Return of the Woodcutter

Thinking of reinforcing the door even further, Aito's gaze laid upon Filona's statue. An evil smirk drew on his face. 

Challengers stepped aside, letting him pass. Aito emanated the kind of regal aura that commanded respect. The kind that was invisible, but everyone could feel. It wasn't something as peculiar as a skill or secret hidden technique. 

It was just plain simple confidence. He walked with such poise he looked special, like a stone wall that, despite going through a thousand wars, still stood tall and mighty.. 

"What did you do, you heretic!?" Olmera exclaimed with a horrified expression. 

With no time to speak to that deranged old woman, he slapped her aside. Olmera was pushed against the ground violently. She was a challenger so a single Aito-slap didn't hurt her as much as it would a normal elderly person. 

Plus, he didn't like her attitude one bit and earthly society rules no longer applied here.

Aito sliced off Filona's feet, caught it, and appeared unpleased by the goddess's ugly face. Since he'd have to behead her anyway, might as well do it right now, right? 

SLASH!

He kicked her head aside, sending it close to George who eyed the tumbling head with an amused gaze. 

George wasn't a firm believer in the divine. Though he knew gods existed, he also knew counting on them to protect challengers was too much to ask for. 

And he had to admit that Aito's interruption of Olmera's attempt to take advantage of the situation was quite a sight to behold. 

"Are you mad!?" Olmera said, "You heretic have no idea of what you've just done! You've provoked the gods and doomed us all!" 

Aito ignored the woman and dragged the statue to the main entrance. Midway, George and Ogoro joined him, helping him bar the double door. 

Aito stared at the two stone boobs with an urge to cut them, but decided otherwise. Those two things probably weighed twenty kilograms each, and now that he had more than tripled the statue's weight, each weighed around seventy kilograms. 

Removing such a useful mass would lessen the support provided to the door. 

Aito took out a frost spell bead, threw it on the floor's entrance, freezing the marble ground. In case the hobs breached the main entrance, they would just slip and fall, rendering killing them easier. 

Of course, hobgoblins could climb the exterior walls, break the windows, and enter through the breaches. 

But there was nothing to do about it. Even if he were to use the horn, he could not know from where the goblins would attack, only that they would concentrate their attention on him. 

He headed for yet another statue, but Olmera wasn't about to let him have his way this time, "What are you doing, fervent followers? Stop him before he desecrates the gods' statue any further!" 

Having witnessed his strength, most challengers seemed to hesitate. They weren't that infatuated with the gods. Also, Aito was accompanied by a renowned veteran of the fifth floor, George Melbourn. 

Having no real cohesion, only the real "fervent followers" moved. 

"Halt! Do you not fear the gods' wrath?" 

"You heretic!" 

"Gather, brothers and sisters! Let's stop this heretic here—!" 

The challenger uttering nonsense didn't have time to finish his sentence that a straight punch sent him flying backward. Aito deployed his shield, using its edge to stun another challenger and front kicked the other. All of that was too fast for even veteran challengers to react. 

He made sure as to not kill them, as they might become useful in a bit. 

More challengers gathered in defiance, barring his road. George smirked and prepared a high-pressured water bullet while Ogoro started to infuse mana into his gauntlet. 

"Stop him before the gods' wrath fall upon us all!" Olmera shouted. 

Pissed and tired of those nonsense, Aito punched one of the cathedral pillars using his active skill Impact. A loud cracking sound reverberated in the hall. 

BOOM! 

Everyone turned towards the small crater formed by Aito's punch, gulping at the sheer power it had required. 

Aito roared, his voice echoing powerfully throughout the entire cathedral. 

"ENOUGH!!!"

Stunned by the demonstration of strength and the dominant voice, the few challengers daring to block his path halted. 

Now that he had their attention and there wasn't much time left, he thought that he might as well try out his luck with a speech—even though he was bad at them. 

"A hobgoblin horde is heading our way as we speak!" He said, advancing unimpeded amongst the challengers that used to oppose him a few seconds ago. "I've seen them with my own eyes from the belltower! Hundreds of hobgoblins assembling in the city's streets, eager for human flesh! Soon, there'll be not five hundred, nor six hundred, but more than a thousand banging on our doors!" 

Aito stopped amidst the remaining gods' statues and jumped on what used to be Belmand's statue's feet to elevate himself. 

