Black Wolf was pissed off.

They had lost six Death Eagles, which took a tremendous amount of time, energy, and resources to raise!

He looked at the main culprit and gritted his teeth.

"Kang Oh!"

The man assumed the form of a demon, and swung his twin demon swords! There was no one who wouldn't recognize the most well-known person in Arth.

He knew about Sephiro's red wyvern too, and it didn't take long for him to realize just how special it was.

Moreover...

The Phoenix!

It was a mythological creature!

He saw its strength with his own two eyes; the sight of a Death Eagle burned to nothing from the slightest touch of the Phoenix's flames.

That was why he ordered their retreat, despite having 34 Death Eagles left.

"Get out of here as fast as you can!"

"Yes, sir!"

The Death Eagles began to retreat from the battlefield.

"Captain, they're getting away."

"Don't let them get away," Saladin yelled.

The wyverns forcefully flapped their wings in pursuit. Their numbers had gone down from 150 to 80.

Of course, Kang Oh had no intention of letting them go quietly.

He used Weapon Bombardment and said, "Rudy, Eternal Flame!"

One of the long, flaming feathers on Rudy's head pointed at the air. Then, bright yellow flames surged around ten of the Death Eagles' tails.

"What!?"

"Heok!"

Their riders were astonished.

It was as if the flames themselves had traveled through space; there was absolutely no way to dodge them. After all, there was no sign that they were coming!

"Your scrolls, use your scrolls!" Black Wolf yelled urgently.

However, the flames continued to spread across the Death Eagles' bodies, devouring them whole.

The Black Wolf Squad quickly pulled out magic scrolls from their inventories.

White smoke arose from the scrolls.

This was fire-extinguishing magic that the Empire Guild's mages had developed. It was basically a magical fire extinguisher.

However, they couldn't put out the fire.

The Eternal Flame was special. It could only be stopped by the Phoenix itself.

Roar! Roar!

Ten Death Eagles burnt to a crisp. Their riders shared their fate.

Black Wolf was shocked.

'To think a Phoenix was this powerful!'

At this rate, they would be annihilated. He had to save as many Death Eagles as he could.

"Retreat! Retreat, you idiots!" Black Wolf shouted at the top of his lungs.

However, one of the Death Eagles had already been caught by Kang Oh.

He had used Weapon Bombardment to block its escape route, and had attacked it from behind. The Death Eagle's fate was decided.

Death!

After that...

"Where do you think you're going!?" Sephiro yelled. Waryong quickly flew over and bit the Death Eagle's neck.

Waryong's normal speed was equal to a Death Eagle's, but that didn't take into account Meteor Crash.

It was surprising.

A wyvern was supposed to be slower in the air, and weaker across the board. That's how they were at birth, after all.

However, Waryong was different.

Even the Wyvern King, Draka, would be no match for Waryong now.

Why, you ask?

Waryong was a mutant wyvern. Thus, its limitations were far higher than a normal wyvern's.

Plus, Sephiro had put his blood, sweat, and tears into raising it.

He lovingly cared for it, fed it good food, paid close attention to it, and rigorously trained it.

To add to that, the goddess had gifted him wyvern armor, which raised all of its abilities by 1.5 times. This ability was called 'Transcendent Being'.

Lastly, Acacus's Book and Dragon's Blood had made it even stronger.

Acacus's Book was a reward from his soul dungeon, the Stonemason's Workroom. This book could be used for a chance at a random Tamer skill, or significantly increase the abilities of one's pet.

With it, Waryong quickly reached its maximum strength.

Plus...!

Sephiro would bother, beg, or negotiate with Kang Oh for Dragon's Blood. This also allowed Waryong to surpass its limitations.

Then, the process would repeat. Through loving care, training, and Acacus's Book, Waryong's power would grow to its new cap.

Thus, Waryong was more powerful than even a Death Eagle.

Kyaaahk!

Waryong stretched its neck and bit a Death Eagle's wing.

