I Was the Strongest Sword God in My Past Life

part 52

[Amy♥: You know I’m always loyal, right? Or should I just join the party? Three is too few, isn’t it?]

“I’ll think about it.”

However, Jian’s decision was to maintain the status quo.

For now, he concluded his relationship with Amy as merely business partners.

‘The first round is almost over.’

This tight battle would continue until there were 33 participants, perhaps even until tonight. That was the picture the viewers were most looking forward to.

‘Next is the airdrop.’

* * *

Central Dome’s Sky Lounge.

Watching the ratings continuously set new records, assistant producer Caston let out an exasperated scream.

“G Channel hit 5 million! Over 5 million! How long has the broadcast been on? Isn’t this a real jackpot?”

Bang!

“Is that what you call talking!!”

Brodo slammed the table with an irritable face, then looked at Caston and smirked as if he couldn’t hold back.

“Of course! It’s a jackpot!”

“Ah~ Why do you act like that, scaring people!”

The two men hugged each other.

With this broadcast being a mega-hit, the promotions for Brodo and Caston, who were in charge of the planning, were almost certain.

“As long as our protagonists don’t get wiped out in the airdrop, this broadcast will go smoothly.”

The protagonists Brodo referred to were Jian, Lucia, and Chef, the trio who monopolized the main cam among the many participants. Caston, understanding Brodo’s intention, nodded.

“Hmm, the key is to avoid the three teams meeting each other as much as possible.”

“Especially Lucia and Jian. The two must not meet until the second round. They have to stay until the end to decorate the finale. You know what I mean?”

“I know. You mean to create drama, right?”

“Now we’re in sync.”

“Wow, but who would’ve imagined Arcana could achieve this much?”

Caston expressed his admiration as he replayed the battle between Gian and the knight. Brodo also nodded in agreement.

“Exactly. Even though Arcana is prestigious, to not be outdone by Lucia…”

Brodo had scouted Gian during the evaluation test because of his background from the orphanage. He thought the commoner Gian would play the underdog perfectly against Lucia, who hailed from a heroic lineage.

“But to be this strong, what luck.”

Brodo sat in front of the computer.

The screen displayed a detailed map of the deserted island and the locations of the survivors.

“Right. We were lucky. Honestly, before the airdrop, I wondered if there was anything to show.”

“I thought the same. But to take down a boss alone…”

“It’s something that didn’t even happen in the beta.”

“Who would dare to challenge when they’re not even level 5 or 6 Savers? He’s exceptional.”

Brodo touched the mouse with a pleased expression. His manipulation determined the location of the airdrops.

Clickety-click.

“Are you really going to do it this way?”

Once all the locations were set, Caston asked with a surprised face. The airdrop locations were too obvious. But Brodo didn’t care.

“They’ve worked hard; let’s give them a break this time.”

One of the airdrop locations was in front of a cave. It was where Gian was currently.

* * *

The Bridge of Despair.

A 1km bridge connecting the city center and the factory.

“Kill score.”

[Currently, Isabel’s kill count is 5. This ranks her 4th among the remaining 51 participants.]

Isabel had taken down three guards on the bridge by herself, thanks to her overpowering trait, comparable to Gian’s swordsmanship.

Unique Trait: Child of the Stars

Effect: Restores 100 Mp every 10 minutes.

Mp rises even while standing still.

Isabel had secured the [Child of the Stars], given to the participant with the highest mana aptitude. She had proudly validated her talent in a competition gathering 99 prodigies.

But there was a problem.

[Hunger level at 54%]

Mana’s favoritism towards Isabelle had even transferred to the items.

“Why… why on earth!”

After taking down five opponents and seizing two farming areas, Isabelle had not found any food. Her pocket was merely storing seven mana drinks.

“Is it only mana drinks?”

At this rate, she might be the first to be disqualified from the tournament due to starvation. No, the virtual gate’s senses were so cruelly realistic that she’d rather be disqualified.

A hunger as if she hadn’t eaten for at least two or three days.

A hologram appeared before the highly irritable Isabelle.

[An airdrop will be conducted in 30 minutes.]

A supply box descending from the sky, said to contain all sorts of items. Ironically, the most desperate item for Isabelle right now was not an artifact.

‘…Surely there must be food too?’

If the airdrop also yielded only thirty mana drinks, she doubted she could keep her sanity. Fortunately, the airdrop location was relatively close to the bridge. Just past the factory, almost within reach, Isabelle muttered with a haggard face.

“The cave. I must go to the cave.”

Isabelle and Gian.

Their convergence was imminent.

* * *

A bloody battle with the knight.

The body screaming in exhaustion.

To recover even a bit of strength, Gian was resting on a rock in front of the cave.

‘The remaining time is about 30 minutes. The expected number of people…’

Arcana, Celia, Croa.

Due to the dominance of certain academies, there were about fifty participants left.

‘In the end, the number of people gathering for a single airdrop would be three to four parties.’

