-388- Immediately! Right now!

The sound of Kuradeel's body shattering into polygons echoed in everyone's ears, leaving them in shock.

Kirito's expression changed drastically, and he exclaimed, "What...!?"

Klein shouted, "What's going on...!?"

And even Agil's expression changed, "It's impossible!"

Even Asuna, who had taken several steps back, wore a panicked expression on her delicate face.

All the players present were left bewildered and confused, their pupils shrinking until they were as small as pinpricks.

"What... what's happening!?"

"He's... he's dead...!?"

"This can't be!"

"We're inside the safezone, aren't we!?"

The players started to panic and their voices became increasingly chaotic, filling every corner of the square.

Even the leader of the Army, Kibaou, stared wide-eyed, unable to believe his own eyes.

If Kibaou was shocked, then the members of his group, including Kobatz, were even more horrified. Their faces turned ashen.

Everyone could understand what they were witnessing. The sight of a player turning into polygon fragments upon death was not unfamiliar to them.

However, precisely because it wasn't unfamiliar, they found it even harder to believe.

No, it was more accurate to say they refused to believe it.

All they knew for sure was that Kuradeel was dead. And he had died within the safezone, with his HP bar showing no signs of damage.

"It can't be..."

Kirito's murmur seemed to echo the sentiments of all the players present. They were all shaken.

"It's impossible... impossible..."

Yes, it was impossible.

Such a thing couldn't happen.

How could a player die with a full HP bar for no apparent reason?

"Damn it!"

"Tsk...!"

Klein and Agil rushed forward, reaching the spot where Kuradeel had been. They frantically searched for any clues.

These two individuals must have believed that Kuradeel possibly used some rare, unknown item to fake his death, while hiding himself using skills like "Hiding" to escape.

This was their reasoning, and the other players seemed to start thinking the same way. After realizing this, they all joined in the search, believing that Kuradeel had created an illusion to deceive them.

"Surely he used some strange item to create this illusion!"

"Don't even think about escaping!"

"Don't believe you can fool us all!"

In the midst of the chaos, the players continued searching with shaken expressions.

Unfortunately, these remarks, rather than attempting to uncover the truth, seemed more like attempts to comfort themselves.

But there was nothing else they could do.

Everything happening before their eyes was just too bewildering.

In this world of death game, while there were the harsh rules that once HP was depleted, you would die, conversely, as long as your HP didn't reach zero, players believed they were absolutely safe.

The players present had always held this belief, which is why they dared to fight on the frontlines just moments ago.

However, if even when HP was not depleted, there was still a possibility of death, who could remain calm?

Thinking about this, the players couldn't help but become restless, and one by one, they began to stir.

"Search! Find him! He must have used some kind of illusion!"

Even someone like Kibaou was desperately shouting, causing Kobatz's group to have grim expressions as they continued searching around.

However, no matter how the players searched, they still couldn't find Kuradeel, who should have been present.

Being surrounded within the safezone, players couldn't escape without others noticing, even if they used concealment or other means.

So, the more they couldn't find Kuradeel, the more the players were forced to accept the fact that he had indeed died, and in such a mysterious way.

"This... this can't be..."

"How is this possible..."

Klein and Agil eventually stopped searching, standing in place, gritting their teeth as they muttered these words.

Kirito, on the other hand, fell into complete silence, gazing at the chaotic Transfer Gate Plaza, unable to utter a word.

Even Asuna, at this moment, didn't know how to react.

"Right... Rozen...!"

Asuna instinctively looked for Rozen, hoping he could provide a reasonable explanation. However, when she turned her gaze toward Rozen, what she saw left her stunned.

Rozen stood silently in place, still holding his crystal sword, but his eyes were locked onto one direction, radiating a sharp intensity.

And in the direction that Rozen was intensely focused on, there was a person.

Knight's attire.

Cross-shaped shield.

It was none other than Heathcliff.

At this very moment, Heathcliff was also staring at the direction where Kuradeel had disappeared, and an unprecedented sense of disgust appeared on his face.

The leaders of two of the most powerful guilds, capable of vying for the title of the strongest guild, were fixated their own directions. They both seemed to be contemplating something, and their expressions were equally grave.

"Rozen...?"

Asuna instinctively grabbed Rozen's sleeve.

Rozen then seemed to snap back to reality, retracting his gaze and looking at Asuna before turning his attention to the players who were in a state of chaos.

The next moment, Rozen paused for a moment, then took a deep breath and spoke loudly.

"Calm down!"

His strong tone seemed to help everyone find their footing, and they stopped panicking.

Rozen declared firmly:

"This is definitely a fabricated illusion!"

Rozen asserted this.

"It's highly likely that Kuradeel himself used this illusion to escape, using a teleportation crystal."

After Rozen pointed this out, the players in the area finally began to realize.

"Right!"

"It's the teleportation crystal!"

"Kuradeel must have used a teleportation crystal to escape!"

"We were careless!"

The people responded one after another, their expressions relaxed.

Rozen then issued a cold order:

"I want a wanted notice issued immediately, a full-scale hunt for Kuradeel with a reward of 10,000,000 Col, personally funded by me. Anyone who captures Kuradeel will receive this reward, and even just reporting his whereabouts will earn you 1,000,000 Col!"

"Immediately! Right now!"

Rozen's command elicited responses from the clearing group players.

As a result, the players in the area dispersed, each issuing wanted notices.

Only Kirito, Klein, Agil, Kibaou, and Heathcliff, among a few others, remained here, silently.

Asuna also looked at Rozen in silence.

Rozen did not respond to this and simply turned around, his back facing the others, making it impossible to discern his expression.