CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

The End Begins

"I am glad you've accepted our offer at such short notice."

Snek said. Beneath him were hundreds of users milling about the port. They were the unassuming cannon fodder who were about to be slaughtered in this operation. Fortunately, none of them knew that or else they might not be so cooperative.

"Absolutely no problem. To be honest, we were starting to get nervous that you wouldn't show." Pale chuckled nervously as if relieved.

Snek had only contacted him the day before, and they had spent the last twenty-four hours advertising and recruiting more people for this monumental event. At the moment, everything was set to start at the brink of dawn. Many people had to wake up early just to participate, but fortunately, the salty sea breeze did wonders to snap them back to lucidity.

"It was a tough decision, but we decided to take the risk. For this beautiful city that has cared for so many of us, its the least we can do to give back." Snek said magnanimously. As his cloak fluttered with the wind and with the rising sun against his back, Snek was looking particularly heroic. He would not tell Pale about how they had all lost gear valued in the hundreds just a few days prior. He didn't need to. Because currently, Snek was not wearing any shoes.

Hopefully, this operation would yield enough rewards to recoup their losses. At the very least they would have to use this as a smokescreen to hide their weakness.

"And we thank you for your high mindedness." A third figure joined in the conversation. With a heavy paunch and a jaw that was as rugged as a cliff face, the White Knight Commander, Asteros observed the proceedings below them.

On the eve of the assault, word had spread all along the White Temple's chain of command. And while some figures did their best to suppress such claims, a few took the initiative to join the battle. Of course, none of the actions of these brave few were sanctioned by the Temple, thus every knight or soldier that stood with them were doing so at their own peril.

Asteros was one of them. Though could not participate in the fighting directly due to his status, he had still provided a squadron of eager level fifty recruits to serve as cannon fodder.

The recruits had chubby faces and exuded the milky aura of being greenhorns, yet each and every one of them was worth dozens of the beginner's gathered below.

Pale grunted. When he had first gotten here, he was mildly surprised at the turnout. What was even more surprising was that Snek had designated him as the field strategist for the whole thing.

Although such a decision did make sense. The overall battle plan simple, and it was doubtful that there would be any additional changes. Also, despite getting his ass kicked the day before, Snek was still a powerhouse that exceeded level sixty. If push came to shove, he would make for a valuable reinforcement.

"What's the status of our assault groups?" Pale inquired. Snek then took out a few transmission crystals and spaced them neatly on top of a stump.

{Viper in. The beginners are ready to charge in whenever you are.}

{Taipan group here. We have found the sewer entrance, but we're behind schedule. We've crossed some zombie alligators and we'll need another five minutes.}

{Python here. We've found the cave path, but a quarter of our guys got lost along the way.}

{Dawn checking in. We've located the underwater entrance. It's not too big. We can try to cave it in.}

{...}

{...}

As the various groups checked in with their progress, Pale became slightly overwhelmed by the magnitude of it all. But since Snek and Asteros were watching, he kept his face tranquil as he began to relay orders.

"Viper, prepare the troops. You will begin the first charge in exactly ten minutes after we sync timepieces. Everyone else set your watches for thirteen minutes. Dawn--"

{Um. I don't have a watch.}

"That's fine. Don't do anything for now and remain on standby. We can get one of the knight squadrons to keep watch over it. I doubt they would use that exit unless completely necessary due to the alligator-infested waters."

{Roger Roger.}

Pale turned to Asteros. "Should we prepare a speech to raise the morale of the men?"

"There is no need for posturing. For a ragtag band like this, motivated by greed and desire, such an action would be counterproductive."

"Is that so. Then we will begin. Everyone, please mark on my signal."

"3"

"2"

"1"

{{{Sync}}}

*Crash*

"...???"

The moment they all prepared, a heavy blast came out of a neighboring old warehouse. The shrapnel and wooden splinters screamed through the air as the propulsion turned them into tiny spinning slivers of death.

Many users nearest the warehouse screamed in pain as they found sudden bloodied hole punctures on their bodies. The more fortunate ones were not even aware of the damage as they immediately collapsed into piles of grey flesh.

"What's going on?!!"

"OH GOD. THE BUILDING IS FALLING!"

Amidst the shocked cries, Viper was also within the crowd. Her eyes were like snowglobes as she looked down at her watch and the destruction that was wrought. Did they do that?

The answer was soon clear, as dozens of tiny figures started to appear from the wreckage. Randomly spaced between them were much larger ones, each equipped in light mail with a surcoat emblazoned with the emblem of a towering gate.

"Children?"

"Those are my men!" Asteros sputtered when he saw the figures staggering out one by one. He seemed almost bewildered at the sight.

"Are they releasing the hostages since they know they can't win?" Snek wondered aloud. He was nervous. If the whole situation ended with a peaceful situation, then their share of loot was sure to fall.

"No...Somethings wrong." Pale muttered. "Do we have anyone we can talk to down there? What's going on?"

...

Those who were nearest the explosion site were currently in a panic. Whether it be retrieving the wounded or looting the dead, the current situation was chaos.

However, amidst the confusion, a few of the more heroic users began to assume command. Relaying orders to get the situation under control. These were the typical nice guys and firemen that one might see in real life, and their emergency response training proved vital in a situation such as this.

A few of them even went to meet the struggling children and knights who were in the middle of escaping the collapsing building. Even if it were just a game, they were risking their own lives for the benefit of others.

They wore no capes and needed no praise, but such men were indeed, heroes.

"C'mere sweety. Let's find your parents." One man with a beard stretched out a trembling hand to a shivering little girl. "Don't be afraid. It's alright now."

