Finally, the two fated rivals were about to duel, and Yuel couldn’t help but worry about the result.

“Do you need any advice about the fight?” Yuel asked.

“Huh?” Kai gave him a look. “You think I need help to beat this bastard?”

“It’s an important fight,” Yuel reasoned. “If there’s anything we can do to help you from afar, we better do it.”

“No need,” Kai declared. “Did you forget I’m a Challenger in Duel? I can handle myself just fine, thank you.”

“Very well.” Yuel tried his best to maintain an even expression, but his worries were eating him from the inside.

If Kai loses this fight, she’ll most certainly doom the entire team. This was an incredibly dangerous situation. If there was any way Yuel, or anybody else, could increase Kai’s chances of victory, it was best to use that method.

Alas, with the girl herself rejecting help, there was nothing that could be done. Trying to help Kai against her will would only lead to disaster. It’ll tilt her and distract her from the fight. Basically, it’d have the opposite effect of what it tried to achieve.

Therefore, it was best to keep quiet and let Kai handle this on her own terms.

I’ll settle this myself. Kai advanced toward her opponent and fired a bolt. It signaled the beginning of the long-awaited duel.

You not gonna reach me from there. Jaiden backstepped while firing his counter shot.

The enemy’s bolt headed straight toward him, but it fell to the ground before reaching its target. On the other hand, Jaiden’s bullet crossed the same distance with ease.

"Geh!" Kai tried to sidestep the bullet, but she was one heartbeat too late. It’s just a flesh wound. Let's go!

Kai advanced again. This time, she was going to nail the shot for sure. Alright. Now!

You’re still too far, girl. Jaiden halted in place and fired at the attacker.

This time, he didn't even need to move back to make the bolt whiff. The entire time, Jaiden has been matching Beat’s movements to maintain the ideal distance from her.

As expected, the bolt didn't reach. On the other hand, Jaiden’s bullet properly made its way to Beat’s chest. It was going to be a clean hit!

Shit! Kai rolled forward, ducking under the bullet. If you think you can keep spacing me out forever, think again!

Ranger's basic attacks were a bit shorter than most marksmen's, so it was only natural for Renegade to exploit this weakness.

In Ranked, few opponents had the necessary sense of distance to pull this off. However, the guy in front of her was on a whole different level. He was a scrub that Kai totally gonna mop, but he was good.

There was this “competitive aura” around Renegade that set him apart from the opponents in Ranked. He was dangerous. Messing up against him will spell doom. The moment Kai commits a mistake or gives Renegade a chance to strike, that bastard will take full advantage of it.

Therefore, Kai had to close the distance between them as quickly as possible. She recovered from the Dodge Roll and fired another bolt.

Bold move...! Jaiden moved to the side this time, not backward. Beat has gotten too close to him with her Dodge Roll, so backpedaling wasn't going to save him this time.

He had no choice but to evade via sidestepping. Alas, a bolt grazed his left side anyway.

No dice, huh. Jaiden shook his head.

He had the option to create some immediate distance with Dodge Roll, but it was risky to spend Dodge Roll before the Ranger spent her ult. So, Jaiden had no choice but to accept this situation and fire back.

At least, his counters have been on point so far, so he’ll always deal some damage back to the attacker. Or, so he thought...

You better not be expecting your obvious counters to land every time. Kai sidestepped the bullet flying her way. I've figured the timing for your counters. You're not landing them again.

Nice sidestep. Jaiden clicked his tongue.

For a moment, he forgot Beat was good at reading patterns. Even when it came to the timing of a counter-attack, it seemed like Beat could sidestep it as long as the timing was consistent enough. What a troublesome ability.

It sure forces you to think differently. Jaiden thought.

Rather than firing a counter as quickly as possible, it was better to wait a little against Beat. She always started moving right when the bullet was about to come out, so Jaiden had to delay his shots a little to throw Beat’s predictions off.

On their next exchange, Jaiden properly kept all of that in mind.

There! He fired a delayed counter as soon as Beat twitched.

"Shit!" Kai cursed. Her sidestep should've been perfectly timed, yet the bullet connected anyway. I don't think I mistimed it. He took his sweet time with that one. He knows, huh.

At this point, there was no question about it. Renegade, or maybe somebody else from his team, figured the gist of how Kai evaded attacks. They probably didn't give it a ridiculous name like "Rhythm Reader", but they sure knew how to deal with it.

Damn, why won’t you just let me kill you!? Kai fired a bolt, but it didn't reach. Renegade has already created enough distance between them to make Kai’s bolts whiff. Meanwhile, that bastard’s counters connected without fail.

Dammit! It's so hard to dodge these! Kai cursed internally.

