CHAPTER EIGHTY FOUR

As the letters faded away, Jason and the other members of the BAG Guild stared at their surroundings and shook their heads. None of them were inside their Mechs - they'd been brought inside in their player avatars.

"Huh..."

"Dang..."

It was a little disorienting. The save point station had automatically redirected them into another of the Illusionist guild's signature aircraft. In this case, the large circular form and jet-black walls indicated that they were inside a Silence-class launching craft.

The large stealth-focused UFOs were carrier units meant for interplanetary combat rather than terrestrial battles. The craft was meant to fly over planets while silently dropping off the Illusionist's shock troops.

Stephanie frowned.

"I thought we would at least be in the space station. It just redirected us!"

Lynn smirked.

"That's just the advantages of being a big guild. The company is willing to work with you. Now that I've joined you guys, I'm hoping we can all level up."

Danny nodded.

"Well, that's what we're here for."

Jason glanced at the other players who'd been brought to the competition. He recognized some of the notable streamers he'd watched, including Sunshine89 and Kyrafroko. The two players had formed an alliance in the first round, and they were whispering together in the far corner.

Of course, the most notable player in the spacecraft was Lynn's brother Castor.

He was a young eighteen-year-old with a shock of bright red hair. The color was a sharp contrast to his sister's blonde hair, but the two siblings had very similar faces.

Save for his unusual hair color, Castor looked rather plain. Nothing about his appearance suggested he was a genius gamer, but after Lynn's in-depth breakdown, nobody could doubt his talent. Lynn had even sent Jason a few clips of his solo fights, and Jason knew he'd be in for a hard time if he was trapped in the other pilot's Finisher.

To Jason's surprise, Castor was standing alone. The kid might have even been away from his keyboard - his pilot avatar was standing still in an idle animation. Moments later, Jason lost sight of the other player as other pilot avatars loaded into the Mech hanger.

In total, forty players had equalified for the next round of the Tournament of Assassins, and each of those players had brought along a different number of assistants. Some had none, but others had over ten. Per Jason's rough estimate, over two hundred players were inside the station.

If it hadn't been for the great battle that'd occurred outside the station the other day, that number would have easily broken three hundred.

Naturally, there were many interesting and eccentric pilot avatars. Jason even saw a man dressed as a clown. In the past, players had only been able to express themselves with their Mechs, but the Overdrive Corporation had dramatically opened up the available options.

Moments later, a roughshod voice echoed through the insides of the UFO.

"Players have already been specially marked as contestants and helpers. Contestants will be allowed to set foot on the island. Meanwhile, helpers will have their Mechs automatically destroyed by their marks once they set foot on the planet. Because they are not competitors in the Tournament, assistants will not be subject to the Salvage Rule."

The garbled voice sounded just like the machinery Lynn used herself. She nodded affirmatively when Jason shot her a glance.

"Yeah, it's a pretty common practice in the organization. It's a lot like the fake markings. It usually doesn't make a difference, but it's really fun for roleplaying."

The deep and rumbling voice spoke again.

"You will now receive your launch groups. Players will launch in groups of five with a fifteen-second delay. For competitors, the Salvage Rule will not apply until the feet of your Mech touches Castle Notoria."

Jason nodded. That meant players could still kill each other while launching, but they wouldn't receive as much of an award. It was the only way to integrate the contestants and the regular players smoothly. Otherwise, the helpers would be able to gain powerful parts without any risks.

Next, Jason's status screen dinged as he received a new message from the Illusionists Guild.

He opened it up, then scowled.

You are in Launch Group One. Launching will commence in one minute. Please make your final preparations with your teams.

He'd be jumping into the fray right off the bat, which came with several notable disadvantages.

On the surface, it seemed like an advantage to leave first, but it meant you would have to watch for ambushes constantly. The players who launched behind Jason were in the perfect position to shoot him in the back.

In addition, the early launch would give other competitors information on his fighting style. With over two hundred players in the lobby, the battlefield would soon be engulfed in chaos. However, everyone would pay attention to the first few players.

On top of that, there was only a ten-minute difference between the first and last player to launch. The small difference wasn't enough to gain a notable difference. It would take much longer to infiltrate Castle Notoria and kill one of the Paranoid Parachuters.

Overall, it was much more effective to launch last.

Danny turned to Jason. The BAG Guild's leader had a very pleased smile on his face.

"You don't look super happy."

Jason sighed.

"Yeah. I was picked first."

Danny cursed under his breath.

"Alright. Now I'm way unhappier about my draw. I was celebrating being in the last group. We'll just have to stall until we land together."

Then the guild leader shrugged.

"Ah, it is what it is. I'm used to a bad gamble."

He quickly spoke to the remaining members of the BAG Guild.

"Alright. Let's figure out our rough plan of action now that we know when we're launching."

As it turned out, the BAG Guild had gotten fairly lucky overall. They'd drawn lots relatively close to each other. The only one who had an unusually high draw was Jason in Group 1. The next closest players to launch were Stephanie and Lynn, who had both been placed in Group 8.

The two pilots turned to Jason.

"Wait for us. We will help you as soon as we get there. And make sure not to fall in the atmosphere too early."

Poor atmospheric flight was one of the Red Minerva's most prominent weaknesses. Unless Jason was pushed into a desperate situation, he shouldn't enter the atmosphere alone - his maneuverability would drop to a minimum, and he'd be vulnerable to all sorts of enemy attacks.

Just before the timer ran out, Lynn raised a finger.

