The floor beneath my feet lurched downward, carrying me into the depths of the newly-formed battlefield. The roar of the crowd faded until all I could hear was the rumble of machinery and my own steady breathing.
When the platform stopped, I stepped off and found myself in a dense forest zone—mist clinging to the undergrowth, sunlight piercing through the tall canopy above. I could hear the distant roar of waterfalls and the sound of snapping branches in the distance.
Then, over the loudspeaker, the announcer's voice boomed like thunder:
"WELCOME TO THE GAUNTLET OF SURVIVAL! 64 ENTER… ONLY 32 WILL LEAVE!"
His laughter echoed through the trees.
"COLLECT THREE EMBLEMS. KILL OR BE KILLED. YOUR CLOCK STARTS… NOW!"
A loud horn blared, and chaos erupted.
THE HUNT BEGINS
I crouched low immediately, scanning the treeline. "Three emblems," I muttered, checking my belt. Each of us had one. To move forward, we'd need to take them from others.
I darted forward, my boots silent against the mossy ground. My mana pulsed faintly beneath my skin, ready to be unleashed.
Within minutes, I found my first opponent—a tall man with twin axes strapped to his back. He spotted me instantly, his lips curling into a savage grin.
"Guess I found my first victim!" he roared, charging straight at me.
I exhaled slowly. Too loud. Too predictable.
As his axe swung down, I sidestepped, twisting my body and slamming my elbow into his ribs. He grunted, stumbling, but swung wildly again. I drew my short blade and parried, sparks flying in the misty air.
"Fast little one," he growled, "but not fast enough!"
I smirked beneath my mask. "Oh, you think so?"
I channeled mana into my legs—a sharp burst of speed—and blurred behind him, my blade pressed against his throat. "You're too slow."
His eyes widened just as I slashed upward, clean and sharp. He collapsed, lifeless, his emblem clattering into my hand.
"One down," I murmured.
The forest echoed with screams and steel. Explosions rang out in the distance—someone in the Ruins zone was clearly having fun with magic.
Suddenly, an arrow whizzed past my ear.
I spun, spotting a lithe woman perched in the branches, her bow glowing with green light. She smirked. "Nice mask, little boy. Shame I'll have to break it."
She loosed three arrows in rapid succession.
I dashed sideways, weaving through the trees, her shots grazing past me. My blade pulsed with mana as I flicked it upward—electricityburst forth, attacking her next volley midair.
Her smirk faltered. "Electricity?"
I thrust my hand forward. "That's not all."
I burst from my position, dashing toward her at impossible speed. She panicked, firing at me—but the arrows passed straight past me as I vanished.
In that instant of confusion, I appeared behind her, cold steel pressed to her back. "Rule one," I whispered. "Don't aim for shadows."
One quick slash later, her emblem was mine.
The battlefield was thinning fast.
I moved deeper into the zone, my senses sharp. The mist was thicker now, muffling sound, and faint shadows moved in the distance. I crouched low, hiding near a fallen log.
Then a massive explosion shook the earth. I turned sharply toward the cliffside zone in the distance, where a huge ice shard sculpture ripped across the sky.
Astrid appeared through the mist, landing lightly on a nearby branch. "Jay's there," she said coldly. "And he's making a mess of things."
We rushed toward the cliffside zone, climbing over jagged rocks and scaling steep ledges until we reached the source.
And there he was.
Jay stood alone on the cliff, surrounded by five downed fighters, his ice-cold aura still crackling around his fists. His calm, cold gaze locked on a lone survivor trembling before him.
"Pick it up," Jay ordered, his voice sharp as frost.
The fighter scrambled for his weapon, hands shaking, before Jay vanished in a blur. CRACK! A streak of ice shards struck, and the man was sent flying with multiple shards in his chest—unconscious, emblem rolling away.
Jay calmly picked it up, his icy aura fading slightly.
"Damn," Astrid muttered beside me. "He doesn't even break a sweat."
I watched silently, my grip tightening around my blade. Jay's precision… his power… there was no wasted movement. I couldn't help but feel a chill down my spine.
He turned slightly, his gaze flicking to us. For just a second, our eyes met. His face remained unreadable, but his power spoke for itself.
This wasn't just a tournament anymore. It was a hunt.
Before we could even catch our breath, the ground beneath us shifted—a trap! Vines erupted upward, wrapping around my legs, yanking me toward the trees.
"Ambush!" Astrid shouted, leaping back.
A man cloaked in serpent tattoos emerged, wielding dual blades coated in poison. His grin was wide, unhinged.
"Three for the price of one!" he cackled.
I channeled mana into my core, breaking the vines by binding my legs.
The guy's poison blades were flying towards me, so I blocked them with my sword, while Astrid's feints kept him off balance. I seized my chance, forming an electricity spear and launching it toward his chest.
The spear struck, his arm mid-swing. Astrid lunged, slicing deep across his ribs. He stumbled, blood spraying—
Then Jay appeared behind him in a blur, his icy fist striking the back of his skull.
The serpent man collapsed instantly.
I picked up his emblem—the third one. My belt now glimmered with all three.
"Three emblems," I muttered, exhaling sharply. "I'm done."
"But I guess we're all are."
Astrid nodded once, wiping her blade clean. "Then Phase 3 is over for us."
Jay said nothing, only glancing toward the looming arena gates.
But I couldn't shake the unease gnawing at me.
BENEATH THE ARENA
Far below, in the hidden underground, ??? stood over another victim. His cloak was drenched in fresh blood, his sharp teeth glinting in the torchlight as he walked to the trembling, bound figure.
He sank his claws into the victim's chest, blood spilling across the ritual circle.
Above him, the muffled cheers of the crowd shook the ceiling.
??? licked his lips, grinning wide.
"Yes," he whispered. "Phase 4 will be the harvest. And then… the Demon King will rise."