Chapter 83 |
I’ll Finish It in Two Minutes.
“See you later.”
“W-what do you...”
Srrrk-.
Before anyone could ask anything, Rin turned to mist and vanished.
In her place, only one male student stood there.
He was grinning from ear to ear.
“Aaagh! Swap successful!”
Gale Levint.
At the same time, he was one of the most outstanding sorcerers in the year.
One of the techniques he could use was switching places with someone he had marked.
I checked the Crystal Orb.
[Team Rin]
-Sprinter: Dexy Cluise
-Assistant: Gale Levint
-Keeper: Rin Glacia
Just as expected.
The two roles had already been swapped.
They had used the rule that allows role changes under the team leader’s authority even while the game is in progress.
“Whew... that was close.”
The boy wiped away his pouring sweat.
I quietly watched him.
If this guy came to me, that meant Rin had been sent to Zone 3.
“...Caitlin?”
Zone 3.
By now, the girl should’ve taken the flag and been looking for an opening to return.
Which meant Rin had dropped right in front of Caitlin.
***
Class A top seat vs Class E top seat.
The students in the stands were in a frenzy over the main match.
The buildup from the last few days, plus the two of their reputations, had drawn everyone’s attention.
On the hologram floating like a giant scoreboard, Rin and Viktor were being broadcast as they were.
-Ohhh, they finally clashed!
-Is it because they’re both Assistants? They met at the midpoint of Zone 2!
-What? I thought he’d get blown away instantly, but Class E’s top guy can fight.
-They’re so fast I can barely track them with my eyes...!
A sword and a scythe.
The two weapons collided in a fierce exchange.
Snowflakes scattered, and sparks burst between blades.
Their movements were so flashy that the close-quarters fight alone was a spectacle.
The crowd couldn’t help but marvel at the high-level exchange.
-It’s dead even?
-Class E’s top guy is handling her better than expected.
-Are you all idiots? Anyone can see Lady Glacia is going easy on him!
-If that were true, Class E’s top guy doesn’t look like he’s going all out either.
-They both look way too relaxed.
The students couldn’t take their eyes off the spectacle.
Soon the heat in the stands turned into cheers.
-Both of them can put on that kind of performance without going all out?
-What kind of monsters are they? Viktor really could be upper Class A level.
-Wow... I can feel a wall. Lady Glacia turned the whole area into ice with one sword strike.
-How is Class E’s top guy blocking attacks like that?
-He still hasn’t taken a single hit! He’s dodging or deflecting everything...!
Then in the middle of that,
Rin suddenly vanished from her spot.
Her sudden exit made the crowd collectively fill with question marks.
-What...?
-She disappeared like she turned into mist.
-Where did she go? Stealth-type magic?
-Hey, Lady Glacia can’t use magic.
-Idiots, can’t you even recognize sorcery? A teammate cast a technique.
The hologram refocused.
Gale Levint.
Rin Glacia.
The two had switched places in an instant.
After checking the screen, the students pieced together each zone’s situation.
-In Zone 3, Caitlin had just snatched the flag!
-She was about to run, then Gale and Lady Glacia suddenly switched places... and now Lady Glacia is blocking Caitlin’s path!
-Did they plan this from the beginning?
-Now that you mention it, they exchanged some kind of signal right before that!
-They must’ve agreed to swap immediately if it looked like the flag would be taken!
The students were right.
Gale and Rin had coordinated in advance.
If Gale failed on defense and lost the enemy Sprinter, he would immediately switch positions with Rin.
-Makes sense... no matter how fast Caitlin is, she can’t run from Lady Glacia.
-I checked just now, and their roles changed too. They must’ve operated the Crystal Orb as they moved.
-Gale chose his position well. Thanks to that, Lady Glacia completely blocked the escape route.
-This is going to hurt. If they lose their Sprinter like this...
The stands stirred once more.
Viktor’s team looked increasingly cornered.
-Class A’s second seat is still defending well for now...
-But the moment it becomes a two-versus-three, it’ll flip hard.
-Just handling Lady Glacia alone is brutal.
-Viktor’s pinned down too. Gale’s upper Class A in his own right.
-After dealing with Lady Glacia, he must be pretty drained. At this rate Gale might KO him.
The students watched with sweaty palms, eyes fixed on the screen.
Momentum seemed to be tilting toward Rin.
