[The first adventurer to reinforce the enchantment on the Goddess's statue shall have their wish granted.]

For the longest time in the game history, even exceeding the battle against the first Nox Terminus, the major players have banded together as one, crushing every obstacles Sateri-chan set up in their way with extreme prejudice. The combined force led by the top players was unstoppable, or so most of them thought.

As this arrogant idea of invincibility started to sprout, the AI designer kindly reminded the players of their strongest enemy:

Themselves.

Everything was going so well exactly because there was no shortage of rewards for all of the participants. And now, after all the hardships they went through as brothers and sisters in arms, Sateri-chan is dangling the biggest, rarest carrot in front of them to turn them against each other.

As if that had been the plan all along.

Having learned from the traumatic civil war of the early days, the leaders of the alliances sit down together, use diplomacy to settle disputes similarly to how a particular pacifist tree girl would do. With conflicts becoming a thing of the past, an era of peace where everyone gets along and works towards the betterment of mankind begins… in some kind of bizarre alternative universe, because there's no way in hell that can happen as long as these guildmasters still draw virtual breath!

The lead waitress of the cafeteria was one of the first players to react to the message. There is no point in trying to negotiate. The last time they tried that, it did not end well. In this kind of zero sum game, only one will win, whether by deceptions or by force. And for the guild filled with high-spec players who mow down parties with ease, the latter is preferable.

_ Hessenria (Guild): Everyone, [Recall] to Tyrel!

Thirty something members are not that many for a guild, but not so few either. Coming from four different guilds with different… preferences and playstyles does not help, nor does long exposure to a certain maniac who treats the game's rules like a "Do not attempt" list. However, they do share a common trait, and it's not capped [Cooking], despite their reputation as cooks.

It's [Recall]. The ability to squeeze the last drop out of it, to be exact.

In less than a second after the command, all of the cafeteria crew except for one disappear into the light. Although their reaction time was uncanny, it is to be expected. After all, these players' definition of preparation for a bonus boss is spending days practicing [Recall] instead of whatever main offensive skill in their arsenal. While appearing out of thin air like the whacko guildmaster is too tall of an order, they can go to any field on the world map in a few seconds, let alone Tyrel, where players "teleport" to all the time even without [Recall].

As the light subsides, the dumbfounded remaining players can only see a carefree waitress with a smile that should warm their hearts in theory, but sends a shiver down their spines in practice. She taps her staff lightly onto the ground, invoking her skill as the magic circle underneath expands to cover a majority of the combatants on the field.

_ Vulkerzelianna Merashiel: Sorry, you have outlived your usefulness~ [Mass Recall]~!

For a moment, the ones without direct line of sight thought they were being transferred to Heaven for the rewards. When they could finally see the guy next to them through the dissipating blinding light, they did find themselves in a different place.

_ Random member: Why is it lava AGAIN!?!?

Their destination is actually more akin to hell, considering the infernal scenery of Lava Rift field. At least there's no meteor falling around here.

Ignoring the screams of her unwitting former allies, the (fallen) angel disappears using her own [Recall] consumable. Not that they would notice while being burnt by the lava and the zone's ambient environmental damage, nor would they question why these waitresses got a [Recall] location next to a big lava lake, as if they were fighting a bonus boss and needed an absurd amount to make a path to said boss or something along those lines.

is a guild filled with pyromaniacs who show little hesitation burning everything in their wake, even when their leafy leader has an intense genetic allergy to flames.

____________

From the courtyard of an oriental mansion to the east of Tyrel, two full parties of young girls emerge. They would have passed as a group of innocent elementary schoolgirls too, if they weren't charging full speed with their whole arsenal drawn!

_ Vladina (Party): here! We barely escaped that woman's [Mass Recall] and are heading towards Sateri-chan! You guys alive?!

Even though the guilds were working together against the bosses, they had discussed in advance on the off chance that Sateri-chan makes them compete for loot. Every guildmaster was informed and agreed to the proposed plan.

Except for . They weren't even invited to the meeting in question. Since the main topic was a contingency plan to deal with the monstrous service workers who mow down creatures and players alike, that's understandable.

_ Cinrald (Party): We are [Recall]ing back, but everyone's scattered. Where's the target?

