Arena God 4
When Jin returned this time, his brother's condition had worsened.
Seated before him, Sean's face was a pallid gray, and the distinctive red hair of the Uriufis lineage had turned brittle and dull, clinging to his scalp like a tangle of faded threads.
Sean Uriufis, the eldest prince and long regarded as Emperor Andrew's heir, was known for his gentle, steady demeanor and his S+ psychic power. Two years ago, he had fallen ill without warning.
Every possible remedy had been exhausted, but the verdict remained the same: incurable. His body was aging at an accelerated pace, mirroring his father, Andrew, who was already near the end.
The short lifespan of the Uriufis bloodline was an open secret.
Jin was unusually quiet as he reported his recent activities. Sean sat up, coughed a few times, and studied him.
"I sent you to Moye Military Academy to be among your peers. Ares is merely something Father and I couldn't manage, so I let you take charge temporarily. Don't spend all your time with them."
"I understand, brother," Jin replied.
"Also, visit your sister and greet her," Sean emphasized. "Mind your manners."
"Brother," Jin looked up, somewhat helpless. "You know she doesn't like me."
The Second Princess, Fulian Uriufis, and Jin had never seen eye to eye. They shared the same parents, and there was no real animosity between them, but Fulian had disliked Jin since childhood—intensely.
Jin couldn't fathom what there was to dislike. He was unremarkable, having been frail since birth. The Uriufis royal family had always boasted S-rank or above psychic power; his ordinary A+ felt like a mark of shame.
"Even so, you must go."
Unable to defy his ailing brother, Jin departed with reluctance, wandering aimlessly through the imperial palace along the white jade staircase. In a patch of shade, he paused and was reminded of the day he'd first met Xu Lingqu and the others.
As a woman equally formidable, the Commander had been hard to get along with at first. On a whim, Jin opened his smart device and sent her a message.
It was a simple greeting; he doubted she'd reply.
But she actually responded.
"Doing good deeds."
That was far too perfunctory. Jin's mouth twitched, yet his mood inexplicably lifted.
Well, a greeting wasn't that difficult after all.
With spirits buoyed, he didn't forget to "care" for his good friend Shen Shouli.
"The Commander replied to my message today~"
He could easily imagine Shen Shouli jumping out of his skin with indignation, even without using his brains. His mood improved further, and he finally stopped dawdling, deciding to finish his brother's task early the next morning.
Still, at this hour, what kind of good deed was the Commander up to?
The good deed Xu Lingqu was performing blew up the Sky Network mech arena streaming forum—and coincidentally, the arena itself.
A newcomer on a ten-win streak had first defeated the noob-stomping streamer, then, as if issuing a death warrant, challenged the top fifty players to cross-tier matches.
[Who the hell is Mighty King Rabbit Owo?]
[Honestly, I've never heard of the military academy she's affiliated with.]
[She's obviously just here to show off and leech off the hype, jumping around like a clown. She'll calm down once someone in the top fifty actually accepts her challenge.]
[Noting the ID above. If Mighty King Rabbit Owo ends up beating the top fifty when this is over, I'll be digging up your corpse for a month, okay?]
The Sky Network's vibe these days is weird~ You actually think a 500-point newcomer is some kind of elite? Waiting to see you get slapped in the face~]
The buzz finally caught the attention of the online streamer ranked fiftieth—Put-All-Points-Into-Defense.
"Oh wow, she's that popular? Why did I just reject her?"
[Streamer, don't hesitate—taking the initiative means free traffic, why not take it?]
[Just watched her heavy swordsmanship from the sidelines—streamer, careful your turtle shell doesn't get smashed.]
[Have a little faith in the streamer, he's rank fifty! At least rank fifty!]
Watching the scrolling comments, Put-All-Points-Into-Defense felt his fingers itch. In the end, he decided to try grabbing this wave of traffic.
The forty-eight provocative challenges Liu Ming had sent out had yet to receive any responses when Xu Lingqu got an active application from the very person who had just ignored her—the fiftieth-ranked Put-All-Points-Into-Defense.
Finally, someone came. Xu Lingqu forgot past grudges and decisively accepted the challenge, afraid he might run off.
Put-All-Points-Into-Defense was also wondering—this Mighty King Rabbit Owo agreed pretty quickly. Clearly she was genuinely here to compete, not to leech off hype.
With that thought, he cast aside his initial inclination to mess around and selected his signature defensive mech.
He guessed Mighty King Rabbit Owo would probably pick the Force mech, given how she'd shown off her swordsmanship, but to his surprise, she picked a Speed mech.
No one had ever dared to go straight at him with a Speed mech so directly. Put-All-Points-Into-Defense immediately got serious, muttering to himself that this round really couldn't be a joke. To stay completely focused, he even turned off the comments.
Xu Lingqu choosing Speed was, of course, a sign of respect—though in everyone's eyes, it looked like naked provocation. She herself hadn't realized this yet.
She rolled her wrists, and the match officially began. Xu Lingqu once again employed the fast-attack tactics she'd used with Speed before, aiming to close distance quickly and catch him off guard at point-blank range.
But Put-All-Points-Into-Defense was clearly prepared. He immediately summoned two defensive weapons to equip himself, and when Xu Lingqu's sword came down, he anticipated it to some degree and retreated several steps.
Close call—she nearly pierced him through with that one swing.
Put-All-Points-Into-Defense's skill was clearly a notch above Hei Shi's. He didn't just rely on being a turtle in a defensive mech; he dodged whenever he could, not wasting his defensive gear.
Seeing this, Xu Lingqu launched another fast attack—this time clearly not aimed at directly hitting him, but deliberately forcing his position, pinning Put-All-Points-Into-Defense into a corner. Then Xu Lingqu activated the laser cannon on Speed's left shoulder and fired straight at his opening.
The blast was so close that it left Put-All-Points-Into-Defense quite dazed.
Luckily, his defensive weapons had been activated in advance, so he managed to block the shot. But now, trapped in a corner and forced to take hits, Put-All-Points-Into-Defense gritted his teeth and charged straight at Mighty King Rabbit Owo, turning his defensive weapons into offensive ones and striking first.
Xu Lingqu maneuvered Speed to dodge nimbly, then whirled around and thrust her sword at his rear opening.
Put-All-Points-Into-Defense swore this was the most perfect play he'd made in two—no, three—years. He turned decisively and raised his shield to block, just barely managing to stop the sword. If it had landed on his leg, he'd have lost his mobility right then.
That was reckless—I shouldn't have been so confident in coming to get beaten up. Put-All-Points-Into-Defense was on the verge of tears.