The little girl stared at him blankly. The whites of her eyes were completely non-existent and almost imperceptibly leaked a green miasma.

"What the..."

*Gyaaaaraaaaa*

With a piercing shriek, the little girl pounced on the unassuming player, knocking him down with a muffled yell.

Rough ripping sounds came from the body a moment later as the little girl raised her head. Her mouth drenched in blood.

For a single moment, all was silent. The other children and soldiers behind her did not move and neither did the masses of players who stood there, transfixed. It was like watching a massive storm on the brink of hitting your house. It's horrible sure, but there was just something mesmerizing about it.

And then? You die.

With an earsplitting shriek, the little girl brought everyone back to reality. Almost as one, the hordes of children began leaking green miasma from their orifices as hundreds of people screamed out in panic.

It had begun.

...

"Get my men down there to restrain them! I want no deaths. They are still citizens of this city." Asteros' voice boomed, reaching the ears of everyone present. The number of the corrupted were small but they penetrated the ranks of players with almost no resistance at all.

"Yeah...People are already dying." Pale noted. People were actually dying pretty quickly. Whether by magical enhancement or just the pathetic weakness of the users, the small green-eyed children were positively tearing them apart. Less needed to be said for the turned knights, as each of them was easily worth a hundred men.

"I shall go down there personally. With me!" Asteros snarled before turning into a white-hot streak of light. His squadron who had been standing at attention nearby followed suit, all hurriedly rushing to follow their hardboiled leader.

"Those who try to be brave will die first." Pale whispered softly, before raising his voice to roaring volumes. "Ignore the hostages. We can have Jorgenson and Caesar Squads deal with damage control. Viper, begin the assault now."

Snek's heart sunk. Already there were complications. And at this stage, he could not rescind his participation.

{Are you sure? It's a bit chaotic down here.} Viper asked.

Pale sent a look at Snek.

Snek could feel his chest hurting as he invariably came to a decision. For better or for worst, he had no choice anymore.

"Do it."

{Very well.}

But a few seconds later, a rallying cry could be heard booming from the masses of players below. While they were still being cut into pieces by the corrupted, the main force began their charge into the warehouse, taking a few moments to break down the entrance before surging inside.

"Charge! Charge! Charge!" After the initial surge, the same command was relayed down the lines, and like a raging stream, the numerous players that were milling about the port were all sucked into one location.

It should be known that the warehouse was not a big place. Even if one were to look at the area is covered by square feet, it would be able to pack at most five hundred people. Yet like a black hole, more and more men charged in without indication of slowing.

For such a phenomenon to occur, there were two scenarios. Either they almost instantaneously discovered a secret entrance and were rushing into a much larger dungeon, or they were being culled instantly, without so much as the opportunity to give out a warning.

Or both.

"Python. Begin moving up. Since Taipan is late, proceed with caution."

{No problem.}

The second unit of the operation began to move. However, instead of being made of fodder, this group was composed of half the elites of the Basilisk guild including guest rankers and regular users with useful skills.

Their route to the dungeon, which relied on navigating through cavernous depths was the most dangerous but should lead them to the innermost sanctum where any remaining captives would be held, prisoner.

As they proceeded, Python kept one user continuously relaying their status to Pale and Snek. In a situation where the leaders couldn't get a clear vision of the battlefield, a constant stream of information would be vital to their accomplishments.

{Taipan group has arrived at the entrance.}

"Excellent. Join Python in the search for the hostages. Be warned that some hostages may be corrupted and will attack sight. If you come across them, do not engage and retreat." Pale ordered coolly. As for Snek, he was fidgeting nervously while watching the swirling masses of users become smaller and smaller.

{Understood. We're going in...Wait, what is that?}

"What is what?!!" Snek exclaimed as he instantly appeared beside Pale. His nerves were a bit tense right now, and even a hint of bad news would send him running.

A low screech came out of the communication crystal. The reception gained some static as Taipan replied.

{It looks like...like... a little girl?}

"Be Careful Taipan. She could be turned." Snek warned. There were few places one wouldn't want to find a little girl. A haunted mansion for one, or perhaps on a lone street in a zombie apocalypse. Case in point, finding one at a sewer entrance was not usually a place to find little girls.

{I know...I--} Taipan had been in the middle of responding when his voice suddenly cut off. It was then replaced by another, and the speaker was all too familiar for Pale.

{It's so cold. Why is it so cold?}

{Will you warm me up?}

{Hey, where are you going?}

{Don't leave...}

"TAIPAN GET OUT OF THERE NOW!" Snek roared into the crystal while Pale had an amused expression on his face.

While Snek was furiously yelling orders into the communication crystal, Taipan's group heard not a word. His words were not going through, and it seemed that the only noise that was being broadcasted was that of the little girls.

Even as dark figures leaped down from the shadows to ambush the screaming players, Snek heard not a word of it. It was only at the end that he heard one final remark before the crystal shattered.

{...}

{...I'm warm now.}

Snek's face paled and he felt a bit faint. They had already lost half of their main force, but they hadn't gained anything in return.

Viper's voice appeared from the communicator crystal.

{Snek. We're getting slaughtered down here. How long do we have to hold out?}

"I...I..." Snek stuttered. His mind spun even as Viper yelled for support. It should be known that as a guild master, Snek had few redeeming qualities and that it was the people under him that helped the guild function. Though everyone looked up to him as the leader to make the tough decisions, his personality did not suit such trials.

