BOOM!
A massive explosion rang out, sending a shockwave dozens of kilometers in every direction. A large facility was burnt to the ground in seconds.
Cough! Cough!
A man covered in dust emerged from the rubble, his eyes burning with hatred.
"You…!" He pushed the word out of his mouth along with a mouthful of blood as he looked at the group of men in the sky.
"Are you really doing this?! Do you actually wish to drop all pretenses and start a war?!" The man screamed.
There had already been many small and large scuffles that led hundreds and thousands of people to their deaths, but these people were insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Until now, neither party had moved in a way to damage the other party's benefits.
But that was merely until now.
The large facility that was currently burning to the ground was one of Asgard's most important facilities. It was located in Hub City Primus, one of the few territories controlled by Asgard, and dealt mainly with the production of Nodal Weaponry.
With the way the unnamed world's Mana Utilization method worked, Nodal Weaponry facilities were every organization's lifeblood. If the production of these weapons was halted, it'd heavily impact the combat power their armies could show.
And although this facility was just one of many, it was also one of the largest. Asgard would take a massive blow from this raid.
"Target Eliminated. Erasing Evidence."
A cold mechanical voice left the man at the forefront of the attack. His arm lifted, a beam of condensed mana shooting out of his palm towards the man who screamed.
"Ahhhh!"
With a final shout of unwillingness, the man fell to the ground with a massive hole in his chest, dead.
"Searching for signs of life…"
"Search completed. Task completed. Returning to designated position."
When the mechanical voice determined that there were no other survivors, it led the rest of its team back to the rendezvous point that was set beforehand. Here, an abyssal figure cloaked in shadows was waiting for them.
"Jejeje! The first test went far better than I hoped! It looks like this method will be viable!"
The abyssal figure put his hand on the being in front of him, causing a wisp of mana to exit its body. Soon, he did the same for all the rest.
Right, these beings were not human at all. They are Puppet Mechs that had been enhanced and mass-produced by Niflheim after acquiring Aishia's data!
This was their first field test, and it was a major one at that. But now that they'd come back successful, there was nothing more to say. Niflheim had come into possession of a massive number of disposable troops through this invention, and now, they could start a war without worries.
"Jejeje! I wonder how that little girl will react when she learns of this. Ahh, I truly wish to see that expression."
With an eerie chuckle, the abyssal figure swept his arm and collected the Puppet Mechs into his spatial ring, returning to Niflheim thereafter.
News of the attack spread rapidly. The fact that Niflheim had done it was obvious, as if they were proudly boasting of their achievement.
Asgard was hit hard on the first day, losing any chance of initiative they had. They were forced into a passive position where they could only receive a beating.
And at this point, even the pro-Niflheim faction was beginning to have doubts. Even if they supported Niflheim, wouldn't they be killed along with everyone else if Asgard was destroyed? If Niflheim planned to shelter them, why hadn't they done so already?
With every day, news of another attack was spread, but Asgard wasn't able to stop it at all. The attack patterns were simply too random, and they didn't have enough 4th class existences or space to spread their forces so thinly.
As these attacks continued, Asgard slowly united. Not by choice, but by necessity. They slowly realized that every single one of them would die if they didn't fight back, so their only option was to go fully offensive without care for losses until they evened things out.
And that was exactly what happened.
Asgard's forces began desperately attacking the 12 Hub Cities under Niflheim's control. If Asgard's 3 Hub Cities and the completely neutral Avalon were removed, these were all that remained.
These attacks were incredibly fierce. It wasn't just the experts panicking, but the common soldiers too. They all desperately fought for a chance to keep their lives.
And like this, the Hub Cities Eminence, Protos, and Weine were destroyed one after another.
Long Chen sat in his office with his head in his hands. The constant reports that kept coming in were like buckets of oil being poured onto a fire that was already raging across the world. It was like every single chaotic variable exploded at once, tipping the precarious balance that had been kept for many years beforehand.
The only safe haven remaining in the world was Avalon. Nobody dared to touch this city, as even the city itself was a weapon that could be used to slaughter 4th classes like chickens. The craftsmen of Avalon would work for anyone as long as they provided materials and money, so it was integral to never offend them.
"Haa, when things reach this point, you just have to disappear. Isn't this the part where you jump in like a badass and fix everything?" Long Chen inadvertently muttered.
He'd been managing things alone without Damien's help for many months already, and he found that it wasn't fun at all. He didn't understand how Damien could move so confidently and recklessly while still achieving the result he desired.
"At this rate, I won't be able to do anything besides continue my assassination missions, but that isn't saving anyone!"
His hand banged against the desk in frustration. The situation had developed to the point of no return in less than a week. This just went to show how bad things already were under the surface. With this kind of development speed, Long Chen wasn't given any time to think.
Long Chen's eyes hardened. He couldn't believe he actually ended up thinking about Damien at this critical juncture. He didn't realize just how much he idolized the man's carefree persona until this moment of crisis.
But if that was what he idolized, then why was he acting in a way opposite of it?
Long Chen's mind cleared as if he gained enlightenment. "Right, I was never born to be a general who hides behind his soldiers. I was born to be on the frontlines slaughtering enemies! Instead of being holed up here, I should fight!"
He wasn't going to fight for Niflheim or Evotech. Now that they'd reached this stage, all pretenses were being dropped.
Long Chen stood up, draping himself in battle armor and grabbing the Empyrean Dragon Sword. As he marched out of his office, each of his steps carried an untold momentum that couldn't be stopped.
"Line up! Get ready! From today onward, we fight! I don't care who you kill or what you kill for, we are not picking sides in this conflict! Kill, kill, and kill until you can't kill anymore! This is my only order!"
Hundreds and thousands of troops gathered under his command. Their bloodlust combined into a frightening momentum that almost directly crushed the barracks.
Long Chen looked at these men with a profound expression in his eyes. As they looked back at him, he could see the trust they had in him. If he asked them to die, they'd do so without hesitation.
Long Chen grinned beside himself. He couldn't help but be proud of what he'd achieved these past few months.
And in order to retain everything he cared and stood for…
"We march!"
With his command, bloodlust filled the heavens. An earth-shaking roar was formed from the combined voices of these thousands of troops.
In this conflict that had now escalated to the pinnacle, a new force would soon enter the fray.
