Chapter 276
Just like before, the relay spirit appeared and space twisted as if swallowing everything around it, and instead of the jungle-like field from yesterday, what spread out was a colosseum-like arena.
The players were also transferred to different rooms, and in the center of the arena, a single relay spirit floated up and shouted to the viewers.
[It’s an honor to greet you all once again!!! I’ll briefly explain today’s match!!!]
A tournament.
There wasn’t really much to explain about that.
The relay spirit simply gave a short explanation that it would be a match between teams, showing the match bracket.
The format was as manly as it gets—single-elimination.
It was a cooperative battle where the entire team would fight together.
–Wow, a man’s game fr fr.
–Single round match 😱😱😱😱.
–Usually they do best-of-three, this is nuts 😂😂😂.
–Honestly, single matches are more exciting!
–Facts facts, it gets kinda dull when it drags on.
The viewers were fired up.
The more matches there were, the more likely things would slow down and get dull.
Most of all, the fact that all team members would enter the match at once was thrilling.
Of course, that also meant the chance of chaos was high.
But on the flip side, that meant it would be just as intense.
“Kuheueueu! To settle it in a single round! Our Tower Master sure knows how to bring the heat!”
“Cold and calculated, yet this kind of boldness—no wonder she rules Septem Arcana!!!”
“Waaah! All hail Tower Master Serul!!!”
“With a single round, anything can happen.”
The NPCs were fired up to the max.
So were those watching on MeTube.
Originally, the majority had predicted Seong’s victory.
But with single matches? Who knew what could happen.
Victory could hinge on the smallest of gaps—that’s the nature of battle.
–If the magic seal gets lifted, even the Forbiddenz might stand a chance lol.
–If it’s single round, I’d say they’ve got a shot!
–Yeah this makes things more suspenseful.
–What’s the point in watching if you already know Demon King’s gonna win?
–This tension’s what makes it fun.
That’s how everyone was watching it.
The lineup of participants this time was stacked.
Especially the mages, knights, and even the Forbiddenz were getting a lot of attention.
Of course, the image of the Demon King who showed up at the end yesterday hadn’t been forgotten.
Still, it looked like the others had a decent shot too.
Most of all—
–Yo did you see the bracket???
–Lol the mages are up against the knights, and the Forbiddenz are fighting the Demon King.
–The winners of each match will go to the finals.
–Lmao knights vs mages right from the start, this’ll be fun.
A bracket where the strongest contenders were set to clash right from the beginning.
And if they won their Round of 32 matches, the Forbiddenz and the Demon King would meet in the Round of 16—a relatively short bracket.
Was this tailored to satisfy the viewers who wanted to see things unfold quickly?
Everyone was praising how perfectly the bracket was laid out.
And so, the first match began.
[Aaaaah!!! The match you’ve all been waiting for is starting sooner than expected!!! The grand Round of 32, first match!!! Team 1—no, we should call them by name now!!! The Featherwing Knights!!! Versus!!! The pride of Septem Arcana, the mages of the Serul Spire!!!]
With the relay spirit’s announcement, the two teams appeared at opposite ends of the arena, as if summoned there.
Facing each other head-on.
However, the relay spirit watching them tilted its head in confusion.
[Huh?! Something seems off with the Featherwing Knights??? Gam feels completely different today!]
Just as the relay spirit said.
Gam looked almost unrecognizable—dark circles under his eyes, his complexion ashen compared to yesterday.
The solid, confident presence from the day before was nowhere to be seen, and only a savage aura swirled around Gam.
Seeing that, even the mages from the Serul Spire tilted their heads in confusion.
He looked far too different from yesterday.
Even the knights around him were radiating a gloominess.
There was a high chance something had happened.
Everyone sensed something was off—
But Gam stepped forward as if none of that mattered in the slightest.
Despite it being a team match,
He exuded an arrogance like he could handle everything on his own.
“Hmph? How arrogant.”
The mages of the Serul Spire frowned and spoke as they looked at him.
Even ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) the relay spirit clicked its tongue in discomfort.
[This is a completely different Gam from yesterday!!! Where did that cooperative, strategic mindset go???]
Ignoring the relay spirit’s words, Gam silently drew his sword.
Even looking relaxed, as if to say “come at me anytime.”
The strange mood made the mages stay alert for now.
But they didn’t actually think he’d take them all on alone.
It could easily be a bluff to bait them into carelessness while his teammates struck from behind.
So to avoid falling for that mistake, the mages raised their mana and got ready.
–Does he have a death wish or something???
–Dude's a totally different person from yesterday???
–He got real cynical all of a sudden😨😨
–What the hell, is that even the same guy???
–Fr, if the relay spirit hadn’t said it, I wouldn’t know that was Gam;;
The viewers were just as confused.
But hey, did it really matter now?
What mattered was the battle between the Featherwing Knights and the mages of the Serul Spire.
Whatever the case—
Most viewers just wanted the match to start already.
