"Who's the idiot that kicked this hornet's nest? They just had to attract something that looks… seriously powerful."
Watching the Double-Headed Raven King approach with its terrifying aura, the players were stunned. SoulSync muttered the words under his breath.
"'Seriously powerful' is an understatement. That's a Super Boss."
Marcus frowned. He had seen the Raven King's power firsthand. He was, of course, the "idiot" in question, but that was a secret he'd have to keep to himself.
His only hope now was that Dragon's Peak Citadel's system-controlled soldiers could hold the line against the Raven King. He watched the soldiers scrambling into position on the walls; they were his last defense.
Marcus scanned his surroundings. The citadel was packed. No one wanted to miss this; a chance to see the creature powerful enough to trigger a system-wide announcement and force the entire city into a Level Two lockdown. Everyone was staring at the approaching Raven King, the air thick with the tension of an ancient battlefield awaiting the first clash.
The prime spots on the front walls were dominated by the major guilds.
Above the central gate, a white banner snapped in the wind, embroidered with a five-clawed dragon wreathed in storm clouds. This marked the territory of the current top dogs, the Inferno Mercenary Group. A defiant warrior stood beneath it, a longsword in his hands, staring down the sky with an air of utter dominance.
"Ugh, look at him posturing. He's not even in the top three. You'd think he'd be embarrassed."
Marcus overheard a player grumble. The warrior was none other than InfernoRider001, the fourth-ranked player on the server's leaderboard, and clearly already riding high on his fame.
To the Inferno group's left stood the Violet Thunder Mercenary Group, their ranks neat and uniform, their gear nearly identical. Their leader was a handsome but cold sorcerer, his name displayed boldly: Hexium. He radiated an extraordinary confidence, the kind that only a truly powerful player could pull off.
Further left was the familiar Threeleaf Mercenary Group, led by the old acquaintances ThreeleafAxe69 and ThreeleafDad, who were chatting casually as if this were any other day.
To the Inferno group's right was a black banner, bearing the image of a proud, twin-winged dragon. While the banner's style was similar to the Inferno group's, the stark color difference and the different dragon made the rivalry between them visually obvious.
The two groups were clearly not on friendly terms; players on both sides were glaring at each other, looking ready to brawl at a moment's notice.
The most eye-catching figure in this group was one of their leaders. The one on the left was a sharp-eyed archer, holding a uniquely styled longbow that pulsed with a dazzling black light. It was a Mythic-grade weapon, and the sight of it was enough to make any player green with envy.
"That's the Black Dragon Mercenary Group," SoulSync explained, noticing Marcus's gaze. "They shot up the rankings a few days ago. Both leaders are on the boards. The warrior is Demonic Dragon from the Wealth Leaderboard, and the archer with the Mythic bow is SunShot from the Top Ten. Their name is a bit too close to InfernoRider's for comfort, so they've already butted heads a few times."
"Got it," Marcus nodded. None of that was his concern.
To the right of the Black Dragon group was where Marcus stood, with the Soulfire Mercenary Group.
Next to them was another major power, the Slayer Mercenary Group, whom Marcus had run into back in Black Rock Spire. At their front stood a warrior, calm and imposing, his presence alone commanding respect.
The warrior was within range of his Insight skill, so Marcus used it, checking the player's details.
Slayer#Apex: Level: Twenty-two, Class: Warrior, Guild Master of the Slayer Mercenary Group.
Looking at these powerful guilds and their confident, proud leaders, Marcus felt a pang of admiration. He understood the appeal. That feeling of dominance was a potent temptation. To stand at the top, the world at your feet, respected and feared; that was the ultimate proof of skill, the dream of every serious player.
Seeing them made him think of his own old guild, IronWing. They had been a regional force in their day. If they had stuck together in Dominion, the five IronWing bros would surely have claimed a spot on this wall. But the IronWing name was gone now, and he was left wandering alone, unable to face the brothers he'd left behind.
He wasn't chasing the prestige of a spot on the wall or some grand ambition to conquer the game. He missed his brothers. He missed the days of fighting side-by-side, the unbreakable bond they shared in IronWing.
Further along the wall, beyond the major guilds, smaller groups jostled for any space they could find, eager to show their colors. If not for the no-PK rule inside the city walls, a fight would have probably broken out long before the Raven King even showed up.
Besides the guilds, there was one other major attraction on the wall, the most crowded area of all: a female-only squad to the left of the Threeleaf group. This was the Rose Mercenary Group, founded by VioletNova, the tenth-ranked player on the leaderboard. It was composed entirely of female players, each one strikingly beautiful.
The women of the Rose Mercenary Group were a sight to behold, with graceful figures and captivating smiles. Their warriors were valiant and spirited, their sorcerers mysterious and alluring. The crowd of male players behind them was going wild, whipped into a frenzy by the presence of so many skilled women.
A true paradise. Getting an invite was pretty much every guy's dream in here.
"Look! The Raven King is here!"
A shout rang out, and every player instantly focused on the black cloud in the sky. It was now only about two miles from the citadel, its details becoming terrifyingly clear.
At its head was the Dark Arch-Sorcerer, the Double-Headed Raven King; a small figure in a coat of black feathers, wielding a feathered fan, with two sinister raven heads perched on its shoulders.
Behind the king surged a horde of Dark Sorcerers, all in black robes and holding staves that glowed with malevolent energy. They were channeling power from those staves, collectively forming the very cloud that carried them toward Dragon's Peak Citadel.
'Holy hell.'
The Raven King flying was one thing, but even the regular Dark Sorcerers were airborne, and with such ease. Did that mean every single one of them was a Level 90+ monster?
"First Infantry Knight Regiment! First Infantry Archer Regiment! Move out and engage!"
At the commander's shout, the citadel's gates swung open. System-controlled Infantry Knights marched out, each carrying a tower shield taller than a man, followed closely by regiments of Infantry Archers. Four thousand soldiers, moving in perfect unison, advanced to the open ground before the citadel.
"Bro, we're getting a free masterclass in combat tactics from the game's AI," SoulSync said, his voice buzzing with excitement.
"Yeah, watch their formations carefully," SoulfireBlade added, his eyes glued to the advancing troops.
The great battle was imminent, ready to erupt at any second.