Chapter 56 — The Battle for the Central Node

The forest erupted.

Black energy tore through the trees as twenty-three hostile signatures advanced toward the Verdant central territory.

Kael stood on a rocky ridge overlooking the battlefield.

His PR-02 floated beside him.

AR-03V hovered behind his shoulder.

The Darven katana rested in his hand.

Beside him stood the Verdant Fallen Guardian.

And farther ahead—

the Verdant Horned Basilisk raised its massive head.

The Territory Lord's golden-green eyes watched the approaching army.

Kael activated Threat Analysis.

[Emergency Territory Event.]

[Verdant Central Node under assault.]

[Foreign Hostile Forces: 23 detected.]

Average Level: 30–41

Highest Level: 41

Coordination: Extremely High

Objective: Unknown

Kael frowned.

Twenty-three enemies.

But that wasn't what concerned him.

Their formation was too organized.

They weren't charging randomly.

Three groups.

One attacking the outer territory.

One moving toward the central network.

One staying behind.

Command structure.

Kael narrowed his eyes.

“The rear group isn't attacking.”

The Guardian nodded.

“They are carrying something.”

Kael activated Metal Sense.

Several black metallic objects appeared beneath their armor.

His expression hardened.

“Anchors.”

The Guardian looked toward them.

“Three.”

Kael immediately understood.

“They aren't here to fight the Basilisk.”

“No.”

“They're here to install the final anchors.”

The Guardian nodded.

“And if all three activate…”

“The central network becomes exposed.”

Kael looked at the mountain.

“And the deepest path becomes accessible.”

The Basilisk moved first.

It slammed one massive claw into the ground.

The entire forest shook.

Roots erupted from the earth.

The first wave of attackers scattered.

Kael raised his hand.

“Now.”

PR-02 fired.

BANG!

The round struck the weapon of the nearest enemy.

The man staggered.

AR-03V followed.

BANG-BANG-BANG!

Three more attackers were forced apart.

The Guardian raised one hand.

Green energy spread across the ground.

Ancient territorial mana rose.

The battlefield changed.

Roots grew thicker.

Stone formations emerged.

The terrain itself began resisting the invaders.

Kael smiled faintly.

“This is different.”

The Guardian glanced at him.

“What?”

“I'm not controlling the battlefield alone.”

Kael looked toward the Basilisk.

“The territory is.”

The Basilisk roared.

The outer forest erupted.

Attackers were forced away from the main route.

But the enemy adapted immediately.

A group of six changed direction.

They ignored the Basilisk.

Instead, they targeted the underground node.

Kael's expression sharpened.

That's what they want.

He jumped from the ridge.

His three Armament Bonds activated.

PR-02 flew forward.

AR-03V shifted position.

The katana remained in his hand.

Kael landed directly in front of the six attackers.

“Going somewhere?”

The lead enemy raised a black spear.

“Kill him.”

They attacked together.

Kael moved before the formation could close.

The first spear thrust forward.

Kael deflected it.

CLANG!

A second weapon came from his left.

AR-03V fired automatically.

BANG!

The attacker's weapon spun away.

Kael stepped through the opening.

The first enemy swung again.

Kael ducked.

His katana struck the weapon shaft.

The spear fractured.

The enemy immediately abandoned it and drew a short blade.

Well trained.

Kael pivoted.

A third attacker fired.

The projectile crossed the space where his head had been.

Kael activated Metal Control.

A small metal marker rose from the ground.

The projectile struck it.

CLANG!

Kael fired PR-02.

BANG!

The ranged attacker was forced behind a tree.

The remaining four closed in.

Kael retreated.

Not because he was losing.

Because he needed space.

The six attackers were trying to surround him.

That was the mistake.

Kael looked at the trees around him.

Too narrow.

Too many obstacles.

He smiled.

“This isn't helping you.”

He raised his hand.

Metal Control.

Ancient metal fragments buried beneath the soil rose upward.

Not enough to create weapons.

Enough to create barriers.

One wall.

Then another.

The six attackers were separated.

Three on one side.

Two on another.

One alone.

