It was a great opportunity to fire a counter back at Beat. However, Jaiden waited for a moment. He delayed his shot even more than last time. Yet again, he caught the sneaky Pirate sidestepping to the side ahead of time. This was the cue!

Again!? Kai gritted her teeth. There was no way she mistimed her sidestep this time too. That shot came way too late. It’s almost as if the opponent waited for her to sidestep, then fired.

Did he figure me out? Already? Kai had no other explanation. That bastard in front of her knew that Kai was relying on patterns for her dodges. It was the first time they met in the game, yet Renegade has already found a way to shut down her prized evasion.

Will high-level players always figure me out this quickly? Kai shuddered. It was the second time it happened.

This was a repeat of the 2v2 she had against Yuel and Lars after meeting them. Back then, Lars also delayed his shots in order to hit her. She later learned it was Yuel's idea, which made sense. The guy dissected players as a hobby so, of course, somebody like him would be able to figure Kai out.

For the most part, she was fine with that development. Big brain players like Yuel were one in a thousand, if not rarer. Kai concluded she won't run into such opponents all too often, if ever.

Yet, there Renegade was, standing in front of her as if mocking her naivety. The guy figured her out in a couple of minutes.

It gotta be THAT guy. Kai still remembered the boy who rubbed her the wrong way the first time they interacted on the stage. He insulted Kai in a totally different manner from TheLegend, who turned out to be a lame loser. This guy, Renegade, was a completely different beast.

TheLegend insulted Kai in order to stroke his own ego and make his pals crack a laugh. It was easy to tell the guy was just trying to make himself look important, so it came as no surprise he turned out to be utter trash.

On the other hand, Regendae didn’t care for such petty things. His antagonism toward Kai was much more real and direct. The guy was filled with malice. He couldn’t forgive Kai’s existence for whatever reason.

And here he was, standing in front of her, trying to prove that everything he said was the truth. That Kai wasn’t a strong player, that she had no place in the competitive scene, and that she was trash because she was a girl. Renegade was planning to beat her to a pulp and turn all these insults into facts.

Like hell you will! Kai raged. You think you’re so good? Fine, let’s have at it! I’ll mop the floor with your stupid face!!!

Kai charged forth. She was going to force this fight into close quarters since Renegade was good at dodging bullets from afar. It’ll be even better if she managed to get into melee range and make use of her cutlass. At that point, she’ll have the fight in the bag.

I’ll destroy him. I’ll kill his ass. Only thoughts like that swirled inside Kai’s head. She demanded nothing less than the complete ruin of her opponent.

“Wait, Beat! Kai!” Vincent failed to get the amazon’s attention. It was bad! Terrible! A disaster in the making! Beat activated her accursed Pheromone Buster mode again! I have to do something...!

“Pitiful,” Jaiden shrugged in disappointment. Beat sealed her fate the moment she charged in. As Jaiden thought, that girl was bad. She didn’t deserve to be any team’s captain, not even Stratus’.

“I’m ready,” Rio informed.

“Do it,” Jaiden nodded.

On command, Roi rolled forward into the enemy's blind spot.

"Wha-!?" Vincent was the one to exclaim. He wasn't the target of the attack, so he saw things clearly from the sideline.

The enemy Cryomancer, Laplace, closed onto Beat at some point. With a single roll, he appeared right behind her! It wasn't hard to imagine what manner of disaster will follow. "Beat! Dodge-" 

It was too late. The spell was already cast.

"Shit, what the-!?" Kai froze in place. Literally. A frosty breath covered her from behind, turning her into a human-sized lump of ice.

When the hell did he get behind me!? Kai roared internally. How did I make such a mistake!? Damn it!

It was embarrassing. She should've paid more attention to her surroundings. A Cryomancer sneaking up to her like this was a scrubby blunder.

How come I didn’t see him!? Kai ranted. Was I too absorbed in the fight? Yeah, I probably was. That’s a misplay on my part. But...

"How come you didn't warn me!?" Kai demanded from Vincent.

"Apologies! I didn't notice him until it was too late!" Vincent dashed to Kai's side like a madman. He had to get there at all costs, or else this situation will end in a tragedy.

Thankfully, he was loitering nearby the entire time, searching for a good opportunity to step into the fight. So, it didn't take him long to reach the scene.

BAM! The enemy delivered one headshot on the frozen Kai. It dealt hefty damage and reduced what little HP she had to 20%. She was two hits away from dying.

BAM! Another headshot. But, this one didn't affect Kai's HP in the slightest.

A golden aura of invincibility surrounded her and Vincent, nullifying all damage and CC. It was Paladin’s Aegis, the ultimate shield that nullified all sources of attack!

"Tch, nice supporting," Jaiden praised the Paladin's quick response.

Thanks to Blackhole’s quick response, Jaiden only landed one headshot on the enemy. He shaved off a nice 14% thanks to Gunslinger's 100% crit chance on headshots, but the Aegis completely negated his second headshot. Even though Jaiden had an easy frozen target right in front of him, he couldn’t do anything to Beat.

A golden protective aura enveloped the two enemies as they made their retreat. No amount of damage or CC could do any harm to them.

