Before anyone could even sigh, another Ruin Kobold Sentinel was swiftly taken down by Team E's lightning-fast attacks, their blades slicing through the air like wind, cutting clean through stiff iron armor.
Then the third one couldn't hold out any longer either. It shattered into fragments of pixelated debris the moment a coordinated combo from multiple players struck its weak point.
The echoes of relentless attacks mixed with the clash of steel, forming a vibrant symphony of battle that sent the heartbeats of Ren and his comrades racing.
Amidst that chaos, Ren remained steady. He was fighting, not alone, but side by side with a few others from Team E, players delivering precise and synchronized strikes to suppress the Sentinel trying to encircle them.
The Ruin Kobold Sentinel was quickly defeated, bursting into glowing red pixels that fell to the cold stone floor, but there were still too many enemies surrounding them.
Without allowing himself even a moment's lapse, Ren immediately shifted his focus to another approaching Sentinel.
He dashed toward the one facing Kirito and Asuna as the two battled the final Ruin Kobold Sentinel.
Their group, Team F...comprising Ren, Asuna, and Kirito, was tasked with defending the outer perimeter, stopping any Sentinels that attempted to break through, reach the boss, and disrupt the main assault team.
They were like living walls, standing between their allies and the enemy, not allowing a single inch to be breached.
The harsh clang of metal rang out again and again as the three of them executed perfectly timed strikes, but Ren knew this wasn't an easy fight.
Every time his sword struck the Sentinel's thick iron armor, it vibrated in his grip, and he could feel the full weight of each retaliatory blow.
The Sentinel before him, though wounded, kept roaring and charging like a storm of steel, forcing Ren to retreat under its monstrous pressure.
But just then, Kirito dashed in from the right, his jet-black sword swinging in a horizontal arc, striking at a weak point exposed at the enemy's flank.
Without hesitation, Asuna leapt up. Her attack, swift and pinpoint accurate, came down vertically from above, slicing through the now-vulnerable armor that Kirito had unveiled.
The Sentinel exploded in an instant, pixelated fragments scattering like fireworks in the chaotic night.
But there was no time to rest, another Sentinel had already charged in, rushing at Ren with terrifying speed. He had to react quickly, stepping back, sword at the ready, eyes locked on the target.
Every second was a heartbeat between life and death. The flicker of skill lights, the clang of metal footsteps against marble, the rallying shouts echoing across the battlefield…
It all melded into one great symphony of combat and survival.
Ren knew: if even one Sentinel pierced the outer ring, the boss would be set free, and all their efforts would go to waste.
Not allowing anxiety to cloud his mind, he took a deep breath and focused all his spirit and strength into each swing.
Every strike from Ren wasn't just an attack, it was a resolute declaration: they would not let the boss win so easily.
Then… a shout rang out from behind. No one knew who it came from. It didn't matter.
It was a primal sound, like the cry of a heart pushed to its limits, breaking free from exhaustion, piercing through the clash of steel, the roar of monsters, and the ragged breaths of pain.
That shout was like the first spark to a dry haystack long waiting to burn. It spread. It surged. It transformed into an invisible wave that rolled through the sealed chamber of the boss room.
Ren paused for half a second. Kirito did too. Asuna froze with her blade mid-spin.
All three turned simultaneously toward the main battlefield, where light was blazing so brilliantly it stung the eyes, like someone had torn through the darkness with a sword infused with the entirety of their will to survive.
And then they saw it.
The third health bar… the HP gauge that had always meant terror, cruelty, and the creeping dread that they might never make it further, had burst.
Fragments of red shimmered like crystals in the dim light of the stone room. Not as dazzling as fireworks, but far from the dullness of ash.
It was a fragile kind of beauty...so delicate it made one stop breathing for a fleeting moment, only for that moment to give way to...
Just one health bar remained.
Glowing red. Dense and heavy. Like the final edge of a dream about to come true...or perhaps the door to a bottomless pit.
One health bar. One chance. A silent proclamation that the decisive moment had come.
Asuna inhaled, her eyes gleaming like a blade drawn from its sheath. Kirito gave a small nod, his gaze unusually calm...but beneath that calm, a fire burned that everyone could feel.
Ren said nothing, he was never one for words during crucial moments. But just by stepping back half a pace, bracing himself, then turning to charge again, he said it all.
