"I agree!" Ryan was the first to voice his support. As one of Rose's loyal followers, he would never question Rose's decision.
"I agree too."
"Agreed!" Several revenge-minded Heroes raised their hands.
Seeing the direction the wind was blowing, the remaining guild leaders nodded in agreement with Rose's plan.
As Rose pointed out, initiating negotiations now would only make us seem weak.
Showing off our muscles and getting the other party to sit at the negotiation table first is indeed a better way to solve the problem.
Once the decision was unanimously passed, a detailed plan of action was drawn up immediately and a large number of scouts were dispatched.
…
A few days later.
The Sea King Guild, under the leadership of their guild leader Jacob Wright, was marching towards the territory of the Giant Dragon Dark Lord.
The information came from a newly risen Hero named Zachary.
He had personally reconnoitred the area and confirmed that it was where the Giant Dragon Dark Lord's lair was located.
For the Heroes of East Sea, the name of the Giant Dragon Dark Lord was widely known.
Many of them had suffered under his tyranny.
According to the intelligence returned by Zachary, after the Giant Dragon Dark Lord mysteriously disappeared, his territory was left leaderless, with only a few high-ranking monsters maintaining its normal operation.
The other Dark Lords, fearing the Giant Dragon Dark Lord's tyranny, dared not infringe on his territory.
What if the Giant Dragon Dark Lord suddenly returned?
While the Dark Lord faction was hesitant to strike against the Giant Dragon Dark Lord, the Hero faction had no such reservations.
Aiming to kill while the enemy is sick is their strategy.
The biggest advantage of the Dark Lord faction lies in their strong individual powers and a wave-like, surging army.
Regardless of whether the missing Giant Dragon Dark Lord is really dead or just missing, taking out his lair while he's away is like cutting off one of his arms.
For the Hero side, it's all pros, no cons.
In order to hog all the glory from this operation, the Sea King Guild decided to go it alone, keeping their allies in the dark.
Giant Dragon Dark Lord was the wealthiest among the Dark Lords around East Sea. Taking down his territory would surely yield a hefty haul of spoils.
The Sea King Guild's main forces advanced quietly through the dense forest, not far from Giant Dragon Dark Lord's territory.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, there was a peculiar sound in the forest.
Arrows shot out, instantly toppling several members of the Sea King Guild.
"Form up, form up!" Jacob quickly barked out, kicking a Hero who was frantically trying to escape.
He drew his sword, looking into the darkness.
A large number of Heroes wearing various uniforms emerged, surrounding the Sea King Guild.
"Attack!"
"Let's take these sons of bitches down!"
"Avenge our brothers!" Shouts echoed everywhere as a group of Riverside Heroes charged with immense momentum towards the Sea King Guild.
The first wave of contact saw casualties on both sides.
However, in terms of numbers, Riverside held an overwhelming advantage.
The battle line kept pushing back, with the Sea King Guild retreating steadily.
After cutting down a Riverside Hero, Jacob wiped the blood from his face, looking a bit grim.
As the guild leader of the biggest guild in East Sea, he was no stranger to war and could clearly see the situation at hand...
The Riverside side definitely had their best out there, while his side only had Heroes from the Sea King Guild.
Defeat was inevitable. The real problem now was that they were surrounded and retreating was no longer an option.
"What's your game here? Are you openly declaring war against the East Sea Heroes?" Jacob shouted with anger.
Now all he could hope for was that the other side didn't dare to break ties with East Sea completely, so they could stop and make peace.
"So what if we declare war on you? Don't tell me you think we're scared of East Sea, ha!" Ryan took the lead, cutting down several Heroes and laughed manically.
"Guild Leader Wright, you worry too much, you might as well prepare to die... Our operation only targets your Sea King Guild. Our City Lord Rose has personally sent a letter to your East Sea City Lord expressing the desire for peace."
"And the price of peace between our cities is your Sea King Guild!"
Riverside charged fiercely, showing no mercy. The East Sea side was quickly defeated...
Hearing Riverside's shout, Jacob's face darkened even more.
A surge of hatred for Rose welled up in his heart.
