-chapter seventy-nine-
____________________

FEYRE

"She burned all her flames."

NAKATANGA AKO kay Hex. I could feel my body vibrating in anxiousness. What does that mean? Tangina, bakit ba ang cryptic nang soro na 'to.

"A-Anong ibig sabihin no'n? Mamamatay na ba si Sol? Pero, okay lang din kasi mare-resurrect naman siya? At may spare HP pa siya kaya hindi pa siya mamamatay!" I gasped. "O-m-g. Don't tell me this fucking guardian made some spell and now Sol can't participate?! Oh my god! Oh my-"

I stopped when Hex smacked me again. Sinamaan ko siya ng tingin na siguradong makakapatay sa kaniya nang sampung beses.

"Kumalma ka nga." aniya.

Nalaglag ang panga ko. "KALMA?! KALMA?! GUSTO MONG KUMALMA AKO HABANG HINDI NA GUMAGALAW SI SOL SA-"

"It's nothing bad," he sighed. Akala mo naman problema niya na ang world peace kung makabuntong-hininga. "Solace just burned up. She lost all her strength and energy so she's sleeping and regaining?"

Naningkit ang mata ko sa patanong niya. "Hindi ka sure?"

I cursed when he smacked my forehead. "She's okay, you dummy. Just used up all her strength and it'll take a few minutes before she's done regenerating it."

O... kay? "So bakit hindi ka na lang tumulong na magregenerate? Hindi ba priest ka?"

"I can only help with your HP, MP, and Energy. The rest, nope."

Tiningnan niya ako nang ilang minuto akong hindi sumagot. He looked at me, curious, but it later formed into a frown when he realized my thoughts. My eyes had something akin to pity while my real thoughts are: useless.

"Aray! Aray! Bakit- ow- totoo naman, ano pa ang silbi mo kapag naburn out kami diba- aray- kung hindi ka makakatulong- ouch!" maiyak-iyak kong reklamo.

"I'm a support, you stupid cat! I help with debuffing and healing you continuously while you're in a tight spot!" he huffed. "Besides, this doesn't happen often."

Maiyak-iyak kong hinimas ang ulo kong saan niya ako binatukan. Of course, drama lang ang tears ko para hindi niya na ulitin. Pero, talagang ang sakit, wengya.

"Anong ibig mong sabihin?"

He opened up his mouth to answer but a shout stopped him from talking. Pinigilan ko ang pag-ikot ng mata. Ilang beses na bang naputol ang mga usapan ko ngayon. Bakit ba ang pangit ng timing ng mga players dito? Is that part of the character requirements? Be an expert in bad timing.

"Hey!" parang gusto kong sunugin ng buhay ang amo ni Cerberus. "Tapos na ba kayong magmuni-muni diyan, mga lovebirds? Tumanda na ako, wala pa kayo."

"Sana hinintay mo na lang na namatay ka na." sagot ko sa kaniya at naunang maglakad.

Si Hex na ang bahala kay Sol, hindi ko keri ang bigat no'n. Her sword weighs more than my problem since childhood.

"My spirit will still haunt you."

"I'll hire an exorcist."

"Just use Hex. He's a priest." nakangisi na ang walanghiyang Voldmir ngayon.

"He can't even heal Sol."

Isang napakalakas na buntong-hininga sa likod ang narinig ko. I'm shocked na hindi pa ako nito inihip palayo.

"For the last time," ni-massage ni soro ang temple niya para bang stressed siya. "She's not dying. She just lost all her strength and it'll take a few minutes for her to regain it."

"What does that mean po?" tanong ni Minerva na sobrang laki nang mata. I clapped a couple of times in front of her and she only slapped my hands away.

Tsk. Mga walang respeto.

"It's an attribute side-effect. You know how we have defense, strength and perception points right?" tumango kami na parang mga good students. "Well, those can also be converted into magic power. A weapon in S class and higher star rating can do that. For fighters, they can use their SP and convert it into MP temporarily to deal a lot of damage in elemental attacks. Tanks can also convert their defenses like how rogues can with their dexterity."

