Arena

Chapter 103 An Unexpected Reunion (Part 1)

‘You’re dead.’

I summoned Sylph and Kasa.

“Let’s go!”

I made up my mind and in order to butt up against my strongest opponent, I valiantly marched forward. But....

-Meow!

-Bark bark!

When the cute kitty and puppy ran after me, it shattered the heroic mood.

But I was trying so hard to look cool and tough just now......

Ring.

The smartphone I put in my pocket was buzzing again.

‘Now what?’

When I checked it, I saw it was a text from Cha Ji-hye.

[I will arrive in approximately 10 minutes. I request taxi fare please. You can send Sylph.]

‘What, what’s with this woman?!’

I was just flabbergasted.

What was she doing that she didn’t even bring her own taxi fare? Not only that but doesn’t she have her own car?

I don’t know what she was doing when she got into the taxi but anyway, I asked Sylph.

“Sylph, you remember Cha Ji-hye?”

-Meow.

Sylph nodded her head.

“When my cellphone buzzes it means that she is in a taxi nearby. I need you to send her my card.”

-Meow.

Good, it was a bit of weird order but she understood.

I shook past the weird feeling and grabbed my double guns.

Now the real fight could begin!

Some of the anxiety had gone down a little but anyhow, I made my way towards the small Chinaman.

I could sense what direction he was in with my guider skill.

The small Chinaman discovered me and starting yelling as he ran towards me.

I pulled the triggers on both my guns at the same time. My target was the center of the square shield.

Tang- tang!

The man blocked his body with his square shield. Sparks clearly sparked from the center of his shield.

‘Good.’

The man didn’t realize that what I was aiming for was the shield. I got the feeling also that he hadn’t realized that the strength and power of my bullets had gotten stronger.

His safe fighting pattern of relying on the same skill was now a habit.

The advantage was mine for sure.

Ta ta ta tang-

I kept shooting my guns and hitting the center of the shield.

The man stood his impenetrable square shield up in front of his body as he approached me and repeatedly swung his long sword.

It seems he is slowly adjusting his position to try to corner me but it has no effect.

I am well versed in aversion from all the dodging done with the elves during the games of tag.

I kicked off from the tree behind me and jumped in the air and shot my double guns.

Continuing on, I turned around in the air and shot again.

I hug upside down from a tree limb with my left foot while continuing to shoot at his shield.

Ta ta ta tang-

A tiny show of fireworks showered out from the shield.

With the power of the stronger bullet skill and the spirits, the bullets unrelentingly shot at the center.

When I landed, the man swung his sword at me, forcing me to roll on the ground to avoid it.

As I rolled, I tried to shoot at his face but with great speed the square shield was able to block it.

With his sword held point down, he tried to stab me into the ground

‘An opening!’

That second, I quickly moved both of my legs.

With one foot, I kicked the sword over and with the other foot I wrapped up his right arm. I let go of the gun in my left hand and grabbed his wrist.

This was the first time I really tried an arm bar but it worked out surprisingly well. The effects of the reflex superior level 1 skill was amazing.

The man was taken by surprise.

In that position, I pulled on the man and with I shoot the gun that was still in my right hand

Tang – tang!

The shield effortlessly blocked the bullets.

I put more strength into the arm bar and with my right hand, kept on pulling the trigger of my Neilson H2.

Tang! Tang! Tang! Tang!

The bullets crazily shot at the square shield.

Thanks to the reload skill, when the clip was empty, the bullets were automatically replenished.

The man’s arm wouldn’t twist at all.

Was this the body malleability/ ductility?

She said it’s probably a skill like that and indeed, his body was stiff like steel.

But I was in an advantageous position.

The man was awkwardly locked in the arm bar whilst standing, trying to withstand the pressure.

I kept draining his energy while shooing relentlessly with my gun.

Then, I realized the man’s Arena experience indeed wasn’t for naught.

“Kuahh!”

The man angrily yelled out.

Boong!

Just like that he threw his body into me.

He was planning on crushing me!

His body was small in stature but because of his heavy armor, if I got squished under him, it would put me at a huge disadvantage.

I let go of the arm bar and rolled away.

As I did so, I picked up the gun I had thrown on the ground earlier.

Koong!

I was just able to escape by a hair’s breadth when the man smothered the spot I was in with all his weight.

With my double guns I aimed at the helmet he’s wearing, pulling the trigger at his head.

Tang!

Like always, the square shield eliminated the threat instantly.

I raised my upper body and shot while standing up entirely and shooting again, and I kept shooting as I took a few steps back and placed some distance between us.

I became one with my guns and, without losing any momentum, continued shooting.

The reload skill was a huge help.

Because it automatically reloads there was no pause in my shooting and my attacks were smooth and endless.

The man again raised himself back up and slowly shortened the distance between us.

‘Does he think time is on his side?’

Then again, that wouldn’t be a wrong guess.

As time goes on, the amount of bullets in my space bag will completely run out or the time limit on my spirit summons will run out.

But I have a play I’m making and because of that, I don’t rush and continued to attack.

‘Your shield will eventually crumble!’

Of course, thinking in realistic terms, it isn’t impossible that the man doesn’t have a spare shield to use.

But in the instance that his shield was broken, there would be a weak spot in the time it would take him to switch his shields.

‘You have already tasted one of my bullets.’

When I first shot and it had hit him, the man had suffered no injuries at all.

Because of that he’ll have let his guard down.

His whole head was filled with the confidence that even getting a hit a couple times wouldn’t kill him. On top of that, he has his armor and helmet too.

But that’s exactly why he’ll leave an opening for me.

Just one chance!

‘I will kill you and take your karma.’

So that all Chinese examinees will have to think twice before trying to take advantage of me.

Then, the credit card that I had taken out my wallet and put in my pocket was taken away by the wind.

Sylph had sent it flying.

‘Cha Ji-hye must be here.’

Her request for taxi fare made me think she had come alone.

Just what help does she think she could be to me that she came alone? This is an examinees battle.

That question was just a fleeting thought before I refocused and continued the fight.

Now, I could see a sign.

The sound of the bullet bouncing of the shield was the tiniest bit different now than it was just a moment ago.

I think this was the time and I kept firing my double guns.

Center, at the center!

Kwa ji jik!

It’s hit in the dead center and the square shield crumbled into a thousand pieces.

“......?!”

The man suddenly had a surprised expression on his face.

I immediately aimed for the man’s face and shot.

The second he saw the trigger pulled, the man ducked his head down.

Ddang! Ddang!

The helmet went flying off from the force of the bullet.

‘Nice, now one more!’

Using both arms the man frantically attempted to cover his face.

Ta tang-

Blood immediately started flowing from both his arms as he was hit with bullets.

“Kuaack!”

The man started screaming from the pain of the bullets lodged into the flesh of his arms.

Unlike earlier, the bullets were now penetrating his body.

Indeed, the man’s body was still strong. Had he been a normal person, those bullets would have sent his arms flying off.

Ta tang-

“Kuk!”

The bullet struck an arm again. The man would not let his guard down.

The man shouted something and another square shield appeared.

‘Damn!’

In the end, he summoned another shield.

The man blocked the bullets with his new square shield, put down the sword in his other hand, and summoned his item bag.

Ta ta tang-

Without even seeing the shots, he used the block skill for cover as he took out a healing potion from his item bag. He took off the top and poured it over both his arms.

His flesh closed and the bullets fell out onto the ground.

Having healed his wounds, the man looked at me with a rage far superior than before.

‘This failed too, do I have no choice but to retreat?’

I couldn’t think of another way.

The man had thought through all my possible attacks.

If I wasn’t able to attack with something new and different......

And then.

From the trees to the left, a human shadow jumped out.

Taking off like a bird, the figure leapt towards the man and, from both sides of the hips, withdrew two strangely curved swords.

At the same time as they were removed from their sheathes, the double curved-swords moved at lightning speed. And from the double curved-swords, a subtle blue light was shining.

An ambush out of the blue.

The man did not see the figure.

Chwaaak!

“Kuaack!”

The man’s wretched scream rang out.

The left arm that had been holding the square shield was cut off completely and fell to the ground.

At the same time, the figure deftly rolled once and got up.

Upon seeing the identity of the figure, I can’t help but be completely surprised.

“What are you doing?”

It was Cha Ji-hye.

At her words, I reflexively drew up my double guns and shot haphazardly.

Pu pu pu puk!

“Kuaack!”

Having lost his left arm with his shield, the man was left without any defenses and was hit with all the bullets.

The man tried to pick up the fallen shield with his right hand but I was quicker.

Ta tang-

In his helmetless head, two pierced red holes appeared.

Koong!

From his stance of trying to pick up his shield, he fell right over.

With his eyes wide open, he breathed his last breath.

Su lu lung-

Cha Ji-hye returned her double curved-swords to their sheathes and looked at me.

“It has been a long time.”

“Yes? Oh, yes......”

Cha Ji-hye?

Did that attack from just a bit ago come from Cha Ji-hye?

How did she carry out such a stealthy attack? The power to cut off an entire arm of a man with body malleability!

Just now, the blue light that was seen from her double curved-swords, that was definitely an aura.

“You weren’t an examinee...... when did you die?”

“I died the night I sent you that text.”

“What? Then, was it because of me......”

“First, let’s take care of the bodies and leave the area.”

“Oh, yes.”

We dragged the fat man’s body as well and buried it.

Sylph helped to dig out a hole but at times like this, I thought it would be easier if I had an earth spirit.

While I buried the men, I couldn’t help but have some questions.

Since I had received the text, it had already been about ten days.

If she had become an examinee at that time, the now she would have just finished her second exam.

But from what I saw earlier, Cha Ji-hye’s great abilities weren’t that of a 2nd turn examinee.

“The blue light I saw on your swords...that was aura, right?”

“You are correct. Aura control at the intermediate level allows one to exert aura outside of their bodies and in the Arena, those people are called Aura Experts.”

‘Intermediate?!’

I was shocked.

“How did you raise your main skill to intermediate already? I have only barely just gotten my spirit summons to intermediate level 1!”

“I am at intermediate level 1 as well.”

“Just which turn are you at?”

Cha Ji-hye answered my question directly.

“I am a 6th turn examinee.”

“No way!”

“It has been 15 years since I have seen you.”

“......?!”

At my surprised face, Cha Ji-hye said..

“Let’s go.”

“Huh? Oh, sure.”

With a flabbergasted expression, I moved alongside Cha Ji-hye.

“I am a dead person in this world. For the time being I need a place to stay quietly. Would it be possible to request this from you?”

“...... huh?”

I thought I misheard her.

Cha Ji-hye said.

“I have no money to my name. When they threw my body into the ocean, the Chinese took my wallet, car, everything. I have had a bit of a difficult time because of that.”

“Oh, then, let me get you a hotel booked......”

“I think it would be best to stay together.”

“I have a woman I live with......”

“You intend to continue living with your girlfriend while you are clearly a target?”

“......”