Chapter 5 – The Hunter’s Bluff

The next day, Trollin's team fanned out cautiously across the terrain. Their formation was tight, every movement calculated. They expected another sniper assault—Rio had made his presence impossible to ignore.

Suddenly, a shot rang out.

Clean. Sharp.

But they were ready. The shield mage deflected it with practiced ease.

"Hold your positions!" Trollin barked. "He's using camouflage again. Stick to formation—he can’t isolate us this time."

He sneered, convinced of his control.

"Kael’s injured. He’s done. Calvin? A joke. Just another noise maker. We find the sniper, we win."

Another shot echoed—this time from a different angle.

They shifted formation quickly, recalculating. Rio was trying to outflank them again. But this time, they believed they had him cornered.

Then a third shot—closer.

"He’s baiting us," one of the squad muttered.

"No," Trollin snapped. "He’s slipping. Move in!"

They sprinted through brush and branches, closing in on the point of origin. Reaching the clearing, they found—

Nothing.

"There’s no way he ran that fast," Trollin growled, scanning the surroundings. "His speed stats don’t match this."

Then—crack crack crack—shots rained down from above.

From the trees.

The shield mage scrambled to cover both Trollin and the enforcer as red-hot beams sliced through the air.

"Bring that tree down!" Trollin shouted. "He’s dead—this time for real. And I’m going to enjoy watching Calvin fall."

The enforcer roared and fired, blowing out the base of the tree. Wood splintered. Leaves exploded. A figure dropped through the canopy in a tangled fall.

Trollin approached slowly, savoring every step.

"Let’s see your face, coward."

They yanked off the helmet—then froze.

"Rio?! What the hell—why are you here? And where’s your camo gear?"

Rio didn’t answer.

Ping!

A warning flashed across their HUDs. Shield Unit – Eliminated

Trollin turned, stunned. Too late.

"WHAT?!"

"You were hunting the wrong ghost," Rio muttered.

"Kill him. NOW!" Trollin screamed.

The enforcer raised his axe.

CRACK!

A headshot dropped him instantly.

"It’s easier to shoot when the target’s big and not moving," Calvin chimed through comms, calm and sarcastic as ever.

Trollin spun—

And a sword flew from the shadows.

It wasn’t just a strike. It was judgment.

The blade cut past his guard, slicing into his collar, sending him sprawling backward into the dirt.

Kael stepped from behind a veil of camo, suit flickering as the stealth disengaged.

He looked down at Trollin, unflinching.

"Still think Calvin’s just a clown?"

Trollin, gasping, watched as his HUD faded to red—disqualified. His last image before shutdown: Kael rising above him, the one he dismissed as broken.

The forest flickered away.

Leaves dissolved into pixels. Trees faded to wireframe. The arena returned to steel and stone beneath their feet—clean, clinical, cold.

They had won.

But the silence said otherwise.

Trollin shot forward, teeth bared in rage, swinging a fist at Kael. Kael dodged cleanly, not even flinching.

“HE MUST HAVE CHEATED!” Trollin roared, stumbling.

The crowd gasped—then murmurs turned into voices.

“No way he lost…”
“That guy’s a noble…”
“They had to cheat…”

Trollin pointed at Kael, spitting his words like venom.

“There’s no way a bunch of loser commoners beat a Drake. The test was rigged. He cheated!”

The arena murmured louder—against Squad C-7.

Calvin stepped forward, fists clenched.

“Are you people blind?! He tried to cheat reality and still got dropped!”

“Silence,” a new voice cut through.

A man in Federation proctor robes stepped forward, slow, confident.

And smiling.

“After careful consideration… Squad C-7 is hereby disqualified for suspected cheating.”

Kael stared.

“What?! How did we cheat?”

The proctor didn’t even flinch.

“You cheated… because I said so.”

Gasps from the crowd. Trollin smirked. Calvin looked like he was about to explode.

Kael leaned toward him.

“You okay?”

“That bastard's from the Basthurds family,A branch of Drake” Calvin growled. “They cover for their own.”

Kael clenched his jaw. The victory meant nothing now. The Nobles were showing its colors.

“CONDUCT AN INVESTIGATION!” someone shouted from the crowd.

A blur landed between them and the proctor—a girl, mid-air flip, boots hitting the stone with a metallic clang.

She marched straight toward the proctor.

Calvin’s eyes widened.

“W-Why are you here?” he asked, suddenly awkward.

“I study here, idiot!” she snapped.

“But I thought you transferred—wait—you…”

“Shut up. I’m handling this.”

Calvin stood still. Like a dog hearing his owner’s voice.

Kael blinked.

“…is he actually afraid of someone?”

Rio narrowed his eyes.

“Are we still in the simulation? Calvin looks like he just got hit with a system freeze.”

“Let’s find out,” Kael whispered.

The two slipped through the chaos toward him.

“Who is she?” Kael asked.

Calvin, sweating bullets, stammered:

“Remember when I said I… uh… dated Trollin’s—”

“SISTER?!” Trollin screamed from across the arena.

Everyone turned.

Kael and Rio looked at Calvin.

Calvin gave them a sheepish grin and a guilty thumbs-up.

“Yup. That one.”