Chapter 416 - 415: Some

Chapter 416: Chapter 415: Some

Artemis’s plan should have been absolutely flawless.

If the bulletin board had displayed an announcement when Blacktiger Ford used the arena challenge on Cloudmute, Artemis wouldn’t be in such a passive position right now.

She could have easily transferred the Expansion Crystals in her possession to someone else while the duel was underway.

As for who...

If Blacktiger Ford had dared to make a move on her, she’d have made sure those crystals were lost forever.

Artemis had planned everything so meticulously, even guessing that Blacktiger Ford would target Cloudmute. But the one thing she never expected was for someone to use an arena challenge without an alert appearing on the bulletin board.

’Why?’

’Just why?’

Artemis really couldn’t figure it out, and the look she gave Seraphina Sinclair turned strange.

Seeing the mix of confusion and resentment on Artemis’s face, Seraphina Sinclair suddenly found it a little amusing.

"Want to know?" she asked.

Artemis didn’t speak, but her eyes gave the answer.

Seraphina Sinclair chuckled. Her voice was incredibly gentle, but her words were utterly infuriating. "Just because you want to know, I have to tell you?"

Artemis’s expression changed.

She took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down.

She was now at an absolute disadvantage.

The Expansion Crystals were all in her mobile cabin. If she died, they would belong to Blacktiger Ford.

What was even more fatal was that Serafelle Sinclair had seen all her attack methods.

An assassin’s greatest advantage is the element of surprise. Artemis had already tried once, and the result was an obvious failure.

"Fine," Artemis squeezed out the word through gritted teeth. "You’re good."

She leaned against the invisible barrier at the edge of the arena, her mind racing.

’Can’t win in a direct fight, and a sneak attack had no effect. The Expansion Crystals, which should have been my leverage, have instead become my death warrant.’

Artemis’s expression grew increasingly grim. She looked up and saw Serafelle Sinclair standing opposite her.

She didn’t seem to be in any hurry to attack, simply standing there with her long blade hanging casually at her side.

This posture was more unsettling to Artemis than if she had been holding the blade at the ready.

’Only someone who believes victory is already theirs could adopt such a casual stance.’

Though they hadn’t seen each other for a week, Artemis knew she hadn’t changed much. But what about this Blacktiger Ford standing before her?

Just last night, Artemis had heard the announcement. This woman had killed an S-Class dragon!

’And...’

Artemis’s brow furrowed even deeper.

That azure weapon she’d found strange just a moment ago... it was actually B-level!

She had always thought her C-level weapon was powerful enough for the current stage. But Serafelle Sinclair? Not only did she manage to get a B-level weapon, but she had also killed an S-Class dragon.

Looking at it this way, Artemis didn’t just have no chance of winning; if she could survive two moves against her opponent, she’d be considered a legend in her own right.

Artemis lowered her head in thought for a moment, then suddenly looked up at Seraphina Sinclair with an exceptionally brilliant smile. "Boss Blacktiger, you know, there’s no enmity between us, and we have the camaraderie of being former teammates. Why must we fight to the death?"

Seraphina Sinclair looked at Artemis’s beaming face and suddenly fell silent.

’The "Master Artemis" of the regional channel was her, and yet not her. Fayestar from that dungeon was her, and yet not her. The person standing here at this very moment is her, yet she is absolutely not the real her.’

"’No enmity between us?’" Seraphina Sinclair repeated the four words, her tone laced with amusement.

Artemis immediately jumped in. "Exactly! Think about it, I was just hoarding to make some money, but I never caused you any trouble, right? Who doesn’t love Black Fog Coins? Isn’t that right, Master Blacktiger? If you wanted Expansion Crystals, you could have just told me! With our relationship, of course I’d be willing to hand them over with both hands!"

"Is there any point in saying all this?" Seraphina Sinclair’s tone was utterly sincere. "Once the arena is activated, it’s a fight to the death. Letting you go—"

Seraphina Sinclair paused. She suddenly remembered the Puppet Paperman she had gotten from Rex Shaw.

Artemis noticed her hesitation, and her eyes instantly lit up.

As an assassin, Artemis’s greatest strength was exploiting an opponent’s opening. And just now, Seraphina Sinclair’s pause was exactly that—an opening.

Not an opening in combat, but rather—’Does she have a way to avoid the ’fight to the death’ rule?’

Artemis’s mind raced.

The rules of the arena were absolute; everyone knew that.

But in Artemis’s view, the arena’s public announcement was also supposed to be absolute. Since Blacktiger Ford had found a way to stop the bulletin board from making an announcement, could she also have a way to avoid their fight to the death?

"You have a way?!"

Artemis’s words were filled with genuine surprise.

After all, if she fought Serafelle Sinclair to the death, the probability of her losing was quite high.

And losing meant death!

Now, with this sudden turn of events, it was like someone on death row being told they didn’t have to die. Of course Artemis was happy.

She said with utmost sincerity, "I’m willing to give you all my supplies if you’ll spare my life! Boss Blacktiger, if I can survive this, I will follow your lead from now on!"

Seraphina Sinclair had met many people—good and bad, kind and evil, sincere and hypocritical.

But it was rare to see someone like Artemis who could change faces so seamlessly.

"You’re certainly flexible," Seraphina Sinclair said.

Artemis caught the sarcasm in her words but didn’t care at all. Instead, her smile grew even more sincere. "Staying alive is what’s most important. Don’t you agree?"

As she spoke, she secretly observed Seraphina Sinclair’s expression.

’Blacktiger Ford must have something that can bypass the arena’s ’must-die’ rule.’

Artemis had made it this far by relying on this kind of sharp perception.

"Boss Blacktiger, how about this?" Artemis took half a step forward, adopting a very humble posture. "I’ll give you the door card to my mobile cabin right now. With this in your hands, even if I wanted to go back on our deal, I couldn’t, right?"

As she spoke, she really did pull a key card from her pocket, holding it with both hands and presenting it to Seraphina Sinclair.

Seraphina Sinclair glanced at the card from a distance, then the corners of her mouth lifted slightly. She asked, "How many Expansion Crystals do you have in total?"

Artemis froze for a second, then blinked and replied with impeccable smoothness, "A total of 475. Boss Blacktiger, I’m sincerely inviting you to cooperate, so of course I’m telling the truth."

"The truth."

Seraphina Sinclair’s words were unhesitating, as if she had seen through everything.

Artemis stared into her eyes for a while before finally showing an expression of defeat.

"Boss, I really want to live, so I’ll tell you the truth. I have 736 in total. The 475 was just the on-the-books number to fool those other people. When I’m talking to you, of course I have to be honest."

crystals.

crystals.

She had hidden a full 261 of them.

Seraphina Sinclair had guessed she’d hidden some, but she never expected that "some" would be so many!