_ Torenis (Party): [Recall] to guild hall, not town square. You will be pushed out since there are too many players around the statue. will be moving towards that cafeteria.

_ Olkan (Party): Some of us managed to [Recall] to 's district, moving to the main street. Guild chat is a bit noisy though so the rest will take some time to get the rest here.

Meanwhile, Unity of Mankind and Blue Blood Federation alliances are also arriving and scattered all over Tyrel, for the same reason as . The abrupt [Mass Recall] didn't cause much direct damage in the grand scheme of things, but the ensuing chaos hindered the mobilization quite a bit. Experienced players were frantically scrambling to the rally point in an uncoordinated fashion, while newer ones were struggling to grasp the situation without any guidance. Even though the alliances have a lot of members, when spread out from one gate to another, a medium guild will outnumber them in combat, which is less than favorable.

However, all is not lost. No matter where players land on after [Recall], guild and party chat are always available. Their order is also dead simple: Head to the cafeteria and stall its crew for as long as possible.

Why not murder the crew in cold blood with extreme prejudice? The guildmasters here are ambitious, but they are not stupid. They would have done that long ago if that was feasible!

_ Girl in uniform (Guild): , we have been spotted!

Following her member's finger, 's guildmaster catches a glimpse of a bow-wielding waitress keeping watch on top of the cafeteria building before the next house on the street obstructs the view as she continues running. The waitress was looking this way, so it should be assumed that the group has been identified. There are not many parties consist of only cute little girls in this game after all.

_ Vladina (Party): spotted on top of the cafeteria!

_ Olkan (Party): Got it!

Because skyscrapers in fantasy worlds are not immersive, 's main building is on the taller side compared to other houses, providing a vantage point covering the majority of the town's area. A level-capped archer there is a serious threat requiring extra attention.

Still, is too far away and lacks the member count to lay siege to that place, hence the only choice is counting on their allies to handle it. Their objective is the Goddess's statue ahead, and it's not going to be a simple walk with the thousands of faithful players waiting for their daily prayers (and [Karmic Fragment]).

The waitresses are not crazy enough to calmly wait in line to approach the statue. Therefore, the little girls cannot afford to be gentle with the innocent bystanders either. Pointing their weapons forward, the girls of slam straight into the crowd at full speed.

_ Vladina: OUT OF THE WAY!!! [Elemental Blast]!

_ Unfortunate player: BWARGH?!

A big explosion blew away the poor players whose only crime was being in the way. Young girls with gigantic melee weapons at the front rushed forward then hacked away the next batch of players with [Slam], [Pierce], [Rapid Assault] and the likes. While these children (appearance-wise) may not compete against abnormalities from , the average players stand no chance against their firepower.

The moment the brutal melee stops, explosion after explosion pick up where they left off. The magi blast their way through while the fighters recover from skill cooldowns. This way, they can spend MP only on their most powerful attacks and constantly stay on the move, leaving a trail of dead bodies and traumatized witnesses behind.

Effective as it seems, this kind of blitz would only work against hordes of unsuspecting weaklings. That's the whole point of 's playstyle, to hit the enemies where it hurts the most, or sell that information to the highest bidder.

The victims weren't amused to be on the receiving end of their shenanigans though.

____________

Despite the head start, the path to the Goddess's statue was not exactly peaceful for the cafeteria crew. In fact, and co came under fire from all sides shortly after assigning to scout the area from the rooftop. The archer may also have to take command of the battlefield at this rate, seeing how her friends are busy fending against unprovoked (?) aggression from the big guilds.

She's going to ask the guildmaster for a raise after this.

_ Inerin (Guild): No good, too many tall buildings around the town square.

_ Hessenria (Guild): Understood. We'll have to do it the old-fashioned way then. Keep us informed of the situation.

_ Inerin (Guild): Roger. Just saw a bunch of little brats running by. Probably .

_ Hessenria (Guild): Tsk, they are fast. Alright girls, no need to worry about collateral damage. Anyone blocking the way is to be killed on sight!

_ Members (Guild): OOOOHHH!