But, Aegis only lasted a short time. This fight wasn't over yet!

"Rio, wall them off," Jaiden requested.

"Got it," Rio summoned a wall of ice ahead of the enemy, cutting off their escape route.

"Shit!" Kai heard an icy sound cue. An ice wall was about to appear! No way! I won't let you block me off!

If the enemy locked her out here, it’ll be over. Aegis's protection will end shortly after and Kai will be as good as dead. She couldn't let that happen. She won't go down like this!

Therefore, she rolled forth. Before the Ice Wall even began appearing, Kai was already rolling! 

"Nice reaction," Jaiden whistled in surprise.

Beat rolled through the Ice Wall blockade before it formed. The ice wall molded itself into existence a split second after that. The wall forced the Paladin to a halt, but it failed to capture the main prey.

In fact, this Ice Wall became a traitor. It walled off Jaiden and Rio, so they couldn’t pursue their fleeing prey.

“My bad," Rio apologized. He set up that wall to imprison the fleeing prey but, instead, he imprisoned Jaiden and himself.

"No biggie," Jaiden said. "We’ll just have to use our Invincible Triangle. Nash, you're up." 

"Heck yeah, finally!" Nash flashed his teeth. It was the grin of a vicious beast, excited about the idea of driving his fangs into somebody’s flesh. Especially, this time, it was double the fun because his target was a girl. He gonna wreck her so hard, she'll think he was the strongest man on earth. She might even fall for him, huehue.

"Let's go!" Nash rolled out of the jungle and intercepted the Pirate.

"Shit!" Kai gritted her teeth. Where did he even come from!?

It was a pincer. With just 20% HP, her chances of escape were slim to none. However, that didn't mean she was going to give up.

I'm not dying here! Kai declared. She turned around, showing her back to the Viking. Then, she cast Backfire Cannon, propelling herself deeper into allied territory.

I gotta get to the tower. Fast. Kai gulped. This was a race. She had to reach the Turret before the Viking cornered her.

"Whoa, neato!" Nash grinned as the Pirate flew right past him. It should’ve been crystal clear to the girl that she was done for, yet she was still radiating such an intense fighting spirit. Not bad, girl. But, you ain’t going anywhere!

No prey could escape from the jaws of the StormMonster. As Nash gave chase, the entire world around him slowed down, like a film playing in slow motion. He saw every motion, every twitch, in insane detail.

His body felt light like a feather. Every motion was natural and effortless. He could tell exactly what he should do next, without even spending any time thinking about it.

He hurled his axe ahead of him. It flew past the feeling Pirate, driving right into the ground.

Did I just dodge it!? Kai surprised even herself. In her current agitated state, she barely even heard the axe being flung. She juked to the left at the last moment, but she didn't expect to actually dodge anything with such clumsy timing.

Nevertheless, the axe passed right by her side without hitting. She still had a chance to escape-

Whish! A teleportation sound. The Viking blinked to his axe and appeared in front of Kai.

Your ass is mine! Nash swung his axe and dug it into Pirate's chest. That erased a sweet 10%! Everything was going according to his ingenious plan.

From the beginning, Nash wasn't aiming at the Pirate with his Axe Throw. Like, what would be the point? The girl was already on her death bed. A hit from Axe Throw wasn't going to deal much damage anyway. And, hitting her with the throw meant sticking the axe into her back, which would only allow Nash to blink that far.

That ain’t good enough. I wanna get ahead of her! That’s why, instead of wasting time aiming at the girl’s back, Nash lodged the axe into the ground ahead of his prey. It allowed him to outrace his opponent in a blink of an eye. He was as fast as the Flash!

Now, all Nash had to do was swing at the opponent in front of him. One attack already connected. One more hit and it’ll be over!

What can I do here? Kai bit her lip. There's nothing, is there? Her Dodge Roll was still on cooldown. Her Backfire Cannon was also out of commission.

There were only two skills still available for her. She had the option to switch her gun for a cutlass, or to summon the Kraken. Unfortunately, with her low HP, she had no hope of winning a melee fight. And, the summoning animation for Kraken was way too long. The Viking will cut her down before the Kraken comes out.

So, Kai was already dead. She actually allowed these bastards to take her down this early into the game. She thoroughly lost to Renegade. Fucking hell...

Fine! If I'm going to die anyway...! Kai drew her cutlass. She was going to swing and swing and swing! She won't go down without inflicting any damage on her enemy!

"Whoa! What a crazy chick!" Nash was taken back for a moment.

At this point, most prey would resign to their fate and cease resistance. But, this girl was like a wild beast. Sensing danger, she lashed out with relentless bites! The aggression was overwhelming enough to faze even Nash for a moment. 

Mad respect for that competitive attitude. But, it's over. All Nash had to do was bring down his axe once more. So, he did just that. The axe hacked through the Pirate’s neck and cut her across the torso, executing the fugitive.

『You have killed an enemy!』

“Hell yeah! Let’s go, let’s go, let’s gooooooo!” Nash wasn’t done yet, far from it. There was one more rat in the area, trying its best to flee the scene - the Paladin!

