Reincarnated Avatar; I got 2 SSS-Rank Unique Skills
Chapter 212: Rivalry [4]

Chapter 212: Rivalry [4]

The crowd was silent.

The Crimson Arena was still stunned by the happenings in the big screen.

Tens of thousands of fans in the stadium watched in silence and disbelief, millions more tuned in worldwide.

On the other side, the away side, contrasted against the silence of the home fans, Cyber Squad fans chanted and sang exuberantly.

But Scarlet Rose fans didn’t stay downcast for long. Jonathan deliberately gestured at the fans from the player booth, waving his hands to rile them up and in just a few seconds, once again, the Crimson Arena became a cauldron of noise.

The roof of the stadium shook from the noise.

To Scarlet Rose fans, the team battle was now do or die. They would settle for nothing but a win. That was the only way to salvage this game, and so they supported their team loudly.

[LOADING...]

[THIRD ROUND: TEAM BATTLE]

[Arena: Ashen Citadel]

[Final Clash: Scarlet Rose vs Cyber Squad]

[Current Points:]

[Scarlet Rose: 0 point]

[Cyber Squad: 5 points]

A single battlefield suspended over a molten abyss pulsed beneath two elite teams. Platforms shifted, lava geysers hissed.

One misstep meant death.

To Scarlet Rose players, it was do or die. And this time, their veteran captain was in their midst, ready to lead them through the storm.

[Caster, do you think you can take me on?]

Jonathan typed in the chat. The trash-talking and mind games already started and Caster didn’t even deem it right to answer.

Scarlet Rose stood in formation on the southern platform; two towering Paladins with radiant shields at the front, the Elementalist levitating just behind. The Launcher crouched on a ledge with a grenade chamber.

The Cleric? Robes shimmering with divine light, she stood at the rear.

Across the battlefield on the other side, Cyber Squad loaded into the arena, emerging like war incarnates. Their Combat Mage, the Battle God itself clad in obsidian armor and armed with a spiraling battle lance led the charge.

To his right, the Blademaster, lithe and vicious, blades drawn.

Behind them stood the Paladin, the Elementalist, and then the Cleric in a careful formation they’ve practiced countless times in training.

Cyber Squad stood at the precipice of history.

If they won, this would be the first Scarlet Rose flawless victory home defeat since the inception of the club.

And now, this incredible history was up to Caster and his teammates to write it.

Could they do it?

It doesn’t matter, they would do it.

3..., 2..., 1!

FIGHT!

The battle began with thunder.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

Backstage, Caster’s fingers flew across his keyboard in a blur.

Stinger of War surged forward in a crimson arc, lance glowing with fire and force. One of Scarlet Rose’s Paladins, Jonathan met him head-on.

CLANG!

Shield clanged against blade, sparks flew.

Magic detonated like grenades.

Stinger of War used a Spellstrike Execution, unleashing a flame spiral mid-swing that knocked the enemy Paladin off-balance.

Scarlet Rose’s Launcher immediately retaliated.

{Cluster Hellfire=}

A high-level Launcher Skill.

The Launcher launched a series of bouncing grenades that exploded into anti-magic bursts, forcing Cyber Squad’s Elementalist to abort her incantation and take cover to avoid taking damage.

From the side, Cyber Squad’s Blademaster blurred forward, blades flashing.

He vaulted a gap between platforms and struck Scarlet Rose’s Core, Crimson Saint with a six-hit combo.

His footwork was art; spinning, flipping, striking from impossible angles.

It was clear; Cyber Squad’s determination and zeal to win and create history tonight was unshakable.

And yet, this was Crimson Saint; Chris.

Originally, after 7 matchdays of the new season, those 2 names alone would have been intimidating to opponents but tonight, Caster already jinxed the magic of Crimson Saint and its new controller, Chris.

Chris still gave his all, but it was clear that he was suffering from confidence issues all of a sudden. He was not decisive enough.

Crimson Saint barely held his stance, absorbing the flurry of attacks with grit and shield-based counterattacks.

The battle intensity increased.

Stinger of War used his Blink Step, blinking behind the Launcher and hurling his battle lance like a railgun.

The projectile clipped the Launcher’s shoulder, sending him sprawling. Before the Combat Mage could follow up though, Crimson Saint used the Paladin skill ’Taunt’, taunting Stinger of War back into melee and buying precious seconds.

Cyber Squad’s Elementalist unleashed ’Thunder Nova’, another high-level Elementalist skill, disrupting Scarlet Rose’s front.

Scarlet Rose’s Elementalist fell to one knee. Her mana flow staggered.

