Just as Everhold Dominion's momentum hesitated, Kaede finished the final incantation of his spell.
Lightning Chain.
Immediately, pillars of silver lightning surged upward from the ground, striking down like divine punishment across areas densely packed with enemy players.
Crack!
Crack!
Crack!
Each second, those within range suffered over –300 damage. Within moments, more than ten players were vaporized, their bodies disintegrating into streaks of light before they even had time to scream.
The sudden devastation stunned the battlefield.
"What the hell was that?!"
A single spell had killed over ten players in an instant. The Everhold Dominion troops were dumbfounded.
How were they even supposed to fight against this?
Gravemind, however, refused to let the panic spread. He shouted with forced confidence, "Don't be afraid! Just spread out! Once we get in close, they're finished!"
His words reignited the fighting spirit in his troops. Many found logic in them.
The massive Everhold Dominion force resumed their charge, surrounding the members of Genesis, StormLife, and Crimson Rose in a tightening circle. Even when accounting for equal levels, Dominion outnumbered them by about 50-60 players.
But numbers weren't everything.
Not here.
With a flick of her wrist, Velena raised her black greatsword. Her eyes burned with battle intent.
"Rampage!"
She charged forward, her greatsword glowing with crimson energy. In a single sweep, three players were sent flying backward, crashing into the dirt with shattered bones and empty HP bars.
Without stopping, she followed up with Cleave—a brutal, sweeping arc that tore through six charging Level 13 players, each receiving over –450 damage. None of them survived.
In seconds, nine corpses lay strewn around her.
The Dominion players staggered, disbelieving.
They had gravely underestimated Velena—just because she was a woman.
But they had no idea what it meant for a Berserker to possess over 50 Strength.
With just 20 Strength, a Berserker could snap a common weapon with bare hands. At 50? It was like unleashing a human siege engine.
After cutting down the first wave, Velena charged into the crowd like a flood dragon entering the sea.
Chaos erupted.
"Whirlwind Slash!"
A violent gale burst out from her blade, sending all enemies within five yards flying. The air erupted with damage numbers—–517, –543, –498.
The players landed hard—and didn't get up.
Not even the backline healers had time to react. They were cut down before they could lift a finger.
The Dominion troops surrounding Velena began trembling. Her aura was suffocating—more terrifying than any boss monster they'd faced.
But the rest of Everhold Dominion were still trying to fight bravely.
They spammed skills and spells toward the members of Genesis, Crimson Rose, and StormLife… but their attacks only dealt –40 to –50 damage at most.
In return?
A single hit from the opposing side shaved off half their HP.
Two hits—and they were dead.
Healers couldn't keep up. Their mana drained faster than they could cast.
What they didn't know… was that Velena and Zephyr had both been armed with Hard and above dungeon strategy guides—given directly by Kaito. They had just cleared multiple dungeon runs before heading to South Glade Town to collect their new gear from him.
Their brief absence was what allowed Rhine to stage an ambush on Genesis.
But now… Dominion was paying the price.
Their own equipment was outdated and their coordination sloppy. Most of their players were new to Glory—underleveled, undergeared, and unprepared.
In short: they were noobs.
The difference in strength, level, and equipment was glaring.
Only the top elites of Everhold Dominion could barely hold their ground. The rest were being shredded.
Amidst the chaos, a striking figure moved gracefully among the rear lines—a radiant beauty clad in cleric robes. Every time an ally teetered on the brink of death, a perfectly timed Heal or Radiant Shield would wrap them in divine light, pulling them back from the edge.
The Everhold Dominion members watched in frustration. No matter how hard they tried to kill the frontliners, that Cleric kept them alive.
They tried to target her.
But the moment anyone got close, two assassins emerged from the shadows—moving like twin blades of death.
Any enemy who dared approach the cleric was cut down instantly.
It was maddening.
"All Assassins—use Stealth! Get rid of their healers!"
Gravemind's furious command echoed through the team chat.
