The Refuge of Fate

Chapter 137 - Rebirth and Resurrection

A/N: Aaaah sorry for the *extremely long* wait, I've been super busy and sick lately but I did write three chapters! (Though they're all combined in this one) so enjoy!

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Everyone was nervously watching the big screens that had appeared in the sky in certain places. People gathered in major business areas like the capital and other large cities to witness the most awaited event of the year: The Hunting Competition.

It had been two days since the competition began, and the scoreboard was a wreck.

"Do you think they can catch up...?" one person asked, eyeing the scoreboard.

[Rank 1 – Pier Belmiunde – 12,453 Kills]
[Rank 2 – Horus – 6,678 Kills]
[Rank 3 – Aeris Skylancer – 3,056 Kills]

There was a huge gap between the first and second place. In fact, it was the biggest gap ever recorded in the history of the Hunting Competition, nearly one hundred percent.

"He's dominating the game, and we haven't even seen him that much..." another person commented, shivering at the overwhelming difference between Pier Belmiunde and Horus, the Flame Paladin.

"We rarely see the warriors in action as they tend to keep their strategies secret..." Discussions buzzed all around. Everyone was on edge, as this could be the first time someone from outside the Empire would win the game. Wouldn't that be embarrassing?

How is he doing it? That was what everyone was asking. There was only one day left before the competition ended, and the foreboding feeling that Horus might lose this round was creeping up their spines.

As much as they loved music and magic, this was still a game. Tons of people invested in these games, including bets and other forms of gambling that risked their fortunes.

"We haven't seen much action either. The game has been particularly quiet these days." Everyone agreed.

Sure, there were hundreds of orbs floating around broadcasting what was happening inside Nightmare Hollow, but they mainly showed contestants of lesser interest. What people wanted to see were the individuals they had placed their bets on the most: the six warriors and Pier Belmiunde.

They craved more action from the seven. They had only caught a few glimpses of how they all worked to gain their kills, but it was still lacking.

It wasn't enough when they saw Pier Belmiunde kill an insanely high-grade monster with one shot of his spell. It wasn't enough when Horus, the Flame Paladin, burned hundreds of monsters just by passing through. It wasn't enough when Aeris Skylancer managed to rack up kills just by breathing.

They needed more.

Such as...

"Ahck!" Their eyes were intensely glued to the screen as they watched a group of men trapped inside what appeared to be a cage made of soil. They were screaming as they were picked off one by one.

It was obvious who had created this trap: Lady Carmen.

She was a strong contender for the winner of this year's hunting competition, but her magic was just below that of the six warriors, making victory a distant goal. Aside from that, there were tons of men hunting her as if she were prey.

Everyone knew that. They could see her sitting on a tree branch, flipping her hair, and watching the men get eaten by monsters.

They needed something like this.

Anything happening inside Nightmare Hollow during this event was allowed. Everything was legal. Even killing others was not punishable, even if you were caught, because there could be many reasons for it—either you were trying to stop the person from gaining more kills or you were being hunted yourself.