The instant Rhine's shoulder slammed into Kaito's chest, the system flared.
[HP -14%]
[You have been illegally attacked by the guild Everhold Dominion. Team Counterattack permitted for 30 minutes.]
Kaito didn't even blink. His boots ground into the dust. Around him, the Blackstone Ravine held its breath—scorchmarks from earlier battles still etched into the stone, smoke curling off scorched gnawers' carcasses.
Thirty players surrounded Genesis—Everhold Dominion in full formation. The mood was electric.
Rhine sneered, stepping back. "Still standing? Are you scared."
Kaito exhaled once, quiet as a blade unsheathed.
"You just made the final mistake."
Then he moved.
[Skill Activated: Cross Slash]
A red X carved the air as Kaito vanished forward. The first Dominion player—a greatsword wielder—barely had time to register motion before the blade hit. One clean arc sliced his HP down by 62%, the second dropped it to zero.
[Player Eliminated]
Kaito twisted mid-motion and flicked his blade.
[Skill Activated: Cut]
He dashed past a shield-bearer, his strike precisely aimed. Sparks burst from the metal guard—then the shield exploded into shards.
[Debuff Applied: Armor Shatter – 10s]
"Spread out!" Rhine barked. "Take out the support!"
At once, his team surged forward.
But Kaede acted first.
His staff was already humming with power as he spun toward the left flank, eyes narrowing on the shieldbearers forming up.
"Lightning chain!"
A burst of lightning shot forward like a net of razors. The arc lashed from one opponent to another, stunning three of them on impact. Sparks danced across their armor, leaving them twitching, weapons dropping.
he didn't stop there.
"Cinderbolt Nova!"
Three orbs of molten flame spiraled from his hands, arching high before dropping into the center of the clustered enemies. With a thunderous boom, they exploded in searing heat and concussive force.
Dust erupted. Flames curled along the battlefield.
Kaede's opening salvo had just begun.
Suzune was already gone.
"Shadowline Reversal."
Her cloak dissolved into mist. A heartbeat later, she was behind a dual-wielder mid-charge, her daggers silent and lethal. One clean stroke to the back of the neck — and he crumpled, eyes wide with shock.
Two more turned toward her. She calmly flipped a capsule between her fingers and tossed it at their feet.
"Poison Lure Trap."
The canister hissed. A green cloud burst outward, sticky and slow, clinging to the enemy's legs. They staggered, coughing violently, blinded in the fog.
Suzune emerged on the other side of the mist. Her next strike took the first one cleanly.
The second never even saw it coming.
Daichi didn't wait for an opening. He made one.
"Burststep Impact!"
He lunged like a spring loosed from tension, crashing into a heavy axeman mid-roar. The man folded around the monk's shoulder like paper against stone. A knee into the gut followed, then a vicious elbow that sent the man flying.
Daichi turned with purpose.
"Cyclone Palm!"
He raised both arms and spun — a massive burst of wind erupted outward. The pressure lifted three more off their feet, launching them backward into a broken formation. One rolled to a stop, groaning.
Daichi exhaled, fists tight. "Next."
Aika stood still — but she was the center of it all.
Her eyes didn't move. Her hands didn't tremble.
"Radiant Guard."
A dome of shimmering gold expanded around her allies just in time to deflect a salvo of arrows from the opposing side. The barrier didn't crack. It didn't even flicker.
Then she whispered:
"Sanctuary Sync."
A wave of golden light pulsed outward, soft but powerful. Kaito's bruises eased. Daichi's shoulder stiffened. Meirin's breath stabilized.
She rotated through cooldowns like a composer conducting a symphony.
In her light, they endured.
Hiroto charged like a juggernaut.
"Burning Drive!"
His shield erupted with red flame as he slammed into a greatsword user with the force of a boulder. The man bounced off the impact, weapon skittering across the ground. Hiroto followed up without hesitation.
"Aegis Vault!"
He dropped to a crouch, angled his shield, and launched the next enemy skyward with a roar. The airborne swordsman flipped once, twice — and then came down in a heap.
"Get up if you want a second chance!" Hiroto barked.
They didn't.
Meirin stood calm, eyes scanning, bow already drawn.
"Gale Spiral Shot."
The arrow shimmered with wind energy, rotating as it flew. It spiraled through a group of mages like a drill, striking the ground beneath them and detonating in a powerful updraft. Two were thrown backward. A third had their robes shredded by the force.
"Airstep Mirage."
With a flicker of green light, she vanished — reappearing twenty meters away behind a rocky outcropping. Her afterimage took the firebolt meant to stop her.
She was already nocking another arrow.
Another shot. Another wound.
Another enemy down.
Kaito moved last. But he moved with purpose.
He stepped forward as the air twisted around him.
"Elemental Guard."
Arcane sigils flared across his armor. Three attacks struck — a spear, a blade, and a fireball — all of them dissipated harmlessly against the glyphs.
He blinked.
"Mana Step."
A flash of blue energy burst beneath his feet. He reappeared behind a brawler winding up for a punch.
"Flame Arc Slash."
His blade ignited in mid-swing, carving a burning path upward from waist to collarbone.
The man didn't scream. Just fell.
