-chapter eighty-five-
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VESTA

'Biglang may humatak sa'kin and instead of seeing four enraged NPC, a familiar lazy smile graced my eyes.'

NAGPAPUTOK AKO ng dalawang beses.

Adimus staggered back and looked at me with disappointment. Itinaas ko ang rifle mula sa tiyan papunta sa leeg, the blade tracing each fabric and skin.

"How unexpected, Vesta. I've always viewed you as a non-violent person." maarte niyang hinawakan ang puso. "You've wound me. Figuratively and literally."

"We're enemies." inosente kong sagot.

"I know! But I just saved you!"

Binalingan ko ang grupo ng papalayong NPC. "I could have handled them."

I have plenty of life to spare and I still have some potions to use. I can find some escape and kill them afterwards.

Adimus leaned backwards and lazily scanned my equipments. He's not even trying to heal his wounds. Nakakadistract ang nagdudugo niyang tiyan.

Ilang minuto kaming nagkatitigan. I actually want to go already, pero kanina niya pa binubuka ang bibig na parang may sasabihin. Pero ilang minuto na kaming nakatayo dito ang he's showing no signs of talking!

I also don't want to start the conversation. First, I have nothing to say. And second, I don't want us to talk at the same time.

Awkward 'yon.

Kaya naman unti-unti nalang akong umatras. Patuloy lang ang pagsunod niya sa galaw ko, hanggang sa hindi ko na siya tuluyang makita. I grimaced. Why is he so weird?

Umiling ako. Why are players who are of higher rank so damn weird? Parte ba 'yon ng requirements nila?

Ikinasa ko ang baril at muling naglakad. The moon's presence is a bit dim but there's enough light in these woods. The map told me that I'm at the eastern south district, and the forest is at the center of the eastern north and south. Which means na pwede ko ding madaanan ang main street na nasa harap ng building ko kanina.

The advantage of using the forest is minimizing my presence in the city. It also serves as a good hiding place for people who are wounded or dying. It's also the best place for snipers.

The disadvantage is the higher-level players with more stealth that are hiding in the forest as well. Most of them are just waiting here to kill already dying players or to steal items. There's also the matter of fewer NPCs in here, and keeping the kill count higher is next to impossible.

But then, I'm a sniper so I just have to find a good spot.

Pinilit kong itago ang presensiya sa buong paghahanap. There are already a lot of wounded players seeking refuge and their predators are just hiding behind trees, waiting for the perfect time to kill. My perception helps with finding out their locations. At tsaka, it's always been an understated fact, na higher stealth usually have lower perception.

Well, unless you're some rogue who knows how to balance their attribute set right.

For rangers, we prioritize in our perception of danger. The sensor helps us scan for the perfect spot to place ourselves, lalo na't rangers are one of the jobs with the lowest HP. Hindi kami kasing durable ng tanks o kasing palaban ng mga fighters. Mages, even though soft, have a lot of stun skills kaya medyo mahirap din silang makuha.

Rangers, however, rely on their damage. Kaya every step and movement we make matters.

Tiningnan ko ang malaking kahoy sa harapan. Malapit lang siya sa main street, pero hindi gano'n kakita. A few bigger trees stands before it. May mga vines na nakapalibot sa puno, from the roots up to the branches. I heaved a deep breathe and began climbing.

Hinubad ko ang mini coat nang makararing sa taas. Using the rifle blade, I cut a line from the fabric. Itinali ko ito sa tiyan ko at sa vine na nakuha. I tried pulling it to test its strength before jumping down the tree branch.

The wind pushed through my hair as I fell. I spinned in the air until I reached the middle and the vine stopped. Agad kong pinuwesto ang baril sa right arm ko. I'm hanging in the air, lying on my back. Ang malambot na fabric ang nagpapakomportable sa posisyon ko and from here I can see everything in the main street.

All the NPC. All the players.

It's a feast.

And I'm ready to eat.

"Check targets. Far right, beside the bench, left bench, the middle of the street two."

Five targeting circles appeared on each of the NPCs head. Beside it, a holographic square appeared showing their vital signs and NPC type. It confirms my theory of the different NPCs present in this game.

"Load bullets of silence. Start scan for similar faces and auto shot."

"Scanning starting... NPC Type C, Harmless Bunny acquired for auto-shooting. To disable, delete command."

The bullet interface loading has completed. Natapos na rin ang pagscan sa input command, kaya nagsimula nang lumitaw ang mga targeting circles sa bawat Type C NPC na nakikita sa scope.

My fingers twitched and I clicked the trigger. Five NPCs were the first to be dined. Bigla na lang silang natumba at sunod-sunod nang NPC ang namamatay.

The continuous assault have also gathered the attention of nearby players. Dahil bigla silang tumingin sa kung saang direksiyon nanggagaling ang mga bala.

"Load hyperactive bullets. Load illusion bullets. Direction changed to southern west and central north. Activate Multi-Bullet skill."

Patuloy pa rin ang pag-auto target ng baril ko. My skill and the loaded bullets made my location vague. Ngayon, the players at the main street will perceive bullets coming from every direction rather than one.

Tumingin ako sa kill count. Thirteen minutes left and I already have 192 kills. Hindi dito pinapakita ang kill count board kaya walang may alam kung sino ang leading at sino ang hindi.

I suppose everything in my end will go smoothly if no one knows my locatio-

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the weirdos with their cheap tricks."

Isang napakapamilyar na boses ang nagsalita sa taas ko. Before I knew it, the vines supporting me were already gone and I fell flat on the ground.

