Chapter 154: Arena Proof

Chapter 154: Chapter 154: Arena Proof

Seraphina Sinclair sat down, picked up a spoon, and took a sip of the warm millet porridge.

The porridge was soft and tender, and a warm current slid down her esophagus, greatly relieving the parched discomfort she felt upon waking.

She let out a satisfied sigh and began to focus on enjoying her breakfast.

The waiter wasn’t idle either. It seemed to have come prepared today, pulling a charcoal stove from its pocket. The cutting board and kitchen knife it had yesterday were there too, looking ready to show off its skills.

Seraphina Sinclair very naturally pulled two fish from her Silver Moon Earrings and handed them to it.

Seraphina Sinclair said nothing, worried that the waiter would no longer be willing to prepare her food for free.

And the waiter remained silent, naturally afraid that the human before it would suddenly make an outrageous demand.

Wary of each other, the woman and the entity quietly went about their own business.

By the time Seraphina Sinclair finished breakfast, the waiter had already prepared the two fish.

Its knife skills were as impeccable as ever. After deboning the fish, it left only two pure fillets to grill on the charcoal stove. Once cooked, it packed them into a disposable container and even left Seraphina Sinclair a pair of disposable chopsticks.

Though they were called disposable, they could actually be washed and reused.

These were much better than the wooden chopsticks Seraphina Sinclair had whittled herself. She hadn’t been able to bring herself to throw away yesterday’s pair, either; she had washed them and placed them on the wall-mounted storage rack.

’Besides, I have the storage space, so why not keep them?’

When the waiter left, it took the used meal container with it.

Seraphina Sinclair found herself thinking that this kind of life wasn’t half bad. Tear open a meal ticket and food gets delivered to your door. It even helps with chores. You don’t even have to clean up the trash after you’re done eating.

’Thinking about it, this is way better than my previous life.’

She opened the container to look at the grilled fish the waiter had made.

The waiter might not score a single point for mimicking a human, but its culinary skills were absolutely top-tier.

The heat from the charcoal had seared the fish skin until it was slightly charred, yellow, and curled, forming a crispy outer layer with an enticing golden-brown crust at the edges. The flesh itself was snow-white and delicate, firm and plump from being cooked for the perfect amount of time, with faint, distinct flakes visible within.

If she hadn’t just finished a meal, Seraphina Sinclair would have been drooling.

’And I still haven’t finished yesterday’s sashimi...’

Seraphina Sinclair sighed with emotion once again. ’Thank goodness for the Silver Moon Earrings. I can store all this indefinitely. Otherwise, I can’t imagine how much food would go to waste.’

At eight o’clock sharp, a translucent text panel appeared silently before every survivor.

[Dear survivors, after two weeks of acclimation, you should all be used to the harsh living conditions here by now!]

’Used to it?’

The cold words seemed to carry a hint of mockery.

The corner of Seraphina Sinclair’s mouth twitched into a cold smirk.

’You can never get "used to" this hellhole. You can only be forced to "endure" it.’

Almost simultaneously, the Zone channel exploded like a pot of boiling water, with countless messages scrolling by frantically.

Curses, taunts, anxious questions... but without exception, everyone read an ominous premonition in the system’s message.

The system ignored all the commotion. On the panel, new words continued to appear at an unhurried pace, even carrying a strange sort of "enthusiasm."

[Today is Monday, the start of a new week, and it also heralds a brand new stage!]

[Since you have all overcome the initial environmental challenges and successfully passed the early survival test of The Black Mist World, it is time to prepare for the even more thrilling challenges ahead!]

’How much more thrilling can it get?’

’Are they going to drop an S-Class monster directly into our mobile cabins for a "close encounter"?’

Seraphina Sinclair silently stared at the lines of text. The system wouldn’t use such a simple and crude method, of course, but whatever "surprise" it had prepared would definitely not be a good thing.

As if to confirm her suspicions, the following text slowly appeared:

[Effective immediately, a brand new item will randomly appear in Supply Boxes—the Arena Proof! After use, enter a designated player’s ID (limited to the same Zone) to generate a completely sealed arena space. Note: Once an Arena Proof is used, the battle is to the death!]

[At the same time! To show our condolences to all you survivors, we have thoughtfully prepared a gift for each and every one of you. That’s right, you guessed it—it’s an Arena Proof! We hope you will all settle your scores! Finally, after successfully killing an opponent using an Arena Proof, the victor will receive all of the loser’s supplies!]

Seraphina Sinclair’s gaze lingered for a moment on the words "Arena Proof" and "settle your scores." Her expression shifted several times before finally settling on a relieved smile.

’The system truly never disappoints. It always finds new ways to push people into a deeper abyss.’

The malice in this "gift of condolence" was practically spilling out of the screen.

"Heh."

A very soft, cold laugh escaped her lips.

’This isn’t a gift. It’s a death sentence, the spark that lights the powder keg!’

’It’s been placed precisely in everyone’s hands, forcing and luring people to kill each other.’

In The Black Mist World, where survival resources were already extremely scarce, the reward of "all supplies" was enough to make anyone snap and shatter any fragile alliance in an instant.

Thinking of alliances, Seraphina Sinclair used Insight on the Arena Proof she had just received.

A moment later, she closed the interface, her expression turning even uglier.

’This thing’s power even overrides a Team Proof!’

’In other words, even if people have used a Team Proof to form a group, they can still use Arena Proofs on each other!’

Seraphina Sinclair could immediately imagine the bloody waves this proof would stir up among the already turbulent survivors.

Personal grudges, resource disputes, or even just not liking someone’s face...

Any tiny excuse could become a reason to initiate a battle to the death.

Seraphina Sinclair closed the panel with a blank expression, her fingertips not even trembling in the slightest.

She glanced down at the still-tempting grilled fish in the container, and her eyes regained their previous calm.

’Fear? Panic?’

’No, those emotions are too distant for me now.’

’If some blind fool comes knocking on my door, then sorry, but I’ll thank you in advance for the supplies you’re delivering.’

This was the confidence of the number one player!

Meanwhile, the Zone channel was in complete chaos.

"An Arena Proof?! To the death?! Are you kidding me! System, you piece of *****!"

"We haven’t even figured out the monster-fighting PVE, and now they’re starting player-versus-player PVP? Great. Now, if anyone talks big in the Zone channel, they can get challenged to a duel the next second."

"It’s over, it’s over, it’s over! How are we supposed to survive this? The monsters were scary enough, and now we have to watch out for people dragging us into duels? I’ve never even killed a chicken!"

"Wake up. You’ve already killed monsters. Aren’t monsters scarier than chickens?"

"Waaaah... nooo, I’m so scared. Can’t we all just get along peacefully? Shouldn’t we be uniting to fight the monsters?"