"Fuckkk! I wasn't in the mood for them!" Max exclaims.
"I almost forgot about them, considering how quiet they've been," Ella says.
"Kedra, can you handle the small ones?" Selena asks.
"Yeah! Why?" Kedra inquires.
"So we can buy potions now," Selena replies.
"Alright! The passive will activate in 3 seconds," Kedra says.
~Time: 9 minutes and 38 seconds.
Hellhounds: 490/500,~
"The big ones are left! And they're already coming towards us... Get ready!!!" Kedra shouts.
"Kedra, Ella, are you ready?" Max asks.
"Yes!" Ella replies.
"Always!!!" Kedra shouts.
"Max, get down!" Selena yells.
Max drops to the ground as Selena unloads her revolvers on an Alpha Hellhound, killing it. Max then uses his passive to paralyze two of them, while Kedra and Ella attack with all they have. Max and Selena distract the others.
"Ella, faster! I can't sustain my passive much longer. And these guys deal serious damage!" Kedra shouts in frustration.
"I don't know!! Kedra, hold on a bit. Please!" Ella says with difficulty.
~Time: 7 minutes and 3 seconds.
Hellhounds: 493/500,~
"We need to hurry!!! We have to kill one per minute," Selena urges.
"Boys, are you ready?" Max asks.
"Yes!" they all say in unison.
~Time: 3 minutes and 45 seconds.
Hellhounds: 498/500,~
"Last two, guys!" Ella declares.
"I'm below 20% HP," Max says nervously.
"I'll have my passive in 2 minutes," Kedra adds.
"Revolvers are reloading now," Selena informs.
~Time: 1 minute and 21 seconds.
Hellhounds: 499/500,~
"Last push, team!!!" they all say in unison.
.
.
.
.
.
.
~Congratulations!!!
Secret challenge successfully completed!
Safe zone activated for 8 hours!
Each participant has been rewarded with 40 gold and 2000 silver.
Challenge 8: Time remaining 9 hours and 49 minutes.~
"We won?!" Kedra asks.
"Yes, idiot!" Max says, giving him a friendly punch on the shoulder.
"We deserve to rest for the rest of the challenge!" Selena says.
"I'm curious about what's happening outside," Ella says with curiosity.
"I don't care! I want to sleep these 8 hours," Max declares.
"Agreed with this idiot!" Kedra adds.
Status Window:
Player Name: Kedra Userbe
Age: 21
Gender: Male
Profession: Student
Leader board: 9
Class: —
Protector: —
Emblem: "Last Breath"
(A) Bracelets of Theseus (Equip)
You drawn attention of 12 Gods
All statistics will be displayed at the end of 10 rounds.
"WTF!!! I'm in 9th place! And 12 gods are following me! Have I progressed that much?!" Kedra screams as loud as she can.
"What the heck?" Max says while checking his statistics. "I'm in 10th place! And 15 gods are following me. How about you, girls?"
"I'm in 21st place with 8 gods," Selena says, surprised.
"I'm in 18th place with 9 gods. I expected more," Ella says, slightly puzzled.
~Safe zone
3 hours left.~
"The best sleep in a while!" says Kedra, yawning.
"Forget sleep, lazybones! The slaughter begins in 3 hours," says Max.
"Agree with Max, we don't know what awaits us outside," warns Ella, looking toward the zone's edge.
"Oh well!" sighs Kedra, rolling her eyes.
"Worst case, we might be welcomed by werewolves," says Selena, smiling.
"Let's hope not. From my calculations, in the worst case, we'll be fighting for another 2 hours," says Max.
"Anyway, we were close to death!" jokes Kedra, amused by the situation.
"Did you have something 'funny' for breakfast, Kedra?" asks Ella, irritated. "You almost died like 3 or 5 times. Lucky you have that passive on your weapon."
"Well, I haven't eaten anything in a day," admits Kedra.
"Seems you're dumber than usual," adds Max.
"Hahaha! Was I supposed to laugh?" asks Kedra.
"I don't know, however you want," replies Max.
"Enough with the jokes. What the hell comes after this trial?" Selena asks with a trembling voice.
"No idea. I don't care; I just want to live!" says Kedra, smiling.
"As exhausted as I am right now, I don't want to know. What's certain is that we should stay alive," says Ella.
