The room grew tense as everyone sidered the items they could buy. Lois stood at the head of the table, looking at each el as if encing them to speak first. After a moment, el Edward cleared his throat.

  “We should focus on defensive buffs first,” he began firmly. “The [Reinforced Armor] and [Elemental Armor] buffs are very good. Boosting both physical and elemental defenses will increase our troops' durability ahem endure longer in bat. It’ll cut down on casualties and buy us crucial time tize and adapt to their debuffs during battle.”

  Lois shook her head, her eyes narrowing. “Sure, they’re good for defense, but they’re not worth the cost. Remember, those buffs only add 20% to physical defense and 30% to elemental resistance. With the enemy’s power and tactics, that increase might buy us ara few minutes, but it won’t turides of battle... They'll have much more buffs on their sides”

  Oliver leaned forward. “What about [Crowd trol Immunity]? If our troops ’t be stunned or held down, they keep pressing forward and wear down the enemy. It's game-ging!”

  Lois looked at him, stunned. “Yes, [Crowd trol Immunity] would prevent stuns and holds, but it costs 100,000 points, Oliver. Did you evehe prices before suggesting something? We have 33,370 points! Are you trolling?” el iled at Lois' expression before suggesting. “Why wouldn't we heavily i in our best pyers and make them one-man armies? Let's say we buy [Crowd trol Immunity Tokens], [Damage Immunity Tokens], and all individual buffs in bulk to arm the stro 10 pyers ahem to sughter the enemies. I'm fident we wipe them out quickly with Ralph, Asami, and Aang's might and protect our troops with elites like Kara.”

  Lois gave a frustrated sigh. “I ’t say I don’t like the idea; it would probably give us the best ce of winning… But I’m afraid all our remaining troops would be sughtered just as fast. The whole division tributed to these points, and we ’t just sacrifice them. And I doubt a few pyers protect thousands of pyers for long” el Aang responded with his own suggestion. “Then maybe we o i in [Mana Waste] to cripple them. If the Dark Elves are forced to spend more mana, they’ll run out faster, weakening their attacks over time. We’d be leveling the pying field by draining their resources.”

  Lois nodded, “I like the idea. [Mana Waste] would hurt them a lot. It’s the best item we afford, and I feel like it’s really worth the price. , However, we’d be spending 30,000 points oem... It would leave us with o nothing for ame-ging options. We only have a little over thirty-three thousand points after all.” "And think about it," she tinued, "they’ll likely spend their points on [Mana Waste] and add five levels of [Suppression]… dropping our max level from 80 to 75. If I were them, that’s exactly what I’d do with this many points…”

  The tension rose in the room at the idea of losing five levels during the main battle. Pyers above 90 and 100, like them, were all limited to level 8 the war, and losing even more levels would make a dent in their power.

  "One of the strategies I'm sidering that would give us the maximum ce to win the war is... bining Aang and Cero's ideas. We’d i on Captain Ralph, General Asami, and Aang for destru, and criple the enemies with [Mana Waste] as el Aang suggested. However, the points left after buying that buff would be minimal."

  el Oliver raised an eyebrow. “You’re pnning to sink nearly all of our points into one debuff? That’s too risky. We’ll be left with almost nothing for buffs.”

  Lois tered, “We o hit them with the harshest penalty we afford. Without a debuff like [Mana Waste], they’ll obliterate us.”

  Asami, listening ily, added, “If we disrupt their casting and focus on our top fighters, we’ll make the most of the remaining 3370 points.” Lois sed the list o time, then turo Sora. “If we go with this, I need your opinion, Ralph. Do you think you hahe responsibility of crushing them with the support of [Mana Waste]? General Asami and el Aang are our other powerhouses, but I know what they need.”

  Sora replied fidently, “If you wa my best, I’ll need [5 Level Up Tokens] and a few [Crowd trol Immunity Tokens]. With these, I maximize my strength.”

  Lois blinked, surprised. “I’d almost fotten you’re not even level 80 yet… You were barely level 70 when you joihe war, and you were like a God of war otlefield. But if you reach level 80…”

  The surrounding croed at the thought of this overpowered Captain harvesting the lives of their enemies.

  With a final nod of agreement from Asami, Lois locked in their purchases. “It’s settled the’s make sure the Dark Elves are as outmatched as we make them. Every point will be ied in Ralph Eden, Asami Hito and Aang Li. Ralph will be our Ace, allowed to do whatever he to make the most value of his Skill kit. As for the rest of us, we ot pin as we have 3 moaking the pressure from us and 30,000 spent on making sure we're not sending 5000 pyers to their deaths.!"

