Rumbling like a fighter jet, the sound drew closer from afar. Gabriel and the other two, accompanied by more than a dozen high-level players, hurried toward Poison Frog Swamp.
As they neared their destination, they slowed down. Gabriel looked down at them from above, issuing his command in a haughty tone.
"Take us there now. If the location's wrong, you can stay here."
His arrogant attitude annoyed them all. Sure, the one paying was the boss, and they were just hired hands, but with an attitude like that, how could anyone like him?
The female player who had found the base's location couldn't help stepping forward. Her companions tried to stop her, but failed.
"It's that biggest swamp up ahead. If you're so full of yourself, why don't you go there on your own? You'd better watch your attitude."
The guild leader sighed inwardly. This young lady was going to ruin everything again. Did she even think about what would happen if she really angered him and he turned on them? What could they do? His mercenary guild couldn't withstand a single attack from a major guild.
He immediately stepped forward and patted his companion on the shoulder, signaling her to stop. Then he bowed and apologized.
"I'm truly sorry, Mr. Gabriel. I apologize for my companion's rudeness. She didn't mean to offend you. Please forgive her."
"As compensation, we can reduce our fee by ten percent this time and give you an important piece of intelligence as well. Would that be acceptable?"
Gabriel frowned at this. He wasn't used to people talking back to him, and he'd been about to teach the rude brat a lesson.
But the opposing mercenary guild's leader had stepped in to smooth things over, and the offer was tempting enough to calm him down a little.
He glanced at the insolent female player, displeasure flashing in his eyes, but still nodded.
"Fine. Since you put it that way, I'll let her off this time."
After a pause, he continued.
"Of course, our guild doesn't need that ten percent of your resources. Tell me the intelligence, then get your people out of here."
The female player was just about to flare up when her guild leader stopped her. He shook his head, warning her not to act rashly.
No matter how vile Gabriel's tone was, he still had to put up with it. That was the misery of being a small guild: without strength, you had to learn to endure.
The guild leader took a deep breath, trying to keep his voice calm.
"Thank you very much for your understanding, Mr. Gabriel. We value this opportunity to work with you. According to our scouting, the base has several layers of defenses and countless hidden traps, all of considerable strength. Most likely, it's protected by some kind of special defensive item."
Gabriel rubbed his chin, lost in thought. Then he waved a hand and looked at them with scorn.
"Then lead the way. I'd like to see just how strong this defense you mentioned really is."
Gabriel gave a disdainful smile, his pride evident. He picked up speed again and flew rapidly toward the swamp.
The other players had no choice but to follow close behind. They were unhappy, but could only accept it.
The group soon reached the swamp. In the broad expanse of water, a few patches of wetland were scattered here and there. At the center stood an inconspicuous little stone house—their target.
Gabriel circled overhead, carefully examining the surrounding defenses.
As the guild leader had said, the base was indeed well defended. It had all kinds of traps and obstacles, and was even protected by several powerful magical barriers.
Without his special item that could see through concealment, he wouldn't have discovered them.
He returned to the group to discuss the situation with the other two. After learning the details, Raphael spoke first.
"If those mercenaries managed to find the traps here, they must have some way to disable them. Why not send them in first to test things out?"
"I don't think that's a good idea. It'll take too much time. Guild leader Michael is already on his way. We have to break in before he arrives, or we'll have failed the mission he entrusted to us."
"Then what do you suggest?"
"I have a special item that lets us ignore traps. Why not break in directly and destroy the defenses from the inside?"
"We don't know how many people are inside. Going in recklessly could cost us too many lives."
Listening to the two argue, Gabriel was growing impatient. He cut them off in a low voice.
"Use Super-Tier Magic."
???
Raphael and Michael were stunned. They hadn't expected Gabriel to suggest such an extreme approach.
While someone was casting Super-Tier Magic, every enemy would focus on them. Especially out here in the wild—nearby monsters would all be drawn to them. If the defense held, they'd be in trouble.
Sraosha tactfully pointed out the drawbacks, but Gabriel didn't care in the slightest.
"Didn't Feier hire a bunch of people to help out here? Let them handle the monsters. With all of us charging up a few Tier Ten spells, I refuse to believe we can't break through this lousy defense."
Sraosha and Raphael exchanged glances. Though they were worried, they didn't object again. They knew Gabriel's personality: once he made up his mind, it was hard to change it.
So they got to work, quickly contacting Feier and telling him the plan.
Feier was surprised, but didn't refuse. After all, those people were being paid to do a job, and he thought Gabriel's plan would benefit him.
With Nine's Own Goal's temperament, they might even help fight the Tears of Angels in the future. That would be another achievement for him. He was delighted.
The group soon sprang into action. Feier and the others took charge of drawing the monsters' attention, while Gabriel and his group began charging up their Super-Tier Magic.
As time passed, more and more monsters were drawn over, and the pressure on Feier's group grew. Still, they gritted their teeth and held on, waiting for Gabriel and the others' signal.
Finally, at the crucial moment, Gabriel's Super-Tier Magic was about to be unleashed. Countless streams of energy gathered above the base, and he immediately signaled the others to begin.
Some of them simultaneously unleashed powerful Tier Ten spells, blasting the base's defenses.
A tremendous explosion shook the heavens. The base's defenses rocked violently, but the barrier remained intact.
A birdman with a galaxy effect behind him flew out of the base and shouted,
"My Great Aino God is here! How dare you attack—"
Before he could finish, Gabriel's Super-Tier Magic went off. Peroroncino stared at the sun falling from the sky, along with all kinds of Tier Ten spells, and was too stunned to react.
It wasn't until the attack was right in his face that he finally came to his senses and yelled,
"Holy shit, what the hell?"
Before you continue