The group of players riding horses was soon eyed by two teams of Imperial Guards, and a civilian-looking officer with a booklet and pen in hand approached, gesturing for them to dismount and undergo the check.
“No problem, Officer,” said the leading player, who chuckled lightly and dismounted with ease.
His teammates did the same, and soon their horses were led away by the border Guardians, while they were asked to line up and proceed to an open area, orderly passing by the guardhouse window.
Seizing the moment when the civilian officer drew near, the team leader uttered softly without drawing attention:
“From dawn to dusk, blood and wine reflect the setting Sun…”
The nonsensical phrase was actually from a famous poem, “The Rose and the Golden-winged Sparrow,” of the Anlong United Kingdom, and it also served as a passphrase.
Unexpectedly, the civilian officer’s expression changed slightly, and his gaze sharpened.
Clearly noticing this, the player leader saw the officer take a deep breath and then, acting as if he hadn’t heard, continued leading the way without giving any response.
As the player grew suspicious, he found himself following the officer to the first guard post, and upon looking up at the window, he was taken aback.
Inside, besides the two inspectors seated there, stood more than a dozen people with distinctly different auras, all wearing smiles of either excitement or mockery, led by a young man with a profound gaze.
Who were these people?
The leader of the Miracle Guild suddenly felt something was seriously wrong. He tried to cast a Scout spell, and the next second felt chills run down his spine.
Polaris?! The top independent player from the leaderboards?!
Why was he here… No! They must have been lying in ambush specifically for us!
A wave of intense panic surged up within him.
He then heard Polaris speak softly from within the guard post:
“These bastards are Undead Foreigners from the enemy country.”
The more than twenty players from the Miracle Guild were stunned. Before they could comprehend what was happening, they saw dozens, if not hundreds, of soldiers with flintlock rifles encircling them tightly.
Heavy ordnance was also instantly swung around, aiming squarely at them.
Furthermore, about a dozen high-level players led by Polaris, plus several black-robed Clergy from the Moon Church, stood to one side, watching them coldly.
All the players from the Miracle Guild had the same thought.
“Kill yourselves quickly!”
The leader made a snap decision and roared.
As he was alerting his teammates, he had already produced a Bomb, intending to Detonate it.
But he quickly became desperate as he saw a dark and cold light rain down from above, his soul tingled, and uncontrollably, his body collapsed to the ground. All the other players from his team fell alike.
As his consciousness started to fade, he heard one of the Moon Church Clergy speak indifferently:
“Lock them all up in the border Undying Prison…”
Shock jolted through the heart of the Miracle Guild’s leader.
All team members had the same thought:
It’s completely over…
This account is done for!
Dammit, how could this happen?! This isn’t how the script was supposed to go!!
Lastly, he faintly heard that person’s voice:
“Thank you for your assistance, foreigners from the Circus… Give my thanks to your Leader, Mr. Jack Spett. Were it not for you, these damned bastards would probably commit more havoc in Vulture City…”
How… How could it be him?!
They had just been mocking others, but now the mockery was on themselves. A sense of the absurd and outrage grew uncontrollably in their hearts.