Chapter 59
Chapter 59
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 59
Chapter Title: First Round: Observation and Instant Victory
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「You have selected [1v1 Duel Participation].」
Having made my choice, I looked around.
Many people were still hesitating, unable to decide on their participation format.
Their faces showed caution mixed with anxiety crushed by the weight of the decision.
The selection time was shorter than expected.
If they deliberated any longer, they might end up unable to choose at all.
Right at that moment, as the thought crossed my mind, the system confirmed my guess.
The 4-person or 16-person duels needed to fill their participant numbers, so it seemed the system would forcibly assign people.
Those who hesitated would end up thrust onto stages they didn't want.
To me, it seemed like an obvious measure.
As soon as selection time ended, the next announcement followed.
It would be nice if I got placed in the latter half.
Gathering information by watching as many matches as possible was the key to this round.
And a bye? I hadn't expected that. If luck's on your side, advancing without a fight is part of the tournament's charm, I guess.
My position wasn't bad.
Considering the total, it was a bit past the middle. That should let me watch plenty of matches.
Hmm...
No info on my opponent?
After that, no messages came even after waiting a while.
The battles had finally started.
A small system window appeared in one corner of my vision.
Now I could check the progress of the matches in real time.
I'd know when mine starts from this.
Convenient feature.
This event seemed to have pretty good system usability, like the first one.
While I checked the system window, several of the countless cubic arenas around me began to glow, and people were summoned inside.
The first matches had already begun.
Crowds flocked to the nearest arenas like clouds.
I joined the flow and headed to watch the first match.
I went to the closest arena and focused on the inside.
The arena was enclosed by a transparent barrier, but the interior was clearly visible.
Two men in ordinary clothes faced each other at a distance.
Even so, due to the symbolism of it being the first match, hundreds of spectators surrounded the arena.
Tension was evident on both their faces.
After a brief silence, one man moved first.
As he gripped his sword tighter, the blade began to glow faintly.
Seeing that, I wondered.
Innate ability, or a skill?
System messages for innate abilities or skills only appear to the user themselves.
But voices from the spectator area already identified the skill.
"Isn't that Heavy Blow?"
"Yeah. It's a Warrior job skill. Pretty powerful one."
"That's my job too. I'm banking on that skill."
"If it hits, you won't even have bones left."
People were identifying skills based on what they'd seen in their own dimensions.
Amid the murmurs, I naturally picked up info on the Warrior job and Heavy Blow skill.
Warrior info was one of the most common on the community boards.
It made sense since it was the most chosen basic job.
But any info gained from direct observation was valuable.
I hadn't even known what that skill was until just now.
Inside the arena.
While I analyzed the spectators' talk, the fight began.
The man's sword with Heavy Blow active smashed into his opponent's shield.
Bang!
With a dull explosion, the shield-bearer's body was shoved back hard.
He barely regained balance gripping his cracked shield, but the momentum had already shifted.
The Heavy Blow user pressed with heavy sword strikes.
His opponent showed no notable skills or innate abilities.
He just desperately blocked with his sword.
After a few clashes, another Heavy Blow hit, and he screamed as he fell. Warrior's overwhelming victory.
The battle ended anticlimactically.
As the match concluded, both vanished from the arena instantly.
The loser probably became a spectator.
"Warriors are brutally strong in their straightforward way."
"That's why I picked it! Haha."
People focused on jobs as the win-loss factor.
But to me, the fundamental stat gap between them seemed bigger than skill presence.
The arena where the intense fight had just occurred now showed a wait time for the next match.
Just 10 seconds.
With so many people, they had to move fast or everyone would tire out before qualifiers ended.
Is this area only for 1v1 matches?
I wanted to see 4-person and 16-person too, so I'd have to move.
While I thought that, 10 seconds flew by.
The next match started.
Two new people were summoned inside.
Common clothes again.
But different from before.
No probing.
One man, the instant the match started, thrust his hand toward his opponent.
A blazing fireball formed in his palm and shot toward the opponent.
That must be Fireball.
So he's a Mage.
Unlike Heavy Blow with subtle effects, Fireball screamed Mage skill to anyone watching.
Of course, it could be an innate ability, but the odds were low.
