Chapter 514: Paphield Battle (7)

The sky darkened.

Rhode leaned forward and looked at the flickering torches in the distance while white fog drifted around him. This was the characteristic of the Could Summit. Every single day from spring to winter, fog would form every night and it wouldn't dissipate until the sun rose the next day. However, the concentration of the fog differed at times. Sometimes, the fog would be as thick as a wall that blocked out all creatures. During such times, even soldiers wouldn't patrol because they would only get lost in the fog forever.

Even though this was a widely circulated legend, Rhode knew that this wasn't as simple as a legend. In fact, the reason why the fog in the Cloud Summit was this incredibly thick was due to its location coinciding with the Water Element Plane of Existence. Therefore, there would be some characteristics of the low-level Water Element Plane of Existence and the emergence of the thick fog was one of them. As the fog thickened, some elemental creatures living in the Water Element Plane of Existence would seize the opportunity to come to this world through it... As a pure elemental creature, they had absolutely no favorable impressions for the living creatures of this world.

If there was going to be a massive, thick fog, Garcia could simply shut the doors and call it a night while the enemies faced the terrifying creatures lurking in the fog. However, it seemed like luck wasn't on Garcia's side. The sky had darkened, however, the fog appeared to be as thin as a layer of transparent silk yarn. In such an environment, their vision wouldn't be excellent. However, it was still possible for them to spot their enemies.

There were pros and cons for both sides.

Clashes of weapons, loud screams, and wails could be heard vaguely. But the fog made it hard for them to differentiate between reality and dream.

Rhode reached out and held down the daggers on his waist while biting his lip. This scene reminded him of the earliest days in the game. Back then, the players had no opportunity to command a military at all. Even if they had high prestige and tyrannical strength, the forces would rarely hand over their soldiers to players. More often than not, the players were more like special elites that carried out special tasks such as penetrating the enemy's base to destroy their supplies and other beheading operations. It could be said that almost every player's teams had grown through such battles. However, as the game progressed with the updates, the players had also gained the authority to form a legion. Some players who started the game from the new version preferred to lead their army into the battlefield instead of sneaking behind the enemy's rear.

However, Rhode still chose to sneak in from the enemy's rear. From the beta version until the day he left the game, he had gotten used to stabbing his enemies in their backs stealthily. He didn't dislike leading his army into the battlefield as no men would reject such a blood-racing temptation. It was just that the long-term habit of accepting these missions had changed Rhode's preference to appoint other Commanders to lead into the battlefield while he led a smaller group to strike from the rear. This practice didn't change even after Starlight had topped and unified the entire server. Even during wars with other guilds, Rhode chose to appoint his subordinates to command the main army while he lurked in the dark with his companions and trusted aides, waiting for the chance to deal a fatal strike.

And it was the same now.

Rhode learned from Joey and the others in the front that the Southern Legion had launched a fierce attack on the Cloud Summit Fortress, but it didn't go well as Garcia had an efficient way of dealing with them. Even though Garcia didn't have enough manpower and the Fortress was in a terrible state, it proved that he indeed had the capabilities to resist the attack of the Southern Legion.

If it weren't for Garcia's unusual and disturbing personality, Rhode would have roped him in. After all, Rhode had seen it for himself that Garcia was capable of leading a huge army in the game and unfortunately, Rhode didn't have anyone in his guild who was capable of doing so. Marlene was more suitable as an advisor of internal affairs, strategies, and she wasn't an expert in terms of battle tactics. On the other hand, even though Joey, Marfa, and the group were meticulous during missions, they didn't possess outstanding military talents. Therefore, it would be extremely useful if Rhode could rope in a capable person with military talent like Garcia.

However, it was a pity that Garcia's sexual orientation forced Rhode to keep a respectful distance away from him. He would rather not have this man with him and he definitely wouldn't use himself as a stake to lure this pervert into following him closely. Rhode had no interest in men, not to mention men that had ulterior motives towards him.