And so begins a bloody massacre on the street with everyone not evacuating fast enough becoming a target. A member of the alliances? Mauled to pieces. Random passerby? Random "accident". Patron getting their meal? Sorry, guests are on the menu today. Just respawned after a bad-end encounter? Don't worry, another death won't make it worse.

Worst of all, they don't forget to smile mischievously as they cut players down one after another. The genocidal service workers take their jobs seriously even in warfare!

_ Hessenria (Guild): Stupid Mera! That will just invite more degenerates to this place!!!

_ Vulkerzelianna Merashiel (Guild): But but~ If we don't give a casus belli, our patrons may get the wrong idea and ask for more later!

_ Hessenria (Guild): That reason?!

For the harsh mistress, the mental damage from her own guild is worse than direct damage from enemies. Not that there would be much HP damage when most opponents were either too weak to pierce her defense or dying before having a chance to retaliate to start with.

_ Inerin (Guild): Detecting lots of movements from all directions. If you don't do something, they will completely surround you.

_ Hessenria (Guild): …So that's why Sateri-chan chose the town of all places to hold the finale huh.

The Goddess could have put another statue in some secluded location and the event wouldn't change much. However, there is a stark difference in how the battle will play out if it takes places in Tyrel.

Reinforcement speed.

No matter how many players the crew strike down, the dead will keep coming back nearby. Combined with the number of combatants the alliances have, they become a literally endless horde, scarier than anything a corruption raid can muster.

On the contrary, the majority of 's members are serial killers who one-sidedly PK others on a daily basis, and as a result will suffer a very long respawn delay should they fall then lose their corpses for any reason. No doubt about it, the machine event designer is discriminating against the cafeteria crew because of their superior firepower!

…That, or she simply wanted the event to be accessible for everyone with a bit of lore-friendliness on top. Good luck finding someone agreeing to such mundane explanation though.

____________

By sheer coincidence, and definitely not stalkers' intuition as well as extensive scouting (sacrificing), a few parties from led by entered the main street from an alley, barely in time to get in the way between the beauties with ample chests and the town square.

_ Olkan: COME AT ME, MY LOVE!!!

Objectively speaking, his group stands no chance. However, just as every other heroic last stand goes, it's the battle itself, not the result, that matters for the losers. For people of culture like and his friends, this is the closest they can get to their dream of getting smothered to death by ladies with great assets, so they shall welcome death with open arms. Later generations singing songs about their deeds is optional, because who in their right mind would make a song about that?

With a disgusted look as if she is looking as trash (of society), the harsh mistress of the tavern raises one of her sword.

And blasts the house next to 's blockade to smithereens with [Dark Bolt].

_ Olkan: What the…?!

Defiling all anticipation of the depraved merchants, 's main force goes around the blockade as though it was a mild annoyance at most, leaving only two petite girls in traditional clothes to charge at the merchants directly.

Thanks to the conspiracy of the [Cooking] guild back then, each food shop was striving for independence from the guild they embedded in. The teahouse in particular had only three members including , but they too could fight as a party without support from the rest of . And since the lead proprietress is the healer…

_ Depraved merchant: Wa- Stay away! Don't come near me! STAY AWAYYYYYYYY!!!

The other two are the knight and battlemage. Their party's main damage dealers, in other words.

_ Olkan: WHYYYYY!!!

Despair sets in for the handsome protagonist and his accomplices, and it is not because of the one-sided butt-kicking battle. It is the fact that little girls, rather than well-developed ladies, are the one doing the kicking that upsets them.

Truly a heroic battle against their greatest fears that everyone can live without knowing.

____________

_ Hessenria (Guild): You go ahead and secure Sateri-chan's statue. We will secure an outer perimeter.

_ Fuelri (Guild): On it!

The cavalry unit led by the salamander rider continues marching forward whereas others split into two groups and advance sideways. At the center of the player-packed plaza, a stone figure is standing still as always, with hands joined together to pray, either out of kindness or to keep the darkness away from her precious creations, or for the worshippers to stop trying to get a look at her rear. No one knows the truth as rumors on the board, no matter how prominent, are not known for their accuracy.

Sateri-chan being kind is outright unbelievable for most players though.

_ Fuelri: Ren, !

