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,Chapter 144 - Code Breaker [3]

Receiving words of Jin's sighting in the distance, John's first thought was to immediately send everyone and attack him. The reason was obvious...considering Jin's personality and strength, the most obvious candidate for being the code holder would obviously be him.

With his strength and agility, he could just outrun everyone.? However, after a bit of thinking, John refrained from doing so. This could very well be a smokescreen.

Although that was the most obvious course of action, Jin wasn't stupid. He could very well be trying to act as bait.

Biting his nails out of habit, John thought to himself

'....Is Jin really the one holding onto the code?'

That was the most logical conclusion John could think of.? After all, Jin was famous for being proud and arrogant. He being the code holder was a very real possibility.

...However, John still hesitated. Eventually, he shook his head. He needed more information before deciding on the right course of action.

-Beep!

Just as John was immersed in his own thoughts, his watch vibrated. Thereafter, John heard one of his teammate's voices coming from the speaker of the watch.

[Captain, spotted someone on the west side].

Hearing this piece of news, John's brows furrowed slightly as he carefully asked

"Dante, do you know the identity of the individual?"

[Unsure-wait, I'm getting a closer look]

"Yes, be careful and don't get spotted. Make sure you keep a safe distance from them"

Nodding his head, John warned Dante, his teammate, in advance.

If the other team found out that they had a visual of them, their advantage would immediately disappear. They had to be extra careful.

[Roger that]

Turning off his watch as he waited for Dante to respond, John's brows furrowed as he fell into deep thought.

Before the tryouts started, John had looked through the list of students that he had to watch out for. Therefore, as soon as he knew Jin was one of the people present, he already knew the general composition of the opposite team.

From what he recalled, the other team compromised of, Jin, Amanda, Arnold, Donald, Zack, and Ren.

...apart from Jin, Amanda, and Arnold, John wasn't very wary of the other three. To him, they were extras. Nothing worth taking note of.

Therefore, his current focus was now on finding out the whereabouts of Amanda and Arnold. Once he had a read on them, he could come up with an appropriate plan.

-Beep!

A couple of minutes since Dante last contacted him, John suddenly felt a vibration on his wrist. Quickly turning on the watch, John seriously asked.

"You've got something?"

[Captain, Dante here, I've got a visual. According to what I can see, Arnold is walking by himself]

"Arnold? wait are you sure?"

[Affirmitive]

Hearing Arnold's name being mentioned, rather than being happy, John's frown deepened.

...that was because he wasn't with Jin.

Since he had investigated the group in advance, he knew who Arnold was. Jin's lackey.

...The real question was, why was he by himself.

However before he could think any further, Dante's voice raised a few pitches resulting in John snapping out of his thoughts.

[-No wait, Captain, it seems like there is someone else a fair distance from him-no there are two people quietly moving next to him. If not for the fact that I am using my skill, I don't think I would've spotted them...]

"Can you get a visual?"

[I am not sure because I am too far, but I see the silhouette of a girl and a boy]

"A girl and a boy? Are you sure?"

[Affirmative]

"Huuuu...alright that's enough, keep a close watch and make sure you don't lose sight of them"

-Click!

Turning off his watch, John's mind raced.

Since there was only one girl in the group, John could already figure out the identity of one of the two individuals around Arnold. Amanda Stern.

...Someone that was on par with the likes of Jin. However, John wasn't too worried. Since everyone's strength was the same, it shouldn't be too difficult to defeat her if they ganged up on her. Moreover, she was an archer.

If they ambushed for from a close distance, she was probably the easiest member to defeat.

[Captain, it's me Roman, I've got a visual on the other two members]

Just as a plan started formulating in John's mind, he suddenly heard another one of his teammates contact him. Pausing his thoughts, he carefully asked.

"Where are they?"

[They are at the center making their way towards the pillar]

"Towards the pillar?"

Hearing the piece of news, placing his hand on his chin, John fell into deep thought. Thereafter, he smiled.

"Alright, I've got the gist of the situation"

Clenching his fist tightly, John quickly ordered.

"Send Sera and Bob on the east side where Jin is. Tell them that all they have to do is buy time. Don't let them fight against Jin at any cost....the rest go attack the trio in the distance"

[Understood...but what about the other two members of the opposite team?]

"Don't worry about them, they are merely cannon fodder. Even if they are aware that their teammates are being ambushed, they won't be able to make it in time to reinforce them"

*Hmph*

Those two were obviously ordered to go to the pillar and wait there for them to place the code once they defeated the other team.

How arrogant of them.

Their intention was obvious from the start. Thus John didn't even bother giving those two a spare thought as he chose to directly split into a group of two. One to hold back Jin the other to attack and snatch the code from Arnold.

Snorting, a smile appeared on John's face.

