A violent force erupted as Watchful Eye's staff and Damned and Cursed's body made contact. The pale-skinned woman's eyes bulged. Her breath stopped for a moment. She was thrown off her feet, flying a few meters and landing directly in the void cloud.
Contrary to Balm the pale-skinned woman had no skill to preserve her health. Even her teammates had run out a while ago in order to protect Prince of Shadow.
"No, no I can't die!"
Suddenly Damned and Cursed was hit with realization. She became frantic. If she died here, her team would be two players short. And without a healer...
They were about to lose!
Dammed and Cursed never even entertained the possibility. She frantically dragged her body up, hoping to leave the void cloud in time.
But the void was ruthless. It cut away a terrifying 400HP per second. When Damned and Cursed stood up, she was already down to 230HP. Her eyes shook as the last tick arrived, and she fell completely.
[Player Damned and Cursed has died.]
The ominous message rang in the ears of Kings and Queens. Prime quickly analysed the situation. Just then she watched as Balm left the void cloud after taking a little more than one thousand points of damage. Prime simply let out a sigh.
In the audience all of Hotpot's fans were jumping and celebrating. With ten players against eight even Prime wouldn't be able to produce a miracle and turn the situation around.
There were no surprises in the rest of the match. Hotpot methodically took out Kings and Queens, who fell quickly without the support of a healer.
Kings and Queens didn't die without a fight. They managed to take Watchful Eye and Bloody Edge down with them. But this was as far as they could go. The last to remain was Uncle Bill. Surrounded by six players he attacked in all directions but as a tank his damage was not enough to threaten anyone.
The fans of Kings and Queens had tears in their eyes. To some Uncle Bill seemed to be struggling desperately, to others he was like a real warrior knowing no surrender.
However, no matter what he did Uncle Bill couldn't change the situation. Eventually he fell under Cyclone's lightning and the match was decided!
"Ladies and gentlemeeen! After an incredible, thrilling match we finally have a winner. Give it your all for the unbelievable Hootpoooot!"
Liam and his friends stood in the arena, taking in the incredible scene. Looking up they saw only about two million people, but the sound of billions of cheering fans reached their ears, carrying and indescribable power.
Cyclone's throat soured and a tear ran down her cheeks, which instantly fired up the fans even more.
Silver Blade noticed her friend's expression, stepping forward to hug her. It was as if a ban was broken. Suddenly the friends celebrated loudly, hugging each other and jumping in joy.
The spectacular scene was no different as if Hotpot had already won the tournament. And in the eyes of many this was the case as two weeks ago Kings and Queens would definitely be considered the favourite by many.
But now Hotpot appeared and subverted everyone's expectations. Only two matches were left for Hotpot to secure the trophy. Countless fans watched with eager anticipation.
However, this match had even farther-reaching implications. Suddenly the gaming scene in the whole federation was shaken. Although the team battles were only one part of the tournament, but with most of the Big Five eliminated before the top four, countless players suddenly gained hope. Maybe these giant guilds weren't as insurmountable as they appeared?
Simultaneously a lot of money changed hands. Betting sides all over the federation worked tirelessly. Some people became millionaires overnight. Some lost the ten credits they bet for fun. Others went bankrupt within a moment, losing everything they had.
While the betting sides kept mum, experts estimated that the rate of winners was at about 1:30.000. This also included the biggest winners of them all. The betting sides themselves...
Countless news sites were affected as well. Those who analysed the match accurately instantly rose to fame while those who didn't even consider the possibility of Hotpot's victory took a hit to their reputation.
Luckily Liam and his friends didn't need to care about all of these. Their minds were occupied by the joy of winning, embracing the cheers from all sides.
After a few seconds they were sent back to the audience stands, where Dream Avenue welcomed them loudly.
"Hotpot! Hotpot!"
"Guild leader, you were awesome!"
"Haha! We won against Kings and Queens!"