She stopped relying on patterns because Renegade's delays had random variations to them. Instead, she concentrated on the Gunslinger's movements and tried to dodge the counters on reaction.

Unfortunately, that was easier said than done. Even when she successfully reacted in time and started moving as soon as the bullet came out, the attack still hit her two times out of three.

It was rough. She already dropped to 40% HP, while Renegade was doing just fine at 70%.

Kai’s Wolf Companion came out of cooldown by now, so this entire battle boiled down to spacing.  If she can get close enough and pin Renegade to the ground, she'll win. On the other hand, if Renegade continues spacing her out for the rest of the fight, he'll eventually wear her down.

Damn! if I knew it'll turn like this, I would've picked Impaler. Kai gritted her teeth.

She only went for Ranger because she thought it'll let her score an easy kill on Renegade. On paper, all she had to do was get close to her opponent, pin him down with Wolf Companion, and then barrage him to death with her ult. It sounded like a child's play.

Yet, Kai couldn’t achieve it. She had a deadly combo at her disposal, but she couldn't get into a position to use it.

"Shit, what do I-" Kai stopped herself right there. No, this isn't the kind of fight in which I can ask for advice. I have to beat this bastard by myself. Otherwise, it'll be pointless.

Kai had to do this one alone. It was a raw competition of skill between her and Renegade. That scum claimed Kai was trash, so she had to prove him wrong. She had to come on top in this fight through her own strength, without relying on anybody.

And, she'll do it! She'll crush that bastard!

"I think she's getting frustrated," Rio said.

"Yeah? Sounds good." Jaiden grinned. Rio's keen observations were great for finding moments like this. This was the opportunity Jaiden has been waiting for.

The longer the defender stuck to defense, the more it agitated the attacker. At some point, the attacker was bound to start forcing their shots and commit a terrible mistake. That was the moment Jaiden has been waiting for. And, according to Rio, that moment was coming soon.

If Beat is planning to go for the kill, then the main threat will be her Wolf Companion. The skill probably came out of cooldown by now, so she’ll definitely try to pin Jaiden down with it. If she manages to do so, it’ll be GG.

“Man,” Jaiden said. “My life would be so much easier if I could just bait out her wolf.”

“I have an idea how you can do that,” Rio said.

“Really!? Okay, I’m all ears.” Jaiden nodded strongly. Even though this was a personal duel against Beat, it never hurt listening to some advice.

“Think of it as a trap with three layers,” Rio explained his devious plan.

“Dang, that’s sick!” Jaiden grinned. “Okay, I like it. Let’s try it out!”

Come. Let's end this. Jaiden prepared himself. He focused on every little twitch the Ranger made, to make sure he didn’t miss anything about her movements. The upcoming sequence of plays will most likely drop the curtain on this duel.

As Rio predicted, the enemy made her move.

Alright, let's go! Kai darted forward. For starters, she had to get closer to the enemy. Nothing will get started until then.

She didn't have any blinking or leaping abilities, so she had to run over there on foot. No matter how many bullets come flying her way, she'll keep moving forward!

The extreme aggression took the enemy a little off-guard.

Hm? Are you suiciding? Jaiden casually fired a bullet at the incoming attacker. It perfectly landed on the Ranger's chest. Beat didn’t show any signs of even trying to dodge. The girl kept running straight at Jaiden, like a train that couldn't change course.

I see what you're thinking. Jaiden fired again, this time aiming for the opponent's head. BAM. CRITICAL HIT.

"Agh!" Kai felt that one. It was a big chunk of damage. Nevertheless, she had to press on.

Her opponent was slower than her because he was backpedaling and shooting at the same time. On the other hand, Kai was running forward in a straight line without firing a single bolt. Thanks to that, she quickly closed the distance. Her HP fell down to 25%, but she was almost there!

Kai was about to get Renegade within the reach of Wolf Companion. However, unleashing the wolf right would be dumb.

Renegade was carefully saving his Dodge Roll even during this tense situation. If Kai launches a predictable attack, Renegade will simply roll out of it.

As such, the first necessary step was to bait out the Dodge Roll.

It’s a little early for my ult. Kai frowned. But, I don’t have any other ways to pressure him.

And so, she booted her ultimate. “The hunt is on!” the Ranger proclaimed loudly.

By marking Renegade as her prey, Kai gained a sharp boost to her Attack Power against him. Now, she could pressure him. She’ll draw the Dodge Roll out of him, no matter what!

Did she go for her ult before using the wolf? Jaiden didn't expect that. But, this was a good sign. It meant Beat felt cornered.

Most likely, her goal was to draw out Jaiden’s Dodge Roll. After that, she’ll go for the kill with her wolf.

