Chapter 108: The Line has been Crossed

In the eastern district of Ashford City, the former City Hall building had been transformed into the magnificent headquarters of the Dragon Sovereign Guild.

The once-familiar government structure had been completely remodeled. Towering Gothic spires now rose toward the digitized sky, while enormous banners bearing the guild’s golden dragon emblem hung from the upper levels. Players stationed at the entrance wore standardized uniforms with the roaring dragon insignia embroidered across their chests. Most were already above Level 8, and their disciplined movements and sharp eyes made it immediately clear that the Dragon Sovereign Guild was not merely large. It was a highly organized force.

Yet despite the impressive atmosphere outside, the mood inside the strategy room on the top floor was suffocating.

It was the silence before a storm.

Bang!

A delicate white porcelain teacup struck the floor and shattered.

Hot tea splashed across the polished tiles, but nobody moved to clean it.

Damien Bale stood before the enormous floor-to-ceiling window with his back turned toward the other members of the meeting. His tall figure was clad in well-fitted silver armor that reflected the cold light filtering through the glass. Even in the middle of his anger, his posture remained straight and controlled.

Those who knew Damien well understood that this calm exterior was often more dangerous than an outburst.

"Element Controller... is dead."

His voice was low.

He didn’t need to raise it.

The words traveled clearly across the meeting room, and the expressions of everyone present tightened.

Several of the guild’s core figures sat around the conference table.

Vice Leader Commander Garrett Kaine was the first to react. His broad face was twisted with anger, and his fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles cracked.

Across from him sat Intelligence Officer Selene. She wore fitted black leather armor, and her cold, sharp eyes moved rapidly across the information displayed on the holographic screen in front of her.

Chief Priest Seraphine Nox sat nearby in a moon-white mage robe. Her elegant expression had lost some of its usual composure, and her brows were slightly furrowed as she reviewed the information.

Several elite squad leaders were also present.

Every one of them looked grim.

"Who did this?"

Garrett was the first to lose his patience.

He slammed both hands onto the conference table and rose from his seat, causing the solid wood to groan beneath the force.

"Damn it! If I find out who did this, I’ll tear them apart!"

His anger was understandable.

Element Controller had been a Level 10 player possessing an A-grade class, [Elemental Affinity]. He was already considered one of the guild’s core talents and had the potential to become an important part of its future combat force.

Losing such a player in the wilderness was already a serious blow.

Losing him without even identifying the enemy was worse.

It was a direct blow to the guild’s reputation.

"Scene investigation results."

Damien still did not turn around.

His voice remained cold and controlled.

Selene immediately responded.

"The battle occurred on the outskirts of the Molten Heart area in Flame Canyon. Based on the damage patterns and remaining traces, the confrontation lasted no more than fifteen seconds."

She swiped through the information on her screen.

"Element Controller and the four members of his team appear to have been overwhelmed almost simultaneously. There are traces of heavy physical impact, concentrated fire damage, and another form of energy residue that we haven’t been able to identify."

Selene paused.

"It displays characteristics of isolation and interference. Our analysts believe it is consistent with the effects of a [Silence Barrier] scroll."

Damien’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"Number of enemies?"

"Based on the footprints, movement patterns, and combat traces, our simulation estimates no more than three."

The room became quiet.

Garrett’s eyes widened.

"Three?"

His disbelief was obvious.

"You’re telling me three people wiped out a five-man elite squad, including a Level 10 A-grade mage?"

He shook his head.

"That doesn’t make sense. Could it have been a top assassination squad from Ironhelm or Valkyr?"

"The possibility is low."

Selene calmly shook her head.

"Ironhelm’s main force is currently raiding the Dark Forest. Valkyr is dealing with the undead in the Bone Wasteland. Neither guild has shown any indication that they are willing to provoke us at this stage."

She paused before adding, "More importantly, the combat style doesn’t match any of their known core squads."

Garrett’s expression darkened.

"Then who the hell was it?"

