MMORPG: The Elementalist

The chances of a Tier 5 Bandit surviving the enormous chaotic battle inside the spacious Purge Tower was considerably high, especially when the fight boiled down to the last few survivors.

However, some were extremely unlucky, as in the case of Cub.

Although he had avoided contact with anyone earlier and waited tolerantly until only two last enemies were left, he was rather unfortunate that his two enemies were being very cautious and shrewd.

After he saw the two numbers in the air, something hit his brain hard. He abruptly realized an important fact that he, or perhaps most players, had neglected.

Player count.

Last Man Standing Contest had a fixed amount of players in each Purge Tower.

One hundred.

Regardless if the player was killed or quit the game midway, its body will be retained inside the tower. If one kept count of the corpses, he or she could definitely get a hold of the actual number of surviving contestants at any time.

For sure, it was not an easy task to keep count in the midst of a muddled fight. Most players wouldn’t even think of such troubling matters in times like that.

But Cub happened to encounter two of them who would—Slayer’s Heart and Death Jesus.

After recognizing each other’s identity, the two nemeses unexpectedly came to the same decision. They would leave no one behind to reap the benefits of their deathmatch.

They counted the number of corpses from the vantage point and reached the sum of ninety seven. This indicated the existence of another survivor.

“…” Cub voluntarily walked out from his hiding spot before the two winged players tried to track him. He had no other choice after his cover was blown. He couldn’t avoid them forever and did not have a means to assassinate a target hovering in the air. So he saved everyone’s time by revealing himself to them.

As he paced out, Cub silently summoned his Pet, a Level 50 Elite Tier Phantom Skeleton. He then tried to make eye contact with Death Jesus who was in the air.

A hidden signal to his compatriots. ‘Take out Slayer’s Heart from the rival faction first, then we will decide the winner between us.’

It was too bad for Cub as the two Winged Champions were only slightly startled. Then, Death Jesus did not hesitate and directly dived toward him.

He released a poison fog followed by six consecutive dark arrows in quick succession. His split second, merciless response stunned Cub. The latter was killed quietly before he could even move a finger.

“Death Jesus!” Cub’s face turned purplish when he walked out from the Sin City Resurrection Circle. He did not expect Death Jesus’ hostile gesture.

‘Very well. I will not hold back the next time we meet,’ Cub cursed discontentedly. He re-entered the Purge Tower filled with fury.

***

Flop!

Cold bodies dropped to the ground but the winner was not immediately relieved.

Ten skirmishes. Five deceased.

Six remainders in the tower where Qin Ruo was could almost taste the great tension that manifested inside the tower after another round of skirmishes had just ended.

Five of Qin Ruo’s opponents regrouped on the spot. They were resetting their Tier 5 cool-down time while replenishing HP and MP lost in the previous battle. None of them let their guard down because they knew the next one would only be viler and more exhausting.

They remained on high alert with their battle poises maintained. As soon as there was a movement, all of them were ready to retort.

Qin Ruo turned to the only Winged Warrior among the five victors.

Noodle Prince was still in the mix. He was the first who came out victorious and was now sizing up his enemies with the eyes of a hunter.

The next second, the black bear resting alongside him suddenly lifted its giant butt and peered at the nearest Summoner with its jumbo eyes. The bear made a low groan and dashed abruptly toward the Summoner.

‘Great catch.’ Qin Ruo complimented in his mind.

Although the opponent was his competitor and even more so, a Demon Faction player, Qin Ruo couldn’t help to praise the player’s battle instinct and great timing.

Despite being the first to walk out alive from the previous battle, he made a wise choice not to immediately jump on the Summoner.

If he released the bear before restoring its HP, he would only become others’ prey even if he did finish off his target this round.

Summoner had his match after being targeted by the Winged Warrior. The ones left were Qin Ruo, a Berserker, a Terramancer, and a Shadow Priest.

Qin Ruo did not move. He waited and saw the Terramancer initiate an approach toward the Berserker with its pet—a Wind-Type Elemental Ape. The Berserker was nearly killed in his previous battle. The Terramancer must have seen through the Berserker’s weak point and decided to utilize it.

‘So my final opponents will be the Terrarmancer and the Winged Warrior.’ He thought about it and turned his calm gaze on the last player who paced toward him carefully.

An Elementalist lookalike. A Dark Priest. The underdog that had staged an uproar.

