Chapter 322: War of The Eastern Lion 3

What they said was true. The soldiers from their city stopped advancing.

They remained where they stood, feet planted firmly against the scarred battlefield, their spears still clutched tightly in their hands.

The tension in the air did not disappear, but it shifted. What had been a forward charge only moments ago turned into a heavy, uncertain silence.

Ethan remained in place, unmoving, with Yuna standing faithfully at his side.

The wind brushed against his armor, carrying with it the scent of blood and smoke from the distant clashes.

From afar, a man approached, escorted by several members of his city team. Their steps were slow and deliberate, as if each stride carried the weight of an irreversible decision.

When the man finally stopped a few meters away, he lowered his head in a respectful bow.

“You… are their leader?”

His voice was cautious, but not trembling.

The man nodded and introduced himself. “My name is Joko. Yes. I am their leader.”

“So,” Ethan said calmly, his gaze steady, “you understand why you came here?”

Joko inhaled deeply. Without another word, he reached into his inventory and pulled out several glowing Core Crystals.

The faint light from the crystals illuminated his tense expression. In his hands were five Core Crystals belonging to his city and guild.

Five.

That meant he and his city team had already destroyed four other cities and seized their crystals.

The battlefield had not been kind.

“Promise me,” Joko said firmly, his grip tightening around the crystals, “that you will keep your word.”

Ethan did not hesitate. “I will.”

There was no flourish in his answer. No dramatic oath. Just certainty.

Joko nodded once. Then, without giving himself time to second-guess the decision, he threw the Core Crystals forward.

They spun in the air, glowing faintly as they crossed the space between them.

Ethan extended his hand and caught them effortlessly.

The moment ownership changed, a transparent notification panel appeared before Ethan’s eyes.

[Congratulations, you have obtained a Core Crystal!]

[Total Core Crystals: 33] [+5]

[City Ranking: 4th]

“Record it,” Ethan said calmly. “They surrendered five Core Crystals.”

A woman named Leny stepped forward from behind the formation. She was tasked with recording the number of Core Crystals obtained from defeated or surrendered enemies.

She was not from LionArk. Ethan had deliberately chosen someone outside his core guild to avoid internal suspicion or accusations of manipulation.

Core Crystals were not just loot. They represented cities. Power. Survival.

The moment the transaction was completed, Joko and his team disappeared in flashes of light.

They had teleported out of the Event and returned to the game world.

Their Core Crystals now belonged to the Eastern Alliance.

And because Ethan held the crystals, their city’s remaining soldiers were automatically reassigned under LionArk’s banner.

Their allegiance had shifted with the transfer of ownership.

War was cruelly efficient like that.

Two hours passed.

The sky, once filled with streaks of magic and explosions of clashing servants, began to quiet down.

The battle above was no longer as chaotic as before. Several servants from the Eastern Alliance returned one by one, their summoning durations expired or their HP depleted from combat.

Many had lost. Some had barely survived.

But Lyodra and Sera were still in the sky, guarding the battlefield from any remaining enemy servant assaults.

Ethan’s gaze lifted when he sensed movement descending.

Sera landed gracefully before him. Her golden dress shimmered under the fading light. There were no tears in the fabric, no visible wounds, no sign of exhaustion on her face.

“What’s the situation?” Ethan asked.

“There are no servants left in the sky,” Sera replied calmly.

“None?”

“Yes. They were too easy.”

Her tone carried quiet confidence. Not arrogance. Just fact.

Even so, words alone were insufficient for Ethan. Descriptions lacked depth. They lacked detail.

“Lyodra,” he called out, raising his voice slightly. “Return.”

From above, a streak of crimson light cut across the sky. Lyodra descended swiftly, red trails lingering behind her like burning embers.

She landed before Ethan and bowed slightly.

“Rest,” he instructed.

She obeyed without question.

Ethan closed his eyes.

Through the memory link connected to Lyodra, fragments of the battlefield unfolded within his mind. He saw what she had seen.

Chaos.

The Redemption Sword alliance was exhausted. Their frontline had thinned drastically.

Their city soldiers had been reduced in number, many lying wounded or fallen.

Arthur and Xeno were fighting desperately near the coastline, attempting to secure control over a target island city.

Some of their forces had already crossed the strait by boat. Others were still stranded on the mainland.

Arthur and Xeno had made it across.

Ethan’s eyes snapped open.

“We need to seize their ships,” he said firmly.

His voice carried authority, cutting through the surrounding noise.

“All units,” he commanded, projecting his voice through the command channel. “Listen carefully.”

“We advance north at full strength. We cannot allow them to reinforce the archipelago.”

Unit commanders acknowledged immediately.

The Eastern Alliance forces began moving, leaving the border behind and pushing northward with renewed momentum.

