Chapter 61: Chapter 61 : Saving her Nation !
Jax stood up slowly, brushing dirt from his suit.
His body felt fine. No exhaustion. No soreness. The VR settings kept him at peak condition, even after everything that had just happened.
’Thank god for 0.1% pain settings. In the real world, I’d be wrecked right now.’
He checked his stats quickly.
[HP: 33%]
’Regenerating. Slowly. But I’m still vulnerable.’
The forest around him was quiet. Too quiet.
Then the ground trembled.
Not an earthquake. Something else.
A deep, resonant pulse echoed from the mountains, like a heartbeat magnified a thousand times.
The trees swayed unnaturally. The sky flickered, purple deepening to near-black for a moment before lightening again.
Jax’s chest tightened. ’That presence again. The Alpha. It’s reacting to something. To me?’
He scanned the horizon, trying to pinpoint the source.
Nothing visible. Just the echo fading slowly.
’Not ready for that fight yet. Need to avoid it until I’m at full strength.’
He turned away from the mountains, moving toward lower ground.
Then he spotted her.
Azara.
She stood in a clearing ahead, her small frame outlined against the glowing trees. Her exotic features were unmistakable, the small tufts of hair that looked almost like animal ears, her skin shimmering faintly.
And beside her stood three beasts.
Jax opened his interface immediately.
[Steel Mantis - B-Rank / Biomech-Steel]
[Ability: Reflex Counter - Parries and returns double damage.]
[Nightmoth Drake - A-Rank / Ethereal-Shadow]
[Ability: Blink Strike - Teleports mid-attack.]
[Aurora Serpent - S-Rank / Elemental-Light/Ice]
[Ability: Prism Beam - Concentrated light/ice fusion attack.]
His throat tightened. ’S-Rank. She’s got an S-Rank already. And I’m sitting at thirty-three percent HP.’
He summoned his own beasts.
The Verity Fox materialized beside him, ears flicking. The Hydroglider Bear lumbered close, water dripping from its fur.
’Beating her head-on is impossible right now. Even at full health, that S-Rank Serpent would give me trouble. At this HP? I’m dead.’
His mind raced through options. Terrain advantages. Beast matchups. Escape routes.
Azara started walking toward him.
Jax’s muscles tensed. ’Here we go.’
He raised his arm, ready to order his beasts to attack.
"Wait."
Azara’s voice cut through the air, clear and firm.
Jax paused. "Wait?"
She stopped a few meters away, her beasts flanking her but not advancing. "I’m not here to fight you."
Jax’s eyes narrowed. "Then what are you here for?"
"To talk."
"Talk." He didn’t lower his arm. "About what?"
"About my team. About what’s really happening in this game."
Jax studied her face. In the game he’d played back on Earth, Azara’s character had been portrayed as deeply racist against humans. Cold. Ruthless. She’d burn someone alive if they crossed her.
But also fiercely protective of her own people. There was a mission where she’d fought an entire academy board to defend a worker from her race.
Complex. Contradictory.
But here, in reality, she’d been nothing like that. Shy. Quiet. Avoiding his gaze constantly.
’Is it a mask? Does she hate me and just hide it well?’
But now, looking at her face, he saw something different.
Determination. Urgency. And something else.
Fear.
Jax lowered his arm slowly. "Alright. Talk."
Azara exhaled, her shoulders relaxing slightly. "My mother was manipulated into this bet."
Jax blinked. "Manipulated? By who?"
"The girl on our team. Emma."
’Emma.’ Jax’s mind flashed back to the human girl who’d been staring at him earlier. Cold eyes. Confident smile.
Azara continued, her voice steady but laced with emotion. "She appeared out of nowhere when I enrolled at the academy. She gained mother trust and slowly started manipulating her."
Jax’s eyes narrowed. "And your mother believed her?"
"She had no reason not to. Emma was brilliant. Strategic. She climbed the ladder in our kingdom faster than anyone we had ever seen. We dominated every challenge every person. Within months, she was my mother’s most trusted advisor."
Azara’s hands clenched into fists. "People started calling her the prodigy. The human who would avenge us against other humans. She gained the trust of everyone. Even my mother, the queen."
Jax processed that. "So she manipulated Queen Nyx into challenging Calista."
"Yes." Azara’s voice cracked slightly. "She promised my mother revenge. Gave her hope. Gave her dreams she’d always wanted. My mother was confident Emma would help her win because she thought Emma was an anomaly. A league of her own."
’So that’s why Nyx was so confident,’ Jax thought. ’She wasn’t relying on herself. She was relying on Emma.’
Azara’s gaze dropped. "I knew something was wrong from the start. Something felt missing. But I couldn’t figure out what."
"And now?"
"Now I know." Her voice hardened. "When I was teleported into this game, after capturing my beasts, I heard voices nearby. I followed them."
Jax leaned forward slightly. "And?"
"I saw my mother. On her knees. Defeated."
