( A few hours before the monster wave )
The entire planet Earth waited with bated breaths when the sun shone over the horizon, marking the start of a new day.
Today was the day where the monster wave was expected to start, however, since the start time wasn't definite, there was a possibility of the raid starting anytime in the next 48 hours, however, the defending forces had to be alert nonetheless.
The bonfires from the night before were extinguished, the morning meals eaten quickly and battle armor equipped.
The atmosphere was tense, war songs were being sung to keep morale high, while authorized personnel from the ground zero media began their live coverage of the monster raid.
Schools, Colleges, Offices, shops, etc were shut across the world, as on this day, all non-climbers gathered in either community shelters or the safety of their homes, praying to Gemini Gods for an easy wave.
With the TV screen on, they watched the raid develop live, cheering for the heroes that defended them from afar.
*******
"Forgive me for meddling my Lord, but that's not how you tighten your armor" Paladin Patrik said, as he saw Rocky struggling with putting on a full body armor and could not help but meddle.
"Oh? I have never actually fought in full gear before, even at the university..... I actually have no idea what I'm doing here" Rocky admitted candidly as Paladin Patrik moved over to him and started to tighten the armor straps around him.
While the majority of fighters were given standard issue armors, Rocky was given an (Epic) grade piece of equipment that was usually reserved for paladins of the Church.
Initially, Pope Cole was insistent on giving Rocky his own semi-legendary armor, however, it was a custom fitted piece that was too small for Rocky's frame.
Thankfully, they had a standard issue piece of enchanted armor for the paladins that did fit Rocky as that was the armor Rocky tried wearing today.
The armor had 7 distinct enchanted components that greatly helped protect one against both magical and physical attacks.
The main component was the chest piece, which was tightened using straps around the back such that it fit one's frame perfectly without leaving any gaps.
While there were strapless variants of chestpiece available, unless it was a custom fitting, they usually fitted one like a rattling box and were not optimal gear choices.
Despite the serious atmosphere, there were many viewers back at home who hoped to see a glimpse of Rocky in action, to see what the skills of the Champion of Gemini and a SSS talent looked like.
For now however, Rocky was only patiently waiting, just like the rest of Earth's climbers, holding his nerves until the enemies emerged.
A few hours passed, and the sun reached its peak height above everyone's head, when Rocky finally understood the mental fatigue of an impending war.
Since he was focused and at the ready since morning, although he had not made any physical movements, he felt fatigued because of the mental pressure building.
In such an environment, it was important to keep one's nerves calm and joke around, as if one got tired before the fight even began, then it was sure to be a disaster.
Rocky noticed that the groups of the front lines were constantly singing songs and engaging in small fun games, however, his group was eerily silent and hence he decided to lighten the mood by cracking a joke.
"Paladin Patrik.....guys-" Rocky said, scratching his nose as he felt embarrassed to make such a silly joke.
"Yes my lord?" The paladin replied, wondering why Rocky called him.
"Why do dwarves not play football?" Rocky asked in all seriousness, as Paladin Patrik frowned at the question.
"Why do dwarves not play football?" He wondered, as Rocky smiled and said "Because the grass tickles their balls"
For a moment, Sir Patrik looked at Rocky in confusion, before he and everyone else in the party burst out laughing.
"Hahahahaha..... balls-"
Everyone chuckled at the impromptu joke, as Rocky felt proud of having lightened the tense atmosphere.
However, little did he know that this small joke that he made was caught by the cameras and had made not only his team, but everyone across the globe crack a smile.
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/// A/N - Bonus chapter for hitting the GT Target, good job everyone! ///