Chapter 111 - The Main Selection Tournament, Match One
[ElephantThree]—or Zou-san, as he was commonly known—was a regular in the vanguard bracket of the Four Pillar War.
This being his sixth time entering, he strode into the main selection tournament venue with an air of confidence he didn't even try to hide.
Stepping out of the teleportation light, he found himself in the familiar circular arena.
The stage, about fifty meters in diameter, was small compared to the preliminary venues he’d fought through in the past… but the sheer number of spectator seats, almost excessive for such a small stage, spoke volumes about the public's fascination with this ultimate form of entertainment.
This was the first round of the tournament, so it probably wouldn't be a huge deal. But as he advanced, the scene would draw closer to that of a sold-out arena, and the thrill was just irresistible.
To showcase the might of his forged avatar before that massive crowd—the exhilaration of that moment was simply beyond words.
Unfortunately, advancing indefinitely was a tall order. He wasn't conceited enough to think he was such an outstanding player that he could aim for a ranked spot.
However, this time—
"Facing a rookie… I guess I'm lucky. Though I feel bad for the new guy."
The name next to his on the tournament bracket was an unfamiliar one: [Haru]. The white star next to it marked him as someone who had passed the qualifiers, and he was to be the opponent for the first match.
Haru—a common enough player name in Arcadia, but there was no one with that name among the combat record holders. He had to be a rookie making his public debut.
Whether this was his first time participating at all, he couldn't say; it was impossible to keep track of every single qualifier contestant. But at the very least, he had never seen that name in the main selection matches before.
He had to acknowledge the skill it took to win out of a hundred participants, and the guy was surely a proficient fighter who stood head and shoulders above the average player. But the preliminaries and the main tournament were two completely different beasts.
The main tournament brought together only the fiercest warriors, the kind of players who would be approved to participate in the actual Four Pillar War. Their fundamental strength was on a completely different level from ordinary players.
In fact, most players seeded directly into the main tournament, including himself, could likely breeze through the qualifiers without breaking a sweat.
And unfortunately, it was customary for most players who came up from the qualifiers to be defeated in the first round.
It wasn't unheard of for veterans to be tripped up by a newcomer… but his build, true to his name, was a steady, rock-solid type. There was no chance of him losing his footing and causing an accident.
It wouldn't be overconfidence to consider his advancement to the second round a done deal.
Across the stage—his opponent had already entered, and just as he thought, the figure was unfamiliar. His guess seemed to be correct.
Looking him over… the equipment he wore was surprisingly fine. That said, all he could see from the front was a matching set of clothes, top and bottom, along with a set of gauntlets and greaves.
The clothes were likely made from the materials of the [White-Shining Bird of Fortune (Stilac Elbrud)], also known as the flying plague god. They were durable for clothing-type gear and offered a decent luck bonus, so some eccentric light warriors occasionally used them.
And considering the hand and foot gear, which seemed to be made mainly from Misty Snake materials… nine times out of ten, he was a light warrior specializing in agility.
He couldn't see a weapon. Was he planning to draw it right before the match started, or was there a small weapon slung on his back, hidden from view?
Whatever the case, fighting light warriors was his specialty. There wasn't a one-in-ten-thousand chance of losing—he declared this inwardly, a statement laced with a healthy dose of self-encouragement.
He squared off against his opponent… and for some reason, [Haru] was staring blankly up at the sky.
To put it nicely, he didn't seem nervous. To put it poorly, his head was in the clouds. The countdown was about to start; was he going to be okay—
—The first match of the selection tournament will now begin.
No sooner had the thought crossed his mind than the system announcement echoed through the venue. Though the crowd was still small, the several hundred spectators began to stir with excitement.
His opponent across the way—ah, good. He slapped his own cheeks as if to snap out of it, and the gaze he turned this way held a reasonable amount of fighting spirit.
He was simply aware of his own advantage; it wasn't that he was underestimating or looking down on the guy. They were both members of Istia, comrades aiming for the 'battlefield.' It was also true that he wanted them to give it their all so neither would have regrets.
He was well aware that if the other guy knew what he was thinking, he'd come off as a condescending senior. Being disliked by his juniors was something he was used to from his office job—so, for the sake of a precious newcomer, he would serve as a wall for him to overcome.
He nodded at his opponent, who now showed sufficient fighting spirit, and raised the one-handed mace and round shield that had long since become a part of his body into a ready stance.
His opponent, however—didn't take a stance.
"What…?"
