Chapter 248: Episode 248

[System Message: The battlefield for the fourth capture point has been prepared.]

[System Message: The event for this battlefield is Shield Destruction.]

[System Message: The field will be changed to a shooting range.]

[System Message: The number of participants is one.]

[System Message: During the battle, soldiers and their respective commanders may communicate freely.]

[System Message: The detailed objective will be announced after the battle begins.]

The White Team currently held all three crystal towers. A victory here would all but guarantee the raid’s failure. The only lingering question was what penalty the Rule Maker had in store for the raid party if the dungeon side won.

’The fourth penalty must be tied to defeat. Annihilation of the raid party, perhaps? Well, it makes no difference to me. My goal is simply to stop the raid.’

The power to create new rules was immense. He was certain a penalty far more fatal than the first three lay in wait. Taehyun surveyed the field, now a shooting range, and selected his participant.

“It’s your turn, Mederia.”

—”I will do my best, Taehyun!”

“It’s fine if you lose, so don’t push yourself. Even with one loss, we still hold the advantage.”

—”Don’t tell me… you doubt my abilities?”

Mederia, who had been drawing her bow, looked crestfallen. She, too, had been enhanced by his Evolution ability. Though she hadn’t surpassed S-rank, her promotion to an A-rank Hero had significantly boosted her firepower.

“That’s not what I meant. What I’m saying is…”

It didn’t matter who won this particular battle. A faint smile touched Taehyun’s lips as he explained further.

—

[System Message: Communication with Taehyun Yoo has been established.]

[System Message: The objective has been updated.]

[System Message: Battlefield Objective: Destroy the shield before your opponent!]

[System Message: Details: Scarecrows have been placed in the shooting range. You must destroy the shield cast by the scarecrow and be the first to land a direct hit.]

[System Message: Objective Status: Scarecrow Hit 0/1]

A modern-style shooting range materialized before them. Two scarecrows stood at the far end as the participants took their places. First was the Black Team’s soldier, the top-tier A-rank archer Maarin. Hailing from a noble bloodline, she was renowned for firing arrows of devastating power, imbued with the legendary Dragon’s Breath. An archer with a fire attribute certainly seemed to have the upper hand in a shield-breaking contest.

However, the White Team’s Celestial Archfey, Mederia, was no pushover.

[Celestial Archfey Mederia]

[Rank: A (Hero)]

[Level: 68]

[Class: Archer]

[Title: The Archfey Called by the Gods]

[Affiliation: Balak]

[Loyalty: 98]

[Favorability: 97]

[Obedience: 94]

[Skills: Pinpoint Shot, Mana Convergence, Trajectory Arrow, Deft Reloading, Celestial Mana Bullet]

[Special Ability: Fessilyn’s Grand Advent]

[Strength: 6] [Endurance: 5] [Agility: 78] [Stamina: 8]

[Mana: 64] [Divinity: 57] [Affinity: 51] [Luck: 41]

[Status: Affection, Composed]

Within Balak, only the High Elves could claim to be her equal as an archer. From her skills to her stats and special ability, she was on a completely different level than before.

Maarin watched the countdown begin and leisurely drew her bow.

“This match is mine. Feel free to watch from the sidelines. No matter how hard you try, you can’t beat me.”

As a raider from a distinguished family, her confidence was boundless. Mederia, however, didn’t spare her a single glance, her entire focus locked on the countdown.

[5!]

[4!]

[3!]

The numbers ticked down. Both women drew their bowstrings in unison, and a palpable tension crackled in the air. A single arrow could decide the victor.

[Start!]

The contest began. Maarin was the first to let her arrow fly. Channeling her unique fire attribute, she began to rapidly chip away at the shield. Mederia, in contrast, used Pinpoint Shot to strike a single spot, but the gap between them was already widening.