Kieek!

The Death Eagle released an agonizing cry, struggled to get free, and scratched at Waryong's skin with its talons.

However...!

Clang, clang!

The Death Eagle's beaks and talons, which could cut through the strongest steel with ease, couldn't pierce through Waryong's armor.

Sephiro kicked off Waryong's back, and shot three arrows in the air.

Triple Shot!

Waryong wasn't the only one who'd grown. Sephiro had grown strong enough to shoot three of these thick arrows at once.

Thwock! Thwock! Thwock!

Two of the three arrows struck the rider, while the last one hit the Death Eagle itself.

"Waryong!"

Swoosh!

Waryong quickly flew over and caught the falling Sephiro. Then, it immediately opened its mouth and unleashed red flames.

Fire Dragon's Arrow!

Sephiro notched a flaming arrow, and shot it at the Death Eagle.

Roar!

The arrow finished off the Death Eagle and rider duo.

Sephiro quickly scanned his surroundings.

The Death Eagles were already far off into the distance.

"Let's go, Waryong!"

Meteor Crash!

Waryong, who transformed into a dark red meteor in the sky, instantly caught up with the group of Death Eagles.

"Eek!" Black Wolf gasped.

Waryong smashed into one of the Death Eagles.

Boom!

The Death Eagle instantly lost consciousness and plummeted to the ground. Without a parachute, the rider began to fall to his death.

Chirp!

Rudy used the last of its power. A flame pillar appeared out of nowhere, devouring a Death Eagle.

After that, Rudy returned to its weakened form.

Chirp!

In an attempt to keep itself afloat, Rudy flapped its tiny wings. Kang Oh quickly flew over and grabbed it.

The Eternal Flame was Rudy's finishing move. It used up most of the flames it'd consumed thus far.

Rudy had used it to kill ten Death Eagles simultaneously, and had used what remained of its flames to take one more down before it reverted to its powerless form.

It entered a deep sleep within Kang Oh's buxom.

"Your time is almost up," Tasha said telepathically.

"Got it." Kang Oh flew down to the airship.

Kyaahk! Kyaahk!

Several wyverns passed by him. However, normal wyverns had no hope of catching the Death Eagles.

Only Sephiro and Waryong pursued them till the very end, and managed to kill one more pair before they returned.

Black Wing had originally started with 40 Death Eagles. However, half of them had died.

Rudy had killed fourteen of them with its flames, Kang Oh had killed two, and Sephiro/Waryong had killed four!

That was the result of the Black Wolf Squad's horrible nightmare.

* * *

Kang Oh safely landed on the frontmost airship.

Soldiers approached him and thanked him for saving their lives. One of them was Ould, the leader of the Elephant Corps.

"Thank you!" Ould said enthusiastically.

What if they had lost the Elephant Corps' elites? That would've been a huge blow to the Alliance. They would've lost Ould too.

'Ould! The commander of the Elephant Corps, the Krampal General, the victor of the Corvault Expedition, and the Tactical Genius! I should get closer to him.'

Kang Oh, who'd figured out who he was speaking to, suddenly acted modest.

"I'm glad I could save you. After all, you'll do much in the battle that is to come. Ah, and the Corvault Expedition really left a huge impression on me."

He also added some flattery too.

"May I know the name of my savior?"

"My name is Kang Oh."

"Ah!"

Kang Oh had a laundry list of several outstanding deeds, which made him incredibly famous. He had plenty of titles to prove it too.

"The Evil God Punisher."

It was a title he'd gained from the battle against the Evil God Worshippers. This battle had taken place in the large city of Franco. Thus, the citizens of the central region remembered Kang Oh as the Evil God Punisher.

In the west, he was known as the 'Hero of Kasten', while he was called a 'True Friend' in the south for his efforts in taking down the Winged Snake Queen.

To players, he was known as the Predator.

"I will be sure to return the favor!" Ould yelled passionately.

[Closeness with the Krampal General, Ould, has increased significantly.]

