Emperor's fist collided with Andrew's shield and caused it to vibrate. Emperor was incredibly strong, but Andrew was able to hold up easily.
His buffer stats held against Emperor's attack until he decided to pull back.
"Hey, what do you think you are doing? Why did you attack Andrew like that?"
Clara asked, standing in front of Andrew to try and block the next attack. She was the only one who could match Emperor when it came to strength.
"Am I the problem here? I am not the one who decided to lick that disgusting system's lackey's feet and ask for this opportunity. People like you disgust me."
Emperor spat these words. He did not want to do as the system had asked him to, and he wanted to participate in this game even less.
And now, because of Andrew, he was left with no choice but to play this game.
"Alright, I got it. If you don't want to play, then sit out of it and let us play. I am not a fan of the system either, but I am also aware enough to know that we don't have a way to escape it. Not if we want to break free from it."
Emperor gritted his teeth as soon as he heard those words.
He knew in his heart that Andrew was right- there was nothing they could do about the system, and no matter how much Emperor complained, he would have to participate in this game.
But he also needed someone to vent his anger out on.
"Andrew, what's the plan here? C-Can we win this round? There are 4 of us and five of them. Plus, they beat us in the last round…"
Lilianna asked as she came to join them as well. She quickly used her abilities to check on Andrew and heal his strained shoulder.
Emperor looked a little interested in her abilities but Lilianna's disinterest in him made him quickly give up on recruiting her.
"Hmm, somehow, I don't think it is going to be that big of a problem. Especially if Emperor decides to help us out. But even if he does not, I have a few plans."
Andrew told the other two, but he also left enough room for Emperor to decide whether he wanted to participate or not.
"Fine, I will participate as well. As much as I hate to admit it, you are right. I cannot ignore the system."
Emperor forced those words out with gritted teeth. It was nice to see that he was coming around as well.
"So, what's the plan?"
Clara asked and Andrew immediately turned to look at her.
It gave Clara a sudden feeling that she should run. But she ignored that feeling and Andrew placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Clara, there are a lot of plants around here. You will be our trump card. I need you to use these plants to try and get an estimate of where our opponents are. Can you do that?"
Andrew asked and Clara's first instinct was to deny his request. She had not trained to do any of what he had asked of her.
But if she did not try, she would be able to improve. Besides, she had already tried to sense plants in the previous round and gotten an idea about how to do this…
"Alright, I can try. I will find the location of our enemies."
She agreed and Andrew sighed in relief.
"Alright, we can leave this, Clara. Tell me as soon as you have their location. Lilianna, you remain on standby and move with us. I will cover you. Emperor, you will need to be our main attacking force. With Lilianna and I will support your attack."
Andrew quickly divided the roles in his party. He was used to taking command because of his previous life where he had worked with various factions.
Neither Lilianna nor Clara questioned him much but Emperor did not seem to show the same blind trust.
"I will follow your orders for now. But if I see a better opportunity, I will take it."
He told Andrew and Andrew nodded. He did not mind Emperor going off on his own. It was not like the other side would be able to kill him off. Especially not with such a massive skill difference.
"Andrew, I found the location. I can sense two people heading our way. They will be here in about 5 minutes…I think."
Clara warned him and Andrew nodded.
"That will do, Clara. Now, it's time to set some traps for our opponents."
Andrew made a barrier to narrow down the routes of the opposite teams and layered them with an illusion spell. It was too weak and anyone with an intelligence stat higher than 10 would see through these illusions.
But he did not think the other team would notice such a thing in a match. And even if they did, they would likely ignore it.
"Get ready, Emperor. Your first prey is coming this way."
Andrew told the younger but taller man and Emperor nodded. Within seconds, two figures broke past the tree's barrier and rushed toward Clara, who was their bait.
"We got you-"
They both yelled, ready to hurt Clara. But she just smiled before she jumped back.
"No, we got you."
Clara spoke back with a grin on her face. That was the last thing the pair saw before Emperor's sword broke through their defences.
[Player Mandrake has been eliminated from the game]
[Player Slayer has been eliminated from the game.]
"Tsk, what kind of idiot charges into the enemy territory like this? This felt more like a diversion-"
Andrew immediately threw up a barrier around him at Lilianna's words, and his barrier was immediately met with a sword.
"Tsk, I was so close."
The player who had just tried to gut Andrew spoke before he jumped back. He was someone they had not sensed.
Emperor tried to hurt the player, but he was too swift and jumped back.
Andrew immediately looked at the system to check who had attacked him.
[Player Name: Monkey King (level 13)
Title: King of Speed and Recklessness
Skills: Reckless Magic, Speed increase
Profession: Thief
Strength: 2
Speed: 20
Intellect: 1
Luck: 4]
'What the hell-! Did this man train nothing but his speed? No wonder he is so fast. It's a good thing I decided to put up my barrier when I did.'
After all, thieves had a low presence and this person was especially dangerous. Andrew would not be surprised to learn that he was a former thief…and a good one at that.