The number of opponents was similar to the situation at the factory. However, there were hardly any geographical features to utilize, and more importantly, it wasn’t a surprise attack.

Moreover, if the remaining participants had survived until now, they were among the ones with a high understanding of the tournament, making it risky to take on the airdrop alone.

‘However.’

Gian had a significant advantage.

Being closer to the cave than anyone else.

And there was no sign of anyone around.

[Amy♥: It would take about 10 minutes for the opponent to come? That’s how long it would take, right? The closest stronghold to the cave is the factory, and since you’ve single-handedly destroyed it…]

The luck brought by the intervention of the producers.

Jien was granted a 10-minute reprieve. Yet, like Amy’s message, it was Jien who had created this situation.

“10 minutes. That’s plenty of time.”

[Amy♥: We, the viewers, have promised not to be surprised by anything you do now.]

Jien’s various feats overlapped, elevating his image to a divine status among the viewers. The main camera focused on the Arcana, and Jien’s exploits swept through various sites.

The goal to leave a deep impression was somewhat achieved.

[Amy♥: But are you going to do the airdrop alone without joining anyone?]

[Amy♥: It’s not that I don’t trust you! Absolutely not! Please don’t misunderstand! It’s just pure curiosity.]

A message that went beyond politeness to courtesy.

Jien wondered when Amy’s attitude had become so deferential.

“Hmm.”

Jien took out a mana drink from his pocket and drank it.

Gulp, gulp.

This was the fourth bottle.

His physical condition was a mess, but Jien’s Mp was close to its maximum.

“That’s the best option. Now that my location has become the destination, I have no choice but to wait.”

Jien always chose the best course of action.

Even if it wasn’t a gate, Jien was always serious about combat.

From noble mtl dot come

It was only natural.

[Sabers must always make the best choice.]

After all, Evan, Jien’s previous life, was the founder of this code of conduct that teachers at the academy tirelessly emphasized.

Then,

Grrrrr-!

A pitch-black moon rose in the sky.

[Participant Lucia Elquines has used the Witch’s Moon Fragment.]

The sky turned black, and a red moon that stirred fear took the place of the sun.

“…This.”

There was no need for deduction.

As written on the hologram, this was the effect of an S-grade artifact dropped by the school’s witch. Jien admired Lucia’s timing in using the artifact.

‘Since Lucia has used the Witch’s Moon Fragment, the one who has taken over the school must be Celia Academy.’

Lucia was making an announcement through the hologram. That the strongest party was at the school. The school was one of the places where the airdrop would fall, but now there would certainly be no party going to the school.

‘Besides…’

[Due to the Witch’s Moon Fragment, the deserted island will be engulfed in a ‘fake eclipse’ for the next two hours.]

[The Witch’s Moon Fragment will cause confusion in the participants’ vision and mana detection.]

Lucia had thrown all the participants into disarray with the big event of the airdrop looming.

‘There’s bound to be more dropouts.’

With mana detection sealed, the survival game had turned more primal. But Ji-en quickly shook off the surprise and moved swiftly.

“Pocket.”

From the pocket, Ji-en took out two items: [Glow Powder of the Nocturnal Butterfly] and [Eye of Alarm].

‘First, the Nocturnal Butterfly’s Glow Powder.’

Ji-en skillfully crafted traps with branches and plant stems. Of course, they had no lethality, and such crude traps couldn’t injure a Saber.

But the purpose of these traps wasn’t lethality.

‘Next is the Eye of Alarm.’

The Eye of Alarm, three of which make a set, looked like ordinary sticks, but when planted in the ground, they send a holographic alert if someone approaches.

Ji-en planted the Eyes of Alarm in front of the cave, at the junction between the factory and the cave, and in the forest.

The Eyes of Alarm formed a triangular shape with Ji-en at the center.

As long as Ji-en held out within the triangle, a surprise attack was impossible.

“Now, shall we wait?”

Ji-en climbed back onto the rock and propped his chin up. His face held neither complacency nor tension, much like predators do.

[Amy♥: Then, since you might be bored, shall I tell you an interesting story?]

To not lose energy even in this brutal scene, Ji-en truly admired Amy.

“No, that’s okay. Focus on the broadcast.”

[Amy♥: Yesㅠ]

Under the red moon, Ji-en quietly waited for his prey.

* * *

The single path connecting the cave and the factory.

The surviving Plana Party knew well the danger of ambushes in such terrain.

Moreover, the current unnatural state of vision and senses due to Lucia’s use of the Witch’s Moon Fragment had doubled the risk of the terrain.

Therefore, the Plana Party moved without letting their guard down to the utmost.

“Such an annoying artifact. Plus, it’s eerie… Rena, do you see anything?”

The burly man, Riventon, asked with a sneer,

“Ah, I still can’t see anything.”

Lena replied, thinking to herself,

‘I’m at a party with this man, but I really can’t get used to it…’

Whether Riventon knew her feelings or not, he clasped his hands demurely and babbled on,

“Heh! I think I can hear strange noises…, have you heard about the setting of the cave, Miss Lena?”