The ones who stirred up the chaos between the two cities' Heroes were clearly Heroes from Rose's guild.
And now, she wanted to use the Sea King Guild as a scapegoat...
The disputes between the two cities indeed needed to be settled in some way.
Once the Sea King Guild was disbanded, the East Sea Heroes would be at an absolute disadvantage against Riverside.
Given that woman's current reputation and tactics, it would only take some time before she could easily recruit the East Sea's Heroes.
Years of hard work, all to make the wedding dress for that woman.
"That damn bitch!" Jacob grew even more furious and charged with his sword.
Being an A-rank Hero, his desperate fighting would surely cause Riverside a heavy toll.
Not long after he charged out, a treant Hero suddenly grabbed him.
Jacob thought it was an enemy and almost struck him down.
The one who grabbed him was Zachary.
After a bloody battle, Zachary was heavily wounded and looked extremely battered.
Panting heavily, he said to Jacob, "Guild Leader... Where there's life, there's hope."
"If you die here, then for the brothers of our Sea King Guild, it'll truly be the end of the road," Zachary tried to reason.
Jacob's face darkened at this. "What do you mean? Isn't this already a dead end? Are you suggesting I surrender? Even if I do, do you think these bastards would let us live?"
It was clear to Jacob that the Riverside heroes were out for his blood, intent on trading the ruin of the Sea King Guild for peace between the two cities.
Surrender would only lead to a more humiliating death.
Zachary quickly interjected, "Guild leader, have you ever thought about the fact that you're an A-rank hero? As long as you're alive, Riverside would have to tread carefully."
"Could anyone stop you if you launched attacks on their loners in the wilderness? As long as you're alive, they will live in fear. I'll do everything I can to help you escape."
andasnovel.com "Once you've successfully escaped, I'll surrender with the remaining brothers. To avoid provoking you, they won't dare to lay a finger on us. This is the only chance we have."
Listening to Zachary, Jacob's expression fluctuated before finally nodding heavily. "Zachary, you're right... I entrust our brothers of the Sea King Guild to you."
"Rest assured, as long as I, Jacob, still draw breath, I'll never let these bastards live in peace! If any of them dare harm you, I swear they'll pay in blood!"
"Get out of my way!" Jacob roared, his sword sweeping aside several heroes nearby. He then started making his way toward the edge of the battlefield.
As an A-rank hero, if he really wanted to escape, there was little anyone on the battlefield could do to stop him.
Ryan and his men tried to block him but eventually had to watch as Jacob disappeared from sight.
"Coward!" Ryan spat on the ground, his contempt for Jacob deepening.
Seeing Jacob's successful escape, Zachary immediately raised his hands, shouting, "We surrender! We, the Sea King Guild, surrender!"
Under his lead, the remaining Sea King Guild heroes reluctantly laid down their weapons. The battle ended as abruptly as it had begun.
"What do we do with these prisoners? Shall we..." A few guild leaders from the Riverside Guild huddled together, discussing in hushed tones.
One of them subtly mimicked a throat-slitting gesture.
Another guild leader immediately shook his head, "If you want to kill them, be my guest. I don't want to face the wrath of a deranged Jacob. He's one of the earliest A-rank heroes, his strength probably second only to Lady Rose."
"If we execute these people, who can confidently face Jacob's fury? Will we have to keep hiding in the main city?"
With an exchange of glances, they debated for a while longer before finally deciding, albeit begrudgingly, to take the Sea King Guild captives back to Riverside.
…
Jacob raced back to East Sea in a state of disarray.
Once back in the city, he didn't even bother changing his clothes. His first priority was to see the city leader, Lady Louise.
Louise was hosting a tea party with a group of noblewomen.
Dressed in a noblewoman's gown, her ample bosom rose and fell, her slim waist and long legs drawing everyone's attention.
Her golden hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her exquisite features held an enchanting smile.
Wherever she stood, she would inevitably become the center of attention.
Seeing the blood-covered Jacob, Louise barely concealed her displeasure.
She excused herself from the noblewomen and ushered Jacob into a quiet room on the side.
She feigned surprise as she asked, "Guild leader Wright, what has happened to you? Why are you in such a sorry state?"
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