by Rick Scar
A mixture of high-level players with their pets, spirits, monsters, weapons, potions, and scrolls created absolute chaos, sending any prepared plans down the drain.
Large groups broke down into smaller formations of two or three players which continued to attack the raid boss, as well as the other groups. The main problem was the absence of the friend-or-foe identification system; any large-range attack you landed could also kill your allies.
Will was fighting two high-floor players at once. One of them was Sky Thug, No. 2 in the general ratings, who apparently bore a personal grudge against Raven, as they stalked him, interfered with his attacks, and generally provoked him. Now that another player (Nightmare Maiden, Level 80) had come to Thug’s assistance, Will had no choice but to deal with these two. Nightmare Maiden was an Ikal with some really irksome skills.
Shimiraz! Kill her!
Once Raven had given this command, a scroll crumbled in his hands, casting a magic veil of black mist over the spot where the female enemy stood, preventing her from seeing the Ogre – but this magic was dispersed in an instant. Not that I expected otherwise from a player of that level.
Double Jump-ing into the air over the battlefield, Will tried to get a snapshot of the current situation, of the positions of his allies and enemies. Hearing a wheezing sound swell, he Leap-ed up diagonally and spotted a large lump of earth flash past him. Fucking wizards.
After escaping this attack, he found himself in the air right above an enemy who was fighting Mystical Darkness. He fell right onto the unsuspecting player and sank a short blade into his neck, right up to the hilt.
Smack!
With a death rasp, the enemy collapsed to his knees, gripping at the blade, before falling flat on the ground and rolling his eyes. Pulling the blade out, Will ducked and jumped to the side, rolling on the ground to escape the slashing water knives that had been cast at him by Thug until he hit a magic wall. Another, identical wall like was dashing toward him to crush him between the two.
Where is that damn Ogre? Kill her! With another lot of spells cast at him, Raven used Not Me, which had just cooled down, and switched places with one of the enemies that was attacking Perdition. Upon seeing Will appear right in front of her, the Arachnofite stopped her two blades in the air and instantly spat a webbing skill at the male wizard. Her agile sword limbs drew an extremely complicated pattern in the air, ripping the wizard’s body to pieces.
Swish! Swish!
A flash of light.
Losing his enemy from sight once again, Sky Thug spread his arms, which were holding two scrolls, out wide, casting a powerful blast of energy that spread all around him, like the ripples emanating from a stone that has been dropped in water. It was a massive buff that amplified the allies’ magic attacks. A double cast like that was a rare sight and produced approving sounds from the crowd.
That was when Shimiraz’s target screamed as the Ogre’s club reached her. Activating some kind of passive skill once out of the owner’s hand, the weapon crushed through her ribs and lodged itself in the destroyed chest. A spurt of blood shot into the air along with her shriek of agony as the weapon glowed and drilled its way out through her flesh.
Will instantly set the Ogre on Sky Thug. Casting a glance at the boss’s health bar, he made sure it was not yet time for his skill; he could deal with this troublesome wizard first. Flashing between two fighting players, the rogue opened one fighter’s throat and took the Golden Dragon form, bending down to the ground before accelerating.
The enemy was too slow to dodge but cast Water Trap and Explosive Seals at Will’s feet before he was swept off his feet by the dragon, who had jumped at him after having escaped the traps.
Rolling on the sand in clouds of dust, they knocked down a lizard-like player, drawing them into the fight. As he choked on the sand that was filling his nose and mouth, the rogue activated Soul Seizer and thrust his dagger into the opponent’s throat.
Blood spread over the sand, putting more and more red strokes on the canvas of the battlefield. When the rolling ball of bodies came to a stop, the enemy’s figure was slowly vanishing into the light of respawn, but Raven had no time to watch it as he was instantly attacking the lizard.
By the thirteenth minute of this round, the scoreboard was already showing the shaded names of thirty-five dead players. By the twentieth minute, this figure was up to eighty-one. White rays flashed here and there over the battlefield, reaching for the sky like color-drained fireworks, marking another death.
***
The excited crowd and two pairs of calm eyes in the developer box were watching the duels being fought all over the arena. Some ended unexpectedly, as anyone could interrupt the fighters. Raven had done this many times, but not as many as the raid boss, who had destroyed seventy-three players over forty minutes. The total death count on the scoreboard was one hundred and thirty-two.
However many players the knight had killed, he had also sustained a lot of damage:
Name: The Melted Knight
Rank: Marquis
Level: 130
Health: 228,148/1,200,000
The top name on the scoreboard was Koshie’s. By wielding his double axe with great skill, he had landed the most damage to the boss. That is, until he had bumped into the player rating’s No. 1: a barbarian with two wedge-shaped axes, who attacked and retreated with lightning speed, like a hyena wearing down a lion.
His slightly stooping posture and gripping eyes, which were taking in his surroundings, were those of a seasoned warrior. The two axes that were crossed in front of his chest quivered slightly. Koshie was standing opposite him and only moved by turning on the spot to follow the enemy with a cool and collected expression. He was waiting for his opponent to make his next move.
A savage vs a barbarian.