Fortunately, Snek learned early the benefits of delegation. Where numerous officers could cover the flaws of a weak leader. And here it showed, as Pale smoothly grabbed the crystal from Snek's hands and breathed orders into it.

"Viper. Tell me clearly what you are facing."

{A bunch of those zombie children. And a bit further in, some humans in metal armor. We are losing too many guys. There are bodies everywhere.}

"How fast are you losing them. Python should be working on it."

{We've found some survivors.} Python's garbled voice spoke up. {But we were caught by a couple knights. We can take them, but it'll take time.}

"Viper...How long can you hold them?" Pale repeated. "Viper?... Shit"

Pale swore, before changing crystals.

"Dawn, were you listening in?"

{Yes I was.} Dawn's silvery voice replied from the crystal. Unbeknownst to anyone, she and the knight squadron had already traversed the crocodile-infested waters and were drying off in the dungeon entrance.

"Good. Take your guys and go in from the underwater entrance. If you need to, you may use the item I gave you earlier."

{Copy that.}

"Will they be enough?" Snek asked worriedly. With Taipan dead, the options they had at their disposal remained few.

"No..." Pale admitted. "Although we should still end with a victory once Asteros finishes rounding up the corrupted, our losses would be huge."

"So it'll just be another repeat of the White Chapel incident." Snek laughed hollowly.

"Yes. A pity. Well, there's nothing we can do about it now. We've already played all our cards." Pale sighed as he leaned back against a rock, seemingly defeated. But as he turned his face away from Snek, he could feel the corner of his lip curl up in anticipation.

"No. There is still something" Snek took a deep breath as he made his decision. From within the folds of his cloak, he pulled out an unassuming white rock. "I'm going."

Only one word was needed to describe ground zero. Bleak. Even as they passed the sobbing denizens of White City, mourning the loss of the fallen, or crying out their death throes, they would find their hearts shaken at the sheer amount of despair that hung in the midst.

In addition to that, the numerous mounds of dead bodies lying about made for a chilling scene.

The Elseworlds have only been officially released a month, yet already there were such scenes of genocide.

As Pale and Sneaky Snek had already made their way down to the port, such scenes became common. Asteros himself had already quelled the unrest, but could not help. With the numerous injured and dying, he was expending every last ounce of strength to save but a single person more.

Whether it be his strength, his wisdom, leadership or blood, Asteros gave it all, yet every moment, someone else would die.

Entering the wrecked entrance, they were astounded to find a gaping hole in the warehouse. A 10-meter diameter hole that led straight down. From the depths, the howling echos were the only indication that a battle still raged on.

"Why isn't anyone coming out?" Snek muttered, perplexed. If they really had sent all those players to their deaths, at least a few would lose their convictions and turn tail and run.

Yet apart from a few corpses by the entrance, everything was empty. The bodies shivered as Snek passed over them. An action that did not escape Pale's notice.

"Are you sure about this?" Pale asked softly as the two of them looked down into the gaping abyss.

Snek shivered at the question but seemed to redouble his conviction because of it. He nodded.

"Let's go."

Together they started making their way down into the pitch darkness, with Pale igniting a flame to light their way.

The ground was soft and stunk of old earth. The scent of death so common in morgues and hospital wards. To think, that so many would charge in without a care or thought.

"They were like lemmings..." Pale whispered, even as dazzling flashes of light appeared in the distance.

There was a slight tinge of discomfort in Snek's eyes at Pale's less than optimistic comments. They had not walked long, but they had already come across the bodies.

After sharing a quick glance, the two of them picked up the pace and soon the sounds of fighting had become clear.

While it was impossible for the users to win, they could still make efforts to slow down the corrupted children. In a large circular opening, they found the location of the final clash. Those who were still alive had clustered together with the heavy shield users on the outside.

They were pressed from all sides, and their total number did not even exceed a couple hundred. Although the of corrupted children were but a few dozens, their lithe movements and their impossibly hard skin became a nightmare to defend against.

In the middle of the fray was a person desperately shouting orders, and upon seeing her, Snek let loose a sigh of relief.

"Viper!" Snek said. "We are here for you!"

"What are you doing!??" Pale and Viper shouted back flabberghasted. At the sound of Snek's voice, a couple of the children turned their heads to look at them and broke off into a twitching charge.

"I'm saving my team!" Snek roared before throwing a pale white stone against the ground. Immediately, the earth split beneath him as the copious amount of corpses nearby began to tremble and explode.

"I summon thee! Bone eater!"

With a shrill wail, the bloodied bones of the fallen ripped themselves free of their owners and flew straight into the heart of the split earth. As the bones churned and coiled, clacking and crushing against one another, a geyser of white exploded from the earth and coiled itself around Snek.

"What are you doing?!!" Even from a distance away, Pale could see Viper's eyes bulging. "If that dies here, we lose it forever! It wasn't worth it."

"Too late!" Snek gave out an awkward smile. He patted the wriggling mass of bones and soon the bones shifted into the head of a red-eyed serpent. Such was the trump card of the Basilisk guild. A growing invincible monster that could only be used for an hour at a time. It's strength correlated directly to the number of bones that it can take within itself, and would become an unstoppable monster if used upon the battlefield.

Although the levels of the users were low, the sheer number of corpses and the skeletons that came with it became sufficient fodder for the Bone Eater's growth, as its size just after summoning dwarfed Snek by over two times.

"I just want a win for once, okay?" Snek laughed, knowing full well that he potentially doomed the potential future of his guild. Even as the Bone Eater rushed down to meet the two howling children, he felt a sort of elation. A freeing sensation after being bound for far too long.

