Chapter 178: Infighting
The Crafter’s grin stretched wider, teeth flashing bright under the jagged torchlight. The silver microphone spun faster between his fingers, a blur of quicksilver that caught the flames and threw shards of broken light across the platform.
"Tonight," he declared, voice rising into a theatrical crescendo, "we have a special match — a clash of loyalty... and betrayal!"
The monitors behind him pulsed once, the light deepening into a richer, bloodier red.
Two profiles snapped into view, side by side. Names. Stats. Ikona icons.
Each line sharp enough to cut.
[Elias Kael]
[Kikaru Yirazawa]
The names glowed, stark against the black glass, their letters burning crimson in the heavy air. Below each name, a single small icon rotated slowly — a ladybug-shaped emblem flashing beside Elias’s name, tiny red wings and black dots glinting faintly with each turn.
Beside Kikaru’s, a golden sphere of searing light, shaped like a miniature sun, pulsed with rhythmic bursts, the edges rippling like solar flares.
The system windows rippled once, then stabilized, casting new data in tight, efficient columns:
Elias Kael