Chapter 149: Obstacles

Choose either Route A or Route C to interfere.

Stop them from reaching the finish line, lure them into transforming illegally, or just steal their collectibles and prevent them from completing the task.

So dirty!

How could the organizers openly suggest such underhanded tactics?

Could it be that Sigma Heroes is actually a subsidiary of some evil organization?

Okada Dharma liked to create chaos to attract viewers and boost ratings.

But Clara was starting to dislike this strong-willed lady.

No, she disliked the operating philosophy of Sigma Heroes.

“So, which route will you interfere with?”

Okada Dharma asked, holding her microphone, with a “Crow” drone hovering behind her, its dark lens pointing directly at Clara’s little face.

She added, “Just so you know, I won’t reveal their current progress. Maybe you’ll run into them as soon as you go down~”

Without even thinking, Clara immediately replied to Okada Dharma’s question:

“Of course it’s Route A! The Azure Cavalier is acting alone, so he’ll be slower.”

“Actually, that’s not necessarily true.”

Okada Dharma shrugged, denying Clara’s assumption.

“The Azure Cavalier’s way of thinking is extremely rational, lacking any human softness. He basically doesn’t feel things like ordinary fear. To him, this courage test is nothing more than a puzzle game.”

“Speaking of which…”

Clara folded her arms and asked, “The winning group gets an advantage in tomorrow’s activity. What exactly will that be?”

“The schedule for tomorrow will be announced after the courage test ends.”

“As for the advantage… For example, if we play a watermelon-splitting game again, the winners would be the ones holding the wooden swords and could take the initiative in the game.”

“Then, let’s choose Route C.”

Clara and Sista exchanged glances and made their decision.

Okada Dharma was happy to see this result and simply said, “There will still be drones following you, but the livestream won’t show your feed. They’re just for event documentation, so you can act a little bolder.”

The audience knows that Team B is going to cause trouble, but not what exactly they’ll do…

Is this what they call a surprise?

Sista had barely spoken the whole time; she was always quiet, maintaining the image of a gentle and ascetic beautiful youth. Clara handled all negotiations.

Not until they left the mountaintop and started descending along Route C did Sista finally ask:

“Clara, do we really have to interfere with the others?”

Clearly, she wasn’t too willing either.

“These are the game rules set by the organizers, so why not? Knowing Dharma, if another team had reached the top first, she would’ve told them to interfere with us too…”

“So what should we do?”

The easiest way was to find Azure Cavalier’s collectibles ahead of time. They wouldn’t even have to meet him—as long as he couldn’t collect all three items.

Judging by Route B’s situation, the final collectible should be near the summit. However, Clara and her team had already been delayed three minutes on the way—though they were still faster than the others.

“Yeah, he probably isn’t far from us.”

Standing on the stone steps and looking down, she saw flickering lights below. That guy was coming up.

Hiding in the shadows, Clara and Sista could spot Azure Cavalier coming up the mountain with his flashlight. They hid and waited for him to pass by, ready to make their move.

[He’s got three collectibles in his hand.]

Nyx gave them the answer directly.

[You’ll have to think of another way.]

If Azure Cavalier just climbed to the summit, he’d be the winner.

“What do we do, should we just charge in and grab them?” Sista asked.

“No, running is against the rules. We can’t transform, and neither can he. We have to try to steal them or get him to transform first…”

It was called interference, but they still had to play by the rules.

Clara pulled Sista along as they crept through the bushes, but it wasn’t easy. Small branches scratched her skin, and sometimes caught the fabric of her swimsuit, making rustling noises.

Azure Cavalier seemed to notice something, sweeping his flashlight around.

“This guy’s really cautious, huh?”

[He’s not just on guard against staff playing ghosts. Since the Fourth Calamity is lurking on the island, he’s probably watching out for Psycho too.]

That’s probably the right move, isn’t it?

Just then, Azure Cavalier turned off his flashlight.

Just like on Route B, the lanterns near the summit on Route C were few and far between. The forest here was even denser, and not even the “moonlight” shining from above could reach through.

Azure Cavalier disappeared into the darkness.

Now, it was impossible to tell who was the hunter and who the prey.

“What a troublesome guy.”

Had he noticed them?

No, probably didn’t see them directly.

[He probably did.]

Nyx had a different opinion.

[Even though you two are well hidden, there’s still a drone circling above your heads and filming. That’s basically telling him there’s something in the bushes.]

Originally, only one drone was following, but now there were suddenly two. That made Azure Cavalier suspicious…

Hmm, that explanation seems a little forced?

Still, Nyx’s reasoning failed to convince Clara.

After all, this was a livestreamed show. Having drones shooting from different angles was normal, so sending two “Crows” was nothing out of the ordinary.

“Miss Clara, what should we do next?” Sista asked, already relying completely on Clara.

“No rush. There’s only one path—his destination has to be the mountaintop finish line.”

“Not necessarily.”

Sista shook her head, crouching beside Clara and whispering:

“If it were Second Brother, he might choose to eliminate the risk first.”

“Eliminate the risk… What would he do?”

“He might ambush us, or actively come into the bushes to find us?”

“No way, wouldn’t that waste his chance to win?”

Azure Cavalier shouldn’t even know who’s over here.

The staff disguised as ghosts were already prepared to scare him, lurking nearby. Just hearing noise from the bushes and seeing a second drone—would he really react so strongly?

It didn’t make sense; going straight to the summit was the only right choice.

Unless, he saw something else?

As if to confirm Clara’s suspicion, the sounds of fighting came from afar.

It wasn’t on the main route, but deep in the rainforest, off the path.

Clearly, something unexpected had happened.

“Sista, just now… Was he really on guard against us?”

There really was a true enemy lurking on the island. If Psycho attacked the lone Azure Cavalier, that would actually make sense…

…

The next moment, a beam of light pierced the night sky.

Azure Cavalier was summoning his exoskeleton.

“Click—hurry, let’s go help!”

No longer caring about the game rules, Clara took off running, putting on her gas mask as she switched to her Magical Girl combat form.

Azure Cavalier was in real danger.