Perhaps it was his mediocrity or constant deaths and losses over the past few days, but at this moment, to bet everything on one single gamble brought him a rush that was beyond anything that he could compare.

Since the Bone Eater had absorbed around two hundred bodies so far, it possessed the strength equivalent to a level eighty monster. Despite its level, it had access to no skills and had a very simplistic attack pattern. The bones got broken easily, and its resistance to magical attacks was pathetic.

That said, it's capabilities as a tank was huge. With massive amounts of health, Snek was not worried as it crashed into the two children, sending bone shards flying everywhere.

The corrupted children howled, even as they were pushed back by the momentum of the monster. However, aside from a few scrapes, that was the limit of the damage as they soon began ripping and crushing and dismantling the Bone Eater, one part at a time.

Despite the children's clear advantage, their progress was not quick as the Bone Eater slammed it's tail against one of the children, sending him flying. This immediately drew the ire of the rest of the corrupted children and even a corrupted knight as they stopped their assault on Viper's group and instead charged the Bone Eater.

Snek was prepared for such an event to occur though, and he quickly relayed a few quick commands to the beast.

The Bone Eater immediately crunched down on the last child with its jagged bone teeth. It's gullet was a series of rotating jagged parts that resembled a meat grinder more than anything else. However, even that could not penetrate the corrupted child's hardened skin.

Understanding that the Bone Eater was too weak, Snek sent it streaking towards new piles of fresh corpses. Its speed was incomparably quick, but that still did not hold a candle to the rate at which it was growing.

From the size of perhaps a rhino, the Bone Eater grew and grew until it reached a point where it truly deserved to be considered the trump card of Basilisk.

With a length of over fifty meters and a thickness of five meters, the strengthened bone eater roared as it threw up a corrupted child into the air. The child was completely unable to react even as its jagged boney jaws clamped down over it, sending a bloody spray spurting out from its orifices.

"Ooh. Let's not tell Asteros about that."

From being completely ineffectual to demolishing a child in one attack, it need not be said that the Bone Eater had massively grown in strength in a short time.

*Roar~~!* Even without a set of lungs, the Bone Eater crazily roared as the rest of the corrupted climbed on to attack it. It coiled within itself, grinding and knocking the corrupted off its bones, every so often catching another corrupted in its jaws.

At the same time, a shining light appeared from its side as a huge portion of its body was blown away with a single sword stroke. It was the one corrupted knight amongst the children, and though corrupted, still seemed to retain his holy abilities.

The Bone Eater roared out in pain, and although the wound was superficial at best, more and more of its body were being blown away, as the light of dawn burned away the darkness.

"Holy Shit, that knight is beast," Pale noted as black flame danced across his fingertips. This past week, he and Dawn had not been idling and had been training as well. After sufficiently improving his Firefly, it had gained the additional corrosive powers of darkness.

The moment the flame appeared, the temperature of the surrounding area sharply dropped, with many of the survivors notably shivering. With a flick of the wrist, Pale sent the balls of fire flying into the Bone Eater, turning it into a ghastly black funeral pyre.

The effect was immediate as the corrupted knight shrank back from the raging flames. However, since the Bone Eater was undead, and Pale was quite pitifully weak, the effect on it was diminished.

In the next moment, the Bone Eater quickly streaked around the knight, using Pale's flames to confuse and distract. A moment later, it had caught him within its grip, the bones rattling menacingly as it squeezed.

With a small pop, the knight's body shivered then slumped. His spine fractured under the immense weight of the Bone Eater.

Once the knight was slain, the remaining children did not survive long either as the Bone Eater made quick work of them.

With the death of all enemies, the Bone proceeded to rip open the remaining corpses to build up to its own body. But as it was doing that, the survivors who had been wide-eyed and staring, suddenly broke into a clamor.

"Oh, thank god. We're saved."

"Why didn't they bring that out at the start."

"Hey miss, are you single?"

Ignoring all the speculation, Viper burst from the crowd with a golden partisan in hand. She ran toward Snek who awaited her with outstretched arms and a beaming smile on his face.

And kicked him in the shins.

"Motherf--" Snek gasped as he collapsed onto the ground. The nearby Bone Eater looked at Viper strangely but did nothing to attack.

Viper sighed and turned to Pale. "Well, the milk's been spilled, but we still have a mission to do. What's the status of Python?"

{Toby's dead...again. But most of us are fine. We are zeroing in on Road's coordinates. Should we go in immediately?}

"Yes. We are coming in with some reinforcements. Is there any news on Dawn?" Pale asked. He rifled through the depths of his pockets and pulled out bits of shattered crystal.

Even as he threw the dust against the ground, Viper walked next to him and placed an understanding palm on his shoulder.

Pale shook his head.

"She's probably alright. Viper, gather up the remaining men."

As his voice trailed off, Viper turned back to the waiting crowd of survivors. Though some were heavily injured and could not longer be used, the vast bulk of the forces were weary, but their eyes were filled with avarice and exhilaration. A few of the quicker ones had already looted the nearby bodies, but all stood at attention as Viper raised her spear.

"Snek, what say you. You wanna back out, or you gonna see this through to the end." Pale pointedly asked Snek who was dusting himself off.

Shivering, Snek looked from Pale to Viper to all the remaining noobs waiting for his next words. No matter how he felt, there was only going to be one outcome that they wanted to hear.

As the Bone Eater returned to him, it lowered its head to carry Snek above the crowd. Pumping his first, Snek shouted.

"Men! With me!"

And the crowd roared.

White Chocolate Bar

Consumable

Increases all stats by 10.