So similar and so different at the same time.
The other players had tried to intervene more than once, but were instantly killed by the fighters’ allies.
“Fifteen minutes left! The battle is nearing its end, and we can already guess who will be the winners! But I must say that one of the audience’s favorites, Raven, is doing absolutely nothing. He’s only deduced a thousand HP from the boss, and that was only by accident! Does this mean he won’t be proceeding to the next round?”
***
Lic, Level 93, played as a member of the Tifling race and the demonologist class. The demons summoned by the players of this class could become their familiars (similar to pets), and some of their abilities and skills rubbed off on the owner. The stronger the familiar was, the lengthier the effect, and the broader range of abilities was opened up to the owner. Demonologists would often change their familiars while at the lower levels until they found the one that perfectly matched their player style to invest time and money in developing it.
Lic had been lucky to obtain a rare summoning rite and had a rather strong Cursing Demon, which enabled him to work his way up so high. A member of the Fortuna’s Grin clan that opened the first-floor gate, he and his only clanmate in this arena had joined the Faceless-and-Messengers alliance. Initially twenty-seven pros strong, their group had lost many to the unpredictable action. Activating another rune to enhance his Tifling abilities, Lic could not tell for sure how many of them were still alive.
The raid boss’s HP was in the red and Lic was doing his best to make it into the top hundred. At the moment he was ninety-ninth and on the verge of being left out.
Lic’s body crunched. Arching his back, he gained speed and prepared to use one of his skills. His flesh crackled as a double line of spikes came out along his spine and his legs thinned until they resembled those of a grasshopper. His arms were covered with marks of hellish fire. This was his Hellish Spirit Snatcher transformation.
A moment before Lic was ready to attack, a familiar screech came from the raid boss— the sound it made instead of a scream. Lic saw the metal knight’s body being torn in half, drops of liquid metal raining down from both parts until they
hit the arena with a muffled thud, ending the first round.
Chapter 239. Hindsight
T he raid boss was dead. Canceling his Demon of Murder form, Will collapsed to the ground at the other end of the arena. No one would have seen the connection between these two falls if it hadn’t been for the rogue’s name soaring to the top of the list:
1. 103 020 — Koshie
2. 102 674 — Buckshot
3. 101 120 — White Raven
The crowd gave a rumbling roar which rolled over the stadium like a tsunami; an ultimate skill had taken over 100,000 HP at once.
“I want to rip out my own eyes!” Even the cold-blooded Koshie seemed to be astonished.
Kurt commented on the best moments of the round that were being shown on the screen, giving most attention to the TOP-10 players. Crimson Berserker, who had come in fourth with over 70,000 damage points, had been displaced by Will’s sudden move. As cautious as ever, he had preferred not to use his strongest skills, saving them for later in the tournament.
“The first round is over, dear audience. Congratulations to the winners! The crazy action you made here will be the best in-game tutorial for coming generations. But don’t get too carried away by your triumph! There are still four rounds of the tournament still to go, and woe betide those who celebrate too early! The location and rules of the second round will be published today. You will have 24 hours to rest and prepare, so use them wisely. Now Glen, one of Skydome’s founders, will take the floor. Here, please.”
A presentable-looking man stood up from a sofa. Dressed in a business suit that was more appropriate for an office meeting than for a game environment, he took in the stalls and the arena. “Hello. I’d like to second the anchor’s words and tell you that watching this battle made me itch to join it. That was beyond impressive. I still find it hard to believe it was us… us that created such a miracle.”
His brief pause before “us” went unnoticed. Glancing at his friend, Glen put on a smile. “I hope you will remember the time you’ve spent in this world. Thanks, everyone, and good luck to the top hundred!”
The standing ovation for the departing founders slowly died down, like the sound of heavy rain, until the anchor lifted his hand, asking for silence. “That’s all, ladies and gentlemen. The arena will stay open for a short while, but if I were you, I wouldn’t linger here. My name is Kurt. Goodbye! See you in the next round!” He flashed a smile as he left the arena. The spectators started to disappear, one by one.
Once he had recovered from his transformation, Will had also planned to leave the battlefield, but he suddenly found himself surrounded by everyone he knew.
“What? Going to sneak out, were you?” Perdition smirked as she put a spider limb on his shoulder from behind. “Dear, dear Raven. What sort of a person does that?”
“That’s definitely what he was going to do,” Koshie confirmed, plodding up with a gloomy-looking Ronald, followed by Malissar and Mystical Darkness. Pak was nowhere to be seen. He had probably been killed in action long ago. The dark-skinned goblin had barely survived, but he still hadn’t made it into the top hundred; he had just come to say goodbye. But the cursed Elf made it, coming in at eighty-fifth and was now waving at the rogue with a smile.
“Oh. Do you know we’re rivals now?” Scratching the back of his head, Will watched his former allies come, then shook his head, smirked, and made an inviting gesture.
***
The cozy ambience of the fireplace room was calming Will. While watching the fire, he could have a rest – a real rest in this game. In these troubled times, he would rather not leave his kingdom unless it was absolutely necessary; that was why he had come here instead of exiting the game an hour ago after parting with his friends and acquaintances.
