The space was still frozen at the same point.
Daniel stood facing the envoys from the Goblin Guild. His sword rested lightly on Jason’s neck, and the mana pressure around them had become so heavy that even breathing seemed difficult.
No one was in a hurry.
Because everyone knew... any wrong move could be the beginning of the end.
"First of all... all your attacks on Everlight Moon will stop," Daniel said without taking his eyes off their faces, his tone calm but drawn-out.
"Continue," one of them, a man with cold and emotionless eyes, tilted his head slightly.
"Complete information about your arrays... mana centers... and command structure," Daniel continued without hurry.
"And if you really want to take this piece of trash back alive..." He paused. A very faint smile settled on his lips.
The tip of his sword applied a little more pressure, and the space grew heavier.
"We’ll do a real exchange." But behind this calm appearance, Daniel’s mind was occupied with something else.
He himself knew he was making ridiculous, illogical, and impossible demands, but anyway, this wasn’t supposed to be a real negotiation or anything like that.
He was sure that these bastards had no plans for negotiation either. The Goblin Guild he knew pushed everything forward with force.
They had decided to destroy the Everlight Moon Guild a long time ago, and it was impossible for them to just let it go. God knows why they had suddenly decided to even pretend to negotiate.
Was Jason that important? Or were they also buying time?
"We’re getting ready... keep going," Varenos’s voice echoed in his mind at that moment.
Daniel, without showing any reaction, was just buying time. But on the other hand, he told Varenos that the Goblin Guild might also be trying to buy time.
On the other side, deep in the Goblin Guild’s territory, the commanders stood motionless.
There was no hurry and no worry.
"He’s buying time," one of them said calmly.
"Doesn’t matter," another replied.
"We’re doing the same thing." A mana image showing the battlefield situation floated in front of them.
Several glowing points lit up in the image.
Not on the battlefield but inside the Everlight Moon territory.
"The teams have entered."
"They’ve started."
In the darkness, groups of elite Awakened were silently setting up a complex structure.
Mana lines formed on the ground, symbols activated one after another.
An array, but not an ordinary one—an Offensive Array, something built for a specific purpose.
Power boost, strengthening the commanders, and preparation for a battle that no longer had anything to do with ordinary forces.
The commanders didn’t even smile because for them this... was just a natural process.
In the war room, Eliera’s voice suddenly broke.
"Something’s wrong..."
When she heard Daniel’s words, she immediately scanned the entire Guild area to make sure there was nothing wrong, and to her complete surprise, there was a problem.
There were many hidden points that seemed to have been concealed from her sight. Because they were in remote places, she had ignored them, but after Daniel’s warning she paid attention to them and realized there really was a problem.
All eyes turned to her. She worked on the data quickly, her eyes narrowed.
A few seconds of silence, then she continued.
"Several hidden signals inside the Guild... they’re setting up an array!"
The room went completely silent for a moment, and then the real pressure hit.
"What—?!" Darius took a step forward.
"They’re spread out... different points... they’re working at the same time..." Eliera continued, her voice speeding up.
How had they not noticed something like this? From the very beginning it had been impossible for the Goblin Guild to agree to negotiate or anything like that.
It had been a plan from the start to buy time so they could set up an array, and unfortunately they hadn’t paid any attention to this at all.
If it weren’t for Daniel’s warning right now, they wouldn’t have noticed it at all.
Varenos frowned, but only for a moment, and his mind quickly began to analyze.
"...So they didn’t just come for Jason." His gaze darkened.
"This is a combined attack."
"There’s something else too—" At that moment, Eliera spoke again.
"Strong auras... outside the Guild... they’re hidden." All eyes returned to the map.
Several large and heavy points appeared on the map. These points flickered on and off, as if there was some kind of interference trying to hide the presence of these auras.
Even now she had to strengthen the arrays for these points to appear on the map, and there was still heavy interference and the points kept fading.
"...I see." Varenos let out a short breath.
His guess had been right. The Goblin Guild had decided to launch a very large-scale attack against them. The war was approaching its final phases.
"Full evacuation." And he immediately gave the order.
Everyone went silent.
"All forces withdraw right now." His voice was decisive and without the slightest hesitation.
"This battle... isn’t for them." He didn’t want to put the lives of his remaining forces in danger.
The battle ahead was not something they could intervene in, and they couldn’t even act as human shields. There was no need to risk their lives for no reason.
Not to mention that even if the Everlight Moon Guild won, if these Awakened didn’t survive after the war, their victory would be no different from defeat.
At that exact moment, the information was transmitted to Daniel. In the middle of the negotiation, his eyes narrowed for a moment.
Just one moment was enough. He understood everything. It seemed his guess had really been correct.
Every second that passed, the array was becoming more complete, and that meant they were falling into their own trap. If that was the case, then he couldn’t let any more time be wasted.
And he had to stop these bastards’ plan as soon as possible.
In Daniel’s mind, voices echoed one after another.
"Daniel, pull back!"
"There are two S-ranks!"
"This direct fight is dangerous!"
The Guild commanders were telling him to withdraw right now. Facing two S-ranks was an extremely dangerous task and no different from suicide.
But there was no response. Clearly he had no plans to run or withdraw.
Without any prior warning, space broke.
A dark, deep, and endless crack opened behind Jason, and before he could even show any reaction, his body was pulled into it.
It swallowed him and he disappeared.
Silence for a short moment and no one moved, then the mana pressure rose and space began to tremble.
The Goblin Guild envoys frowned and their eyes grew colder.
"...What are you doing?"
Daniel smiled calmly.
He lowered his sword from the empty spot and in the same motion prepared it for battle.
The aura of his sword slowly activated.
Daniel simply raised his sword. The aura of his sword suddenly expanded, and the ground beneath his feet cracked.
"You thought I was an idiot?" His tone was no longer drawn-out and no longer calm.
Two of them stepped forward. Their presence was heavier than anything else, and the mana around them bent.
Their pressure... made breathing catch in the chest.
S-rank.
There was no need for introduction.
"Just because you beat Jason..." one of them said with a sneer.
"You thought you had a chance?" the other continued.