The moment Rajiv and his team stepped deeper into the tunnel, the air thickened with a strange, damp chill. The faint glow of the entrance faded behind them, swallowed by endless darkness.
A soft click echoed.
Before anyone could react—
WHOOSH!
A barrage of poison arrows shot from the tunnel walls, forcing everyone to dodge. Soraya, moving with insane reflexes, twisted her body, narrowly avoiding an arrow that grazed past her cheek.
"The hell was that?!" Yokudo shouted.
Liang Bai gritted his teeth. "Traps. White Soldiers must have set them to stop intruders."
As the group steadied themselves, another trap activated—a thick, purple gas started seeping through the cracks in the stone walls.
"It's poison!" one of their new teammates coughed, stumbling backward.
Rajiv covered his mouth, his eyes darting around. The ground was littered with corpses—soldiers who had fallen victim to the gas. Their bodies were twisted in agony, expressions frozen in fear.
"This gas is made to scare intruders," Soraya muttered. "They're using psychological warfare."
She took a deep breath, her hands glowing with blue symbols. With a single chant, the poison gas swirled around her before being sucked into a bright blue sphere in her palm.
"I have well abilities," she said, her smirk sharp. "I can use any spell I need."
The team barely had time to appreciate her power before they moved forward.
The Flag – And the Other Teams
After minutes of careful maneuvering, Rajiv's team finally found the flag—
A white triangular flag with the Noble Family's emblem at its center. It stood on an altar, untouched.
But they weren't alone.
Three other teams had also arrived, their weapons drawn. Unlike Rajiv's team, they had avoided most of the traps and were in perfect condition.
The standoff was silent. Tension filled the air.
Then…
A distant sound echoed through the tunnel.
A deep, guttural, inhuman growl.
"That… that sounds like a Stray," one of the opposing team members whispered, his voice shaking.
BOOM!
From behind, a shadow lunged forward, screeching. One of the boys from another team reacted instantly—his sword flashing as he stabbed the creature's neck.
KRRRCHH!
The Stray exploded into pieces.
But something was wrong.
No blood.
The "Stray" let out a mechanical-sounding chuckle.
"Oh… so you finally realized," it whispered.
Everyone froze.
Strays don't talk.
Behind them, a shadowed figure stepped forward. His presence sent chills down their spines.
"You killed my soldier," the figure murmured.
Rajiv's team instinctively readied their weapons, their energy pulsing around them.
"This doesn't make sense," Soraya whispered. "Strays are just beasts. They don't talk. They don't… command others."
The shadowed figure raised a single finger.
Sparkles of dark light formed at its tip, swirling unnaturally.
Then—
Black and white textures rippled through the air, distorting reality itself.
"Move!" Yokudo shouted.
BOOM!
A massive explosion tore through the tunnel, sending shockwaves that shook the entire underground structure.
Even outside the tunnel, soldiers guarding the entrance heard the blast.
"The hell was that?!" one of them yelled.
Inside, Rajiv and the other teams struggled to recover. Debris fell around them. The tunnel was collapsing.
"This isn't normal," one of the rival team members muttered, his face pale. "What the hell is happening in there?"
The White Soldiers' Reaction
Back at the entrance, a group of White Soldiers stood in shock. The explosion had sent vibrations through the ground.
Their captain's face twisted in disbelief.
"Are they using distracting spells?" another soldier asked. "No… this isn't magic—"
A wave of dark energy surged from the tunnel's depths. The soldiers' instincts flared.
"This is something else," the captain whispered.
He turned sharply to one of his men.
"Inform Sir—"
But before he could finish, his breath hitched. His eyes widened.
A chilling realization dawned on him.
His voice dropped to a whisper.
"...What?"
His hands trembled as he commanded—
"ALL SOLDIERS, MOBILIZE!"