Kael immediately targeted the isolated enemy.

PR-02 fired.

BANG!

The man blocked.

Kael crossed the distance.

Katana.

One strike.

The man retreated.

Kael struck again.

The man's armor cracked.

He tried to counter.

Kael changed direction.

The blade moved slightly before his hand completed the motion.

Darven Armament.

A faint crimson glow ran through the sword.

Kael's third strike knocked the enemy off balance.

He swept the man's leg.

The soldier fell.

Kael immediately moved away.

He didn't remain to finish him.

The other five were already breaking through the barriers.

Too slow.

Kael changed his approach.

He didn't need to defeat six enemies.

He only needed to stop them from reaching the node.

He fired at the ground.

BANG!

A metal spike burst upward.

The lead attacker jumped.

Kael used the opening to push him backward.

Another tried to pass.

AR-03V intercepted.

BANG-BANG!

The attacker retreated.

The six were stalled.

That was enough.

But then—

the forest behind them exploded.

The second enemy formation had reached the central territory.

Twelve attackers.

Their leader carried a large black container.

Kael immediately understood.

Anchor equipment.

The Basilisk saw them too.

It roared.

The entire forest moved.

Roots and stone surged toward the group.

But the enemies activated several black devices.

A dark field appeared.

The roots stopped.

The ground cracked.

The attackers pushed through.

Kael's expression hardened.

“Severance fields.”

The Guardian nodded.

“They prepared specifically for the territory.”

The Basilisk snarled.

It charged.

Its enormous body tore through the forest.

The enemies scattered.

Kael watched carefully.

The Basilisk wasn't attacking one target.

It was forcing the entire formation apart.

It's controlling them.

That was the Territory Lord's real strength.

Not simply raw power.

Authority.

The Basilisk slammed its tail against the ground.

BOOM!

Several attackers were thrown away.

Others immediately regrouped.

Then the black container opened.

A metallic pillar emerged.

Kael's expression changed.

“That's the second anchor.”

The Guardian nodded.

“And they're already installing it.”

Kael turned.

“Then I handle the anchor.”

The Guardian looked toward the six attackers still blocking him.

“Can you pass them?”

Kael smiled.

“Watch.”

Kael stopped attacking the nearest enemy.

Instead, he raised both hands.

PR-02 and AR-03V changed position.

The enemies expected another barrage.

Instead, the weapons fired at the surrounding trees.

BANG!

BANG-BANG!

Trees cracked.

Kael activated Metal Control.

The damaged trees fell inward.

The attackers were forced backward to avoid being crushed.

Kael sprinted through the opening.

One enemy reached for him.

His katana moved automatically.

CLANG!

Kael deflected the strike while continuing forward.

Another projectile passed beside him.

He ducked.

The Guardian raised a wall of green energy behind him.

The pursuing attackers were forced to slow down.

Kael reached the second group.

The anchor was almost fully deployed.

A black pillar had already penetrated the ground.

The System reacted.

[Foreign Network Anchor detected.]

[Activation: 64%.]

Kael's eyes narrowed.

He had seen enough.

He didn't destroy the anchor.

He studied it.

Blackthorn.

Ironhide.

Ashen.

The foreign structures all shared similar designs.

Three concentric rings.

A central core.

And—

a frequency.

Kael activated Darven Authority.

The anchor reacted.

[Foreign structure recognized.]

[Administrator authority detected.]

Kael smiled.

The enemies suddenly noticed what was happening.

“Stop him!”

Three attackers charged.

Kael didn't turn.

AR-03V fired behind him.

BANG-BANG-BANG!

The attackers were forced back.

PR-02 fired.

BANG!

A fourth lost his weapon.

Kael placed his hand against the anchor.

The black metal resisted.

But this time—

Kael knew how to handle it.

He didn't try to pull it apart.

He altered the frequency.

The same technique he had learned from the Ashen Core.

He matched the network.

Then—

shifted the resonance by a fraction.

The anchor flickered.

[Activation: 64% → 41%]

Kael smiled.

“You don't belong here.”

The anchor resisted.

Kael pushed harder.