"If you can slide away, use our secret ambush strategy. Don't go on offense unless it's necessary. Do your best to stall safely. If something chaotic happens, slip away."

Jason nodded.

"Yep. Got it."

The timer elapsed, and he was teleported into the hangar. When asked to select his Mech, he picked his upgraded Red Minerva - Assault Mode. He and the other four contestants were loaded into the UFO's drop chute.

A loud pneumatic hiss echoed through the hangar, and then all five machines were blasted into space. Jason's first move was to jerk the thrusters on his control board backward. The Red Minerva's jets activated, and she quickly stabilized instead of falling straight to the planet.

Two of his opponents whizzed right by him.

Jason grinned.

This was his chance. Everyone else would focus on these players and their extremely fast Mechs.

Instead of attacking them, Jason quickly withdrew. He only had fifteen seconds until the other group left, and he couldn't wait around. If too many enemies arrived, he'd be in a perilous situation.

As he fled, Jason watched the rapidly descending enemy Mechs. The two machines had both transformed into high-speed jets, and they streaked forward without attacking each other. From the looks of it, the two pilots were working together.

They pushed forward as hard as possible, doing their best to reach the planet at top speed. Jason quickly scanned their usernames, but he didn't recognize either of them. The players weren't told who else was in their group, and they had to find out through their Scanners. Despite their anonymity, Jason knew not to underestimate his foes. Nobody had made it to the second round through luck - these guys almost certainly had a plan.

If Jason had to guess, these players were trying to breach the atmosphere before everyone else to set up an ambush. Jason and the BAG Guild already knew that a well-timed attack during atmospheric entry was a great way to win a fight.

However, the overly aggressive strategy came with its own weaknesses.

One of the Mechs that'd launched nearby Jason was already going on the attack. The purple Kingbreaker pulled out a large rifle that expanded in its hands. The barrel lengthened, and then the Mech began to fire.

Red light lanced towards the streaking opponents, and they were forced to take evasive maneuvers. The two jets swiftly spiraled apart, dodging every single one of the attacks. Their swift dodges clearly took a lot of skill, and they were able to account for the effect the planet's gravitational field had on their moves.

In the end, it was the purple Kingbreaker that fell first. It was so focused on attacking the enemy Mechs that it failed to realize that another group had already launched towards them.

A swift ninja type streaked forward with both knives drawn. The Mech hacked the purple Kingbreaker to bits before the pilot even realized what was happening - his machine's cameras were still seeing through the scope.

The ninja fell moments later to another attacker. That was the great danger of these melee battles - if you focused too much on offense, you left yourself open to an ambush from somebody else.

Jason had been careful to avoid that mistake. Instead, he'd brought his machine all the way around the Silence-class aircraft. The large carrier was the only obstacle on the battlefield. The surrounding space had no asteroids, and this planet lacked a moon. It was the only cover players would get, and Jason's team wanted to take full advantage.

Jason waited on the far side of the Silence-class on the other side of the drop chute.

He watched patiently as new machines launched into space. Most of the pilots already had a pre-set plan. The Mechs fell into two distinct groups. Most fell back and waited for their teammate, but others charged straight for the planet.

Eventually, a third strategy also emerged. Some players formed a loose ring around the chute, eagerly sniping everyone who fell through. It was similar to a spawn camping strategy in FPS games.

The cherry-picking caught Jason's attention, and he considered attacking to protect Stephanie and Lynn, who were about to launch soon. Stephanie and Lynn would normally be able to handle themselves, but they'd be disoriented right after coming out of the chute.

However, Jason didn't want to give away his position...

He was about to attack when other Mechs in the fray dealt with the cherry pickers. Their position outside the launch chute was just too prominent.

The lure of easy kills had caused them to forget that the Tournament of Assassins was an ever-evolving competition. Their strategy had worked for a while, but the other contestants had eventually adjusted.

Jason counted out the remaining launches. His hands tensed against his control board when Stephanie and Lynn emerged. He watched carefully for any enemy action.

Both of them were using their standard builds. Stephanie's artillery Mech carried the eight-bladed Urumi of Envy in its right hand. Meanwhile, Lynn's hermit had tightly wrapped the defensive multi-colored shield cloak around its body.

However, Jason's worries were misplaced. The two pilots dealt with their opponents without any issues. Jason smiled and nodded appreciatively as Stephanie warded her opponents away with the Urumi. While she was still improving her control, she had an excellent understanding of the item's zoning properties.

Stephanie and Lynn grouped closely together and primarily focused on warding away opponents. By the eighth group, the chaos was building to a very high level - forty Mechs were fighting in the space above the planet.

The chaos built even further when the next group launched, and Lynn activated her hidden trap. The two Mechs briefly shimmered before seemingly exploding from an enemy attack. Next, Lynn's illusion project protected Stephanie's machine as well as her own, turning both Mechs invisible. By feigning their destruction, both of the Mechs slipped away unhindered.

They flew towards the assigned meet-up point where Jason was waiting for them, then re-established communications.

"Nice work, guys."

After uniting, the three flew over the Silence-class, then docked themselves at the top of the spaceship right above the drop chute. It was a strategy inspired by Lynn's own creative ambush against the BAG Guild.

The enemies were focused on the opponents in front of them. They would never expect an attack from above.

"Alright. Let's get ready."

Stephanie knelt and prepared her heavy artillery weapons. Jason mirrored her movement and readied his shoulder cannons.

Against this tough crowd, the strategy could only be used for a short period of time.

They had to make it count.