I excitedly rub my hands together, waiting for the clock to tickle. It will start anytime now: the first DMA tournament match, the one that will decide what the spectators think of us. First impressions matter, and this is why they're important. After this match, the spectators will determine if we're good or bad, interesting or boring, a classic team or something completely unexpected.

And, as it couldn't be in any other way, it's up to me to set up their initial impression of our dungeon.

"I'll make sure they never forget what they're going to see today…! Hahaha!"

My eyes wander around the empty halls of the dungeon for the umpteenth time. When I say 'empty', I don't mean it literally. It's just… It's just that I'm the single intelligent being in this dungeon, as Ricard, Laura, and Clara are all going on the offensive today.

…No, the AI doesn't count as 'intelligent', even if the word 'intelligence' is a part of its own name.

There's a reason why we're splitting three and one, and I'm sure most, if not all, of the teams participating in the tournament will do the same.

It's because we have no information about our opponents' dungeons yet.

Since we don't know anything, it's a good idea to focus all our efforts on the offense, the part we don't know. More players mean more brains, as well as more power, to compensate for the lack of knowledge. At the same time, as long as at least one member stays to protect the dungeon, coordinating the monsters and traps, it should be enough, because the opponents know nothing about our dungeon yet.

So yeah, the classic three-to-one split of the DMA tournament's first match.

Oh, right. In case you forgot, I'll repeat it once more. This tournament, called simply the 'DMA Tournament', because it's the one that represents the game, follows special PvP rules.

Instead of everyone invading the opponent's dungeon, we can choose to attack or defend. Also, we must keep the same monsters, traps, etc. between matches, but we can move them and assign them to attack and defense every match. But unlike in the other tournament, there's no connection between dungeons. After the match starts, the sides attacking and defending are set and can't be changed.

As for win conditions, it's the same as usual: the first to destroy the enemy's dungeon core wins the match. Also, if every single one of a team's attacking units dies, they lose too. That's to avoid wasting the audience's time.

Teams get 2 points for a victory. Every team also receives an extra 1 if none of their players died during the match.

There's no need to rush, as time means nothing, unlike in the preliminary matches. However, if you do nothing, aiming for the 1 point for surviving, you're guaranteed to lose the match… so it isn't a great idea.

Also, focusing exclusively on defense isn't a good idea. As soon as the game decides there are no units that can fight inside the opponent's dungeon, you'll lose the match. This is one of the trickiest parts of this tournament: how to balance offense and defense.

The sudden warning of the match starting snaps me out of my thoughts. Immediately after, bright white light floods the dungeon portal's surroundings, and several humanoid and non-humanoid shapes appear inside the light.

"It's starting! Finally!"

I put on my best pose, making sure to look good on camera, and wait for the light to disperse.

My image appears on a large screen, placed right in front of the dungeon portal. Making sure to look and sound as crazy as possible, I start my rehearsed monologue.

"Fufufu! Hahaha! Welcome, dear invaders! Welcome to… Welcome to definitely not The Mad Rat's Lab! Hahaha!"

For a moment, the invaders freeze. They look around for traps or an ambush, but seeing none, they ignore me and proceed with their plans.

Hey, how rude. Don't ignore me, you bastards! I internally fume.

I approach the camera, placing my eye right in front, as if peering at them through the screen. Of course, this is just a fake action. I can see them thanks to a cleverly hidden camera near the dungeon portal, and a screen right next to the camera filming me.

That's right. We're watching each other in real time.

I inspect the rude invaders as they start talking among themselves. They all look like normal humans and wear fancy knight armor, one of them even wearing a crown on top of his head.

Who do they think they are? Arthur and his round table knights…? Regardless, I'm sure Ricard will enjoy fighting humans in the first match.

Upon one of the player's orders, something that looked like a ball of fur splits up, scattering in all directions. They're using the tactic of using expendable, cheap critter units to explore the dungeon ahead of them. A proven tactic in DMA's PvP matches.

I squint my eyes, trying to identify the small creatures. Are they rats…? No, they aren't rats, they're squirrels!

To explore dungeons, squirrels are even better than rats, because of their climbing abilities, allowing them to reach high places with ease. Of course, they are worse than rats inside dark places, due to their limited sight… but in general, squirrels are better. Less disgusting, if nothing else. It's no wonder they're one of the preferred critters for this tactic.

Ricard repeatedly asked for our own 'exploring critter' squad, but I was completely against it. We needed all available cp for 'our own' critters. Critters you'll soon see in action… Hahaha!

Soon, all the squirrels start dying everywhere, for 'unknown' reasons.

The dungeon map is revealed in real-time for all invaders, shared by the same team. Sending critters to explore is an easy way to fill the map, but since players can only see the position and state of allied units within sight, they'll have no idea where, or how, their squirrels died.

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

And so, this marks the start of our battle: with the opponent's first strategy completely thwarted by our dungeon design, without me having to lift a finger.

This is what happens when you use critters for the job... They're sooooooo weak! Waaaaay too weak! They die to the slightest damage they take. Furthermore, our own critters absolutely counter them…

It's all thanks to The Black Horde.

"Did you really expect that shabby tactic to work?" I mock them, wearing a nasty grin. "Better luck next time! Fufufu! Hahaha!"

"Fufufu! Hahaha! Welcome, dear invaders! Welcome…"

The first thing we see after the teleport is an obnoxious rat-headed humanoid appearing on the large screen in front of us.

"They must be playing mental tricks on us. Ignore everything he says," I warn my teammates.

"Sure thing, Sir Arthur," Lancelot nods. "Should we release the squirrels now?"

