Beneath the slopes of Mount Baekdu, the air was so thick it felt like even sound refused to move. Tension pressed down like a thundercloud moments before a storm.
Everyone knew it—NUK had long been divided between North and South. But after the fusion of worlds began, and while the US region was distracted with the monster crisis, NUK used its overwhelming adventurer force to finally unify.
Now, before them stood a lone fortress: P City. It housed the vast majority of NUK's elite adventurers.
A gust of wind swept across the plains, kicking up waves of dust. Rows of black-armored warriors stretched to the horizon, like a sea of storm clouds threatening to swallow the world.
But their eyes held only resolve and defiance.
They all knew: once the fighting started, this place would become a blood-soaked hell.
And they would be the ones slaughtered.
Still, they stood tall, ready to defend their red-flag ideals with the last drop of blood.
A deafening explosion shattered the silence. The city's protective barrier cracked like glass, and panic rippled through the streets.
Blazing teleportation gates opened across the skyline.
Kim Da-il's jaw dropped as over 150 Titan Mechs burst out—each one absurdly customized. Some were painted with bizarre graffiti, others bore massive decals of Hazel in a swimsuit plastered across the armor.
One mech wielded a massive energy cannon on one arm and a frost greatblade on the other. The design alone was terrifying.
From the lead mech, Heartbroken Loli switched on a megaphone spell amp.
"We are the Godslayer Guild."
"And we bring destruction."
Her clear, bold voice echoed through the sky.
The NUK adventurers looked up in horror. This wasn't just destruction.
This was a battalion of cyber-magical Gundams.
To be clear, NUK's adventurers were no pushovers. Arguably, even the UJ region didn't match them.
Back on Earth, in the five-year history of the genre-defining game Sword and Conquest, NUK had never ranked lower than global top eight. They'd earned one championship and one runner-up title, cementing their status among the elite.
The US region's best performance had been when Orson led the SSR Club to the finals during his rookie days. Their opponent?
The Kimchi Age Club from NUK.
That match? A disaster.
Even though the SSR team had higher individual skill, they were disorganized and arrogant.
Kimchi Age gave them a brutal lesson—what it meant to plan, to execute, and to sacrifice for victory.
Every SSR player had tried to show off. None were willing to play the team role.
Even Orson, who at the time was jokingly called a "mute loner," made the same mistake.
They were crushed in three straight rounds.
"Orgod… our former punching bag. Orgod!"
Among the NUK forces, a small elite detachment rode winged beasts—dragons and raptors—hovering at a distance. They stared at the man who had once tasted defeat at their hands.
"Dragon King-class mount. Health bar unreadable."
Their leader, a gray-armored warrior with the SS-class hidden class Skybreaker War Saint, was Kimchi Blade, one of only three SS-class players in NUK since launch.
"Maybe… it's time to retreat," muttered a rogue, watching the 150-plus Domain Lord-tier mechs with growing dread. To someone like him, those machines were literal gods—impossible to outrun or damage.
"Don't forget—this is the fusion world. One critical strike can kill anything, no matter how much HP they've got."
"Under the right conditions, we can still snipe him."
A proud S-class water mage hissed. Years ago, their squad had crushed the SSR team. Yet she had been singled out and insta-killed by Orgod multiple times. Back home, people whispered that she didn't deserve her world title.
"Hold position," Kimchi Blade said calmly. "We're near a High Dragon Nest. If the Dragon King shows up, the tide might turn."
He swept the battlefield with a cold gaze. Dragon King-class monsters could only be fought by beings of equal tier.
And NUK's long-range firepower wasn't for show. If enough of them focused fire, even the strongest foes could be melted in seconds.
"I have no desire to massacre you."
From the skies, Orson sat astride Aeloria, gazing down at the wealthy elites and old rivals of NUK.
"Die… or kneel. Tell me now."
"Orgod—this is where you'll die!"
Kim Yong-jae's bloodshot eyes were full of hatred, fully blaming Orson for Pokpung's death.
But among the nearly one million NUK adventurers below, an invisible wave of fear began to ripple outward.
Even though Rusina and other nations had censored all footage from the US coastal battle—locking up anyone who tried to share it—some still learned the truth.
What they saw… was divine.
The Godslayer Guild's tiny strike force of only five to six hundred air units had managed to lock down an entire battlefield.
Orson frowned. Kim Yong-jae's vendetta was meaningless to him. If you court death, you have no one else to blame. His daughter had earned her fate.
He began his death countdown.
Six NUK fighter jets surged into view, sixteen air-to-air missiles locked onto Orson.
Turbulent currents twisted the sky. The missiles drifted off-course like paper planes and thudded harmlessly into the ground.
Aeloria opened her abyssal jaws. The sky turned putrid. Death Dragon Breath!
A beam of annihilation shot upward. The jets had no time to escape.
All six vanished in explosions. Not a single survivor.
"You filthy son of a bitch! I'll turn you into kimchi!!"
Kim Yong-jae lost it. He raised a hand—dragon roars filled the sky.
Over forty high-grade dragons and raptors launched into the air, charging Aeloria.
Orson didn't flinch. Above his head, his title changed to Sky Sovereign.
"Title effect negated!"
"Protected by Divine Item!"
The system prompt rang in his ear.
Kim Yong-jae wore a red crown radiating divine light. It granted a group-wide immunity to title effects.
"Perfect," Orson smirked.
Aeloria licked her lips. She was starving.
His voice dropped to an icy growl. He raised his Supreme Arcane Blade and pointed toward the enemy legions.
"Let's feed Aeloria well and carve a path from the sky!" yelled Wild Gale, charging in beside Heartbroken Loli.
The mech squad fanned into a wedge formation over P City.
Explosive cannons screamed through the air. Magic fire and toxic gas burst across the front lines.
The barrage swallowed half the battlefield.
NUK's frontline cavalry were torn apart. Limbs flew. Blood painted the plains.
Over a thousand melee adventurers were turned to ash.
The sight froze the blood in every NUK adventurer's veins.
"Are we… all going to die here?" a NUK archer whispered, his hands trembling.