"Now, let's move onto our next exciting match!” Marco announced. "Prepare yourselves for a clash of opposites in the north and south corners. Representing the North, we have...The petite, yet headstrong...Rachel!”

  The girls jumped to their feet in excitement.

  "Oh my gosh, it's Rachel!!!!" The girls squealed.

  Rachel, caught off guard, blushed heavily. "S-Seriously?!”

  Nika nodded, a grin plastered across her face. "Yep! You've got this, Rachel!”

  Yuki chuckled, her enthusiasm unbridled. "Yeah, you're gonna rock that arena! Show 'em what you're made of!”

  "And on the south corner..." Marco continued:

  "We have a cool sniper with deadly accuracy, from the Fairylyl Alliance...Zoe!”

  Nika's excitement was evident, her anticipation building. "Wow, this is gonna be an interesting fight for you, Rachel. A you're up against a sniper like Zoe.”

  Rachel took a deep breath, her focus sharpening. "Yeah, I know. But I won't let her keep her distance. I'll make sure to close the gap and get in close to nullify her advantage.”

  Yuki smirked, her confidence in Rachel's abilities unwavering. "That's the spirit! Close the distance and make it a close melee fight. Don't give her the chance to pick you off from afar.”

  Nika nodded, her confidence in Rachel solid. "Yeah, get in close and show her that you're not to be underestimated.”

  Rachel smiled, her determination showing. "You bet I will. I'll prove I can hold my own and more. Off to the arena, I go!"

  And so, Rachel went.

  She stepped onto the arena floor, waiting for Zoe to come out from the south corner.

  It didn't take long, as Zoe, the cool and calm sniper, walked onto the platform opposite from Rachel. She was tall and buxom, the antithesis of Rachel's short and petite frame. But both are markswomen, and Rachel was eager to prove which sharpshooter is the best.

  The girls watched intently from their window with anticipation, their eyes glued to the arena as the two fighters waited for the signal to start.

  "This is gonna be good," Nika whispered.

  Rachel and Zoe stood across from each other, sizing each other up. Rachel stood confidently, her magenta eyes focused on the cool, calculating purple ones of Zoe, who fixed her black and pink uniform and flipped her long, pink hair with a smirk that Rachel wanted to smack off immediately.

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  "Hmph, ya sure you can handle me, little miss?" Zoe asked in a condescending tone.

  Rachel squared up, her anger starting to boil. "Don't underestimate me, jerk. I can more than handle you.”

  Zoe rolled her eyes, her voice smooth. "We'll see about that. Just remember, it's gonna hurt more than you can imagine."

  Marco raised his hand to begin the match, "And now...BEGIN!!!”

  Rachel's eyes narrowed, her focus and determination intense.

  "Ready or not, here I come."

  ...Or not, as Zoe snapped her fingers immediately and the arena quickly turned into what looked like a maze from the audience's perspective.

  The girls’ eyes went wide, surprised by the sudden change.

  "Woah... What the heck happened?!" Nika asked, baffled by the transformation of the arena.

  Zalgo was also puzzled, leaning closer to the window. "What the... Did she change the arena into a maze or something?”

  The girls were indeed now confused, but that was nothing compared to Rachel, who looked all around in shock.

  "Wha-what the hell just happened?!" She exclaimed.

  "Having trouble finding your way?"

  Rachel looked around trying to find where the voice came from, but all she saw was endless walls.

  "What...?" Rachel muttered, confused.

  "Don'tcha worry your pretty little head," Zoe retorted. "I just... Changed the arena to my advantage as a sniper, that's all…”

  Rachel clenched her hands in frustration as her eyes darted around. "You cheater...! How am I supposed to find you now?”

  "Oh, that's the fun of it... You have to find me, sweetie..."

  Rachel was getting a little creeped out by how Zoe referred to her as sweetie, but had bigger problems.

  "Ugh..."

  Rachel growled, her frustration growing. "Why am I not surprised... What kinda sadistic person are ya, dammit?”

  "...Oh... I've been called a lot of things, but ‘sadistic’ is not one of them..." Zoe said, a sense of playfulness clear in her voice.

  Rachel was getting more and more annoyed by the second. Her patience was running out.

  "You're really getting on my nerves here, you know that?" Rachel replied in aggravation. "I'm here to fight, not walk through a damn maze!”

  "Oh, but that is the fight... You have to find me so you may fight me"

  Zoe's voice, now closer, echoed around the maze with a playful attitude.

  Rachel whirled around, frustration written across her face.

  "That's not fair! Stop hiding and fight me, dammit!”

  "Careful whatcha wish for," Zoe's voice still bounced off the walls, making it incredibly difficult to pinpoint her whereabouts.

  "Whaddya mean by tha—"

  Rachel was cut off by a loud gunshot followed by a sharp pain in the side of her neck. Her hand instinctively flew to the injury, looking at her hand which was now stained with that ruby color of blood. Despite the pain in her neck, the turned quickly to where the shot came from, and spotted Zoe on top of one of the maze's large walls, laying on her stomach holding a sniper rifle.

  Rachel let out a loud groan of pain and frustration. "Aghh... You jerk, that fuckin’ hurts!!”

  "It was supposed to... Now you understand my advantage?" Zoe continued to tease Rachel from her position.

  "Yeah... Well it isn't fair!"

  Rachel's anger was boiling at this point. She looked up at Zoe, annoyed at how smug she was at the top of the wall looking down at her. She summoned her railgun, holding it tightly in her hands.

  "Don't be so grumpy... It'll only make your situation worse."

  Zoe was enjoying this. She could tell that Rachel was getting fired up, and she only continued to rile her up. Undeterred by Rachel summoning her railgun, she laid back and reloaded her sniper rifle, preparing to shoot another shot.

  Rachel's mind was all over the place right now. Not only was she irritated by the pain and unfairness of the match, but Zoe was really getting on her nerves.

  "Ugh, shut up...just shut up..."

  Rachel didn't have a clue on where to focus her attention, as the maze was confusing and Zoe was constantly moving.

  “I'ma getcha, dammit…just watch…”