The shock had not yet faded.
Orario was still reeling from how brutally fast Set Familia had been dismantled when the next wave hit.
Both of Damien's remaining territories were attacked simultaneously.
The eastern area moved first.
Damien had left Adonis in charge.
Ishtar's strike force was clean and deliberate. Three Level Twos and two Level Threes advanced. The weaker two remained outside the circle, holding position, while the two Level Threes and the strongest Level Two stepped inside to challenge the flag bearer.
The audience leaned forward.
The fight ended before most of them could even register the opening exchange.
Adonis moved.
Not with brute force. Not with flourish.
With speed that looked wrong.
He slipped past the first attacker, shattered their guard, and dropped them in a single motion. The second Level Three barely raised their weapon before Adonis was already behind them. The final Level Two tried to retreat, but the shadow blade struck first.
Done.
What unsettled the crowd most was not the speed.
It was what did not happen.
The Minotaurs standing beside Adonis never moved. They did not assist. They did not even react. Adonis had dismantled all three alone.
And people knew what that meant.
Adonis was once Tammuz. Ishtar Familia. Level Four.
A shadow that retained its former mastery.
But that was only half the nightmare.
At the central area, Ishtar struck harder.
Three Level Threes.
Six Level Twos.
Against six armored Lizardmen.
On paper, it should have been decisive.
It was not.
The Lizardmen did not retreat. They did not panic. They rotated positions, locking shields, controlling space with brutal discipline. One remained inside the circle holding the flag while the others stepped just outside, physically denying entry, forcing clashes at narrow angles where numbers meant nothing.
Minutes passed.
The Ishtar force bled stamina.
Then support arrived.
Shadows surged in. Two infant dragons crashed into the battlefield, followed by the Silverback, its presence alone enough to fracture morale. The Ishtar attackers broke formation and retreated, dragging their wounded with them.
The eastern attack had already failed.
Now the center had held.
"It seems the Ishtar Alliance is falling back into their own territory," Ganesha announced, his tone carrying disbelief. "No one could have predicted this, but Damien and his shadows have completely shut down Ishtar's assaults."
The crowd roared, confused, thrilled, terrified.
"However," Ganesha continued, recalibrating quickly, "if things remain as they are, the score stays four to four."
He paused.
Then his voice sharpened.
"Oh. We have new developments."
Screens shifted.
"Damien Ardent is attacking Ishtar's western area."
A beat.
"Once again… he is alone."
...
Samira's voice cut sharply through the western area.
"Do not let him inside the circle! Keep him out at all costs!"
Ishtar Familia moved immediately. Shields locked. Spears angled outward. A layered formation took shape, with rear units bracing to rotate forward if the front line broke. By Damien's count, nearly twenty adventurers formed a living wall around the circle.
He tilted his head, amused.
"Wow," he muttered. "They're really desperate to keep me out."
His eyes flicked upward.
The flag circle was inside a half collapsed building, its roof still mostly intact. For a moment, he considered the easy answer. Break through the ceiling. Drop straight in. End it fast.
But that would leave the harder problem afterward.
Holding it.
He exhaled, then smiled.
"Thanks for this, Chloe."
Two small metal spheres slid into his palms. He tossed them through shattered windows on opposite sides of the structure.
The reaction was immediate.
Smoke exploded outward, thick and unnatural, swallowing the interior in seconds. Shouts erupted. Orders overlapped. Formation dissolved.
Too late.
Damien vanished into the haze.
Inside the smoke, shapes fell without warning. A pressure strike to the throat. A blade turned sideways to disable a knee. A precise blow behind the ear. He did not rush. He hunted. Each strike was controlled, efficient, final.
Bodies dropped silently.
Panic spread.
"Stick together!" Samira shouted from inside the circle. "Do not chase him! Do not break formation!"
But they were not trained for this.
Not for fighting a predator who understood adventurer combat better than most adventurers understood themselves.
From the stands, seasoned fighters felt it in their gut. The way Damien moved. The way he cut. Not reckless. Not flashy.
Professional.
It reminded them of only one other name.
Ottar.
The smoke thinned.
Damien stood at the edge of the circle.
Around him, every guard lay unconscious.
Samira stared at the scene, shoulders sinking. The fight had left her before her body did.
She stepped forward and bowed her head.
"I surrender," she said quietly. "I withdraw from the War Game."
One of her remaining guards shouted in disbelief. "Samira!"
She did not look back.
"You should leave too," she said calmly. "Ishtar Familia has already lost."
Damien said nothing. He simply watched as she stepped out of the circle and walked away.
The last two guards followed shortly after, incapacitated without ceremony.
Ganesha nearly leapt from his seat.
"Oh! What a turn of events!" he roared. "Samira, one of Ishtar Familia's most prominent members, rumored successor to the vice captain position after Tammuz, has surrendered!"
The screens shifted again.
"And wait! There's more!"
The image snapped to another western zone.
Igris stood alone, blade lowered, surrounded by fallen Ishtar members. At his feet, Aisha Belka knelt, breathing hard.
She raised her hand.
"I surrender."
The crowd exploded.
"Unbelievable!" Ganesha shouted. "Both the captain and vice captain have surrendered!"
Screens updated rapidly.
Damien's original area was now held by shadow soldiers. Every one of his territories was controlled. Damien himself stood alone.
"All of Damien Ardent's shadows are deployed," Ganesha continued. "Each controlling an area independently. Which means…"
He paused, voice rising.
"He truly is fighting alone!"
Numbers flashed across the screens.
"With thirty minutes remaining, Hestia Familia leads six to two!"
Orario erupted.
This was no display.
This was domination.
"All that remains," Ganesha said, "is Ishtar Alliance's central area held by Apollo Familia, and Ishtar's main area…"
The image shifted.
"…guarded by Ishtar's newest member. Karni."
In her booth, Ishtar lost control.
She slammed her fist down, screaming into the mage relay.
"Kill him! Kill him, Karni! I don't care about reputation anymore! Kill him and erase that bastard!"
Her voice cracked with fury.
"After that, hunt down those traitors. Samira. Aisha. Kill them too!"
She leaned forward, eyes burning.
"He'll go for Apollo next. Ambush him there."
Her lips curled.
"End him."
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