Who cared if Gam had changed?
As long as the match was good, that was enough.
And the moment more viewers started thinking that—
[Let the match begin!!!]
The relay spirit announced the start of the match.
With that shout—
Craaaaack——!!!
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
Ice tore through space and froze mid-air, slicing across the arena with a chilling sound.
As a wall rose, a barrier of ice separated Gam from the other knights, forming a kind of secondary colosseum enclosing Gam and the mages.
For mages, maintaining distance was crucial—but they were locked in with Gam. There had to be a reason.
Cold seeped in like an oozing mist.
Around the mages, translucent crystals—like transparent ice—formed.
Even purer than the ice wall, these transparent ice barriers were clear as glass.
But just from the looks of them, their durability was clearly immense.
[The Serul Spire’s signature move!!! At the same time as casting the Curtain of Frost!!! They’re creating Ice Crystals of Chill!!! What a mighty defensive formation this is!?]
The relay spirit’s dramatic narration.
However, the fuss was actually justified.
The Ice Crystals of Chill could block most attacks and even convert some into cold energy, becoming thicker the more they were hit.
It was known as a defensive spell that could only be broken in a single blow.
After casting it, the mages smiled confidently, certain of victory.
No matter how strong Gam might be, there was no way he could shatter those Ice Crystals in a single strike and take them all down.
Confident in that, the mages gathered their mana again to attack.
Magic filled with intense cold dropped the temperature around them even further.
But Gam laughed at it all as if it were a joke.
As if telling them, “Go ahead, try whatever you want.”
He stood there at ease, not even raising his sword.
Was that smug expression getting on their nerves?
Twitch.
The mages’ eyebrows twitched.
Sure, mages were generally disadvantaged against knights in terms of matchups—
But to have fully fortified their defenses and still see a knight acting this cocky? That was a blow to their pride.
No way they’d let that slide.
Flaring their eyes, the mages fired a beam of frost at Gam.
A stream of extreme cold that could freeze even air itself surged forward like a slicing wind.
Phaaaaaaah——!!!
The beam of extreme cold flew at him in an instant.
And yet, Gam still didn’t move a muscle, acting as if nothing was happening.
When the beam reached his chest—
Crack! Craaaack——!!!
Craaaaaaack———!!!
With an ear-splitting sound like a frozen lake in the dead of winter, Gam was encased in ice.
[W-What just... happened... here???]
The relay spirit was stunned, and so were the mages who had fired the beam.
It was definitely a fast and powerful attack.
But Gam couldn’t even dodge it?
No, that’s not it.
It was quite the opposite.
Gam didn’t do anything.
As if such an attack didn’t matter in the slightest.
Frozen solid after taking the beam directly, now encased in an icy statue.
They had used their trump card.
And he had just stood there and taken it?
Was he reckless, or was he confident?
In that moment of uncertainty—
The mages tilted their heads slightly, wondering if it was truly over.
And then, inside the ice, the frozen statue of Gam suddenly smirked.
A horribly cruel, chilling grin.
Chinggraaang——!!!
A sharp sound like glass shattering echoed out.
The icy statue around Gam shattered into pieces, scattering in every direction.
As shards of ice floated through the air—
All Gam had done was raise his sword.
Even the relay spirit, whose job was to commentate, forgot to speak and just stared blankly.
Gam held the sword lightly in his hand and murmured,
“So lukewarm.”
With those words, he swung the sword downward.
And in that moment—
Something faint brushed outward.
No one sensed it.
But that faint flash unmistakably flew toward the mages—
And sliced the Ice Crystals of Chill clean through.
Szzzz——crack.
PHWAAAAAAAANG——!!!
The Ice Crystals of Chill were split cleanly with terrifying ease.
And the aftershock shattered the Curtain of Frost that had been shielding the mages from behind.
Was such a thing even possible?
The mages didn’t even have time to be surprised—their eyes widened in disbelief.
Just as they tried to react—
Their chests were slashed horizontally, blood spraying from the cuts.
FWOOSH——!
Seeing the gush of crimson bloom across their torsos, Gam laughed like he was truly enjoying it.
And then—
“Be grateful. That flimsy crystal saved your lives.”
It was an unbearably arrogant thing to say.
But no one could take it as arrogance right now.
A single slash.
Just one strike, and the mages were all knocked out.
The relay spirit panicked and shouted,
[S-Serul Spire!!! RETIRED!!! T-The winner is the Featherwing Knights!!!]
With the relay spirit’s delayed declaration—
The mages from Serul Spire vanished from the arena.
They had been instantly teleported out for treatment.
The match had ended far too quickly.
Even the viewers were left stunned by Gam’s overwhelming performance.
–??????? What was that?
–He just swung his sword and it was over???
–??? Did anyone even see what happened?
–I didn’t catch it at all;;;
In that dazed confusion—
Only one team was sweating cold bullets while watching the match.
“...What the hell was that?”
Seong was wiping cold sweat, looking genuinely troubled.