Awakening The Only SSS-Rank Class! Now Even Dragons Obey Me Chapter 738: Weakening The Enemy

The gap closing between them and the objective grew smaller by the second. Pressure built relentlessly with each advancing step.

Ordinary guards were nowhere to be seen now. The Awakened crossing their path radiated denser, more restrained, and far deadlier auras.

Their actions were sharp and efficient, devoid of any needless effort, making it evident that this location... was far from ordinary.

Every foe guarding the way was at minimum A-rank. The Fallen Ones handled them with ease, posing little real threat.

Yet this fact alone screamed that they were closing in on a vital target.

Not one whose destruction would utterly turn the tide of battle...

But certainly crucial enough to inflict a heavy wound on the foes. Substantial enough for the enemy to truly suffer.

"Don’t slow down." Lana’s command echoed across the mental connection.

No one halted. Yet the skirmishes grew fiercer.

One Fallen One surged ahead to clear the way, but this enemy held firm. An Awakened clad in shadowy armor parried the blow and retaliated, hurling the beast back.

Dozens more rushed in instantly, transforming the skirmish into a full-blown melee.

No longer a effortless massacre. This spot... had been fortified for resistance.

Beyond the troops lay formations and mechanical turrets, unleashing nonstop barrages without respite.

Moments later, it came into view.

A colossal edifice dominated the area's heart.

A vast ring of interlocking arrays, luminous threads weaving over the earth and skyward, with mana spires thrusting upward. Power pulsed endlessly, akin to an unceasing heartbeat.

"...A battlefield support array." Lana’s eyes tightened. Her expertise in such matters was limited.

Still, a single glance revealed its nature.

And whatever this was, it brimmed with immense might, elite-grade, likely among the finest available.

Yet the puzzle lingered... how had the Goblin Guild acquired such a treasure? Could a guild from a backwater nation truly possess it?

Her father’s and Daniel’s suspicions rang truer now. A shadowy backer was almost certainly aiding these scum.

"...Yeah. It’s distributing mana. Their troops gain boosts from this hub... even that wide-area strike could draw power from here." Elira’s analysis followed swiftly.

This was the hidden key.

Explaining the foes’ inexhaustible mana. Revealing why the conflict had tilted so overwhelmingly.

Yet this array didn’t merely relay mana—it generated it ceaselessly in vast amounts.

Artifacts capable of churning out mana so abundantly and without end... nothing like it had ever crossed her knowledge.

Did such a device even exist?

Speculation would wait. Their mission demanded focus.

"Then we destroy it." Lana declared firmly.

Before her words fully landed, an oppressive aura flooded the zone. Steps ahead, a figure materialized.

Towering and brawny, his presence dwarfed the rest. Mana swirled around him unnaturally, as though he merged with the array itself.

Several legion members froze instinctively.

"...High A." one whispered.

"You made it this far? Not bad." The man grinned coolly, brimming with assurance.

"But you’re not going any further." His gaze fixed on Lana.

Instantly, countless more presences flared up, hundreds strong. They clashed head-on with the Fallen Ones and the full legion.

No holding back. They struck to slay every intruder.

Survivors who pierced this deep couldn’t be spared. Elimination alone safeguarded the array.

Lana advanced.

The instant after, a ferocious duel ignited.

He charged first, blurring forward in a rush. His mana-clad fist hurtled toward Lana, shattering the earth below.

Lana held firm.

Her sword rose to meet it. A thunderous impact rang out, energy rippling outward.

But this marked just the start.

Undeterred, he pressed on with a barrage of blows, each swifter and more crushing. His form operated like a relentless engine, utterly unyielding.

Lana remained rooted. Her counters were compact, exact, stripped of excess.

A sidestep. A swift slash. A solid block. Exchanges blurred in frenzy. The atmosphere thrummed with clashing steel and mana.

"...Not bad." His eyes sharpened.

He recognized Lana. Few in the nation didn’t. She ranked among the elite prodigies.

Rumors swirled lately of her abandoning Tower ascents for guild duties.

Many assumed she’d dulled, her peak faded.

Clearly, those tales were lies.

She shone brighter than ever.

Suddenly, Lana accelerated. Her form flickered from sight.

She reappeared at his rear. Her blade whispered through the air.

Blood traced a line.

The man stiffened briefly.

Then his body cleaved apart.

No time for defense. No final words. He never grasped the fatal strike.

Seconds prior, he’d plotted his assault.

In a blink... oblivion claimed him.

Hush gripped the chaos momentarily.

"Move." Lana ignored the corpse. The entire force surged toward the array.

Nothing barred them now. Fallen Ones swarmed the construct like a tide, Awakened unleashed volleys, and raw power hammered the nucleus.

All-out assault. The terrain quaked as array conduits snapped sequentially.

Luminescence faded.

A colossal blast followed.

Mana erupted outward in a tempest, warping the winds. Enemy networks faltered in the surge.

Precisely then, Elira’s update pierced through.

"Confirmed! The pressure on the main line has dropped! Their communications are disrupted!"

Success bloomed.

Their strike had crippled the Goblin Guild’s boundless mana supply to its Awakened.

Per intel, it hadn’t fully ceased. The Guild had foreseen sabotage, dispersing backups.

Still, the blow landed hard.

"...No." Lana’s brow creased.

"This isn’t the only one."

"What?" a voice queried.

"There are more of these." Lana lifted her eyes while replying. The truth had dawned on her too.

"...Yeah. There are several other points, but—" Elira verified.

"This one... was the main one."

Hence its vulnerability. Hence the torrent of mana.

Which implied the enemy anticipated interference.

Other nodes lay beyond reach for now.

Probably hidden throughout the capital. Striking them risked clashing with rival top guilds’ domains, sparking chaos.

Trouble they couldn’t afford.

"We’re retreating." Lana ordered crisply.

Protests bubbled, but she pressed on:

"We’re done here. We’ll come back later."

Lingering invited peril. Withdrawal allowed recovery, replanning, and a reinforced return.

The group shifted to leave.

Then, fresh auras bloomed ahead.

All froze.

Ahead, multiple Awakened emerged.

Their vibes... utterly transformed.

One strode forth from the group.

For the first time this mission, Lana’s stare met his, her expression darkening gravely.

She knew... grave danger loomed.

"...Jason."

And escape... had grown far from assured.