Game of Justice / Seele

An incredible thing happened: the rift that had torn the world apart actually began to close gradually under the pull of the chains. Finally, the golden chains bound the rift shut, preventing any monsters from ever invading the world again.

"A miracle! A miracle from the gods!"

Everyone was cheering and thanking God for the miracle.

And that "meteor," now burned out, streaked across the sky once more.

Its light dispelled the blood-red eternal night.

It dimmed in the air and turned into tiny fragments.

Just like a real shooting star.

It burned up completely before it even hit the ground.

Chapter 88: Game of Justice

"Legend has it that Pirate King Roger, said something before he died."

"Want to collect all seven Poké Ball so a wish can be granted? I've left them all there! Go find them if you want them!"

"And so, all the ninjas flocked to the city where the seven Poké Ball were buried, and the Great Ninja Era began..."

"..."

"..."

"Huh? Wait a minute, isn't something wrong with this? Why did the bandit king put seven Poké Ball in the city, and then the ninjas went to search for the treasure?"

After reading the contents of the stone tablet, the black-haired man let out a long sigh.

How could he know what was going on?

Hearing the girl's question, he raised his head, squinting at the vast, unfamiliar city under the sunlight, then looked down at the watch on his wrist, which read "Riding Fish Team".

I feel utterly powerless.

What exactly happened...?

How did he end up here?

Let's rewind to one day earlier.

On the golden sand, the foamy seawater reached above the ankles, wetting the trousers and shoes. The lazy sun listlessly carried out its work of shining on the world, slapping its light on the faces of lazybones who didn't want to get out of bed.

The man, who had been exposed to the sun, groggily opened his eyes after about one minute and seventeen seconds.

Tinnitus, headache, nausea...

Everything before my eyes was blurry, the world was hazy, and he himself was not real.

Fragments of memory...

Every time he woke up, he had to sort through the fragments of memories scattered in his mind to prevent himself from losing consciousness. But this time, he found that apart from a brief period of discomfort, he did not experience the near-collapse of his consciousness that he had experienced before.

"Hmm..."

The black-haired man sat blankly on the beach amidst the blue waves and clouds, his one black and one rainbow-colored eyes gazing at the boundless sea.

Where is this place?

He slowly got up from the ground, looking blankly at the empty surroundings and his own unharmed body.

Strange, he remembered that his consciousness completely collapsed after he stitched up the crack... Why was he here? And this body... This is not a reflection of his consciousness, this is his physical body.

"Croak, croak..."

The monotonous cries of seabirds flying overhead gradually brought my consciousness back to the distant forest.

He calmly confirmed that he was not in a dangerous environment, and then checked his body again.

This time, he found two problems.

Lin's clothes were different from those before he lost consciousness. The style and color of this outfit were different from before, and his original clothes should have been burned completely.

And on his wrist was a light blue watch.

The words "Riding Fish Team" are printed in the very center of the watch.

What's this?

Lin took off the watch and examined it closely, finding that the material was very ordinary, but below the "Riding Fish Team" logo, there was a bright red button.

The entire watch only has this much material. If it were disassembled, there might be new discoveries, but given the current unclear situation, Lin did not directly damage the watch.

Instead of pressing the button, Lin got up and carefully observed the surroundings for the third time.

He was on a coastal beach, the fine sand beneath his feet was soft and delicate, the clean seawater was up to his ankles, the clouds were high and far away, and the scene before him was like a painting.

But there was nothing else besides the beach, the ocean, and the clouds.

The seawater that washed ashore was completely empty—no seashells, no conches, no small fish or shrimp, it was just pure water. Looking in any direction other than the sea, it stretched as far as the eye could see, as if the whole world had been replaced by the beach.

Is this another World Bubble?

The abnormal phenomena we are witnessing are quite common in the bizarre and wonderful World Bubble.

Okay, now Lin has a few options.

First, he randomly chose a direction to walk in, trying to encounter living people or something different.

Secondly, he plunged into the sea and swam, trying to encounter living people or something different.

Third, he stayed still in the sun, trying to wait to encounter living people or something different.

At last...

Lin's gaze returned to the red button on his wristwatch.

It was obvious that he had no other choice.

Just to be on the safe side, Lin didn't put on the watch before pressing the button. Instead, he dug a sandpit, put the watch in, and then carefully pressed the button.

"Beep—Welcome to the Great Elf Tournament!"

The female voice coming from the watch's speaker made Lin frown. Fortunately, there was no explosion; it seemed to be a recording.

"According to the records, you are a member of the 'Riding Fish Team' among the five competing teams. Since the records for 'Changkong City' show that you have not yet officially participated in the Great Elf Tournament, we will provide you with the coordinates of another team member and the coordinates of the battle stage, 'Changkong City'!"

The good news is that it seems we're about to encounter some living people.

The bad news is that he seems to have been inexplicably dragged into a bizarre competition.

After the voice message finished playing, a projection appeared on the watch, showing a simplified map. Lin took the watch out of the sandpit, dusted off the sand, and put it on his wrist, staring at the two different colored dots on it.

