CHAPTER 172: VIRTUAL GAME 2

The countdown echoed.

3... 2... 1... Fight!

Elreth charged first, her spear igniting into a pillar of flame as she thrust forward with explosive speed. The ground cracked beneath her momentum, flames spiraling outward. Azalea’s bow gleamed, and in the blink of an eye, three arrows of condensed wind whistled through the air, each sharp enough to split steel.

The first arrow cut through the flame spiral, dissipating it with sheer force of air. The second arrow was deflected by Elreth’s sweeping spear. The third grazed her shoulder, leaving behind a glowing mark across the avatar’s skin.

"Tch! Cheap tricks won’t work on me!" Elreth smirked, her real body leaning forward as she flicked the controller. Her avatar spun, spear sweeping in a wide arc, releasing a wave of fire that roared across the arena like a tidal wave of heat.

Azalea’s expression didn’t change. She tapped swiftly, her avatar leaping back as her Law of Wind surged. Her bowstring glowed, not with an arrow but with compressed air, and when she released, the blast exploded forward like a cannon shot, colliding with the wall of fire in a violent detonation. The shockwave rippled across the coliseum, scattering flames and winds in every direction.

"Nice clash," Azalea muttered under her breath, a rare smile tugging at her lips.

But Elreth wasn’t done. She charged through the smoke, spear blazing, each thrust leaving streaks of flame like comets across the battlefield. Azalea ducked and dodged, her movements swift as the wind itself, her bow firing a flurry of arrows. Fire and wind collided in dazzling bursts, the arena echoing with their elemental symphony.

The system tracked every impact—points deducted for each strike landed, each parried, each dodge timed to perfection. At first, Azalea’s precision gave her the edge. Her wind arrows were faster, sharper, piercing through Elreth’s defenses to score points. But Elreth’s aggression slowly closed the gap, her spear techniques relentless, one strike narrowly missing Azalea’s avatar’s face before forcing her to retreat.

"Running away already?" Elreth taunted, her voice loud with confidence.

"I don’t need to chase you when the wind always catches up," Azalea replied coolly. Her avatar leapt high, the wind carrying her as though she were weightless, bow drawn. Dozens of spectral arrows appeared in the sky above her, each glowing with cutting green light.

Elreth’s eyes gleamed. "Perfect. Come at me!"

The arrows rained down like a storm. Elreth spun her spear in a fiery dance, each movement creating walls of fire that burned away arrows mid-flight. Sparks showered across the coliseum, the heat so intense the virtual crowd roared in astonishment. Yet some arrows slipped through, striking Elreth’s avatar across the chest and legs, glowing marks stacking against her health bar.

"Hah! Got you," Azalea whispered.

But Elreth wasn’t finished. She slammed the butt of her spear onto the ground, fire erupting in a massive explosion that engulfed the center of the coliseum. The screen flashed with heat distortion, flames spiraling upward into a blazing vortex.

Azalea’s avatar staggered, forced back by the searing blast. Her health bar dipped sharply. Elreth grinned, sensing momentum shift in her favor.

"Don’t underestimate me!" Azalea’s calm mask cracked, her real self leaning forward now, fingers moving faster. Her avatar’s bow pulsed with emerald light, wind gathering into a concentrated storm. She fired a single arrow, but it wasn’t ordinary—it carried the compressed force of a hurricane.

The arrow screamed through the flames, cutting them apart, ripping the vortex into pieces. It struck Elreth’s spear dead-on, the impact detonating in a blast of air so strong her avatar was thrown across the arena, crashing into a pillar.

The scoreboard flashed: Critical Hit!

"Hah! Seems the Fire Princess can burn, but the wind always blows stronger!" Azalea’s laugh rang through the lounge, smug and victorious.

Elreth scowled, gripping her controller tighter. Her avatar pushed up, fire flaring once more. "Don’t celebrate yet. I’m not done!"

Their duel escalated into a storm of flame and wind. Each exchange grew faster, fiercer—sparks and gusts colliding, the arena trembling with their power. Elreth’s fiery spear strikes shook the ground with every slam, while Azalea’s arrows whistled past with deadly precision, splitting stone and air alike.

By the tenth minute, both avatars were bruised, health bars dangerously low. Sweat dotted Elreth’s forehead in the real world, while Azalea’s lips were curved in a confident smirk. Neither would back down.

The final clash came in a blaze of spectacle. Elreth roared, flames engulfing her entire spear as she lunged, thrusting forward with everything she had. At the same moment, Azalea unleashed her finishing move—her bow glowing with blinding emerald light, arrow forming from pure compressed wind.

Fire met wind in the center of the coliseum.

The explosion lit up the screen, shockwaves tearing through the virtual arena. For a moment, both avatars vanished inside the storm of flames and winds. The system froze, calculating the final result.

Then—Elreth’s avatar collapsed, her spear shattered. Azalea’s remained standing, bow raised, breathing hard but victorious.

Winner: Azalea – Law of Wind

Elreth threw her controller onto the couch with an annoyed growl, while Azalea leaned back smugly, taking a slow sip of her wine.

"Another win for me," Azalea teased, her emerald eyes shining with amusement.

"Don’t get too cocky. Next time, I’ll burn you down for sure," Elreth snapped, though even she couldn’t hide the competitive fire blazing in her smile.

The game reset for another round.

