Is this really a Game?!

The Shadow Serpents' leaders reluctantly nodded in agreement with their head's assessment. The atmosphere was filled with a mix of frustration and determination as they realized the gravity of the situation. They could not afford to underestimate their new adversary.

"What about the lords, have they … said anything?" One of the leaders asked while the man at the head of the table sighed.

"They will not be helping us, this is a mission given to us to complete by ourselves, no help will be given, no matter what happens."

"Even if more of us die?" Another leader asked, his face showing slight frustration.

"We have all been turned by the lords, compared to the others in our faction, we are of course much more valuable to them, if any of us were to fall in battle, they would definitely do something about it, but it is up to us to make sure we do not die."

"That is how it has always been, the lords do not care what happens to us if we do not show that we are capable, which means we have to make sure to complete the task given to us if we wish to continue getting support from them."

"We let go of our humanity, joined the lords in order to grow stronger, and now, we are merely treated as some side pieces that can be discarded at will, I do not like that." A third person said, his face suddenly changing as the man at the head of the table stared at him with anger.

"I will ignore your comment this time, but if you dare say such a thing in the future, then I will personally take your head and deliver it to the lords in order to show our loyalty."

"Am I understood?"

"Y-yes." The man said with a slight stutter as the pressure coming from the man at the head of the table was overwhelming to him.

The tension in the room was palpable, but the leaders of the Shadow Serpents knew they had to maintain their composure and unity. Any sign of discord would be disastrous in the face of such a formidable enemy, not to mention the fact the lords they serve were even a bigger threat if they dared show disloyalty.

"We will increase our defenses and gather more intelligence on this new faction," the head continued. "Our scouts and spies will report any movements or changes, we must be vigilant."

As the leaders discussed their strategies, Reign and his team were already planning their next move. Back at Amelia's faction's base, they gathered to analyze the results of their recent attacks and to prepare for future operations.

"We've dealt a significant blow to the Shadow Serpents," Reign said, looking around at his team and Amelia's leaders. "But we can't let up now, we need to keep them on the defensive and prevent them from regrouping."

Amelia nodded in agreement. "Our recent success has given us momentum, but we need to maintain it."

"We should continue targeting their supply lines and smaller bases, but we also need to gather more intelligence on their main operations."

Shadow, who had been listening intently, spoke up. "I've been thinking about how we can gather more information without putting ourselves at too much risk."

"We could plant some of our own people inside their ranks as spies, it's a risky move, but it could pay off."

"The normal members of the serpent are not vamps, but regular humans like us, that is definitely something that we can do, hell, some other factions have already done so." Amelia said before frowning.

"The only problem is that only those who are higher ranked in the faction are aware of what is going on, we would need to send some strong people inside and have them spy on the enemy without being noticed."

"That's a good idea," Mia said. "If we can get accurate intel from within, it would give us a significant advantage."

Beast considered their options. "We'll need volunteers for this mission—people who can blend in and gather information without arousing suspicion."

"It will be dangerous, but it's a risk we might need to take."

Several members of Amelia's faction stepped forward, their expressions determined. "We'll do it," one of them said. "We've all lost friends and family to the Shadow Serpents, if this can help bring them down, we're willing to take the risk."

"No, it is too risky." Reign suddenly said, his face showing that he was not willing to do that.

"If the enemy has anything similar to what I have, they might be able to notice the hostility you have towards them, or they might even be able to learn that you were a part of Amelia's faction."

"They could then feed you fake information, which will further prove that you are spies, and make things more difficult for us, so that won't be a good idea, not right now."

The room fell silent as everyone considered Reign's words. He was right; sending in spies was fraught with danger and could backfire spectacularly if they were discovered.

"So, what do we do instead?" Amelia asked, her brow furrowed with concern.

Reign took a deep breath, his mind racing through alternative strategies. "We need to rely on our strengths and the element of surprise. Instead of planting spies, we should use our mobility and agility to hit multiple targets quickly, forcing them to constantly react."

"Hit-and-run tactics," Wolf said, nodding. "We keep them on their toes, never giving them a chance to regroup or retaliate effectively."

"We have already done what we wanted to do at first, make them wary of us, make us a mystery to them and how powerful we are." Reign said with a smirk before glancing at the others.

"We won't need to act the same way again, this time, we can attack with smaller numbers, we can even allow the enemy to sound the alarm or even send back some information to their main base, it won't matter as we will all be wearing disguises."

"We can also lay traps," Mia suggested. "Ambush their patrols and convoys, make every movement they take a risk."

Shadow agreed. "We need to gather information through direct confrontation, interrogate captured enemies, and use their knowledge to plan our next moves."

Reign nodded, satisfied with the revised plan. "Alright, let's prepare for our next series of attacks, we need to keep up the pressure and gather as much intel as we can."

"Amelia, can your people handle setting up traps and ambushes?"

"Absolutely," Amelia replied. "We'll coordinate with your team and make sure every move we make hits them hard."

"How long will we need to wait for Aethion to complete his 'interrogation'?" Wolf asked Reign in a low voice as the latter smiled.

"A couple of hours, we will then know more, if those two even knew more of their own faction."

When they had taken down the outposts and killed the two Tier VI combatants present in two of them, Reign had, of course, taken their souls and given them to Aethion to interrogate them.

Because they were Tier VI combatants, they were a bit more difficult to break, so it would take Aethion some time, but he would definitely get the information they wanted.

The next few days were a whirlwind of activity. Reign and his team launched a series of coordinated attacks on the Shadow Serpents' supply lines and smaller bases. They moved swiftly and struck with precision, leaving destruction in their wake. The Shadow Serpents found themselves constantly on the defensive, unable to predict where the next strike would come from.

During one of the raids, they managed to capture a high-ranking member of the Shadow Serpents, another Tier VI combatant.

The ones they had killed before proved to be useless as even after interrogating them, Aethion barely gained any important info.

It seemed that only a select few were in the know of their plans and what was going on, even if one became a Tier VI combatant, they were not given a lot more info without first proving themselves absolutely loyal to the vampires.

The high-ranking member was bound and brought back to Amelia's base for questioning. Reign and his team gathered around, ready to extract any information they could from their captive.

Aethion's interrogation methods were both thorough and effective, and this time, Reign hoped they would get the answers they needed, but even if they didn't, the captured combatant would be important to them as he had a plan.

He would use him, while he was still alive, to instill fear into the hearts of the enemy combatants, making them shudder at the very thought of fighting against them.

The captured Tier VI combatant glared defiantly at Reign and the others. "You think you can break me?"

"You're wasting your time."

Reign stepped forward, his eyes cold and unwavering. "We don't have time for games."

"Tell us what you know about the Shadow Serpents' plans."

The combatant spat on the ground, refusing to speak. Reign sighed before turning to Aethion, who nodded and began his work. The room fell silent as Aethion's presence filled the space, his probing reaching into the very soul of their captive.