Staring intently at the silent crowd, he said, "And what are we doing? Praying to the ones responsible for our current misery? Search within your hearts and use the good sense you've acquired through your struggles and tell me. Do you sincerely believe they will come to help us?"

Thinking back, every challenger knew the gods had never helped them during their trials. Be it before or during the Tower, there has been no divine intervention whatsoever apart from the revival and the oath pact. 

Olmera wanted to protest, to tell him that it was his fault if something bad were to happen to them tonight, but was unable to do so when Ogoro wrapped her mouth with wires. 

He told her to shut up, or he'd tear her apart. Sensing in the depth of the man's abyss-like dark eyes that he'd kill her without batting an eye, she nodded. 

Challengers all around seemed to be pondering. One of them rose his head and said, "But hobs never attacked us in the cathedral. So why would they attack it now?" 

Some challengers nodded at the logical argument, appearing to agree with the one that had just spoken. 

"You're right, they might not attack the cathedral tonight," Aito replied. "However, do you think a Bloody Eclipse at night is a normal occurrence? I for one, do not think so. Believe it or not, they are coming. The staircase to the fourth floor is blocked so there is no escaping it. You might refute it now, but if they come, will you take responsibility for the lives we could have saved then if we had prepared?" 

At that moment, hobgoblins running like crazed monsters started to cover the empty streets and rooftops surrounding the cathedral. Sheyla saw them coming from the chandelier and shouted, "Hobs incoming!" 

'Fuck, already?' Aito thought. He had expected them to come soon, but they were faster than anticipated.

Challengers all around the hall froze from where they stood, a glacial feeling tingling their spine. 

"Now choose," Aito said, "do nothing and die like cowards, knowing you were in the wrong. Or fight for the chance of seeing another sunrise. What will it be?" 

Silence loomed over the hall. Approaching horrifying screams of hobs in the distance reached the inside of the cathedral, confirming Aito's declaration. 

"What will it be!?" Aito repeated while cursing internally, hoping for a reply. Speeches in movies looked so easy to make. Unfortunately, the reality was different. Unless thoroughly prepared in advance, or being gifted, giving speeches was harder than most people thought. 

'Shit… look at them. They're all scared,' Ogoro thought. 'We'll be completely defenseless at this rate.' 

No one had yet to answer his question.

'Someone, has to start, the rest might just follow if only someone start it,' Ogoro thought. He wanted to intervene but it might attract too much unnecessary attention on him. Also, he didn't want people to find out he was a red challenger since it was a well-known fact that two red challengers were unmarked and thus not allowed here. 

Sensing the situation became more and more hopeless, Aito took off his helmet and prepared to use the hidden card he despised the most. 

Remembering the time he took the oath pact, and with nothing else that came to mind, he said, "Despite the odds playing against us, the slim chances of victory, and the fear seizing me, I, Aito Walker, the black challenger, chooses to fight! Will you fight by my side!?" 

That created a chain reaction amongst the challengers. Some were confused, others in awe, but most didn't trust his words. A lot of people wielding axes bragged about being the black challengers these days because it brought benefits and fame. 

Aito had certainly demonstrated great strength, but this only showed he was a capable person, not the black challenger. However, some did recognize his face. The doubts subsided, replaced by awes.

"It's true! It is him! The masochist!" 

"Yeah, I've seen his face on the training grounds!" 

"The black challenger... maybe with him, we'd stand a chance!" 

George smiled from ear to ear. He had had his suspicions, but now it confirmed it. The giant man took a deep breath and said, "I, George Melbourn, the blue challenger, choose to fight by your side!" 

George looked to the side and encouraged his teammates to do the same. 

Abdul shook his head and sighed. "I, Abdul Melkuz, the white challenger, chooses to fight by your side!" 

"This is crazy, but, whatever, we don't have any other choice," Jean-Paul complained before saying. "I, Jean-Paul Bourgeois, the hobgoblin hunter, choose to fight by your side!" 

Fritz snorted, but pushed by his comrades he entered the fray, "I, Fritz Geraltz, the goblin hunter, choose to fight by your side!" 

The declaration of three people in a row created a chain reaction. 

"I, Elza Murdock,…" 

"..., white challenger,…" 

"… chooses to fight by your side!" 

Suddenly, following the others, around three hundred challengers swore to fight, their voices piercing the night veil, eclipsing the outside hobs' roars.

Aito watched the spectacle from where he stood, thinking they might just stand a chance now with their increased morale. 

'Even though I hate that title, I must admit it is useful at times.' 

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