The expressions of everyone could not be any weirder as they tried to comprehend and digest what they were seeing. The undead who were rushing out of the portal also slowed down as their bones rattled in dismay.
On the pitch, the 90 followers of Warm Spring were beaten, battered, and exhausted. It showed on their faces and on their bodies, as most of their pristine white robes were covered in blood or tar.
However, the humans themselves gave the crowd shock. Despite all their suffering, being cut, gnawed on, bashed, and punched, they were laughing. That's right, they were actually laughing.
Their eyes had widened to the limit, their pupils focused yet narrowed. Their lips were pulled apart as wide as possible, showing their pristine white teeth that were coasted with blood; whether theirs or not was unknown.
With such a visage, they screeched with laughter, laughter so high-pitched that it sounded like something one would hear from a banshee. All this while, they never stopped fighting back, so they wore this crazed expression while laughing… in the midst of fighting.
Naturally, this scene sent chill down the backs of the onlookers. One word came to their mind as they looked on: Fanatics!
Overzealous people who believed in a concept or symbol so strongly that their rational mind was overridden by their attachment. Clearly, this lot felt the same way about Warm Spring, so they were fighting for her honor while showing their true nature.
No matter how badly they got beaten, they fought back valiantly. The crowd also realized that despite the high number of enemies rushing at the zealots, they could One-hit KO everything. This kind of strategy was meant to work if they were fatigued, both mentally and physically if not one or the other.
However, Warm Spring's spell and skills were able to alleviate physical exhaustion while the craziness of her followers definitely negated mental fatigue. From their actions and looks, they could do this for days if so needed.
(Un)Fortunately, each match only lasted for up to 3 minutes, and 2 minutes had already passed. Realizing this, Dreary Traveler became serious. He waved his hand and recalled his undead to directly summon his 300 strongest undead warriors.
An assortment of Death Knights, Dread Knights, Skeleton Kings, and Wight Lords appeared on the field. Without wasting time seizing up their foes, they rushed into battle, aiming to cut the living down.
Unlike before, the zealots could no longer finish them with one hit, despite Dreary Traveler's Lich Aura passive making them suffer x3 damage from fire, lightning, or light element attacks.
The zealots were humans at the end of the day, ones wearing ceremonial worshiping robes instead of pieces of armor. Upon suffering the attacks of these undead powerhouses that were further boosted by Dreary Traveler's passive, they began losing health rapidly.
In the short span of 10 seconds, 20 zealots had died under their assault, although 125 of the strongest undead had also been killed by them. Still, suffering a loss for the first time made Warm Spring panic and she used a small-scale resurrection spell she had acquired that only worked on those in a situation similar to Combat Pets, Mounts, or the zealots.
This made Dreary Traveler become even more serious as he summoned another 300 of his elite undead to add to those still alive. They then began to pressure the remaining zealots even with Warm Spring continually infusing them with life.
She had long realized that victory was impossible, so the next best thing was to await a timeout. She could then leave everything to the AI assessment on who fought better, where she had a 50-50 chance to come out on top.
Seeing her plan, the fellow decided to end everything. He began to glow in an icy blue light as he activated his latest passive skill that gave him extra leeway in combat.
｢Body of Ice – Passive skill
Effect: The User has gained the true body of a Lich, able to muster both the Death element and the Ice element to which the ultimate lord of the undead is known for. You can now learn ice-based skills and techniques, as well as possess a 70% resistance to ice-element attacks.｣
Immediately, Dreary Traveler used the large-scale Ice spell, Blizzard!
A cold wind blew on the stage that grew in intensity per second. Eventually, the wind became so cold that shards of ice formed on the bodies of all those within, with the exception of Dreary Traveler who was highly immune to the Ice element, Warm Spring who was immune to everything that wasn't divine, and the undead who were free from friendly fire.
As for Warm Spring's zealots? They were not so lucky. Most of them were slowly shattering, the frostbite turning their extremities into ice mush. Even as their teeth chattered and their bodies fell apart, they never stopped laughing in that eerie way.
Some were even frozen into ice sculptures with that exact expression on their faces. Extremely unsettling.
Warm Spring could only watch this happen with a pale face, her lips trembling. In the end, she could only sigh and admit defeat, because there was no way for her to continue the fight at this point.
Trying to stall for the assessment would be a waste since she lost all her fighting force to Dreary Traveler. Who in the crowd would crown her the winner? Not to mention the AI would never do something so stupid.
She left the stage, downcast and shoulders slumped while Dreary Traveler basked in the cheers and praise from his fellow South Americans.
Fifth match winner: Dreary Traveler Wins!
Sublime came over to pat Warm Spring on the head, reassuring the lass who was all but ready to burst into tears. As for Dreary Traveler, when he finally came down, the other core members 'punished' him for making Warm Spring this upset by stabbing him in the heart or trying to end him with subtle spells.
Dreary Traveler only laughed at their antics, since they ended in futility as always. Thanks to his Undeath passive skill he was unkillable in a certain sense. The rest of the core members could only tsk in defeat.
6th Match: Alpha Male vs Great Caster!
