The pendragon battle royal tournament could be said to be at its heat and peak moment. All over the tournament ground, battles were going on.
The strong clans that were still in the tournament were locked in their most heated battles ever.
However, unlike before, where they were fighting against other clans, this time around, they weren't fighting other clans.
This time was different.
The fight was strongly against beasts.
A horde of them.
And it wasn't just locked onto one species of beast.
The entire tournament ground had changed.
The atmosphere that was once filled with the excitement of clan battles had turned into something much more dangerous. The participants were no longer simply trying to defeat their opponents.
They were trying to survive against waves of beasts.
And one of the places experiencing this fight was a swamp area.
It was a small lake of some sort, but this one was filled with a large number of water beasts. Alligators made up most of them, and a good number of these creatures were starting to crawl out of the water and onto the land.
The surface of the lake shook with every movement.
Water splashed as more beasts emerged from beneath the dark surface.
Surrounding the swamp were forests that were also filled with several beasts.
They were everywhere.
Hidden between the trees.
Moving through the grass.
Waiting for their chance to attack.
Among them were lizards.
A group of them moved through the open field, and their size was almost that of a car.
Their sharp claws scratched against the ground as they walked.
Their heavy bodies created small vibrations with every step.
But these were not normal lizards.
They were different from the old beasts people were used to seeing.
Some of the lizards were no longer crawling on the ground like ordinary creatures.
They had changed.
They stood upright.
Their bodies had taken a humanoid stance, and they moved using two legs like humans.
Their long tails dragged behind them while their powerful arms swung with every step.
Their claws were sharp enough to tear through flesh.
Their long mouths, similar to those of alligators, opened wide, revealing rows of dangerous teeth.
"Raor!"
One of the alligators roared.
The sound spread across the swamp, shaking the area around it.
The other beasts responded with their own cries.
The battlefield became louder.
More dangerous.
Then—
"Fire!" a voice shouted.
The voice came from a young man dressed in full gear like a knight. The only thing missing was a sword.
Instead, one of his hands was covered by a massive gauntlet made of thick metal, while his other hand remained free.
Heavy armored boots covered his feet.
"Fire!" the young man shouted.
He stomped one foot into the ground.
Boom!
The earth shook beneath him.
Three massive boulders burst out of the ground at his command, ripping through the soil before hovering briefly in the air.
Without wasting a second, he swung his gauntleted arm.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
The enormous fist smashed into the three boulders one after another, launching all of them forward at terrifying speed.
The rocks tore across the battlefield, skimming over the muddy ground before crashing into the crawling alligators.
Mud and water exploded into the air.
Several beasts were knocked off their feet as the massive rocks bulldozed through them.
Meanwhile, behind the young man stood more fighters.
They weren't just three or four people.
There were around ten of them, all from different clans, working together to hold back the beast tide.
Some wielded bows.
Others carried spears, swords, or strange weapons forged for fighting beasts.
Everyone attacked without slowing down.
Soon, a couple of blazing projectiles shot through the battlefield like bullets, flying straight toward one of the standing alligators.
Bang!
One of the upright alligators was struck directly in the belly.
The impact forced its body backward.
Black blood burst from the wound as the beast let out a painful roar before crashing heavily onto the ground.
The remaining boulders continued forward without stopping.
They hurtled toward another standing alligator with tremendous force.
But this time, the beast reacted.
Instead of facing the attack, the alligator quickly spun around and presented its thick back toward the incoming rocks.
Bang!
The boulders slammed into its back with a deafening crash.
The rocks shattered into countless fragments upon impact, scattering broken pieces of stone across the battlefield.
Dust and debris filled the air.
Yet the alligator remained standing.
Almost immediately after enduring the attack, the standing alligator spun around.
Its massive claws sliced through the air with frightening speed.
The claws shot straight toward the gauntlet-wearing young man.
Before they could reach him, an earth wall burst out of the ground.
Bang!
The alligator's claws slashed into the wall.
Its long fingers pierced deep into the solid earth, carving through layers of rock and dirt.
Even so, the wall did its job.
The attack was stopped.
The young man wearing the gauntlet immediately jumped backward, creating distance just in time.
A split second later, an even greater force crashed into the wall.
Boom!
The earth wall exploded into countless chunks.
Large pieces of rock scattered in every direction.
Sweeping through the shattered wall like a giant whip was the alligator's massive tail.
The powerful strike cut through the cloud of dust before finally slowing.
As the dust settled, the humanoid alligator came into view once again.
Several smaller alligators crawled beside it, their jaws snapping as they pushed across the muddy ground.
"Raise the wall and push back!" the young man wearing the gauntlet shouted.
The order rang across the battlefield.
Immediately, three people stepped forward.
They slammed their feet into the ground at the same time.
