The Hunters' Camp was merely a pivot on the frontline.
The pressure on the frontline came from two directions—from the east, the ruins of the Town of Murmurs continuously spewed out a tidal wave of low-level Tacet Discords that battered the camp's frontal defense line; to the west, the high ground where the Quadrangle Hall stood was the main target of the Black Tide's convergence, acting as the final, isolated island held by Augusta and Yuno.
Rover did not stay long at the camp. He temporarily handed command of the Black Shores squad and the majority of its members to the squad commander, instructing them to assist Vibius in defending the camp.
Then, taking Bu Ling and the few remaining elites, and led by Castor who knew the hidden paths, he forcefully broke through the final stretch of the death road leading to the Quadrangle Hall.
The closer they got to the Quadrangle Hall, the intensity and density of the Tacet Discords increased exponentially.
The Lament permeating the air had almost materialized into something tangible, constantly battering away at their sanity.
They could even see twisted vines formed of dark energy attempting to climb the ancient stone pillars on the periphery of the Quadrangle Hall, eroding its last remaining holy radiance.
Finally, they fought their way to the last crude defense line outside the Quadrangle Hall.
The traces of battle here were even more tragic. The ground was scorched and shattered, riddled with deep gouges left by massive sword strikes and the torn corpses of Tacet Discords shredded by storms.
"Left side! Block that gap!" roared a familiar, slightly hoarse, yet immensely powerful female voice.
Looking toward the sound, a fiery silhouette was frantically slaughtering her way through the horde of Tacet Discords.
Augusta's long orange hair whipped around like burning flames. Every swing of her giant sword brought forth terrifying thunder, the pure eruption of her power clearing out vacuum after vacuum around her.
She stood upon the scorched earth, her armor and skirt stained with the filth of the Black Tide, and her breathing was slightly ragged. Yet, the battle lust in her eyes burned as scorchingly as the sun, showing not a single trace of retreat.
On the other side, fierce cyan Aero arrows sniped out like the roll call of the Grim Reaper, precisely assassinating the flying Tacet Discords that tried to flank Augusta.
Yuno stood atop a relatively intact broken wall, her blue-black twintails dancing in the turbulent air currents, the Moonstone Golden Bough Bow in her hands humming incessantly.
Her face was rather pale—the prolonged drawing of her bow and channeling of Resonance power had clearly taken a massive toll on her. But her lips were pressed tightly together, her eyes focused and stubborn, and she fired every arrow without the slightest hesitation.
"Lord Governor! Lord Oracle! Reinforcements! Reinforcements!"
"Lord Rover is here!" Castor shouted with all his might.
This cry was like a splash of cold water thrown into a boiling pot of oil, causing the entire brutal battlefield to stall for a fraction of a second.
Augusta snapped her head around. The moment she saw Rover, an unbelievable light of pleasant surprise erupted in her crimson eyes, which then instantly transformed into an even more surging battle lust: "Ha, Rover! I knew you wouldn't miss a true hunting feast!"
She let out a loud laugh, using the momentum to cleave a pouncing behemoth Tacet Discord cleanly in half. "You're right on time! Guard my right flank!"
Yuno's reaction was much more complex.
When she saw Rover, her azure eyes lit up sharply. Her motion of drawing the bow paused for a split second, and an unconcealable flash of relief crossed her face.
But immediately after, she put on a stern face, as if to cover it up, and deliberately huffed in a tone tinged with grievance and dissatisfaction: "...Hmph, so slow! I thought you died in some woman's soft embrace!"
Yet the movements of her hands grew faster, her Aero arrows becoming even fiercer, as if she were venting all the worry and pressure she had just felt.
Rover said no more; his silhouette instantly plunged into the battlefield.
His entry immediately turned the tide of the entire battle. His overwhelming power effortlessly shredded the attacking formations of the Tacet Discords, massively alleviating the pressure on Augusta and Yuno.
A massive wave of Black Tide Tacet Discords was finally completely repelled. Once the brief crisis was lifted, the three of them were finally able to regroup for a short moment in front of the ruined gates of the Quadrangle Hall.
"You're finally here?"
Augusta wiped a smear of sweat and foul blood from her face, revealing a radiant yet visibly exhausted smile, and stabbed her greatsword into the earth. "But you came at the perfect time! Any later, and Yuno and I might have really become snacks for these monsters."
Yuno looked away, pretending to adjust her bowstring, but the tips of her ears, which had turned slightly red, betrayed her true feelings. She muttered softly: "...At least you have some conscience left and knew to come."
Rover looked quietly at the two of them, his brows furrowing slightly as he noted Yuno's clearly overdrawn state: "It seems the situation is even worse than Vibia said. What is your plan? Why are you trapped here?"
At the mention of business, Augusta's expression turned serious. She pointed toward the southwest: "Our original plan was to break through to the southwest and drive the boss Tacet Discord there—the Spine-Corroding Dragon, 'Tyrant'—into the Plains of Bygone Flowers."
"By using the 'Tyrant's' existence as bait, there's a very high probability that we could force the incubating Black Tide core, the 'Divine King', to manifest prematurely and then kill it."
She sighed, resting her hand on her sword hilt. "But the intensity of the Black Tide and the sheer number of Tacet Discords far exceeded our expectations. We can't even break out of the Quadrangle Hall sector, let alone reach the Plains of Bygone Flowers."
"We failed to lure the Spine-Corroding Dragon, and instead almost got swallowed ourselves." Her tone was full of frustration and deep exhaustion.
At this, Yuno looked up at Rover, a glimmer of hope in her eyes: "But now you are here! Rover! With you, we can definitely break out!"
"Help me... help us go lure the Spine-Corroding Dragon out. It's the fastest way to force that 'Divine King' to show itself! As long as it appears, Augusta will have a chance..."
Her tone was urgent, as if she were grasping at the final straw.
However, Rover slowly shook his head, his tone exceptionally firm: "No, Yuno. I do not agree with this plan."
"What?" Yuno froze, as if she hadn't heard clearly. "You... what did you say? You don't agree? Why?!"
Her face was written with disbelief, even carrying a trace of the grievance of being betrayed: "Why don't you agree? This is our only chance! Augusta gave you the Sun Badge! I gave you the Moonstone bracelet... Are you scared?"
Her voice had grown a bit shrill from agitation.
"What I am scared of is not the Black Tide, nor the Divine King." Rover gazed at her, his eyes profound. "What I am scared of is the ultimate price of this plan... Yuno."
Possessing the memories of the original storyline, he clearly remembered the bizarre anomaly that occurred at the end of that plan—right at the critical moment of the manifestation ritual, a powerful interference from an unknown source suddenly appeared. It didn't come from the Black Tide or the Threnodian, but rather carried a certain cold, ominous aura.
Its appearance caused the manifestation ritual to lose control and backlash. Not only did it fail to perfectly manifest the Divine King, but it also accelerated the consumption of Yuno's "existence."
If the deductions from the "player's" memories were correct, it was that son of a bitch Christopher pulling the strings from the shadows again. But obviously, Rover would not give him that chance this time.
Therefore, he absolutely could not let Yuno take this risk!
"Yuno, this price will be your very 'existence' itself, won't it?"
______________
Read Ahead till chapter 350 on my Patreon, that way you support me( thanks in advance)
Meh begging for some support.
Patreon.com/IndifferentVillain