After narrowly escaping the ambush, William and his party didn’t head straight back to reinforce the defenders. Instead, they continued investigating the periphery of the Land of the Dead in accordance with their mission. Moreover, they made a troubling discovery: a smaller undead force had splintered off and was moving in an entirely different direction.

  Rather than ignoring it, they decided to investigate. A force like that could spell disaster if left unchecked, and they might discover something useful—better known as a hidden storyline. Though the real reason was that they felt this kind of secret, detective-style mission was something only top players like them were worthy of undertaking.

  The forest was eerily silent as William led his party through an area that had partially withered and died—likely because the undead had walked this path. A faint glow of wisps hovered around him, illuminating their path as they moved cautiously toward the smaller undead force they had discovered.

  “Anyone else find it creepy how dead quiet this place is?” Zero asked while scanning their surroundings.

  He wasn’t wrong. The usual presence of magical beasts had vanished entirely, leaving the forest barren. The underbrush was a mess of uprooted plants and disturbed soil, as though something—or someone—had systematically harvested everything of value.

  “Yeah,” Storm agreed, running his hand along the blackened bark of a tree. “The whole forest feels like it’s on its last legs. Barely holding on.”

  Mike nodded. “True, but at least we don’t have to worry about any magical beasts ambushing us out here. The undead seem to have cleared them out.”

  Rainbow, however, pouted as she kicked at a patch of dry grass. “Aw, shucks. Not a single berry left to forage. This place is a total bust. I’m starting to regret coming here… Let’s hope the reward is worth it.”

  The group continued their trek, silently following the faint traces of the undead army’s passage. After some time, they reached the edge of a cliff overlooking a narrow valley. To their astonishment, the smaller contingent of undead they had been tracking was there, moving about as they scavenged all sorts of plants. Unlike the chaotic mass they had encountered earlier, this group was disturbingly organized for a bunch of undead.

  William squinted, focusing intently on the scene. Thanks to his enhanced vision, he spotted a figure at the forefront of the undead ranks—a commanding presence that immediately set him on edge. He wasn’t the only one who noticed.

  “Wait a second,” Storm remarked from the side. “That’s… that’s not some undead general, is it? It’s not like the one leading the main army…”

  William’s jaw tightened as he channeled a small amount of infused mana into his eyes to sharpen his sight further. When he finally got a clear look, his stomach sank. “An acolyte robe… That’s... a player,” he murmured. “No, it’s SuperNova!”

  “What?” Zero’s voice rose with an equal amount of shock and confusion. “What the hell is he doing commanding an undead army?”

  The figure in question was a mid-to-late teenager with jet-black hair and a lean build, whose skin was strangely greenish-blue. It was someone they all recognized. Someone they had fought alongside since the opening of the game. Someone who they least expected to be here. And yet, here he was, standing at the head of an undead army and giving them orders as if he belonged.

  “Why is he here?” Storm questioned. “Hold on. Zero, didn’t you contact his university to check on him?”

  “Yeah, I did,” Zero replied with a nod. “But they said his apartment is being guarded by some men in suits. They couldn’t get in to check on him directly and just assumed he was fine after talking to those guys.”

  Storm frowned. “That’s… strange. You should have told us about this.”

  “But why would those people guard his apartment? That doesn’t make sense.” William scratched his head in confusion.

  “Who knows?” Zero shrugged.

  “Regardless. Maybe the reason he’s commanding the enemy force is that he’s been secretly forced to do so?” Mike suggested, though his voice wavered. “Y’know, like, I don’t know—discovering some hidden plotline like we had joked about before?”

  “Or maybe,” William began with a smirk, “he’s here to take revenge because we didn’t invite him to join us.”

  Rainbow creased her eyebrows and crossed her arms. “Please don’t drag me into this.”

  “In any case, the way he’s deliberately commanding the undead shows that this is intentional on his part,” William said. As he spoke, SuperNova pointed in a specific direction, prompting several nearby zombies and skeletons to shuffle over and begin digging and foraging for plants and vegetables.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “Ah, so they’re the poachers of the forest!” Rainbow exclaimed.

  “Shh!” Zero hissed, pressing a finger to his lips.

  “So, what do we do now?” Mike asked, glancing at the others.

  For a moment, the party fell silent, each member carefully considering their options. William, in particular, was trying to plot their next course of action. On the one hand, SuperNova was their friend, and if he was pursuing a hidden mission, interrupting him midway through would be a foul move. On the other hand, this involved the fate of the academy as well as the entire server they were playing on.

  “We follow them,” William finally decided. “If SuperNova’s been given a special mission or role from the game, we need to figure out what it is. And if he hasn’t…”

  “Then we uncover the real reason he’s here,” Zero finished with a determined glint in his eyes.

