Chapter 160: Inferno Arrives

The tension shattered with a sound that was not quite a howl and not quite a snarl, but something deeper and far more territorial.

At the center of the jackal pack, a massive figure rose above the rest. Its fur was mottled with jagged yellow markings that looked almost diseased beneath the harsh light. Even on all fours it stood nearly half the height of a grown man, and when it lifted its head, its eyes burned with cold, calculating malice that did not belong to an ordinary beast.

There was no mistaking it.

Level 30 Silver Boss: the Leopard Jackal King.

“Stonehaven, it’s up. Move!” SoulfireBlade’s voice cut cleanly through the rising growls.

“Let’s go.”

At the command, the thirty-man strike team advanced as one. Behind them, just outside the aggro boundary, Lily and Amber remained with the ten Soulfire members assigned to support duty, their attention fixed on the battlefield ahead.

The King was entrenched deep within the territory, encircled by a dense ring of Highland Jackals. Fourteen Knights, mounted on identical Flame Chargers, formed into a tight wedge and drove straight in, the tip of the spear aimed directly at the boss. The moment they crossed into the inner circle, three dozen jackals lunged in a frenzy of snapping jaws and flashing claws.

The Knights held firm.

These were not inexperienced players stumbling through their first raid. Shields locked and weapons rose and fell in disciplined rhythm as they absorbed the impact. Behind them, Sorcerers began their incantations in steady cadence. Spells arced overhead in sheets of flame and crackling lightning, detonating with controlled force that thinned the swarm without breaking formation. Step by step, the squad carved a path forward, grinding through fur and blood toward the King.

The Leopard Jackal King did not wait for them to close the distance. It had already sensed the threat. Its head snapped in their direction, and it released a bone-rattling howl that rolled across the territory like a sovereign’s command.

Black circles of energy flared beneath the paws of nearly fifty surrounding jackals. The response was instantaneous. Each beast turned in perfect synchronization, eyes flashing with unnatural fury before charging forward in a single frenzied wave.

On paper, the counter was simple. The Knights would lock down the fifty adds while the backline burned them down.

Reality was far less forgiving.

The Highland Jackal territory had a relentless respawn rate. The mobs the squad had slain on their way inward were already beginning to reappear behind them. If they overcommitted at the center, the perimeter would collapse inward. The backline would be overrun first. Once the Clerics fell, the Knights would follow. A chain reaction leading to a total wipe.

“Fall back!” SoulfireBlade roared.

They had accomplished the first objective. The King’s aggro was secured.

As the formation began its controlled retreat into Phase Two, Marcus activated Insight and locked onto the boss.

Leopard Jackal King

Level 30 Silver Boss

HP: 6000

Originally a common pack leader, it evolved into a Silver-tier boss after consuming a rare toxic Yellow-Miasma Fungus.

Skills:

Alpha’s Command (Passive): When the King moves, nearby Highland Jackals automatically follow.

Howl of the Wastes (Active): Inflicts frenzy on nearby jackals, increasing their stats by 10 percent.

Miasma Claw Dance (Active): Strikes all enemies within a two-meter radius with phantom claws infused with toxic miasma. Applies poison, draining 50 HP per second for ten minutes. Removable only with a Medium Antidote.

Its raw stats were not overwhelming for a Silver-tier boss. The danger lay in synergy. One howl meant fifty empowered adds crashing into the frontline at once. Even with Marcus’s exceptional attributes, attempting to solo it within its own territory would have been reckless. This encounter required coordination, discipline, and numbers, and Soulfire had come prepared.

“Execute!” SoulfireBlade commanded.

The formation shifted instantly. Three Knight teams, each supported by two Clerics, peeled off to intercept the fifty summoned jackals. Taunts triggered in rapid succession, pulling clusters of enraged beasts away from the King and dragging them outward in wide arcs.

If loot restrictions were not tied to player count, they could have flooded the field with additional support and trivialized the encounter. Instead, every slot mattered. The team was running lean by necessity.

The veterans performed with practiced precision. Health bars dipped and rose in rhythm as Large Health Potions were consumed on cooldown. Each Knight team kited roughly fifteen jackals, maintaining just enough distance to survive while staying within healing range.

That left the core group to handle the King and its remaining ten bodyguards.

They pulled them steadily toward the edge of the territory.

Right on schedule, the perimeter jackals began to respawn.

But the backline was ready. Rather than tunneling damage into the King, the Sorcerers and Archers pivoted instantly, redirecting their firepower toward the newly spawned mobs to preserve the team’s retreat path. For a brief moment, the plan held together with clean efficiency.

“Boss! Incoming!” a Rogue shouted from the outskirts. He had been stationed as a scout, separate from the main engagement.

Marcus turned in the saddle and looked.

A large formation of mounted players was charging toward them. High-level mounts. Tight formation. No hesitation.

The team had been too focused on the pull to notice them sooner. Now they were nearly upon them.

“Stay on task!” SoulfireBlade barked, though tension tightened his expression. “Do not break formation!”

He did not yet know their identity, but he understood the danger. They were mid-pull, deep within a high-respawn zone, with a Silver Boss active. Any disruption could cascade into immediate deaths.

If the incoming force was hostile, they were in serious trouble.

“Boss,” the Rogue reported again, his voice thinner now, “at least seventy. It’s Inferno Clan. The Furious Three are leading.”

A visible ripple of tension passed through the Soulfire ranks.

Inferno Clan.

They were outnumbered more than two to one, already locked in combat and unable to disengage without being overrun by mobs. There was no favorable outcome if this turned into open conflict.

The Furious Three.

The name registered instantly for Marcus.

As the riders closed in, he recognized them without difficulty. Ash001 mounted at the front. Rock001 at his flank. Blaze001 riding slightly behind, robes snapping in the wind.

The same trio who had attempted to gank him back in the Newbie Village.

Of course they would appear here.

A Silver Boss. A vulnerable rival guild. The opportunity was too tempting for players like them to consider passing up.

“Stonehaven.” SoulfireBlade’s tone shifted, urgency breaking through. “We’re outside the Citadel protection. This will turn into open war. Get your girl and sister out of here. This is guild business. Don’t get dragged into it.”

He was already issuing rapid commands through the guild channel, adjusting positions to prepare for a defensive pivot while still maintaining aggro control. He did not want Marcus dying for a conflict that was not formally his responsibility.

Marcus met his gaze calmly.

“I’m not leaving.”

At the same time, he sent Lily a private message, warning her of Inferno Clan’s identity and instructing her and Amber to use their Town Portal Scrolls or take to the air on the Violet Thunderwing if the situation deteriorated.

He had never been the type to retreat while allies stood their ground. By joining the squad, he had accepted responsibility. In every game he had ever played, there was an unspoken code. You did not abandon your team in the middle of a fight.

You won together or you fell together.

The Furious Three slowed their mounts at the edge of the jackal territory, confident expressions already forming as they assessed the chaos.

If they had come seeking war, they had chosen their battlefield carefully.

Marcus intended to make them regret it.

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