It had been just over 2 hours since the explosion in the Great Western Forest occurred. The initial fireball had long gone out and the giant mushroom cloud had begun to disperse, though it was still quite visible.
At the same time, black smoke from what was no doubt a massive forest fire was now rising into the air on the horizon, along with an ominous orange glow that was distinctly different from that of the setting sun.
It was an eerie sight that served as a constant reminder of the approaching crisis.
Lucas had been busy coordinating the intake of supplies at the Town Lord Manor for a while now, but although the sky was growing dim, the rate at which the townsfolk were arriving hadn't decreased in the slightest. In fact, there were even more people showing up as time passed.
There were also large carts and wagons arriving, filled with sacks of both processed and unprocessed grain, all of which needed to be properly counted and stored. Most of these carts were from the western granary, as it had been the priority to empty out, but shipments from the northern and southern storehouses were also beginning to appear.
Fortunately, reinforcements had also arrived in the form of Lucas' employees.
As soon as he had found some free volunteers, Lucas had sent them out to find his trusty workers, and it wasn't long before some of them made their way to the Manor.
Things had no doubt gotten more hectic, but with more hands helping out, Lucas was somehow able to keep everything moving in a smooth and orderly fashion.
Just as they were sorting out another wagon full of grain, though, Lucas suddenly froze up as an odd foreboding feeling washed over him. He couldn't quite tell what it was, but he simply had a sense that danger was rapidly approaching.
At first, Lucas assumed he was being paranoid after having heard the hunters' horns blaring in west, but as time passed, the sense of dread only grew stronger, to the point where he could now roughly tell where it was coming from.
"Boss, you alright?" Laura called out from the side, having noticed that Lucas, who had been working so diligently up until now, had all of a sudden stopped in place and turned to stare off into the distance.
Frowning slightly, Lucas answered briefly, "Sorry. Take over for a moment, Laura. I need to check something."
Saying so, Lucas didn't wait for a reply and started running. After almost bumping into a few people, he made his way past the Manor's fence and reached an open area where he could see out over the west of Redwood Town.
Sweeping his eyes around, Lucas tried to pinpoint exactly where this ominous aura was coming from, and soon, his gaze swept up into the sky. Squinting hard, the young boy couldn't see anything at first, but after a few seconds, he caught sight of a faint silhouette against the light of the setting sun.
As soon as Lucas locked onto this silhouette, he immediately understood that it was the source of his unease, but he couldn't tell why just yet. However, given that this object was flying up in the sky, Lucas assumed it was some kind of Wild Beast, and a powerful one at that.
Staring fixedly at the silhouette, Lucas soon realized that it was rapidly getting closer, and soon he could even make out two large flapping wings, confirming his previous suspicion that a dangerous creature was approaching.
From what Lucas could tell, this flying beast was enormous, bigger than any he had ever seen before, but it was still quite high up and far away, much too far for him to scan with his Soul Sense at least.
Although Lucas had an answer to his doubts now, he was faced with another dilemma; what to do about it.
This bird was both large and powerful, though exactly how large and powerful was unclear, but as long as it continued on its current trajectory, it would likely pass high above Redwood Town and soar off into the distance in a matter of minutes.
Lucas had to decide whether he should he raise the alarm and warn the townsfolk, or just wait and see what the bird did first.
Given that everyone was still jittery from the sudden explosion and forced evacuation, frightening them again under uncertain circumstances might not be wise; but, after giving it a quick thought, Lucas decided that even if it caused some panic now, it would be better to warn people instead of just hoping for the best.
Having made up his mind, Lucas turned around and was about to run back to where the crowd dropping off foodstuffs was, but before he could even take a step, a piercing cry rang out.
This cry was like nothing Lucas had ever heard before, and it was so loud that it seemed to echo across the entire sky. The force behind this cry was also so intense that many people instinctually covered their ears. Some of those among the crowd with weaker strength even lost their balance and fell to their knees, greatly frightening them and those around them.
Looks like it's too late now, Lucas thought as he too tried to steady himself.
A moment later, after stabilizing his footing, Lucas began running while shouting, "Get inside the Manor! Get inside now!"
The crowd didn't need to be told twice.
Everyone dropped their baskets and sacks, left their carts and wagons, and scrambled towards the nearby buildings, trying to get into cover. As for whether the Manor's buildings would actually provide any protection from the flying beast was irrelevant at this moment; after all, being inside had to be safer than staying out in the open.
With just 2 Town Guardsmen and a bunch of volunteers overseeing things in the Manor's yard, there was no way to maintain any semblance of order, so the crowd just ran about haphazardly, pushing and shoving in panic.
Seeing this, Lucas wisely decided to halt his steps and retreat.
Judging from what he had observed, the flying beast was still quite far off, so there was time for everyone to evacuate. Now that he thought about it, him shouting for people to get inside had probably been a mistake, only adding to the chaos, but it was too late to do anything about that now.
As Lucas looked around at the 200 or so people pushing to get away, he suddenly noticed that he couldn't spot his big sister. The thought that Eris might be caught up in the crowd and being crushed caused the young boy's heart to jerk.
Lucas nearly rushed forward again to try to search for his big sister; but remembering what consequences his hasty actions just now had led to, and also realizing there was no way he could push through all the adults in his way, he grit his teeth and remained still.
Taking a deep breath to calm his anxiety, Lucas began sweeping his gaze around and soon spotted a rather tall wagon with a bunch of sacks loaded onto it.
Scrambling over and up onto the cart, Lucas managed to stand at a height where he could see over the crowd and began searching.
It took a while, but he eventually managed to spot Eris standing next to the Manor's wall, a dozen or so steps away from the entrance, with Helen and Grace both shielding her from the pushing crowd.
"Big Sister Eris! Aunt Helen! Big Sister Grace!" Lucas called out, cupping his hands around his mouth and shouting in their direction.
It took a few tries, but eventually Grace noticed Lucas' calls and waved her hand in acknowledgement before prodding her companions. Visible looks of relief spread across the 3 women's faces with Eris even jumping up and down and waving her hands, as if trying to convey that she was alright.
At the same time, Lucas noticed a pair of youths pushing against the crowd, moving in his direction. With all the shouting Lucas had just done, it seemed that these 2 had noticed him as well and were now trying to make their way over.
This sight brought a bit of warmth to Lucas' heart.
Although technically the relationship between them was just that of employer and employees, it seemed that some of the youths Lucas had recruited to help further his various projects saw him as more than just their boss.
"Gabe! Laura! Don't mind me! I'm fine!" Lucas called out while trying to wave them off.
"Are you sure, Boss?!" Laura called back, still trying to make her way over.
"Yes!" Lucas shouted, "Just head inside, I'll join you guys soon!"
Although Laura and Gabe hesitated for a moment, the momentum of the crowd was against them, so they eventually nodded and turned back.
About a minute later, Lucas saw that most people had managed to funnel themselves through the doors and into the Manor, fortunately with no one being crushed in the process. As such, he figured it was time he got moving as well. Just as he was about to climb down from the wagon though, he felt a strong gust of wind hit him from behind.
Unable to stop himself, Lucas stumbled, causing the loosely piled sacks to shift beneath him.
Losing his balance, he slipped and fell towards the ground.
Now, Lucas knew that a fall from his current height probably wouldn't kill him, but it would certainly hurt, so in a desperate bid to spare himself from that, he reached out and managed to grab hold of the side of the wagon, stopping about half-way to the ground.
Just as he was breathing a sigh of relief, the young boy heard several screams ring out, with a number of familiar voices shouting, "Lucas/Boss! Run!"