  The group nodded in agreement before silently trailing the undead force as it marched deeper into the forest.

  ***

  In the meantime, Sean and his party managed to retreat to the first defensive line, where nearly two hundred battle-hardened players were gathered. They joined the ongoing meeting inside a large, hastily erected command tent. The space was chaotic, with players loudly debating their strategy against the advancing undead army. Outside, the muffled sounds of battle—spells exploding, weapons clashing, and cannons firing—echoed continuously, exacerbating the urgent situation.

  So far, the players had relied on guerrilla tactics to slow the enemy’s advance and chip away at their overwhelming numbers. But it was clear this wasn’t a long-term winning strategy. Auralise, as the leader of the group of players who had proposed the plan, stood at the head of the table. Counter to her usual behavior, her expression was focused and serious as her eyes scanned the room.

  “We can’t keep up these hit-and-run tactics forever,” NuclearCode argued, slamming his fist on the table. “Players are exhausting themselves and dying without making a real dent in their numbers. We need a thorough solution!”

  “But this is the only strategy keeping us alive,” Satellite countered, arms crossed. “If we try a direct confrontation, we’ll be overrun in minutes.”

  The advancing undead army outnumbered the players here twenty to one. Even though most of the players were true acolytes—many at first-stage Initiate Attunement—it was impossible to take on an enemy of this size directly. Worse still, no one knew if defeating this force would stop the enemy or simply bring an even larger wave; it could be akin to winning the battle and losing the war.

  Sean, leaning against one of the tent poles, frowned as he observed the tense exchange. Why did the game developers throw us into this so soon? he wondered bitterly. The expansion felt a bit rushed, as if the stakes had been raised too quickly for anyone to handle, leaving players to fend for themselves in impossible situations.

  There was little that the game developers could gain from this unless their intention was to trigger a server wipe and reset the players’ progress. But that would be a dick move and could easily backfire on them, leading to waves of complaints or players outright abandoning the game.

  Dominique, standing behind Auralise, addressed the crowd with their usual calm tone. “Everyone, please calm down for a moment. Lady Auralise has something to say.”

  “Pfft. Lady Auralise,” Butterfly muttered mockingly, just loud enough to earn a few stifled chuckles from nearby players.

  Ignoring the jab, Auralise raised her hand as her voice cut through the remaining murmurs. “We’ve debated this long enough. We all know this situation is far from ideal, but bickering won’t get us anywhere. Our goal is the same: hold the line and buy time for reinforcements or for the academy to fortify its defenses. Guerrilla tactics have worked so far, and we’re going to stick to them for now.”

  “But we need to come up with something that actually turns the tide,” NuclearCode insisted, his words ringing with a weight of truth that no one could deny.

  “And who said we won’t?” Auralise shot back, her piercing glare landing squarely on him. NuclearCode flinched, visibly caught off guard by her intensity. “I’ve devised a plan where we can possibly gain absolute victory. But it comes with a cost. Many players will die in the process—there are immense risks involved. Moreover, this strategy hinges on everything we’ve learned about defending against invasions from previous updates and threats.”

  Sean exchanged glances with his friends. The other players also mirrored them as they began whispering among themselves. If Auralise was telling the truth, then even if there was a huge risk involved, it would be wiser to bite the bullet than to continue this unwinnable war.

  Thus, they quickly moved on to discussing the specifics of the plan, assigning roles to everyone present.

  “We should also focus on the long-term objective,” Auralise stated resolutely. “The academy walls are our last line of defense. If our plan somehow fails midway, we’ll still be able to buy time and reduce their numbers before they reach the academy.”

  Satellite frowned but nodded reluctantly. “So we keep falling back, drawing them into bottlenecks? And what about the players manning the walls?”

  “They’ll need to prepare for the final stand,” Auralise replied. “But before that, we’ll execute the initial plan in earnest—a concentrated push to thin the horde.”

  As Sean observed the exchange, a suspicion formed in the back of his mind. The way Satellite and Auralise spoke, it felt as though they had pre-planned this strategy together, perhaps even rehearsed parts of it, with the real aim of gaining popularity among players. After all, Satellite was Auralise’s strategist. Yet, he couldn’t deny the logic behind their approach. Whatever their motives, as long as it brought them closer to victory, he had no complaints.

  Rather than dwell on such trivial doubts, Sean spoke up. “It’s ambitious. But it’s our best chance.” He hoped the firm conviction in his words would be enough to solidify the players’ resolve. Nods of agreement and murmurs of determination began to ripple through the tent while the tension seemed to shift toward a sense of unified purpose.

  Out of the blue, a piercing alarm echoed throughout the camp, followed by the ominous announcement: “Alert! Alert! The undead army has completely breached the outer defensive perimeter!”