Chapter 817 Consequences and Choices
"Seems like she"s enjoying herself a bit too much," muttered Vivi.
"Hey, Iraelyn, make sure to only target the players from that guild," Azazel said casually, without a care. Though he didn"t mind if she killed other players as well.
As Sleeping Dragon continued to play a deadly game of hide and seek with Iraelyn, Ren addressed the other guilds with a tone of authority.
"Now you see the consequences of your actions. I"ll give you some time to think about my offer," Ren declared. "Feeling magnanimous today, I"ll let you off with a warning. But if you don"t agree with me, you can always come and fight me."
Black Lion and the others gritted their teeth in frustration and anger. Fighting Ren and his guilds alone might have been manageable, but with Azazel and his cohorts in the mix, it was a different story altogether.
They knew that any attempt to lay a hand on Ren and his group would surely provoke Azazel and his allies to intervene, sealing their fate.
Their eyes shifted to Sleeping Dragon, currently being hunted and toyed with by Iraelyn in her formidable dragon form.
Some guild members shivered and immediately logged out, while those remaining from the top guilds were left uncertain, unsure of their next move. White Unicorn was the first to break free from Black Lion"s grip.
"What are you doing, Eric?" Invayne shouted in disbelief. "Are you betraying us?"
Eric sighed heavily. "It"s over, Scar, Invayne. We have to consider our guild"s well-being as well."
"But what about Ren and the others?" Invayne protested.
"You can deal with them, but we no longer wish to be involved in this conflict," Eric stated firmly.
Scar was the one who responded with a serious expression. "Do you realize the implications of breaking away from this alliance?"
Eric nodded grimly and gestured towards Sleeping Dragon. "We do, and we also understand what will happen if we don"t."
Scar and the others stared in silence at the decimated remnants of Sleeping Dragon, unable to find words to express their shock.
"Give it up, Scar," Eric said with a sigh. "You know as well as I do that this is over. With Ren"s declaration, many guilds will choose neutrality to explore the Netherworld. The hunt for his bounty ends here." The origin of this chapter"s debut can be traced to N0/v3l--B1n.
"So you"re just going to let World Conqueror take the top spot and steal our position?!" Invayne exclaimed angrily.
Erica rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. Let it go already. If they reach the top, they"ve earned it. Meanwhile, we"ll do our best to maintain our position and compete fairly, as we should have done from the beginning."
With that, White Unicorn broke away from the alliance and logged out.
Hushed voices circulated in the air as some agreed with White Unicorn and chose to break free as well, while others still feared the consequences of breaking the alliance and stuck with Black Lion.
"Such cowards!" Invayne muttered through gritted teeth.
Though she wasn"t aware the cowardice of ganging up on a single guild.
"Let"s go . . ." Scar said, leading the way as he glanced at Ren and his group one last time before logging out.
"Scar, wait!" Invayne called out, logging out quickly to chase after her boyfriend.
As the players and guilds logged out one after another, the media at the sidelines couldn"t help but report on the unfolding events nonstop.
"What"s this? They"re leaving already?" Azazel remarked with a disappointed sigh.
"Too bad. Perhaps we should have attacked them in the first place," Hubrion muttered.
"It"s for the best. We have other problems to attend to, and Lethargia is still asleep over there," Vivi said calmly. "Leave him alone," Avaris interjected. "He"ll surely wake up when there"s food."
"Let"s go to Ren," Azazel said, his expression turning serious. "We have to retrieve Lorelai."
"Glad to see you again," Evie greeted when Azazel and the others approached.
Desira beamed and flipped her hair. "Ah, I don"t blame you if you missed me. I am beautiful and extremely missed, as always."
Evie ignored her and talked with Vivi, while Ren introduced everyone once again.
"Whoa . . . you"re the Demon Lord?" Leonel said, eyeing Azazel. "But you"re . . ."
"I know . . . I know . . . handsome and powerful, right? But don"t let my intimidating aura scare you; I"m actually a nice guy to Ren and Evie"s friends."
"I was going to say that you"re so young," Leonel corrected.
"Demons have a long lifespan," Sumeri explained. "They told us that like seconds ago."
Leonel ignored her and engaged in excited talk with Azazel. "Hey, is it true that you have wings and multiple horns?"
Isolde chimed in. "What about fangs?"
"What about tails?!" Nikolai joined in as well. Meanwhile, Ragnar found himself dealing with his own problem as Hubrion kept getting too close to him, flashing his wide smile and high pitched voice.
"So, you can create these monsters?" Avaris asked Roz, engaging in a conversation with him.
Roz nodded. "Yes."
"That"s so cool. Can you create items as well?"
"That"s Ren"s expertise . . ."
Avaris glanced to the side. "I find it hard to talk to Ren . . ." he admitted softly, his voice barely audible. "Maybe you can create unique monsters? You know, ones that are . . . collectables."
Roz stared at him with a blank face. ". . . Huh?"
"Anyway, back to the important matter at hand," Azazel changed the topic abruptly. "We"re going to retrieve Lorelai from the angels. Do you want to come, Ren?"
Leonel and the others were surprised by the sudden question, while Ren had already antic.i.p.ated the offer.
Without another word, Ren nodded, and Azazel and the others breathed a sigh of relief.
"That"s good to hear!" Avaris chimed in.
"I"m glad that you"ve agreed. You"re a great help, Ren and Evie," Vivi expressed her grat.i.tude.
"Honestly, if you don"t come, I"ll be having a hard time taking care of this bunch," Desira remarked.
"The more, the merrier! Graahahaha!" Iraelyn"s laughter echoed through the area.
Malifira chuckled softly, while Hubrion, bubbling with excitement, turned to Ragnar, saying, "Looks like we"ll be going together. Aren"t you excited?! Don"t worry, I"m strong, so I"ll protect you!"
Ragnar"s lips pressed tightly together, and he moved as far away from Hubrion as possible.
"So, how are we going to rescue Lorelai again?" Elena inquired.
Azazel answered with confidence, "Simple. We"ll journey to the Heaven Realm!"