Galaxy Fall: All My Skills Are Maxed-Chapter 199: The Rules Of Survival
[On the Arena stage.]
The localized gravity on the platform shifted, reacting to a massive surge of spatial manipulation.
"Listen up! Ten of you from each academy will team up and enter the gateway." Davy turned his head to the side, as a getaway appeared, spinning violently: a vortex of swirling purple and black energy tearing a hole directly through the fabric of the arena. The sheer energy of the portal buffeted the students, a stark reminder of the chaotic wilderness awaiting them.
"You all have 6 hours to get your flag and return it to the center of the southern region, there is an old tower there... The score will be calculated by your speed, Demon kills and normal kills." He explained. The ancient center tower was a remnant from a forgotten age, now repurposed by the System as a heavily fortified safe zone and deposit point for the tournament’s objectives.
"Normal kills? What’s that?" A student from the eagle academy asked in confusion, their innocence highlighting the difference between academic training and true, bloody survival.
"Normal kills means monster kills and, well... Killing one another." Davy said with a smile, causing the student to swallow hard. The cold reality of the Glory Flag competition washed over the uninitiated; this wasn’t just a race, it was a sanctioned battle royale where the continent’s youth were expected to cull each other for geopolitical dominance.
"No need to be scared!! The board don’t need bloodbath from the very start of the match, this is the reason why all your flags are placed in different locations. That doesn’t mean you won’t encounter some demons or monsters on the way..." He sighed: his cheerful host persona slipping for just a fraction of a second, revealing the grim veteran beneath.
"I am sure everyone here knew what happened in the Abyssal some days back, so the emperor will surely be watching us, this will be dangerous for you guys, so only the strongest ten can be picked... That’s an advice I’m giving you. Now listen up." He started pacing in front of them, entering lecture mode: seamlessly shifting from an entertainer to an instructor trying to keep these prodigies alive. The recent Abyssal breach had flooded the Southern Region with highly aggressive, mutated demon-kin, turning a standard Level 200 zone into an unpredictable nightmare.
"Listen up students, I am saying this so you all won’t die senseless deaths in the first round. When you reached the southern region, you will be monitored by us, and some hidden masters. Note, these Masters won’t interfere with the competition, they will only act if you are facing one another, and surrendered. If someone surrendered, the team will lose 20,000 points." He turned his gaze to them: locking eyes momentarily with Mirabella, ensuring the powerhouses understood the staggering weight of that penalty. A 20,000 point deduction was an absolute death sentence for an empire’s ranking; it forced players to fight to the bitter end or face national disgrace.
"You can also try to avoid some caves, and regions... Ok, you have six hours to capture your flag and head back to the center tower... If you fail to capture your flag and return it to the tower in this duration, your academy failed the round... Ok everyone!" He stopped, standing before them: the countdown ticking visibly on the massive runic boards above the stadium.
"We will start from the sword academy, ten of your chosen, step forward."
With that, Jessica stepped forward, her face expressionless, then followed by the Lv200 four students, and the remaining five, making ten students. They moved with a chilling, mechanical synchronicity, their auras completely suppressed but dense enough to warp the air around them.
"Ok, sword empire team consist of, Jessica, an All-bloodlines. Andrew, A warrior with fire control. Ethan, A Knight and also a warrior bloodline. Nirvana, an All-bloodlines. Honky, A Knight. Flash, An Assassin. Gracie, A Healer. Ophelia, A Mage. Mike, An Assassin. And Zach. A sword Master." Davy announced, turning his gaze to the Dragon empire. The crowd murmured in shock; possessing even one student with the super rare ’All-bloodlines’ trait was a generational miracle. Having two in the same vanguard was statistically impossible.
Mirabella stepped forward, followed by Hitachi, then the remaining group, making ten: their formation looser, yet bound by the absolute authority of their Level 330 captain.
"Mirabella, An All-bloodlines. Hitachi, All-bloodlines. Rose, A Mage. Austin, A warrior. Aurelia, An Assassin. Precious, An Assassin. David, A rune master. Casey, An Assassin. Carl, An Assassin. Kent, A Knight." Davy nodded his head, turning his gaze to the eagle academy: mentally noting the Dragon Empire’s aggressive, stealth-heavy composition. Without a dedicated healer, they were relying entirely on Mirabella’s overwhelming lethality, and healing abilities to protect them.
Eve stepped forward, then the rest of her group, making ten students: radiating the disciplined, tactical grace expected of the Eagle Empire.
"Eve, A Warrior and A Mage. Stellar, A Rune master. Blade, A Knight. Nicolas, An Assassin. Buck, An Assassin. Alexa, A Mage. Justin, A Mage. Julie, a warrior. Kelly. A sword Master. Johnson, An Alchemist." Davy was stunned, he stared at Johnson, the blue hair young man was staring at the ground. In a high-speed, lethal capture-the-flag scenario, combat classes reigned supreme.
’An Alchemist? Although they are good at making pills, weapons and potions, what is such a bloodline doing here? How will they help in this competition?’ Davy thought in confusion. Alchemists were notoriously squishy support units, requiring long casting times and stationary equipment to be effective. Bringing one into a death game felt like actively choosing to carry dead weight.
Mirabella stared at Eve, a slight frown on her face, when they met, Eve was a warrior bloodline, and all of a sudden, she was now a double-bloodline fighter, and a mage at that. The world did not freely hand out secondary classes. To force a dual-awakening required resources that could bankrupt a small nation.
What shocked her the most was Ethan, her ex-boyfriend, who betrayed her in her past life, now... He was a double-bloodline, having both a warrior and Knight bloodlines, not to add that he was now Lv200.
Mirabella’s internal energy flared for a fraction of a microsecond, a phantom pain from a blade in her back echoing from a deleted timeline. Yet, as she analyzed him, she noticed something deeply, terrifyingly wrong. The man who had once been driven by burning, selfish ambition looked entirely hollow.
’What the hell is happening in the sword empire? How are these guys gaining more bloodlines? But, I didn’t notice anything from my past life, what is happening here? And... Just like, Jessica, he doesn’t even seem to know me.’ She thought, staring at Ethan, whose expression was fixed ahead. His eyes were glassy, completely devoid of the cunning recognition she expected from the man who had ruined her first life.
’Is the sword empire turning people into weapons? How long have they been doing this?’ She thought, turning her head to the sword empire royal room: her gaze cutting right through the glass to where Nadia sat. The impossible levels, the multiple bloodlines, the emotionless obedience—it wasn’t natural grinding. It was a factory assembly line of human experiments.
’Hmm... I shouldn’t poke them yet.’ Mirabella decided, a cold, calculating smirk touching the corner of her lips.
"Ok everyone!! The moment you enter the gateway, your timer start! Now, sword academy." He moved out of the way. The vortex pulsed, hungry for the tributes. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂
"Sword Academy is the strongest!! Go and claim this trophy for us!!" The sword empire citizens in the audience screamed, watching as Jessica and her team entered the gateway, disappearing from the Arena. One by one, the white-clad vanguards stepped into the swirling abyss, their forms digitizing as the spatial magic pulled them across the continent.
"Next, Dragon Academy."
