The sensation of teleportation was like being squeezed through a straw. One moment, Lin was sitting on the cold steel bench of the staging area; the next, gravity reasserted itself, slamming him onto cracked asphalt.
He rolled instinctively, coming up into a crouch behind a rusted sedan.
[ Phase Two: Battle Royale ]
[ Map: Sector 4 Ruins (Simulated) ]
[ Participants: 100 ]
[ Objective: Survive to the Top 10. ]
Lin scanned his surroundings. The arena had been transformed into a hyper-realistic cityscape of crumbling skyscrapers and overgrown streets. It was a sniper's paradise.
He checked his chest piece. A small, hexagonal device glowed blue over his heart.
[ Academy Barrier Shield: Active ]
[ Shield Integrity: 100% (500/500 Points) ]
The rules were simple. The Shield absorbed damage. If the integrity hit zero, the device would trigger an emergency teleport, removing the student from the arena. It was a safety net to prevent the Guilds' future investments from killing each other.
"500 Points," Lin whispered.
To a normal student, that was a lot. A standard sword swing dealt maybe 30-40 damage. It would take a sustained beating to deplete a shield.
Lin touched his Acid-Etched Bone Bow.
"Let's see how it handles real damage."
He didn't camp. Camping was for prey. He moved, his 82 Agility allowing him to sprint silently across the broken pavement. He headed toward a three-story office building that offered high ground.
"There he is! The F-Ranker!"
The shout came from the left.
Lin skidded to a halt. Three students emerged from an alleyway. They wore matching leather armor—a pre-formed team from one of the minor cliques.
[ Target: Warrior (Lv. 4) ]
[ Target: Mage (Lv. 3) ]
[ Target: Ranger (Lv. 4) ]
"Easy points, boys!" The Warrior grinned, raising a heavy mace. "He barely passed the physical. Corner him!"
They fanned out. Standard tactical formation. They treated Lin like a bonus mob, a loot box with legs.
In the VIP box far above the arena, the Guild scouts watched the screens.
"Looks like the kid is out first," the Iron Blood scout muttered, sipping his coffee. "Three on one. No cover. He's done."
Back in the ruins, Lin didn't run. He stood in the middle of the street.
The Warrior charged. "shield up, loser! This is gonna hurt!"
Lin looked at the Warrior. He raised his bow.
He didn't aim for the chest piece where the shield generator was strongest. He aimed for the throat.
The Warrior didn't flinch. Why would he? The shield covered the whole body. An arrow from a weakling would just bounce off the energy barrier.
Lin activated his new skill.
[ Skill: Multi-Shot ]
Three arrows materialized on the string instantly. The mana cost was negligible.
The crimson aura of [Eternal Hunt] coated all three shafts.
THWIP-THWIP-THWIP.
The sound was singular, a violent tear in the air.
The three arrows flew in a tight triangular formation. They hit the Warrior's neck and chest simultaneously.
CRACK.
It wasn't the sound of flesh tearing. It was the sound of a circuit breaker exploding.
[ Shield Calculation: ]
[ Incoming Damage: 33.5 (True) x 3 = 100.5 ]
Normally, the shield would subtract the damage from its 500 pool. The Warrior should have 400 points left.
But True Damage works differently. It attacks the Life Force, not the armor.
The Shield System detected the anomaly. The arrows were bypassing the energy barrier and attempting to delete the student's actual HP.
[ CRITICAL ERROR: FATAL DAMAGE PREDICTED. ]
[ EMERGENCY EJECT TRIGGERED. ]
The Warrior didn't even get hit. Before the arrows could pierce his skin, his hexagonal device turned bright red and screamed.
ZAP.
In a flash of blue light, the Warrior vanished. He was teleported out instantly to save his life.
His mace clattered to the ground, spinning in the empty air where he had been standing a microsecond ago.
Silence fell over the street.
The Mage and the Ranger froze. They looked at the empty spot. They looked at Lin.
"What..." The Mage stammered. "What happened? His shield was full!"
"Glitch," the Ranger whispered, his face pale. "His gear malfunctioned."
Lin lowered his bow. He looked disappointed.
"The shield works," Lin said calmly. "It saves you from dying."
He turned his gaze to the remaining two.
"Run."
The Ranger didn't need to be told twice. "Screw this! It's bugged!" He turned and bolted toward the alley.
The Mage was slower. He tried to cast a Wind Shield.
Lin drew a single arrow.
THWIP.
The arrow hit the Mage's shoulder.
