Chapter 123 Duck!

--(3rd person POV)--

"Is this the right way?"

Tristan asked Miller with concern as they walked down a worn path in the Underworld.

He wasn't worried about himself, but about Miller.

The area in which they were walking was a hub for criminal activities in Underworld. Miller was weak and Tristan didn't want to meet Mr. Pepe to tell him that Miller was attacked in this area.

Tristan walked at the back of the group to guard them.

He looked at the strongest person in their group, the demi-human mage.

Tristan wanted her to protect the group along with him. But he didn't ask her after seeing her pale visage.

The mage was frightened about what was going to happen to her.

All of them had seen how brutally Nathan tortured Vile reaper. What was worse was that after torturing and killing, he acted as if nothing had happened.

The mage, having tried to kill Nathan earlier, was fearful of what her future held for her.

Tristan wasn't very worried, rather he was looking at his deal with Nathan in a positive light.

Physical capabilities similar to aura users, being able to cast magic spells, self-casting, and many diverse abilities.

Nathan had essentially proven that he was an Irregular.

Today, the world had seen the 5th Irregular. It wasn't wrong to say this was one of the biggest news of the decade.

Tristan thought Nathan might be able to fulfill his end of the deal. Moreover, joining the crew of an Irregular was an opportunity that he, as a professional gambler, wasn't going to miss.

Miller looked back at all of them and shook his head.

He could see the greed in Tristan's and the fear in the battle slaves' eyes.

He wanted to tell the battle slaves that Nathan wouldn't punish them for what the mage did. His leader had already told him to look after the mage properly, as she was special.

However, Miller kept his mouth shut. He believed that to settle the authority of leader in their mind they must also fear him.

Miller had vowed to serve Nathan faithfully when he saw how much Nathan bled to give him justice.

Nathan had fought Vile reaper even though he could barely stand.

Why else would his leader fight Vile reaper to the end without giving up when he was planning to surrender earlier?

Miller didn't know why leader had to fight Vile reaper, but he thought that the organizers must have forced him after Nathan broke the rules to save him.

People are never kind. Miller knew this.

However, he wasn't valuable enough for Nathan to put his life on the line to avenge him.

Yet, Nathan did.

'I will follow him until the end.'

Miller vowed to himself.

"We are here."

Miller spoke as all of them stood in front of a shabby shop.

While everyone was doubting if they had come to the correct place, Miller knocked on the door twice and spoke.

"The shield protects all those who live in the shade beneath it. But nothing is safe, shield only stops the rain, not the wind. To protect oneself, one has to outgrow the shield or wither from the wind. All things change. The question is, will you change for better or worse?"

He read the phrase Nathan had written on the paper.

After waiting for a few seconds, the door slid open.

The inside of the shop was pitch black and nothing could be seen.

Hesitant, all of them entered, and the door closed behind them.

Everyone except Miller took a battle-ready stance when they felt the spike of mana in the air.

Vrroom-

They relaxed when they realized that the mana fluctuations were coming from the portal that suddenly started.

Dim light coming from the portal illuminated the interior of the show. However, it was still too dark to see the wall.

Miller knew from the instructions that were awakeners watching them from the shadows.

He ushered everyone to go inside.

Everyone stepped inside the portal and vanished.

Vupp-

Miller looked around for one last time before going through the portal.

*

Leon stood beside Isabell.

The arena was being 'repaired' after Nathan's fight. Vile reaper's corpse was taken away and a few mages used <Clean> and <Purify> to cleanse the arena.

A few dozen minutes later, the arena was restored, and the matches resumed.

-IS EVERYONE READY TO CONTINUE-

True to being professional, the commentator was back to their job as if nothing has happened.

-IN THE LAST MATCH MR. PEPE WON CONTRARY TO EVERYONE'S PREDICTION. ARE YOU READY TO SEE MORE?-

The crowd agreed with their shouting.

-THEN I WON'T TAKE YOUR TIME ANY LONGER. LET'S BEGIN-

-FIRST MATCH: UNMATCHABLE KAISER TRISTAN V/S BATTLE SLAVE MAGE-

Woooooo-

The crowd chanted their names, but no one came to the arena.

Fifteen minutes passed, and nothing happened. Shortly, a few commands came to the commentator's intercom.

-UNMATCHABLE KAISER AND BATTLE SLAVE MAGE HAS WITHDREW FROM THE TOURNAMENT DUE TO UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES.-

-BUT WORRY NOT FOR WE WILL BEGIN THE NEXT MATCH WITHOUT DELAY-

The crowd cheered again, but with a lot less enthusiasm. Many were looking forward to seeing more capabilities for the battle slave.

Leon thought that someone must have bought the mage and decided to get her to drop out of the tournament. Many others also believed the same.

-SECOND MATCH: IMPENETRABLE IMORA V/S KAIJU KABLE-

The match continued, but given the intensity of Nathan's matches; it was a lot less interesting. After fighting till the end, Kaiju Kable won.

In the break that took place, Nathan returned to the seating area.

Leon was about to go to him, asking if it was necessary for what he did to Vile reaper when Nathan ignored the participants and began meditating in the corner.

-THIRD MATCH: SHARPSHOOTER ROBIN V/S RUMBLING YATO-

Finally, the cheers erupted again when Leon's match was announced.

Leon, having already discussed with Huntress, told the commentator.

"I'll forfeit the match."

The response that came to his forfeit wasn't very welcoming. The crowd booed and jeered at him for chickening out.

The commentator reaffirmed if he was going to forfeit.

Leon stood firm in his decision. Their mission was about to start in a few minutes, he had to remain in the top-16 seating area.

As for the jeering, Leon ignored it. Even if he fought, it would be to gain experience not to provide entertainment for others.

The commentator was about to announce the next match, however…

CLACK-

…the world turned dark.

It wasn't a metaphor. Everything literally lost light.

The sun in the sky, the lighting of the arena, the sky itself, nothing was exuding light anymore.

When the lights didn't come back on, the crowd started shouting in panic and terror.

Amidst the mass panic, Isabell held Leon's hand and passed him night vision goggles.

The attack had begun.

They have to infiltrate the place before the energy supply came back.

A few people started bringing their devices out to provide what little illumination they could.

Leon and Isabell turned on their heels and ran to the door when-

"!"

-a sudden chill ran down Leon's spine.

He jumped and covered Isabell under him.

"Duck!"

Nobody understood why Leon was shouting until the mana in the air suddenly spiked...

BOOM-!

BOOM-! BOOM-!

BOOM-!

...and a series of explosions covered the entire stadium.

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[Ryukurou]: My exams are still going on so I can't promise regular updates. Though, I will upload all the chaps(excluding the bonus chaps) I have missed by the end of the next week. I hope you guys understand.