Rebirth: The Universe's Hidden Heiress-Chapter 23: The Map Mode

"Hey there, guys, no need to panic," Roukujou wiped the sweat from his forehead, reassuring the live audience, "Just hang tight, Pinky might show up any minute now."

Although he said this, he wasn’t feeling confident. Since Pinky left the competition last night, and it was almost noon now without any sign of her, he wondered if she had just played for fun and found the arena boring, deciding to leave.

Roukujou grew more anxious as he thought about it. Just as he was about to say something to lighten the mood, he noticed the barrage of messages saying [Hey pretty lady, look here] on the screen.

He glanced back and saw the same beautiful woman he had encountered the night before.

Seeing the audience’s attention momentarily diverted, Roukujou breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Since everyone’s interested, let’s go interview her."

"Hello," Roukujou approached Yuka, saying, "Would you mind answering a few questions? Oh, and by the way, we’re live streaming."

Yuka glanced at the long pole Roukujou held with something resembling a camera attached to it and expressed her surprise, "They allow live streaming in underground arenas?"

’That’s bold.’

Roukujou smiled, "Yes, it’s allowed. Many of us streamers rely on this for a living."

"I’ve heard that the underground arena is run by people from the Alliance Academy," Roukujou whispered conspiratorially. "Otherwise, how could they have such advanced technology without the Alliance Army stepping in?"

Yuka nodded thoughtfully.

Roukujou, glancing at the chat going crazy over the beauty, asked the question everyone was most curious about, "Can you tell us your current ranking? You don’t need to be precise, just a rough range would do."

Yuka tilted her head, "I think it’s around sixty thousand?"

[That’s pretty good, go for it, wifey!]

[I’m bored. She proud of being sixty thousand? Just a pretty face, nothing more.]

[What’s wrong with you in the comment above? How do you know how long she’s been playing? Maybe she’s only played for a few days. That’s a good achievement, better than you, just blabbering behind the interstellarnet.]

As the chat started to heat up, Roukujou quickly interjected, "Let’s not fight, guys, no arguing."

After calming the live audience, he turned to continue interviewing Yuka, but she had already left the hall and entered a holographic pod.

After being away for over ten hours, her ranking had dropped a bit.

Yuka pondered for a moment and then entered the arena.

Outside, Roukujou, moving between thousands of small screens, perked up, "Here she comes!"

Roukujou switched the camera to focus on the screen showing the pink mecha, announcing to the audience, "Pinky’s back, opting for the arena mode again. Her weapon remains the whip, but the cannon on her right arm has been replaced... a Gatling gun, not bad, should improve accuracy."

On the arena, Yuka flicked her whip, spinning the opposing mecha around like a top, relentlessly whipping it towards the edge of the platform.

Then, with a mechanical finger, Yuka nudged the teetering mecha, sending it tumbling off the arena. The match was over.

Roukujou marveled, "Pinky’s attack style is always so unpredictable. Who knew there were so many tricks to that whip?"

Unspoken was his thought that the whip, a tricky weapon to master, would make it hard for others to mimic her style. Pinky was set to become an irreplicable trendsetter, a star in the making. And as the one who nurtured her fame, his livestreams would surely attract crowds, and with it, a lot of money.

Yuka had already moved on to the next match.

Her strategy was to strike first. She’d start with a barrage of bullets before the opponent could react, then entangle them with her whip and toss them off the platform. Even if she occasionally took hits, she’d retaliate before the next round could fire.

Roukujou stroked his chin and remarked, "Pinky seems a bit aggressive today. No rest between matches... Not a bad approach, but against those experienced opponents, she might face trouble."

As he finished speaking, Yuka was already facing her next opponent.

A silver mecha stood across her, unarmed with firearms but equipped with two blades, one long and one short, held steadily.

Yuka narrowed her eyes.

The countdown ended, and Yuka initiated her usual assault, unleashing a volley of bullets at the silver mecha.

Roukujou’s eyes widened, he exclaimed, "Blocked, all blocked!"

In the arena, the silver mecha, with blades in hand, spun rapidly. The bullets collided with the blades, creating a symphony of clinks, each one deflected onto the ground.

Yuka retracted her Gatling gun and lashed her whip at the silver mecha.

The whip coiled around the long blade, gripping it tightly.

The silver mecha struggled but couldn’t break free. Instead, it yanked the whip towards itself, attempting to pull the pink mecha closer for a strike with the short blade.

But it couldn’t move Yuka.

She stood her ground, both mechas locked in a standoff.

Roukujou quickly snapped a photo of the silver mecha and posted it on a mecha forum with a description of its characteristics, asking others about the silver mecha’s background.

"Is this one also a newcomer?" he muttered, "Winning dozens of matches, with a stable fighting style, tough opponent indeed."

He hoped Pinky would win, but couldn’t help feeling a bit worried.

[Why aren’t they moving? I thought my feed froze.]

[Same here, I even unplugged my router and plugged it back in.]

Roukujou frowned, "They might be sizing up each other’s strength... They’re moving! They’re moving now!"

During the standoff, Yuka and the silver mecha had been silently exerting force, each trying to pull the other closer for a melee attack. However, realizing their strengths were evenly matched and unwilling to waste more time, they both let go simultaneously, as if in agreement.

"They both dropped their weapons at the same time!" Roukujou leaned closer to the screen, "Pinky dropped her whip, and the opponent lost the long blade. They both opted for close combat! The opponent strikes first with the short blade at Pinky, who responds with gunfire... Unfortunately, it’s all blocked again!"

Yuka had fired the moment the blade was swung at her. At such a distance, she couldn’t miss. And she knew the opponent would instinctively stop the attack to block the bullets, as using cold weapons against gunfire had become muscle memory for him. His proficiency in deflecting bullets with his blades from the start of the match indicated extensive practice in this skill.

Under pressure, people can’t control their innate reactions.

The silver mecha, realizing too late it had fallen into a trap, couldn’t attack in time and could only watch as Yuka’s left arm, composed of Oniyon mechanisms, transformed into a long blade. It sliced fiercely from the mecha’s neck downwards, cleaving the cockpit in two.

Sparks flew as Oniyon clashed against the mecha’s body. The silver mecha slowly kneeled, then was removed from the arena by the system.

Roukujou was stunned for a moment before regaining his composure, "Pinky’s close combat skills, as formidable as ever."

He quickly analyzed, "Pinky must have taken advantage of the opponent’s habit of blocking bullets. She changed her weapon at the moment the opponent retracted the blade. If the opponent tried to counterattack, it would create a one to two-second delay, and Pinky used this brief moment to strike, securing her victory."

Roukujou marveled at Pinky’s daring tactic. ’It was a risky move; what if the opponent didn’t blocked the bullets and continued the attack? Or if Pinky had missed the narrow one to two-second window, or aimed inaccurately? It was a testament to her skill and boldness.’

The chat was filled with praises for Pinky, though some disagreed with Roukujou’s analysis, offering their own speculative comments.

As he watched Pinky’s mecha leave the arena, Roukujou thought she was done for the day. But then, to his surprise, he noticed a flash of pink on a nearly deserted map match screen.

"Hmm," he mused, touching his chin - a gesture becoming more frequent since encountering Pinky, "She’s chosen a map match. Maybe she thinks the arena match points aren’t enough?"

He pondered for a moment and understood her strategy. With her ranking now in the forty-thousands, opponents in the arena were becoming increasingly skilled, making easy victories less likely.

Map matches, however, were different. They were less populated, and many players were not adept at this mode. Most competitors were mediocre at best. If Pinky could leverage her strengths in map matches, she could earn as many points from one victory as from five arena matches, rapidly boosting her ranking.

Yuka was indeed thinking along these lines. She stood in a barren landscape, her only cover a large rock. Her instructor, Min, explained the rules: [Welcome to the barren mountain map mode. In map matches, players must locate their opponents and engage at least once within thirty minutes, or neither will earn points. Please, no passive play! Any object in the arena can be used as a weapon, and hits are counted. If there’s no clear winner after thirty minutes, the system will decide based on the extent of damage to each mecha. The less damaged one wins five points. The match starts in fifteen seconds. Countdown begins now...]

Like in the arena, a white circle appeared at Yuka’s feet, indicating she couldn’t move yet. She surveyed her surroundings, formulating a strategy.

[Match begins.]

As the circle vanished, Yuka rolled to the ground and quickly tumbled behind the rock, crouching low. A second later, a shell struck where she had been standing, sending up a cloud of dust and smoke.

Peeking from behind the rock, Yuka saw a grey mecha on the opposite hillside, aiming its cannon-loaded arm at her hiding spot.

Roukujou’s brow furrowed as he observed the map. "This is a tough start," he commented, rubbing his chin. "Pinky’s at a lower elevation, and her opponent has the high ground, a natural advantage in terrain. Plus, the opponent’s mecha arms are both equipped with long-range artillery, no concern for distance. Pinky, on the other hand, has one melee weapon and a Gatling gun with a range of only five hundred meters. This map is really unfavorable for close-combat fighters."

His voice tensed, "The opponent is about to fire again!" He stared unblinkingly at the screen, eager to see how Pinky would respond.

As the grey mecha raised its arm to fire, Yuka abruptly stood and sprinted towards it.

Roukujou was taken aback. The chat momentarily paused before being flooded with messages:

[Is she going on a suicide mission?]

[Does Pinky think she can’t win and wants to end this match quickly to move to the next one?]

[I don’t think Pinky is the type to give up. She must have a plan.]

[This is just rushing to feed the enemy.]

[Boring, I’m out.]

Watching Pinky’s mecha charge forward with determination, Roukujou murmured, "This shouldn’t be... Let me think, ah, I got it!"