[ True Damage: 33.5 ]
The System panicked again. It couldn't mitigate the damage. It saw a projectile ignoring all defense logic and heading for vital arteries.
ZAP.
The Mage vanished. Eliminated.
Lin turned to the fleeing Ranger. He was fifty meters away, sprinting zig-zag.
Lin raised the bow. Agility 82. The world slowed down. The Ranger looked like he was running underwater.
Lin adjusted for windage. He aimed.
THWIP.
The arrow arched over a burnt-out bus and struck the Ranger in the back of the leg.
ZAP.
Three shots. Three eliminations.
Elapsed time: 10 seconds.
[ Combat Log: ]
[ Participants Remaining: 97 ]
[ Points: 30 ]
Lin walked over to the dropped mace. He kicked it aside.
"Boring," he muttered.
In the VIP Box
The coffee cup froze halfway to the Iron Blood scout's mouth.
"Rewind that," he ordered the technician. "What just happened?"
On the holographic screen, the replay played in slow motion. The arrows hit. The shields didn't flare blue (absorb); they flared red (critical failure).
"Did he hack the gear?" The Storm Vanguard representative frowned. "That's impossible. Academy tech is encrypted."
"Look at the readout," a technician pointed to the data stream. "The System registered a 'Lethality Spike'. It thought the arrow was going to kill the student instantly, so it prioritized ejection over damage absorption."
"Kill him?" The scout scoffed. "With a training bow? The kid has Strength 8. It must be a sensor error."
"Or," the Vice-Captain of Iron Blood leaned forward, his eyes narrowing, "he has a Trait that messes with damage calculation."
Down in the arena, the camera zoomed in on Lin. He wasn't celebrating. He was scavenging the dropped arrows from the asphalt.
"Keep an eye on him," the Vice-Captain said. "I want to see what happens when he hits someone who fights back."
Back in the Ruins
Lin climbed the stairs of the office building. He cleared the second floor, checking corners.
He found a spot near a shattered window on the third floor. It gave him a clear line of sight down the main avenue.
He wasn't hunting randoms anymore. He was waiting for a specific target.
He checked the leaderboard projected in the sky.
1. Kael (Flame Swordsman) - 150 Points
2. ...
...
18. Lin (Archer) - 30 Points
Kael was tearing through the competition. Good.
Lin set up his nest. He placed a few broken glass shards on the floor behind him—a crude alarm system for anyone trying to sneak up.
He pulled a ration bar from his pocket and took a bite.
"System," Lin whispered. "Status check."
[ HP: 3,350 / 3,350 ]
[ Arrows: 38 / 40 ] (He had recovered the ones from the street).
He looked through the scope of the bone bow.
Down the street, a massive explosion of fire erupted. A student was blasted out of a storefront, followed by a wave of flames.
Kael stepped out of the smoke, his sword wreathed in fire. He looked like a god of war. He pointed his sword at the fleeing student.
ZAP.
Another elimination.
Kael laughed, basking in the power. He didn't take cover. He walked down the middle of the street, challenging anyone to attack him.
Lin watched him from 300 meters away.
He aligned the sight. The crosshair hovered over Kael's golden hair.
"1,200 HP," Lin whispered.
If Lin used [Multi-Shot], he dealt ~100 damage.
It would take 12 volleys to drain Kael's HP (assuming the shield didn't eject him early).
That was too slow. Kael would close the distance in seconds.
"I need more burst," Lin analyzed.
He looked at his skill tree. He had 1 unused Skill Point from Level 5.
[ Available Skills for Archer Class: ]
1. Eagle Eye (Passive): +Vision Range.
2. Rapid Fire (Active): +Attack Speed.
3. Charged Shot (Active): Hold to increase damage up to 200%.
Lin's eyes locked on option 3.
Charged Shot.
Combined with True Damage.
If he held the charge... 200% of 33.5 was 67.
If he aimed for a Vital Spot (Head/Heart), the System might apply a Critical Multiplier (x2).
That was 134 damage in one hit.
Still not a one-shot.
"But," Lin smiled, "it's enough to hurt."
He selected Charged Shot.
[ Skill Learned: Charged Shot (Lv. 1) ]
He drew the string back. The bone bow creaked under the tension. Mana flooded into the arrow. The crimson aura of [Eternal Hunt] merged with the white light of the skill.
The arrow began to vibrate. The hum grew louder.
He aimed at Kael.
"Hey, Golden Boy," Lin whispered. "Catch."