Duration: 2 hours

"You made this?"

Hellsinger exclaimed. Her cheeks bulging with delight.

"You sir have a talent."

"Haha. You are too kind." Diethard nodded. His heart was a bit sore though, as the middle-aged woman was mowing through his stores faster than a fat kid chasing an ice cream truck.

Of course, what Hellsinger was referring to was not the ridiculous stat boosts that a simple bar of chocolate provided, but the taste alone. As it was a secret blend of cremes, exotic fruits, and nuts, it was quite palatable to Hellsinger who spent most of her time murderizing instead of partaking in the culinary arts.

"Mmm. You ever considered joining a guild? We would love to have you."

"I appreciate the offer, but I'm not ready to commit at the moment."

"Haaaa. Way to break an old woman's heart."

"Actually, I'm older--"

"The pain, it hurts. I think only one thing can make me feel better." Hellsinger held out a hand, and Diethard stared at it.

Diethard felt a pained burning sensation in his chest, even as he emptied out the contents of his inventory into Hellsinger's waiting hands.

"Harhar. Good boy. Ey. Son, are you done yet?" Hellsinger looked back, where numerous knight trainees were lying about, unconscious.

"Shhh Shh, no words. Just dreams." The last trainee was struggling as he kicked the ground in futility. His face was turning purple, even as he had the life choked out of him. But the moment he was about to pass out, his assailant unleashed a quick strike to the back of his neck, rendering him unconscious.

Darkblade hoarsely chuckled and wiped the bloodstains off of his hands. He would have gladly killed the trainees if not for the protests of one person.

"Oho? So you are Roari's friends. Charmed." The moment the last trainee fell, a bunch of figures in dark cloaks appeared in the clearing. Leading them was a pale-skinned man with arms like ostrich legs. Ketu smiled, "The man you sent us was most interesting"

"Ketu Jenkins, I take it? I am Dawn." The small paladin walked up to the Soulbreaker. Concealed within her palm was a hidden shiv, given to her by Pale in case things went sour. Not that she was willing to use it of course. As an aspiring paladin, she was against achieving goals through underhanded means, but with the huge level disparity between herself and Ketu, there was really no other option.

"I take it our little rat has been quite open about our plans. Damn elseworlders." Ketu chortled and looked back. "Wait, where is she anyways?"

The other men in Ketu's entourage shared looks of confusion as they wondered where the tiny little intruder disappeared to. One of them actually raised a telling point.

"Hey...Has anyone seen Bobby?"

The moment he said that a low pitched whine could be heard in the distance. That whine became yip and then a whoop as it got progressively louder.

"Wooooooooooooooo~~"

From a sewage waterway, Roari burst out, riding Bobby like a surfboard. Murky water sprayed all over the disgruntled workers as Bobby fell on the ground with a splat.

"..."

._. "Hi, guys," Roari said nonchalantly as she stepped off of Bobby. The latter was unmoving as if paralyzed by the shame of being used as a vehicle in poop water.

Ketu sighed. "Oh, Roari. Roari. Roari. Without you, work is going to just be so ... mundane. It seems here we are going to have to part ways. Right men?"

"..."

"But before we part, I have one final gift with you." His words made Roari's eyes shine with greed, while Dawn and her party looked on with bemused expressions.

"Old man, I am going to be so sad to see you go. Bobby, you too...What's the present?"

Ketu flashed a brilliant smile as he mussed up Roari's hair. Afterward, he got up and turned to Dawn.

"Watch over her. She can be quite a handful."

"You don't have to tell me, Master Jenkins." Dawn nodded as she slipped the shiv back into her sleeve. It seemed there would not be a confrontation today.

"Wait...What's the present?"

"Well, no time to chat. We're trying to maintain a low profile and all. I trust it need not be said that you all saw nothing?"

"Saw what?"

"I didn't see anything."

"I always take morning strolls through sewer systems."

"How can nothing be real if our eyes aren't real."

Ketu smirked as he felt these people did seem to fit his weeklong guest rather well. Gesturing towards his men, he called out. "I'm glad you're all so reasonable. Boys. Let's go home."

As one, the numerous men blurred into shadows as they swiftly passed through Dawn's party. Ketu melted into shadow as well, leaving the rest of them standing around awkwardly.

"WAIT! What about my present?!!" Roari bellowed indignantly, much to the looks of pity the rest of the people were giving her.

"Welcome back Roari," Dawn said, pulling the tiny girl into a hug.

"My present..."

"Take them down!"

The corridors in the dungeon were narrow, which restricted the movements of the titanic Bone Eater. Fortunately, as it was made of bones, it was capable of shapeshifting, and as a consequence, its body became thrice as long as it wriggled through the hallways.

However, because of its reduced size, its fighting power was also diminished, which allowed the corrupted knights to hold it off, albeit with difficulty.

To remedy this, the players employed a self-detonation tactic, where they would sacrifice their bodies to restrict the knight's movements. Afterward, they would be swallowed up together by the Bone Eater in one giant gulp.

Of course, those who were willing to do such a sacrifice were exceedingly few in number, while most others opted for more practical means, such as nets.

As such, they were able to steamroll through the entire area without much trouble.

Along the way, they uncovered the living quarters where many players were exalted to find numerous silver coins, rare alchemical leftovers, and battered old pieces of gear. Whether by luck or design, the newbie members of Basilisk composed of the majority of the survivors and were among the first to begin stripping the place dry.

"Do we really have time for all of this?" Viper asked. Rather than proceeding through the dungeon swiftly, they were taking their time, ransacking the place.