"Thanks for nothing!" adds Selena.
"Where would you want us to know, Selena? Do you think we can see the future? Can't you see these Gods want to kill us!!!" says Max in a serious tone.
"Enough with the nonsense. What emblems did you get from the Colosseum?" asks Kedra.
"Emblems? What emblems? I got a necklace," says Max, surprised.
"Necklace? Emblems? It means each of us got different rewards," says Selena. "I got a passive. It increases my accuracy by 35%."
"I got a bracelet that increases my MP and HP regen by 3%," says Ella.
"So, the Colosseum was just a trial to provide rewards!" says Kedra. "Max, does the necklace have any stats or buffs?"
~Emergency announcement!!!
Due to 63% of the preselection zones completing this trial, all Safe Zones will be canceled.
A unique mission will be added to expedite the trial.
Unique mission: Time 15 minutes
Kill 30 werewolves.
Penalty: Elimination.~
"Are they crazy!?" asks Kedra.
"Oh, damn...!" says Max, arming himself.
"Get ready!!!" shouts the girls in unison.
"Aaa... guys? Do you see?!" says Kedra, gripping the weapon in her hand.
"Unfortunately..." says Max as he takes position.
"There are over 100 werewolves. I can swear..." adds Ella.
"Yes, that means we have to kill 30 each!" announces Selena, pulling the trigger on her gray revolver.
~Unique mission: 8 minutes remaining.
Werewolves: 27/30.~
"I almost completed the mission," announces Kedra. "Just 3 more to go."
"I need 12 more," says Ella as she pulls the spear from a werewolf.
"5 for me!" shouts Selena as she reloads her revolvers.
"Lucky you... I still need 18 werewolves," grumbles Max.
~Unique mission: Complete
Time: 10 minutes, 30/30 werewolves
You will be teleported to the area for the next trial!~
"What?? No, wait! I want to help them!" shouts Kedra as she disappears.
"Where am I?"
"Is anyone here?"
"Hey!!! Hellooo! Is anyone here?"
~Trial 8 will conclude in 4 minutes.
Please wait for the end of the trial!~
"What? I hope they succeed..."
~Trial 8 completed successfully: 229 winners, 338 eliminated."
"Trial 9 will begin immediately.
Please be ready!
Trial 9: Truth!~
"Truth"? What does that mean?
Not that I have any chance of guessing. Well... I hope everyone made it through Trial 8. Anyway, very few trials had anything to do with their names.
~Trial 9 will begin in 10 seconds!!
Please be ready!"
"Trial 9: Truth!~
"Where am I? I don't see anything!"
"Welcome! Players, congratulations on making it this far," says Voice 1.
"We are the Gods!" multiple voices in unison.
"This trial will not challenge you in any way," says Voice 2.
"It's a simple test! Just follow the course of your game. And observe yourselves," adds Voice 3.
"Is it that simple?" wonders Kedra.
"For those wondering why you can't see us, there are two reasons," explains Voice 4.
"The first reason is that the human mind cannot comprehend what we are," says Voice 5.
"The second reason is why the Managers chose to remain anonymous in this game," mentions Voice 6.
"At the end of the trial, your mind will start to understand what we are. So in the next encounter, you may observe us. Some more clearly, others less so," says Voice 7.
"Although some of you have been informed by certain Gods, whether they are pleased or disappointed with you, and you know their names, it doesn't mean you can understand them," adds Voice 8.
"For the curious ones, at this moment, all players are 'connected' mentally, and you hear us simultaneously," concludes Voice 9.
"Now we will show you the truth about this game," says all the Voices.
All I can say is that I have seen the beginning of the beginning. I witnessed the actions of the other players.
I saw my own journey. I saw how planets were born. The most important thing is that this is The 9th Game of the Gods. I received ancient and forgotten knowledge. I saw empires rise and fall.
I saw the truth about humans. Who they are and what we are! I saw my parents in this game... I saw them die. Max managed to escape 'elimination' at the last moment, which is death. I saw nations destroyed and forgotten. I saw the things the Gods keep hidden. I saw the birth of new Gods. I saw everything... except one thing. My future..."
~Trial 9 successfully completed.
No one was eliminated in this trial.
Trial 10: Arena! It will begin in 7 hours.~