Uno walked up the left side of the stage with a confident gait, the fans of Mexico giving him all the flow he needed. He looked to see a short loli climbing up the other side of the stage with an impassive expression, her actions also being celebrated by the Japanese in the crowd.
The two inspected each other then smiled. Uno was a Vanguard, with crazy defensive abilities and some passable offense, while Hera was an Arcanist, a powerful Legendary magic class that used hand signals and actual chanting to use spells, but had access to a lot more as a consequence.
｢Arcanist – Legendary Class
Skills: Mystra's Weave – Rank 3 (Passive), Arcane Energy (Passive), City of Light (Active), Speed Chant (Active), Anti-Magic Seal (Active), Arcane Barrier (Active), Blessing of the Arcanists (Passive), Arcane Knowledge (Passive).
Starting Stats: Str 10, Dex 10, End 10, Int 90, Spr 20, Cha 10, Lck 10
Exp gain rate: 70%
Rank up difficulty: 40%
Class weapons: Staff, Wand, Tome.
Class skills: Any AOE magic.｣
｢Mystra's Weave (Rank 3) – Passive skill
Effect: The User is able to access the network of spells contained within the magical weave belonging to the Goddess of Magic, Mystra. At Rank 3, you can access all spells up to level 5 of the 9 levels within the weave.｣
｢Arcane Energy – Passive skill
Effect: Due to the unique nature of your magic and your class, mana has been converted into Arcane Energy. The rate of regeneration and method of acquisition is the same as with mana, but Arcane Energy can only be used to power arcane spells.｣
｢City of Light – Active skill
Effect: Teleport from wherever you are right into the reception square of the City of Light, the legendary floating city for Arcanists. Your quality of treatment and access to knowledge and materials depends on your Rank.
Cooldown: 20 hours.｣
｢Speed Chant – Active skill
Effect: Using a special technique known to Arcanists, you are able to increase the speed of your chanting and hand signals when in combat. This reduces the amount of preparation need for all spells by 30%.
Duration: 10 minutes.
Cooldown: 30 minutes.｣
｢Anti-Magic Seal – Active skill
Effect: Using Arcane Energy, block all flow of mana within an area of 200 meters around the caster, preventing traditional mage classes from regenerating mana or using any spells for that duration.
Duration: 10 seconds
Cooldown: 5 minutes.｣
｢Arcane Barrier – Active skill
Effect: Using the purest Arcane Energy, form a golden barrier around your body that blocks all magical damage from traditional mages, 60% of magic damage frown non-traditional magic classes, and 50% physical damage from all sources.
Duration: 1.5 minutes
Cooldown: 8 minutes｣
｢Blessing of the Arcanists – Passive skill
Effect: As one of the few Arcanists in the world, you are privy to the legacy of the entire group. Arcanists of history reside within you, helping, blessing, and strengthening you at all times so that you may carry the banner forth into Infinitum. Your Arcane Energy reserves are increased by 50% and your arcane energy regeneration increased by 200%.｣
｢Arcane Knowledge – Passive skill
Effect: Possessing the knowledge of a full-fledged Arcanist, you are well versed in all the special skills and techniques that your group had developed over the millennia. Your spell casting speed is increased by 30%, and the power of your spells by 50%.｣
Her class was not to be trifled with. An Arcanist was a higher form of magic caster, above the traditional mage classes, which allowed Hera to restrict them in many ways. Her class also emphasized large-scale magic spell, or AOEs.
She definitely had some single-target spells, by those were all within Mystra's Weave and required time to chant. Only AOE spells she had learned through spellbooks were the usual instant cast, and since they were powered by Arcane Energy instead of mana, they were almost 50% stronger.
Still, when contrasted with Uno who was almost a God of Defense, one had to wonder if the AI really randomized these matchups. Uno perfectly countered someone like Hera who had high offense and cast AOEs.
If Hera had gone up against either Warm Spring or Dreary Traveler in the previous match, she would have obliterated them even if they had collaborated as they relied on followers or summons to win.
When the match was called to begin, Hera immediately began by activating her Arcane Barrier. She was a typical glass cannon, every single one of her stats had been invested into INT, which made her damage crazy, but her survivability not so much.
She naturally followed up with Speed Chant, which reduced her chanting time by 30%. When added to the Arcane Knowledge passive, it meant she had a 60% reduction in casting time overall.
Immediately, Hera accessed the level 2 weave and chose the spell Invisibility. She began chanting and making a few hand signals, a golden light wrapping around her as her Arcane Energy was infused into her words and movements.
Uno wasn't going to sit there and let her do as she pleased.
Tremor!
｢Tremor – Active skill
Effect: Stomp on the earth with all your might, unbalancing all enemies within a 3-mile radius and knocking up light enemies.
Cooldown: 22 hours.｣
He stomped on the ground and caused a minor fissure across the entire arena, which disturbed Hera's Arcane Barrier and sent her flying into the air. This inevitably disrupted her casting, making the impassive loli furrow her brow slightly.
She immediately selected a Rank 0 cantrip within the weave, Smokescreen. This took only a split second to cast with her current Rank and buffs, so the area around her was enveloped in a small vein of smoke that prevented Uno from seeing her.