He had spent this hour just sipping wine and watching the fire, a serving maid was on duty and standing behind his back. Will would rather not offer her a seat or tell her to leave him alone; a blatant violation of the local hierarchy could cause him problems.
As he ran out of wine – again – Sarless stepped up to pour his glass.
Quiet. So quiet. Closing his eyes in the absolute silence, Will leaned back in the armchair that had been upholstered with the skin of a rare animal. He tried to clear his mind and relax, but that was near-impossible: the things he had to do and the people he had to deal with kept popping up. Those who could be useful, and those who posed a threat. Insanity was the worst of them.
Will already had a plan for killing Farris, but he wasn’t sure whether the demon would be affected by Salvation and Voice of Truth. The main part of his plan hung on using these. Frowning, he summoned his inventory to check it for anything that could be useful.
He still had nine skill points waiting to be distributed. With so many character-development branches available, he had to be very careful about his choices.
Looking at the skills he had acquired at the very beginning, he asked himself whether Ascension had any potions or spells that could undo these choices and restore the skill points to him. Everyone he had asked about this told him that no such thing existed in this game, but Will still hoped he would discover a solution on one of the unexplored floors.
The main thing he had to deal with was his lack of IPs. Having spent almost all of them on developing Hade, he risked losing the ace up his sleeve completely. The four hundred he had obtained by fighting in the arena was nowhere near enough.
He scrolled his inventory and frowned. The mysterious deck of cards. The stone figurines. Stone parts of Daltaro’s daughter’s body. The heart dagger…
Just a few slots left. Clicking his tongue at the sight of a weapon that required Level 105+, he scrolled on, shaking his head desperately at the rags he had for gear. How am I even managing to fight same-level opponents in this? If it hadn’t been for the edge that his skills and characteristics had given him, he would have had a very hard time in the tournament.
A drawing of some boots. Ghostly Wei’s Cap. Dark Hero’s Jacket. All these items were currently unusable. Scrolling through the last slots, Will suddenly jumped up to his feet with his eyes opened wide, scaring Sarless.
“Holy shit!” After blurting out this curse and hastily calming down the maid, he stormed out of the room and rushed for the witches’ building. The courtiers pressed themselves into the walls in order not to be killed by their ruler, who had suddenly gone insane – or so they thought when they saw him dashing along the hallways at a ridiculous speed.
Even the witches seemed to be confused by the blaze in his eyes. “Royal sire?” One stepped ahead with a nod and, clasping her hands, waited for his response.
“Yes. Sorry, ladies.” He nodded at the wide-open door and the shattered vase next to it; he had knocked it down as he ran in. “Please tell me, do any of you praised sisters have a Grandmaster rank in Alchemy?”
For the first time since he had seen the check that had made him into a millionaire overnight his heart raced.
“Please, forgive me, royal sire, but actually, many of us do. Every second one of us, to be precise. But, with all due respect, I don’t think this question is worth disturbing us for at this late hour.”
These words exploded in the rogue’s mind like fireworks. Curving his lips into his creepiest smile, he said with genuine delight, “Oh, my beautiful ladies. Looks like my priorities need some revising.”
The combination of his predatory grin, a sudden compliment, and two spheres appearing on his palms, one filled with fire and another with bolts of lightning, apparently scared the witches.
“What are you up to?” The witch who was speaking on behalf of the whole group approached Will – and froze in astonishment upon recognizing the elemental souls. “Are these… But how? How did you get them? These are incredibly rare ingredients!”
The other witches came up to see what their sister was so excited about and soon the hall was filled with their screams of delight.
“Here is the recipe.” The king handed them the scroll.
Summoning Hade and putting a hand on her head, Will added, “I need her to get this power.”
The summoned girl looked sleepy. Rubbing her eyes, she looked up at Will, “Can it wait, master? I’d rather go back to sleep.”
“Yes, sure.” He dismissed her but, after remembering the one thing they had to do right now, he summoned the sleepy and confused pet again. “Sorry. Please take your original form. These ladies need a sample of your hair and blood.”
After changing into a mighty dog, she let the witches take the samples, then licked Will’s face and stuck out her tongue, hinting that she was tired and had to go back to bed. Since she had acquired Human Essence, her behavior was becoming more and more human. When she wasn’t battling, she could laugh, take offense, or even get angry with him.
Raven wanted to stay and watch the witches create the potion for his pet, but they assured him it would take too much time: twenty-four hours at least. That left him with no choice but to go back to the fireplace.
***
After exiting the game late at night, Will checked the official website for the second round’s rules. Named Roller Coaster, it was to take place on a brand-new, 300-mile-long location that was packed with mobs and traps. The first forty players to cross the finish line would make it into the next round. The devs assured the players that it would technically be possible to complete this round without killing anyone, by finding and using shortcuts and secret passages, but they also admitted that it would be extremely difficult.
Race for Life. This was what the players had dubbed this competition. Stretching up and massaging his neck, Will switched his PC off and went to the shower as he thought about how he really liked this name.
Chapter 240. Respect Needs to Be Taught