The princess sat forward, orange eyes burning with determination. The sting of defeat gnawed at her pride—no way would she let the smug elf walk away with another victory.

"Another?" she asked flatly, though the fire in her tone was unmistakable.

Azalea smirked, already selecting Rematch on the console. "I thought you’d never ask."

The screen flickered. The coliseum was replaced by a new battlefield: a shattered canyon bathed in twilight, jagged rocks jutting toward the heavens, rivers of molten lava snaking between the cliffs. The dwarves and humans who coded the game clearly knew how to stir tension—the very ground looked like it could explode at any moment.

Their avatars appeared once again. Elreth’s fiery knight materialized with her flaming spear already blazing hotter than before, fire swirling around her like a storm. Across from her, Azalea’s windborne knight stood upon a cliff ledge, bow drawn, emerald winds howling at her back, ready to soar into the sky.

The countdown blared again.

3... 2... 1... Fight!

Elreth didn’t hesitate this time. She dashed forward, spear thrusting like a crimson comet, heat radiating so intensely it made the virtual rocks glow red. The canyon floor cracked beneath her steps.

Azalea leapt into the air, her Law of Wind carrying her skyward. From above, she loosed a barrage of arrows—each whistling like a gale. But Elreth had prepared. Her spear ignited into a spinning inferno, creating a fiery shield that burned arrows to ash before they could pierce her.

"You’re not the only one who learns," Elreth muttered, lips curving in a sharp grin.

Azalea’s real expression faltered for half a heartbeat, but her smirk quickly returned.

"Good. I’d hate for this to be boring."

She dove from the sky, twisting midair, her bowstring glowing brighter than ever. With a snap, she released a charged arrow of compressed wind so sharp it sliced a canyon pillar clean in half. The stone collapsed into the lava below with a thunderous crash.

Elreth sidestepped, spear blazing. She thrust upward in a vertical strike, a column of fire exploding into the heavens, aiming to catch Azalea mid-flight. Their avatars collided in the air—flame against wind—sparks raining down like meteors.

The impact was deafening.

The system screen vibrated with the collision, their health bars both dipping from the clash. Neither gained the upper hand.

The duel raged on. Elreth drove her spear into the ground, summoning geysers of flame that erupted across the canyon. Azalea danced between them with wind-enhanced agility, her arrows ricocheting from cliff to cliff, striking from impossible angles. Elreth blocked some, others grazed her avatar, but her fiery counterattacks left Azalea just as battered.

Minutes passed. Their health bars remained nearly equal, both whittling each other down with unrelenting ferocity.

"Not bad," Azalea muttered under her breath, her voice low and serious now.

"Don’t flatter yourself," Elreth snapped, sweat beading across her brow in reality, her fingers flying over the controls.

The battlefield bore the scars of their duel: shattered cliffs, molten rivers raging hotter from the firestorm, winds cutting grooves into the canyon walls.

Finally, both avatars froze at opposite ends of the arena. Their ultimate gauges glowed brightly—it was time.

"This is it," Azalea whispered, emerald eyes flashing.

"Yeah," Elreth replied with a fierce grin.

"Let’s finish it."

Elreth raised her spear, fire engulfing her entire body, transforming her avatar into a blazing phoenix. The flames roared skyward, wings of fire unfurling across the canyon. Her ultimate move: Phoenix Spear—Infernal Rebirth!

Azalea lifted her bow, winds swirling with devastating force, the air around her avatar warping with sheer pressure. Her entire body became one with the storm, her bow glowing like a blade of pure sky. Her ultimate move: Tempest Arrow—Heaven’s Divide!

They charged.

Elreth soared forward like a living inferno, her spear thrusting with unstoppable momentum, flames blazing bright enough to blind. Azalea fired, her arrow splitting the air, carrying the power of a hurricane compressed into a single strike.

The two ultimates collided in the center of the canyon.

Kaaaboooom!

The explosion was cataclysmic. Fire and wind fused into a storm so violent the entire battlefield quaked. Lava erupted from below, winds howled like dragons, the screen shaking as if the game itself might break under the sheer intensity of their clash.

For a long moment, nothing could be seen except blinding light—red and green spiraling together, devouring the arena.

When the glow finally faded, both avatars were lying on the ground, weapons shattered, bodies too battered to rise. Their health bars blinked simultaneously—zero.

The scoreboard flashed: Draw!

Elreth and Azalea both froze, controllers still gripped tight in their hands. Then, almost at the same time, they let out a laugh. Elreth’s was fiery, defiant. Azalea’s was soft but edged with smugness.

"Tch... I guess you’re not so bad after all," Elreth admitted grudgingly, wiping her forehead with the back of her hand.

"Likewise. You almost had me that time," Azalea replied, her smirk gentler now, though her emerald eyes still sparkled with rivalry.

Their avatars faded from the screen as the system asked if they wanted another match. For once, neither rushed to accept. Both were breathing heavily, as though they had fought in reality, not just a game.

"Next time, no ties. I’ll crush you," Elreth declared, her voice full of fire.

Azalea leaned back, sipping her wine calmly.

"We’ll see. The wind doesn’t bow to fire. Let’s have a spar later."

’’Sure!" A suggestion the princess gladly accepted, she held the number of win in direct confrontation. Azalea mustn’t be underestimated, she is talented and strong, almost on par with Khione.

In the meantime on the boy’s side. Nero said something which made someone to drop their glass.