Anything that wasn't bolted down would inevitably find itself in the player inventories, and even if it were bolted down, the users would just attack with renewed fervor.

Although they were making gains, their overall process through the dungeon had slowed drastically.

"It should be all right." Snek shrugged. "We still have over thirty minutes on the Bone Eater."

"And what if we need more than thirty minutes to complete the dungeon?" Viper inquired.

"...Okay. Let's go."

They hadn't even run for five minutes when they came across a blood scene.

T.he Python group had ended up clashing with a pack of knights and were lying on the ground feebly. From the looks of it, the knights were just in the midst of finishing them off when Snek's battalion of players appeared.

"Python. You still alive?" Snek looked at a bloody bag of a corpse sadly. The rest of the players were howling with bloodlust as they steamrolled over the last few knights.

Coughing up a spray of liquid, the blood bag moved and turned its filth-encrusted eyes at the noble guild leader.

"Boss...I'm kindof tired. I might just go ahead and take a nap..."

"Python? Python! Don't leave me damn it! Not like this."

"I think he merely logged out Snek." Viper cautioned, even as Python's body slowly dissolved into ash.

"We might still need him though!"

"I don't think its quite the time to be upset over that. It looks like they stopped just outside of the boss room." Pale gestured to the rickety wooden door that had an ominous green light flashing through the cracks.

Bursting inside, they came across a small circular chamber with Road hanging unconscious on a wooden cross. Next to her was an old disheveled old priest, who glared at them with a fury. The members of Basilisk who had participated in the White Chapel raid would recognize him as Pastor Maxi. Although, his appearance didn't quite align with that in their memories.

The old man was bound to Road, with glowing green chains that looked as if they were painfully seared into his very flesh.

From the way, his face was bruised, Pastor Maxi was obviously worse for wear, but that didn't detract at all from the vigor of his voice as he shouted.

"Bide me some time. Just a bit more and I'll be free from this curse."

Pastor Maxi grimaced as numerous knights broke formation and began to advance on the group of users. Maxi then turned back to Road, the chains binding them both glowed with a feverish light that was then drawn into Maxi himself.

"For the Kingdom!" The Knight at the front bellowed, eliciting similar shouts from his kinsmen.

"For the Kingdom!"

>White Templar Phteven Lv 120

Different from the corrupted knights so far, these knights still appeared to have their own wills. Their eyes, though grim were still full of life and conviction. And that conviction was currently directed at the pale-faced Snek.

"Let's go!" Snek said in kind, as the final battle had begun!

…

The Bone Eater screeched as it met the synchronized charge of half a dozen knights head on.

Its body was not capable of withstanding the blow, and its bones were sent flying everywhere on impact. Despite having eaten and absorbed many knights on the way here, the Bone Eater had at most the fighting capacity of an lv 150 monster. Coupled with the penalties it had wrought from its reduced size, it devolved into nothing more than an oversized sandbag.

The knights attacking it were no slouches either. Unlike the corrupted knights from before, these knights were capable of conscious thought and positioned themselves accordingly. After the first blow, the line of knights dispersed, allowing a second wave to charge into rank and file of the users, sending a number of them flying.

>Hamstring!

The momentum of the knights was only halted when Snek unsheathed his chain blade. With a quick snap of the wrist, the segmented blades spread apart as the metal wiring wound its way around the leg of a black-haired knight. As if reeling in a fish, Snek pulled, sending the knight toppling to the ground, where he was soon met by an onslaught of angry noobs.

>Piercing Spear

Viper quickly entered the fray as well. Her partisan slick with an ominous green liquid as she thrust into a knight's face. Unfortunately, it was not fast enough as knight dodged at the last moment and sent her flying back with a kick.

His face turned mildly green as the wound on his cheek festered but quickly returned to normal as the knight applied a self-healing magic on himself.

'It isn't enough.' Snek blanched as he saw the dozen or so knight's chopping through the rest of his men like butter. As for the Bone Eater, it had not the size nor the damage to do any significant damage, and the tiny size of the room was inhibiting it from showing its true strength.

However just as he was about to call for the remaining survivors to retreat, an all too familiar voice spoke up from behind him.

"Huh. So this is where the party is."

"L-Legacy!"

…

The members of Legacy were all a bunch of cunts. Although they might appear kind and compassionate to the regular users, those who had early access knew a different story. They were cunts.

They would steal mobs, gang up on lone players, and conspire to break apart any guild who so much as spat in their direction. Yes, such behavior is typical for any regular MMORPG, but when you didn't have the shield of a screen and had to be looked upon with distaste from your peers, many deviants were able to reign in such behavior.

But not Legacy. They had some sort of twisted unity amongst the members. Even when they were assaulted by a coalition of guilds, their morale still held strong. Blow for blow was trades as players on both sides felt weeks of progress being thrown away, but while many in the coalition lost their taste for bloodshed, the members of Legacy remained strong and fought on with unrelenting fury.

First, it was one, then it was two, but bit by bit the members of the coalition dropped out of the assault. Some even jumped ship and sided with Legacy. But in the end, apart from a few groups with an irreparable hate, all the guilds ceased hostilities altogether. Leaving Legacy bruised, battered, but standing victorious at the end.

A bunch of psychopaths.

And not one but two of them were standing before Snek right now.

"That's an interesting toy you have there. Why haven't I ever seen it before?" Hellsinger mused and hung her axe casually against her shoulder.

Snek said nothing as he panted. He felt trapped. With enemies in front and enemies behind. The pressure was to such a degree that he might have started foaming at the mouth if not for Hellsinger tapping his cheek lightly.

