( Rocky''s POV )


    After close to 34 hours of constant war nning, the final war n was finally formted with everyone in agreement that it was the best strategy to adopt.


    "Are you sure you want to take such a risk though Rocky? I do have faith in your judgment of the situation, however, if you''re wrong, it''s not the lives of my guild members that will be at stake.


    It will be only you who will die a horrible death alongside Erin and Buhara" Karna said, as he pointed towards one particr war n, where Rocky proposed taking on a huge risk.


    "I''m sure…. I know Sophia better than anyone and I have a strong gut feeling about this" Rocky assured, as Karna nodded his head in understanding.


    Nobody was stupid enough to bet their own lives on something impossible and hence since it was Rocky''s life that was on the line here and he was confident of making it through alive, Karna decided to trust his judgment.


    "Alright, with the war nningplete, it''s now time for us to meet the other guild masters helping us with the raid and present the final strategy.


    And after that we also need to hold an internal guild meeting with all the squad captains and exin them their detailed role in this war" Karna said, sounding exhausted as he took a big yawn right after.


    "What do you mean ''we''? I''m just a humble tier two climber…. All that falls under your purview.


    I''m not attending any meeting–" Rocky protested as Erin and Buhara seated beside him nodded in agreement.


    The trio of kids were tired after the war strategy formtion and did not want additional responsibilities.


    "I think you forget at times that you are the Champion Of Gemini, Rocky.


    It doesn''t matter what room you walk into, your voice will always be heard….. especially after the previous monster raid and you killing the lich" Karna said, as he reminded Rocky of just what sort of position he held on Earth.


    Sighing, Rocky nodded as he understood that he could not escape this fate of making public appearances, however, he requested to skip the internal captain''s meeting to which Karna agreed.


    "Alright, you three kids freshen up, the next meeting is in two hours….. we''ll see you then" Karna said, as he gave Rocky, Buhara and Erin permission to leave his office, contingent that Rocky at least returned back for the next meeting in two hours.


    Almost immediately after exiting Karna''s office, Buhara demanded to eat food as he felt incredibly hungry, forcing Rocky to guide him to the guild cafeteria.


    It wasn''t half bad for Rocky, as he too felt hungry and also because he wanted to take a moment to talk to Buhara in private.


    While himself and Erin already saw Sophia for the lying, backstabbing bitch that she really was, Buhara wasn''t the same.


    For Buhara, Sophia was a genuine friend and while Rocky had not burst that bubble in his head up till now…. With them now heading into a major war where Sophia was likely to betray them, Rocky felt that it was necessary for him to warn Buhara about Sophia and her true nature.


    He wished to do it as gently as possible to not hurt his feelings, which was why Rocky  chose to talk to him in the cafeteria, while he wasfortable eating warm food.


    "Puny human, this hamburger is a dish that is most delicious! Buhara is in love with this greasy mess!


    Also this drink… the watermelon juice. It''s the most refreshing thing ever!" Buhara said as he devoured one hamburger with each bite that he took as if he were eating a chip and paired it up with a jug of fresh watermelon juice to wash the food down.


    "Haha… I''m d you like it buddy" Rocky said, as he contemted about how he should broach the topic of Sophia potentially betraying them in theing war, as he found broaching the topic to Buhara to be a very challenging endeavor.


    "Well, Buhara…. There''s something myself and Erin would like to talk to you about" Rocky began, as Buhara took a pause from eating hamburgers and nced towards Rocky.


    "It''s about Sophia…." Rocky said, as Buhara''s yful eyes immediately turned serious at the mention of their friend.


    "The next war that we''re having is against her family and brother.


    So in-case she betrays us in favor of her family, please understand that it wasn''t anything personal.


    She probably had no other option" Rocky said, as finally he did not have the courage to tell Buhara that Sophia was a bitch and instead decided to present the matter as delicately as possible.


    "Oh?" Buhara said, sounding confused as he truly believed that Sophia would probably never betray them, however, in-case she did so for the sake of her family, Buhara felt like that would be reasonable too.


    "Yeah, me and Erin suspect that she''s working with her family to betray us. So, don''t trust her in this next war….


    Don''t make it obvious that you don''t trust her, but just for this next war don''t believe her words either." Rocky said as Buhara nodded in understanding.


    "Aye" he said, agreeing with Rocky before focusing back on his food, as Rocky and Erin breathed a collective sigh of relief.


    This conversation had gone smoother than they initially feared, and with this forewarning, they hoped that Buhara would not be emotionally hurt when Sophia eventually did betray them.


    However, nothing could be said for certain when things came to the loving orc that Buhara was, as unlike them, rtionships were not transactional for Buhara and were rather connections to die for.


    Unfortunately, not everyone in the universe was deserving of a friend like Buhara and Sophia just happened to be one of those undeserving people.


    —-----


    /// A/N - Bonus chapter for hitting the GT Target. Good job everyone!


    Thank you so much for all your love and support! ///