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C190

[Welcome to Magus Games! You will be now sent to a virtual arena, the pain will be real, death, however, won't.]

[Body and personal items have been scanned. All items are prohibited]

[Objective - Get the most points]

[Stay alive for bonus points]

[Participants:320/50]

[Your point : 0]

[The Magus Games will start in five minutes]

Upon entering the portal, Emery felt his body froze. Even if he wanted to, he could not move any of his limbs. In the darkness, a bright light suddenly appeared from nowhere, and before Emery was able to process what happened, his ears were greeted by the sound of rustling leaves and his skin was brushed by a refreshing breeze. When he opened his eyes, Emery saw that he was standing amidst lush trees, right in the middle of a dense forest.

Right now, Emery was still being prevented from moving. In the corner of his eyes, Emery noticed the countdown timer was currently at one minute, and it kept going down.

Not wanting to waste the time he had, Emery looked around as much as he could, trying to learn more about the place he was in. The land he stood on had a distinct brown-red color, and short blades of grass grew amidst rocks with a similar shade of red. The trees growing around him were at least as tall as five times his height, with bark as big as two adults hugging each other.

[10… 9… 8…]

[The second Magus Game has started. Good luck!]

In accordance with the plan, Emery immediately used [Nature Sense – Tier 2 Plant Magic], and proceeded to use [Hide in Shadow] before climbing the highest tree he could find around him.

The tips earlier had stated that the most dangerous part of the second game was not knowing the layout of the land they spawn in. The virtual nature of the game ensured each participant would arrive in random different locations, and each location carried distinct advantages and disadvantages from each other.

In other words, to secure victory, one had to prioritize acquiring information upon the start of the game.

With the information he was given before the game, Emery was able to accomplish the first step without a hitch. In this second game, acolytes with multiple elemental affinities had a clear advantage compared to others, therefore Emery only had to be careful and plan each move he would make later.

Within moments, Emery finally arrived at the top of the tree. Thanks to [Nature Sense] and the height of the tree, he was not only able to gather information of the place, but also of how many people were nearby.

[Nature Sense] allowed him to perceive the movement when someone stepped or walked near branches or when their feet brushed even one blade of grass. From the information he received, Emery was able to conclude that there were at least three other people around him. He glanced to the direction of the nearest sign and spotted an acolyte climbing a tree. It appeared that the acolyte was using a similar strategy as him.

From the looks of it, the acolyte seemed to be from the same Lucky Class as him, but Emery was not able to recognize the acolyte. In addition, the acolyte seemed to possess similar skills as Emery, seen from the acolyte's gestures who looked in the direction of the other two people.

Luckily, Emery had used [Hide in Shadow] beforehand otherwise his location would be found. Thanks to the skill, Emery was able to spot the acolyte but not the other way around.

As his battle power and spirit force increased, the sensitivity of all five of his senses was also increased. Thanks to that, Emery was able to see the wrist of that acolyte. Seeing the absence of the mark, Emery knew the acolyte was not part of his team.

The thought to attack the acolytes crossed Emery's mind. With the element of surprise on his side, it was easy for him to take out that acolyte and obtain some quick points. However, after thinking about it for a second Emery decided to play it safe. He would only attack when he knew for sure that the act would not jeopardize him. In addition, he had another reason to wait on the tree.

Few minutes later, his second reason for waiting and not attacking was fluttering close. A green bird with a slightly translucent body came closer to his palm right near the symbol, and the symbol glowed, sending a message straight into his mind.

[You have received a new message!]

[Emery, I am currently waiting around 100 meters north of the hill across the running river. I hope you are not too far. As the plan says, I will be waiting here for an hour. If you can't be here by then, we will go and meet at the planned location. PS: If you are with that white-haired girlfriend of yours, don't bother coming.]

"..." the last part of the message somehow made his previous anxiousness when entering this battle arena immediately disappear.

Emery tried to learn more about the geographical layout of the place around him and the direction the green bird flew from. He mentally compared what he currently saw with the forest arena map Roran showed the group during the gathering last night..

The area had a radius of around 20 kilometers, and the center position where they could obtain weapons was right in the middle of the circle. Emery tried to get a clearer look of his surroundings again and saw that even though it was quite far, he could see part of a construct that looked like a pyramid several kilometers away from him.

From the information he had collected, Emery was able to calculate his current location. Therefore it was now the time to make a plan. It seemed that he was currently too far from Klea, and the center of the arena was located between the places they spawned. Hence, Emery decided to head to the center as planned.

Emery had obtained information regarding his location and his target location. Now, he just needs to find the best path to reach that location.

Emery used his [Nature Sense] spell again and found out the acolytes near him were gone, presumably to check a different location. Seeing the chance to move undetected, he quickly climbed down the tree and swiftly dashed away, using the shadows of the trees as his cover. Whenever he sensed the presence of other acolytes, he would choose to stay away and take a different path.

After a few minutes of running, he can sense the closer he gets to the center, the more his [nature sense] spells find the movement of other acolytes. To his surprise, while running, Emery heard loud sounds of what appears to be a huge fight nearby. Curiosity slowly filled him until finally, he decided to take a quick look.

He approached the source of the sounds carefully. He walked in between the trees to ensure that he would not be seen by them. After reaching the place, Emery slowly peeked his head from behind the tree used as his cover. From his hiding place, he was able to see eight figures fighting in the middle of a grass field.

From how the fight looked, it was a six-on-two fight or more precisely two Elite Class acolytes versus six Lucky Class acolytes. How did Emery know that? Their attire gave their identity away.

Seeing the people who were fighting, Emery decided to stay and observe the fight. After all, getting more information on the capabilities of an elite acolyte might help him later.

Looking at the acolytes more clearly, Emery finds that two of the acolytes are part of his alliance and he wonders if he should join the battle.

To be continued