Chapter 13: Flag War (2)
"Hic..!"
I approached the blade, took it from the ground, and with all the strength I had, I applied pressure to shatter the blade in half. This didn't prove difficult, as the blade was rusty and snapped into two pieces.
Ilex fixated her eyes on the broken blade without moving or making any sounds. She was initially confused, but now her face showed a subtle sign of relief. Her fear slowly faded away, though her cautious eyes were still studying me.
"See. It's all good. I am not interested in sealing you at all."
"This still doesn't explain your unreasonable knowledge of me, though."
"You don't have to worry about that. I won't tell anyone about you as long as you are willing to help me a little."
By now, she must have realized that she couldn't get out of this situation. She could only choose to comply with my request, or her whereabouts and freedom were technically in danger.
'She is going to be my plan B.'
"Fine. What do you want exactly?"
"Nothing much. I just need you to protect me tomorrow if I ever get attacked during the flag war. I suspect someone is going to try to kill me."
Hearing my request, she was taken aback as she looked at me with doubtful eyes. She was rightfully surprised at such a request since the camp was supposed to be the safest place for a demigod.
"P-Protect you? From who?"
"I don't know who will attack me either. But I know the one coming after me will be a demigod from the camp."
"What? Why would a fellow demigod try to kill another demigod?"
"You will see why tomorrow."
I smirked at her clueless face.
"But-"
"Anyway, our conversation is over. I need to return to my cabin now."
"Haa... Okay. But don't expect anything. Dryads are not good at fighting."
I turned away with a wave of my hand, bidding farewell as the impending dawn cast its first tendrils of light upon the horizon. I could hear a sigh of relief escape her lips, her tension dissipating like morning mist beneath the sun's gentle rays.
Without uttering a word, I listened to her throwing a tantrum at the absurdity of the events that occurred just over a night. I left the vicinity and returned to my cabin.
***
As I made my way towards the designated meeting spot for the Flag War, nestled within the embrace of the woodland surrounding the camp, my path intersected with the main cast who were also heading in that direction.
'At least they have become close friends, just like in the novel...'
Upon finally reaching the appointed gathering point as per Chiron's instructions, a cluster of demigods encircled a solitary figure perched upon a raised platform, commanding attention amidst the crowd.
'Kai Yellen'
Before us stood a figure whose fiery red hair blazed like a blacksmithing fire, with dark brown eyes. Although his stature was shorter than mine, he was 18 years old, exuding an air of authority befitting his seniority. He had come here around the same time Grace Elsher did. Over the years, he had become a leading figure in the camp and was an important side character in the novel as he helped Adriel many times.
His lineage traced back to Hephaestus, the master craftsman, the god of blacksmiths and artisans. He was carrying a big war hammer on his back, whose intended purpose was reserved for forging and crafting in the blacksmith.
He was the leader of this team in Flag War, while Grace was the leader of the other team.
"Okay... It seems like everyone is here. I assume everyone knows how flag war works by now."
He scanned the people before him and his eyes paused on a few individuals. They were the newcomers. Silence preserved itself as no one objected to his assumption.
"Good. Then we will quickly go over our strategy one more time..."
"We will divide our team into 3 groups: Scouting, defense, and aggression. When the war starts, the scouting team will be dispatched into the forest to get information about the whereabouts of the enemy troops. Using the information gathered by the scouting group, the attack group will make a plan to capture the opponent team's flag and bring it to our base. The defense group will always be on alert around our flag to prevent our opponents from stealing it."
"If faced with an unexpected situation, you have the right to move on your own accord and ignore your role. That's all, you can take your places, and the match will start as soon as the horn is blown."
The crowd dispersed around the area, and everybody took their places except me and the main cast. Kai came down to assign our roles to us.
"I still don't know your skills enough to give you a specific role. So I will let you choose your own group for now."
As if waiting for this opportunity, Eleanor and Adriel both yelled out at the same time.
