The white light faded, and Nuo Ai’er felt her feet land on solid ground.
All around was pitch black. A cold, mechanical voice rang out in her mind:
[Teleporting. Do not move.]
The next second, the blinding light receded.
Nuo Ai’er found herself standing in a rustic, vintage tavern. Under the dim yellow lights, besides her, there were three other players.
[Welcome to the Novice PVP Arena.]
[Four novice players are participating in this game. It adopts a one-on-one elimination tournament format, with two rounds total.]
[There is only one rule: be the last one standing.]
Nuo Ai’er glanced down at her wrist. A glowing number—”4″—appeared on it.
“Hah! Finally, a dungeon that isn’t against NPCs!”
A rough, loud laugh broke the silence.
The speaker was Player 1, standing at the front. A muscular man nearly two meters tall.
He wore a tank top, his exaggerated muscles bulging. He scanned the others with a fierce, thuggish face.
“My talent is [Super Strength]. No matter what game it is, as long as I beat the crap out of all of you, I win, right?” The muscle-bound man swung his fist arrogantly, creating a gust of wind.
“N-no way ( ๑ŏ ﹏ ŏ๑ )”
Opposite him stood Player 2, a timid, soft-looking girl in a sweater.
Standing beside Nuo Ai’er was Player 3, a gorgeous blonde young lady in a fancy dress.
She crossed her arms, her chin slightly raised, exuding an innate air of haughtiness. Clearly a noble young lady.
As soon as the muscle man finished speaking, the system’s prompt sounded again, mercilessly:
[Use of physical force against other players is strictly prohibited throughout this game. Violators will be immediately removed from the game.]
“…What?!” The smile on the muscle man’s face froze instantly, then he protested angrily, “Why the hell not?! If I can’t use force, then my talent is just decoration!”
The system explained emotionlessly:
[If physical force were allowed, Player 4 would have absolutely no chance of winning. To ensure competitive fairness, this rule has been enacted.]
Nuo Ai’er: …Eh ( ° △ °|||)︴
The air went silent instantly.
Three pairs of eyes stared at Nuo Ai’er.
The muscle man’s gaze was suspicious and hostile, the soft girl looked at her sympathetically, and the blonde noble lady raised an eyebrow with interest.
Nuo Ai’er: Uwaaa (つ﹏⊂)
This is so embarrassing…
Is the system basically saying she’s a total weakling?
“Hmph, whatever.”
The one who broke the silence was Player 3, the noble lady.
She let out a light laugh, her golden hair swaying slightly with the movement. “Whether it’s strength or intelligence, I’m ready for it. In the end, the winner will be me, no matter what.”
[Since this is a novice’s first PVP, the game won’t be too difficult. Please do your best to survive to the end.]
[Elimination match group confirmed.]
[Match 1: Player 1 vs Player 4; Player 2 vs Player 3.]
[Match 1 game: Rock-Paper-Scissors.]
As the system’s voice faded, three cards appeared on the table in front of Nuo Ai’er, all face-down.
[Rules: Each player selects one card and plays it. Cards are revealed simultaneously. The winner advances; the loser is eliminated.]
Nuo Ai’er looked at the muscle man across from her. He seemed quite dangerous…
“Tch, my first opponent is just some little kid. How boring… Hey, girl, even though I can’t use my fists, don’t think I’ll go easy on you just because you’re small.” The muscle man grinned viciously and slammed down a card without hesitation.
Nuo Ai’er hesitated, then tremblingly played a card as well.
Reveal!
At the system’s command, the two cards flipped over.
Nuo Ai’er’s card depicted a pair of scissors, while the muscle man’s card showed a giant rock.
“Hahahaha! It’s rock! I win!” The muscle man laughed triumphantly.
“E-eh?! ∑(❍ฺд❍ฺlll)”
Nuo Ai’er’s eyes widened.
How could this be? No way.
‘I want to see the card (๑˃ಐ˂৭)’
But the next second, the card turned into a real boulder, falling from above and crushing Nuo Ai’er’s small body.
BAM!
Nuo Ai’er’s vision went black. She was squished into a Nuo Ai’er pancake (sad).
[Player 4 eliminated.]
…
[Host death detected.]
[Innate talent “Time Rewind” has been activated.]
[Rewinding…]
“…Ugh, huh?”
After the dizziness subsided, Nuo Ai’er opened her eyes.
She was still standing in the tavern. On the table in front of her, three cards lay face-down, silently waiting for her choice.
The muscle man across from her was grinning menacingly, about to slam down his card.
“Phew… phew…” Nuo Ai’er held her chest, her heart pounding wildly.
‘Did I go back to before I played the card?’