"Your arrogance is going to be your downfall"

To think that they were so confident in their win that they just directly sent two of their members towards his team pillar which was a fair distance from where Jin and Arnold currently were. By the time his group attacked Arnold's group and Jin, it would take too much time for them to assist them.

Furthermore, even if Arnold didn't have the code, with three members gone, victory was still well within his grasps.

The more John thought about it, the more his heart started beating due to the excitement.

...Victory never seemed so close in John's eyes.

[John, will we be alright?]

As John was starting to gain more and more confidence in his deduction, he suddenly heard Dante's worried voice coming from the speaker of the watch. Feeling the worry in Dante's voice, John smiled as he reassured him.

"Don't worry, although I have the code I will be careful when engaging against them. This is going to be a four vs three scenario, no matter how strong they are, with our strengths being relatively similar, we should be able to defeat them quickly. Moreover, we will be ambushing them. If? we catch them off-guard, chances of us winning would be increasing exponentially"

[...I-understand]

-Click!

Turning off his watch, John stared into the east side as he thought to himself.

'oh Jin Jin Jin, although you are talented, it seems like you aren't very good at coming up with strategies...I guess you only amount to this much'

Pausing his thoughts there, John smiled as he quickly jumped off the building he was on and sped towards the west side where Arnold and his group were.

This was going to be his victory.

...

15M : 31S

"Fifteen minutes huh, should be about time"

Checking my watch as I moved forward, my footsteps halted. Thereafter, as I looked at Zack who was behind me for a brief moment, I tapped on my watch and contacted Jin.

...if my guess wasn't wrong, the other team should've already made their move.

"Jin what's the situation?"

[Two on me]

As I thought.

They really had made their move.

"Alright"

-Click!

Turning off my watch as I nodded my head, I quickly got in contact with Amanda to get a read on their situation. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

"Amanda, what's the situation with you guys?"

After a short pause, Amanda's crisp and pleasant voice echoed from the speaker's of the watch. The loud sound of metal clashing could be heard in the background.

[Four people on us]

"Alright"

-Click!

Turning off my watch, I sighed in relief as a smile appeared on my face.

It seems like they've taken the bait.

Turning my attention back towards Zack, I pointed towards the large black metal pillar in the distance and ordered.

"Zack go to the pillar and wait for me to tell you the code"

Taken aback, Zack looked at me. His voice couldn't help but raise a few pitches as he asked.

"What why me? What about you?"

Deeply staring at Zack straight into his eyes, I answered him in a firm tone.

"Just do it, trust me. Regarding me, just go, you don't have to worry. I will take responsibility for everything"

Staring at me for a couple of seconds, only after Zack heard that I was going to take full responsibility that he finally relented and nodded his head. Shortly after, just like I had ordered him, he made his way towards the pillar in the distance.

"...alright, I'll do it"

A moment after Zack left, turning around, I quickly activated my movement art [Drifting steps] and took a step forward. Thereafter, my speed increased with each step I took.

Feeling the virtual wind brush past my skin a faint smile appeared on my lips as I quickly moved towards where Arnold and Amanda were.

If my deductions were correct, I was currently being underestimated. Just like I had predicted, they probably assumed Arnold was the code holder.

Moreover, if my guess wasn't wrong, the reason why they sent no one to obstruct Zack and I was because they thought nothing of us and that they were confident in defeating Arnold before we could arrive and reinforce them.

The more I thought about it, the funnier the situation became. Rather than being angry, I was actually quite relieved.

...this just meant that no one was paying attention to me. That was good, this was exactly what I wanted. Low-key.

Plus, if they actually thought I couldn't help Arnold and the rest on the time, they had grossly miscalculated.

I had already predicted this scenario beforehand. Since the very start...they were playing within the palm of my hand.

Chapter 145 - Code Breaker [4]

-Swooosh!

Quietly moving around the buildings, Amanda made sure to always be within a one hundred to a fifty-meter radius of Arnold. Just as Ren had told her.

Along the way, she, along with Donald, made sure to only subtly hide their presence. Just about enough so that the opposing team could spot them if they used a skill or looked carefully.

...This was one of the things Ren had specifically told her to do.

Honestly, this was much harder than Amanda thought it was because if she was too obvious the other team would notice that something was wrong, and if she hid too well, the other team wouldn't find her and thus be unable to deduce that Arnold was the code holder.

....what a troubling situation.

Still, since Amanda said she would do it, she tried her best.

Gripping tightly onto the handle of her bow, Amanda glanced at Arnold below her and quietly climbed higher up in the buildings.

However, just as she was about to reach the top of the building, sensing something, Amanda shifted her head to the right as the silver body of a blade flew past her.

-Swooosh!

Narrowly avoiding the blade by a hair breath, Amanda suddenly somersaulted backward as the tip of a spear penetrated the area she was previously in.