His bloodline burned.

[Activation: 41% → 17%]

Then—

[Foreign Network Anchor deactivated.]

The pillar went dark.

Kael grabbed it.

Metal Control.

The structure came free.

He threw it aside.

The enemies stared.

Their formation broke.

A single figure walked through the battlefield.

The others immediately moved aside.

Kael's expression changed.

This man wasn't like the others.

He wore no standard armor.

Only a black coat reinforced with metal plates.

His weapon was a long silver sword.

The System appeared.

[Threat Analysis.]

Level: 41

Grade: Lord-class Commander

Potential: Unknown

Traits:

• Severance Authority
• Mana Suppression
• Network Interference
• Combat Adaptation
• Unknown Bloodline

Kael's eyes sharpened.

Level 41.

Exactly the same level as the Basilisk.

But the man's presence wasn't comparable to an ordinary Commander.

He looked at the broken anchor.

Then at Kael.

“You changed its resonance.”

Kael didn't answer.

The man smiled.

“You learned from the Ashen node.”

Kael's eyes narrowed.

“So you know what happened there.”

“I know much more than you think.”

Kael raised PR-02.

“Then you're finally worth questioning.”

The man drew his silver sword.

“I doubt you'll get the chance.”

He vanished.

Kael barely blocked.

CLANG!

The impact sent him backward.

The man's speed was extraordinary.

Another strike.

Kael twisted.

A third.

He blocked.

His arms trembled.

Fast.

The commander changed his angle.

Kael ducked.

The sword passed above him.

Kael fired M-02 at point-blank range.

The man turned.

The bullet grazed his armor.

He didn't stop.

His sword struck Kael's side.

Kael was thrown several meters.

He rolled.

Pain shot through his ribs.

The commander was already coming.

Kael activated Darven Armament.

PR-02 fired.

BANG!

The man deflected the shot.

AR-03V followed.

BANG-BANG-BANG!

He blocked all three with his sword.

Kael's expression changed.

His sword can redirect mana-infused bullets.

The commander charged.

Kael met him with the katana.

CLANG!

The two blades locked.

The commander looked into Kael's eyes.

“You've improved.”

Kael frowned.

“You've seen me before?”

The man smiled.

“Not personally.”

His sword twisted.

Kael's guard opened.

The commander's knee struck Kael's center of balance.

Kael staggered.

The sword came toward his shoulder.

His katana reacted automatically.

CLANG!

The impact drove him backward.

Kael took three steps to recover.

The commander didn't pursue immediately.

Instead, he studied him.

“You think like the old Darven.”

Kael's eyes narrowed.

“Which one?”

“The one who built the weapons.”

That sentence stopped Kael for half a second.

The commander smiled.

“Your bloodline really doesn't remember much.”

Kael's grip tightened.

“My bloodline remembers enough.”

“Does it?”

The man raised his sword.

“Then show me.”

He attacked again.

Kael realized immediately that he couldn't win through direct swordsmanship.

The man's technique was too refined.

His level was higher.

His physical ability was superior.

And his swordsmanship was designed specifically to counter weapon-based fighters.

So Kael stopped fighting like one.

He dropped PR-02.

The commander expected a shot.

Instead, Kael used Metal Control on the weapon itself.

The rifle struck the ground.

Then transformed.

The barrel shortened.

The weapon compressed.

A small metal spike formed from its frame.

Kael launched it.

The commander blocked.

Kael was already moving.

His katana attacked.

The commander deflected.

Kael stepped inside.

Elbow.

Shoulder.

Knee.

He wasn't trying to overpower him.

He was disrupting rhythm.

The commander stumbled.

Kael recalled the rifle.

It reassembled in his hand.

BANG!

Point-blank.

The commander turned.

The bullet struck his shoulder.

For the first time—

blood appeared.

The man stepped back.

Kael had finally damaged him.

But the commander smiled.

“Better.”

His sword began glowing black.

The surrounding mana disappeared.

The entire battlefield became quieter.

Kael's eyes narrowed.

Severance Authority.

The commander wasn't targeting the territory anymore.