The field trembled with the roar of boots and blades. Dust clouds mingled with smoke. The crackle of fire magic clashed with the clash of steel. Amid it all, the Genesis squad didn't just fight — they flowed.
Every attack they made, every step they took — it was as if they'd rehearsed this battle a thousand times.
But they hadn't.
They were just that good.
Suzune ducked beneath a halberd slash, flipped, and disappeared.
"Shadowline Reversal."
She emerged behind a healer in the enemy backline — a robed cleric trying to cast a defensive shield. Her dagger gleamed once in the light.
By the time the shield activated, the caster was already collapsing forward.
Another turned and lunged for her throat. She slid back, flipping a second trap beneath his boots.
"Poison Lure Trap."
A burst of green mist engulfed him.
He didn't make it two steps.
Kaede pivoted mid-spell and raised his staff.
Two spellcasters from Everhold had broken through the outer skirmishers and were targeting Aika with concentrated bolts.
"Stormlash Surge!"
he launched a spiraling streak of electric blue energy — it split mid-air, curving unnaturally, and struck both mages simultaneously. Their spells fizzled into sparks. One was thrown backward, smoke trailing from his robes.
Kaede turned back toward the frontline.
"Cinderbolt Nova!"
The detonation scorched a fresh line of swordsmen trying to flank Hiroto. Kaede was relentless.
Hiroto planted his feet like a mountain.
Two attackers crashed into his shield. They didn't move him an inch.
"Burning Drive!"
A wave of flame erupted from his stance. One attacker was sent tumbling, the other backed away, raising his weapon defensively.
Hiroto was already moving.
"Aegis Vault!"
He lunged forward, launched the first enemy up in a high arc, and then shoulder-bashed the second into the rocky terrain.
He didn't pause.
He couldn't afford to.
Aika's voice rang out. Soft. Calm. Controlled.
"Radiant Guard."
Another arrow storm fell. Another wall of light absorbed it.
Her hand moved again.
"Sanctuary Sync."
Light rippled outward, catching Kaito just as a spear grazed his hip. The wound sealed mid-stride.
Even as her mana dipped, her eyes remained steady.
Her belief in them never wavered.
Meirin was already on her third position change.
The wind pulsed around her. Her breathing was rhythmic, her fingers steady.
"Gale Spiral Shot."
She aimed at a heavily armored brute chasing Daichi. The spiraling arrow struck just behind his legs and exploded in a directed vortex — launching him into the air.
"Follow-up," she whispered.
Another shot. Directly through his exposed chest.
Target down.
"Airstep Mirage."
She vanished before the retaliating blast reached her location. She reappeared beside Aika, bow already pulled again.
"You good?"
"Always," Aika replied softly.
Daichi used the moment.
He darted in, palms raised.
"Burststep Impact!"
He slammed into a twin-dagger rogue, driving him into a boulder. Before the body could slump, Daichi spun and knocked back a lance-wielder with a hard front kick.
"Cyclone Palm!"
His palm strike released a wide-pressure burst. The enemy staggered backward, too winded to speak.
Daichi cracked his neck.
"Who's next?"
Kaito ducked beneath a slash from Rhine himself.
The Everhold commander had come into the fray, his crimson blade flashing with killing intent.
"Mana Step."
Kaito blinked behind him.
"Flame Arc Slash!"
His blade caught Rhine along the back, burning deep into the armor.
Rhine roared and turned with a savage uppercut, only to find air — Kaito had already disengaged, sword at the ready.
"You're slower than you used to be," Kaito said coldly.
Rhine's eyes narrowed. "You've gotten arrogant."
"No. Just better."
Genesis tightened their lines.
Enemy numbers were dropping, but danger was still everywhere.
Daichi and Hiroto held the front, Kaede providing support fire behind them. Suzune moved like a ghost, disrupting any coordination. Meirin picked off targets and watched for flanks. Aika covered every wound, every mistake, every breath.
And Kaito — Kaito was the center.
A whirlwind of blade, focus, and speed.
He parried. He countered. He controlled space like the battlefield was his home.
And maybe it was.
A cry rang out.
One of Everhold's top mages had formed a full incantation.
"EMPRESS NOVA!"
A massive arcane circle surged into the sky, preparing to unleash a meteor-level bombardment.
Kaede's eyes widened.
he braced his feet, pushed his staff high.
"Stormlash Surge!"
he channeled everything he had — lightning cracked skyward, slamming into the forming spell with violent force. The spell destabilized. The circle fractured.
And the nova exploded in the air, harmless.
The backlash still scorched his arm.
Meirin was there. She knocked aside a stray blast and caught Kaede before he fell.
"I've got you."
Aika activated a high-cooldown combo.
"Radiant Guard!"
She reinforced the team with another barrier, this time pulsing — reflecting small attacks outward with each impact.
"Sanctuary Sync!"
It layered healing in timed pulses. She was breathing harder now, but still steady.
Kaito fought like a phantom.
One blink. One slash.
"Mana Step. Cross Slash."
He reappeared behind two spearmen — his blades cutting an X through them mid-motion. They collapsed without understanding what happened.
Then Rhine returned.
And this time, he brought five with him.