Immediately, she followed up by selecting a level 1 spell that every Arcanist used in a hot situation, Magic Missile. It took only 1 second to cast at her current power, sending the attributeless bolt of Arcane Energy hurtling towards Uno.
The Vanguard harrumphed and stomped with his right foot and placed his Legendary shield Reinhold before him, pulling his hand back and swinging it across his body. Basically, Uno performed the motions of a deflection, and this knocked the magic missile hurtling toward shim away into the crowd.
The spell dissipated before it could reach anyone though, not to mention the arena was covered by a barrier. This feat made the crowd erupt in shock and excitement, while the faces of the crew members became solemn.
Hera was a professional FIVR player who had been in the world of games like this playing a mage class longer than all the Five Generals combined. With both of them having a Legendary Class to even the playing field, it began to show how the two were different in terms of skills, planning, and technique.
However, even though they both countered each other for in-game and meta reasons, Uno had something that Hera didn't, and that was experience. He had fought in life and death battles since he brawled in that alleyway, always looking for a good challenge.
As such, he could match up to Hera who only had experience in digital fighting.
Hera herself frowned slightly, but chose another spell in the weave. This time, she went for the level 2 Conjure Animal Familiar. This would require 3 seconds of casting at her current buffs, so she made use of the downtime.
Uno might not be able to see her directly, but he could sense her, just like how he was able to deflect her magic missile. As such, he knew that she was casting again, and he knew better than to allow her to complete her task.
Uno began by using the active skill of his shield, Shield Toss!
｢Active 1 – Shield Toss: Throw the item like a boomerang, dealing 200% blunt damage and stunning the target for 10 seconds. The Shield will return to the arm of the user. Cooldown: 4 minutes.｣
Uno tossed his shield out with one arm, the large slab of refined metal spinning in the air like a boomerang as it hurtled towards Hera. Since skills had a lock-on, Uno didn't need to see her to use it since she was his target and they were in combat.
Hera, within the smoke, felt a sense of danger upon her, and decided to cancel her spell casting and used her active skill, City of Light, to disappear from where she was. The shield then passed by where she stood in a blur then circled around and returned to Uno's arm.
Hera reappeared on the stage with a grimace, and decided to stop bothering with spells from the weave since they required time and Uno was too knowledgeable of her abilities due to being members of the same guild.
As such, she began using AOE spells she had accumulated for instances where she needed immediate firepower.
Explosive Wave!
｢Explosive Wave – Active skill
Effect: Channel intense Fire Energy into a point, allowing it to explode powerfully over the distance of 10 kilometers, dealing 110% fire damage to all enemies within range.
Cooldown: 20 minutes.｣
This was a Rare spell she had acquired from the Guild Shop. Acquiring Epic and above skills/spells outside of Epic/Legendary classes and Ranking up was very tough and expensive.
As such, her AOE was not the usual Area Zone-wide one that most core members of Umbra used, nor did they have extravagant damage percentages of 400% and above. Still, while humble, it was able to get the job done given her high magic damage.
Hera waved her hands, a cloud of fire gathering and compressing itself in the area in-between herself and Uno. If he wanted to minimize the damage, he would have to remain where he was and cover himself, which would give Hera enough time to chant a spell or two.
Due to its instantaneous nature, Uno had a very short period of time to consider how to respond compared to before. His mind whirred as he decided to go all out and take out this powerful caster lest she began to spit out spells that would increase her maneuverability and tempo.
Uno gritted his teeth as he relied on two of his passives for his next gamble, one from his class and the other from his shield.
｢Immovable Wall – Passive skill
Effect: All stuns, knockbacks and knock-ups are ineffective on the User. The User's base defense is magnified by 60% and their universal resistances are set to 90%.｣
｢Passive 2 – Engulf: All attacks that land on this shield have 10% of their damage absorbed. This damage can then be distributed as Health, Stamina for the User, or Durability points for the shield.｣
He had already spent the 10% he acquired from deflecting the earlier magic missile in increasing his health. This gave him a bit of extra HP that was placed atop his already present bar, offering Uno even more courage.
He then activated his only offensive active skill so far, Shield Charge!
｢Shield Charge – Active skill
Effect: Rush into the enemy with your shield braced, clearing a bloody path for your allies to follow as the vanguard. This knockbacks all enemies within the charge distance.
Cooldown: 22 hours.｣
Like a bull, Uno rushed through the arena, colliding with the now-forming spell that was extremely volatile. To the shock of everyone, including Hera, he ended up trapped in the middle of an explosion even worse than the one the spell would have created since it would have been more stable then.
Hera had to back away as the flames reached her, searing her skin even through her Arcane Barrier which was also about to dissipate since more than a minute had passed since the start of their battle.
What left everyone so shocked and horrified was that from the still spreading fire that was slowly weakening, a searing hot Uno ran out, his eyes bloodshot and his armor red hot as if he had been placed in a furnace.
When he reached where Hera stood, she had to cover her face because of the heat coming off Uno which felt like standing near a bonfire. The Vanguard then raised his red-hot bell hammer and struck down.
