Chapter 137: Chapter137-Chaos in the rankings

With those opponents dealt with, I lifted my gaze to the hologram projected in the sky.

As I stared at the image, a wave of surprise washed over me.

Ehh, what the...?

The sight was so a little unexpected that it left me wondering with thoughts...

1) Michael Frostburne: 920 points

2) James Wilson: 890 points

3) Solos Kamstur: 720 points

4) Mira Lapele: 680 points

5) Anna Parkour: 670 points

How is he catching up so quickly?

I was caught off-guard when I checked the leaderboard and saw how fast James had closed the gap between us.

It didn't add up at first, but then I glanced at the time.

Oh...

I sighed in frustration.

So that's how he's so close.

It was 10:59 a.m., meaning I had spent around 20 minutes dealing with those last enemies, which gave everyone else time to catch up.

That was sloppy of me.

If I had been quicker, I wouldn't be in this situation.

But there's no point dwelling on it.

I can't waste any more time.

It's time to get back to hunting.

I took off running, looking for bushes where worms would be hiding underneath.

After five minutes, I still hadn't found any bushes, but I did come across a few monsters along the way.

I killed them, giving me a small 10-point lead on the leaderboard.

1) Michael Frostburne: 960 points

2) James Wilson: 950 points

3) Mira Lapele: 880 points

4) Anna Parkour: 860 points

5) Solos Kamstur: 790 points

James was only 10 points behind me now, which wasn't a good sign.

At the rate he's going, he's probably killing 6 to 10 monsters every five minutes, earning 60 to 100 points.

It was 11:05 a.m., and if I did the math, there's a good chance he'll end up somewhere between 1,300 and 1,900 points.

Hmm...

I need to hurry up.

I started running again, but I couldn't stop thinking about Mira and Anna.

What exactly happened with them?

Actually, the real question waswhat did they find?

Just five minutes ago, they were both 150 to 200 points behind me, but now the gap was only 50 or 60 points.

I couldn't help but wonder.

Did they stumble upon a horde of monsters or something?

It was possible.

But I had a gut feeling that wasn't the case.

Something felt off...

Was there something else going on?

Did they...???

As I kept thinking, I glanced at the hologram and was hit with a surprises again...

1) Anna Parkour: 1120 points

2) Mira Lapele: 1050 points

3) James Wilson: 970 points

4) Michael Frostburne: 960 points

5) Solos Kamstur: 800 points

Both Anna and Mira had jumped ahead of me.

Something strange was definitely going on.

Damn, they passed me.

I wasn't too surprised that James moved ahead, but seeing Anna and Mira overtake me was unexpected.

Why?

Because the hologram said:

**[WARNING! Participant Michael Frostburne, you have reached the maximum points allowed from loopholes. You are now strictly prohibited from using any more loopholes!**

**Note: Failure to follow this warning or breaking any further rules will result in immediate suspension by the A.I.]**

Fuck the A.I.

Why didn't it warn me sooner?

If I had known this would happen, I would've killed faster and racked up more points in less time. That would've made things so much easier.

But instead of complaining, I took off, sprinting to find more monsters.

Within a minute, I ran into a disgusting cockroach-like creatureit didn't even have a head. Looked like it had lost it in a fight, maybe against another player. It wasn't very big, just about three feet tall.

I swiftly killed it with a stab to the back and kept going.

*Faster, faster* I kept telling myself, pushing harder.

Why?

Because I had dropped to fifth place. Even Solos had passed me.

The leaderboard now read:

1) Anna Parkour: 1460 points

2) James Wilson: 1400 points

3) Mira Lapele: 1350 points

4) Solos Kamstur: 1300 points

5) Michael Frostburne: 1260 points

The leaderboard kept changing rapidly, like the wind.

I had to speed up if I wanted to surpass everyone.

Solos, James, and Mira were all fierce competitors, making it difficult for anyone to stay in one position for long.

It was 11:27 a.m., and I was still running, hunting for more monsters.

At this rate, I was beginning to worry about losing my fifth place.

As I was running, a familiar voice suddenly caught my attention.

"Oh no! This is getting hard!"

Wait, that voice... wasn't that Lia?

I recognized it immediately.

But what's going on? Is something wrong with her?

I sighed.

Normally, I wouldn't have cared if it were someone else, but since it was Lia, I quickly started looking for where the voice was coming from.

Within a few minutes, I found her.

Oh, I see..

She...

In the middle of the forest, there was a wide, open field with not a single tree in sight, as if the trees had been deliberately cleared from this area.

The ground was covered in grass, a stark contrast to the dense woods surrounding it.

At the center of the field, a young girl was locked in battle with a Gorilla like monster...

I quickly examined it and realized it was actually a chimpanzee.

Her face, though beautiful, was filled with determination.

Despite several injuries scattered across her body, she kept fighting, completely ignoring the pain.

With each swing of her sword, she cut deep into the monster's flesh, leaving more wounds with every strike.

After taking a few more hits, the monster suddenly flew into a rage.

Its eyes turned a bright, terrifying crimson, and a thick, menacing aura of bloodlust surrounded it.

Desperate, it attacked the girl wildly, as if this was its last chance to survive.

Lia, the young beautiful yellow haired maiden, felt a surge of panic rise in her chest.

It was my first time seeing her facing a monster like this, and for a brief moment, her focus wavered...

That split-second distraction was all the monster needed.

With lightning speed, it landed a powerful punch to her face.

The force of the blow sent her tumbling to the ground, disoriented.

Just as the monster prepared to strike again, a dark shadow flashed by.

In an instant, the sound of flesh being sliced filled the air, stopping the monster in its tracks...

**Thud**

**Thud**

**Thud**

The wind, the surroundings, and even time seemed to freeze as the monster's head hit the ground, bouncing three times before coming to a complete stop.