Ethan mounted his horse, activating Ashura Mode. A faint aura radiated from him as his speed surged. The ground blurred beneath the hooves.

Ahead, the remaining Redemption Sword forces turned in alarm as they saw the Eastern Alliance advancing.

They were trapped.

From the north, island city forces pressed down. From the south, the Eastern Alliance charged forward.

“ATTACK!” Ethan roared.

The clash that followed was brutal.

Steel met steel. Magic collided with magic. Shouts and screams blended into the roar of open warfare.

The Eastern Alliance held numerical superiority. Soldier against soldier. Team member against team member.

The enemy line faltered.

“We can’t win!”

“Fall back!”

“Retreat!”

Some tried to surrender. Others fought in desperation.

Casualties mounted. The Eastern Alliance suffered injuries, but no confirmed deaths yet.

Amid the chaos, Ethan’s attention locked onto a specific area of the battlefield.

Noah.

Leader of Trident Sea.

Noah and his city team were fighting fiercely against Eastern Alliance troops.

Ethan dismissed his mount mid-stride and surged forward on foot, his speed terrifyingly fast.

Yuna noticed immediately and followed without hesitation.

Noah’s team was struggling, pushing back enemies while forming a defensive perimeter. But the moment Ethan stepped into view, everything changed.

Noah froze.

His hands trembled.

“E–Ethan…?”

“How are you, Noah?” Ethan asked quietly.

There was no warmth in his voice.

One of Noah’s teammates, panicking, lunged at Ethan.

A single Crimson Slash.

The man was split in two before he even realized what happened.

Blood sprayed across the battlefield.

The Eastern Alliance troops felt their morale surge.

Noah swallowed.

“Are you… going to kill me?”

Ethan stared at him.

“I don’t need a traitor.”

“You don’t understand my situation,” Noah shot back. “You have no right to judge me.”

“I understand perfectly,” Ethan replied, stepping closer. “You had a choice.”

“You could have refused them.”

“You could have stayed loyal.”

His gaze hardened.

“But you chose the side you believed would win.”

“No. That’s not—”

“Noah,” Ethan interrupted coldly. “I’m disappointed.”

Bloodflare Cataclysm activated.

His sword plunged into the ground.

A blood-red domain expanded outward, staining the battlefield in crimson light.

The enemy felt it instantly. Their stats dropped. Movement slowed.

Ethan’s strength and speed increased.

“Form a circle!” Noah shouted. “Defensive formation!”

They created a magical barrier, locking shields together.

“If we hold for twenty seconds, we survive!” someone yelled.

Twenty seconds? Ethan thought coldly. You still don’t understand.

Time meant nothing.

He swung.

Crimson energy tore forward.

The magical wall trembled. Cracks formed instantly.

Their magic was weakened inside the blood domain.

The barrier shattered.

The explosion that followed ripped through their formation. Bodies were thrown backward. Screams filled the air.

Noah staggered in shock.

He’s stronger than I calculated.

“Wait!” Noah shouted desperately. “I’ll give you my Core Crystal! Just let me live!”

Ethan did not slow down.

He moved like a phantom of death.

Each swing severed limbs. Each thrust pierced flesh.

Blood soaked the ground.

Twenty seconds passed.

Out of seventeen team members, twelve were dead. The rest lay dying.

Only Noah and two others remained standing.

The blood domain retracted and vanished.

Yuna arrived, her expression pale as she took in the carnage.

“What… happened?”

Ethan walked toward Noah.

“You want to kill me? Then hurry—”

STAB.

The blade pierced Noah’s abdomen in a flash of crimson light.

His HP dropped rapidly.

“Are you satisfied?!” Noah gasped.

Ethan leaned closer.

“No.”

“The city of Seacrest will drown in blood.”

“I will dismantle Trident Sea.”

“Those who refuse to surrender will die by my hand.”

He pulled the blade free and slashed sideways.

Noah’s body split in two.

Silence fell around them.

The two remaining teammates stood frozen, unwilling to move.

In his final seconds, Noah stared at Ethan.

His HP reached zero.

He died at the hands of his former ally.

A Core Crystal dropped to the ground.

Ethan picked it up.

[Congratulations, you have obtained a Core Crystal!]

[Total Core Crystals: 40] [+7]

[City Ranking: 4th]

He turned to Yuna.

“Offer surrender to the remaining enemies.”

“Those who refuse to hand over their Core Crystals will die.”

Yuna nodded and relayed the command.

Ethan remained where Noah had fallen.

Noah and Trident Sea had once helped LionArk during its darkest days.

I wanted to forgive him.

But if he did, what would happen to the alliance’s trust?

Leadership demanded cruelty.

He had killed Noah.

But he had also lost a friend.

Ethan stared at the blood-stained ground.

“Learn,” he murmured quietly, “to respect someone’s trust, Noah.”

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