"Good," Satou approved. "Remember—your goal isn't to kill all eight hundred enhanced warriors. Your goal is to break the siege, destroy their forward camps, and reclaim enough territory to establish secure defensive positions. Once we've killed Vexor and destroyed the temple, those enhanced warriors will likely lose their coordination and become much easier to handle."

The sun finally set, plunging the valley into darkness. The time had come.

Satou stood at the entrance to the caverns, his strike team assembled around him. Kelvin, Grimnir, and Urgot checked their weapons one final time. Freda had her spell components organized in easily-accessible pouches on her belt. Shadow was a silent presence, somehow even less visible now that night had fallen.

Behind them, Chief Krrax and his one hundred and seventeen warriors prepared for their own assault. The chief had organized them into strike teams, each assigned to attack a different serpent camp simultaneously. It was a desperate plan, requiring perfect timing and more than a little luck.

"Any last questions?" Satou asked his team.

Urgot raised his hand hesitantly. "Lord Satou... what if we encounter enemies we can't handle? What if King Vexor is stronger than we anticipated?"

It was a fair question, and Satou appreciated that the young orc was thinking tactically rather than just rushing in with blind confidence.

"Then I handle it personally," Satou said simply. "Your job is to eliminate the elite guard and any other high-priority targets. My job is King Vexor himself. Trust that I can handle whatever he throws at me."

The absolute confidence in his voice seemed to reassure not just Urgot but everyone in the strike team. Even Shadow's mysterious presence seemed to radiate a slight approval at the statement.

"Move out," Satou commanded.

They left the caverns under cover of darkness, moving silently through terrain they'd scouted during daylight hours. The enhanced serpent warriors' superior vision could detect movement, but Shadow led them through a route that maximized concealment—using every boulder, every depression in the ground, every shadow cast by the twin moons above.

They encountered two patrols on the approach, but both times Shadow's timing was perfect. They passed within meters of the enemy without being detected, the corrupted warriors continuing their mindless patrols completely unaware that death moved past them in the darkness.

Finally, they reached the ravine Shadow had identified—a natural feature of the landscape that provided a concealed approach to the western edge of the serpent encampment.

"This is it," Shadow whispered, their magically-altered voice barely audible even at close range. "The blind spot opens in... three minutes. We move fast, stay low, and whatever happens, do not engage any enemies until we reach the command tent. Understood?"

Everyone nodded.

Satou activated [Nightmare Sight], the skill allowing him to see the intentions and projected actions of nearby beings. The serpent encampment lit up in his enhanced perception—dozens of figures moving with mindless purpose, their intentions simple and direct. Patrol. Guard. Kill intruders. No complex thoughts, no strategic planning, just programmed behaviors.

But at the center of the camp, inside the large command tent, he could sense something different. Multiple presences with actual intelligence, actual intent. King Vexor and his elite guard.

"Target acquired," Satou murmured. "Center tent, seven hostile intentions detected. One significantly stronger than the others."

"That'll be Vexor," Grimnir confirmed. "The other six are probably his Crimson Scales."

Shadow held up a hand, counting down silently. Five fingers. Four. Three. Two. One.

"Move."

They exploded out of the ravine like specters of death, their supernatural speed carrying them across the open ground before any of the patrolling guards could react. The four-minute window Shadow had identified was just barely enough—they crossed fifty meters of exposed terrain, slipped between two guard positions, and reached the back of the command tent with seconds to spare.

Satou's blade materialized in his hand—the demonic weapon responding to his will, its edge gleaming with dark energy. [Void Fang] activated, wrapping the blade in existence-erasing power.

He didn't knock. Didn't announce himself. Didn't give any warning.

He simply cut through the tent's wall and stepped inside, his strike team flowing in behind him like a dark tide.

The interior of the command tent was surprisingly luxurious considering this was a war camp. Rich carpets covered the ground. Magical lights provided illumination. A large table dominated the center, covered in maps and tactical markers.

And around that table stood exactly seven figures.

King Vexor was unmistakable. He was massive even by serpent-folk standards—at least eight feet tall with a body that was more snake than humanoid from the waist down. His scales were deep crimson, almost black in the dim lighting, and his eyes... his eyes were completely wrong. They glowed with sickly green light, and there was something fundamentally corrupted about his presence. Dark magic radiated from him like heat from a forge.

Six more serpent warriors surrounded him—the Crimson Scales, his elite guard. Each one was nearly as large as their king, their scales bearing intricate scarification patterns that marked them as the tribe's finest warriors. They wore no armor, their natural scales apparently considered sufficient protection.

For a single frozen moment, everyone in the tent simply stared at each other.

Then Vexor's corrupted eyes focused on Satou, and a hideous smile spread across his reptilian face. When he spoke, his voice was wrong—multiple tones layered over each other, as if several beings were speaking in unison.

"Well, well. An assassin bold enough to enter my presence. Or foolish enough. Tell me, little demon—did you really think you could kill a king in his own camp?"

"I don't think," Satou replied, his voice arctic cold. "I know. Because you're already dead. You just don't realize it yet."

Then everything exploded into violence.

Satou moved first, [Shadow Step] closing the distance to Vexor in an instant. His blade, wrapped in [Void Fang]'s existence-erasing energy, came down in a vertical slash aimed at the serpent king's neck.

But Vexor was fast—far faster than any normal being should be. The king twisted aside with supernatural speed, and Satou's blade missed by inches. A clawed hand, wreathed in the same sickly green energy that burned in Vexor's eyes, lashed out toward Satou's torso.

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