The sounds of warcries, screams of pain, and clashing of weapons were the first thing that Lux and his comrades heard as soon as they were teleported inside the Dungeon.
"W-What's going on here?!" Cai, who almost got hit by a fireball, squealed as it hurriedly jumped to the side, just in time to dodge the fireball by a few inches.
A loud explosion took place, sending everyone flying in different directions, followed by a rain of spells all around them.
It was complete and utter pandemonium as they found themselves at the center of two warring kingdoms, who were going all out against each other.
"Everyone, regroup!" Lux shouted after propping himself back up. "We need to get out of this place. Now!"
Everyone had the same thought, so they hurriedly regrouped and tried to run away from the battlefield.
Unfortunately for them, they were smacked in the middle of the frontlines, sandwiched on all sides by two armies, who had now noticed their arrival.
"Which Kingdom are you affiliated with?!" a Knight wearing black armor asked as he and his subordinates pointed their weapons at Lux and his party.
"We are not affiliated with anyone!" Cai replied. "Someone tell us what is going on here!"
"Hah! You think we will fall for that? Nice try, Yelan scum!" a Knight wearing white armor shouted. "Men! Kill these Yelan collaborators! Show them no mercy!"
Einar fearlessly grinned as he immediately blocked a sword strike from their rear. As a Barbarian who was no stranger to war, being in the battlefield was second nature to him.
"I guess we don't have to worry who we are affiliated with for now." Vall sneered. "Just kill those who try to kill us first!"
Lux, Cai, Keane, and Xander all nodded their heads and immediately turned around to fight the Knights wearing white armor who had all ganged up to them.
They were clueless about whatever was happening around them, but the current situation didn't give them enough time to assess their situation. They were left with no other options but to either fight or die, and their choice was obvious.
As soon as they decided to take action, Lux immediately summoned Orion and Pazuzu. The Jade Golem attacked those around them, while Pazuzu shielded them from harm.
Although they were being targeted by the Knights wearing white armor, Lux was still in the right state of mind and did not summon Diablo and the rest of his Skeleton Minions.
The reason was simple.
He didn't want to affect the on-going war too drastically without knowing who was the defender and who was the aggressor between the two armies. If they helped the invaders get the upper hand, then the Defenders would surely find it difficult to hold their ground.
Perhaps, the others also understood this logic, so they only attacked those who were attacking them, and just hid behind Orion and Pazuzu after they had finished off their respective targets.
After seeing the Jade Golem's might, the White Knights no longer took the initiative to attack Lux's and his party. They only focused on attacking the Black Knights who were suddenly inspired by the Half-Elf's appearance.
Ten minutes later, a horn sounded in the distance, and the White Knights all retreated like a tide.
The Black Knights didn't follow them and simply raised their weapons high up in the air, while cheering for their victory.
"Is it over?" Cai, whose furry body had been littered with arrows, asked.
"For now," Lux replied. "Let's get out of here while we still can."
Nodding their heads, everyone followed Lux as they ran towards the side of the battlefield. The Black Knights didn't stop them because, in their eyes, the Half-Elf's party had fought for their side earlier.
If not for that, they might have stopped them, thinking that they were their enemies' hired mercenary group, whom they paid to fight their war for them.
After running for nearly half an hour, Lux and his comrades finally found a hill overlooking the battlefield. Both armies had returned to their main camps, and it seemed that the fighting for the day was already over.
Suddenly, as if waiting for that moment, Lux heard a familiar notification sound as rows of text appeared in front of him.
—---
< The Warring Kingdoms >
Mission Rating: S
– The Yelan Kingdom and the Ammar Kingdom have been at war with each other for the past four hundred years. Because of this, constant wars break out between the two kingdoms, but this time it is different.
Both Kingdoms have invited third parties as mercenaries in this fight for supremacy. Choose a side and reap great rewards that are exclusive to each of the Kingdoms!
< Main Quest Objective >
– Choose which Kingdom you want to support in this war.
– Kill the General of the opposing army.
< Subquest Objective >
– Capture the Main Flag of the opposing army.
– Kill the Mercenaries that have been hired by the opposing party.
– Quest Duration: 1 week
– Quest will automatically fail if you fail to complete the quest and kill the opposing army's General.
– Quest will automatically fail once your entire party has all been killed.
< Rewards >
– Rewards will be calculated depending on your performance. The greater your merits, the greater the rewards.
– If you manage to complete the two side quests before the quest is finished, you will gain the maximum rewards available for this quest.
< Choose the Kingdom you wish to ally yourself with! >
Option 1: Yelan Kingdom
– This Kingdom specializes in gnome technologies. All of their soldiers are equipped with inventions that are exclusively made by Expert Gnome Inventors.
Option 2: Ammar Kingdom
– This Kingdom is supported by Dwarven Blacksmiths. All of their weapons, and armors are crafted by the finest Dwarven Blacksmiths in the land.
—------
"Um? What is this Warring Kingdom Quest?" Cai tilted its head in confusion. "Where the heck did this come from?"
Lux, who was standing beside Cai, had to do a double take because the boar's sudden announcement surprised him.
"You got it, too?" Einar asked. "Weird. This is my first time seeing something like this. Maybe it is a Dungeon-exclusive thing?"
"Could be," Vall commented. "I've entered many Dungeons in the past, but this is the first time I'm seeing something like this. Hey, do you think this has something to do with us clearing the Gate of Death first?"
Xander nodded. "That's highly likely. I mean, the people who cleared the Gate of Death are all here. Maybe this is something exclusive to us. Also, I'm quite curious about the rewards. Will we get some Pseudo-Legendary items again like what we did in the Gate of Death?"
Having no opinion about the matter, Keane simply stood with his arms crossed over his chest. He was still trying to get used to how things worked in Elysium, so almost felt so new and exciting at the same time.
Lux had always received this kind of mission in the past, so he was already used to it. After listening to what his comrades were saying, he thought that maybe it did have something to do with the Gate of Death.
Since all of them were granted special privileges as the Sacred Dungeon's first conquerors, this kind of setup might also be included in the mechanics of the Sacred Dungeon.
'I guess I need to verify if they can get the same quests that I do in the future,' Lux mused. 'Maybe they are only getting it because we are in the same party. I will have to do some experiments after we leave the Gate of War.'
After finally organizing his thoughts, the Half-Elf glanced at his comrades and asked them the most important question.
"So, which side do you guys want to join?" Lux asked.
He knew that if they truly wanted to succeed in the mission, they must all choose the same side. Otherwise, they would end up fighting amongst themselves, and that was the last thing that all of them wanted to happen.
"I'll join My Daddy's side," Cai replied.
"Me, too," Keane stated.
"I'll go wherever Cai goes," Xander commented.
Einar and Vall glanced at each other and smirked.
"I'll let you decide this one, Lux." Einar crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm fine with either Kingdom."
"All for one and one for all, is what I'd like to say, but since everyone has chosen to let you decide our fate, I'll go along with the flow," Vall smiled. "Afterall, I'd hate to kill all of you when I join the opposing side."
Lux closed his eyes as he weighed the Pros and Cons of the two choices before him. Finally, after ten minutes, he raised his head and glanced at the battlefield with a determined look on his face.
"I choose to join the Kingdom of…"
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