-Kacha!

Whilst still in the air, with a cold face, Amanda extended the string of her bow. Shortly after, as two blue translucent arrows materialized on her bow, she caught sight of two individuals, one with a spear and one with a blade. She soon released the string of the bow.

-Swoosh! -Swoosh!

Like a bullet, the two arrows split the air as they quickly made their way towards the two individuals.

-Clank! -Clank!

Staring at the incoming arrows, standing in front of the individual holding onto the blade, the spear user, using the body of the spear, quickly rotated the spear in his hand and a whistle arose.

Thereafter, the loud sound of metal clashing reverberated across the surroundings.

"khhh..."

Taking a couple of steps back, the spear user couldn't help but grunt as he felt the impact of the arrows clashing against his spear.

Staring at Amanda in the distance, the spear user, John Redgrave couldn't help but say.

"Damn, you're just as strong as the rumors say"

Softly landing on the ground, Amanda coldly glanced at the two individuals before her.

...skilled.

That's the first thought that came into Amanda's mind as she stared at the two of them.

Although the clash had only lasted for a brief moment, from the way they coordinated and how they managed to quickly react to her arrows, the duo was definitely not simple.

Unbothered by Amanda's unresponsiveness, staring at the youth next to him that wore small-framed glasses and had short blonde hair, John moved forward as he once again thrust his spear towards Amanda.

"Dante cover me"

Thereafter, synchronizing with John, the other youth called Dante leaped forward like a leopard and quickly arrived beside Amanda.

-Kacha!

With John's spear aimed at Amanda's face, Dante followed up by slashing towards her waist.

Like this, Amanda suddenly found herself in a disadvantageous situation as the flow of the battle was currently in the duo's hands.

Although she was avoiding most of the attacks coming from the duo thanks to her flexibility and agility, from time to time, she would use the frame of her bow to defend against some of the incoming attacks resulting in the loud sound of metal clashing.

-Clank! -Clank!

The loud sound of metal clashing resounded across the space where Amanda was in.

"Your pretty good...but for how long can you keep up?"

Staring at Amanda, John smiled as he increased the intensity of his attacks. Dante followed suit.

Thus, for the next minute or so, as Amanda fought with the duo, the longer they fought, the more she found herself at a disadvantage as her hand started to become number with every single clash.

Frowning, Amanda could only grit her teeth and try her best to dodge and counterattack whenever she had the opportunity.

-Swhooosh! -Swhooosh!

Although Amanda was strong, because she was currently fighting in close quarters, her real advantage was taken away from her.

...It seems like her opponents knew her weakness well.

-Swooosh!

As she once again narrowly avoided the spear and blade coming from her front and left side, Amanda quickly glanced towards Arnold and Donald in the distance. She wanted to see how their situation was.

...and what she saw made her heart sink. Both Arnold and Donald were currently in a similar situation to hers.

Although it seemed like Arnold wanted to help her, his opponent seemed to be constantly harassing him from the distance.

It had to be noted that the opponent Arnold was currently facing was a bow user just like Amanda.

Arnold's worst enemy and weakness.

Although the archer that was attacking Arnold was nowhere near as skilled as Amanda, because Arnold didn't have any long-ranged attacking methods, he was currently unable to do anything.

...thus, although Arnold wasn't hurt from any of the arrows coming in his way, because he was constantly being kited, he was unable to come to help her. Seeing this, glancing to her right in Donald's direction, Amanda saw him fighting against another person.

His situation seemed to be a little bit better than Arnold's, however, it still wasn't good as it seemed like he was evenly matched with the opponent.

The battle would definitely not be decided anytime soon.

-Kacha!

Thrusting his spear toward Amanda, John shouted.

"Where are you looking around for when your opponents are right in front of you?"

Narrowly avoiding the spear, Amanda turned right as a blade slashed in the direction of where she was previously standing.

-Clank! -Clank!

As John and Dante once again increased the intensity of their attacks, briefly glancing at Arnold and Donald below, a triumphant smirk appeared on John's lips as he looked at Amanda and said.

"Everything is going just as planned, your teammates won't be able to help you anytime soon. Moreover, with Jin and your reinforcements being too far from your location, the only option you have is to lose"

The more he fought, the greater the excitement John felt.

...he was finally going to do it.

He was finally going to beat the arrogant Jin Horton and the cold princess Amanda.

He was going to accomplish a feat that no one thought he could've ever achieved before. The more he thought about it, the more excited John became. After this, everyone will definitely remember who he was. John Redgrave.

Coldly staring at John, Amanda indifferently muttered

"you talk too much"

-Bam!

Seeing that the current situation couldn't go on, stomping her feet on the ground as fine miniature crevices appeared on the ground beneath her foot, Amanda distanced herself from the duo. Thereafter pulling the string of her bow towards her lips, a blue hue surrounded her body.