"Mirage! Genius!"
"Champion! We will be champions!"
The scene was chaotic as everyone shoved to the front, wishing to personally congratulate the victorious team.
Just then lights flashed, and countless fans appeared close to Hotpot. The friends were shocked. This way too many people to deal with! They tried to fulfil a few of their fans' requests but as new people arrived constantly, it became too much.
Liam and his Friends communicated with C to randomly change position and asked her to deny any requests of people wishing to follow them.
C agreed and the friends finally got out of the chaos.
"Wow, that was scary...", said Cyclone, patting her chest.
"Indeed. Too many people."
"But it also felt kinda exciting..."
"Watch out that you don't die of excitement."
Fortune sighed with a wistful look:
"Without security such a fan meeting can become quite dangerous. I remember when my first video went viral and I underestimated the impact. Suddenly I was surrounded by a large crowd when I was out shopping. I almost couldn't breathe. Luckily a few people realized what was going on and managed to calm the crowd down."
The friends shivered imagining the situation. They were glad that Crunaboul was only a game and there was no real danger her.
However, based on Fortune's words Silver Blade brought up something else:
"We suddenly gained so much fame, we shouldn't underestimate it. The opening ceremony for our gaming house might become way bigger than we expected. We have to rethink the security..."
"Do you think people from elsewhere in the federation might come to watch? For example, the central star system?", asked Cyclone with expectant eyes.
"Who would travel so far only the see us?", answered Silent Acacia sceptically. Cyclone tilted her head, staring at him.
"I would!"
Her reply left Silent Acacia with nothing to say. He smiled wryly, accepting that such people might indeed exist.
The friends continued talking about their potential rise in fame while watching the subsequent matches. The highlight was clearly the third match between Libra Legion and TCTT.
With their hearts in their throats the friends cheered for Libra Legion, who emerged victorious after a close fight, eliminating TCTT from the tournament.
Silent Acacia and Quickstep exchanged smiles. Although it would've been nice to get their revenge, but for TCTT as an organization it was a bigger damage the earlier they were forced to leave the tournament.
Compared to the matches of Libra Legion and Hotpot, the other two drew less attention. Ouroboros cleanly defeated Five Heavens and Dominant dominated High Reign.
The top four was decided and their fights followed after a short break. Hotpot had to face Dominant, who were considered the weakest contestant among the four.
Still, Hotpot didn't dare to underestimate them. They fought steadily and won the fight without casualties. The match had little excitement, leaving the fans somewhat disappointed.
It was a stark difference to Libra Legion's match which was hard fought. Eventually only two players were left on both sides. Ouroboros suddenly shocked everyone as one of their mages had saved his ultimate skill until the very end.
But Conter's skill came off cooldown at the very last moment. He stunned the casting mage, which was enough to decide the match in Libra Legion's favour.
After Libra Legion was done accepting the worship of the audience, Maycos appeared again. She entertained the audience for a minute before introducing a musical act.
A few famous artists worked together to present an epic ballad to celebrate the two finalists. Meanwhile discussions could be heard all throughout the federation.
In a massive seaside villa on Libra Star, which was part of the central star system, an old man sat with his eyes closed, enjoying the breeze as if ruffled his white hair.
Suddenly footsteps could be heard. A middle-aged man dressed as a servant approached and stopped behind the man's back.
"What is it, Richard?"
"News about the tournament, Sir Colville. Libra Legion and Hotpot will face off in the final match."
Suddenly Richard froze in place. He seriously thought he noticed a smile on Sir Colville's face for a moment. But it was most likely an illusion.
Similar scenes played out in many other households. Bigshots in the federation suddenly realized that Colville had two representatives in the final match.
Although Libra Legion wasn't led by Conter, he was one of the most prominent members and the Colville family also had investments in the guild.
For a while some people were shocked. Was the Colville family on the rise? How should they deal with it? Deepen connections or attempting to block them?