"Well... do excuse me. While I would love to chat, I promised the most adorable little girl today that I would help her get a present."

"What?" Snek was losing his mind. But Hellsinger ignored him, and pulled off a tarnished grey ring off of her finger.

From her finger, the rest of Hellsinger's body exploded in red light. Her name becoming apparent with the red light of infamy.

"Boy! Get your ass in here. We have work to do." Hellsinger bellowed as the aura of infamy swirled and was sucked into the skull of her axe. The weapon was now wreathed in the glow as well, and its crimson glare reflected in Hellsinger's pupils as she charged towards the squadron of knights.

Up. Down. Left. Right. Her axe was a blur as she beat back the holy knights that were over forty levels over her. Each blow, though blocked sent the heavily armored paladins staggering back.

"I-Impossible." Snek's jaw dropped. After the last time he died, he reviewed Hellsinger's class which was Half-Blood Berzerker. As his class was Half-Blood Warrior, he understood that a key part of the Half-Blood Class series is that the more you kill, the more destructive your blows would be.

From the looks of it, that ring allowed Hellsinger to store up past kills, but even if her damage boost was maxed out, her fighting prowess still went beyond what should be possible.

While he was contemplating, the rest of Dawn's party had finally arrived, with Dawn comforting a sobbing silver-haired little girl.

"Uhuhu First my present, and now my snacks? God. What have I ever done to wrong you?"

"…"

"Ahaha I am on fire! Knee Crusher" Hellsinger leered as one of the paladin's finally fell at her feet, his leg crippled. Even as his comrades tried to save him, Hellsinger buried her axe into the fallen paladin's skull, easily cleaving through the shabby metal helmet.

>Crescent Sweep!

After seriously contemplating over what she should do, Viper had gone in to support Hellsinger too. Her partisan, though ineffective against the paladin's armor, was still useful in tripping and entangling their limbs. Her role changing from one of the main attackers to focusing purely on crowd control.

Seeing this, Hellsinger couldn't help but grin, as every tripped up paladin gave her some breathing room. Regardless of her newfound strength, it was still a bit much to take down twelve tanks solo.

"Hello again." A carbon copy of Viper smiled, causing the original to originally stiffen. "You remind me of one of my blades because you just cut my chest open and stole my heart."

Barring Viper's look of disgust, Hellsinger snorted in amusement as she traded blows with a paladin. For each wound she received, the paladin's armor would receive another dent. "You don't use blades, honey. Just strangle them with your silly string like you always do.

"Do not disgrace my arms by calling them strings. They are blades filed down into infinitesimal... yes Ma'am."

"You're really leaving me with no choice!" The old priest looked pained even as he pulled against his chains. As if attune to their master's will, the remaining paladins shrank back at once. With resolute stances, their bodies began to glow brighter and brighter until a heat radiated off them that could be compared to a raging furnace.

"Begin self-immolation."

"Good luck to you..."

One of the paladins barely had time to utter his last words before his body exploded, dispersing into light particles that formed into an aurora overhead.

As the other paladin's followed suit, the surviving players had to shield their eyes, and the ceilings were soon decorated with a myriad of colorful lights.

Oddly enough, the light did not harm the players bust cast a comforting glow over them. Cries of shock came from each user as they found the wounds and fatigue from the previous battles sewing themselves shut. Their breathing became easier, and they found a renewed strength in their bodies which let them stand taller, stronger than before.

However, such was true for the other side as well. The black fetters that bound Pastor Maxi to Road crumbled and fell apart. The raw welts that were left behind also healed and returned to a normal color. But despite Maxi's obvious good health, his eyes were pained as he looked over the hollowed out remains of the men who had once followed him.

The old Priest gnashed his teeth as he mumbled under his breath. Despite his muffled tone, everyone present could somehow still understand him.

"Conspirators? Traitor? How dare he? How dare they!!"

As the man entered an incoherent babble, he stripped off his soiled priest robes, leaving the audience to gasp in disgust. The sagging old man flesh aside, it looked as if the area that carried his heart had been gouged out, and was then replaced with a glowing green stone.

Such a stone was of size with an apple and leaked a green miasma similar to that of the corrupted.

"So...here's the mastermind," Hellsinger said obnoxiously. After the paladins had retreated, she had stepped back to take a breather, but now her eyes were set ablaze with fighting spirit.

"M-M-M-m..." The Pastor's blood churned and his face turned beet red. The sorrow that he had previously gave way to rage and the stone floor at his feet was crushed into dust.

As the cavernous walls shook and cracked under the ensuing pressure, the true strength of Pastor Maxi was finally brought to light.

"Diethard, go save your lady love. He's mine." The hollow eyes of Hellsinger's axe, Bone Crusher flared with a crimson light, evidently primed and ready for battle.

"Are you crazy? There's no way you can take him on alone."

"Well, I'm not alone. Am I?" Hellsinger looked at Snek pointedly. "Besides, I promised the girl, I'd help her get her present."

'What present?' Snek wanted to cry, but the iron grip cared not a whit for his feelings as it pulled him towards the old priest.

Almost simultaneously, Hellsinger, Viper, Darkblade and even the Bone Eater charged towards the old priest. As darkness convulsed around the priests' heart, each of their weapons were drawn, aimed straight at the old man.

But before they could connect, Pastor Maxi's eyes flashed and an all-encompassing wave blew everyone away.

A howling black wind made up of the souls of the damned knocked all the users present off their feet. In addition, the hungered souls latched onto every individual player and began biting.