[System Message: Black Team Scarecrow Shield Damage: 12%]

[System Message: White Team Scarecrow Shield Damage: 6%]

The numbers told the story: Maarin was in the lead. The successive blasts of Dragon’s Breath were too much for Mederia’s mana bullets to keep up with.

—”That archer, Maarin, is pretty incredible, isn’t she?”

“How could you! Are you saying you prefer that woman over me?”

—”That’s not it. Whoa, hey! No Mana Convergence!”

“I’ll show you I’m better. Just watch!”

Mana began to condense in her quiver. After relying solely on mana bullets, she was now infusing her arrows with raw power. Mederia’s pace quickened, her reloading becoming a blur of motion. The damage to her scarecrow’s shield began to skyrocket.

Maarin, who had been firing with an air of casual superiority, shot a nervous glance at the scarecrow to her left and frantically poured more mana into her next shot.

[System Message: Top-tier A-rank Raider Maarin has activated her special ability, ‘Dragon’s Breath.’]

[System Message: Fire attribute amplification rate increases to 60%.]

Dragon’s Breath, an ability inherited only by the direct bloodline of the Parsent family, could amplify the power of her fire attribute based on her mana reserves. Pushing it this far put a tremendous strain on her body, but this was the fourth battle. Another loss here meant the White Team would have all but won.

“Nngh.’ I will not lose!”

“Hmph. Look who’s talking!”

“Haaaaah!”

“Hyaaaaaah!”

Their rivalry intensified as they fired with everything they had, the air between them thick with a storm of arrows and crackling energy. The scarecrows, caught in the crossfire, seemed to tremble with terrified expressions. Suddenly, Maarin’s entire body was engulfed in flames.

[System Message: Top-tier A-rank Raider Maarin has activated her special ability, ‘Dragon’s Breath.’]

[System Message: Fire attribute amplification rate increases to 90%.]

She was burning her own life force to fuel the flames. Her arrows now erupted with violent gouts of fire, like the breath of a dragon.

The Black Team’s scarecrow was the first to burst into flames. An instant later, an arrow pierced the White Team’s scarecrow, but the victor had already been decided.

[System Message: The Black Team soldier has achieved the objective.]

[System Message: Black Team’s Victory!]

[System Message: The fourth crystal tower has been captured by the Black Team.]

Their first victory. Though they had only taken a single tower, they had managed to halt the White Team’s momentum.

“Hah… Hah…’ W-With this… it’s my victory.”

“Ugh!”

Maarin’s body was covered in burns, but they were wounds of glory. Mederia trembled, her face a mask of frustration. Had she used Fessilyn’s Advent to boost her stats, the outcome would have been a foregone conclusion. But Taehyun had forbidden her from using her special ability. This battle had been designed for her to lose. Her last-minute use of Mana Convergence had made it a close fight, but without her ultimate skill, defeat was inevitable.

—”You surprised me by using Mana Convergence like that. Why did you do it?”

“Hmph. I don’t know!”

With her pride wounded, Mederia found Taehyun utterly infuriating.

—

“We finally won! Your winning streak is over. You probably don’t get it yet, but just you wait. From now on, you won’t get a single crystal tower!”

“Congratulations on your first win. We just happened to lose. By the way, that archer of yours is something else. To think she’d set herself on fire for a victory. Is she going to be okay?”

“That’s none of your concern. We have a priest; she’ll be healed. Now, there are two towers left.”

The next capture point was the Forest of Silence. A victory in the fifth battle would make the score three to two. Even if they took the sixth tower, it would only result in a tie, but that didn’t matter. According to the Arena rules, a tie would trigger one final, decisive battle. Vesta was confident they could win the remaining two. No, he was certain of it.

[System Message: The battlefield for the fifth capture point has been prepared.]

[System Message: The event for this battlefield is Bat Catching.]

[System Message: The field will be changed to the Black Ocean.]

[System Message: The number of participants is two.]

[System Message: For this battle, soldiers with an assassination-related class and a spear-related class are required to participate.]