Before Selene could answer, a new encrypted message appeared on her holographic display.

Her eyes narrowed as she read it.

"Sir, there’s another piece of intelligence. It’s unverified, but it may be relevant."

She looked toward Damien.

"An anonymous peripheral informant claims to have seen three figures near Flame Canyon around the time of the incident. The observation was made from a considerable distance, so the descriptions are unclear."

Selene enlarged the report.

"One figure was exceptionally tall and appeared to be carrying a heavy tower shield. Another was smaller and was believed to be female. The three moved extremely quickly and disappeared shortly afterward."

"Tall shield user... female..."

Seraphine murmured the words as she thought.

Something about the description seemed familiar.

"The combination sounds familiar."

Silence settled over the room as everyone searched their memories.

Then one of the elite squad leaders responsible for external affairs suddenly looked up.

"It’s the Abyss!"

Several heads turned toward him.

"The Abyss Squad that has been gaining attention recently," he explained quickly. "They’re a three-person team. One is a mysterious melee fighter whose true class hasn’t been identified. Another is a tall shield user with an unknown identity, and the third is a female player rumored to possess unusual support abilities."

The room fell silent again.

Damien finally turned away from the window.

His appearance was almost perfectly suited to the image of an ideal leader. He had a handsome face, sharp eyebrows, a high nose bridge, and deep eyes that normally carried an effortless sense of confidence.

There was no warmth in those eyes now.

Only cold calculation.

"Abyss..."

The name had already appeared in his mind several times over the past few weeks.

He remembered the mysterious player known as Reaper clearing the City Hall dungeon alone before publicly rejecting his recruitment offer.

He remembered the Abyss Squad taking the first-clear record in the Howling Mine speed run and humiliating the Dragon Sovereign Guild in the process.

He remembered Garrett leading people to intercept them, only to be outmaneuvered.

And he remembered the repeated interference surrounding the guild’s resource acquisition, including several encounters with the mysterious black-market organization known as Dark Abyss.

Individually, none of those incidents proved anything.

Taken together, however, they formed an increasingly uncomfortable pattern.

Damien’s gaze settled on Selene.

"Evidence?"

Selene shook her head.

"No direct evidence. The scene was cleaned up extremely well. There are almost no identifiable skill signatures or items that could establish the attackers’ identities."

She continued, "The eyewitness account is also too vague to serve as reliable proof. As for Dark Abyss, we’ve found even less. Their operations remain heavily concealed."

Garrett slammed a fist against the table.

"Damn it! How much evidence do we need?"

He pointed angrily toward the report.

"Who else has the ability and the motive to do something like this? It has to be them."

Seraphine reached over and lightly caught his arm, signaling him to calm down.

Then she turned toward Damien.

"Damien, without concrete evidence, launching an all-out conflict against the Abyss Squad could create unnecessary problems. Other forces are already watching us. If we act recklessly, they could use this incident to criticize the guild or take advantage of the situation."

Damien remained silent.

He understood her point.

Anger alone was not enough to justify a major decision.

The Dragon Sovereign Guild had too many enemies and too many competitors. A careless move could create opportunities for forces that had nothing to do with the incident.

But the absence of evidence did not mean the matter could simply be ignored.

Damien walked toward the head of the conference table and sat down.

His fingers began tapping against the tabletop.

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

Each strike was quiet, but the rhythmic sound seemed to weigh heavily on everyone in the room.

Finally, he stopped.

"Selene."

"Yes."

"Use every resource available to investigate the Abyss Squad."

Damien’s voice was calm.

"I want their real-world identities, activity patterns, known abilities, equipment, associates, and movements. Find out everything we can."

Selene nodded immediately.

"Understood."

Damien turned toward Garrett.

"Garrett."

"Yes, Sir."

Garrett’s expression immediately brightened.

"In the name of the guild, issue the highest-level Dragon Sovereign Kill Order against the Abyss Squad and their known associates."

The atmosphere in the room changed instantly.

Damien’s eyes became cold.