"Without their healers, they're finished! I don't care how strong they are—kill the clerics, and the rest will fall like sheep!"
If half a dozen assassins could slip through the frontlines and strike together, even a top-tier Cleric would crumble under a coordinated ambush. That was Gravemind's gamble now.
His eyes burned with hatred as he scanned the chaotic battlefield.
"Where is that brat?! I want to kill him myself!"
He glanced around rapidly—but Kaito was nowhere to be seen.
The chaos he had unleashed, the slaughter of Everhold Dominion's forces—it had all started with him. And now?
He had vanished.
Gravemind's fists clenched. The losses they were suffering today were monumental.
And it was all because of one person.
He couldn't let Kaito get away.
"Boss Gravemind," a panicked voice came through the chat, "I didn't see that brat either… he's gone!"
Gravemind's veins throbbed with rage.
"FIND HIM! I don't care how—he must be found!"
If Kaito escaped… if this humiliation went public… Gravemind would become a laughingstock.
And just then—
Boom!
A new surge of mana twisted through the battlefield.
All eyes turned toward the rear lines of StormLife.
There, standing calmly with a swirling orb of icy blue energy gathered at his fingertips, was none other than Marek Voss, the vice guildmaster of StormLife.
The same man who once challenged Kaito's leadership.
And now, he stood as one of Genesis's allies—gathering power for a devastating wide-area spell.
Marek's reputation as a battle mage was well-known. The Everhold Dominion players nearby immediately panicked, recognizing the buildup of mana around him.
"Shit—fall back!"
"He's casting something big—move, now!"
But Marek Voss only scoffed.
"You should've run before picking a fight with us."
His hands dropped.
"Frost wind."
A roaring blizzard erupted from his staff. Within seconds, a swirling snowstorm engulfed a five-yard radius, laced with razor-sharp frost icicles.
The storm howled.
—108!
—115!
—112!
—127!
Players from Everhold Dominion screamed as the freezing assault tore through their HP bars. Within the affected zone, anyone below half health was instantly eliminated. The rest struggled to escape the radius, stumbling through blinding snow and ice.
Marek Voss's Frostwind spell alone was enough to eliminate ten Everhold Dominion players, leaving the rest in that radius barely clinging to life. Cries of pain echoed across the battlefield as wounded players staggered back with flashing red HP bars.
But the healers of Everhold Dominion reacted quickly.
Streams of light burst forth as group healing spells were cast, restoring the surviving players' HP to full once again.
It was then that Zephyr stepped forward.
His blade gleamed under the dim sky.
As a fellow swordsman, his fighting spirit had been steadily rising—and now, it surged.
He raised his longsword high, mana wrapping around his feet like a spiraling cyclone.
"Terra Step."
With a booming crack, the ground beneath Zephyr's feet erupted into stone as he launched forward like a missile, propelled by a burst of compressed earth energy.
Before the Dominion players could react, Zephyr landed directly in front of their clustered vanguard.
"Stonecrash"
He slammed his sword into the ground.
BOOM!
A violent shockwave of earth mana erupted from the point of impact. Jagged stone pillars and ruptured earth exploded outward in a cone-shaped AoE, striking everyone within a wide arc.
—442!
—410!
—461!
The impact knocked multiple players into the air, while others were crushed under spiking slabs of stone. Nearly a dozen enemies were severely injured or stunned, caught completely off guard.
Without pause, Zephyr roared and charged headlong into the scattered survivors, cutting through them with brutal efficiency. Every swing of his blade sent enemies flying.
He was like a storm of stone and steel, devastating everything in his path.
All around him, the allied teams—Genesis, StormLife, and Crimson Rose—were tearing through Everhold Dominion's disorganized forces.
And yet… amidst the chaos…
Gravemind was still searching.
His eyes flicked from corner to corner, scanning every face, every shadow.
Where was Kaito?!
The battlefield was crumbling, his players were dying left and right—and still, the one person he wanted dead more than anyone was nowhere to be seen.
Gravemind's grip on his bow tightened, knuckles white with rage.