Outside the tunnel entrance, Meave, Laura, and Mirova had already begun setting up a temporary camp.There wasn’t much reason to return to the city.Meave was convinced Rhys would come straight here after finishing his business with the Marquis, so they decided it was better to wait near the tunnel instead.Mirova finished hammering a stake into the ground before letting out a sigh.“So…”“We’re really staying here until the tunnels are finished?”She looked toward the forest surrounding them.“I guess we’ll spend most of the time sitting around doing nothing.”She shrugged.“Although we were supposed to stay here for two weeks anyway.”“I guess it’s not that bad.”Laura looked at her strangely.“Hmm?”“Isn’t that obvious?”Mirova blinked.“What do you mean?”Laura crossed her arms.“Why do you think Rhys specifically gave us a two-week time limit?”She smiled knowingly.“Because he already expected something to happen during this mission.”“…Huh?”Mirova frowned.“What are you talkin

The moment the report arrived that the first tunnel had broken through, Rhys and the War Minister exchanged a single glance.Neither of them needed to say much.The operation had officially begun.The War Minister immediately issued his orders.“Assemble every unit.”“Have them begin digging through the remaining tunnels and prepare for combat.”He looked toward the messenger.“Assign one Beast Tamer to the front of every advance team.”“I don’t care what happens.”“If anything unusual appears, I want it discovered immediately.”“Yes, sir!”The messenger saluted before sprinting away.Within moments, the entire camp burst into motion.Soldiers who had been waiting for days grabbed their equipment and hurried toward their assigned tunnels.The decisive battle they had been preparing for was finally here.Rhys and the War Minister separated, each heading toward their own command group.As they walked, the War Minister spoke one last time.“Keep an eye on the pace.”“The exit isn’t far f

“So… what’s going on?”Mirova looked around the gathering point in confusion after rushing back from her tunnel.Her eyes quickly found Meave and Laura waiting nearby.“Oh.”Laura lifted a hand and greeted her with a smile.“You’re back.”Mirova walked over immediately.“What happened?”“We were suddenly ordered to return.”Laura simply shrugged.“We’ve talked about this before.”“It looks like things finally got worse.”She let out a sigh.“At this point, I honestly have no idea what’s coming next.”She paused before adding with a straight face,“Maybe an Alpha Class Abyssal.”Meave immediately glanced at her.“Don’t jinx it.”Laura rolled her eyes.“I’m past jinxing things.”“I’m outright cursing us now.”Mirova blinked.For a moment, she remembered the conversation they had a few days ago.Back then, she’d thought they were exaggerating.Now…She wasn’t so sure anymore.The fact that they could still joke about their terrible luck after everything they’d experienced together was ho

“Syrax.”“Yes?”The small black crow landed lightly on Rhys’ shoulder.Several nearby soldiers stared at him in confusion.They couldn’t understand why Rhys was addressing such an ordinary-looking crow with complete seriousness.None of them realized that the little bird perched on his shoulder was one of his Familiars.Rhys immediately gave his instructions.“Scout the area.”“I need to know exactly how many Abyssals are outside.”“Study the terrain.”“Find out how the area is laid out.”He pointed toward the tunnel entrance.“After that, look around for any landmarks.”“I need something we can use to determine our exact position.”Syrax nodded quietly.Rhys continued.“Also…”“Locate the other tunnel exits.”“Anubis and Gealion confirmed they’re nearby.”“There should be two on our right…”“And one on our left.”“Confirm whether those groups have arrived.”“If they have…”“Tell them to stay on standby.”“I’ll issue further orders once I have all the information.”“Understood.”Syrax

The four captains quickly led their troops into position.Each unit moved exactly as Rhys had instructed, forming the four sides of a massive square with the Beast Tamers gathered safely inside.The formation had a simple purpose.Seal off every Abyssal trapped within the perimeter.Prevent outside reinforcements from reaching them.Give the Beast Tamers enough time to eliminate everything caught inside before dealing with the enemies beyond.The plan worked almost perfectly.The trapped Abyssals were quickly overwhelmed.But the battle had already become far too loud to remain unnoticed.The echoes of Gealion’s howl, clashing steel, and the Abyssals’ shrill cries spread across the surrounding hills.It didn’t take long before movement appeared beyond the trees.Groups of Abyssals began rushing toward the battlefield from every direction.There weren’t thousands of them.Not yet.Still, each direction had nearly a hundred charging monsters.Combined, it was already a considerable forc