Chương 365: Chapter : 365

The 13th Unit ran in circles. They checked empty bushes. They looked under rocks that had already been moved. They flipped through the floral canopies. They found absolutely nothing. They were sweating. They were panting. Their legs ached. The 7th Unit patrols kept appearing and disappearing. The enemy servants moved with flawless, organized precision. They slipped through the trees. They snatched up the hidden rings before the 13th Unit could even reach the area. The 13th Unit simply could not find any more rings.

The situation was growing incredibly frustrating. The game of hide-and-seek was turning into a total disaster. The 13th Unit was losing the race, and they knew it.

Ken Eliot lay flat on his back. He rested on a patch of soft green grass near the river. His arms were spread wide. His navy blue suit was covered in dirt stains. He stared straight up at the clear blue sky. He breathed very loudly.

"I am officially deceased," Ken declared. He did not move a single muscle.

"My heart has stopped. My lungs are empty. I am a ghost. Please tell my mother I love her caramel pudding." Naomi sat on a nearby rock. She wiped a thick bead of sweat from her forehead. She drank from a plastic water bottle. She looked down at Ken and offered a tired, friendly smile.

"You are not dead, Ken," Naomi said softly. She tossed the empty water bottle onto the grass next to him.

"You are just being dramatic. We only ran for thirty minutes."

"Thirty minutes is a lifetime!" Ken complained to the sky. He did not sit up.

"I walked past the same tree four times. The tree is mocking me. The bushes are laughing at me. This garden is a terrible place." The rest of the 13th Unit gathered near the riverbank. They all looked exhausted. Laxmi dropped onto the grass. She crossed her legs. Her bright orange hair stuck to her sweaty cheeks.

"This is completely ridiculous. We have checked every single inch of this zone. There are no more rings here. We are just walking in circles." Sayma stood near the water. She pushed her glasses up. She opened her notebook. She looked incredibly stressed.

"We are lacking a proper search grid. The 7th Unit is moving with a pre-planned route. They are sweeping the arena systematically. We are just guessing." Zinia cracked her knuckles. She looked at the thick hedge maze in the distance.

"I saw two of their guys run past the fountain. I wanted to trap them with a stone wall. I wanted to fight them and take their rings. But they ran away before I could even raise my hands."

"They are avoiding direct combat," Princess Iris noted gently. Her violet eyes looked very worried.

"Julian ordered them to avoid us. He knows we have a strong vanguard. He is playing a pure game of speed." If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it. Suddenly, a loud, cheerful chime echoed across the massive stadium. The crowd in the grandstands roared. The noise bounced off the tall concrete walls. High above the artificial garden, a massive magical projection appeared in the sky. It was a giant, glowing holographic scoreboard.

The numbers flashed brightly for everyone to see. The numbers told a very grim story. On the left side of the screen, under Princess Iris's name, the number '2' glowed in blue light. On the right side of the screen, under Prince Julian's name, the number '5' glowed in bright red light.

"Look at that scoreboard, citizens!" Bob the anchor screamed through the massive stadium speakers. His voice echoed everywhere.

"We are thirty minutes into the match! The 7th Unit has taken a massive, commanding lead! Prince Julian holds five golden rings! Princess Iris only holds two!" Sarah the anchor nodded enthusiastically. Her voice chimed in.

"You are totally right, Bob! The 7th Unit is absolutely dominating the search phase! They are moving like ghosts! They are leaving the 13th Unit entirely in the dust!" Down on the grass, the 13th Unit stared at the giant glowing numbers. Naomi clenched her fists. She felt a deep wave of pure frustration. She hated losing. She hated feeling slow.

"Five to two. They are beating us badly. If they find two more rings, they secure the majority. We will lose the ten points." Ken peeked one eye open. He looked at the giant scoreboard in the sky. He let out a loud, lazy sigh.

"Math is very rude," Ken mumbled. He closed his eye again.

"Why do they have to show the score so big? It is very aggressive. They should just send us a quiet text message." Up in the broadcast booth, Bob continued his loud commentary.

"The crowd is getting restless, Sarah!" Bob yelled into his microphone.

"Listen to the fans in the stands! They are not happy!" The camera panned across the massive audience. Millions of viewers watched from their homes. Thousands of citizens sat in the stadium seats. They did not look thrilled. They looked incredibly disappointed. People started booing loudly. They gave a thumbs-down gesture. A group of aggressive fans held up large, painted signs. The signs read: WE WANT A FIGHT! and STOP HIDING IN THE BUSHES!

"The fans came here to see magical explosions!" Sarah explained clearly.

"They paid good money to see the famous 13th Unit vanguard clash with the elite 7th Unit guards! They want to see fire! They want to see flying daggers! But right now, they are just watching highly trained teenagers play a glorified game of hide-and-seek!"

"It is incredibly frustrating for the viewers!" Bob agreed loudly.

"There has been absolutely zero combat! Nobody has thrown a single punch! It is just a very fast nature walk!" People across the Empire typed furiously on their magical forums. The digital message boards lit up with complaints. User123: This is so boring. I want to see the fire girl roast someone. User456: Why are they just running? This is a war, not a scavenger hunt. User789: The 13th Unit looks totally lost. They are going to lose. The fans were completely unaware of the truth.

They did not know that the quiet, frustrating scavenger hunt was just the opening act. They did not realize that the real, explosive action was just about to begin. Down by the river, Princess Iris turned away from the scoreboard. She looked at her exhausted team.

"We need to change our strategy right now," Princess Iris commanded softly. She drew her silver rapier.

"We cannot match their search speed. We do not know the map as well as they do. If we keep looking in random bushes, we will lose." Sayma closed her notebook. She nodded in agreement.

"The Princess is correct. We are playing their game. We are playing a game of speed. We are losing. We need to find a way to locate the remaining six rings instantly. But we lack tracking magic." Elma crossed her arms. Her pristine white uniform was covered in grass stains. She looked very annoyed.

"My locator spells are not working. The ambient mana in this fake garden is scrambling my compass. I cannot find the magical signatures of the rings."