The battle wasn't over… If the pattern held, the boss would summon another wave of Ruin Kobold Sentinels after each HP bar vanished.
Their mission, Team F's role, remained unchanged: hold the outer perimeter, engage the Sentinels, and make sure not a single one reached Illfang to shatter the tense offensive formation inside.
Just as Ren had predicted, this time there were six… six Sentinels emerged…
If even one Sentinel got through...
Just one strike...
Everything they had fought so hard to gain would vanish like smoke.
Ren tightened his grip on the sword hilt, twisted his foot lightly, and slid to the side like a breeze slicing through the gap between two monsters.
Kirito followed close behind, his eyes sharp as blades, while Asuna had already dashed ahead, ready to pierce through any opening the Tankers hadn't yet filled.
Not a word was spoken between them.
Because everyone understood: this was the moment where each person had to become a wall. A spear. A final gate.
No one was allowed to fall, not before that last health bar dropped.
Right at that instant... amidst the chaotic battlefield, where the sound of clashing metal roared like a thunderstorm on stone, where every scream and footstep carried killing intent, Illfang suddenly froze.
No one understood what was happening. The massive monster, still bearing a glowing red health bar like a beacon of death, suddenly halted mid-battle under a barrage of attacks.
It didn't resist, didn't roar as usual. It simply stood still, surrounded by dozens of advancing players, as if time around it had been warped.
One second, two seconds… then three.
A sense of dread swept over everyone. Something was wrong. A chill crawled down the spines of the entire frontline.
And then… it dropped its weapon.
The axe it had wielded since the start of the fight, the one that had battered countless players with every blow...fell onto the cracked marble floor with a heavy, definitive thud.
The sound of metal hitting stone wasn't loud, but icy, like the trigger of a trap they hadn't known they'd sprung.
In that moment, all eyes turned toward Illfang's right arm, as it reached behind its back.
Wrapped in a sheet of white cloth.
A strange object, unseen until now throughout the battle, had silently lain there, as if waiting for this exact moment to appear.
Ren took half a step back, holding his breath.
Beside him, Kirito murmured, "That's not a sub-weapon... This is..."
His words were cut off by a piercing shout from the center of the formation:
"EVERYONE, BE CAREFUL! TANKERS, SWITCH POSITIONS!"
It was Diavel. His voice had lost its usual calm. No longer short, steady commands, it rang out like a blaring emergency alarm, slamming into the ears of every player present.
"IT'S ABOUT TO USE A SPECIAL SKILL, FROM THE TALWAR! A WIDE-RANGE HORIZONTAL SLASH!"
And just as the warning echoed, the white cloth tore like paper shredded in a storm.
Revealing a Nodachi longer than a person's height, its silver sheath speckled with rust, yet the blade...once drawn, was so sharp it gleamed like a cold mirror.
This was no ordinary sword. It was a weapon tied to tales of slaughter, a weapon that had only ever appeared in system error descriptions, something no one expected to see with their own eyes.
"DAMMIT, GET AWAY FROM IT, THAT'S NOT A TALWAR....IT'S A NODACHI!" Diavel shouted.
Illfang gripped it with both hands, crouching low, its entire body tightening as if ready to spring.
The entire battlefield froze.
Several players preparing to launch their next attacks were caught mid-motion, unable to complete their strikes.
The Tankers at the front lines instantly pulled back, bracing their shields, forming a defensive wall, though none were truly confident they could withstand what was coming. Groups C and D stopped attacking altogether, scattering quickly into emergency formations.
Ren, along with Kirito and Asuna, the members of Group F, stationed at the outer guard line, also shifted immediately. The three didn't speak. They moved only with their eyes and perfectly synced motions.
They backed off diagonally to both sides, creating an open line of sight, protecting the rear while staying ready to strike if needed.
Ren felt his chest tighten.
Not out of fear, but from that chilling sense of witnessing a move that could change the entire course of the battle.
He knew, the next swing wouldn't be like any skill before.
This was a sweeping strike, powerful, fast, and so wide in range that one small misstep would make it unavoidable.
An attack not designed to create opportunities...but to erase.
The entire battlefield held its breath. One second before everything began to move again.
And when Illfang raised its head, its eyes glowing red like a hell-forge, everyone understood.
There was no turning back. No more "strategy."
Only the real deathmatch... beginning now.