"I can do that too?!" excited kong tanong.

I'm really gonna use that when I'm on the main game! That'll make things even more fun! Panay ang ngiti ko dahil sa excitement na nararamdaman. Kaya naman medyo na-offend ako nang tingnan ako ni soro na para bang alam niya ang plano ko.

"Ang converted points ay babalik then after the battle or for a certain amount of time. Let's say you converted 20 points of your strength into 200 magic power, it'll take about 5 minutes to regain your points. The worse thing is when the player burns out or uses all their attribute points because you'll temporarily lose that attribute. Look at Sol, who used up all her SP, and has no strength left in her body. Aside from feeling great exhaustion, her attributes doesn't align so she's incapable of standing or waking up until she regains about 5% of her SP."

We stared at soro in silence. Blue Rockstar kept on blinking at parang nawala na siya sa Earth sa pag-intindi sa sinabi ng soro. Gano'n din si Priamos na hindi na kumain dahil nakatanga na lang kay soro. I'm a hundred percent sure Voldmir stopped listening since Hex started spewing converted points.

Basta ako, ang naintindihan ko lang ay masama ang consequences pero super thrilling kaya i-t-try ko talaga!

AND WHEN I thought Sol had it worse, I had to see Vesta.

"Pusa!" saway ni soro sa'kin. "Tumigil ka nga! Ang ingay mo!"

Hindi ko siya pinansin at nagpatuloy sa malakas na pagtawa. Alam kong ilang beses na kaming pinagtitinginan ng mga tao dito sa diner at ilang warning na rin ang lumabas sa harap ko. That they'll kick us out because we're disturbing the peace. Ayun napasigaw ako kung may peace pa ba dito, eh wala namang rules ang continent na 'to.

Hinampas ko ang mesa sa sobrang saya. Tangina, I can feel the tears prickling on my eyes.

"S-Si Vesta- HAHAHAHAHA!"

"Oo, kita namin." walang-interes na wika ni Voldmir.

"Ate Feyre, huwag po kayong masyadong maingay. Masakit pa po ulo ni Ate Solace." mahinahong pakiusap ng mabait na kapatid ni soro kaya naman I kept quiet.

I glanced at Solace who looked like a beautiful hell. She regained a bit of consciousness kanina pero natulog ulit. I bet she's just messing with the profiles and the game site for now, and keeps on messaging us.

Iniwas ko ang tingin sa kaniya at napahagalpak sa tuwa nang makita ang itsura ni Vesta. The girl was an absolute mess. Parang pumasok siya sa labing-pitong gyera at natamaan ng bomba sa bawat isa. Her hair is messy and sticking on all ends. There are also ashes and poison remnants everywhere. Her face is greasy and ashen, blood trickling down her lips. Sirang-sira ang damit niya at lu-lumpo-lumpo pa siya kanina.

Natigil ako sa pagtawa nang ilagay ni soro sa bibig ko ang isang tinapay. I munched on it tiredly, resting my chin on one hand.

"Thank you." pasalamat ng ama ni Cerberus kay soro dahil pinatahimik ako.

I rolled my eyes. Lol, akala naman nila. Ni hindi na nga ako nasasayahan do'n.

"I know she looks like she just survived hell just now-" panimula ni Hex.

Vesta blinked. "I did."

"-but she met and befriend two Warbeast rangers, unlike you who-"

Hindi ko na narinig ang susunod na sinabi ni soro dahil nakuha niya na ang atensiyon ko. Specifically, him saying that Vesta has befriended the Warbeast? Haha, mukhang kailangan ko nang linisin ang eardrums ko. Surely, I didn't hear it right. Surely, Vesta didn't befriend our mortal enemies?!

"I'm sorry?" may pilit na ngiti sa mukha ko.