Soon the power of corrosion had already melted away some of the lesser players, while Pale and Roari were chugging restoratives en masse to save their own lives.

Snek and Viper only fared slightly better, as the corrosive effects had been dispelled before causing too much damage, but their diminished health and mana were enough to put them out of the fight.

Only Hellsinger and the Bone Eater remained combat ready, but as the Bone Eater struck down on the Pastor, it was hit back with a glowing fist that shined with dark light.

Under such a blow, the Bone Eater splintered into ten thousand fragments, leaving the remains to slither about weakly.

The ease with which Pastor Maxi repelled them all sent a bone-chilling sensation running down their spines. Even with her buffs, it was clear that Hellsinger was far away from being a match for the old priest.

"...Can we run now?" Snek sobbed.

"None of you are leaving this place alive!" Pastor Maxi roared, sending black energy to coalesce by the exit.

The old priest raved. "Once you've all returned to dust, I shall gather the rest of my comrades to offer this Kingdom to the Six Wings. After that, we can finally live in peace."

"You want to kill people to live in peace? What's wrong with the life you have now?" Roari asked blankly, drawing the pastor's attention.

"An illusion!" Pastor Maxi spat. "There is no security without a divine watching over you. The people of this great Kingdom know not of the fine line they tread. A line that separates them from eternal bliss and torment. A line that must remain unbroken."

"I see. So rather than let them cross that line, you'd rather just push them over it yourself." Pale accused the old pastor while fumbling with the tabs of his inventory.

Such an action was not missed by Dawn as she responded in kind.

"Words are wasted amongst you elseworlders. For you all, death is but an inconvenience. How could you possibly understand the sacrifices that we've made?"

"What do you mean 'without a divine'? Don't you still have road?" Diethard said indignantly.

"Road has forsaken us. She turns a blind ear to our calls. Not that it matters for you lot, for you--" The old priest didn't have time to finish his statement before the area in front of his face exploded with a resounding bang.

With an explosion that rocked the structural integrity of the room, one might think the old priest would be sent flying. However, he had not even been pushed half a step back.

The old man howled in pain and anger as from his face flowed a waterfall of blood. The countless shards of shrapnel had not cut deep into his skin, but the sheer number of cuts was sure to make for a stinging sensation.

All eyes in the room turned towards Pale who was solemnly standing with a lazy, satisfied expression upon his face. Grasped within his hand was a metal cylinder that still smoked at the ends. The morning star that had previously been attached was nowhere to be seen.

Pale's arm was still quivering as he blew a long tart whistle. "Wow, I was hoping that would do a bit more."

"You, You..." The old Pastor coughed as he glared at Pale with a madness in his eyes.

"Just die quietly old man. We've already won." Pale said imperiously, not even bothering to spare the old man another glance.

"Really?"

"Well. I hope so. If not, then we're all probably going to die in the next few seconds."

"..."

'Just die?'

Pastor Maximillian scoffed. Even if the shards stung, there was a limit to how deluded one could be. He was momentarily surprised yes, but that was all there was to it.

The dark light pulsed as it gathered around his palms once more.

A pity. The light used to be so pure.

And now, it all ends. Drawing upon the powers of darkness, he internally heaved with all his strength, focusing on one final massive dark wave to wipe them all away.

"Aaaagh" Pastor Maxi screamed as if venting out all his repressed rage and resentment from years past.

But nothing came out.

He clenched his fist and tried again, almost physically throwing the light, but the energy remained ephemeral.

Startled, he tried to channel his power once more, but rather than follow his orders, the brilliant dark light instead scattered into nothingness.

What was happening?

With his mastery over light magic, he should have been able to wipe out these intruders with but a flick of his fingers!

Did that bastard Soulbreaker do something to him?

Just as his hatred for Master Ketus was unquenchable, he caught sight of the one who attacked him. A pathetically weak elseworlder who seemed to have used some form of tool to harm him.

However, when their gazes met, the elseworlder shook his head and pointed in the opposing direction instead.

Pastor Maximillian found his gaze stopping at a young paladin who looked pained as she pointed to an area above her cheek bone.

As Pastor Maxi raised his own hand in kind, he felt something hard and metallic on his face. Something far too large to be mere shrapnel. He pulled it out and saw that it was a piece of metal, filed down to a singular point.

Such a weapon was useless against him, but as he looked at it more closely, he found almost imperceptible grey lines along the point that were wriggling about like earthworms.

"Wha-What have you done..."

Pastor Maximillian gasped, before hacking out a mouthful of blood. The flecks of gold dust the floated within the crimson globules confirmed his suspicions.

Enraged, he smashed the crucifix and sent its splinters flying. Road who had been hanging gently was sent falling to the ground with a disgraceful plop.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!"

His roars sent waves coursing through the air, but even those were soon silenced with another mouthful of blood.

The Pastor’s roars were deafening as the magic sputtered away from his fingertips. As he wiped the golden flecks from his mouth, his body shook as he identified the substance.

“Essence of Eternity? I See.”

With a grimace, his eyes turned towards Road as a white aura began to radiate off of him.

Asteros, the knight captain who had finally caught up, had just arrived in the room when he screamed.

“Stop him! It’s a soul possession!”

His words instantly shocked the users present, but it was too late. The white essence had enveloped Road’s body, and the Pastor’s body fell to the ground, lifeless.

However, even when all was thought to be lost, the essence did not enter her. It was as if there was another force blocking the way.

The spiritual essence of Maxi was agape as his target suddenly opened her eyes. The all too familiar green miasma flowed out as he shook in rage.

“Damn you Ketus!”