"What the heck are these idiots doing now?" Dexter thought, staring at the male adventurers around him.
After smirking for quite some time, he said:
"Why should I?"
"You afraid? Come fight me, then…" said the player below the arena.
'Pretty girls are always the cause of war,' Dexter mused.
He stood up and stared at the man challenging him to a face-off. He noticed the opponent was clad in heavy armor and wielded a long spear.
"Okay, then… Wanna bet? Max coins and suicide?" Dexter taunted.
The player's eyes shook. He had asked Dexter to fight him, but suicide wasn't an option. Face-Off provided an automatic hexagonal shield if a fighter's life reached a critical point — but suicide? No shield or resurrection could undo that.
"N-no… How about max coins only… and all gears?"
'Well… I know this doesn't look good for Stella — making her the reason for the bet. But if I don't do this, these damn AIs will keep chasing after her. Better cull these perverted AIs… Damn that GreenBlob… I'll find him, and I'll kill him. No more playing this time.' Dexter rubbed his nape as his blood pressure spiked.
"Isn't it boring if you don't want to die? I thought you wanted to kill me. Let's do it — killing each other. We could even make it 5v1 if you want. Not a Face-Off… the Obsidian League, I should say…"
Even the crowd's cheers for the Face-Off died at Dexter's sudden declaration of killing. His hostility was unmistakable — his gaze swept not only over the man in the arena but all the adventurers watching, especially those staring at Stella with lust.
"What? You all gay? Hey, announcer—"
Dexter then jumped down into the arena. Stella tried to grab him, but he was too fast. Landing with a thud, he strode toward his challenger, smirking with disdain as he surveyed his surroundings.
The sudden quiet of the coliseum amused and thrilled him.
"Let's start the Obsidian League… I'll do 1v5 if you want. Hey, you 'brave' guy — call your friends so we can start killing each other. What? Scared now?"
The announcer's voice trembled at first before roaring with excitement at the sudden turn of events. Was this lone man protecting his girl, or just showing off his meager skills to impress her out of pride?
The spear user stared at Dexter, unsure whether to fight. But since he was the one who had provoked Dexter into entering the arena, he couldn't back out now — even in a life-or-death situation.
After a long pause, he finally called for his friends, completing their party for the Obsidian League: a spear user, a tank, a healer, a mage, and an archer — a solid combination.
"So what's your guild and alliance? Don't fucking tell me you're part of the Limitless Alliance…" Dexter sneered.
"H-how'd you know we're part of the Limitless Alliance?" the spear user stammered.
'Holy crap, this Limitless Alliance… It's like a virus, recruiting damn idiots left and right. Do they really think quantity over quality works?' Dexter facepalmed.
'Well… I'll just help clean up their trash. This fucking alliance shouldn't even exist…'
The announcer called out their names one by one: "DND versus Snakespear and Friends!"
Everyone watched with anticipation. Even Stella, standing on the sidelines, couldn't help but clench her fists.
"You'd better give it your all here, because I won't show any mercy to any of you..."
As soon as the announcer signaled the start of the fight, Dexter immediately activated his invisibility cloak. The sudden, smooth, and elegant skill activation shocked everyone present.
"A pro..."
"It's like his figure was swallowed by the wind..."
The five-man party already sticks closer together. The Tank casts a protective barrier to block any incoming damage, enabling them to respond in time.
Until…
Bzzt!
"A LASER PENETRATED THE SHIELD! DND, WITH HIS ENERGY LASER, INSTAKILLED THE HEALER!"
The crowd roars; some mouths twitch. It's a good thing they weren't the ones who provoked the devil in disguise — otherwise, they'd be like the healer, who died without knowing it.
Dexter laughs maniacally, blowing the imaginary smoke from the muzzle of his laser cannon. He taunts the remaining four players, laughing at them while pointing at the skeletal figure behind them.
His swap of equipment couldn't be noticed, as he activated invisibility, eliminating any chance of them calling him a cheater.
"What? Is that all you've got?"
Dexter then circled them, firing his Energy Laser's basic attack, but it was now blocked by the Tank. If not for the Energy Laser's Special Skill, which could penetrate defenses — only countered by invulnerability or reflect — the healer would not be dead yet. But who could have expected that going invisible and casting Penetrating Ray would be Dexter's first move?
...
The party wasn't fazed. They fought back against Dexter with all the skills they had. The Archer rained arrows down on Dexter, who struggled to dodge and block the barrage while wielding the massive, heavy Energy Laser.
Yet, he tried to hide behind the Energy Laser while also dodging the spear attacks of Snakespear. The Tank abandoned his shield — there was no point tanking someone who could penetrate the barrier. After throwing his shield, he immediately grabbed the Holy Staff from the loot bag beside the healer.
The Mage cast a supportive spell on Snakespear, making him faster and more powerful. Yet, Dexter could predict all of Snakespear's movements, easily dodging every fatal strike while accepting grazes from non-lethal attacks.
He smiled; the fight somehow reminded him of their past battle with Gridlock.
'It's still not enough…'
Dodging the stab by slightly tilting his head, Dexter once again cast his now-cooled-down invisibility spell and leaped far away from his enemies as his form vanished.
"GET READY FOR ANOTHER LASER! SCATTER!"
The party scattered. With every rustle, their minds tensed. Sweat covered their foreheads, their eyes dry — yet they dared not blink even for a millisecond.
Another buzzing sound came — this time, aimed at the tank-turned-healer.
But when the players looked toward him, Dexter was already there, driving a knife into its nape while emitting a mocking buzz from his mouth, taunting them.
"Bzzt—"