Azara’s eyes glistened, but no tears fell. VR limitations.
"The opponent she’d faced wasn’t some random player. It was Emma."
Jax’s chest tightened. "Emma eliminated her own teammate?"
"I hid and listened to their entire conversation. I heard the truth I needed to hear. The truth that was inevitable."
Azara’s voice shifted, mimicking the conversation she’d overheard.
"My mother asked, ’Why are you doing this?’"
"Emma said, ’It’s simple. I want to win the game. Winning means getting stronger. Getting stronger means fighting strong opponents and increasing these toys levels. Unfortunately, that opponent is you for now.’"
"My mother said, ’We’re on the same team.’"
"Emma laughed. ’Doesn’t matter. If I get stronger by eliminating you, isn’t that still a team win?’"
Jax’s jaw clenched. ’Cold. Ruthless. But logical.’
Azara continued. "My mother screamed at her. ’Why? After everything? I brought you from rags to riches! I gave you money, fame, helped you with everything you needed! And this is how you repay me?’"
"Emma’s response was calm. ’FYI, I never needed any of that. I just needed you. Your stupid brain to help me get into this setup. This stage. For my sole reason.’"
Jax’s eyes widened slightly. ’Her sole reason? What reason?’
"Emma said, ’You thought I cared about you and your pathetic revenge? It was you who lost miserably. And you wanted someone else to have your revenge? That’s even more pathetic. Look at me. I was just like you. But instead of running, I’m here for it.’"
Azara’s voice trembled. "My mother was confused. She asked, ’If you weren’t here for me, then why? Fame? Revenge on me? Did I do something to you or your family?’"
"Emma laughed. She said, ’None at all.’"
"My mother realized. ’Then it’s for the bet? For the wish?’"
"Emma didn’t answer at first. Then my mother cursed her. Called her a lowlife. Said she should’ve known humans would do anything for a wish. Then she asked, ’Wait. The bet condition about the last person standing getting the wish, that was introduced later by Lyra. Did you plot that too? Was Lyra with you?’"
Jax’s mind spun. ’Lyra? Was she part of this?’
Azara shook her head. "Emma closed the gap between them. She said, ’Listen well, my queen. I did plot many things. I predicted the future. The future I was sure would happen. And this future? I didn’t think of it.’"
"She admitted it. ’Yes, I manipulated you. Yes, I plotted this bet. Yes, I predicted the challenge wouldn’t just be with Calista. I was certain of that. And that was everything I plotted. Nothing more.’"
Azara’s voice dropped. "But then she said, ’The winner-takes-the-wish rule wasn’t in my plans. But you know what? It’s the sole reason you’re here now. Helpless. Defeated. Because of those terms, I’ve changed my mind. Because of those terms, I’ll have my revenge. More than I ever pictured.’"
Jax’s pulse quickened. ’Revenge? Against who?’
Azara’s voice broke. "My mother tried to ask. But Emma didn’t let her. She eliminated her. Not with her beasts. Just a single kick to the face."
Silence fell between them.
Jax exhaled slowly. "And you’re telling me this because?"
Azara looked up, meeting his eyes directly for the first time. "Because I need your help."
"My help? Why me? Morgana’s here. Beatrix is here. Even Paige. Why not ask them?"
Azara’s voice was quiet but firm. "Because my mind told me you. I don’t know why. But I trust that instinct."
Jax studied her face. Vulnerable. Desperate. But sincere.
"What do you want me to do?"
"Save my mother. Save my kingdom." Her voice cracked. "I think Emma is plotting something against us. Against my family. Maybe even the entire kingdom. I don’t know what, but I know it’s coming."
Jax sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Azara, I’m not a hero. I don’t do rescue missions."
"I know. But you’re smart. Smarter than anyone I’ve met. If anyone can figure out what she’s planning, it’s you."
Jax looked at her for a long moment.
Then he sighed again. "Alright. I’ll help. But not because I’m noble. Because Emma’s been staring at me like she’s planning something too. If she’s a threat to you, she might be a threat to me."
Azara’s face softened. "Thank you."
Jax waved it off. "Don’t thank me yet. We don’t even know what we’re up against."
A faint smile touched her lips. "Still. Thank you."
Jax felt a weight lift slightly. ’At least Emma’s target isn’t me. Probably. Maybe.’
Then something occurred to him. He tilted his head. "By the way, Azara. Why do you keep turning your face away whenever you see me?"
Her face flushed instantly. Deep red spreading across her cheeks.
Jax blinked. "What?"
She stammered. "I wasn’t—"
Then the image flashed in her mind. The hallway. Jax running. Naked. His cock swinging freely.
Her blush deepened.
She said making innocent face blushing and in a pace ’You were imagining things’.
Before either could say more, a voice cut through the clearing.
"Good. I found two of my students. This will save time."
Both Jax and Azara turned.
Morgana Vexley stepped into the clearing, her combat gear pristine, her beasts flanking her.