In that window, Isabella, Cyber Squad’s vice captain and Paladin charged forward with a Holy Charge, slamming into the enemy Cleric and knocking her off the ledge, but she blinked mid-fall, reappearing on a ledge below just in time.

From the beginning of this team battle, despite what was at stake, or maybe because of what was at stake, Scarlet Rose was under pressure.

And finally, they began to bend.

Scarlet Rose’s Elementalist was low on mana, the Launcher’s launcher weapon was overheating, Crimson Saint’s S-rank shield cracked!

It could be repaired but for this game, the shield was gone!

Cyber Squad pressed in.

Stinger of War went ballistic, unleashing an Awakened Level skill.

{Aether Cataclysm=}

A spiral of stormfire ripped through the arena. The Launcher tried to roll but was clipped, health dropping to red.

But then, Scarlet Rose’s Cleric invoked an Awakened Level Skill.

{Divine Reversal=}

BZZZ!

A burst of golden light surged upward, healing all allies and reflecting damage for three seconds.

Stinger of War’s own spell backlash nearly killed him.

Cyber Squad’s Blademaster tried to retreat, but now he was cornered.

[Time to go out with style.]

The Launcher typed, then...

KABOOM!

{Burst Reign Omega=}

The Launcher launched his final shell, a scattershot missile that targeted every Cyber Squad Avatar.

Explosions lit the battlefield. Cyber Squad’s Cleric was annihilated; their Elementalist dropped to a sliver of HP.

Substitutes started entering but it didn’t matter.

Scarlet Rose’s Elementalist gathered her last mana and cast Volcanic Cascade, summoning a chain of lava eruptions that blocked all exits for the remaining Cyber Squad members.

The Blademaster was cut off.

Stinger of War tried to blink but Chris intercepted with his Crimson Saint, slamming him into a wall with Heaven’s Wrath, a high-level Paladin skill.

A moment ago, Scarlet Rose seemed done and out.

They were on the verge of being annihilated.

And yet, due to sheer willpower and determination, they fought back from the despairing jaws of hell, clinging on in the game.

And then, one by one, Cyber Squad fell.

Including the substitutes.

Only Stinger of War remained, bloodied and furious, confused at how his team found themselves in this position despite trying so hard.

As Stinger of War launched himself at Jonathan’s Paladin in a last-ditch blitz, he has intercepted by the mentor’s student.

Jonathan was the mentor, Chis was the student.

Crimson Saint reappeared, body-blocking the lane. The Elementalist froze the Combat Mage’s legs, and then, it was over.

BOOM!

They bombarded him till death.

At the end, the 3 surviving Scarlet Rose Avatars were all below 5% HP but it didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things.

In the grand scheme, what mattered was that they were the last men standing.

The game was over.

---<VICTORY>---

Scarlet Rose won the individual battle.

The scoreboard flared.

[Scarlet Rose: 5 points]

[Cyber Squad: 5 points]

BOOM!

The audience exploded.

The Crimson Arena turned into an ocean of noise as excited Scarlet Rose fans screamed at the top of their lungs fueled by raw passion.

It was the passion of watching the club you supported claw themselves out of the very jaws of defeat, defeating ’DEFEAT’ itself.

To the fans in the stadium, it was an unforgettable game.

It was by far the most intense game of the matchday. And to most fans who watched the game, it was the most intense game of their lives.

What mattered was that in the end, Cyber Squad did not use them to create history in the English Pro Alliance, winning by a flawless victory.

Heck, Cyber Squad didn’t even win. It was a draw.

It was the comeback of the decade.

Scarlet Rose clawed themselves out of defeat to play a draw, snatching a point from the incredibly complicated game.

At the end of the game, even without his mentor pushing him first, Chris went to Caster and acknowledged him for his performance today, showing his respect. Caster was unplayable today.

He was the player of the match.

But Chris was defiant. "Next time, I won’t lose".

Caster chuckled. "I can’t wait".

And with that, Cyber Squad left Leeds with a point from the dreaded Crimson Arena where most teams hated to play at.

They were this close to creating history in Leeds.

The next day, matchday 8 continued.

At the end of the matchday, while Cyber Squad and Scarlet Rose played to a draw, Phoenix Rising and Echelon won their games comfortably.

The English Pro Alliance table was updated again.

[English Pro Alliance League Table:]

Echelon – MP: 8; Points: 24 Phoenix Rising – MP: 8; Points: 24 Scarlet Rose – MP: 8; Points: 22 Cyber Squad – MP: 8; Points: 19

The top 4 battle was still on.

The fierce rivalry continued.