  Asami then addressed the room, her voiwavering. "Lastly, a warning: we’re not buying the [White Fg]. I want that 5% power bonus because I trust our ces of victory, and I io push them even further. This choice will reduce casualties on our side. Do you uand?"

  The room fell silent after Asami’s decration, the gravity of her words sinking in. Faces reflected a mix of determination and ay, everyone knowing that the deade here would impact their very survival.

  el Oliver was the first to break the silence. “Alright, so if we’re sinking most of our points into Ralph, Asami, and Aang, we o make sure the rest of us are fully prepared to support them. This means every effoes into stalling and surviving—no holding back.”

  el Aang crossed his arms and said “I still have my reservations about this. If the Dark Elves adapt faster than expected or have bought termeasures, we’ll be left outnumbered, without eveion to retreat. That said…” he cracked his knuckles, a dangerous glint in his eyes, “I’ll make sure I take down as many of them as possible.”

  Looking at Lois and Asami, Sora added “I’ll do whatever it takes. You t ooday. But I have one request.”

  Lois raised an eyebrow, intrigued. “And what’s that?”

  Sora’s expression turned solemn. “Please get Kara one of those [Revival Tokens]. I ’t guarantee I’ll be able to watch her back every sed, and I won’t risk losing her.”

  Kara looked stunned, her expression quickly shifting to anger as she shot Sora a sharp gre. “I don’t need one, Ralph! I’m strohan most of the enemies! We’ll win, and I’ll survive without an-—”

  Asami pced a hand on Kara’s shoulder, sileng her, and Sora, making a note. “sider it done. Vice-Captain Kara will receive a [Revival Token]. She’s one of the most talented pyers in this war and has more than ear with her wins. Now, everyone, get your troops ready. Prepare for [Mana Waste]; it’s likely the debuff they’ll i i’s be ready.”

  The els exged uneasy gnces, each mentally steeling themselves for the fight ahead. They had battled side by side tless times, but never with stakes this high.

  With those final words, the group dispersed, each determio fulfill their role in the uping battle. The air felt heavy with resolve as they prepared to meet the enemy head-on, fully aware that every deade today would ripple through the war’s endgame.

  Shortly after, Sora, Kara, Aang, and the other selected pyers gathered their items a off to ready their battalions and panies.

  S his iory, noting the items with a mix of gratitude and pressure.

  5 x [Level Up Token], 3 x [Crowd trol Immunity Token], 1 x [Damage Immunity Token].

  'They really ied heavily in me…' he thought, eyeing the small but powerful stack of tokens in his hand.

  Lois had suggested a stash of [Mana Refill] items, which cost a mere 10 points each, but when she offered oo him, Sora deed. She had stocked up on them, distributing the items among the elite pyers. In this battle, those small boosts could make all the differenbsp;Then, a notification fshed across everyone’s vision.

  [Everyone who has been notified, advao the field number prepared for you, and fight.]The final battle on them, and each soldier braced themselves.

  Sora took his pce beside an angry Kara and Richard. Ahead, Oliver, the other els, and Asami stood at the front liheir faces set aermined. Across the field, the enemy army mirrored their formation, standing resolute and ready.

  Silence filled the space betweewo forces. Only the distant k of ons against armor and a few unsteady breaths disturbed the silence, each soldier feeling the immense weight of what y ahead. The tension was thick, pressing down on everyone as the field y waiting for the iable csh.

  Asami stepped forward, her voice calm yet filled with vi. "I may not be from these nds, and I didn’t grow up here. To most of you, I might even be a stranger."

  "Yet, from the moment I first set foot on this soil, I fell in love—with the snow c these ndscapes, the fierce brillian your eyes, and, yes, even the beauty of your men."

  She had a warm smile on her face. "I came here alone, on a simple mission. But with every step, I found friends, rades who fought by my side."

  She paused, letting her gaze sweep over the faces before her, touched with memories aions.

  "I watched every fight you entered, always rooting for you. It feels natural now, seeing you all here."

  Her expression grew serious, her tone heavy with meaning. "Today, we stand on the edge of everything we love, and it hurts to know we’re risking it all on this otle."

  "We were given the opportunity to forfeit and save everyone here from death in case things went south."

  Her eyes shoh fierce determination. "Make humanity proud. Do not yield. Do not give up. Fight to the death!"

  mimou