyed.]

The other Sovereigns didn't last much longer. The Ignis spread out and hunted them down one by one. The Sovereigns tried to retreat, using the shadows to move and hide, but the creatures tracked them anyway.

[Your Summon (Shadow Sovereign) has been destroyed.]

[Your Summon (Shadow Sovereign) has been destroyed.]

…

…

…

Reidar watched as the last Shadow Sovereign was impaled by a blade-arm and dissipated into mana mist.

Then he pulled his focus back to his body. The shadow walls were gone, and the Sovereigns were dead. The Dread Shields had been wiped out too.

<At least they bought me a few more minutes.>

He checked his position. He was almost at the edge of the city now. The city's edge was maybe five blocks away at that point. The Ignis were still behind him, but the distance had grown. They were at least twelve blocks back now.

<I might actually make it.>

Then, a roar echoed through the city, a sound so loud it felt like it was vibrating in Reidar's marrow. He understood immediately what that sound was—it was the flying monster he had seen earlier through his ravens' eyes.

<No. No, No, No, no, no.>

A notification appeared in his vision.

[Your Summon (Apex Raven) has been destroyed.]

Reidar's stomach dropped. He checked the connection to the Apex Menagerie, but there was nothing. The ravens were gone. All of them.

<The Apex Menagerie has been wiped out.>

The mental link to the Apex Menagerie went completely dark, leaving an ache in his mind.

The flying monster had finished its prey, and now it had nothing else to focus on.

Reidar looked up, scanning the ash clouds above. He couldn't see the creature, but he knew it was up there. Somewhere in the sky, searching for something new to munch on.

<If it sees me, I'm dead.>

Reidar felt a spike of genuine worry, not because he was poetic about the birds, but because the birds had been his only way to keep the flyer's attention away from the ground.

Without the ravens to hunt, that thing was going to look down. The flyer was at level 550, nearly a hundred levels higher than Reidar's current level of 464.

If it spotted him on the open road outside the city, his S.H.I.E.L.D. attribute wouldn't even register the impact before he was deleted from existence.

Luckily, it wasn't like Reidar could do nothing about it.