-Vuam!

Shortly after, in a matter of a couple of seconds, the glow around her body intensified at an alarming rate. She was prepared to end things quickly.

Staring at Amanda in the distance, opening his eyes wide, John cursed as he shouted.

"Shit, she's using a skill, stop her!"

Coldly looking at the duo, Amanda softly said

"Too late"

-Swoooosh!

Releasing the string of the bow, Amanda's arrow shot down like a comet hurtling towards the duo as the arrow's velocity reached its limits. Even though Amanda's rank was suppressed to G rank, that didn't change her proficiency in her arts nor her skills.

[[E] Apollo's descent]

A skill that enables the user to conglomerate the mana in the atmosphere towards the tip of her arrow releasing along an arrow that could devastate anything within ints vicinity upon contact. High mana consumption.

"Crap"

Staring at the arrow hurtling towards them like a fallen star, John couldn't help but curse out loud. Thereafter, seeing that he couldn't do anything about the situation, gritting his teeth he briefly looked at Dante before softly saying

"Dante you know what to do"

Staring at John, a faint smile appeared on Dante's lips before he quickly ran towards the arrow. As he moved closer towards the arrow, he couldn't help but laugh out loud as he looked at John before shouting.

"...once this is over, you better buy me dinner at the restaurant of my choice or you-khhhaaaa!"

Thereafter, as Dante moved towards the arrow, a massive yellow hue revolved around his body creating some form of shield around him. Shortly after, before he could finish speaking, John suddenly saw Dante's body colliding with the arrow.

-Boooom!

As the arrow came into contact with Dante's body, a huge explosion reverberated across the surroundings as the windows and the already worn-down buildings started crumbling down.

Standing on the ground, John found himself completely unharmed as the area he was in was completely unscathed...at least for a couple of seconds. Shortly after, John saw Dante's body slowly turned into light particles as he disappeared into the air.

[Your teammate Dante has died]

Gritting his teeth, ignoring the blue text that appeared in his vision, John tried his best to ignore the situation and activated his movement art. Thereafter, he appeared right next to Amanda and trusted his spear towards her.

-Kacha!

"huh?"

Caught off-guard, barely reacting on time, using her bow, Amanda managed to block the attack, however, due to the sheer amount of force and strength put into the attack, Amanda's body flew and crashed against a wall.

-Bam!

Feeling her back crash against the hard wall, Amanda couldn't help but groan out loud as she let go of her bow.

"khh..."

A couple of seconds after she hit the wall, letting out another pained groan, Amanda was left in a daze. As her eyes regained a bit of clarity, staring at her bow that was a few meters away from her, Amanda tried to move towards it...however, before she could get close to it, a foot stepped on it and kicked it towards the opposite direction of where she was causing her heart to sink.

"Not so fast..."

Arriving before Amanda, after he made sure to kick her bow as far away from her as possible, with the tip of his spear pointed toward her face, John ferociously glared at her.

"It's over"

Staring at the sharp tip of the spear, Amanda froze on the spot. Thereafter, understanding the situation, Amanda lowered her head in defeat.

...she had failed.

Although this wasn't the first time Amanda had failed in her life...the bitter aftertaste of her loss made her unable to say anything.

She was too arrogant.

Never had she expected her opponent to willingly sacrifice one of his teammates just to defeat her.

She was too complacent and arrogant. She had let her achievements get to her.

Had this been a real battle, she would've died for real...as her thoughts paused there, Amanda closed her eyes and waited for the opponent to finish her.

Ignoring Amanda, turning around and glancing below him, John soon caught sight of Arnold and Donald still being in the same situation as before.

"Hmph, it's over"

Turning his attention back towards Amanda who still had her eyes closed, John strengthened his grip on the spear. Thereafter he slowly started speaking. As he spoke, his voice became louder with each word he spoke.

"...You see, we may not be as talented as you guys are...but that doesn't mean we don't want to win. You probably think we're crazy, sacrificing one of our teammates just to win against you guys..."

"but that doesn't matter. This is the drive that we lower-ended people have. We will do anything in our power to win! You and Jin's arrogance is what caused your downfall. Blame yourselves for losing!"

As he spoke, staring at Amanda who had her eyes closed throughout the whole time, John realized that his opponent wasn't listening. Thus, raising his spear in the air John prepared to finish off Amanda.

"This is then end for-

-Bam!

However, just as John was about thrust his spear towards Amanda, in the distance, a loud explosion reverberated across the surroundings. Thereafter, appearing next to Donald, Ren's smiling figure could be seen holding onto a youth by the edge of his collar...he soon turned into light particles.

[Your teammate Nicholas has died]

Briefly staring at Arnold and Amanda, Ren couldn't help but say

"hmm...am I perhaps interrupting?"