Chương 191: Chapter : 191

The 15th Unit did not rush forward to break the rest of the towers. Having successfully shattered three targets in the opening two minutes, Adrian raised his hand. The nine servants of Prince Hades seamlessly stopped their assault. They took several steps backward, falling into a flawless, perfectly spaced defensive line right in the middle of the field to regroup and catch their breath. The stadium crowd buzzed with shocked whispers.

The 13th Unit was completely on the ropes, and the five-minute timer was still ticking down.

Adrian stood in the center of the battlefield, lowering his glowing magical staff. He looked at the frustrated, exhausted faces of Princess Iris's vanguard. He did not look angry, and he did not look excited. He just offered a cold, arrogant smirk that perfectly mirrored the personality of his master, Prince Hades.

"You look confused," Adrian called out, his voice carrying easily across the grassy field.

"Did you honestly think you could walk into this arena and win with raw, unorganized emotion?" Sayma stepped forward, pushing her glasses up. She was trying desperately to calculate a new strategy.

"How did you know the exact shatter point of my Absolute Hexagon? That barrier design is unique to my family lineage." Alexander, another servant from the 15th Unit, chuckled dryly. He tapped the side of his own head.

"We didn't just practice swinging swords for the last two days, little girl. Prince Hades demands absolute perfection. We spent the last forty-eight hours analyzing every single piece of combat data available on the 13th Unit." Adrian nodded proudly.

"We watched the security footage of your fight in the slum dungeon. We analyzed your skirmishes in the underground laboratory. We know that the fire user always leads with her right hand. We know the earth user favors a defensive stance on her left foot. We have completely, perfectly memorized your elemental weaknesses, your reaction times, and your attack patterns. You are completely transparent to us." Laxmi gritted her teeth, tiny sparks of fire popping in anger.

"You spent two days watching videos of us? That is incredibly creepy. Do you guys not have any hobbies?"

"It is called preparation," Claire shot back, her voice dripping with condescension.

"And it is exactly why we just shattered three of your towers without taking a single scratch. You cannot win this match. We have mapped out your entire existence." Princess Iris, standing near the back of the formation, narrowed her violet eyes. She refused to let her team lose their confidence.

"They only know our past patterns!" Princess Iris shouted clearly, her voice cutting through the tension.

"They expect us to do the exact same things we always do! So we stop being predictable! Break your normal formations! Do not use your standard attacks!" Sayma's eyes lit up with sudden realization.

"The Princess is absolutely right! If they memorized our habits, we have to change the data! Naomi, switch flanks with Elma! Laxmi, do not throw your fire directly; use it to blind them!" Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. Naomi offered a fierce, highly competitive grin. She looked over at Elma.

"You heard the Vice-Captain! Let's show these nerds what happens when we mix things up!" Elma's cheeks flushed slightly, but she nodded firmly, gripping her twin silver swords.

"I will follow your lead. Let us ruin their calculations."

"Only two minutes left in the round!" the sports anchor, Bob, yelled enthusiastically.

"The 13th Unit is scrambling to adjust their defense! Can they hold off another surgical strike?!" Adrian scoffed, raising his staff again.

"It doesn't matter if you switch places. The math always wins. Vanguard, push forward! Shatter the remaining towers!" The 15th Unit surged forward again, fully expecting to easily dismantle the girls just like they did in the first two minutes. But this time, the 13th Unit was ready to throw the rulebook entirely out the window. Carlos and George sprinted toward the left side of the field, preparing to dodge Naomi's usual high-speed dagger strikes. But Naomi wasn't there. Instead, Elma stepped into their path.

Because Elma usually fought with Princess Hestia's team, Hades's servants had absolutely zero data on how she fought alongside Iris's team. Elma didn't swing her swords. She purposely threw one of her blades straight into the air. Carlos and George paused for a fraction of a second, totally confused by the strange tactic. That tiny hesitation was all Laxmi needed.

"Eat this!" Laxmi roared, but she didn't throw a fireball at them. She threw a massive blast of fire directly at the grass in front of them, kicking up a huge, blinding cloud of thick gray smoke.

"I can't see!" Carlos yelled, waving his hands. From the middle of the smoke, Luna actually woke up completely. The sleepy lightning user didn't shoot a targeted bolt; she simply released a wild, chaotic burst of bright yellow electricity into the air, creating a massive, unpredictable flashbang effect that totally blinded the advancing enemies.

"Their data is useless if they can't see us!" Zinia cheered, using her earth magic to slide the stone towers backward, constantly shifting the targets so Adrian's team couldn't lock onto them. Ira used her water whips not to attack, but to completely soak the grass, turning the battlefield into a slippery, muddy disaster. Philip and Joshua tried to sprint forward, but their boots lost traction. They slipped and crashed hilariously into each other, completely ruining their perfectly timed formation.

Adrian gritted his teeth, looking around at the totally chaotic, messy battlefield. His surgical, flawless plan was falling apart. The 13th Unit wasn't fighting like an elite military squad anymore; they were fighting like a wild, unpredictable street gang. BZZZZZT! The loud, blaring buzzer echoed through the stadium. The giant digital clock hit 0: 00.

"And that is the end of Round One!" Sarah the anchor announced, her voice filled with pure excitement.

"What an incredible recovery by the 13th Unit! After losing three towers in the blink of an eye, they completely adapted their defense! The 15th Unit fails to destroy a single additional tower in the second half of the round! The score is three to zero!" The crowd roared with applause. The 13th Unit let out a massive, collective breath of relief. They had survived the opening onslaught.

The two teams backed away from the center line, taking a quick, mandatory thirty-second break before the roles reversed for Round Two. Adrian stood with his team, panting slightly. He was incredibly annoyed that his flawless data analysis had failed in the last three minutes, but he quickly forced a confident, arrogant smirk back onto his face. He looked across the field at Naomi, Sayma, and the rest of the girls.

"Do not celebrate just yet," Adrian laughed confidently, leaning his staff against his shoulder.

"You got lucky because you panicked. But your luck will run out. We still have all the data we need to crush you during our defensive phase." Adrian raised his hand and pointed a finger directly at the back corner of the field. He pointed straight at Ken Eliot.