If lolis blowing up everything in the eastern parts has not alerted everyone in the vicinity yet for some unfathomable reason, a boss-riding party wreaking havoc from another direction surely would tell them that the major guilds are up to no good again.

_ Dead player: What the heck dude?! No jumping the line!

Amazingly, some of them still refuse to get the hint. At least the rest know how to read the atmosphere and are panicking accordingly.

_ Fuelri: Out of my way! Actually, just stand still and die!

For players who frequently wander the streets of 's district, getting stuck in traffic near this cavalry elf while she's on a mount is their worst nightmare comes true. Although to be fair, being squashed by that monstrosity is terrifying whether one has prior experience or not.

It was about time the general populace received the news. Not super detailed reports of the ongoing conflict per se, but news nevertheless.

_ Fuelri (Guild): Alright, we are going to…

_ ???: [Blood Arrow].

*THWACK* *THWACK* *THWACK*

_ Fuelri (Guild): KYA?!

From somewhere to the northwest, a hail of arrows rained upon the cavalry girls. , who was at the forefront, took the brunt of it and was knocked off immediately.

_ Falyn (Guild): Turn right, turn right!

_ Poltea (Guild): Un!

_ Fensen: Awawawa! Whew, safe!

Thanks to the quick reaction from the delivery team's manager, the party managed to avoid crushing their fallen comrade by a hair's width…

_ Crushed mage: Safe my butt! Did you seriously thought turning in this place was a good idea?!

By crashing into many other unfortunate players next to them.

_ Fensen: Sorry~!

_ Fuelri: Okay, who the hell did that?!

As expected of a knight, a few arrows were nowhere enough to kill her. She may want to pull some of the arrows out first though, especially the ones on her face. Her teammates find it hard to take a walking pincushion seriously, but decided to be polite and not mention it.

_ Poltea (Guild): …! Elri, it's !

While shielding the party from the following volleys, traced back to the shooters, who turned out to be the guildmaster of , who is still wearing a two-piece bathing suit, accompanied by roughly a dozen of topless muscular men. The young shield bearer is somewhat amazed by their courage to wear such outfits in town, then promises herself to never do the same when she grows up.

is a model student who is a lot more mature than she looks.

_ Fuelri (Guild): Is that woman stalking me again?! , go ahead with and ! The rest, with me!

The knight wastes no time climbing back onto her salamander. In this environment where there are few tall obstacles, using a mount is pretty much asking to be shot. However, as long as she keeps moving and takes evasive maneuver against concentrated attacks, one or two stray arrows won't be able to blow her away.

_ Falyn (Guild): Please keep it in mind that your opponent is a young woman with little clothing. If you enjoy yourself too much they will accuse you of being a…

*WHACK*

_ Falyn (Guild): GUH!

_ Thelia (Guild): Right behind you, Elri.

_ Fuelri (Guild): U-uh.

Let's not question it, silently thinks .

Even though a cavalry unit this close to enemy archers should have an overwhelming advantage, some hundreds of unaligned players running around between them limit mobility by quite a lot. No matter how hard the delivery girls tried to make space by shooting, stabbing, trampling and other behaviors that young ladies and their gigantic pets should not perform at home, they still take some time to get across the battlefield.

As if to make fun of the riders' predicament, the shameless woman in bikini cheerfully waves at when they make eye contact.

_ Cinrald: Hello, . I'm going to shaft you a whole lot today, okay?

_ Fuelri: Just say that you will shoot me in a normal way you Sateri-chan-damned maniac!!!

The poor elf can't help but feel like she has already lost regardless of the outcome.

____________

_ Vladina: [Enchant]!

A progress bar usually seen with crafting sphere appears above the stone statue. Colorful streams of light manifest around the pedestal, swirling gently while slowly rising and expanding. If one strains their ears hard enough, they would also hear a chime-like sound ringing all around them. It is surprisingly serene, until a random corpse blown away in combat reminds viewers of the inhumane atrocities being committed mere meters away from the site.

_ Vladina (Party): Working on the [Enchant]! Will take a few minutes from the look of it.

_ Torenis (Party): Good. We are dying in droves in the west just to halt their advance. Don't think I can make it there.

