Smoke billowed through the sky as the remnants of the Merlin family’s fleet limped away from the academy that had been their target. More than half of their dirigibles had fallen to the ground in blazing ruin, and those that remained were heavily damaged — balloon fabrics torn, decks ablaze, and crews scrambling in desperation. The once-mighty skyborne force had been reduced to a pitiful cluster of broken airships drifting southward like dying whales.

  Aboard one of the rear vessels, a young acolyte clutched the railing, eyes wide in disbelief. “They… they bombed us from above. Then the Asteriscus fleet hit us from the rear… We lost eight dirigibles in one single assault!”

  “No one’s responding from the Altaris and the Velcior,” another crewman reported with a trembling voice. “They’re… gone.”

  Murmurs of despair spread throughout the bridge as hopelessness took hold. The academy they had believed would be an easy target had hidden more secrets than they could have ever imagined. Had they known this would be the result of their invasion, none of them would have dared to attack.

  “Silence!” barked the commanding officer, a grizzled veteran Magus. His beard was soaked in soot, and blood trickled down one side of his face, but his eyes still burned with fury. “We retreat to regroup. Once Patriarch Alphonse returns, we’ll—”

  Before he was able to finish, a shadow fell over their fleet.

  Moments later, a thunderous boom shook the air as a squadron of dirigibles emerged from a patch of sky — sleek vessels bearing the crest of the Asteriscus family. Their cannons fired without warning.

  Boom! Boom! Boom!

  Blue-white blasts from the magic cannons slammed into the sides of the damaged Merlin vessels. One airship — the Stratos — erupted in a geyser of flame, its blimp rupturing and raining debris onto the fleet below.

  “No! Not again! Take evasive measures—!”

  But despite their more advanced vessels, the Merlin fleet could do little as the Asteriscus cannons tore into them. The sky filled with the shrieks of twisting metal and wild mana as the remnants scattered like startled insects. Explosions ripped through their formation, and three dirigibles crashed in rapid succession into the Thornwood Forest.

  It seemed none of them would be able to escape unscathed.

  ***

  Meanwhile, on the forest floor.

  The survivors of the ground vanguard — once a mighty army of elite mercenaries, Ki Masters, and Magi — were now in disarray. Those who hadn’t been buried by magic traps or blown apart by suicide bombers had retreated in small bands, hoping to slip through the forest unnoticed.

  A group of ten or so armored knights paused to catch their breath as the sound of distant battle still echoed around them. The one who led this group was a Ki Master named Aaron, who was a famous mercenary in the kingdom and a former knight of a big noble. He had joined the Merlin family with the promise of riches and even land, but he came to regret that decision now.

  “Keep moving,” Aaron grunted. “If we can return to the nearby village, we can—”

  Suddenly, something darted across the snow. Before any of them could turn, spectral arrows shot out from between the trees, accompanied by a growl that seemed to be too intelligent to be mere animal.

  The unprepared knights were immediately hit by these arrows, with some dropping dead on the spot.

  “Fuck! What happened!”

  “Shit, we’re under attack! Is it those crazed acolytes?”

  The remaining mercenary knights panicked and unsheathed their weapons. The memory of facing those crazy acolytes, suicide bombing their comrades, was still clear in their minds.

  Then came the horror that had been hunting them — it wasn’t the enemies that they had expected. A monstrous wolf-like beast with silvery fur and a crescent moon mark on its forehead emerged from the trees like a ray of light.

  “Wh-What the fuck is that?!” one of the mercenaries cried, pointing at the beast.

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  “Kill it! Ki Aura Blades!” Aaron shouted, swinging his sword at the creature and releasing a flying slash of condensed force. He was, after all, a Ki Master and had faced countless magical beasts.

  Alas, it was too slow.

  The magical wolf pounced with impossible speed, clawing through the first two knights in a blink. They didn’t even scream — they were already gone, decapitated. The next knight raised his shield and tried to reinforce it with ki, only for it to be shattered by the beast’s roar, which distorted the very air around them.

  “Scatter! It’s a damn mythical beast!” Aaron shouted.

  They all scurried away, but just when they thought they were safe — after sacrificing their comrades — something else came after them.

  Soon, footsteps approached as the academy’s acolytes revealed themselves, cloaked in stealth enchantments.

  A voice laughed in delight from behind a boulder. “Haha! Found another one! I’ll be rich with merit points if this keeps up! {LASER}!”