“Hey, girl, even though I can’t use my fists, don’t think I’ll go easy on you just because you’re small… Hey, are you listening?!”
Player 1 yelled angrily at the dazed Nuo Ai’er.
But Nuo Ai’er was still confused.
Nuo Ai’er: Oh my god…
‘I never thought the time rewind talent… could also work in a PVP dungeon!’
‘As long as I lose, I rewind… doesn’t that mean…’
Nuo Ai’er: ‘I can never lose? ∑(°口°๑)’
“Stop daydreaming and play your card!” The muscle man roared and slammed down another card.
Nuo Ai’er’s eyes sharpened. This time, without any hesitation, she quickly played a card.
“Reveal!”
The cards flipped.
Nuo Ai’er’s card showed a flat piece of cloth.
The muscle man’s was still the rock.
“Whew, I win.” Nuo Ai’er patted her flat chest.
“What?!” The muscle man’s eyes bulged, his face filled with rage and disbelief. “Damn it! This game is garbage!”
Seeing that his card was about to transform into an elimination tool, the muscle man ignored the rules.
He would rather break the rules and hit Nuo Ai’er.
He roared and charged at Nuo Ai’er, his huge fist swinging toward her head with a whoosh.
‘Huh? Why can’t you take a loss?! ∑(❍ฺд❍ฺlll)’
Nuo Ai’er: ‘Eek! (๑˃ಐ˂৭)’
However…
“Hmph, that’s truly disgraceful.”
A cold voice suddenly rang out.
Just as Nuo Ai’er was covering her head, a golden figure flashed by.
Player 3, the noble lady, had somehow appeared behind the muscle man. With a sharp high roundhouse kick, she precisely sent a table flying.
BAM!
Even though the system banned physical force, it didn’t ban kicking tables. The table threw off Player 1’s balance, and he fell to the ground.
Clearly, this noble lady was also quite skilled.
“Ahhh—”
The muscle man stumbled forward and slammed into the wall.
“I despise sore losers who resort to violence the most.” The noble lady dusted off her hands disdainfully.
At that moment, Nuo Ai’er’s “cloth” card burst into light and transformed into a huge white canvas, instantly wrapping up the still-unsteady muscle man tightly, like a wrapped dumpling, and tossing him straight out of the tavern door.
[Player 1 eliminated.]
Before Nuo Ai’er could catch her breath, a sudden scream came from beside her.
She turned to look. Player 3’s opponent, Player 2, the soft girl, was sitting on the ground, crying.
The card in front of her had turned into a giant pair of scissors. Though it didn’t injure her body, it shredded her clothes, leaving her in only her underwear.
“Wah… I don’t wanna play anymore T_T” The soft girl covered her chest and was instantly kicked out of the room by the system, eliminated.
[Player 2 eliminated.]
[Congratulations to Player 3 and Player 4 for advancing.]
[The final match is about to begin: Player 3 vs Player 4.]
Watching this scene, Nuo Ai’er couldn’t help but pout:
“This game is so boring… It’s just pure luck, isn’t it?”
“Luck?”
Player 3, the noble lady, walked elegantly to Nuo Ai’er, looking down at her with a light laugh. “That’s not quite right, little sister. A game isn’t just about luck. You only think that because you novices are too naive.”
“Especially you, little sister. You look so innocent.” The noble lady stared at Nuo Ai’er’s harmless face.
She raised a finger and shook it gently. “This game has no real restrictions, you know. That means we can confuse our opponents with words, bluff, engage in psychological warfare, and even… use our talents wisely. For example, I just kicked over a table. If Player 1 had realized earlier that the rule only prohibits using force on players, but everything in the tavern is destructible, maybe he wouldn’t have been eliminated.”
Nuo Ai’er looked up in surprise. “You… aren’t you a novice too? How are you so experienced?”
Player 3’s eyelid twitched. She suddenly changed the subject. “Ahaha… Anyway, little sister, what’s your talent? That big guy was so scary, but you didn’t seem afraid at all.”
Nuo Ai’er’s heart tightened. She immediately shut her mouth.
The system’s warning still echoed in her ears. She absolutely could not reveal her talent.
Seeing Nuo Ai’er’s wary expression, Player 3 laughed lightly. “Not telling? I guess you’re not that dumb. But…”
Her eyes suddenly sharpened, full of confidence and pressure.
“The final match is Russian Roulette. I’m going to teach you a lesson: no matter what talent you have, it’s useless against absolute power… Be prepared.”
The noble lady gave a wicked grin. “I’m going to strip every piece of clothing off you, little sister, just like I did to Player 2.”
Nuo Ai’er: Eh? (〃д〃)
‘Does this Player 3 have some kind of weird fetish? ()’