"Damn it. It's all over." Alex was now sure of it.
Earlier, at least they were simply competing with other rare mounts, but now there were even higher grade mounts in play. That too, not one. There were five, and they were dragons!
What were they now supposed to do? Four or perhaps all of their group was now inevitably going to be eliminated in this round.
"Who the hell are these people? Shit. Shit. We are supposed to take the win in this tournament. Where did these guys come from?"
Not just her, but Mia, Rey, Shen Yue, Mei Mei, and all the standing players of the Crimson Abyss guild looked crestfallen.
Compared to the other players, these guys looked even more dejected because they were that much sure of their victory.
Others might not be aware, but they knew Liam's strength and Mia's abilities. Even Alex and Derek were second to none. So all they needed to do was get into the final ten.
In a straightforward PVP match, there was no way that their team would lose. This win was supposed to be theirs. However, at the last minute, this stupid round changed everything!
Now they were no longer confident about anything. These new players who had outstanding mounts would probably not be simple. Their combat abilities would also come into the picture.
This tournament just got out of their hands!
At the same time, just like them, every other guild from the Gresh Kingdom also had the same look. Even Madan, Kouske, Anya, and Barret looked constipated.
The three top guilds of the Gresh Kingdom also looked butthurt.
The couple of individual players and the one or two players from the few smaller guilds like the Assassin guild and the Stormtroopers guild were also livid.
They had somehow clawed their way and managed to obtain a position in this fight, and now everything was going to be taken away from them.
Someone new was now going to take the pie that had fallen from the sky into the Gresh Kingdom guilds' laps.
"Find out who these guys are!" Everyone sent messages to their respective guilds and started the search.
The Gresh Kingdom leaderboards and achievement boards mainly had information only about the guilds inside the kingdom, but that was not the case in the outside world.
Thanks to the internet, every single achievement by every single guild inside the 'Evolution Online' game was available for everyone to see, and several websites had detailed compilations of these things.
Just like how players relied on the auction house to make gold coins, many players relied on this information network to make money.
Some of the top guilds already have collaborations with guilds from the other Kingdoms so that when teleportation between Kingdoms eventually opens up, they can immediately pool their resources and zoom ahead.
These kinds of deals were plenty. Not all kingdoms inside the Xion realm were built the same. Some might be located near rich deposits of ores, some might be located near gem grooves. Every Kingdom had its specialty.
Players were only not able to jump between these kingdoms and take advantage of the cheaper or, more abundantly available resources because of the dead terrain between each kingdom.
In Xion, in most kingdoms, the center areas were the safer areas. As one inched closer to the border, all the areas were dangerous territories.
They were home to level 100 plus beasts, savage races, and perilous environments. If one tried to fly past the borders, then the player would only end up dying.
This was the main reason why everyone was still confined to their starting Kingdoms. However, right now, that landscape seemed to be changing.
While other guilds were still busy trying to find out from where these players could have popped out, Liam knew for a fact that these guys had to have come from outside.
And using their PVP tournament as a stepping stone, these guys are probably aiming for the tournament prizes and, along with that, to establish a branch of their guild in the Gresh Kingdom and start recruiting players from here.
This was why they had decisively revealed their mounts today!
As for how they could have managed to cross the borders, even he did not know.
But it didn't matter. After all, his main playing field was the big wide world outside and not this small kingdom he was currently in. He had always made all the moves with this in mind.
Liam's gaze silently moved across the huge auditorium, falling on the various players as he tried to see if he recognized someone.
"Drakes… huh… as far as I remember, only that kid had dragon pets. These guys haven't even reached Level 50. How did they get their hands on drake mounts?" He quietly pondered.
Meanwhile, the fifteen minute timer on the screen was quickly running out. There were now only a couple more minutes left before the mount race officially began.
"Liam! Liam! Are you listening? Who should we bet on?"
Alex chewed out her nails, looking at the screen. The drakes were the obvious choice, but at the same time, Kouske's special mount couldn't be ignored.
"Who the hell is allowing a fucking undead freak monster as a mount? I want to see this PVP tower master damn it. Does that man have no brains? How is this a mount?"
"Liam? Liam? Hello! The tournament is about to start!!! Who should we bet on?"
Seeing that the guy was still deeply thinking, Alex lost her patience and started shaking him violently. Immediately everyone backed away. There was a third world war going to now break out between these two.
However, surprisingly Liam did not look like he was in the mood for it today. He only mildly reacted.
He pushed her away and looked at the small white fox who was still happily playing with the clouds without a care in the world.
"Don't overthink things. Stay calm and bet on Luna."
"Are you sure?" Alex was shaking in excitement.
"Yes." Liam replied, and he placed his personal bet as well, placing 10000 gold coins on Luna.
At this last minute, as the final few seconds were now running out, all the players standing around were busy doing the same thing.
10 seconds. 9 seconds. 8 seconds….. 2 seconds. 1 second. 0!
[DING! The third round is now starting. All bets are closed]
The system announcement popped up, and the next instant, the white fluffy clouds flew up like dry dirt on a race track. All fifty beasts shot forward at top speed!