At that same time, in Zone 3.
Caitlin had secured the flag and was about to head back.
As she ran across the sandy desert, a pure white blizzard suddenly erupted in front of her.
“...”
The scorching desert heat dropped, and freezing wind swirled like a storm.
Snowflakes drifted down in clusters.
At the center stood a blue-haired girl.
Caitlin stopped on reflex.
Sparks crackled, and her expression soured like she’d hit a wall.
“Fuck...”
Yellow eyes.
Without realizing it, her momentum had shrunk.
“Where the hell did this monster bitch pop out from now?”
Her bronze fist clenched tight.
***
Meanwhile.
I stood there absently, fiddling with my scythe.
‘This is awkward...’
I never expected Rin to fall back and return to base to guard the flag.
It wasn’t completely outside my assumptions, but I was still surprised she chose to pull back.
The Rin I knew would’ve dealt with me first, whether the flag got taken or the match tilted one way or another.
‘She’s weirdly cautious.’
How should I put it.
She was taking this match more seriously than usual.
Her attitude right before this too, it looked like she had some reason.
‘Well... it doesn’t matter much.’
The plan was unchanged.
It had only shifted slightly, and nothing about it was truly a problem.
If a variable this small could crack it, that wouldn’t be a plan, just patchwork.
In the end, it was still a board rolling in my palm.
‘This might actually be better. I can test Caitlin too...’
I shook out my tingling hand.
Aftereffects from trading blows with Rin.
Maybe she really was the best of this generation.
Even after only a few clashes, my arm throbbed like it might break.
“Ugh...”
As I rubbed my stiff arm, that extra suddenly hovered in front of me.
“Hey~ what’re you gonna do? Lady Glacia went to catch your Sprinter.”
Was his name Gale?
How can someone be named Gale.
Remove one letter and it becomes gay.
I had a lot to say, but it was full of remarks that didn’t respect human diversity, so I held it in.
Because I’m a civilized person.
Civilized people don’t casually spit out discriminatory remarks.
“Haa... Caitlin, right? The Class B Top Seat. She’s so fast I couldn’t catch her. If we actually fought I could beat her, but she knows that too, so she just kept running...”
The guy dumped pointless TMI on a man he’d just met.
A chill ran down my spine; the look in his eyes made it feel like he might target the two nuts between my legs at any moment.
“Well... Lady Glacia will handle it. Forget that bitch, I’m gonna have some fun with you.”
Was he really living up to his name?
Ignoring women and saying he wanted to play with a man instead.
Even as my wariness grew, Gale kept eyeing me with interest.
“Heard you’ve been famous lately. Stuff like you’re Lady Glacia’s rival, upper Class A level, all that bullshit... and I happen to be upper Class A. So I wanted to check for myself.”
“Hmm.”
That unpleasant curl of a grin.
What exactly did he want to check from another guy to smile like that?
My fist clenched tight.
“I’m pretty tired, you know. That technique I just used burns a lot of stamina. Even so, I think I can toy with someone like you.”
A blatant provocation.
He was overflowing with confidence, openly looking down on me.
Do all upper Class A types have bloated egos?
“Come on. No need to go all the way to Lady Glacia. Hyung’ll stomp you right here so you never mouth off again.”
Well, I had no intention of wasting time here.
Without hesitation, I slipped my hand into my robe.
“Cut the noise and let’s finish this quick.”
“...What?”
Gay-l went blank at my retort.
Whether he did or not, I pulled out a jet-black fragment from my inventory.
Ding-!
[Broken Crown]
-Category: Accessory
-Grade: A-
-Status: Destroyed
-Description: The crown worn by the Black Queen, ruler of the Nightmare. It has now been destroyed, and only her remnants remain. It can be worn for up to 5 minutes per day. When equipped, the skill ‘Nightmarification’ can be used.
[Skill Name: Nightmarification]
-The user’s body assimilates with the Nightmare.
-While the skill is active, the user is granted ‘Invincible’ status.
-Unrestricted flight becomes possible, and the user is freed from all physical force.
I placed the Broken Crown above my head.
A dark crimson aura rippled, and a creepy presence churned.
“My Pikachu at home is waiting for me.”
“Huh...?”
The gay froze stiff, like his brain had shut down.
I didn’t hold anything back and charged at him immediately, swinging my scythe.
Two minutes.
That was how long it took me to knock him out.