"Yes. Do it."

Under his orders, the squirrels we brought with us, initially cuddled into a ball, split up in every direction. Following their AI, they move as a group, separating into two groups every time the path splits to cover as much ground as possible in the shortest time. As they move, the dungeon map is filled, but soon, all progress halts.

"Hmmm…" I muster my thoughts, "...did they die to traps?"

"We won't know until we find their corpses, Sir," says Percival.

"I see…"

The squirrels were just a hit-or-miss expendable unit. Cheap and numerous, they're useful even when they die, spotting traps and dangerous zones. They're a small sacrifice in our crusade. They're useful when we know nothing about the opponent's dungeon, but are also useful to locate dangers when we do.

"Did you really expect that shabby tactic to work? Better luck next time! Fufufu! Hahaha!"

"March on," I order. "We can't waste time with the clown on the screen."

We leave the laughing rat-humanoid behind and go inside the nearest passage in our usual tight formation. Percival, Lancelot, and I work as the cornerstones, while the rest of the knights and archers support us.

Percival, the most knowledgeable about the other participating teams, except for Merlin, who's defending our dungeon, starts talking.

"I believe that guy on the screen is the brother of that girl who crushed us in our previous tournament…"

"Is he as good as her?" I ask.

That woman was a true menace. The way she wielded the sword was the most beautiful sword art I've ever seen. As a true knight at heart, I'll always strive to get as proficient as her, even if it takes my whole life to achieve it.

But this poses a question. What if that crazy-looking man is as skilled as her…?

Percival shakes his head, "That shouldn't be. From the rumors on the forums, he… he has a unique personality and style, unlike anyone before him."

"Unique how?"

"Unpredictable. He can make the most absurd combos work, crushing all hopes of victory."

"A tricky opponent indeed…" I nod. "But aren't we the Knights of the Round Table? Lies and trickery won't ever beat us! Am I right?"

""Yes, Sir!""

From the cluttered laboratory, the surroundings quickly change into something dark and ominous. The wall fades away like an illusion, leaving an empty black space. There are skulls and other bones scattered around, as well as dried bloodstains.

From the empty hole, a dark smoke flows, waving at us as if trying to seduce us into madness.

"The Abyss…" Percival takes in air. "...where the foulest of creatures live…"

"Don't approach that spot," I warn him. "It could be an empty abyss or a place where monsters come from."

"Sure thing, Sir. Never intended to approach it."

We don't find any monsters or other dangers until we find the first squirrel corpse. When we search, we find no traps nearby.

"Sir Arthur, look there."

I turn my head towards the direction Lancelot is pointing, and find a large bug swarm coming our way.

"Lancelot, will you do the honors?" I ask him, since he's the one who spotted the enemies.

"With pleasure."

Lancelot nods and unsheathes his sword, which starts glowing in golden light. He waves the sword horizontally two times, each one sending a wave of energy forward.

When the first sword strike hits the bug horde, they have no time to scream before the monsters die. But when the second wave hits the remaining bugs, nothing happens, as if the attack were an illusion.

"W-what!?" Lancelot opens his eyes wide. "T-that can't be…!"

I'm as surprised as he is. Why did his first attack work, but the second didn't?

"Check your status screen," says Percival at that moment.

"Status screen? Do you mean…" Lancelot follows his advice, and soon his confusion is replaced by repressed rage. "Those are damn cursed bugs!"

Cursed bugs? They do look somewhat similar, but they aren't the same at all…

"It must be one of that guy's creations," says Percival. "He's from the Flesh Monstrosities."

"Aah…"

Lancelot and I nod at the same time. If it's Curse Bugs, it makes sense why Lancelot's attack did no damage. He got cursed by them, and now his damage is reduced by 100%.

But every DMA player knows how to deal with them. You just have to ignore them.

"Lancelot…" I pat his shoulder, "Take it easy from now on. Let's just ignore them and wait for the curse to go away. It will delay our invasion, but as long as we stay alive…"

"Sure thing, Sir."

After a short talk, we ignore the bugs as usual. But what happens next, we don't expect. The Curse Bugs start climbing up our legs, extending over our bodies, and start biting.

"It's good that Guinevere and Morgana aren't participating," Lancelot laughs. "They'd have a mental breakdown with these bugs…"

Percival chuckles. "Or Merlin, for that matter. If he were here instead of me… I wish I could see his face right now."

"You're right…" A wry smile appears on my lips, imagining his reaction.

After another short while, Percival calls me.

"Sir Arthur!"

"I know. I noticed too."

Not only do the mutated Death Bugs bite us, something almost no critter can do, but after checking my status screen, I've seen that our MP is slowly being drained.

"How are we supposed to deal with monsters we can't ignore, but we can't kill!?" Lancelot's outburst doesn't surprise anyone present.

He's right. What's going on with this dungeon's monsters? Why are they… Why are they as obnoxious as the guy on the large screen?

"Calm down, Lancelot. No bug will stop our sacred order. We'll continue our invasion and ignore the bugs. We'll come up with a way to deal with them."

<table border="1" class="chapter-table" style="width: 100%; background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 1); border-color: rgba(42, 42, 42, 1); border-style: solid"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="width: 98.6971%"><span style="font-weight: 400; font-size: 1.1em">It wasn't uncommon for teams and players to meet repeatedly in tournaments and other DMA events. Especially when it came to pro players, they all knew each other well. The reason is simple, there aren't that many good players in any one given game, and the ones that participate at the top level are always the same.</span></td> </tr> </tbody> </table>

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.