Just as Rio predicted, Beat started forcing her offense. As long as Jaiden stubbornly stuck to his defense, the girl was bound to show an opening during her offense.

Therefore, Jaiden will continue making Beat’s life difficult. He ignored the fact his opponent has just powered up and fearlessly fired a bullet at her.

Oh, you wanna go? Let's go! Kai sidestepped the bullet and fired a swift bolt. It pierced through the air like a silver spear and penetrated through Renegade's chest.

"Whoa!” Jaiden didn't expect such an intense offense. Nevertheless, he fired again, this time with a slight delay.

Is that all you got? You're through! Kai sidestepped this bullet as well and fired another powerful shot.

“Seriously!?” Jaiden exclaimed. The bolt pierced through his ribs. Dang, it’s so much harder to deal with her at this range!

With just those two hits, Beat reduced his HP from 70% all the way down to 50%. It was impressive. The girl sacrificed over half of her remaining HP to get closer to Jaiden, but now she finally got her offense rolling.

This might be bad, haha. Jaiden smiled nervously. These empowered shots meant trouble. Even though he still had twice as much HP as Beat, it felt like he had one leg in the grave.

Okay, you're not TERRIBLE. Jaiden admitted silently. This girl had some spank to her. The way she read patterns and dodged them in a timely fashion was praiseworthy, and her aggression was nothing to sneeze at. Even Jaiden felt a little overwhelmed for a moment, that’s why he fired such sloppy shots that were so easy to dodge.

Nevertheless, in the end, that girl was still critically lacking as a player. Jaiden was about to prove that here and now.

Let's go! Jaiden fanned the hammer of his revolver and assumed a firm stance. He was about to barrage the girl with a revolver that could rival a machine gun!

"Wha-!?" Kai gasped. This bastard is pulling it NOW!?

The Ranger’s “The Hunt is On!” versus the Gunslinger’s “Fan the Hammer”. A showdown between the strongest offensive tools of both classes.

Given the HP difference between Kai and Renegade, it was obvious that the Gunslinger’s quick shots will erase Kai first. She should be able to dodge some of the shots thanks to the pattern of Fan the Hammer being consistent, but it’ll difficult to dodge them all from such a close range.

In short, that bastard turned the tables on her. Renegade pulled an ace that made the close distance between them play to his advantage.

But, Kai came too far to give up. She’ll keep going hard until the very end!

Kai rolled forward, right into the lion’s mouth. She had to get Renegade into the range of Wolf Companion.

No, that won’t be enough. Kai reasoned. Just getting the target within the range of Wolf Companion wasn’t that hard. In fact, Renegade was already within that range.

What Kai really had to do was to get so close to Renegade, that he’ll have no chance of dodging the wolf even if he tried. And thus, Kai rolled forward as fast as possible. Even if some bullets hit her along the way, she’ll win the fight as long as she delivers her Wolf Companion from point-blank!

She’s rolling in? Jaiden grinned. This was an unexpected development, but a welcome one.

He expected Beat to unleash Wolf Companion the moment he booted Fan the Hammer, but she wasn’t hasty. It seemed like some of her judgment was still intact.

The plan was to enter the “vulnerable” stance of Fan the Hammer as bait. Beat was supposed to see it as an opportunity to unleash Wolf Companion. Jaiden planned to dodge the wolf with Combat Roll, putting the enemy’s trump card to waste.

However, Beat didn’t fall for such a simple ploy.

Not bad, but no problem. This only made things more interesting, that’s about it.

By recklessly rolling in, Beat undoubtedly planned to unleash her Wolf Companion from point-blank. Therefore, as soon as she recovered from the roll and turned to look at him - Jaiden rolled aside with Combat Roll! Dodge me with that wolf!

He rolled away without issue. Beat’s wolf was going to whiff for sure. Except, no wolf jumped on him...

“Hah! You fell for it!” Kai grinned madly. She could already smell the sweet scent of victory.

As she expected. Renegade was fast to react. He instantly realized that Kai planned to hit him with the wolf from point-blank, so he rolled away.

However, Kai knew he’d figure that. That’s why she hasn’t unleashed her wolf yet.

This duel felt almost like fighting against Lars. That beast reacted to everything so quickly, it was impossible to catch him off guard with just fast plays. That’s why, in order to tackle such strong opponents, Kai had to learn some advanced feints.

You got some skill, Renegade. Kai admitted silently. But, precisely BECAUSE your reaction is so good, I can fake you out with stuff like this. You’re through!

Kai waited a moment to see where Renegade rolled, then summoned her wolf. The beast leaped on its prey and pinned it to the ground! At least, that’s what should’ve happened.

