Child of Destiny

Chapter 1822: An Element of Surprise

...….

The next events of the fight did not last that long, as Arthur took it more seriously, finally ending the match.

Cetus did put up a good fight and managed to prolong it as much as he could. Unfortunately, the battle still looked a little too one-sided, leaning toward Arthurʼs favor. He still lost in the end.

Due to the factor brought by Arthur, all the preparations that Godʼs Paradise had made went to waste, making it a little regretful.

However, Ashura and the others did not put the loss that much as they somewhat expected this to happen after seeing Arthur stepping up on the stage, particularly when Cetus had chosen to arrange his class into a Magic Knight class line.

Upon appearing in the private lounge, the other members of Godʼs Paradise came to Cetus and consoled him, saying that it was all due to the bad matchup that he had lost in such a way.

They believed that Cetus had gone with a class line that Arthur was less familiar with, and Cetus would be able to put up a very good fight and even win the match.

Unfortunately, there were no ʼwhat ifsʼ in this stage, so there was no need to think about them. What was important was to learn their lessons in each loss and stand up stronger.

”Hah! I am fine, guys. You donʼt have to comport yourself this much. I know how to handle a loss, and this is not my first time getting bested by that guy,” said Cetus after seeing the others around him.

However, he was only fine on the outside, but he was somewhat disturbed on the inside.

It was not because of the loss, but due to the previous words that Arthur had said right before the match ended. He had to admit that he was somewhat curious about what that guy was trying to say about his race and special abilities that came with it.

If he wanted to know more about styles and understanding within the game, then Arthur could be one of those guys who had a lot of tricks and odd insights when it came to playing the game.

He was truly tempted to take this olive branch that was being offered to him.

But he still had to consider it for a while. He did not want to fall for the tricks that this annoying guy, who was both a friend and an enemy of his.

After thinking about it for a moment, Cetus turned to Ashura and said. ”I may not continue playing with you guys after this tournament. I want to explore other plays for now.”

Ashura was able to guess what Cetus was planning to do, but he did not think too much about it and just smiled. ”Alright. But if you ever want to play with the team again, then you can find us any time.”

”Surely!” said Cetus with a smile.

***

In the meantime, on the side of the Empyrean Talons, Arthur was quite smug about his victory. He gave Leonard and the others a provoking look, seemingly telling them to come and fight in the next match.

The rest of the team just rolled their eyes before ignoring him completely. They then turned to Shin, seemingly waiting for him to tell them who would be representing the team for the next match.

Shin gave them a mystifying smile before saying. ”None of you will be fighting for this.”

Based on his estimate, the opposing side would most likely use one of their strongest members to win the next match.

Since tricks could not work on Empyrean Talons, the Godʼs Paradise would most likely rely on absolute strength to win back their honor and force a tie-breaker match.

Shin knew that Godʼs Paradise was quite familiar with most of the members of the Empyrean Talons, so they would most likely send their strongest member for this match.

On the side of the Empyrean Talons, there were still Shin, Leonard, Diablo, and Alucard, who could match the best players of the opposing side. Any of them could take on this important role and represent the team in the next match.

The most ideal ones should be Shin and Leonard, since either of them could fight Ashura, who would most likely represent the other side on stage for the next match.

Those guys were no fools. They would most likely want to secure the next round, forcing the Empyrean Talos to use either Shin or Leonard for the tie-breaker match later.

Ashura was the best choice that they had since he had the highest chance of winning the match over the rest of the team. Kallavan and Susanoo were also a good choice, but those two and a slightly lower win rate against Leonard.

It was better to choose someone who could guarantee their victory. Ashura was the only answer at this point, and Shin was sure of it.

Knowing this, Shin could also match the choice of their opponents.

He could take on this role and have an early rematch against Ashura, ʼfinishingʼ their previous match that had ended in a draw.

Shin was confident that he could win this time.

Leonard could also take on Ashura.

If this War God won the match, then the Empyrean Talons would be directly promoted to the Grand Finals. But if he lost, then Shin could only fight for the tie-breaker match, which was the most ideal choice.

The same could be said if Shin took on the stage first while Leonard represented them in the tie-breaker match.

Either choice was a good one, so it could only be decided in a coin flip, deciding who would be fighting first.

This was also what most of the people were thinking right now, since it was the most obvious choice.

However, Shin had other plans. He prepared to have a third choice for the element of surprise.

The one who would be representing them on this match had already been decided even before Arthur took on the role to be the ʼvanguardʼ for the team.

Shin then turned to Arthur, Leonard, and Cloe before saying. ”You guys look after the team for now. Let me fetch the guy representing us for the next match.”

The group was stunned at first while the trio looked at Shin quite confusedly, not understanding what he was talking about.

But something suddenly occurred in their minds, realizing what Shin meant with those words.

”Eh!? Donʼt tell me?”

”No way! Are you serious!?”

”Is it that guy!?”

The three could not help but look at Shin with stunned gazes, seemingly trying to see if Shin was joking or something.

But after seeing the smirking expression that the latter was giving them, they could only accept it and let him do what he wanted.

It was not like ʼthat guyʼ was too different from Shin, anyway.

They were not sure what Shin wanted, but they knew that he was up to no good. No good at all.

But whatever scheme he was plotting this time, they knew that it was all it was directed at their opponents, so they did not care at all.

Shin then wore his mask once again before saying goodbye to the team and disappearing from the room.

The others, on the other hand, could not help but stare blankly at the spot where he disappeared before turning to the trio.

Seeing the inquiring look that the team was giving them, the three could only give them an awkward smile before answering.

”Who knows what that crazy guy is planning?”

”He is also up to no good, but he always has a reason for everything.”

”Letʼs forget about him for now and focus on the match. I am sure that he knows what he is doing.”

The rest of the team then looked at the trio with suspicious eyes, not believing their random BS. They all knew that these guys were ʼplottingʼ something.

The three could only smile awkwardly and dodge the eyes of everyone, not wanting to disclose anything. After all, they did not know how to explain the situation that Shin had.

Seeing the three refuse to tell them anything, the rest of the team could only give up and return their gaze to the upcoming match.

…

Meanwhile, Shin appeared in an independent space.

He then smiled before saying. ”Have you decided? It is just for fun anyway.”

But no one was within this place other than himself.

No one answered him as well, making him look like a fool and a crazy person talking to himself.

He did not say anything for a while as well, seemingly waiting for someone to answer.

[Sigh!]

It was at that moment that a voice suddenly rang inside his head.

Shin then smiled as he said. ”I know that you have been quite awake for a while now. You donʼt have that many restrictions in this ʼworldʼ anyway, so come out and play for a bit.”

”I want to see how good you are in this game,” he added alongside a smirk.

Uno did not answer for quite a while before heaving another sigh. [Tsk! I know what you are trying to do, but I will play along time.]

...…