I Don't Need To Log Out-Chapter 293: The War

The scenery shifted around Arlon and June, and in the next instant, they found themselves at the entrance of the Citadel in Kelta.

But just as they were about to step forward, something shot toward them at incredible speed.

Arlon's eyes caught it instantly. Without hesitation, he stepped in front of June and raised his hand, catching the incoming blur with ease.

It stopped midair.

What stood before them now was not an enemy—but Zephyrion, the fearsome-looking Tiger Beastman.

Updat𝓮d from freewēbnoveℓ.com.

His eyes narrowed as he studied the pair. Then, recognition flashed across his face.

"Arlon?" he said, lowering his hand.

"Long time no see, Lord Zephyrion," Arlon replied, calm but alert.

He couldn't deny the satisfaction of having stopped Zephyrion's attack so cleanly. It was a small sign of how far he'd come.

But still—why had Zephyrion attacked them in the first place?

***

A few minutes earlier, in Zephyrion's office.

Zephyrion was seated at his large stone desk, flipping through stacks of reports alongside Ben, who handled the paperwork with his usual quiet efficiency.

In the meantime, Lady Rael was petting Nyx, the golden-eyed dragon with dark purple scales and pink hues, on her lap.

She was much bigger than she was when Arlon left. But she was still small enough to fit Lady Rael's lap.

Lady Rael's job as a seer didn't require her attention every moment, so she spent most of her time in this office, quietly observing or reading.

Zephyrion never minded her presence. In fact, he welcomed it.

She never interrupted him, and just having her there—especially with Nyx curled up next to her—helped him focus better.

Their wedding had only been a few weeks ago.

There had been plenty of protest from certain circles—people who thought they had a say in Zephyrion's personal life—but none of it mattered.

They'd overcome it all, and with the war looming so heavily over Trion, those voices had quickly been drowned out.

Not that Zephyrion wouldn't have preferred dealing with more political nonsense over the current reality.

"Should we offer an incentive for the battle in this city?" Ben asked, scanning the latest front reports.

Zephyrion shook his head. "No. If we offer rewards here, we'll pull saviors away from the other fronts.

They'll flock here for easy gains and leave the rest exposed. Instead, we should clear out more leveling zones—give them places to grow stronger without affecting the balance."

Zephyrion needed to think ahead. He knew Arlon was training now. And the help they received from the Gamers was really good.

But the fight wasn't even close to being over.

Ben frowned. "They might just use the zones to level and ignore the frontlines."

He didn't trust all the saviors.

Of course, he had nothing against humans specifically. He was even close with some of the saviors, those who trained in Kelta.

But the saviors had proven again and again that they were unpredictable.

Zephyrion sighed, leaning back slightly. "Probably. But we can't force them to fight in our war. They're not soldiers bound to this world, even if we need them."

There was a brief silence before Ben turned to Rael. "Lady Rael, have you seen anything? Will Lady Birna be able to uncover more of that mineral Arlon mentioned? The Aensite?"

The mineral had appeared after the Keldars began invading Trion. It was rare—almost nonexistent—until a few samples were uncovered by anti-savior factions.

Arlon had managed to retrieve one from Osgar the dwarf in Esia and handed it over to Zephyrion, but it had been far too small to forge a weapon with.

Still, the mere existence of Aensite was a breakthrough. It was the only known substance capable of killing the beings that came with Zeno.

The meaning of this was beyond comprehension for them.

Zeno was created by EVR, the strongest existence.

Of course, there were existences stronger than Zeno, but a material?

Still, it was something that Trion needed... a lot.

So, the government looked into it but couldn't find any.

They couldn't force anti-saviors into telling them more since it would backfire since they weren't bad.

That was except for the headquarters.

Their last hope was, once again, given by Arlon.

Thanks to his information, they could legally swoop down the headquarters and, while doing so, learn more about the mineral.

But...

"I'm afraid I have no vision about that," Lady Rael replied softly, her hand pausing briefly over Nyx's scaled head. "Not the mineral, nor the outcome of the Magus Council's raid. Something is obscuring the threads."

That answer left the room quiet for a moment longer. There was nothing more they could do now but wait.

And then it happened.

Zephyrion froze mid-motion. His hand hovered above the papers, and a cold drop of sweat trailed down the back of his neck.

He had felt it.

A pressure. A presence. Something so overwhelming that his instincts screamed louder than his reason.

Something stronger than himself had just appeared inside the city.

Before he could even process the feeling, he leapt over the desk and sprinted to the elevator shaft, bypassing it entirely as he jumped down through the open center.

Without hesitation, he launched a full-strength strike at the intruder.

There was no time to confirm.

No one—no one—should have been able to appear out of nowhere like that.

Or so he thought.

Because standing right in front of him, having caught his full-force strike with one hand, was the last person he expected.

Arlon.

"This can't be..." Zephyrion muttered, his eyes narrowing. "Arlon?"

He stared in disbelief, trying to make sense of what he was seeing.

How?

How could he be this strong?

It hadn't even been that long since they parted ways.

This—this didn't make sense.

Arlon had always been fast. One of the fastest to grow, to adapt, to fight. He was undeniably the strongest among the saviors, and his feats—like wiping out nearly half the Demons—were legendary.

But he was still far below the upper echelons of Trionians.

Back then, Zephyrion could've crushed him with a flick of his tail.

But now?

Now he had stopped Zephyrion's opening strike—the kind of attack that could bring down buildings—with one hand.

That should have been impossible.

Zephyrion wasn't just some general. He was the ruler of Trion. The strongest being standing between his world and total collapse. If he fell, Trion would fall with him.

So his mind raced, scrambling for explanations. Could this be someone else disguised as Arlon? An enemy? A new threat mimicking someone familiar?

Even if it meant losing, he had to give it his all. He couldn't hesitate.

But just as he tensed for another move, he felt it—calm.

The pressure around Arlon wasn't hostile. No killing intent. No chaotic aura.

Still, the others around them didn't understand what was going on.

The sudden surge of power had alarmed everyone nearby.

The Citadel was always staffed with both high-level and low-level forces, prepared for any kind of emergency. Even if something like this had never happened before, they had trained for impossible situations.

Without needing orders, the lower-level staff moved back, clearing the area and letting the elites step forward.

They had already realized that the enemy had stopped Lord Zephyrion's punch.

But before they could engage—

The supposed enemy—Arlon—raised both of his hands. Not to attack.

But to signal.

He wasn't here to fight.