Despite the full-scale war raging between the DarkSky and WhiteSaber forces near the wall, Cervantez found his gaze oddly fixed on Luke.
Amid the chaos of clashing steel, roaring war cries, and explosive magic, Luke stood on the battlefield looking calm and composed.
But it wasn't Luke's battle stance or his confident demeanor that held Cervantez's attention. No, it was the presence of PinkLotus beside him. She stood close, speaking to Luke with an easy smile, gesturing toward the distant skirmishes as if they were spectators rather than participants in a brutal war, and it was her excitement and Luke's steady responses that painted an image of familiarity—of friendship, even in Cervantez's mind.
And that was what gnawed at Cervantez. Luke wasn't supposed to matter right now. Cervantez had bigger priorities—strategic objectives, enemies to monitor, and key players to evaluate. Yet his focus stubbornly remained on Luke and the way PinkLotus interacted with him.
It wasn't jealousy or resentment—it was confusion. PinkLotus was an enigma, distant and untouchable even to those who stood alongside her in battle. She had a reputation for being aloof, even cold. And yet, here she was, speaking to Luke with warmth and energy, sharing a moment in the middle of a warzone.
Cervantez couldn't help but wonder—what had Luke done to earn that level of trust? And why, despite all his efforts to focus on the larger picture, did this sight make him feel so unsettled?
'I am a guildmaster… I am supposed to focus on the war …. I am supposed to focus on threats like 'TheBoss', but then why am I so disturbed with the sight of two people talking?' Cervantez wondered, as once again, he felt that there was something fundamentally wrong with his brain.
It wasn't his nature to worry about such things, however, oddly, whenever PinkLotus was involved, he seemed to behave unnaturally.
"Guildmaster! Guildmaster! There's a message from the camp of the West Duke–" A guild messenger said, as he rushed beside Cervantez and handed him an official message scroll.
Distracted, Cervantez grabbed the scroll and unflurred it in a hurry, only to find his eyes widening when he read the contents.
"The West Duke wants to face 'TheBoss' head on? This is perfect…. As a level 921 NPC, he's the only one that can hopefully match 'TheBoss' in battle" Cervantez muttered, as he handed back the message scroll excitedly.
Apparently, after finding out that the KingSlayer was here in person, the West Duke had decided to confront him in direct combat, believing that no-one else would be his match.
This of-course came as a welcome relief to Cervantez who was racking his brains on how to deal with 'TheBoss' who had future sight, However, with the West Duke taking that problem off his plate, he found himself now capable of focusing on other key issues.
"Very well then…. Tell the West Duke that we will support his battle against 'TheBoss' as much as possible and create a path for him to retreat should his life ever be in danger" Cervantez said, as the messenger quickly wrote it down and rushed-off to pass it on.
**********
The phalanx of the DarkSky guild remained unexpectedly resilient against the WhiteSabers advance for a few minutes at the start, however, quickly began to falter, when the enemy introduced their hidden weapon the devastating [Frost Grenades].
Frost Grenades were not just ordinary explosives, they were a unique weapon of war which were encased in crystalline orbs and infused with potent ice mana, that were engineered to shatter on impact, releasing an eruption of frigid energy that froze everything within a five-meter radius in a thick layer of frost.
What made them truly devastating, however, was their secondary effect, which was a chilling mist that lingered after the initial explosion, sapping the strength and agility of anyone caught within it.
For the WhiteSaber guild, these grenades were not just weapons, they were a hidden ace, a trump card they had hoarded for the right moment, as they had deliberately hidden this weapon for many years.
The [Frost Grenade] could only be obtained via one single dungeon in the world of Terra Nova, the 'Western Ice Dungeon' by defeating its infamous boss monster, the Yeti.
However, with the WhiteSabers holding exclusive control of the level 350 dungeon for years, they had become the only guild to amass a stockpile of Frost Grenades within the game.
The weapon had remained a secret from the rest of the player base, kept hidden even during their earlier campaigns. But now, with the fate of Bernabeu City hanging in the balance, the WhiteSabers unleashed them with ruthless precision.
*Kapish*
The first volley of Frost Grenades landed deep within the DarkSky phalanx, detonating in bursts of icy blue light.
Shards of frost splintered across shields and armor, freezing weapons in mid-swing and locking soldiers' boots to the rubble-strewn ground.
The chilling mist seeped into the formation, causing soldiers to shiver uncontrollably, their movements growing sluggish as their stamina plummeted.
"Watchout– the enemy possesses some funny weapons!" a DarkSky soldier warned.
"Hold the line! HOLD THE LINE!" a DarkSky captain bellowed, his voice cracking with desperation as his soldiers struggled against the freezing haze. But it was futile.
The WhiteSaber knights surged forward, exploiting the disarray caused by the grenades.
Their front liners dissolved into aggressive assault squads, breaking through frozen gaps in the DarkSky defence line.
Swords and spears drove into vulnerable openings, shields smashed aside frozen limbs, and the air was filled with the sound of shattering ice and dying screams.
"Another volley! Break them apart!" roared a WhiteSaber officer, his voice carrying over the din of battle, as upon his command a second wave of Frost Grenades flew overhead, bursting amidst the already weakened formation.
This time, the explosions created cracks in the DarkSky lines so wide that the WhiteSaber vanguard poured through them like water rushing through a shattered dam.
Leo, still observing from a safe distance, narrowed his eyes as he watched the phalanx collapse entirely.
The once-imposing shield wall of the DarkSky defenders crumbled as soldiers abandoned their positions, some attempting to flee back towards the safety of the deeper city, others falling to the merciless advance of the WhiteSaber assault teams.
The path to Bernabeu City's gates was now wide open.
"Push forward! Into the city!" the WhiteSaber guildmaster said, as the first wave of WhiteSaber forces surged through the breach, clambering over rubble and trampling the bodies of fallen enemies.
The walls of Bernabeu City, weakened and unguarded after the collapse of the phalanx, were no longer an obstacle to the WhiteSabers as with a collective roar, hundreds of WhiteSaber knights and soldiers flooded through the opening, spilling into the narrow alleys and plazas of the city.
The once-clear lines of battle dissolved into street-to-street skirmishes as DarkSky defenders attempted to regroup amidst the chaos.
Flames began to rise from several sections of the city as WhiteSaber mages unleashed fiery spells, targeting defensive chokepoints and key infrastructure.
Bernabeu City had been breached. The war was no longer confined to its outer walls and had now spilled into its very heart.
The fate of the city hung in balance, and with it, the fate of the west.