A Regional Campaign!
The weight of those words left all fourteen people struggling to breathe.
They had gone from a desperate squad fighting to survive to setting a massive campaign in motion across the entire war zone.
"Stage objective... gather one thousand Ladder Seekers..." Mage Kevin's voice sounded unsteady. He rubbed his eyes again and again, convinced he had misread it.
But the clear figure, [14/1000], told him this was no illusion.
"Stage reward: every Seeker who joins the gathering will temporarily be promoted to Prospective Believer!" Priest Andre clenched his fists in excitement. "The god is encouraging us! He's telling us that if we stand together, every one of us has a chance!"
The final reward made everyone's heart skip a beat.
The quantities listed beside War Insignia and Ladder Points had changed from numbers to three question marks.
That meant the size of the reward would depend on their final performance in this campaign!
And then there was the last reward—[Portable War Altar x1].
They did not know exactly what it did, but the word "portable" alone was enough to set their imaginations racing.
It meant they might be able to carry a portion of the god's Authority with them!
Gulp.
Someone swallowed nervously.
Great opportunities often came with equal, or even greater, risks.
"We sounded the call to this campaign," Roderick said quietly.
He was no longer a failure.
The War Ladder—or rather, that god from the East—had thrust him into the spotlight.
"We have to get to Rust City immediately." Roderick raised his head and looked at each of his teammates. "We were the first squad marked. That makes us the banner. We have to be there so everyone who answers the call knows where to go."
No one objected.
Their fear of challenging the Sin