Jaiden and Rio chased the guy from behind, so the Paladin headed in the only direction he possibly could. He was running toward his tower, straight into Nash’s embrace! No homo.

Come at me, bruh! Nash became a goalkeeper. It was a boring role in Soccer but, in Classmancers, it was da shit! He stood in the Paladin’s path, denying entry into the tower’s area.

“This is a disaster! A tragedy!” Vincent cried out. Two agents were chasing him down from behind and a gatekeeper stood in his way. It was a pincer most foul! The enemy pressed Vincent between a rock and a hard place. Doom was imminent.

“Chessmaster! Orders, I beseech thee!” Vincent pleaded to the only person who could flip this disadvantageous situation on its head. Maybe there was an opening somewhere. Perhaps there was a weakness in the enemy’s formation. Vincent prayed it was the case. He didn’t want to abandon hope until the very end!

“Hmm,” Yuel bit his lip. He overclocked his brain to simulate numerous lines of play, but nothing worked out. The enemies encircled the area perfectly.

Vincent’s best bet would’ve been to take a sharp turn toward the jungle, but the Gunslinger denied that option. While the Cryomancer was chasing Vincent in a straight line, the Gunslinger turned toward the jungle and circled around the area as he chased.

As a result, Vincent found himself caged inside a triangular formation. The three enemies were like three points of a triangle, with Vincent imprisoned in the center. No matter in which direction he’ll choose to run, there will always be somebody to intercept him.

If he tried to turn around, the Cryomancer will be there to stall him. If he ventured into the jungle, the Gunslinger will cut him off. And, if he continued running along the lane, the Viking was waiting to execute him at the end of the road. There was no escape from this triangle.

“Your best option is to keep running toward the tower,” Yuel delivered the bad news. “If you try going to the jungle, they’ll intercept you and gang on you. On the other hand, if you get close enough to the tower, they might give up.” I highly doubt that, though.

“O, dios mio! Why such a cruel fate must befall me!?” Vincent lamented. He was still alive and kicking thanks to his tankiness, but only 50% HP remained. If he gives his pursuers just a few more opportunities to hit him, he’ll die a terrible death.

Following Yuel’s advice, Vincent pressed on along the lane. His pursuers were still behind him and only hit him once in a while. That much damage was still fine. It definitely hurt, but Vincent will survive it.

The real problem was the gatekeeper in front of him. If Vincent had Dodge Roll, he could’ve attempted to roll past this guard. Alas, he panicked hard during this escape operation and spent the Dodge Roll prematurely. Also, he spent his Justice Strike as well.

In other words, Vincent was like a gunman with an empty barrel. He only had his legs to carry him. By relying on fundamental movements alone, he had to somehow sneak past the gatekeeper and reach the safe haven. Indeed, at this critical moment, he shall become the Ultimate Gatekeeper Sneaker-

"Whoa!?" Two hands grabbed Vincent before he could even begin maneuvering! The Viking locked him into a suplex!

Next, the wrestler flung Vincent backward like a rock. That set Vincent at least ten steps back. The gatekeeper won this one. 

Shortly, the Gunslinger and Cryoamnce caught up. The three enemies locked Vincent inside the Bermuda Triangle. There was no escape from this imminent doom. Vincent struggled his best until the very end, but there was no hope of winning this 1v3.

『You have been killed!』

"Heh,” Vincent smiled meaningfully as he gazed toward the ceiling. “All good things come to an end one day.”

"What are you acting all 'cool' about?" Kai jabbed with her elbow. "You just died."

"Why yes, indeed. I have perished. Such is the inevitable fate of all living beings. Nevertheless, I must say, those three made my heart skip a beat." 

"Huh?" kai raised an eyebrow.

"Such teamwork! Such synergy!" Vincent sang praises. "None can escape from the grasp of The Barmuda Triangle of Certain Doom!" 

"'Certain Doom'?" Kai gave him a look. "You realize you're talking about our opponents, right? It's like you're saying we've already lost."

"Indeed, we will lose terribly if we underestimate their Bermuda Triangle of Certain doom.”

"Yeah, whatever," Kai shrugged. "I'll get them next time."

“I just told you to not underestimate them,” Vincent still had shivers dancing across his skin. Renegade, Laplace, and StormMonster orchestrated a sequence of plays that was nothing short of ingenious. They crushed Vincent like a bug, but he didn't even feel bad going down like this. It was similar to being stomped by a pro. It was an honor, not a tragedy.

This Bermuda Triangle was bad news. It had the potential to trample all over Stratus. The last time Vincent was this excited about unknown players was back when he watched Yuel and Lars playing against the Leopards.

No, perhaps the Bermuda Triangle topped even that performance. It was swift, calculated, and destructive. 

Vincent knew better than anybody that the amount of excitement he felt directly attested to the power level of the skill. After all, he was the Arbiter of Talents. The cooler the talent seemed, the more overpowered it was.

Therefore, there was no doubt. This Bermuda Triangle of Certain Doom was going to run amok. This was but a prologue. The Bermuda Triangle hasn’t unleashed its full potential yet. Renegade, Laplace, and StormMonster still had more in store. Much more.