Strangely, the wolf landed on an empty area, with no prey to press under its claws. The beast tilted its head in confusion, then vanished into thin air.

“Huh...?” Kai blinked. “How did he...? But, the recovery...”

It didn’t make any sense. She unleashed her hound as soon as Renegade finished the roll. The timing was spot-on! Then, how did Renegade roll away so quickly and dodged her wolf!?

“Phew, dodged!” Jaiden breathed in relief as he recovered from his second roll, this one was the regular Dodge Roll. Heh, I bet you didn’t expect that, did you? You’re not experienced enough, girl! He fired at the bewildered opponent.

Beat probably believed that Jaiden won’t be able to dodge her wolf while recovering from the roll. And, she was half-correct in assuming so. That logic indeed applied to rolls with long recovery time, like Dodge Roll. The long recovery was punishment for poorly-timed rolls.

However, Combat Roll didn’t play by the same rules. It was more than just a “second Dodge Roll” in the Gunslinger’s kit. Combat Roll also had some enhanced properties compared to Dodge Roll, one of which was its faster recovery.

By design, the fast recovery was intended for launching a quick attack after the roll. However, it had other applications as well. Like, for example, quickly pulling off a Dodge Roll right after a Combat Roll, chaining two rolls one after another!

But, that wasn’t the only tricky part of this play. Jaiden smiled meaningfully. Rio really came up with a nasty trap here.

Jaiden activated Fan the Hammer before he went for Combat Roll. One well-known fact about Fan the Hammer was how it couldn’t be canceled in the middle. That downside brought a lot of grief to Gunslinger players. Jaiden knew that feel all too well.

However, opponents often rejoiced at that fact. After all, once the Gunslinger booted Fan the Hammer, he practically sealed his own ability to dodge attacks.

Combat Roll was the only maneuver available during Fan the Hammer. Other than that, the Gunslinger was practically a sitting duck.

However, that wasn’t entirely correct. In truth, the Gunslinger COULD cancel Fan the Hammer. But, that was only possible during a very specific scenario. Namely, during a Combat Roll.

It was possible to continue Fan the Hammer after Combat Roll, but it was also possible to cancel Fan the Hammer before finishing the roll. And, after canceling, it became possible to extend the roll with a Dodge Roll, just the way Jaiden did it.

Nobody ever does that, though. Jaiden snickered.

In practice, it was rare to see Gunslingers cancel Fan the Hammer during Combat Roll. After all, Fan the Hammer wasn’t supposed to be used in situations where the shooter had to dodge attacks. And, in case such an unexpected situation occurred, the Gunslinger player actually had to remember this option in order to use it. It was extremely rare.

That’s why, even opponents who were aware of this option would often fail to consider it in the heat of battle. In fact, Jaiden was 100% sure he’d also fail to consider it when fighting a Gunslinger. The idea that “Gunslinger can only do Combat Roll out of Fan the Hammer” was too deeply rooted in people’s minds.

And, Rio used all of that to his advantage. Jaiden smiled proudly.

Rio’s triple-layered plan took all that data into account. It strongly relied on how niche was the interaction between Fan the Hammer, Combat Roll, and Dodge Roll. Rio knew that most opponents would fail to consider it, and Beat was no different.

It was a tricky plan, but it worked. Jaiden had to sacrifice three skills just to bait out Beat’s Wolf Companion, but it was worth it. He had the life lead, so his top priority was to take off any immediate threats from the table, even if it meant trading a lot of resources to achieve that.

With her Wolf Companion wasted, and with her ult about to run out, Beat had no advantages left.

You lost. Jaiden proclaimed. Admittedly, this girl pushed him further than he expected. But, in the end, she didn’t stand a chance.

If it was Gunz, I'm sure he would've done a better job. Jaiden thought. So, c'mon. Accept it already. You're not good enough. Just let Gunz take your place!

However, Beat’s fighting spirit didn’t show any signs of diminishing. She was clearly frustrated, yet still aggressive.

Shit! I messed up! Kai clicked her tongue. She was too hasty. That Dodge Roll after Combat Roll was unexpected, but Kai knew it was an option. She should’ve considered things more carefully before charging in like a bull.

It was frustrating. Renegade executed that play so naturally, as if he practiced this niche scenario before. Or, maybe he was just planning it for a while now.

He probably was. Kai grit her teeth. That bastard baited out her wolf by placing numerous traps along the way. Kai thought she was outsmarting him the entire time, but she walked right into his trap. The guy played her like a fiddle.

But, it wasn't over yet! She was still alive, she could fight! The guy no longer had any skills at his disposal, just like Kai. So, this fight came down to pure combat techniques. She won't lose! Even though she only had 20% HP while Renegade had 50%, she will come on top!