Hex sputtered. "Ha? Sorry ka saan?"

"Sa sinabi mo kanina."

"I said, you made such a huge mess in your-"

"Hindi!" I screeched. Bakit ba se-sermonan niya pa ako? "I mean, 'yong tungkol kay Vesta."

"Anong tungkol sa'kin?" tanong ni Vesta.

"True nga." singit nang ever-kuryosang si Minerva. "Ano po ang tungkol kay Ate Vesta?"

Sinamaan ko sila ng tingin. "Kaya nga pinauulit ko 'di ba? Kung alam ko, 'di sana hindi na ako magtatanong?"

Tumingin ulit ako kay soro na nakasimangot. My gosh! I'm so stressed! Bakit ba ang hirap nilang i-recall ang tungkol sa paggawa ni Vesta ng frienship sa mga mortal enemies namin?

That ugly name will neverbe uttered by my pretty lips.

[Oddcredibles]
guildchat • active 2 min ago

Lvl52.Solace
She meant Vesta befriending the Warbeast players
Ewan ko at bakit parang may bad blood na naman siya doon

Lvl51.Hex
What's wrong with befriending them?

Lvl53.Feyre
YOU TRAITOR!!!!
I KNEW THIS FROM THE MOMENT THAT YOU DECLINED TO HEAL SOL
YOU'RE A SPY

Lvl51.Hex
I TOLD YOU I CAN'T HEAL HER BECAUSE SHE LOST HER FUCKING SP, DAMMIT

Lvl55.Avi
Lmao. Ano naman nangyari sa inyo?
And if someone's a spy here, shouldn't it be you, Feyre?
Dahil rogue ka?

Lvl53.Feyre
Uh....
Can't you feel the loyalty that is practically radiating from me?!
Anyway, it's not the point!
THE POINT IS VESTA IS FRIENDS WITH OUR MORTAL ENEMIES

Lvl52.Solace
Lol. Bahala kayo diyan

"Anong mortal enemies pinagsasabi mo diyan, Feyre?" nakasimangot na tanong ni Voldmir.

I leaned closer to them and spoke in a hushed voice. "It's what I meant. They're our mortal enemies. Gusto lang nila tayong makitang matalo at mawala ang guild natin sa records ng Arth. They have this ugly passion to destroy us."

"Did you stay up all night watching dramas again?" naningkit ang mata ni Hex.

"No! I didn't! I was just-" natigilan ako nang makita ko ang panibagong mukha sa gilid. "AHHH! PUTANGINA MAMATAY KA NA!"

The newcomer held a hand to her chest, as if hurt. Kaya naman talagang kinuha ko ang chaindagger at itinusok sa puso ko, iyon lang nadeflect niya ito.

"Hindi ba't friends tayo, Feyre?" at may gana pang mag-puppy eyes ang buhay na sana'y namatay na lang.

"You're pissed at Vesta for befriending another guild while you're totally flirting with this one too." Hex hissed and glared at me.

Ngumiwi ako. Anong pinuputok ng isang 'to. At isa pa sinong nagsabing friends kami nang Life na 'to. Mga assumero.

"Pinagsasabi mo?" sagot ko sa kaniya pero inirapan niya lang ako.

Ay, taray.

"What happened to her?" hindi na ako nagulat nang dumating si Mitsubishi at umakbay kay patay. Itinuro niya si Sol.

[Oddcredibles]
guildchat • active 4 min ago

Lvl52.Solace
Please tell them I reached Zen.

"Nahawakan niya na daw si Zen." sagot ko.

"Huh?"

[Oddcredibles]
guildchat • active 20 sec ago

Lvl52.Solace
Really
ㄴㅡㄴ

"Nasaan mga guild leader niyo?" may distaste sa boses ni Voldmir.

"Somewhere~" sagot ni Subaru at may pasipol-sipol pang nalaman.