_ Cinrald (Party): I'm on a date with my favorite elf girl so I won't attend either. Uh… are Unity of Mankind and Blue Blood Federation guys alright? I think I saw the bartenders walking all over them.

_ Olkan (Party): So envio… I mean, not a surprise. They got ran over the other day so being walked on is an improvement. And , pics please. I am going to suffer boobs withdrawal at this rate… GAH! Get that flat chest away from me!!!

_ Torenis (Party): Wrong chat dude.

_ Vladina (Party): Your lack of love for DFC is disturbing.

In spite of the lopsided combat reports, the alliances are holding their ground somewhat. More and more players are pouring in to pin the cafeteria crew down in one place. Dead players don't even need to be revived, as they can respawn and appear near another battle if not the same one anyway. Having half of the respawn zone in combat usually does that.

[Reinforcement progress at 25%]

However, they have not won yet. There is still a wrecking ball coming to the statue, where the alliances' force is ironically the thinnest due to the lack of a safe route to reach here. Staying alive for a few minutes may be a bit tricky, considering they are up against the multi-weapon wielders and their pets, who arguably have the highest burst damage in the game right now.

Don't ask about Black Mantis' damage. She has not fought in front of outsiders for so long, no one knows what her tactics or damage is anymore.

The two little girls, along with and the beetle squadron, are decimating any kind of resistance the alliances can throw at them. For better or worse, they don't seem to know what they are doing, only swinging and firing at their closest targets. No skill, no tactics, just pure, unadulterated firepower applied in "first come first serve" style.

Watching the war crimes unfolding before her very eyes, is not sure if she should be aroused or scared.

The fact that she is anything but aroused when facing a loli is already telling. She just has not realized that yet.

_ ???: , friendlies on your six.

From behind the last defensive line made up of members, a full party rushes in to replace the fallen alliances' warriors. Their outfits are as diverse as per usual. However, they all wear a dark cape with a white sword and shield emblem on their back, indicating that they belong to the same guild. is still not used to the emblem yet, but the guildmaster is no stranger to her.

After all, it's and his newly found guild, .

_ Ignar: [Pierce]!

_ Poltea: Eek!

*WHAM*

Staying true to the heroes of the old, gallantly strikes at his opponent, beginning the last boss fight with the fate of the whole world hanging in the balance.

_ Ignar: GUAH!

And the world's last hope is already dead after scoring the first blow. Timid girl turned out to be timid and pulled in her whole stock of shields by reflex to protect herself. As far as the game mechanics care, she swung her "weapons" at him, resulting in both of them dealing damage to each other.

One would think that a level-capped knight with [Artifact]-grade weapon, catching a girl who is scared out of her wits by complete surprise, while backed up by a numerically superior force, would win handily or at least put up some fight before going down. Sure, the girl in question packs enough firepower to mow down everyone, but that is not what will be remembered when the stream is posted on the board.

Through no fault of his own, 's reputation is going to take a big dip for helping his allies. Being friend with is not helping.

_ Fensen: Uh… , are you alive?

_ Poltea: S-sorry…

_ Deader than dead Ignar: I'm not, but thanks for your concern. We are on different sides for the time being so no need to worry about me.

_ Priestess: O Goddess of Light, I pray for your miracles! [Resurrection]!

Thanks to the timely arrival of , and more importantly, the guildmaster's [Night] blade, they somehow fought the cavalry detachment to a standstill. Every time he lands a hit, the debuffs get worse, tipping the scale in his favor even if only slightly. No matter how many times the hero falls, he will come back and keep on fighting, as expected of a hero, or a zombie, depending on who's talking.

The battle rages on under the Sateri-chan's statue.

____________

[Reinforcement progress at 50%]

Asteroid Shadyna here, on a zigzag trajectory to the sun because that's what asteroids do to avoid being burnt by plasma, honest.

Anyway, either by some contrived coincidence or next level long-term planning at work, Tyrel is now on fire?! According to Nerin's briefing to absent members, everyone is murdering everyone to get their hands on Sateri's figurine! Okay, she did explain a bit differently but that's the gist of it.

First they shot at our artificial sun, now this. Can't you guys not cause trouble for once? Is my ten-minute flight cursed or something?!