Abilities with such clear forms were safe to assume tied to specific jobs for quick combat judgment.
Vulnerable to surprises, but better than slow reactions leaving you unable to respond.
In that split second as Fireball flew.
The woman opponent showed amazing reaction speed.
She opened her palm and thrust it forward.
Whoosh─!
A sudden strong gust blew up, and the Fireball burst futilely in midair.
Wind-manipulating innate ability? Or skill?
Confirming the Fireball gone, she immediately charged the Mage.
The Mage hastily prepared for close combat, but it was too late.
Having allowed distance, the Mage fell without resistance.
Another quick end.
I kept watching various matches after that.
But most followed similar patterns.
Mismatched balance or clear counters.
That was the limit and feature of random matching.
'In qualifiers, luck matters more than skill. If stats differ by 5 or more, the outcome's basically set.'
I left the pointless matches and headed to other arenas. Partly to see 4-person or 16-person ones.
Wandering arenas, I finally found an interesting matchup.
One of the two summoned wore gear unlike ordinary folk.
Heavy iron armor on shoulders and arms, thick iron mace in hand.
Having non-shop items proved he wasn't average.
Match start, he charged fiercely at his opponent.
Despite heavy iron armor, his speed didn't falter.
His rush was like a tank.
His glowing mace swung at the opponent's head.
Kwang─!!
The mace clashed with the opponent's quick shield raise, shockwave echoing beyond the arena to the spectators.
No vibration reached us, but many flinched at the sheer noise.
More surprising: the opponent blocked the iron-armor man's attack perfectly.
Tension hung thick between them.
Then the mace man spoke first.
"Not bad. A ranker?"
"You too. That armor, that mace. No ordinary gear."
First time seeing arena chit-chat.
Their brief exchange held mutual respect and sharp mind games.
Conversation ended there.
They clashed again.
Mace swings heavy as mountain-crushers, shield blocking every one.
Sparks flew on each impact.
Their movements were leagues beyond prior matches.
No give in their fierce exchange.
Spiderweb cracks formed on the arena's supposedly unbreakable marble floor.
I gauged their stats from the action.
'Those two have stats at 20 or close.'
After grueling deadlock, victory tipped.
Shield man's dagger exploited a mace gap, grazing his throat.
System declared defeat; mace man vanished with regret.
Gasps and applause erupted from spectators.
Awe directed at the winner.
A true clash of powerhouses, worlds apart from the dull ones before.
People savored the afterglow, anticipating the next.
Another match ended.
I watched impassively, then glanced at the system window in my vision corner.
Progressing faster than thought.
Recalling why I chose 1v1.
For 16-person, killing all gave max gains, but risked exposing instant kills or my info.
1v1 let me test one-shot potential in round 1, and crucially, hid info.
'At minimum, no one should know anything about me until the finals.'
Info was battle design basics.
To prevent powerhouses analyzing and countering me in key finals,
I wanted to minimize qualifier leaks.
Arena fights seemed unlikely to allow instant deaths so far.
So, 1v1 round by round, watch and gather intel on strong foes.
Steady, efficient approach.
Still, 1v1 meant fighting, so how to hide? I had a plan.
Matches progressed steadily; spectators left for their own.
Time flew.
My turn approached.
I reviewed my plan one last time.
It might not work on rankers.
But.
'Odds of facing a ranker are under 1%.'
With that thought, light enveloped me, teleporting to the arena.
Surroundings shifted instantly,
Just as my opponent's form began faintly materializing.
The system popped up almost simultaneously, returning me to my spot.
The area fell silent for a moment.
Then someone puzzled broke it.
"What? Didn't a match just start?"
"Glitch? System bugs too?"
"No! I saw it! There was a timer here moments ago!!"
"Match canceled?"
People were confused by the odd phenomenon.
Oh Heon's Round 1 had definitely happened.
But no one else noticed the match there.
Recalling my brief fight, I felt the plan succeed.
Overwhelming suppression minimized info leak.
But flashy dominance might draw more eyes.
However...
Ending it before anyone could perceive changed everything.
Finishing before opponent's form fully manifested in the arena.
This was the effect of the skill, King's Pressure.