He no longer looked dazed like before, but he remained completely relaxed, showing no sign of even lowering his stance. It felt strange.
Could he be an unarmed fighter… no, that's not it. His avatar's eyes, far sharper than in reality, belatedly caught the glint of a red ring on the man's right hand.
I see, he's probably a close-quarters mage who primarily fights unarmed. Now that he looked at it that way, he could see metal reinforcements on both the gauntlets and greaves, likely to augment his punches and kicks.
It was a stroke of luck to have figured that out before the pre-battle countdown ended.
He didn't know what kind of magic he would use… but in the Istia selection matches, where one was expected to handle any opponent, avoiding weaknesses was the absolute basic.
In that case, his plan remained the same. Observe, adapt, and crush him.
The countdown hit zero.
Don't hold this against me, he thought, his expression hardening as he dropped into a low stance, ready to go all out.
And then, before his eyes—
"Huh?"
—the pale blue figure vanished, and a brutal impact slammed into his abdomen.
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"Hah…!!"
A first attack snatched at the opening bell. I had summoned [Panga Fool], pulled the trigger, and slammed on every mobility skill I had, starting with [Ignition].
The pommel of my [Demon Horn Spear: Crimson Valor] dug into the abdomen of the mace-and-shield warrior, who hadn't shown any reaction. It scattered a bright red damage effect, and the crimson cloth wrapped around the spear grew longer.
The damage was—light, less than ten percent. Considering the cost of [Ignition], I'd hoped for a bit more of a return, but factoring in the charge for the crimson cloth, it was a slight gain.
I thought he was wearing some sturdy-looking light armor, but damn, the main tournament guys are tough. A clean hit to his unguarded gut and that's all?!
Furthermore, his reaction speed was incomparable to the players I faced in the prelims. Even as his face twisted in shock and confusion, his left hand moved with precision—not with the mace, but with a shield bash from his right, swinging in a wide arc.
His response was fast, but it was a reflexive move, so the trajectory was linear. For something like this, I didn't even need my predictive skill!
"Hup!!"
With what I'd call fluid motion, my hands flicked the long spear up. The spinning crimson whirlwind caught the approaching shield from below.
An attack made right after taking a hit, with no solid footing, should have been easily—nope, he's strong as hell!? C'mon, roar, my muscles (STR 300)!
"Guh… you…!"
I forced the shield up with sheer strength. On the other side of it, I saw the face of [ElephantThree]-san, a mixture of shock and impatience. I took another step forward—stopped the spear's rotation on a dime, and slammed the pommel of the [Demon Horn Spear: Crimson Valor] into him for a second helping.
"Tch—!"
At that moment, a bad feeling washed over me. I immediately chose to retreat, and right before my eyes, a shimmering shockwave-like thing erupted from ElephantThre—can I just call you Zou-san? —from his body.
That was close…! If I'd taken that full-on and gotten stunned, it would've been over…!
I calmed the frantic beating of my virtual heart, a product of the tension unique to PvP, and slammed the pommel of my spear, its crimson cloth now even longer, into the arena floor—
"[Include]!"
The system acknowledged my command word. The crimson cloth on my spear glowed, and a surge of crimson light flowed from it, settling into my avatar.
The amount of HP the spear had absorbed from the two hits was just under twenty percent. The enhancement effect of the [Demon Horn Spear: Crimson Valor] was an AGI boost and a slight, continuous MP regeneration.
The effect scaled with the amount of HP absorbed, so with this little charge, the stat boost was less than ten percent, and the duration would be two minutes… no, I'd be lucky if it lasted one.
It was just a bonus effect, after all. It was more effective against monsters with huge health pools than against players with relatively low HP.
"…!"
However, the process of that buff, with its intimidating crimson light effect, had a greater impact in PvP than its actual stats provided.
To be beaten so soundly, and then to see your enemy get stronger because of it. If your opponent figured out what was happening, the psychological damage would be considerable.
Zou-san glared at me, the look of relaxed confidence from before the match completely gone. I'm honored you're taking me seriously—let's ramp it up, old-timer!!
Thanks to the effect of [Rabbit Run], which cuts down on the wind-up needed for a dash, a light push-off the ground now granted me the same result as a full-power leap.
On the flip side, it was a bit of a wild horse, making it difficult to adjust for a light jump, but being able to go from a subtle motion to a major movement was a huge advantage for surprise attacks.
On top of that, I got a critical jump bonus from my jump enhancement skill, and my insane AGI of 350 was able to show its true worth.
What the hell is a critical jump anyway?!