[Ould will grant your request, whatever it may be.]

'Whatever it may be, huh... It should prove useful someday.' Kang Oh grinned.

After that, Kang Oh acquainted himself with the Master Knight, Olando, as well as other big shots on the airship.

He also briefly said hello to the rankers on the ship.

Soon enough, Sephiro and Waryong returned to the ships. He received just as good of a reception as Kang Oh.

He was especially welcomed by Saladin and the Flying Dragon Squad. They just wouldn't let him go.

"Mr. Sephiro, I heard you haven't joined a guild yet. Please come to our guild."

"Mr. Sephiro!"

"I admire you! You're my new role model!"

They were enamored by the sight of Sephiro and Waryong taking down the Death Eagles.

"Hoo, hoo, hoo." Sephiro smiled brightly. He didn't dislike the attention they were giving him.

Gyaahk! Gyaahk!

Waryong imitated its master, yelling enthusiastically and flapping its outstretched wings.

Meanwhile, the wyverns continuously pulled the airships towards the battlefield.

* * *

The eastern airships hadn't been blocked like their western counterparts, so they arrived at the battlefield earlier.

The 1st Corps' right flank was the first ones to notice them.

"What's that?"

"Flying boats?"

"That's the symbol of the Alliance. Attack!"

Magic and arrows came flying at the airships.

"Clear the ground," Broccoli yelled. He was the Flying Dragon's vice-captain.

The Flying Dragon Squad, which was already on standby, quickly flew towards their enemies.

There were 150 of them!

The wyverns simultaneously unleashed Poison Breaths at the ground.

"Uahk!"

"Ugh."

Anywhere the green or black energy passed through, anguished cries could be heard.

Black spots would appear on their bodies, their faces would melt off, or they would feel symptoms of severe poisoning and fall to the ground. This happened for hundreds of soldiers.

This was the true power of a wyvern squad!

The 1st Corps' right general couldn't handle the wyverns' bombardment.

"Scatter, hide, dodge!"

That was the best he could do.

It was only natural. Most of the 1st Corps' elites were in the center, so the right flank contained only normal soldiers.

They didn't have the ability to stop the airships.

"Let's not waste time here and head straight for the middle," Burkan said.

"Understood."

Only a few wyverns attacked the ground troops, while the rest of them tugged the airships towards the middle of the battlefield.

* * *

'Airships flown using wyverns!' Jegal bit his nails.

He finally knew how they'd gotten their troops here so quickly.

Jegal quickly thought things over.

Who would be on those ships?

'The other corps' elites!'

Jegal had ordered the 2nd and 3rd Corps to carefully monitor the Eagle and Elephant Corps for any suspicious movements. They had reported that they hadn't done anything suspicious.

They had been too relaxed, no, overconfident because the Alliance couldn't use the gates.

'Damn it!'

Those airships would allow them to ferry their elites without being noticed.

"Contact Mr. Black Wolf. Tell him to hurry up with the western airships and then come straight back."

Death Eagles were the best when facing wyverns. If he could, he wanted to shoot down the airships before the soldiers got off.

"Yes, sir!"

His subordinate immediately sent Black Wolf a message. However, he didn't get a reply back.

"He isn't replying back."

"What?"

Jegal quickly looked at the map.

He looked at the red and blue dots in the west. The blue dots, or Black Wing, were coming back. However, the red dots were the same as before.

Which meant...!

'They failed to destroy the western airships.'

"Order the left and right generals to join up with our center troops ASAP!"

"Then we won't be able to surround them..."

"That's not the issue here. Our victory is no longer assured. Bring out all of our reserve troops too!"

"U-Understood!"

His subordinate moved quickly.

Jegal bit his index finger's center joint. It was a bad habit of his that happened whenever things weren't going well.

"Mm!" He anxiously looked at the battle.

The airships had already reached the center of the battlefield!

In the west, another set of airships were following the defeated Black Wing.