He was targeting Kael's bloodline.

The air around Kael grew heavy.

His Armament Bonds flickered.

His Metal Control weakened.

The commander walked forward.

“You cannot build the Fourth Path while I cut the Administrator from it.”

Kael stared.

“So that's your role.”

The man nodded.

“I exist to stop Darvens from becoming administrators.”

Kael's eyes hardened.

“Too late.”

The crimson mark on his hand brightened.

“I already am.”

A massive roar shook the battlefield.

The commander turned.

The Verdant Horned Basilisk charged from the forest.

The man stepped aside.

The Basilisk's horn swept past him.

The commander blocked.

BOOM!

The ground cracked.

Kael stared.

The Basilisk wasn't merely attacking.

It had recognized the commander's ability.

It was preventing him from focusing entirely on Kael.

The Commander retreated.

The Basilisk attacked again.

Its tail slammed downward.

The commander dodged.

The ground exploded.

Kael saw the opening.

He raised PR-02.

BANG!

The round struck the man's arm.

He staggered.

Kael fired again.

BANG!

The second shot struck his sword hand.

The weapon fell.

The commander immediately retreated.

The Basilisk roared.

The remaining hostile forces began withdrawing.

Kael could have chased them.

But he didn't.

Something was wrong.

The battlefield had become too quiet.

He looked toward the center.

The third anchor.

The one that hadn't been installed yet.

It was lying beside the enemy commander.

Kael's eyes narrowed.

The man hadn't needed to install it.

He had used it as bait.

Kael immediately turned toward the network.

A black pulse moved through the underground lines.

His face changed.

“They already activated it.”

The Guardian appeared beside him.

“Impossible.”

Kael pointed.

“No.”

He looked at the black signal.

“They didn't activate the third anchor.”

“They activated the first two simultaneously.”

The Guardian's expression changed.

“That should be impossible.”

Kael shook his head.

“Not anymore.”

He remembered the Ashen Core.

The Western Node.

The foreign bridge.

The anchors were not independent.

They were communicating.

The enemy commander had never needed three anchors physically placed.

They only needed three active network points.

Kael had just destroyed one.

But two remained.

And the third—

was already connected somewhere else.

The System appeared.

[Foreign Network Synchronization detected.]

[Anchor Count: 2/3.]

[Deep Network Access: 67%.]

Kael's eyes narrowed.

The enemy commander smiled from the distant forest.

“You're learning.”

Then he disappeared.

The Basilisk stood in the ruined forest.

The central node remained intact.

The Guardian checked the network.

“Stable.”

Kael looked at the mountains.

The enemy had failed to take the center.

But they had succeeded in something else.

They had raised the Deep Network Access.

67%.

That was far higher than before.

Kael looked down at his hand.

The crimson path pulsed.

The System appeared.

[Fourth Path:]

[1/4 → 2/4 confirmed.]

[Network Administrator authority increased.]

[New function detected:]

Function:

Allows the Administrator to perceive connected ancient network structures, foreign interference, and movement through active pathways.

Kael's eyes widened.

Finally.

The enemy could no longer hide completely.

He closed his eyes.

The world changed.

He could see the network.

Green.

Crimson.

Black.

The foreign signal appeared as a dark thread.

Kael followed it.

West.

Then Ashen Ridge.

Then—

deeper.

Much deeper.

His eyes snapped open.

“I found their third route.”

The Guardian asked:

“Where?”

Kael looked toward the eastern forest.

“Beyond Ashen Ridge.”

Then his expression changed.

Because something else was there.

A gigantic signature.

Not human.

Not a Territory Lord.

Not a guardian.

And not one of the three Legendary Beasts.

Something ancient.

Something that had entered the network from the outside.

The System displayed:

[Unknown Entity detected.]

[Level: ???]

[Grade: ???]

[Threat: Unmeasurable]

Kael's eyes narrowed.

The enemy wasn't the final threat.

They had been building a path for something else.

Far beneath the mountain—

the ancient sealed entity laughed.

“There you are.”

And somewhere in the eastern darkness—

something answered.

“I found the path.”