Rumble!
The earth trembled beneath them.
Their control over the ground spread outward, and moments later, a massive wall of solid earth rose from behind the humanoid alligator.
The wall towered over the smaller beasts, blocking off their retreat.
Without hesitation, the three individuals thrust both hands forward.
The earth wall responded instantly.
It surged ahead with crushing force, pushing toward the humanoid alligator while driving into the crawling alligators behind it.
The smaller beasts were forced backward as the moving wall continued to advance.
Seeing this, the humanoid alligator wasn't about to stand still and let itself be trapped.
It lunged forward with incredible speed.
Its powerful body blurred across the ground.
At the same time, it swung its thick tail.
The tail cracked through the air like a giant whip.
It sliced downward with tremendous force, heading straight toward the advancing earth wall and the ground beneath it.
However, just before it could strike them, a figure suddenly appeared in front of them all.
The movement was so fast that no one saw where the person had come from.
The alligator's tail slammed into the newcomer.
Bang!
The force behind the strike sent a powerful gust of wind sweeping across the battlefield.
The blast washed over everyone nearby, kicking up dirt, grass, and muddy water.
Yet the newcomer didn't move an inch.
He stood firmly in place.
One hand was raised, gripping the alligator's massive tail tightly.
The beast struggled, but its tail refused to budge from the stranger's grasp.
Without hesitation, the newcomer raised his free hand.
Then he brought it down like a guillotine.
Slash!
Splash!
Blood burst from the wound in a violent spray.
The alligator let out a deafening roar and staggered backward.
This time, however, its tail was gone.
It had been severed cleanly.
As for the newcomer, he was completely covered by a strange white cloak.
A deep hood hid his face entirely, leaving not even a glimpse of his features visible to the outside world.
No one could tell who he was.
The wounded alligator stumbled backward, trying to create some distance.
Then it suddenly stopped.
Its body refused to move.
The beast looked down.
The grass beneath its feet had come alive.
Long blades twisted together, rapidly growing into thick vines that wrapped tightly around both of its legs, locking it firmly in place.
The alligator struggled violently.
It pulled.
It twisted.
But the vines held fast.
The cloaked stranger calmly stretched out one hand.
With a single thrust of his five fingers, the ground responded.
A thick, powerful vine burst from the earth in an instant.
It shot forward like a spear.
Thrust!
The vine pierced straight through the alligator's stomach.
The attack was clean.
The beast's body stiffened for a brief moment before all strength left it.
It died instantly.
Silence briefly spread across that section of the battlefield.
Meanwhile, everyone who had been fighting in the tournament stared at the cloaked newcomer in complete shock.
None of them had expected someone like him to appear.
Eventually, someone found the courage to speak.
The young man wearing the gauntlet stepped forward carefully.
"You are really strong. Would you like to join our team of surviv—"
His words stopped halfway.
He couldn't finish the sentence.
The stranger had been standing with his back facing them the entire time.
Now, he slowly turned around.
His movements were calm.
Steady.
Unhurried.
Everyone's attention locked onto him.
Then they saw his face.
Or rather...
What should have been his face.
Beneath the hood was nothing.
Only darkness.
Pitch black.
There were no eyes.
No nose.
No mouth.
Not even the outline of a human face.
The hood wasn't tilted to hide his features.
He was looking directly at them.
Yet all they could see was endless darkness staring back.
A chill ran through the group.
"I will give you one chance," the stranger said in a cold, emotionless voice.
"Quit the tournament now...
"Or die."
The threat echoed across the battlefield.
As for who the stranger truly was...
He was a member of the Khyphon Clan.
A small group from the clan had been deployed for this very purpose.
Their mission was simple.
Eliminate everyone still participating in the tournament.
Meanwhile, the same thing was happening in other parts of the battlefield.
The Khyphon Clan hadn't sent just one person.
A total of three members had been deployed by their leaders.
Each of them had received the same objective.
Force the remaining clans to quit the tournament.
Or kill them.
At that very moment, another member of the Khyphon Clan stood alone in an open field.
The battle there had already ended.
Bodies of beasts were scattered across the ground.
Black blood soaked into the earth.
But they weren't the only ones lying there.
Human bodies were mixed among them.
The field had fallen completely silent.
'I gave them the chance to leave.'
'They refused.'
'It's not my fault.'
'I had a mission.'
'Now it's complete.'
The cloaked figure lowered his gaze for a brief moment.
The next second, the wristband on his arm activated.
A faint light spread across it.
His body gradually faded from sight before disappearing completely.
Meanwhile, one particular person had already begun noticing these strange events.
'He was strong... yet he quit the tournament immediately after finishing the killing.'
The more he thought about it, the less it made sense.
'This doesn't feel right at all,' Jovisrax thought.