Is this really a Game?!

The first thing present in Reign's mind upon opening his eyes and seeing the weapons aimed at them was not the weapons themselves, nor the powerful array that placed immense pressure on them, causing them to feel as if they were all carrying hundreds of kilograms of weight on their shoulders.

The first thing he noticed was the eyes.

Every single person present was staring at them with, at first, serious and deadly expressions, their eyes showing their determination to kill in an instant, only for those expressions to change. Their eyes widened, their mouths opened, and some of them even dropped their weapons in shock.

"Boss?"

A man, a powerful Tier VI combatant who was a late-grade Tier VI fighter, asked, his hands shaking slightly as he stared at them all with a shocked expression.

"It's him?"

"It is, that … it's sir Wolf, and Shadow, and … and … they're all here!"

Murmurs started growing into shouts, akin to a cascade of rocks as the people around them stared with incredulous eyes, some even tearing up upon seeing Reign and the others. More and more people arrived, some getting out of the houses and apartments around them, some appearing out of thin air, teleporting, while others ran, their speed allowing them to cross large distances with ease.

Reign and the others were at first confused at the sight. Why were the people so on guard at first, only to suddenly break into such an emotional outburst? Second to that, Reign and the others were confused at the strength of the people around them.

Some of them they recognized, but there were plenty of people whom they didn't, and more were coming.

"Make way, make way for Captain Neil!"

"Ah, Captain Elijah is here too!"

"Captain Cameron!"

Reign and the others quickly stared at the figures who had appeared now, their faces betraying the shock they all felt.

Neil, Elijah, Ashley, Cameron, Lea, Leah, Faramis, Amelia, and many more people whom they knew very well arrived, but something … something made the entire situation alarming to Reign and the others.

"How … how long were we gone?" Reign asked, his voice tense, as was his body, as he stared at Elijah, who had grown taller, stronger, and looked a bit older than before.

Elijah and the others didn't respond.

Elijah stared at them, his breath halted, his fists clenched, while his hands were curling in fists before relaxing. Tears welled up in his eyes as he gulped and took a deep breath.

"It … is good to see you again … truly … it's so good to see you."

Elijah was barely able to suppress his emotions in front of Reign and the others, his shoulders shaking, his knees almost buckling, and the others weren't that far off in terms of emotions.

"Elijah." Reign said, his voice low as he stepped forward, placing his hand on Elijah's shoulder.

"Yeah, we're back." Reign said, his emotions running wild, as were the emotions of the others.

How could they not?

They left for the challenge, and upon returning, found the people in their territory had become different, their closest comrades had changed as well, some more, some less.

And most importantly, the one thing that made it clear that not an insignificant amount of time had passed, was the fact that Neil, Cameron, Ashley, Elijah, as well as several others were all Tier VII combatants, just as they were.

"We waited … we knew that you would come back, that we just had to endure, to grow stronger, to … to finally be the ones who have to protect Doncaster by ourselves, to no longer rely just on you and be burdens."

"We tried … we really, really tried … and gave it our best." Elijah said, his tears nearly falling on the ground, shocking several people who had only arrived in Doncaster after Reign and the others had left for their challenges.

For them, the exploits of Reign and the others were legends and myths of the territory, after all, even though it was clear that the group was immensely powerful, some of the things they heard were simply too much.

Even if they were the 'Heaven's Hooligans' who ranked first in the rankings, even if they were immensely powerful … some of the things were simply too much.

It was Neil, Elijah, Cameroon, and several others who were the true leaders and powerhouses in their minds. They were the ones who held down the fort during their absence, the ones who rose up to lead everybody and keep them safe.

Their strengths spoke for themselves, their exploits even more, and yet, the powerful people they all followed, the ones who never wavered, never bent, never broke, were barely keeping it together in front of the newly arrived group.

"Just how long were we gone?" Shadow asked, his voice shaky as he stared at the people around them, as well as the buildings, most of which had changed.

"You were gone for 7 months." A cold voice suddenly cut through the tension as Shadow's mother arrived, taking calm steps toward her son and husband.

Reign and the others felt a chill pass through them.

7 months.

They were gone for a total of 7 months.

The words hung in the air like a guillotine's blade.

Seven months.

Reign's grip on Elijah's shoulder tightened unconsciously, his knuckles whitening. Shadow's breath hitched, his usual smirk gone, replaced by something raw and unguarded. Laura's demonic energy flickered briefly, betraying her shock. Even Wolf, ever unshaken, stood frozen, his eyes shaking, akin to flames guttering out like a candle in a storm.

Seven months.

They had expected time to pass—hell, they'd braced for it after the first trial stretched longer than anticipated. But seven months?

The city around them suddenly felt foreign. The buildings were taller, the streets wider, the mana signatures denser. The people—some familiar, many not—stared at them with a mix of reverence and disbelief.

And their friends…

Neil and Cameroon, whose previous serious demeanor and air of leadership had disappeared ever since they joined under the leadership of Reign and the others, were now different, both carrying themselves with an air of quiet authority. Elijah, who was still a boy in the eyes of Reign and the others before they left, was now truly grown, his words carrying great weight in Doncaster.

Even Ashley had changed, her demeanor different, no longer the kid that had first joined them.

Faramis and Amelia, who were both leaders of their own forces that had allied with them, were present, and from how things looked like, it seemed they had integrated themselves in the territory as well, which meant that their own bases might have very well fallen in the 7 months.

Everybody had changed.

And Doncaster had changed with them.

"You're telling me," Reign said slowly, his voice dangerously calm, "that we've been gone for half a year?"

Shadow's mother didn't flinch; she merely stared at him with great calmness. Her ice-blue eyes remained steady, though the slightest tremor in her fingers betrayed her. "Seven months and four days, to be precise."

A beat of silence. Then—

"Bullshit." Shadow's voice was a whip-crack. "The trials didn't feel that long. A few weeks, maybe. Not—" He cut himself off, jaw clenching

"Time dilation, just like we feared," Laura murmured, her mind racing. "What felt like days for us…"

"Was months here," Tank finished, his deep voice grim.

Reign exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. The implications crashed over him like a tidal wave. Seven months of battles, of politics, of their people fighting without them. Seven months of the world moving on while they were trapped in the system's gauntlet.

"What happened?" he asked, his voice low. "While we were gone."

The crowd shifted uneasily. Neil stepped forward, his armor—new, Reign noted, etched with runes he didn't recognize—clinking softly.

"War," Neil said simply.

"The Serpent and the vampires?"

"Stronger than ever, but even then, they are not the most dangerous foe," Elijah said, prompting Reign and the others to stare in shock.

"New York had changed greatly while you were gone. Many factions fought against one another, and the vampires were the top one, claiming more and more of the city, driving out both me and Faramis. We barely managed to escape our bases and come here for shelter." Amelia said, her eyes flickering, her hands clenched into fists, her nails digging into the flesh from anger.

"But then, another faction arrived, from outside."

"They came suddenly, about 2 months ago, and to be honest, we were thankful for it at first, after all, we were losing the war against those bastards, we were barely managing to hold on against them," Elijah said, his voice shaking.

"We lost many people, good people, talented, strong, smart."

"But we also gained many, some came to us by themselves, joining us in order to survive or defeat the enemy, while others first allied with us, and then joined, either because they decided that was the best course of action, or because they had to."

"But yeah, ever since you guys left, almost 2 weeks after the fact, we have been in war."