Lord of the Sky City

"Rookie Killer" for Ober was no mere nickname; it was more like his personal creed.

He wasn't just called a Rookie Killer, he acted like one too!

Before becoming a ranked player in the Arena, Ober was once a mercenary who had spent a considerable amount of time with a Mercenary Group. Years of mercenary contracts not only gave him strength far beyond the ordinary but also taught him how to survive.

So when he saved enough money and bought a set of Void Magic Armor for himself, he left the Mercenary Group and started participating in the Arena competitions.

In theory, given Ober's strength and experience, plus a fourth-generation Special Armor, he could have easily advanced in the Arena. While reaching the very top might be unattainable, getting to around Ten-rank was definitely within his reach.

But Ober didn't do that. No, it would be more accurate to say that he had tried. Everyone starts with a goal, and Ober was no exception. He had managed to reach Ninth Rank on his own strength, a considerable achievement.

However, after that, everything changed.

In the Arena, Ten-rank is a watershed; matches below this level are all considered low-end, only those above are deemed high-end competitions. When Ober pushed his rank to Ninth, he moved into the high-end matches, but that's when things started to shift.

Failure.

Defeat after defeat.

An unending string of failures.

Upon starting the high-end matches, Ober experienced a series of losses. One match almost cost him his life. These defeats battered his body and demolished his spirit to the point that, after suffering a particularly devastating loss… Ober changed.

That painful defeat had left Ober in a sickbed for two months. By the time he recovered, a different Ober was born, one who would stop at nothing to win, to survive. Explore more adventures at empire

The transformed Ober quickly found a loophole in the Arena rules and made exploiting this loophole his means of livelihood, becoming the feared Rookie Killer, a name that struck terror in many first-time contestants.

In the process, naturally, he had to kill and did so after his opponents surrendered because only then could he utilize the rules' loophole to claim his reward without accruing any points.

Agatha, a young man, was just one of the many rookies he had killed.

Agatha grew up orphaned and was raised by his sister and brother-in-law. As an adult, he became a guard for a noble within Eternal City. Given that nobles in Eternal City were either rich or influential, Agatha soon acquired his own Void Magic Armor and displayed considerable talent as a Void Magic Warrior. To hone his skills and win some prize money for his family, he decided to join the Arena.

Everything went smoothly at first. He won the preliminary round, and his first Rank match opponent wasn't very strong, but during his second registration for a match, he encountered Ober.

The outcome of their match goes without saying. Even with his significant potential, Agatha was still a rookie and stood no chance against Ober; he quickly chose to surrender, and then… he was killed.

Upon learning of her brother's death, Agatha's sister and brother-in-law obviously couldn't let it go, especially since Agatha had already surrendered before he was killed—Ober's actions were clearly against the rules.

But what could a couple from an ordinary family do?

They approached the Arena, and the Arena's response was simple: they had already punished Ober according to the rules.

They then sought out the noble for whom Agatha had worked, hoping he would stand up for them. But even the noble didn't want to provoke someone like Ober, who could fight in high-end Arena matches. To start a conflict with such a ruthless character over a mere guard? No noble would make such a foolish move.

With no other options, Agatha's sister even sought out Ober directly behind her husband's back, and now she's ended up like this, barely able to walk, supported only by her husband.

But to avenge her brother and seek justice for him, his sister never gave up. Thus, whenever Ober had a match, she would have her husband support her as she waited outside the changing room of Ober's opponent. Even the guards assigned to watch over the place had come to recognize them.

However, Ober was once a competitor who had reached high-level matches. Perhaps he had suffered a crushing defeat in a high-level match, but who could rival him in a low-level match? There might be some, but the chance of encountering them was slim. After all, the Arena needed a figure like Ober to enhance the excitement of the matches.

So, although Agatha's sister appeared time after time at the changing room door, pleading with each of Ober's opponents in hopes that one day someone would avenge her brother, Ober continued to live well.

Until Rocky appeared.

As usual, upon learning that Ober was going to compete again, Agatha's sister and brother-in-law arrived at the Arena before dawn, even earlier than the guards, just to see Rocky.

And indeed, they did meet Rocky, but unfortunately, just after they saw him, and before they could even speak a second sentence, Howard, the Arena official who arranged the matches for Rocky, appeared.

As soon as Howard arrived, he unceremoniously ordered the guards to drive the couple away, not giving them a chance to speak with Rocky.

However, some coincidences are just too perfect; though Agatha's sister and brother-in-law were chased away, Rocky, out of curiosity, learned about their family's ordeal from the guard.

As mentioned before, to seek justice for her brother, the sister and brother-in-law had shown up countless times in front of Ober's opponents' doors, hoping someone would help them, and their story was so well-known that even the guards were aware of it. Perhaps out of pity, or simply because they were talkative, the guard told Rocky everything they knew in great detail when he inquired about it.

This might have been a mere coincidence, but perhaps it was fate's design, for even Agatha's sister and brother-in-law didn't know that, after they were driven away, Rocky heard about their plight in even more detail.

"You may leave."

After hearing everything from the guard, Rocky nodded and gestured for the guard to go.

"Rocky, it's time,"

Just as the guard left, Liliya made a reminder from the side that it was time for the match.

Upon hearing this, Rocky nodded, then began to change into his Armor. Once he had donned the Armor, he left the changing room alone, ready to make his appearance.

But as he left the changing room, Lin Feng also left. He quickly made his way outside of the Arena and, without much effort, found the couple who had been driven away.

When Lin Feng found the couple, they were standing in a corner, seemingly in prayer.

"You... you are... "

Seeing Lin Feng walking over, Agatha's sister was taken aback. She certainly remembered Lin Feng, for she had just seen him, but for that very reason, she was also somewhat at a loss when she saw him again.

But at that moment, Lin Feng handed two Arena tickets to the couple.

"These are for you, from the master. Go watch the match."

Having said this, Lin Feng turned and left; he had completed the task Rocky had given him.

Upon receiving the tickets, the couple stood there, stunned for a moment, then supported each other as they hurried toward the Arena...

PS: Taking a short break today, only one release.