Qin Ruo witnessed the whole process. This was his second surprise after entering the Purge Tower.

The opponent of the Shadow Priest was an authentic Shadowmancer. It was a little mind-boggling for a Tier 5 Shadowmancer to lose to a Tier 5 Dark Priest. It was understandable for both of them to have high resistance against Dark-Type damage, but to see the Priest without a Barrier being defeated by the well-protected Shadowmancer was rather outstanding. This feat was even achieved without involving Pets.

Perhaps Qin Ruo was the only one who knew his secret.

Maybe the Tier 5 Bandit saw through it too, if he or she did pay attention to the details.

‘But too bad for you, you won’t be able to cheat death even if you have a rare Defense Ignoring Spell.’

Qin Ruo showed no mercy the moment the Shadow Priest entered his domain with a Pet.

Three deadly Ice Core immersed into the Summoner’s body at a casting speed close to that of a Wind-Type Spell.

No Priest would be able to withstand this ultimate by Qin Ruo using only Elemental Halo and non-Barriers to shield themselves. Thousands of blood droplets rushed to their skin’s surface and burst through the Summoner’s bodies from their insides.

***

‘Restraint. I must exercise self-restraint.’ Xin Yu reminded herself repeatedly while watching the fierce battle quietly from a corner outside the battlefield.

There were only six enemies left in her arena.

Xin Yu had followed Fateless and Qin Ruo’s battle strategy religiously all the way up till this point. She tried to bury herself at a place not very far from the battlefield, yet not near it enough to be entangled in a fight.

Many times, Xin Yu felt that she could totally take down her enemies with ease if she launched an attack.

But she opted not to do it. Not even when there were a lot of subpar players struggling in a boring entanglement in front of her. She patiently avoided from being exposed or noticed.

With her Elemental Camouflage and Stealth being maintained constitutively, she was waiting for the perfect moment for her to take over.

Most probably, Xin Yu herself had not recognized that she had already possessed the quality and patience an excellent Bandit would have.

This was because all her focus was currently emphasized on the final six contestants. She had theirs and their Pets’ info rehearsed in her mind, as well as the most effective way to instant-kill them.

Xin Yu had full confidence to eliminate five out of the six survivors with help from Little Eye, even though one of them was only an adequately powered winged Warrior.

After all, she had been observing in the dark for more than twenty minutes now. Without being disturbed, she managed to perform a detailed analysis of these players’ strengths and weaknesses, their Pets’ abilities, as well as the range of their Attack and Defense.

However, she was unsure about the final piece of the puzzle—the Aquamancer.

It was not because the Aquamancer had done anything in particular. In fact, it was the opposite that concerned her. During her twenty minute long observation, the Aquamancer had only fought twice. Once was an ambush that did not tell of his true abilities; while the other was when he was being blocked from her vision and did not really exhibit any magnificent skills.

She was especially uneasy to see the Aquamancer isolating himself with six Frost Ramparts from the start. This triggered her instincts, making her believe that the Aquamancer, just like her, was quietly observing every inch of movement and every single creature inside this Purge Tower.

She could not shake off the odd sense of danger. That was why she was specifically vigilant against the Aquamancer.

This state of unrest reminded her about the “instinct” Fateless had once told her about.

A Bandit’s instinct.

That’s how Fateless put it.

For an excellent Bandit, sneaking was the basic, assassinating was the essence, while insight was a must have.

A Bandit must have the ability to tell the strength of the opponent, to learn of their abilities and figure out their weaknesses swiftly, so that the target could be killed instantly from their most vulnerable opening.

But beyond all that, was an even more important trait.

Instinct!

“If the enemy was overpowered and did not show any signs of vulnerability after a long period of observation…”

“Or if the enemy frightened you to a point that makes you start doubting, then you should rely on your instinct instead. Continue to observe, yes, but also be prepared to abort any time.”

Xin Yu could not really grasp this concept of “instinct” when Fateless first told her about it.

But now, as luck would have it, Xin Yu finally understood how it felt.

The unexplainable intuition was especially prominent after the Aquamancer exploded into action and killed the Shadow Priest in a matter of seconds. The battle ended before the opponent could manage a response. Xin Yu was enthused by what she witnessed and a voice sprang in her mind.

‘Veteran Champion! I have come across a Veteran Champion.’