BOOOOOOOOM!
A massive explosion went off. It was so loud it was inconceivably why it could be so hidden.
It made no massive scene, and the noise and damage it caused were contained within a specific area and could not be perceived outside of it.
This kind of explosion rang out constantly over the past few weeks.
They were not from enemies, but a product of Rose's illusion abilities.
"Retreat! We must make it to the rendezvous point by any means possible!" She yelled, pulling more and more space under her control.
She was currently covering the rear while her team members ran ahead of her.
It wasn't that they were cowardly, it was that the path needed to be cleared in the front as well!
The Judgement Order did a large amount of research on the shadow army before choosing to invade it, but their information wasn't nearly as useful as they thought.
Everything was fine at first. While Commander Huo's operation took place, they were able to gather intel and undertake assassination quests relatively often, creating a solid profile of what the shadow army was like.
However, they stumbled upon something too big for them.
The unveiling of the Nox's hidden intelligence.
Those at the bottom were generally idiotic, but their leadership was anything but.
The repetitive strategies, the easily readable behavioral traits, these things that seemed impossible to forge were a complete lie.
It was only possible because there were so many of them.
Everyone sent to the Blood-Drenched Wilderness, no, practically every Nox being who'd shown themselves since the start of this full-scale war was cannon fodder.
They were sacrifices in an elaborate play to completely control the universe's movements.
As expected, they focused their forces where they were supposed to and allocated the rest as predicted.
As expected, their concentration made them ignore the slight chip in the glass that had the potential to become a crack that shattered it.
Along with that, the Judgement Order learned of several of the Karmic Emperor's plans as well as the Inhuman Emperor's general traits.
However, in the process, their presence was discovered.
Because the Inhuman Emperor himself visited the shadow army!
Naturally, he didn't chase the group of rats in his house himself. He used his followers as a horde to exterminate them instead!
For 6 weeks, Rose and her forces had been playing a cat-and-mouse game with the shadow army in a bid to escape with as few casualties as possible.
They entered the shadow army with a group of one hundred, including the ten who went to visit Commander Huo.
They each had squads of ten and worked independently, only occasionally sharing information to keep their actions hidden from the enemy, but all of them were uncovered one by one once the hunt began.
They'd been cut down to 80 total, but it already was a miracle they were able to save so many.
"AHHHH—!"
79.
A member of Rose's squad was impaled, his heart stuck at the end of a spear tip jutting out of his chest.
His name was Arthur. His reason for joining the Judgement Order was nothing more than honor and glory, but on the battlefield, he was neither arrogant nor unruly.
He was one of the most loyal and reliable comrades anyone could ask for.
With blood pooling from his body, he opened his eyes wide.
"Everyone…now—!"
VOOM!
His body expanded as his mana reached a level he could no longer contain.
Rose's eyes widened.
She gritted her teeth and stomached his death, pushing her mana as much as possible.
BAAANG!
The man's body exploded and sent sweeping waves of chaotic mana in every direction.
The Nox encirclement was made up of strictly high-level 4th class or higher enemies, so not all of them died, but their formation was definitely broken!
And more than that, their vision was obscured.
"Vanish."
Rose wrapped her mana around the rest of their group and spoke a single word.
They disappeared from the world physically and ethereally. Any trace of their presence disappeared without warning, almost as if they'd teleported.
But this was not the case.
Rose's illusions were essentially a secondary reality at this point. As long as she had an opportunity, she really could make herself and those around her invisible to anyone under Divinity.
The problem was that they'd been discovered. The Inhuman Emperor's forces left several defenses in every shadow army encampment, Demigod-level formations that could undo Rose's concealment and cancel the skills of others as well.
This was the first time they found a chance to hide again, and it was at the cost of one of their own.
It became a trend.
If they wanted to accomplish something, their people had to die.
No matter what they tried, this truth never changed.
Blaring alarms and the screeching words of the Nox filled the air.
With no view of the targets, they chose to stop aiming entirely.
But giving up was not in their dictionary.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
Flaming ballista tore through heaven and earth and wide area attacks filled with unreasonable amounts of mana clouded the atmosphere.
The earth outside the encampment became a hellscape of cratered land and corruption. Nobody could survive such a bombardment for long.
Luckily, Rose was not alone in this battle.
The eight remaining members of her squad put their abilities to use, enhancing each other and supporting their movements.
They created defenses and ran with their lives on the line, hoping nothing would touch them.
BOOM!
Another ballista fell dangerously close to the group.
"Left!" Rose cried out.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
Three consecutive shots slammed into the ground on their right and exploded into a ball of flames that almost consumed them.
Rose was forced to adapt her illusion to incorporate those flames while making them harmless.
She had to be absolutely certain she didn't change the picture the outside world saw unless she wanted to reveal their positions.
"RUN! NOW!"
Without warning, she jumped forward and dashed with all her power. The squad followed her, but not everyone could make it in time.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
An arrow the length of a city obliterated the ground as it landed only a few kilometers behind the group.
WHOOOOOOOOOSH!
Its shockwaves spread with the ferocity of a charging tiger, chasing the group no matter where they went.
"LEADER! TELL MY S—!"
BOOOOOM!
The woman at the back of the group stopped and summoned her mana to create a solid wall behind her while yelling as if she understood what was coming, but the time she had was too little.
The shockwave collided with her mana wall and blew it to pieces before hitting her and turning her body into a cloud of blood mist.
Her name was Marina. She joined this fight for the simple reason of creating a safe place for her loved ones to live peacefully.
Now, her wish could only be carried on by her comrades.
Unfortunately, she would never see those people again.
However, her sacrifice lessened the shockwave's force enough for the rest to block it with their power and keep going.
Marina left no trace of her existence on the battlefield.
Even though it made her want to vomit from disgust and the feeling of betrayal, Rose had no choice but to erase Marina's remains from the world to avoid giving away their location.
Dog tags were something Elena suggested.
The only thing Rose could do was collect Marina's and deliver it to her family.
Two more people died in one siege, but once the gigantic ballista showed its inability to reveal the group, the pursuit became less aggressive.
They were able to escape eventually.
Yet, only after losing another member, a man named Henry who idolized Su Ren and Damien.
Rose and the remaining six members of the group entered a hidden cave behind a mossy wall that helped it blend into the cliffside and rushed to the back wall.
Rose placed her hand on it and pushed her mana in a certain pattern.
The Eye of Horus with a sword through the middle, the emblem of the Judgement Order.
Inscribed in the sword was a code that would change at random intervals in order to confirm the identities of those attempting entry.
Once the symbol was drawn, the cave wall turned illusory and the group rushed in, the door closing behind them.
The six squad members immediately collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily.
Meanwhile, Rose glanced around the safe house.
It had been 6 weeks so far, but they still had several thousand kilometers to cover before they could escape this area.
'I can only hope…' She thought as she glanced at her squad members with sorrow.
The other nine squads should've been on their way to this location.
It was disconcerting for them to be the first to arrive.
Rose tried to quell her dark thoughts, but it was impossible to not consider the possibility.
The possibility that they were some of the last ones remaining.