"Bakit nandito kayo?" tanong naman ni Hex.

Kumunot ang noo ko. Twenty questions ba 'to?

"Ah, I- we just really wanna see if Feyre got out dahil nawala na lang siya kanina. And they're starting to send confirmation mail for players who succeeded in the preliminary quest too."

Lumigaya ang mukha ko sa sinabi ni Life. Mukhang nabuhayan din bigla ang grupo, lalong-lalo na nang gumising si Sol at nagsimulang tumingin sa mail niya nang hindi kami pinapansin. Inilagay ko sa harap niya ang pagkaing inorder ni Vesta.

Kagaya niya ay tiningnan ko din ang mail ko at ilang ulit ni-refresh iyon. After about a million refreshes, a new message came in.

▪▪▪

[System Message]

Dear Feyre, Chainmaster, this mail confirms your completion of the preliminary quest for the [Survival] category in the event [Blood Brawls]. Your statistics in the quest is shown below:

Damage Acquired: 4,059
Damage Dealt (monsters): 23,846
Damage Dealt (players): 6,195
Monsters Killed: 409
Damage Points:
Accumulated: 57,915
Deductions: 10,662
Total: 47,253

You are ranked number 5 in the Rogue Leaderboard! Congratulations, player!

If you have received deductions, be aware that they are from the rules broken, and forbidden spells used inside. The player, Feyre, has been detected to use ranger-powered bombs, scout-hunting traps for players (you are only free to use monster ones) and for exiting the room before the timer ended. The player was also reported for starting fights, disturbing peace and using foul language.

Please refer to our [Blood Brawls: Survival Rules and Regulations] to be updated. We hope that you will follow the proper guidelines.

Rewards have been sent to your bag.

Welcome to the Blood Brawl, player. May you survive.

▪▪▪

"Oh, wow." sambit ni Irusu. Napatingin kaming lahat sa kaniya. "Feyre's at the top 5 of our leaderboard. Nice! Kailangan mo na lang nang 10k points para maabutan si Warbeast na number one."

Unti-unting nawala ang ngiti sa labi ko. "Huh?"

"Well, he has fifty-seven thousand points so..."

Napatingin ako sa damage points ko at napamura. Tanginang deductions 'to!

Soro smirked. "I'll make a guess. I'm pretty sure Feyre's previous points are closer to that Warbeast guy but she suffered deductions because..."

"Feyre is Feyre and she will not let any event go by without breaking some rules." sabay-sabay na wika ng mga pretty guildmates ko na akala mo naman ay sobrang funny na nila no'n.

I tsked and murdered my pumpkin pie.

Soro shifted beside me and I glanced at him. Sinundan ko ang tingin niya at nakatitig siya sa tali na nakapalibot sa baywang ni Life. I raised my brow.

"Wait," he stopped Life from bidding goodbye and walking away. "Iyang rope. Hindi ba kay Feyre 'yan?"

Tumigil si Life at Irusu. I started to sweat, cold.

"Ang tali?"

"Oo," ngayon ang ama naman ni Cerberus ang nagsalita. May masama akong nakikita sa mata niya. "Ginagamit niya 'yan kapag naghu-hunt kami."

Life looked at me with betrayal. "But you said this was Irusu's? And you're one hundred percent sure that it's-"

"Wait!" sigaw ko at pinalaki pa ang mata. Sa gilid ng mata ko ay nakita ko ang pagngisi ni Sol. "Bakit parang nagpa-panic si Cord at Aisling?"

Thankfully, nakuha no'n ang atensiyon mula sa'kin, kaya as discreetly as I can, I shifted away from the two rogues, climbing over soro's lap to hide myself behind him. He only glanced at me curiously, and helped me change seats, hand holding my waist tightly.

"Sol!" sigaw ni Cord. "Have you seen the forum?! It's currently exploding because you killed the guardian which we aren't supposed to kill!"

____________________
-chapter end-