The second tower did not fall quietly.
It screamed.
A high, metallic wail tore through the battlefield as cracks split through Moniyan's outer structure. Blue light leaked from its core like blood from a wound.
Freya felt the vibration through her boots before she saw the damage.
"Back!" she ordered.
Tigreal slammed his shield into the stone, bracing as chunks of glowing debris rained down around them. Beatrix rolled behind cover, rifle already scanning for movement. Cecilion's eyes glowed faintly violet as he analyzed the unstable magic bleeding from the tower's remains.
"This isn't structural damage," the mage said tightly. "It's decay. Something is eating the Nexus energy."
Across the lane, the Abyss tower flickered the same way.
Then it fractured.
Alucard stepped back just as the crimson structure split down the middle and collapsed in a wave of unstable light.
Both sides stared at the destruction.
Two towers gone.
And neither team had destroyed them.
The Nexus had.
Aamon materialized beside Freya, blades dim with absorbed corruption. "It's spreading through the jungle," he murmured. "The monsters aren't guarding camps anymore. They're migrating."
"Migrating where?" Beatrix asked.
Before anyone could answer, the ground trembled.
Not from a single creature this time.
From many.
The jungle canopy shook violently as glowing red eyes ignited in the shadows.
Dozens.
Too many for a standard wave.
"They're not following lane patterns," Cecilion whispered.
Freya lifted her sword, divine energy flaring along its edge.
"They're not following rules."
And then the monsters charged.
They came from every direction.
Not in organized waves—but in chaos.
Clawed beasts vaulted from trees. Corrupted serpents burst from the earth. Winged creatures dove from above with shrieks that rattled the air.
Tigreal held the center, shield glowing as he absorbed the first impact.
"Formation!" he barked.
Freya moved to his flank, cutting through a lunging beast in a single clean arc. Black veins pulsed beneath its skin, spreading outward like a disease.
Aamon vanished again, reappearing behind enemies with lethal precision.
Beatrix fired steadily, every shot calculated.
Cecilion raised both hands and unleashed a sweeping tide of arcane force, clearing a path through the swarm.
Still—
They kept coming.
Freya's jaw tightened.
"This isn't random," she said between strikes. "They're driving us."
"Driving us where?" Beatrix snapped.
Another tremor answered the question.
The center of the battlefield began to glow.
The river that divided the lanes shimmered violently, water rising upward instead of flowing forward.
And from its depths—
Something massive began to emerge.
Alucard saw it first.
He had cut down three beasts in quick succession when the water behind him erupted.
He spun, blade ready.
The creature that rose from the river was unlike any jungle guardian he had ever seen.
Its body was armored in obsidian scales, but veins of Nexus-blue energy pulsed beneath the surface. Four massive limbs anchored it to the ground as a crown of jagged crystal protruded from its skull.
Its eyes were not red.
They were black.
Empty.
Watching.
"This… wasn't in the rules," one of the Abyss champions muttered.
The creature exhaled.
And the air warped.
Freya felt the pressure shift instantly.
"Retreat from the river!" she shouted.
Too late.
The monster slammed one claw into the ground, sending a shockwave across the entire arena.
Champions from both kingdoms were thrown off their feet.
The Divine Core above flickered violently, dark veins spreading further through its once-pure glow.
Cecilion pushed himself up slowly, staring at the beast in horror.
"That's not a spawn," he said.
"That's a summoning."
Across the field, Alucard stood, eyes narrowed.
The creature's gaze shifted—
Not to the Moniyan team.
Not to the Abyss.
But to the Divine Core itself.
It roared again.
And began moving toward the center.
Freya's pulse pounded.
"If it reaches the Core—"
"It could collapse the entire arena," Cecilion finished.
Tigreal cursed under his breath. "We can't let that happen."
Beatrix glanced toward the Abyss team. "You see them hesitating too?"
Freya followed her gaze.
Alucard stood still, calculating.
Their eyes met across the chaos.
In that look—
Understanding passed.
This was bigger than faction war.
Bigger than kingdom pride.
The Nexus was unraveling.
And if the Core shattered—
No one would leave alive.
Freya made her decision.
She stepped forward, raising her voice so it carried across the battlefield.
"Alucard!"
His head tilted slightly.
"Temporary truce!" she called. "We stop that thing first."
Silence followed.
Every champion waited.
Trusting an enemy in the Nexus was unheard of.
It broke tradition.
It broke pride.
It broke centuries of rivalry.
The creature roared again, closer now to the glowing Core.
Alucard glanced at his team.
Then back at her.
"Fine," he called back coolly. "But when it falls—"
"The war resumes," Freya finished.
A brief nod.
Agreement.
The first alliance in Nexus history.
Unspoken.
Unwritten.
Necessary.
They moved as one.
Two teams converging toward the center.
The creature sensed them.
It turned slowly, massive claws digging into stone.
Its black eyes gleamed.
Freya charged first.
Divine wings of light burst from her back as she leapt into the air, blade descending in a radiant arc toward the beast's crown.
The strike connected—
But barely scratched.
Alucard followed, twin blades crossing in a flurry of lethal precision, targeting the pulsing blue veins beneath its scales.
This time—
The creature reacted.
It shrieked and lashed out, sending him skidding backward across stone.
Beatrix and the Abyss marksman fired simultaneously, bullets and bolts striking exposed weak points.
Cecilion and the opposing mage unleashed synchronized bursts of magic, destabilizing the corruption wrapping around its limbs.
For a moment—
It worked.
The beast staggered.
Tigreal and the Abyss tank slammed into it from opposite sides, shields glowing as they pinned its movement.
"Now!" Freya shouted.
Alucard met her charge head-on.
Two fighters moving in perfect, mirrored rhythm.
They struck together.
Divine light and demonic steel colliding against corrupted flesh.
The creature let out a final, deafening roar—
And exploded in a wave of dark energy.
The blast threw everyone backward.
Freya hit the ground hard, vision blurring.
For a second—
There was only ringing silence.
Then—
The Divine Core above cracked.
A thin fracture split across its glowing surface.
Darkness seeped through.
Freya's breath caught.
"That shouldn't have happened," Cecilion whispered hoarsely.
They had killed the creature.
But the Core had taken damage.
The Nexus wasn't stabilizing.
It was deteriorating.
Alucard pushed himself upright slowly, staring at the fracture above.
"This isn't a corrupted match," he said grimly.
"This is a purge."
Freya stood.
"A purge of what?"
His eyes shifted toward the Core.
"Of us."
The ground trembled again.
Stronger.
Deeper.
From beneath the battlefield
A voice echoed.
Not a roar.
Not a laugh.
But words.
Ancient.
Distorted.
Hungry.
Champions…
Every warrior froze.
The voice reverberated through bone and soul.
You were never meant to win.
Freya felt ice crawl down her spine.
The Nexus wasn't malfunctioning.
It was evolving.
And it had just spoken.