"From now on, I'm your stopwatch. 1... 1.5... 2... 2.5..."
Rita's voice was flat, emotionless, almost mechanical. Her pace was so fast it seemed like she wasn't even breathing.
It should have been nerve-wracking, stressful beyond belief — but instead, Nivalis felt an unexpected calm wash over her.
Because within Rita's voice, she could sense something unmistakable — expectation.
And with that simple phrase, "I'm your stopwatch," Nivalis dove into battle.
The treasure chest player was laser-focused on attacking the frozen crewmates clustered between the two ships. To make Block collection easier, she stood right in the middle of a group of immobilized players. From there, she cast push-type AoE skills centered on herself and launched long-range attacks at players on the other ship.
Nivalis flew to the stern, dipped her tail into the ice layer, and perched atop the ship to snipe from above.
She really wanted to go after the one who'd frozen the ship and recover her lost Block. But Rita had told her to lock onto the immobilized chest — so she let the grudge go for now.
Her fastest casting ability took only 0.3 seconds — barely a "skill," just a flicker of mana control, no Arcane cost required.
By the time she landed her eleventh hit, Rita's count had reached the 4-second mark — the sixth second of the ice sealing the ship.
Three Blocks were floating mid-air near the center of the ship. If she didn't grab them now, they'd vanish. Players were beginning to thaw out, one after another, breaking free of the stun and leaping from their freeze positions.
The crewmates began working together to shatter the ice. Revenge could wait — avoiding a second violation was more urgent. Meanwhile, the chest player kept raining attacks on the still-frozen stragglers.
Nivalis leapt into the sky and, mid-air, transformed — growing massive as she slammed down on the treasure chest, converting the three floating Blocks into physical items and completing her twelfth strike.
She let the treasure chest's attacks hit her. With a roll, she swept up all four Blocks and retreated, flying beneath the ship with her tail re-entering the ice. There, she began fusing the newly collected Blocks to her body.
Her voice trembled with excitement:
"Four Blocks! I got four Blocks! I got hit while picking them up, but I didn't lose any! I didn't let you down!"
Rita's once-cold stopwatch count stopped — replaced by a warm, smiling tone:
"Nivalis, you're amazing."
Maybe all living creatures were the same — overwhelmed with joy, they'd start picking on themselves just to balance it out.
Nivalis was still buzzing, but she started second-guessing herself:
"I... I dropped a Block earlier… I should've just gone straight to the stern and made sure my tail touched the ship..."
"It's fine. I mess up too. Just remember what you chose this time. We'll go over it together after the game."
A long pause, then a soft "Mm."
Rita thought, This kid's probably tearing up right now... really, I ought to tell her not to get so attached… sigh.
But what she didn't know was that during Nivalis's long silence… she was furiously DM'ing B8017913.
Nivalis: "She's so in love!!"
Frozen among the crowd, B8017913: "......" (deep emotional damage)
Nivalis: "Remember Rabbit 3 from last game?"
B8017913 stared at six new pop-ups reading: You Are Being Watched.
Nivalis: "Rabbit 3 had a whole army of rabbits attacking her, and she was still acting tough — even unlocked a new skill. But me! I make one tiny mistake, and BS-Rita actually says 'I mess up too'! You hear me?!"
What was B8017913 supposed to say?
It deployed the universal emergency reply it had once seen used in BS culture:
Nivalis: "You think Rabbit 3 was funny too, huh?"
For the first time since it had been created, B8017913 screamed in all caps:
"I DIDN'T! I DIDN'T!! I SWEAR I DIDN'T!!! STOP LYING!"
Nivalis: "?? Alright, alright. You didn't."
Staring at its emotional meter, B8017913 felt like its core soul-flame had nearly ignited on the spot.
Nivalis: "Lidian can't compare to me. Pick the right partner, and life's good every day. Lidian? Pine Bloom? Hmph, please."
'You think Rabbit 3 was funny too, huh?'
'You think Rabbit 3 was funny too, huh?'
'You think Rabbit 3 was funny too, huh?'
He'd heard from the captain that the gods were talking too now…
If even the opposition was just as dumb as their own side, well — it was weirdly comforting.
"Wait, who's Rabbit 3?"
"Whoever doesn't laugh — that's who it is."
Deceitful Bloom accidentally smiled.
For once, Deceitful Bloom had no words.
Rita didn't release [Mist Arrival] until the ice layer completely vanished.
By her calculations, only 3 seconds remained before the final round.
Her Fiery Wings of Flow stirred gently as she stood upside-down beneath the ship, moving with the rocking motion of the pirate vessel.
She retrieved B8017913, reattaching it near her feet. In her mind, she thought: If only the treasure chest in Round 20 could be B8017913…
It was small and perfect for concealment — she could use herself as bait, lure others, and then strike while they focused on her.
Just partially reveal B8017913 and go hunting.
No glow from her ring. Someone else was the treasure chest this time.
Rita immediately flipped and shot into the air, drawing her bow and locking onto the chest.
At the same time, she messaged Nivalis:
"Sit this round out. Come to me and hand over all the Blocks I gave you earlier, and the ones you just earned."
Even though she didn't object, Rita still explained:
"Not sure if this game has a leaderboard like other BS games — just in case, I want to centralize them first. I'll divide them up again after we exit."
Nivalis didn't care how Rita planned things. But having the reasoning explained still made her happy:
"I'll do whatever you say."
She walked up behind Rita to prevent any snatching. Each time, she only transferred a few Blocks, helping Rita assemble them freely onto her back. As Rita's pet, her contribution was valid.
Thirty seconds later, the pirate ship came to a stop. All the Blocks Nivalis earned in that round were now in Rita's hands.
A small window popped up in front of every player.
[Star Pirate Ship Game – Block Leaderboard]
1. BS-Rita – Blocks Collected: 92
2. Emerald Crane (Burning Seas) – Blocks Collected: 67
3. Ghost Dot Spark – Blocks Collected: 55
[Leaderboard Rewards]
1st Place: Free Game Voucher (1/1)