The elders' eyes widened at the sight of a dozen hovering vehicles belonging to Copperhaven, whose attacks had reached the level of the Yellow Core. With their main force sacrificing themselves to become the Elven's Heart, only a few troops remained to fight them, and they were all new recruits, young and inexperienced. Faced with such a force, they were certainly overwhelmed.
The flying vehicles shot toward them in the form of a wheel-less motorbike with air vent-like structures on the left and right sides, revealing the workings of a magic engine with blue light emanating from the open sides. As they passed overhead, the sound they produced was like that of a mini fighter jet, sending strong vibrations through the heart, a sign that defeat was near.
Rako and the others tried to attack, but with their speed and agility in the air, it was difficult to hit them. They seemed to be having fun rather than being in a battle, grinning widely and laughing loudly as their companions in the back seat kept firing magic. Explosion after explosion occurred, rising high into the air, as if challenging them to surrender immediately.
"You see? Whatever you do, you can't win. It's much better for you to surrender than to die in vain," said Zayn, observing Glok's face full of frustration. "Surrender, Glok, there's no point in you continuing to fight and ending up dead."
Both his hands clenched tightly until bright white cracks appeared. "Surrender, you say?" He looked at the knight who was now smiling victoriously. "I would rather die fighting than live in the shadow of defeat!" Glok shot forward, smashing the ground where Zayn had stood, creating a large new crack in the ground that had already been severely damaged by their battle.
Glok didn't stop there. He grabbed chunks of the ground and hurled them at Zayn, who just smiled broadly, waving his hand and shattering the chunks as if facing a child's attack. "You think this can stop me? I've told you, surrender!" He dodged to the side as Glok came charging with open arms and only then realized what he intended to do.
Glok grabbed the broken pieces and threw them at the reinforcements. They were too busy bombarding to notice the large chunks of earth hurtling towards them. Some were shattered in explosions, lifeless with bodies no longer recognizable. Others fell below with serious or minor injuries. But certainly, they were killed on the spot without being given a chance to breathe.
The remaining ones clicked their tongues in annoyance, realizing they had underestimated these races and hurried to finish them off. The vehicles moved away from Glok, who looked like he wanted to give chase but held back because of the Captain's presence, and began bombarding the mixed forces of each race while avoiding their magical and arrow attacks.
However, no matter how many attacks they launched, they still found it difficult to hit the vehicles that could move freely in the air. Only Rako, besides Teena, had a chance to confront them, so Tuko hurried over, preparing magic in both hands.
Not far ahead, Rako was dodging the deadly attacks of Veronica, who had turned the forest into a barren wasteland with irregular cuts on its trunks. The big energy from the sword continued to form with each swing of her blade, never ceasing as if she never tired of swinging her sword like a madwoman. Because of this, Rako had several scratches on his body, with blood flowing down, soaking his skin and clothes. Nevertheless, facing Veronica alone was still quite difficult for him. He wiped a fresh wound on his right cheek with the back of his hand before finally retaliating with three rapidly spinning red magic circles in front.
A beam of heat formed from there, melting the ground where Veronica had been standing and continuing to move, tracking the knight as she ran around the field. She grabbed a wooden plank with the tip of her sword and threw it at Rako, which shattered instantly upon touching the heat beam. She knew it wouldn't mean anything to a Mage like him, who could use long-range attacks, but it was the distraction to break his concentration that gave Veronica the opportunity to disappear from sight.
She was no longer there, vanishing without a trace. Rako halted his attack, looking around to ensure she didn't suddenly appear from behind or attack from the side. However, no matter where he looked, she was truly gone, and it was impossible for her to hide in such an open area. All potential hiding spots had been severely burned and destroyed in various attacks; there was nothing left besides the two of them.
Rako's eyes widened, realizing something, and he immediately created an orange light ball in his right palm. Three small flames orbited it like an atom. He struck the light ball into the ground, and within two seconds, the ground around him cracked from expanding explosions with a futuristic grid pattern. Large flames erupted from within, shooting upwards and hitting someone.
Veronica screamed loudly, thrown to the ground after receiving Rako's attack. Her invisibility gone. It was clear that the armor on her left arm had melted, and she was now removing it to avoid worsening the burns on her blistered skin. She gritted her teeth, seeing her once-beautiful arm now marred by scars that would never disappear, forever tarnishing her appearance. She glared at Rako, who stood amidst the cracked earth, wondering how a man could wound her so severely and wishing to kill the goblin in the most painful way possible to avenge all he had done.
Just as Rako was about to step closer, Tuko appeared beside him, stopping in front of him with both hands ready, two basketball-sized magic circles in front of his palms. "Go help the others stop Homa (Hover Machine)! They won't last long without your help!" he shouted, keeping an eye on the figure ahead, ready in case she charged.
Rako looked back, surprised to see Copperhaven's Homa flying around, defeating the others. He then turned to Tuko, unsure about leaving him alone to face Veronica. Both of them were close-combat fighters, but Tuko was much slower than her, making him worried that Tuko might get seriously injured.
"Go! I can hold her off!"
Rako clenched his fists tightly, knowing that in the current situation, there was nothing they could do but keep fighting. He nodded and ran toward the mixed forces to help them immediately. "Hold on! I'll be back as soon as I'm done!" he shouted.
A bitter smile formed on Tuko's face. "Facing a Copperhaven knight..." He had never imagined a day like this would come. He had thought about what he should do if this happened and, of all his plans, he preferred to avoid them, given their extraordinary power. However, for the first time, Tuko felt he had to step out of his comfort zone, especially when others were fighting hard, risking their lives. "Consider this training," he said to himself.
But, as soon as he blinked, Veronica appeared not far in front of him, swinging her sword and creating a large sword energy that nearly severed Tuko's head if he had been a second slower to dodge. He braced himself with his left hand to avoid completely falling and spun his body backward as the next sword energy appeared.
His heart pounded, having just escaped death. He knew Veronica was a formidable opponent, especially after witnessing Teena and Rako's battles with her. But experiencing it firsthand made him realize he had spent too much time standing in the back rather than taking action in the front.
Meanwhile, Rako, who had rejoined the mixed forces, began chanting a spell with the same three magic circles forming behind him, spinning and waiting for his command to fire. He closed his eyes, calming himself to use the skill, and when he opened them, he could see where the Homas would move by the mana's movement around them. He directed his hand towards them, saying,
"Lock on."
Instantly, three Homas exploded simultaneously, destroyed by the sudden appearance of heat beams, and fell to the ground, shattering the earth. Many immediately rushed there, raising their weapons high and finishing them off.
Rako's breathing became labored, aware that his skill used a lot of mana. However, to fight back against Copperhaven, he had to give everything, including his life.