The High Elf Queen was clearly leveraging the power of players to advance her own agenda—and that, more than anything, was becoming a dangerous problem.
"Surely Queen Yvaeris is overwhelmingly powerful," Leon said quietly, his tone thoughtful. "I an, who in all of Yunatea could actually stand against her right now?"
He paused, his mind turning through the possibilities.
"Humans no longer have a Divine Champion. The Demons… their Ancestral Divine Champion is sealed in Hell. And as for the Dragons…"
Another pause.
"Ivana has only just awakened to her true role. I'm not convinced she's ready to match Queen Yvaeris—not yet."
Freya leaned back, her voice soft but firm. "You're forgetting the Dwarves. And the Giants."
"I don't know much about the Ancestral Divine Champions of either of those races," Leon admitted.
Freya nodded slowly. "That's not surprising. According to the old legends, they were the least involved in the great war that once raged between the High Elves, Demons, and Dragons. They stayed in the shadows—or simply chose not to intervene."
She hesitated a mont, then added, "If we're talking about raw, overall power… the Ancestral Divine Champion from Human, King Elandorr, could have stood against Queen Yvaeris."
"But King Elandorr is no longer in Yunatea," Leon replied. "He passed his responsibilities on to ."
He exhaled, rubbing a hand down his face as the weight of everything began to settle on his shoulders.
This wasn't just another political shift or minor faction war. This was escalating—fast. Now, even the Ancestral Divine Champions were beginning to move again. And that ant the stakes had never been higher.
"Queen Yvaeris has the power to apply absolute rules to anyone in her presence," Leon continued. "She can force entire armies to drop their weapons. Or render people powerless with a single command. That kind of ability… it's insane."
"No matter how strong her enemies might be," he went on, "if she can simply rewrite the rules of battle to make them weaker—then how is she supposed to be stopped?"
They sat in silence for a mont, the weight of the conversation settling between them like a thick fog. Then, with a sudden glint in her eyes, Freya spoke again.
"Or… I've got an interesting idea for you."
Leon turned toward her slowly, imdiately suspicious. Her mischievous expression confird his instincts. "I never trust your ideas," he said flatly.
Freya nudged his side with her elbow, smirking. "Just hear out. If Queen Yvaeris is really sending players across the North Continent to hunt down Ivana, then why not... kill the players?"
Leon chuckled, baring a grin. "That's exactly what I was thinking."
He paused, thoughtful now. "But they'll probably have their respawn points set on the continent. Even if I wipe them out, they'll just co back. And there won't be just a few of them—there'll be hundreds, even more."
His eyes narrowed, a new edge forming in his tone. "And there's no way I can use my Broken identity for this kind of massacre. It's too public. Too risky. No… I'll use my Demon form. That'll be far more fun anyway. I haven't had many chances to fight as it."
Freya nodded. "Makes sense. Their numbers will be overwhelming—and a lot of them are Divine Champions. Most of the ones you've seen in the Eternal Challenge? Yeah, expect to et them again out there."
Leon ran a hand through his hair. "Then this just got a whole lot more interesting. Because it ans I'll be facing them in Yunatea."
With that, he stood, stretching out his arms and rolling his shoulders as if shaking off the last of the stillness.
"I'm heading out. I'll think this over so more later."
***
The journey had been long, and though their ti at sea offered little more than the chance to hunt oceanic monsters, it was enough to keep the ship's crew from falling behind in level.
Now, after finally passing beyond the waters bordering the Central Continent, the reinforcents they'd been expecting began to make their appearance.
Broken stood on the deck of the ship alongside the others, the cold wind tugging at their cloaks as they stared out over the vast, rolling sea. The waves ahead of them surged, rising unnaturally high—and beneath those towering swells, shadows moved. Massive, deliberate. Like ancient titans swimming in silence.
Then they saw them.
Gigantic armored whales breached the surface. On their broad, plated bodies stood soldiers—silent figures clad in the distinctive armor of Queen Nerisa's elite force.
The soldiers made no sound. No signal. They rely revealed themselves in formation, a quiet ssage of presence, power, and control. And then, just as silently as they had co, the armored whales descended once more, vanishing into the deep.
The sea stretching between the Central and North Continents was a different beast altogether. The air here was frigid, sharp enough to sting the lungs, a constant reminder of the icy realms ahead. The North Continent itself was cloaked in snow for most of the year, and even its bordering waters carried that sa biting chill.
According to Ronan, this particular part of the ocean was especially wild. Dangerous in ways even seasoned sailors found unsettling.
That was why they hadn't taken the usual route.
Instead of crossing via the common passage—an area patrolled by Central Continent forces and tightly monitored by High Elf Queen's naval scouts—they'd opted for a broader, riskier route. One that looped wide through the less-traveled edges of the sea. It was slower, colder, and far more treacherous… but it offered one vital advantage
They were moving under the radar. And for this mission, that was everything.
With their reinforcents now in place, the crew gathered in the central chamber of the ship to review their next steps. The cold sea winds were behind them, and the distant landmass of the North Continent lood closer by the days.
Mizuki stood at the center of the room. Everyone leaned in as she began her briefing.
"We'll make landfall here," she said, pointing to a remote section along the continent's icy coastline. "It's far from any major settlents. There aren't many people in the area, and it's well away from the main roads. That ans fewer eyes on us—and fewer complications."
She glanced around at the group, her expression serious. "But we need to consider sothing important: should we set our respawn points at the nearest city… or not?"
Her eyes drifted toward Broken, waiting for his opinion.
Broken had already been thinking about that very issue. He stepped forward, folding his arms as he looked over the map.
"If I die, I can return to Vensalor Island instantly," he said. "And from there, I can use the gate to co right back to the ship—assuming Aego remains stationed in the North Continent."
He paused, then added, "The sa applies to all of you. If you end up back at Vensalor Island, you can still return to this ship through the exit gate."
But then his tone shifted, more thoughtful now. "However, if we all die at once—if every crew mber respawns at the island—then we'd have a problem."
The room fell into a contemplative silence.
"In that scenario," Broken continued, "Aego would have to be recalled back to the island. There's no way we can leave the ship anchored out here, in hostile territory, without anyone aboard. It'd be far too risky."
He leaned over the map again, eyes narrowed. "We need to plan for that worst-case situation. Because the mont we set foot on the North Continent, we're not just walking into the unknown—we're stepping into enemy territory."
Broken looked around the room, his gaze passing over each mber of the crew. It was clear from their expressions—so of them were already thinking the sa thing he was. But it made sense for the idea to co from him. It always did.
"All right," he said, his voice steady. "Once we make landfall on the North Continent, I'll separate from the group. I'll head to the nearest city—or wherever I can find the most efficient respawn point based on distance and accessibility. That way, if anything happens, I won't be kicked all the way back to Vensalor Island. We can't risk having to make that entire sea journey again from scratch."
The others nodded in agreent. The logic was sound.
"This will also give better mobility," Broken continued. "I'll be able to move independently, stay low-profile. With the right disguise, no one will recognize . No eyes, no suspicions. So yeah… we go with this plan."
Everyone agreed without hesitation. The decision was made, and the course was clear.
The journey continued. Day after day, the icy winds and dark waters stretched endlessly ahead. Until finally, after several weeks at sea, the silhouette of land began to erge on the horizon.
The North Continent.
The entire crew gathered on the ship's deck, silent as they stared toward the distant shore. Jagged trees lined the coastline—enormous, twisted things that towered far beyond the size of any forest Broken had seen before.
There was sothing ancient about the land. Sothing untouched. Sothing watching.
Just what kind of journey awaited them here?
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