I turned around just in time for Chaska to land in the ground and push her arrow close to my face. It's so weird to see her clean golden outfit in the dirty sorroundings. And with her eyes glowing with rigor, no less. She's such a different person once in the battlefield.

Maybe that's why she's one of the people who wrecks havoc in the ranking board.

"I see you've been trying some pesky skill. That terrible looking warrior really raised you so bad, huh?" may pait niyang wika. "I really don't see why people are so fond of her. She's just another player. What's so special about her? Her white hair? Her elf ears?"

Chaska began to trace the tip of her blade at the side of my face.

"Pretty. But not as pretty as me," halos mabuwal ako sa sinabi niya. "Really, what were you expecting to do with your theatrics, sniper?"

"Sniper are meant to be above-"

She slightly slapped the arrow on my mouth. "Uh-uh. I'm not asking you."

I scowled mentally. Is she crazy? She was asking me what I was doing and now she's saying ayaw niya nang sagot ko? Ano bang nakain nitong mga top players na 'to.

I glanced at the bomb bullet deployment status. Nasa 70% pa lang ito kaya mas kahit ayaw ko, I'd entertain Chaska and her narrations.

Bigla siyang umayos ng upo at pinosisyon ang bow. The blade of the arrow was just an inch from my face. Her eyes are already screaming murder and when she was about to let it go, a red alarm blazed through the whole forest, stopping her actions.

"Dear Rangers! A special occasion will now start as our timer hits ten minutes! You are all given two minutes to find safe grounds in the city or there will be a surprise card waiting for you! I can't tell you what exactly but it's code red for danger! Your two minutes starts now! Safe hunting, rangers."

Napatingin sa'kin si Chaska pagkatapos no'n. Just in time for her to remember killing me, my bomb bullet preparation is completed and sumabog ito sa gitna namin. Triggering almost half of our HP because of the close impact.

Hindi na ako naghintay pa. I began running like the world is chasing me. I can feel Chaska following me but the chaos of the other players confused my location. At dahil hindi ko alam kung saan pupunta, I went straight for the building I spawned in.

The hall was a complete mess with the players killing each other for the safe ground. Mukhang nilalagay sila randomly with no precise location gaps.

"Siya! Siya siguro 'yong sniper mula kanina!" sigaw ng isa at itinuro ako.

"Sandali! Hindi ba't siya ang kasama noong fighter na maganda?"

"'Yong cheater ba?!" ikinasa nito ang baril. "Kaya naman pala kanina pa nawawala ang mga kills ko. Siguro, cheater ka din 'no?"

"Seriously? Your guild are just a bunch of cheating players? Wala na ba kayong hiya?"

Their loud outbursts gained the attention of many at marami na ang lumalapit sa'kin ngayon, each possessing their own weapon aimed at me. Patuloy akong umatras papunta sa direksiyon ng elevator. Maybe if I run quickly, they won't catch me?

Nahagip ng tingin ko ang main entry door ng building. The familiar golden locks appeared in my vision. Nakatayo si Chaska doon na may ngiti sa labi. Masayang masaya sa nangyayari.

I did a bad move looking up, because at the other building, Adimus is also staring at me. His eyes were unreadable at parang hinihintay lang ang susunod kong gagawin.

My eyes went back to the group of rangers in front of me, hungry for the kill. Among them, I can see Zharr. But he's not looking at me, instead, he's scanning the faces of the people around him like he's ready to fight in any moment.

Patuloy akong umatras dahil iniisip ko pa ang gagawin. Should I not have entered this game in the first place? Why do I keep messing it?

Patuloy sila sa pag-abante at ako sa pag-atras hanggang...

Hanggang sa biglang umiba ang paligid ko.

The large hall is gone and I'm now enclosed in the tight elevator shaft. Did I step into a teleportation buff spot or something? Napahawak ako sa railing ng bigla itong gumalaw. The elevator interface also began to light up, the numbers appearing. At halos maiyak ako nang makita na pababa ito.

Please don't tell me I teleported into the building's elevator and because I have terrible luck, it's going down towards the people who are itching to kill me.

Sana nga. Sana nga ibang building 'to.

But the amount of dangerous rangers I sense below is an indicator that I am still in the same building.

The clock struck at eight minutes and I still have no idea what that danger was. Biglang lumiwanag ang elevator ng asul, indicating it's a safe ground. A safe ground to be available when I arrived at the hall.

Tiningnan ko ang baril. There are a few minutes left and there are about fifty of them in the hall. I still have a lot of bullets to spare. There's a few minutes left and I refuse to go down without a fight.

Huminga ako ng malalim at tumingin sa taas. I flipped up and stuck the sole of my boots to the elevator roof. Inayos ko ang posisyon at hinanda ang baril. I'm always the most comfortable when I follow a bat's position. Mas nagiging maayos ang play ko.

The elevator showed that it will be opening as it reached the lowest floor. Mas lalong dumami ang amount ng presence sa labas ng door. I closed my eyes and heaved a deep breath.

And when the doors opened, my fingers began clicking trigger without fail, players dropping in all directions as a rain of lava fell in the city.

The timer stopped. 218 kills. I survived.

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-chapter end-

NEXT CHAPTER PREVIEW:

After the first day of the Blood Brawls, ano na ang nangyari sa miyembro ng mga Oddcredibles? Uhh... I actually received a report that an establishment was just caught on fire- SANDALI, SINO ANG MAY GAWA NITO?!

alternative: ubos na ang braincells ko sa battle scenes

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