From a silent, minute push-off, my avatar broke the hundred-kilometer-per-hour barrier in a single step, devouring the dozen or so meters between us in an instant.
Since I wasn't using [Ignition], I didn't have that cheap zero-to-one-hundred acceleration, so unlike the initial surprise attack, this time he'd obviously react. He did, but—I activated Tremble Slide.
"Wh- he vanish—?!"
I'm sure he'd adapt if I used it too many times, but a 350-kilometer-per-hour slide isn't something you can easily read on your first try. I slipped past the mace he swung to meet me, circled behind him—and used [Blink Switch].
I summoned the [Giant's Hand Axe]. In this main tournament, I had to seriously start thinking about the crowd learning my moves. I wouldn't show much; I'd just crush him right here—
"!?"
Just as I was about to bring the abnormally large black battle axe down, Zou-san spun around to face me with unprecedented speed. His eyes clearly locked onto me as I was about to deliver the lethal attack.
—Dwelling in those eyes was a green light effect.
Then, the moment I saw the round shield in his right hand become enveloped in a yellow light effect,
"—Tch!"
"Hah…!?"
[Blink Switch]—The battle axe, which had been tearing through the air with a roar, vanished with a faint light effect. The round shield, having lost its target, stopped its motion, still glowing.
As the [Giant's Hand Axe] disappeared, I used the momentum of my swing to drop low.
Crouching almost to the ground, I slipped under the raised shield and into his guard. From my hands—a multitude of 'crimson' was unleashed with almost no wind-up.
More than ten of them—the [Bullets]—struck Zou-san's wide-eyed form all over, carving away a huge chunk of the warrior's HP.
He had whiffed an active skill and taken repeated hits. Trapped by the inescapable system constraints, he could only follow me with his glowing eyes, unable to move.
And then,
"[Blink—"
"Kuh…"
"—Switch]!!"
"You bastard!!"
Once again, I summoned the crimson long spear.
The blade shot up from just above the floor as if taking flight, slipping past the mace that moved with a slight, resisting twitch—and the crimson spearhead deeply pierced the warrior's chest.
"…Hah… ugh…"
It was a series of tense moments, with an unexpected counterattack, and beneath my composed expression, I was breathing heavily.
Seeing me, my opponent, who had let out a final, raw cry of frustration—
"…Not bad, new face."
—lowered his eyebrows, gave a remarkably good-natured smile… and then his HP scattered, and he dissolved into red motes of light.
"…………Phew!"
As the resistance vanished and the crimson spear felt light in my hands, I spun it once before pulling it back. A torrent of pent-up breath rushed from my mouth.
—Man, that was WAY too close…!! That eye-glowing thing was a thought acceleration skill, wasn't it?! Was he a former agility-focused light warrior who changed his build… This guy's a serious player!!
Though the fight lasted less than a few minutes, it felt like… for the first time in this game, I had experienced a real 'tactical battle.'
"…………Hah, well then."
Anyway… was that really such a surprising spectacle? What's with the dead silence in this venue?
Right… if I follow Lotta's example, it should be like this, right?
I tapped the floor with the pommel of the spear in my hand, and with my free hand, I shot a fist into the air with my best customer service smile.
For a moment after I struck the victory pose, pushing down my embarrassment, the crowd of several hundred went so silent you could feel it—
"""—————————!!!"""
Then the cheers erupted.
I staggered from what felt like the sheer pressure of the sound, but I managed to suppress a grimace and kept my fist raised.
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"Haha… a complete victory, wasn't it?"
As usual, there were too many things to comment on, and he couldn't quite find the right words.
It was only the first match, so none of the other management-side players were present, and he hadn't drawn much attention yet. In their private viewing box, he turned to the girl beside him with a wry smile.
"…Yes, he was wonderful."
The girl didn't turn her face toward him. Her amber eyes were fixed solely on the young man in the center of the cheering crowd, who wore a practiced smile that seemed strangely natural on him.
Her flushed cheeks, her lips unable to hide a happy smile, her eyes glistening with fervor as she believed it was all just trust in her partner.
"…They're an interesting pair."
Half exasperated, half intrigued. Lotta smiled, savoring the good fortune that had allowed him to add the names of these two to his friends list.
As if watching over the rookies, who were filled with various kinds of passion in more ways than one, he leaned back deeply into his special seat and narrowed his eyes.
The cheers still hadn't died down… and the sight of the young man on stage, who was starting to look bewildered, seemed incredibly bright in his eyes.