One of the smaller blue dots was closer, while the larger red dot was some distance away. It seemed that the former was his teammate, and the latter was the so-called "battle stage" Changkong City.

Completely confused.

This kind of development without cause and effect would seem very strange to anyone, and Lin was no exception.

But he had no other options at the moment, so he decided to find someone first and check the situation before making any further decisions.

With that thought in mind, the man started walking, leaving shallow footprints in the sand.

The sunlight overhead was direct, but not scorching; instead, it had a gentle warmth.

The beach stretches as far as the eye can see, yet it doesn't feel desolate. Is it because of the warm-colored fine sand? Or is it the psychological effect of being bathed in sunlight?

Following the coordinates of the light spot, Lin confirmed his location. He estimated the distance; he had walked about 500 meters. Based on the distance the light spot had moved on the map, they were a full 5 kilometers apart.

Changkong City is even further away.

However, this distance was nothing to Lin. On the way, he checked his consciousness again. Incredibly, his consciousness, which had been completely shattered, now seemed to have stabilized.

Something must have happened between the time he was mending the sky, his consciousness shattered, and he fell, and the time he awoke on the beach.

As Lin tried her best to recall what had happened, she unknowingly arrived at her destination.

On a distant sand dune, a petite figure seemed to be talking to himself, while the other person noticed him at the same time.

A girl with short hair.

Chapter 89: Seele

Strangeness...

"Sizzle..."

In that instant, a blurry image flashed through Lin's mind.

A torn group photo taken at sunset, with everyone's heads brutally ripped off.

Why does this scene feel like I've seen it somewhere before...?

Before he could even grab the photo, it had vanished without a trace, and the short-haired girl in the distance was also timidly walking towards him.

After getting closer, Lin finally got a clear look at the girl.

She has shoulder-length short hair with a bluish-black tinge, sea-blue highlights, ocean-like eyes, and snow-white skin. She wears a white top, a blue vest, a short skirt in dark and light blue stripes, and striped stockings.

She looked delicate and frail, and Lin felt she was out of place in this golden desert; rather, she resembled...

Ocean.

Yes, as clear as a calm, deep sea.

But halfway there, the short-haired girl stopped. Her expression changed slightly, and at that moment, Lin seemed to be in a daze for a moment. A bright red flashed by, and the girl's delicate expression turned into a completely opposite madness for a split second. A vicious wicked smile appeared on her lips.

But when Lin shook his head and looked again, he didn't see the bright red that had been emanating from something earlier, and the girl didn't smile; she still looked somewhat fearful.

Illusion?

Meanwhile, the short-haired girl looked at the approaching black-haired man with some confusion, and whispered to herself, "Lin...? What were you saying just now?"

"..."

"You don't know? But I clearly heard you say 'Lin'."

"..."

No one heard her questioning mutterings.

Under the sunlight, the two walked a short distance to meet, but at that moment, Lin felt for some reason that they had walked a very, very long way.

"Hello." The short-haired girl looked Lin up and down as soon as she got close. His appearance was easy to like, but his eyes were too scary. They were even scarier than those of monsters. He was sweating under the sun, but when he met his eyes, he felt like he had fallen into an ice cave.

Moreover, the unusual pupils, one black and one rainbow, are extremely unsettling to be seen.

"The Riding Fish Team?" Lin shook the watch on his wrist. The short-haired girl also had one. When she noticed his stern gaze scrutinizing her, she shrank back in fear.

"Hmm, hmm!" The short-haired girl nodded her head, then held up her wrist to show Lin the words on it, and asked, "Do you know... what's going on here?"

"... I don't know either. Didn't you check the information on your watch?"

"Information? Is it that button?"

"..."

It seems she chose another option: to do nothing and just wait in place. After all, her timid nature was evident from the first encounter. If she woke up to find herself in a completely unfamiliar environment with a suspicious watch on her wrist, she might indeed be completely at a loss for what to do.

Fortunately, Lin chose to take action. He gestured for the girl to press the button and listen to the message inside. During this process, he pondered the current situation.

The only clue we have right now is the "Great Elf Tournament," so we have to go check it out no matter what.

And then there's this girl...

"Um, does that mean we're going to participate in this competition called the 'Great Elf Tournament' together?" The short-haired girl asked timidly to Lin, who was pondering while rubbing his chin, after hearing the message.

"That's right." Lin stopped thinking and, considering that the girl in front of him was probably quite young, he said to her in a more gentle tone, "You also came here suddenly, right?"

"Yes... I don't know how I got here." Sensing Lin's tone softening, the girl tried to muster her courage. "Then, we'll be team members. Um... my name is Seele, what's your name?"

Hope... er.

The photo flashed through Lin's mind again, but it disappeared before he could see it clearly.

"My name is Lin."

"Forest?"

An indescribable expression appeared on the pretty face of the short-haired girl named Seele.

"What's wrong?"

"No... it's nothing." Seele shook her head, swallowed, and convinced herself that Lin might just have a fierce look in his eyes. "Then please take care of me from now on, Team Member Lin."