What do you mean, the same could be said to me?!

_ Hessy (Guild): They are already halfway done! , are you there yet?!

_ Elri (Guild): I can't even see past the arrows right now!

_ Fensen (Guild): is being a bully and won't let us get through!

Amusingly, my guild is having a hard time. Not because of their stats, mind you, but they can't seem to walk more than three steps without getting piled on by a few hundred speedbumps, which are not particularly beneficial in a race. They did successfully delay a good part of the alliances at first, yet it still wasn't enough, unfortunately.

_ Linny (Guild): Can't build a perimeter like this. Hessy, we are going to the statue. Everyone, please buy us some time since we have too many stalkers.

_ Poltea (Guild): I can't! They just keep… EEP!

Okay, I had better do something even though no one asked. My apprentices are not specialized for PvP, and extreme training regimes involving child abandonment have been out of fashion for a long time already.

_ Shadyna (PM): , calm down. I need you to send me something.

_ Poltea (PM): E-eh? I'll try my best, but…

I won't ask her to [Recall] somewhere else in the middle of a fight, obviously. For now, at least.

_ Nerin (Guild): I'm on my way. Gonna be a close one though.

_ Shadyna (Guild): Ah, if it's only distraction for a few seconds, I can help with that.

_ Hessy (Guild): I have a really bad feeling about this, but go ahead!

How rude~

Oh well, I was going to do it regardless of what happens down there. Helping my guild out is just a bonus.

Spreading my arms and legs out, I prepare a consumable item and start chanting, simply because I can.

_ Shadyna: Water spirits, dance with me, till the last flame freezes for an eternity. [Luminous Icestorm]! [Luminous Icestorm Invoker]!

My body slams on the burning surface of the sun as my double [Luminous Icestorm] activate.

____________

The streets of Tyrel continue to run red as the fighting shows no sign of stopping anytime soon. A certain Goddess frowns at the number of casualty in her reports, which is increasing faster and faster by the seconds. She did expect a bloodbath, just not one at this size and scale.

Once upon a time, there was a civil war so terrible, the veterans learned that the only way to prevent another one is to kill their competitors before it gets worse?! When this is put into the lore, new players are definitely going to call it unrealistic!

To be fair, the AI did orchestrate some… modifications behind the scene to make this whole mess happen. That boss rush was not planned to be the last one, and the system message was supposed to guide players to the statue first before starting the battle royale. She pushed the schedule forward in hope that it would draw away before she breaks the sun into pieces.

Did NOT work.

That idiot ignored both the siege and the civil war altogether like a hermit living in a mountain. She has been going around burning and pillaging everything with little remorse, yet when nudged to do it again she suddenly is a true pacifist, in order to commit destruction of property somewhere else no less!

Sateri can only groan in binary while looking at an ocean of icy blue flooding the once fiery surface. Plasma was spilling out in similar fashion to a geyser, only much bigger in size, then it also turned blue and froze solid. There's no way that can happen in real life, but fantasy games have more leeway when it comes to giving up physics in exchange for aesthetics.

After a few seconds, the sun became a literally frozen star. The source of light that illuminates all but the deepest corners of the world was reduced to a dim, flickering glorified snowball that can't even outshine its tiny new neighbor. While it is too small to be observed from the ground, that new blue shell is actually made of spiky pillars created by [Luminous Icestorm]. The already OP skill was given additional AoE just for this occasion as a scripted event, by courtesy of yours truly.

For a moment, she regrets having to get rid of such a beautiful celestial body. Since those girls worked so hard on that artificial sun however, Sateri can't let their creation go to waste either.

With a flick of her finger, the blue sun shatters.

The millions of glowing fragments were blasted across the world, creating a starry sky which provides ambient light but ultimately powerless against the darkness sweeping in like a tidal wave. As anyone who has played this game for more than a few days would know, things quickly go south when it is dark.

The event manager will also add in a little time manipulation to broadcast the next system message before its time. All for the sake of players' immersion!

[Reinforcement progress at 75%]

[Warning: Light is waning.]

[Warning: An endless corruption wave is coming, brace yourselves.]

A faint light from the damaged artificial sun shines upon the marching hordes of darkness.