Just A Healer

Chapter 56: The Grand Brawl

January 21, 2049
1:13 AM

Status: In-game
In-game Time: 8:13 AM
Location: Qedium City Arena, Greida Province, Country-Continent of Axis

[Lucas Galileo]

I snapped back to reality when the battle cube's floor underneath our feet suddenly moved like giant tiles being shuffled by an unknown force. Rinig na rinig ang banggaan ng mga hugis parisukat na mga tiles sa paglilipat-lipat nito ng mga pwesto. Kasama kami sa mga nadadala ng tiles sa paglipat-lipat nito ng pwesto.

It was then that I knew that all of us Grand Finalists are being repositioned on top of the Battle Cube. Napahawak ako sa balikat ni Steve dahil ang malaking tile na pareho naming tinutungtungan ay lumipat-lipat ng pwesto, na para bang puzzle na ginagalaw-galaw.

Muntik pa nga akong mahilo dahil umaatras-atras at abante ang tile na inaapakan namin . The sound of the tiles shifting were like bricks being broken down to pieces in a demolition site in real life. May kasama pang parang mga tunog ng mga bakal, tornilyo at kadena. It must have been the mechanisms of the Battle Cube, moving in accordance to the rules of the tournament.

While the giant square tiles were also moving with our co-finalists on top of those, I looked back to the place where I saw the three hooded players I eyed awhile ago. Pero nangunot ang noo ko dahil wala na ang tatlong 'yon doon. Did I just imagine seeing those suspicious players awhile ago?

After several seconds of the battle cube floor tiles' shifting, it stopped. We were all positioned in a circular formation near the edges of the battle cube. Ngayon ko lang napansin na kahit bente na kaming players dito sa ibabaw ng battle cube, masyado pa rin itong malaki, kumpara sa unang tungtong ko dito.

If I estimated the size of the battle cube now, it would have been like three basketball courts, put together side by side. Gano'n kalaki ang battle cube ngayon, kaya talagang kasyang-kasya kaming lahat na sampung duo parties na maglaban sa ibabaw nito ngayon.

"Buuut, even though The Grand Brawl is back, we've put in a twist." saad ng announcer. "Various high level monsters will be joining you in the brawl, and will stop at nothing, just to devour you all! How's that sound, everybody?!"

Naghiyawan sa tuwa ang buong Audience ng players sa Arena, dahil sa anunsyo ni Yorick Velner. So hindi lang pala Brawl na kaming sampung duo parties ang maglalaban. Sasama din sa gulo ang high level monsters.

"There will be no time limit here, and your in-game death here in the tournament will automatically grant you only one bonus respawn in the waiting hall; a reward for reaching the Grand Finals. So back to the monsters; as time passes by, our summoned beastly guests will get more powerful, each time a new batch spawns on the battle cube. Throwing off an opponent can also guarantee a win, since there will also be flying monsters, hovering at all the battle cube's sides. So, you have two things to do, champs! Survive the monsters and prevail as the Victors in the Grand Brawl. A battle to the death, and a battle for survival!"

The whole audience rang up with cheers, yells and screams of excitement as fireworks were shot up to the morning sky, adding more color to its blue hue. I wasn't that intrigued by how Yorick Velner epically delivered those words, describing the game setup for the Grand Finals. I mean, sanay na siguro ako na gano'n magsalita ang mga announcer sa tournaments dito sa Leimhyark.

Honestly, I was more distracted by the hooded figures that I saw in the audience awhile back. Lalo na sa player na may pulang mga mata, na umakto ng banta na gigilitan ako ng leeg.

But I'm also skeptical wether I really saw that, or was I just imagining things. Baka totoo ang sinasabi ni Steve na kulang na ako sa tulog. But if I calculate everything, kumpleto ang mga tulog ko at may time pa rin ako magpahinga dahil maaga naman ako nakakauw mula sa trabaho.