CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
WHAT can be swallowed, but can also swallow you?
Ilang minuto ko nang tinititigan ang papel na hawak ko. Alam kong water ang sagot. Kaso saang water kaya ito?
Papalayo na ako nang papalayo mula sa gilid ng arena kung saan ako nanggaling. I could hear every single sound of insects and animals around me. The Arena Arinthiana was made solely for this league. On the ground floor, people can sit and watch the game through the monitors. While on the second level basement, the huge forest is located. It's where the league takes place. Binabago nila ang map every year para may thrill.
That's when I realised what water the riddle means. There's a lake! Sa mga napanood naming labanan mula sa mga footage ng nakaraang league, meron akong nakitang lawa. May isa pa ngang nalunod doon eh. I smiled knowingly and started to march wherever my legs would tell me to go.
Mapayapa akong naglalakad nang makarinig ng mga yabag mula sa di kalayuan. Bigla akong kinabahan. I immediately climbed on the pride tree beside me and assembled my sniper. I heard a swooshing sound. Agad akong umilag at napansing isa iyong pana. I frowned and quickly glanced on the lens of the sniper to see where it came from. I almost fell when I saw a girl aiming her arrows at me. She must be a seer from the North District.
Agad kong kinalabit ang gantsilyo bago pa niya mabitiwan ang pana. She was fast to dodge the bullet by rolling on her back. Damn this AWP. I should've just took a machine gun instead. But regret can't turn back the time so I'll just go with this. I hope this weapon would help me out of this league alive.
I smirked when I already saw the chip on her nape. Pero nanlaki ang mga mata ko nang tatlong pana ang sunod-sunod niyang pinakawalan. Para makailag, tumalon ako mula sa puno at habang pabagsak ako ay sinubukan ko siyang tamaan. To my surprise, the bullet penetrated her left leg causing her to fall on the ground. That was a swift shot for I didn't even had the chance to aim properly. I fell on the ground in all fours.
Maglalakad sana ako palapit nang marinig ang mga paparating na pana. I immediately dodged the arrows while running towards the other tree and climbed it. She must be so angry that she's releasing more arrows towards my direction simultaneously. One of them wounded my arm but not in a critical way. Dumaplis lang naman.
Muli kong itinapat sa kaniya ang baril ko at siya naman ngayon ang umilag. Pero hindi siya nagpaawat at tuloy-tuloy lang siya sa pagpapana. Tsk! Kinailangan ko na namang umalis sa pwesto ko para makaiwas. Naapakan ko ang isang malambot na sanga at muntik na akong mawalan ng balanse. Sinamantala niya ang pagkakataon at muling nagpakawala ng pana sa puwesto ko. I don't have time to dodge it for I am still in a dire position. So I aimed my gun and shot on the incoming arrow. The bullet sliced the arrow into two before it can even reach my face.
Naiinis na ako. Ilang metro pa ang layo namin sa isa't isa pero mukhang ginagamit niya ang ability niya nang maayos. Ilang beses niya ring nailagan ang mga bala ko. She's just a waste of time. I could actually hear the sound of water not so far from here. I'm supposed to be on my way there to see or wait for my teammates.
"The first hour of the league had passed. No one has been eliminated."
I took a deep breath and aimed my gun again. Hindi pa ba siya nauubusan ng pana? Nangangalay na ako kakabuhat sa baril ko.
I shot three consecutive times in different directions and I'm lucky enough to graze her right arm. She groaned before moving away to avoid the other bullets. Hindi ko na siya hinayaang makabawi at muling kinalabit ang gantilyo ng baril ko. The bullet hit her stomach. I watched her through the lens as she fell on the ground while groping her bleeding stomach. She kneeled on the grassy ground, blood oozing from her mouth. I heard a whimper of pain from her.