[System Message: During the battle, soldiers and their respective commanders may communicate freely.]

[System Message: The detailed objective will be announced after the battle begins.]

The details for the fifth battle appeared. A spear knight and an assassin would have to team up. Given the name of the event, Bat Catching, it was clearly no ordinary objective. Taehyun glanced at Lisita and Krodin, a flicker of anxiety crossing his face.

’The outcome doesn’t matter, but it’ll be a real pain if those two start fighting.’

Krodin was already lost in a world of his own narcissism. Lisita, standing beside him, was visibly frowning. They hardly seemed like a team capable of cooperation. He could only hope they wouldn’t tear each other apart.

—”Kukukuk. Is it finally my turn? The time has come for this brilliant assassin to rule the darkness!”

—”Could you please just be quiet? You’re being incredibly disruptive.”

—”Hmph. A mere spear-wielding wench like you could never comprehend my true worth. You just stand there and watch. I shall handle everything.”

—”…I can’t just let that slide.”

Lisita, who had been waiting for the transfer, stood up abruptly. Krodin merely laughed, his expression one of pure disdain. The battle hadn’t even begun, and they were already at each other’s throats.

Taehyun sighed and finalized his selection.

—

[System Message: Communication with Vesta has been established.]

[System Message: The objective has been updated.]

[System Message: Battlefield Objective: Catch the opposing Bat!]

[System Message: Details: The Black Ocean is a field shrouded in darkness. Here, the rogue soldier is designated the ‘Bat.’ Each team’s Bat moves through the field using stealth, while the spear knight waits at a sub-point. The Bat cannot use attacks or disabling skills; they must locate the opposing Bat and place a mark on them. The spear knight then uses this mark to pinpoint their location and throw a spear. The match ends the moment a spear hits the opposing Bat.]

[System Message: Objective Status: White Team Bat 0/1]

A square field, steeped in profound darkness, was revealed. The assassins, now dubbed ‘Bats,’ were already in the center. Only the spear knights remained at their sub-points, waiting.

—”The central field is a treacherous landscape of pillars and boulders over a sheer drop. But I trust an assassin of your caliber won’t make a foolish mistake like slipping, correct?”

“Of course. I am a top-tier assassin who could infiltrate the Derk Empire’s imperial palace with ease. A terrain like this is simple for me to grasp.”

—”Good. Your objective is to find the opposing Bat. You can communicate with Fletain, so coordinate with him via telepathy.”

Fletain waited at the blue sub-point, spear in hand. For Nero, who had worked with him several times before, this was an ideal setup.

—”I’m counting on you again, Nero.”

—”Ah, so it is. I’m counting on you as well, Sir Fletain.”

With communication confirmed, all preparations were complete. Nero activated his stealth and opened his second eye.

[System Message: You have cast Eye of Darkness.]

[System Message: For a limited time, you can perceive the presence of enemies within the darkness.]

His vision slowly merged with the shadows. Soon, the surrounding terrain was highlighted with glowing lines.

’Any assassin is a mere amateur before me. Now, shall we have some fun?’

With both of them in stealth, his Eye of Darkness gave him an overwhelming advantage. Nero confidently advanced. Just then, a booming voice echoed from a nearby pillar.

“I don’t need you, wench! This is a match I can win all by myself!”

“Dammit! What rule did I supposedly fail to understand? I am the perfect assassin… Ugh! For a spear-wielding wench, you sure talk a lot!”

“Sh-Shut up! This body belongs to the ultimate assassin, destined to surpass the Demon King!”

He wasn’t even using telepathy, instead broadcasting his temper tantrum over the open channel. Though invisible, his voice was perfectly clear. Nero paused, momentarily stunned, before slowly closing the distance.

’What an idiot. He should be erasing his presence, but he’s openly bickering with his teammate. That man doesn’t deserve to be called an assassin.’

He needed to be taught a lesson. With that thought, Nero scaled the left pillar, silently approaching Krodin from behind.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep