Child of Destiny

…

Bang!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A series of strong collisions erupted as Arthur and Cetus clashed against one another. The former looked like a majestic and honorable knight of the dragon tribe, while the latter was a knight who seemed to be worshiped by the worldly elemental powers.

Bang!

Right after blocking yet another attack from his opponent, Arthur perfectly timed a quick step back to lessen the force that he had gotten from the impact while absorbing the residual from it.

His left arm, which was wielding his shield, suddenly turned and slightly twisted the broadsword of his opponent and pushed it away.

Swoosh!

At the same time, his upper body was following the turn along with a skillful twist of his waist. His right arm was also following his actions, suddenly thrusting his dragon spear forward and perfectly launching a seamless counterattack.

Shing!

Seeing the incoming tip of the spear, the expression on Cetus’ face suddenly contorted due to the insane speed and perfect timing that it had.

Adding that he was currently in an awkward position due to Arthur suddenly disturbing his stance, this counterattack was almost guaranteed to land.

Fortunately, his ‘class’ was not an ordinary class. On top of being a knight, he was also a magician, so he had a lot of means to defend against this attack.

Whoosh!

A transparent barrier suddenly appeared before his face, blocking the path of the incoming spear.

Bang!

In the next instant, Cetus was suddenly sent flying by a sudden stab.

However, he did not suffer any damage from that attack since the barrier had protected him well. What sent him flying was the strong air current that came alongside the stab that Arthur had thrown.

“Hu~! That one is a close call,” mumbled Cetus as he tried to regain his footing.

Swoosh!

However, before he could even regulate his breathing once again and stabilize his form, a mocking voice suddenly rang beside him.

“Heh! Trying to play a ‘knight’ class line before this Excellency? Are you mad? No one is more familiar with this class than I!” sneered Arthur as he swung his spear horizontally.

Cetus quickly responded. He held his broadsword with both his hands and raised it beside him, holding it in an upside-down manner to guard against the incoming strike.

Bang!

The spear then pushed him to the side, leaving a deep trail on the ground.

“Tsk! This class line is not supposed to be for you!” he refuted. This Magic Knight class theme was supposed to be a counter against the other main forces of the Empyrean Talons. The same could be said for most of the tools that he had brought into this match.

But who would have thought that this showoff of a person would suddenly come back with such impeccable timing and take on the stage instead?

All the preparations had gone to waste this time.

Moreover, the preparations that they had done had suddenly worked against their favor due to the appearance of this guy, who was very familiar with all kinds of knight-related classes.

After all, Arthur always played this class in every game that he played.

Cursing under his breath, Cetus forced himself to stop before summoning an array of magic circles behind him and firing a series of spells at Arthur, who was charging toward him.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Thinking about it carefully, Cetus disregarded the thought of using the magic scrolls and special tools that he had brought for this game, planning to save them for other occasions.

But that did not mean that he would be giving up in this match. Instead, his fighting spirit burned even more, and he stared at the charging opponent.

He was planning to fight Arthur with his skills and abilities alone.

Sensing the sudden change in the air surrounding Cetus, Arthur could not help but smile as he knew that the opposing side was determined to fight him square.

Regardless, he still continued with his trash-talking. “Not bad. To honor your courage, let this ‘Excellency’ teach you how to play the knight class.”

With that, the golden draconic energy covering his spear suddenly became more violent before taking the form of a dragon.

Arthur then stabbed with the spear, transforming it into golden silhouettes that annihilated all the incoming spells.

Immediately after, he appeared before Cetus, who was already swinging his broadsword down after anticipating his actions.

Bang!

But Arthur had also placed his shield perfectly to block the attack while saying. “Offensive knights, who wield broad and heavy weapons, are known for their powerful attacks and great strength. You are supposed to be more aggressive when playing this class line.”

After that, he pushed Cetus back with a strong blow with his shield right after blocking the previous attack.

“Adding that you also possess the magic powers to make it a Magic Knight, your style should be more versatile and a lot of variations,” he added before suddenly thrusting the spear forward, transforming it into a golden dragon along with his draconic powers.

Shing!

Raising his broadsword, Cetus guarded himself against the sudden thrust while also protecting his body with a thick mana aura.

He then swiftly stepped sideways and suddenly stepped forward. He slightly ducked forward and diagonally tilted his broadsword, letting the golden spear grind against its blade.

Twisting his waist and rotating his body, Cetus suddenly threw a powerful slash toward Arthur.

Shing!

The mana surrounding the broadsword suddenly contracted and hardened, creating a layer over it and making the blade much thicker and broader.

Along with the mana flame covering Cetus’ entire body and a series of magic formations suddenly appeared in the air and fused with the sword, producing a massive reaction.

‘Magic Knight Skill (Tier 2): (Modified) Supreme Sword Formation’

Swoosh!

The timing of this attack was impeccable, seemingly trying to prove to Arthur that he, Cetus, was not that simple. He also knew how to play this class.

Arthur’s eyes contracted a little after seeing the sudden counterattack from his opponent, but he remained calm and determined.

Eating such an advanced skill up close would truly hurt, especially with such perfect timing that made it hard for most of the players to respond.

But Arthur was not like any other player. He was not an ordinary player. He was one of the gods of the game.

Bang!

With a sudden stomp into the ground, he abruptly stopped his forward charge while pressing downward with his right arm and making the dragon spear flip upwards, retracting it in such a flashy and fancy way.

His shoulder then caught the spear shaft before suddenly retracting that shoulder back and swiftly turning his body alongside it.

On the other hand, his other arm that wielded the shield suddenly pressed forward while also fixing his stance at the same time.

Swoosh!

Alongside his actions, the golden draconic powers around him suddenly gathered toward the shield and formed a golden, transparent wall filled with tough and powerful scales.

Roar!

‘Dragon Knight Skill (Tier 2): (Modified) Golden Dragon Scale’

The entire process might sound quite long and a little complicated, but Arthur had done everything in almost an instant.

He had managed to set up all his defenses right before the incoming attack arrived.

Boom!

The collision between the two opposing forces produced an intense reaction and a powerful series of repeated and coinciding shockwaves that spread in every direction.

A huge crater also appeared under their feet, creating a massive pit at this humongous Gladiator’s Arena.

The huge cloud of smoke and dust produced by the powerful collisions had yet to settle, but the two sides had already resumed the battle.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The two turned into a pair of streaks of lights that swiftly swarmed through the cloud and repeatedly collided against one another, producing a series of thunderous sounds.

The cloud was also being repeatedly spread and cleared with every collision, slowly revealing the figures of the two.

With this, the live audience and online viewers watching the match saw that Cetus was at a serious disadvantage in every clash between the two combatants.

But even though he was struggling, there was still the bright and lively light within his eyes, showing his stubbornness and determination.

He might be in a quite miserable situation, particularly with the current state of his Health Bar, which was steadily being chipped down by Arthur.

However, he was still holding his ground, giving his best in the battle.

Given the current state and flow of the match, it was not hard to judge that this would be a quite easy win for the Dragon God.

It was not because Cetus was bad or unskilled when compared to other Godlike Players. It was the matchup between the classes that made it more favorable to Arthur, who knew the knight-related class lines better than most of the players of the game.

Cetus, who had ‘designed’ this class to counter the other main forces of the Empyrean Talons, was not as familiar as Arthur when it came to understanding this Magic Knight Class.

This led to the current situation.

…

Arthur was not in a hurry to end the match despite having an overwhelming advantage that he had over his opponent.

It was not because he wanted to torture Cetus more or teach the other party how to properly play this Magic Knight Class, but it was due to his curiosity about something.

“Hey, why are you those guys? Have you truly joined their adventurer team or something? Or do you just team up with them to join the fun of the United Cup?” he asked with genuine curiosity.

He understood the character of this person quite well, as they had also dealt with each other in other games that they played before.

From his understanding of Cetus, this guy was most likely here just to join the fun or made some sort of deal with the God’s Paradise.

Arthur suspected that this guy was up to something.

“What is it to you?” sneered Cetus. Just like how Arthur knew his character, he was also quite familiar with the latter.

He could at least tell that the other party was also up to something.

“Nah~! I am just curious why you suddenly joined a team when you hated being in one the most. Did they offer you something?” said Arthur while continuing with his pressure over the opposing party.

“What? Do you want me to jump over your ship or something?” sneered Cetus while doing his best to protect himself.

“With your current class? Nah~! That choosy guy will not approve your ‘application’ even if I recommend you. He has such a strict standard when recruiting people, and the current you are far from it,” said Arthur before quickly adding. “But it will be a little different if you use the advantages of your special race and spend your money wisely.”

Bang!

After being sent flying once again, Cetus swiftly tried to regain his footing while also frowning deeply.

“What do you mean? Are you going to tell me to use my money to fund some guild or create my own force once again, right? You know me, I don’t like such things,” he said while attempting to fight back a little harder.

“Idiot,” sneered Arthur after hearing that before answering. “I am talking about your special race.”

He paused for a moment as a rare seriousness appeared in his eyes before continuing. “Rather than doing random things and learning those useless skills to create such a trash class, why not find the correct way to utilize the unique features of your race?”

“You can also spend your money in a more meaningful way,” he added while continuing his barrage of attacks.

“What do you mean?” asked Cetus with suspicion.

But he did not instantly dismiss what Arthur had just said because of his understanding of the other party. He knew that this individual had a specific idea in mind when discussing his race and its unique characteristics.

Arthur might look like an idiot and knew nothing but how to show off. But Cetus knew that this guy knew what he was doing when it came to games. Arthur’s experiences in all the games that he had played were not for nothing.

Cetus suspected that Arthur might have realized something after all the exchanges that they had had since the start of the match.

Unfortunately, Arthur did not want to disclose anything more and just said. “You mean to fix your race and class? Nah~! I will not help you get stronger for free.”

“If you suddenly changed your mind and want to change sides, you know how to contact me,” he continued to smirk before suddenly increasing his pace and putting more pressure on his opponent.

“If you come over, then I will not only teach you how to play with those advantages, but I will also introduce you to someone interesting.”

……