A Thousand Players to Go

Gerard calmly walked away and lay down at another tree branch, waiting for the last remaining opponent to be the only one left.

After a few minutes, after intense battles that transcribe in the map, a notification appeared saying only two players are left on the map, the area in which they were allowed to stop moving.

"Is it time now?" Gerard was yawning for a little bit which disturbed Zy beside him.

"How can you act like that in an official match?" Zy's block has already finished, with her standing at the top. Her match went faster than Gerard's since they went all out like those with the same arena map and some other biome maps.

Seven people are already set for the next round, so Zy now has the liberty to watch Gerard play, though what she faced was a disappointment as Gerard's avatar sits atop a tree and the user yawns. She wanted to feel angry, but pity rushed through her mind, and she watched calmly.

Seeing that the map stopped moving, Gerard decided to get down and face the last opponent, hoping it would be a decent match.

Gerard decided to use a sword instead of his usual dagger and staff. He lets his avatar walk to the center of the map.

He found an open space, more like a place destroyed by a tornado, albeit a small one.

The previous battles left a toll on the environment. Nevertheless, it was time for the final act, and Gerard couldn't care less anymore.

His opponent arrived. It was a female avatar. A player can cross-match their avatar. A female player might use a male avatar and vice versa, though whether his opponent is male or not, he's not the type of person to have a gender bias as he still has an unbothered look on his face.

Gerard's opponent had quite some unusual weapons at her disposal. His opponent was carrying a crossbow.

In a place where magic launchers and guns imbued with magic are available, it's uncommon or unique to see players holding weapons that don't symbolize fantasy or even the modern setting.

Without further ado, the battle starts as Gerard's opponent begins running and dashing, using her quick reflexes, making fast maneuvers in circles. His opponent doesn't faze the yet calm Gerard as he awaits his opponent's next move.

Seeing that Gerard will only move sometime soon if she moves first, she fires a bolt of arrow imbued in strengthening magic that causes it to move at speed similar to a revolver. Gerard dodges speedily to the side before the bolt that had missed explodes when it touches the ground.

The crossbow user used a secret skill for a hidden job of a bomber. It imbues explosion magic to any weapon though the object also explodes.

The skill of bombing is the primary reason she chooses to use a crossbow instead of other long-range weapons. Arrows are cheaper than bullets and mana cannons; thus, she wouldn't be worried when using explosion magic on them.

Gerard was damaged lightly by the explosion as he regained composure. He searched for his opponent, who was no longer in front. Gerard instinctively faced his back, and during this time, four arrows landed around him, thus exploding.

His opponent behind the screen heaved a sigh of relief as she now can go to the next round, the semi-finals. Before she could enjoy her bliss, a figure appeared from the smoke.

Truthfully, Gerard could see through his opponent's move. The best way of using detonating projectiles is not through a forward direction since the enemy can quickly judge that sort of attack. Using this reasoning, he figured that his opponent was quite clever. He knew his opponent would try to land a hit from above. Gerard brought out his staff as he applied a defensive spell on him. His hit points are barely hanging on still.

Looking at the still-alive Gerard, His opponent grew hasty and hurriedly tried to aim at Gerard. However, she was a step too late as Gerard threw his dagger directly at the arrowhead. He's playing like Banzrant is an fps game, though it was somewhat true.

The explosion dealt quite a lot of damage as Gerard's opponent's hit point was down to half.

After the smoke had cleared up, Gerard vanished from the enemy's sight, and what his opponent faced was a giant fireball hurling in the enemy's direction. She tried to dodge, but it was useless as Gerard had now crept up on his back and stabbed her. Gerard immediately jumped and let the final hit from the fireball K.O. her.

"You have survived the preliminaries!" A notification and a message popped up.

"The Semi-Final will take place at the Manshark Dome in the capital. See you there as one of the thousand players who have won the preliminaries."

Some players had already left, either because they had won or lost. There was no need to stay any further, as the next round would commence tomorrow.

Only the players currently playing were left, together with Gerard Zy, who has ready to go as they closed their respective computers.

"That was so close. It was nice that you could make it," Zy congratulated Gerard. It might seem sarcastic, but Zy didn't want Gerard to feel he only won through luck.

Gerard didn't mind it since it was the scenario he wanted to create. The more unexpected he becomes, the more impact there will be when he becomes the champion, which would result in him gaining more fame, and thus his privilege of using the system would increase.

"Let's go back and check on your boyfriend. Sigh, I wish I had one when I was your age," Gerard replied.

"What?! He's not my boyfriend, and you're not even that old."

Gerard acted deaf as they went outside the computer shop. Even as they walked, Zy continued to defend herself.

The sun was still at the top, just 3 in the afternoon. In the sun's blazing heat, they walked towards DoubleZ Gaming Shop. When they opened the door, a scene was up in the shop. Jerome was there, and he was confronting Chris.