In fact, there were also many heroes in the Munn Kingdom. But it was a pity that the Country of Darkness' early attack had sent them all to their graves. Due to this reason, Rhode didn't have any information about the heroes' past. In the game, Rhode's understanding of Marlene was only limited to her establishment of an all-female mercenary group and her mercenary group ended in mutual destruction when the Country of Darkness attacked Golden City. As for what she had done before, Rhode had no inkling at all. This was also the case for Garcia as Rhode never knew that this "Red Fox" was actually a commander in this ghostly place.

Due to this reason, Rhode couldn't search for the potential heroes and 'keep' them all to himself, which was a huge regret for him. Marlene was the only one in his current team who was popular in the game. As for the others, Rhode had never heard of their names before. But strangely, Rhode didn't search for Marlene on purpose as she came to his doorstep in the first place... Considering the causes and effects, it did feel somewhat fishy...

As Rhode's mind wandered, Joey's voice sounded in his ears. "Boss, those guys are starting to shrink their encirclement. It seems like the Fortress Commander is really hard to deal with because the encirclement is shrinking really slowly..."

"How's the movement at the rear?"

"There's..." Joey hesitated for a while before answering in a quirky tone. "No sign of activities at the rear, Boss."

"What?" Rhode was startled by the turn of events.

"Yes, Boss. There are no movements at all. I don't see them preparing to move off as though they are totally unconcerned with the battle on the front lines," Joey continued to describe the scene.

This is bad.

According to the original plan, Garcia would strengthen his forces to delay the enemies from invading the Fortress successfully and this way, the enemies would be forced to push all their forces including the rear troops ahead. After all, the enemies were the ones rushing for time and they definitely needed to make some sacrifices in their formation. If their frontline didn't take down the Fortress soon, the rear troops would definitely push forward to make up for the insufficient manpower in the front. It wouldn't make sense for them if they chose to retreat and reorganized after getting caught in a deadlock because the remaining forces on their hands would certainly not be able to capture the Fortress in a short time. Therefore, the safest method for them was to push forward comprehensively and this way, Rhode could launch a raid from their rear and deal a fatal blow. Garcia could also once again occupy the favorable location and launch an attack on the Southern Legion with a high success rate in eliminating them.

But now, the rear troops are actually biding their time even when their frontline is having a dire war? What are they up to?

Could it be that they have reinforcements arriving soon? But why wouldn't they wait for the reinforcements to arrive first so that they can launch their attack together?

If reinforcements are not coming, wouldn't they fail miserably if they can't occupy the Fortress?

Rhode puckered his brows as he gazed at the indistinct flames behind the fog. He retrieved his pocket watch and pointed it towards the night sky.

It's already midnight. Is the enemy commander really that calm or does he have other intentions? Or perhaps, this is a trap?

"Mr. Rhode?" Lize squatted beside Rhode and gazed at him with uncertainty. She had also heard Joey's report and she was also aware of the strategy that Rhode and Garcia had set. The prerequisite was that the enemy's rear must push forward and converge with the frontline. If they didn't converge, Rhode and Garcia's strategy wouldn't work. This was because Rhode and Garcia didn't have enough manpower and even if Rhode managed to defeat the rear troops, it was certain that the distance between the rear troops and the frontline would allow the frontline to react with a counterattack. Unless Rhode's men were all in the Master Stage, they would surely perish in this counterattack since they didn't have enough manpower.

What should I do next?

According to Gillian, Lize must provide suggestions and her thoughts as an adjutant. However, her mind was in a total blank and she couldn't think of any solutions at all. Everything before her seemed like an unknown puzzle without any answers. The young lady lifted her head subconsciously.

At this moment, Rhode's expression returned to its usual calmness as though the news that Joey passed on wasn't a bad news at all. Rhode gazed at Lize and patted her shoulder.

"Don't worry, Lize. I'm prepared for this," Rhode placed his finger by his lips. "Gillian, it's me. Garcia's plan failed. From now on... Execute Plan B."