MMORPG: The Elementalist

Dozens of minutes later, Crackpot and his goons finally arrived. They entered everyone’s field of vision from the vast Frostsnow Forest in the distance. Qin Ruo was able to recognize them from afar. Among the people who were accompanying him, Sable Eclipse and Haohmaru were on the list! One Level 45 Beastblood Berserker, one Level 46 Shadoweaver… It was really unexpected that Crackpot would bring a party of men along with him wherever he went. He even brought a grinding party along with him as they went on a long expedition before he marched into a duel. Was he not wasting other people’s time?!

On this side, Ironjail River and Grand Magi obviously never thought that Crackpot would actually bring along a party of his men with him. They furrowed their eyebrows slightly. Before Crackpot and his men reached them, the others had already stepped forward to greet them.

At that time, Qin Ruo was able to clearly sense the vicious hatred and murderous intent from Crackpot. It seemed that he had been living miserably ever since the battle at the entrance to the Ruins back then…

However, it was destined that he would not get his revenge today.

Whether Qin Ruo was doing it for himself, his own party members, or Grand Magi and Violetmoon Devilite whom he only met for the first time that day, he had to win the duel. Or else, everyone would suffer the fate of feeling disgraced.

As for Crackpot…

If he really got defeated one more time, it would be on himself. He asked for it!

Not to mention, this time, Qin Ruo had to convince Netherspirit’s Claw to the point where they would be completely speechless so that Crackpot would have no more excuse to find fault with him. Upon setting his thought on that, Qin Ruo followed Ironjail River as they headed straight towards Crackpot and his goons…

Grand Magi and Violetmoon Devilite instantly felt the tension building up in their chests. But Blue Princess and Grandiose Dragon anticipated that Qin Ruo would immediately suffer defeat by the looks on their faces—they were completely unconvinced that a Tier 3 Aquamancer could defeat a member of a superior League, even though his opponent was merely an ordinary Tier 4 Radiant Priest.

***

When foes met face to face, they unsheathed their blade and drew their sword!

There was not a single fault in those words. The moment Qin Ruo walked over there, he could sense the few people behind Crackpot resting their hands on their weapons. It was as if they had begun to think about which part and what angle they should start with…

Crackpot was even more straight to the point. He kept his eyes back to himself and laughed out loud at Ironjail River. He then said, “Thank you, Brother Ironjail! After I’m done with him, I’ll take us to Victor Restaurant. I’ll be the host today and treat you. Let’s have a good time together!”

As soon as those words came out from Crackpot’s mouth, the two Elementalists right behind him began to cast their magic spells.

Ironjail River immediately heard Qin Ruo’s voice behind him as Qin Ruo humphed in disdain. “Brother Ironjail, didn’t you make yourself clear enough, or are they not bearing your words in mind at all?”

“Damn it!”

It remained obvious that Ironjail River was not a good-tempered person as well. After getting agitated by Qin Ruo’s words, he instantly struck out with a gigantic black shield. Along with a swift swing, he heavily struck the two Elementalists who were casting their magic and sent both of them flying.

After he kept his shield, Ironjail River glared angrily at the two Elementalists who could only let their dissatisfaction brew inside while they remained silent. Ironjail River then vented his rage on Crackpot.

“Where did you find these two idiots? Who gave you guys the permission to do something like that, now?”

Holy cow! He was the one who struck them, yet he actually had the guts to throw a tantrum…

At that moment, Ironjail River’s voice and his actions sent everyone there into complete shock!

The people on Qin Ruo’s side were shocked by Ironjail River’s straightforward and efficient means as well as the speed and agility of his continuous assault. On Crackpot’s side, it never occurred to them that Ironjail River would kindheartedly inform them to come over but blast their men away. They stood still in their spot as they looked at him in shock, overwhelmed with confusion.

Only those behind the scenes, who knew Ironjail River and his way of handling things, shook their heads at the same time when they saw the scene before their eyes. ‘ Sigh… that guy… will never be able to change the fact that he’s a bear with a sore head!’

“Brother Ironjail, what did my comrades do wrong?”

Crackpot seemed to dread Ironjail River though. Even though the two brothers got into an argument, Crackpot appeared to be very humble as he recovered from his anger and smiled when he posed Ironjail River the question.

“Don’t ‘brother’ me, I’m not that close to you. I heard some rumors saying that you’re not convinced of your loss to this brat here. On top of that, your lost has also put the dignity of Netherspirit’s Claw in an ugly position. That’s why I want to give you a fair chance to fight him again… You two are going to have a duel, fair and square. You’re going to righteously win back the dignity of Netherspirit’s Claw!”

Even though Ironjail River was a little crude, his words were spoken logically. They were reasonable and well-founded. Even Haohmaru and Sable Eclipse who remained standing behind Crackpot were nodding repeatedly. That reputation of theirs had to be earned back.

“Is he even worthy of having a duel with me? F*ck this! Back at the Ruins, if he hadn’t been given the chance to use some sort of deceptive trick, would I have actually lost to this Tier 3 trash?!” The moment he mentioned the battle back at the Ruins, Crackpot instantly felt a strong impulse to slaughter Qin Ruo! He gritted his teeth as he glared at Qin Ruo, revealing an expression that suggested that he was more than eager to bite off a piece of meat from Qin Ruo’s body.

However, Ironjail River ignored Crackpot’s resentment. He remained expressionless as he continued to speak.

“I hope that what you said is true. That’s why I’m giving you two a chance to battle in a fair solo duel. If you win, you can kill him however you want. We’ll also be happy that you can wash away the humiliation of our League. If you lose… in the future, you can also decide how you’d like to get your revenge. I won’t bother at all. But today, now and here, you won’t touch him through other means!”

“So you’re saying that unless I go into a solo battle with him and kill him, you’ll protect him?”

Crackpot narrowed his eyes a little as he stared at Qin Ruo coldly. The expression on his face was beginning to become more serious…

Ironjail River nodded. “That’s exactly my intention! That’s the condition he agreed to for staying here until you arrived. That’s also the agreement made between me and him. If you think you’re capable of killing him alone, then just get on with it. Unless the notice that you published in the League was actually a lie.”

Since Ironjail River had spoken about it, Crackpot knew that it would not work even if he disagreed. Ironjail River had become unshakable in his determination to prevent Crackpot from letting others help him deal with Qin Ruo. If he disagreed now, his name would completely be tainted in Netherspirit’s Claw. He could even suffer the fate of having his name removed from the League by the League Master and the Clan Leader.

He gritted his teeth!

Crackpot then lifted his chest.

“Alright! Let’s duel! Surely it doesn’t mean that I’ll lose to a Tier 3 Aquamancer?!”

In his heart, his loss at the entrance of the Ruins was entirely due to the fact that the nearby surroundings were too dark. Not to mention, there were too many players nearby. He was deeply convinced that he made a wrong judgment at that time, which led to his defeat in that battle.

Now that they were in the Snow Domain, the terrain of the area was open, wide, and simple. It would be impossible for Qin Ruo to use the same method to confuse him again. Furthermore… while he was back in Savis Town, he had also purposely borrowed a few more pieces of equipment with enhanced Magic Defense and HP.

Hmph! I’ll let him die and leave no doubt regarding his defeat. After that, I’ll upload the footage of the battle to the website and clear my tainted name…

Seeing that Crackpot had agreed to duel, Ironjail River lifted his furrowed brows as he immediately shouted at the surrounding players.

“This matter has something to do with the reputation of Netherspirit’s Claw. Those who are unrelated, please stand fifty-meters back! During the period of the duel, none shall take a single step forward, or else don’t blame me for not tolerating you and flaming your a**!”