"Any member of our guild who encounters the Abyss Squad in the wilderness is authorized to attack. Killing a member of the squad will be treated as a major contribution."

He paused.

"Anyone who provides reliable information about their location will receive a substantial reward."

Damien’s voice hardened.

"And any organization that knowingly shelters or cooperates with them will be considered hostile to the Dragon Sovereign Guild."

The room fell completely silent.

A highest-level Kill Order was not something the guild issued casually.

It meant the Abyss Squad would no longer merely be competitors.

They would become designated targets.

Every Dragon Sovereign member encountering them would have a reason to attack, and every confirmed sighting could trigger another pursuit.

Garrett’s face split into a vicious grin.

"Yes, Sir!"

He rubbed his hands together.

"I’ll handle it immediately. I’ll make sure those rats can’t take a single step comfortably in Ashford City."

Damien looked around the room.

"The loss of an A-grade core member is a serious challenge to the authority of the Dragon Sovereign Guild."

His voice remained steady, but every word carried weight.

"This matter ends only when the people responsible understand the consequences of provoking us."

"Understood!"

The core members responded almost simultaneously.

The meeting quickly broke apart as everyone began leaving to carry out their respective assignments.

Soon, the enormous strategy room became quiet.

Only Damien and Seraphine remained.

Seraphine approached from behind and gently massaged his temples.

"Damien, don’t worry too much. They’re only a small squad. They won’t be able to cause any real trouble."

Damien reached up and placed a hand over hers.

He didn’t respond immediately.

His gaze remained fixed through the floor-to-ceiling window at the distant city, where ruined buildings and streams of digitized structures blended together beneath the strange artificial sky.

After a long silence, he finally spoke.

"Seraphine..."

His voice was quieter now.

"I have a feeling that this Abyss Squad—or that Reaper—will become a major problem for us."

He paused.

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"They’re different."

Far away on the opposite side of Ashford City, inside a concealed warehouse, Aiden received the encrypted message from Phantom Eyes.

[Dragon Sovereign Kill Order issued against Abyss Squad.]

He read the message once.

Then again.

There was no surprise on his face.

Instead, the corners of his mouth slowly lifted.

"Their reaction was faster than I expected."

Luna, who had just finished training, noticed his expression.

"Sir Aiden, what happened?"

Silas also turned his attention toward him.

Aiden didn’t bother hiding the information from them.

He turned the terminal around and allowed them to read the message.

Luna’s expression changed immediately.

"Dragon Sovereign Kill Order?"

Despite everything she had experienced recently, the words still made her face pale.

She had expected the Dragon Sovereign Guild to retaliate.

But an official kill order from one of the largest guilds in Ashford City was another matter entirely.

Silas, however, reacted very differently.

He gave a low laugh and slammed his tower shield against the ground.

"Good."

His eyes burned with anticipation.

"Perfect timing. I just finished comprehending [Shield Counter]."

Aiden closed the terminal.

His expression remained completely calm.

"It’s only a kill order."

He looked at both of them.

"The moment we chose this path, this outcome was inevitable."

Luna’s expression gradually hardened.

Aiden continued.

"They’re angry because they feel threatened."

He stood and stretched his wrists.

"They’re hunting us because they’ve realized we’re becoming a threat."

The Devouring Soul Blade appeared in his hand.

He casually spun it once between his fingers, and the dark-gold blade drew a cold arc through the dim warehouse light.

"And this..."

His eyes narrowed.

"...is only the beginning."

Aiden looked toward the exit.

"Let’s go."

Silas immediately picked up his shield.

Luna stood as well, her expression more determined than before.

Aiden stepped toward the door.

"Let’s see how powerful this furious Dragon Sovereign really is when its kill order meets the Abyss."

The conflict had finally crossed a line.

What had once been a series of secret calculations, isolated confrontations, and hidden competition had now become an open struggle between two opposing forces.

The Dragon Sovereign Guild had declared its hunt.

And the Abyss Squad had no intention of running.

The storm had arrived.