  One of the escapees screamed as the acolyte fired a short beam of light that baked the skin where it struck, killing the poor soul in agonizing pain.

  Then, someone’s voice echoed through the forest. “Suppress the flanks! Don’t let them regroup!”

  “On it! These walking merit points are mine!” someone exclaimed, his body cloaked in lightning as he chased down the fleeing group like a madman.

  Aaron watched as his remaining comrades died before his eyes, unable to resist.

  “This is your warning!” one of the acolytes shouted. “Surrender now, and I promise you won’t be killed! Capturing you alive is worth double the reward.”

  What is this? Do they think this is a game? Aaron thought, anger rising within him. He had brought his old comrades here, only for them to be hunted like animals — for points? That was absolutely ridiculous!

  One of the three remaining mercenaries dropped to his knees. “Screw this. I’m out.”

  “Coward!” his companion shouted.

  “Damn it! I’m not going down without a fight!” Aaron yelled as he saw his comrade surrender.

  “Huh? This one must be their boss! Kill him!” an acolyte shouted, raising his staff. A fireball erupted from its tip.

  As the other acolytes joined in, hurling spells at Aaron, he was unable to resist and fell to the ground, breathing his last. One of the famous mercenaries in the kingdom died like a dog in god who knows where.

  As silence returned to the woods, the players regrouped. Dozens of them, injured and tired, but still standing with excited and determined faces.

  William, who had been leading the defense on the eastern bastion, was among the group. His guild had actually arrived late to the hunt for the escaping enemies. After all, the main assault had been concentrated on the eastern bastion, and there had been a particularly strong Ki Master. If it hadn’t been for Professor Roland stepping in and capturing him alive, William wasn’t sure the SPARK squad would’ve been enough to stop him.

  Beside him, Zero surveyed the battlefield, breath misting in the cold air. “That’s the last of them?”

  “Looks like it,” Storm nodded, eyes scanning for lingering mana signatures. “No one escaped our net.”

  “Good,” said William, lowering his staff. “Let’s recoup our losses and head back to the academy. We should leave the rest to the other bastions.”

  “And we’ve got loot to collect,” Mike added with a grin.

  The northern and southern bastions still had most of their players intact, and they now planned to pursue the enemies who had survived the fallen dirigibles. Led by Auralise, Satellite, and many other prominent players, their success seemed all but guaranteed.

  William looked toward the horizon, where flashes of light still marked the clashing dirigibles. He wondered if, someday, he too would have his own dirigible — and conquer the skies.

  Meanwhile, within the secured Headmaster’s Office, a small figure perched on the desk — wings fluttering slowly, her expression focused. Lizbeth, the academy’s assistant fairy, was locked onto the holographic screens before her, monitoring the current state of the academy.

  “Eastern bastion secured… Southern and northern bastion players are in pursuit… The Asteriscus fleet’s status is… yep, full-scale engagement complete. That’s a confirmed victory,” she muttered, checking the screens one by one as her hands darted across them.

  Several of the screens were updating real-time battlefield data, including player vitals and locations. Lizbeth knew exactly what was happening across the academy at any given moment.

  With a wave of her hand, she activated a projection of the forest. “The cleanup squad from the Gamer’s Empire guild is returning… The SPARK squad seems to have taken the most casualties in this war, with practically all of them detonating before the enemies...”

  She puffed her cheeks in mild frustration. These players really didn’t know how to hold back. Far more enemies had been killed than captured — a waste, in her opinion. After all, prisoners could’ve been used as free labor in the academy’s mines.

  Truly, her master’s personality when it came to exploitation seemed to be rubbing off on her.

  “Master… he must have won by now.” She had noticed that Victor’s mana signature had briefly flickered before stabilizing again on her screen a few minutes ago. He must have been in the middle of an intense fight just now. Furthermore, she had caught glimpses of his fight through the projection, but it was too destructive to the point that the connection couldn’t be maintained.

  Her master had told her in advance that, if the worst came to pass and he failed to defeat Alphonse, she should call for Valeria’s help. But never once did she believe that it would be necessary; she never doubted that her master would win. Every time disaster struck the academy, her master always emerged victorious, extinguishing any threat that dared to appear. This time was no exception.

  Lizbeth sighed, then resumed her tasks with renewed speed. What mattered most now was ensuring everything continued to progress according to her and her master’s plan.

  She was, after all, the academy’s nervous system — the one who kept everything running. And she wasn’t about to let any of it fall apart on her watch.

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