The same people who stood around the man who just died, appeared stumped.
I surveyed the scene before me, my eyes immediately locking onto a figure amidst the crowd. He was the murderer. The man towered over me, 6'3, wielding twin blades. One of the blades was missing, likely thrown during the attack. What struck me was the lack of mana behind his strikes; they were fueled purely by brute force.
The wind picked up, carrying with it the metallic scent of blood. As this smell began spreading, the reality of the situation spread to the crowd. Snapping them back into reality.
The first one to respond was one of the members who had initially sided with the deceased leader. His tone dripped with anger as he confronted the murderer.
"F*ck, How could you do that? What kind of messed up stuff are you into!" His words cut through the tense air, drawing the attention of everyone around.
"Why are you all staring at me? He was the one trying to play hero," the murderer's voice sliced through the crowd, a mix of defiance and disbelief coloring his words as though he hadn't just killed someone.
"You despicable bastard! It's because of people like you that my sister died!" Another man, who was bald with a greatsword on his back, rushed from the crowd, seizing the murderer by the collar and yanking him closer.
As this situation was getting out of hand, I thought about stepping in.
"Chill, man. First, we should introduce ourselves, I'll go first. I'm Jack, and an interesting fact about me is that I had nothing to do with your sister’s death, I don't even know her. But was she hot?" The murderer responded nonchalantly.
"Huh?" The bald man responded.
"You heard me, was she H.O.T?" Jack responded back, emphasizing the word 'hot.'
"What are you talking about! Don't joke with me!" The bald man threw a punch.
Bam!* Just before the punch connected, an interruption came.
I'll just watch for now. I picked a good place to watch from. it was close to the fight but not too close that I would hit by the crossfire.
“Stop!” After the dust settled, a figure emerged—it was the woman I had seen before.
“Kiara, don't stop me. I need to teach this guy a lesson,” the bald man protested.
Woah, Kiara, That's her name?
“No, Tirant, I've told you before. You can't take him on; he's of high rank,” Kiara firmly countered.
It seems like he was in the team she had joined.
“But—”
“Yes, listen to your girlfriend; she just saved your life.”
Jack responded, jokingly.
“And you, don't think you can just kill someone without reason. Even if it was impossible for everyone to team up, that doesn't give you the right to murder,” She said as she turned to face the towering man.
“Now, don't be hypocritical,” he responded, spreading his arms wide.
“If you truly cared, you would have told everyone why it was impossible to team earlier, before they decided to. The reason you didn't is that you wanted something to happen, so there would be fewer competitors.” he retorted.
“You—” She began to speak, but the man interrupted her.
“Now, I'm not blaming you. After all, we are all out here to survive, to become star hunters. We all have the same goal; the only difference is how we go about achieving it. I have a dream, just like each of you. Anyone who stands in the way of that dream, I will eliminate without mercy,” he said with a hint of menace in his voice, causing people to freeze in place.
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“Don't test my limits,” She warned firmly.
It was time for me to intervene, of course, not out of pity, but because I had a goal.
“Now, now. Everyone settle down; there isn't any point in arguing right now. The contest has only just begun. There will be plenty of chances later on. So why don't we—”
“And who are you?” Kiara turned her attention towards me.
“I'm Teron. A pleasure to meet you.” I smiled at her.
“Hmph, you're merely a high rank. There's plenty here. What do you think you can do?” She challenged.
“Well, not just me, but everyone. If a fight breaks out, others might join in as well, and that won't end well. Even if you’re winning the fight against this guy.” I said, pointing at Jack.
This statement caused her to raise her eyebrows and glance around at the bystanders.
There were multiple high ranks here, and even more middle ranks, although a single middle rank can't kill her. Many of them can.
“I guess I'll let you go this time. Let's leave.” she stared at him, before turning around and signaling her team to depart.
“Hm, i'll finish you next time,” Tirant, the bald man, said before leaving.
“Alright, but don’t bring your girlfriend next time! I want some alone time. Y’know.” Jack teased.
“F*cker” A low grumble was heard before they disappeared from sight.
Phew, finally, the situation had been defused.
“Hey, we’re not done with you!” A man in the crowd yelled out.
Ok, maybe not. I completely forgot about the mob that was still here.
“Man, I don't want any trouble,” Jack responded, not wanting(?) a round two.
“You don't? Well, I do!” the man exclaimed, clearly still agitated.
“WAIT, don't you notice something strange?” Jack, ‘Mr. I have a dream’, responded back and raised his hand to get attention.
“Huh? Stop trying to divert attention.” The man raised his arm, prepared to strike.
“No wait, do you see how there are fewer people?” Jack responded back, stopping the punch from connecting.
“Wait, he’s right. There seems to be way less people than before. ”Another man chimed in from the crowd.
This caused some murmurs around the crowd.
Now that he mentioned it, it seemed like there were only a few hundred people remaining. Even accounting for some casualties and escapees, the numbers didn't add up.
There were definitely supposed to be 30,000 participants here. But even if my scan didn't cover the entire area, there should’ve still been at least 5,000 present. Unless the authorities somehow teleported us into different spots without our knowledge. What kind of technology is required to mass teleport and confuse this many people for this long? Even though it was hard to believe, it wasn't impossible. After all, Technology is advanced. In fact, the most powerful technologies could hold their own against an Ignition rank.
Now that I think about it, Where am I?
Lush trees in the distance with a mountain not far from here. I was standing on grass. Definitely not where I was before. How could there be trees? Probably also some kind of technology being used to procure nature, stars couldn't have anything on it. After all, we wouldn’t be able to survive on this planet if not for technologies. The temperature on a star like this easily reaches the hundred of thousand, and the gravity is many times higher than what we could handle, but with some sort of technology, we are also able to survive this. So this isn't surprising.
“Hey, where’d he go!” A yell snapped me back into reality.
Looking towards the man who had been ready for a fight, there was only a jacket in his hands. The murderer he held before was already gone. It seemed he took advantage of the distraction to escape.
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(5 days later)
"Alright, there it is, today's supply drop," I muttered to myself as I caught sight of the descending box with its attached parachute. The container was of adequate size, large enough to reach about knee-height if placed on the ground.
I cautiously approached the treasure crate before swiftly retreating back to my home—a sizable cave that provided shelter and concealment. Inside, I had managed to craft some basic furniture using the sturdy red wood found in the area. A simple table, a few chairs, and a rudimentary bed made of branches, leaves, and thatch. While not the epitome of comfort, the bed served its purpose, allowing me to rest.
Yesterday, there were unexpected visitors seeking a safe space to open their supply crates away from prying eyes of their own teammates. Trust was a luxury in this world, even among allies. They chose an isolated spot, far from others. I, being the courteous individual that I am, helped them out. I decided to take only 50% of their crates, leaving them with the rest. they didn't even notice, I was, after all, high rank, while most participants were either middle or early ranked.
I was currently waiting for the treasure crates.
Treasure crates were containers that yielded treasures when opened, giving out various items. I had my eyes set on acquiring one specific item that I really wanted. The number of treasure crates available was directly proportional to the number of participants still alive in the training. To improve my chances of obtaining that coveted treasure, I needed to maintain a larger pool of competitors. Hence, I stopped the fight that day.
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