"I want to join the aggression group!"
"Hmm... I guess that's fine considering you have already hunted down a minotaur. What about you, then?"
He turned to Amelia, who was hesitating to choose which group to join. If she were alone, she would join the defense group without thinking twice, but she didn't want to separate from her only two friends, so she unwillingly decided to join the aggression group as well.
"I will be a part of the aggression group as well..."
"Yep."
When it was my turn to select my group, everyone looked at me. There were glints of skepticism in Kai's eyes.
"I will also join the aggression group."
"Hmm... Well, I guess you can."
'At least try to pretend to be welcoming. This guy... Sigh...'
"Anyway, I need to join up with the scouting group. The aggression group is positioned right over there. Good luck!"
Kai left the scene, running to catch up with his group, leaving us alone. Adriel broke the silence as he expressed his worry for Amelia.
"Amelia, if you don't feel comfortable being in the aggression group, you can change it. You don't need to force yourself."
"Thank you for your concern but I really am alright. Let's just meet up with the aggression group before the match begins."
"If you say so..."
We caught up to the aggression team who were hiding up in the cover of the thick branches and leaves. We also took our positions among them and patiently waited.
*Hoooonk!*
With that, the Flag War officially began.
'I need to stick with the main cast during this event.'
During the chaos of the flag war, the main cast was supposed to get ambushed by a group of demigods from the opposing team. However, this ambush wasn't a part of the Flag War but an extension of a wretched plan. The goal was to eliminate the next powerhouses before they could get strong. What I mean by powerhouses were, of course, the children of the Big Three.
But it didn't make any sense why would a demigod try to destroy the future pillars of the camp as well as the Olympus.
'Not if they were traitors that worked for the enemy of Olympus.'
The current main conflict in this world originated from Greek mythology. On one side, there were the Olympus gods and demigods; on the other side, there were the Titans, which were led by the strongest titan, Kronos, god of time.
The hatred between Titans and Olympus had arisen when the Kronos, out of fear that he would be dethroned by his own children, began swallowing his own children. But one day, Rhea, Kronos' wife, tricked Kronos into eating stone, saving her son Zeus. Zeus eventually joined forces with his brothers Poseidon and Hades and defeated Kronos, claiming the throne of Olympus. Till now, titans were silent as they were banished, sealed away in the depths of Tartarus, a prison deep inside the underworld.
However, the Titans were finally regaining power and preparing to break out of Tartarus. Right now, no one was aware of this since they were making moves in silence. Kronos wanted to retrieve the throne he once owned. However, Kronos couldn't influence the overworld from the depths of Tartarus. So he came up with a plan to get him out of Tartarus once and for all. His plan was to manipulate demigods into switching sides.
Most demigods weren't mentally stable after being thrown into a world full of monsters and supernatural beings at the age of sixteen. Moreover, they had lived their lives accepting that one of their parents was gone. But they eventually came to realize it was all a huge lie, and their godparents just didn't care enough about them to show themselves until they reached the camp. Even then, most demigods almost never got into touch with their godparents directly.
The frustration and desperation they accumulated throughout their lives gradually turned into resentment towards their godparents, who bestowed this cruel fate on their own children. Lackeys of Kronos that wandered the overworld took advantage of demigods' vulnerable mental health and manipulated them by exploiting the resentment demigods felt against them.
Kronos' lackeys deceived demigods into turning their backs on Olympus and helping Kronos revive from the depths of Tartarus. In return, demigods were lied to believing their wishes would be granted once Kronos seized the throne.
The deceived demigods, or rather the traitors that would attack the main cast, were also ordered by one of the lackeys of the Kronos.
I only had one worry. In the novel, the traitors specifically focus on Eleanor and Adriel, not on Amelia. This meant they were after the Big Three's children, which, unfortunately, I was included in.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Smle_v2
Smle_v2 Just posted visual representations of the characters! You can check it out in Auxiliary Volume.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone