The Challenger's Return: Rebirth of the Rainbow Mage

Otto's figure pounced as soon as the partitions emerged.

He wasted no time.

With nine people, there were only three partitions surrounding two lanes in total.

Before the other Throskarts had time to arrive, Otto's hands morphed into blurs.

Rune after rune spread out in three directions, covering the inside of each partition as Otto worked in overdrive at his fastest possible speed.

He did his best to separate his mind into not two, not three, but four arrays in total.

These arrays had to be pasted directly onto the partitions, with one on the inner wall of each.

Which meant he had to finish this part before the partitions closed.

His [Multitask] couldn't actually handle this level of 'multitasking' quite yet.

So he expended his mental power to make calculations and moved his hands in two directions as fast as he could as mana swirled through his fingers in beautiful harmony.

A blue, almost misty color scattered into the desert's hot air.

Otto felt like he was playing Mozart's Piano Sonata 18 sped up by five times…

Just under four seconds later, the initial formations were finished.

Otto slipped into the right most lane to wait for the black maw to open just as the others quickly arrived.

They looked at Otto's lane suspiciously.

The blue tint to the air had yet to fade.

Both Greer and Mikelo narrowed their eyes.

In the end, they both said nothing, and just quietly remained on guard.

Otto's eyes brightened as soon as the first spider popped out of the black hole.

He felt the connection with the two arrays he'd previously set in the cavern.

The light in his eyes was menacing.

Otto immediately activated both arrays.

A barely discernible 'click' echoed in the lane.

The cavern filled with the pungent, bitter smell of [Wolf's Laird Green].

A second passed.

Then, the Throskarts outside the lane heard a slight rumbling sound that picked up in volume until it began reverberating through the partitions.

Suddenly, all three partitions collapsed; Otto's arrays had done their job destabilizing them.

The collapse revealed a terrifying sight.

Hundreds of spider monsters poured out of the black holes on both ends of the lane.

The man who'd entered the lane next to Otto died almost instantly from the stampede.

The rest of their faces paled drastically.

So the [Assassin] hadn't finished his plans!

Even one of these spiders by now was enough to put up a fight, let alone such a vast number.

They immediately understood.

If they were careless for even a second, they would perish amidst these spiders.

Without an iota of hesitation, every Throskart ran through the sand as fast as they were able.

At first, it looked like the spider monsters wouldn't bother to target them as they instead spread out through the desert.

After all, they were acting on instinct rather than orders at the moment, and Throskart meat apparently wasn't particularly appetizing to spiders.

Yet that all changed when Otto revealed a sly smirk and conjured a quick gale that brought the smell from their bodies downwind.

As one, the gazes of the loose spiders fixed on the fleeing Throskarts.

Mikelo gulped, while Greer revealed a nonchalant expression that seemed completely out of place among the seven other panicking Throskarts.

Otto no longer bothered to hide his identity.

He slapped a [Winged Escape] formation onto his back.

He flew up into the air, hovering above indifferently as his gaze fell to the ensuing chase.

Yes.

Otto had never been in the business of intimidating others for no reason.

Pretending to punch them, then patting them on the shoulder was intentional.

To spread the scent of his second potion, made from the [White-Winged Crossed Liver], onto their bodies.

The same potion that the spider monsters loved to smell.

Otto had gotten rid of his own scent long ago…

Despite his plan coming to fruition, Otto couldn't feel at ease.

A vague sense of danger filled his mind.

Its source was unclear.

The chase continued.

Four Throskarts were already dead, leaving Otto in the air and four others who continued to run at top speed.

The heat of the air approximated the temperature of a particularly hot oven.

The runners' stamina was sapped at extreme speeds from such intense exertion.

It only took ten minutes before two additional Throskarts eventually collapsed.

Their bodies were almost immediately demolished by the pack of spiders as more and more swarmed out of the black hole at the end of the now destroyed lane.

Thankfully for Otto, the dark vortexes at the end were programmed not based on how many spiders emerged but based on how long they were open.

So they didn't shut down even after thousands upon thousands emerged, dozens of spiders at a time…

The rest of the Throskarts were now dead. Only Mikelo and Greer still ran.

Greer eventually fell onto the sand.

But his gaze towards Otto was not despondent, but triumphant.

Even vaguely mocking.

Otto narrowed his eyes.

The spiders trampled on and swarmed Greer in a matter of seconds after he finally fell.

Oddly, Greer's face revealed no pain.

Otto raised a brow.

It wasn't that Greer was holding his pain back, he seemed to be unable to feel it in the first place…

Greer even tried to garble out some words before his throat was viciously ripped from his neck.

Alas, Otto was too high in the sky to hear them.

A ripple of excitement pumped through his blood as he thought the floor was almost over.

A feeling Otto couldn't bring himself to heed.

Though his heart told him this floor was almost over, his mind cautioned him the opposite.

Greer's triumphant smirk replayed over and over through Otto's mind.

What was he missing?

Mikelo was stronger and faster than Greer.

Apparently, his brain worked better, too.

Mikelo didn't hesitate for a second before completely disrobing in the middle of the desert.

Normally speaking, it was a bad idea to allow more skin to burn from the heat of the sun.

But in this circumstance, it was the right call.

In order to minimize the impact of the scent of his clothes.

Otto had also only applied a single layer of the potion to each Throskart, quickly smoothing it out with his mana.

The scent on Mikelo's body lightened considerably.

Mikelo waved his white shirt around in the air, then used all of his strength to throw it away from him.

His eyes were panicked, desperate to escape the desert with his life.

But would Otto let that happen?

He quickly cast another [Gale Push]. Mikelo's shirt flew straight back onto his chest.

Mikelo groaned but didn't continue to throw it.

The spiders came even closer…

But right as the spiders were about to catch up, from the corner of Otto's eye, an astonishing sight played out.

Greer, whose body had been torn to pieces by the spiders, stood once more.

Almost instantly, his eyes turned to Otto.

He yelled with fervor.

"HAHAHAHA, filthy human assassin!"

His greasy personality seemed to have replaced his previous calm.

Then, he smirked and raise his voice just enough for Otto to hear even so high in the air,

"Try killing someone with unlimited revival!"

Then, the spiders swarmed him again.

Apparently, his revival could not entirely erase his scent…

Otto's expression darkened.

So this was the trick the game masters had thrown at him?

Unlimited revivals?

"…"

How was he supposed to overcome that?

Otto's eyes were fixed on Greer, trying to glean even a single clue that could illuminate the process.

Maybe if he understood the process, he could find a loophole...

The spiders continued to pour out of the black hole without limit.

Otto watched Greer's body closely as the man was torn to bits for the second time.

Two seconds later, his body began to reform under a dim, dark green glow.

Otto scratched his head, and watched the glow with concentration and slight consternation.

Where had he seen that light before…?

Another two seconds passed, and Greer's body was stitched together.

Somehow, this scene felt even more familiar to Otto.

His brows furrowed.

What in the world was this?

It didn't even look like 'coming to life' but closer to 'repairing the body.'

Perhaps, Greer carried some sort of 'revival tool?'

But if that was the case, there was also a good chance that it was impossible to separate the tool from Greer…

Otto had a feeling the game masters wouldn't make it so easy for him.

The crease in his brow deepened.

How did one kill a person with unlimited revivals?

Wait!

Was it really unlimited?

Could Greer be lying to him?

Otto pondered before he regretfully shook his head.

There was indeed a small chance of this, but it couldn't be counted on.

Otto's life had a timer.

He had to kill both Greer and Mikelo in the next six to eight hours before the game announced this group's winners.

But all they had to do was live until then.

Otto turned his head to Mikelo, who finally tripped and fell into the sand.

He landed face first.

But his body was too tired to get up again.

Alas, the spiders chowed down on him, too.

Otto watched closely, and noticed that although Mikelo's muscles refused to move, his face had a look of anguish as he was eaten alive.

It was the opposite of Greer's triumphant expression.

Otto observed apathetically.

One down, now he just had to figure how to kill the…

Then, his eyebrows rose.

A tinge of anger appeared in Otto's gaze.

Mikelo had also regained his life.

The process was vastly different this time.

Instead of watching Mikelo's body stitch itself together, a pale green light suddenly appeared.

It was more muted than Greer's, but its color was also far lighter.

It almost felt like Greer's light was fake when compared to this one... Mikelo's light carried an aura of purity, while Greer's stunk of decay.

Otto shook himself out of his thoughts and focused on the task at hand.

His eyes glinted icily despite the heat.

Not one, but two people who came back to life after they were killed!

The Throskart higher-ups really wanted him to die…

Mikelo just looked at Otto and didn't speak.

His gaze didn't hold even a single hint of provocation.

Otto could only detect indifference.

It was a cold indifference, the same kind of apathy that Otto tended to show when he looked at prey.

Otto closed his eyes and flew higher into the air.

He resolutely stamped out the instinctive anger that bubbled up to the surface, his thoughts deep and unfathomable.

Suddenly, his eyes opened again.

The horizon seemed to briefly adorn a reddish glow.

The red disappeared.

Calm returned.

This time, a tiny smirk appeared on his face.

Challenge successful.

This fight…wasn't over just yet.

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