Terra Nova Online: Rise of The Strongest Player

Chapter 788 Rigging The Odds

Chapter 788  Rigging The Odds

Walking around with an ankle monitor was extremely embarrassing for Captain Kid, however, he managed to somehow swallow his pride and cook up a bullshit story about how it was a new Universal Government test run on product safety, to convince the staff that he had put the monitor on voluntarily.

As the Captain of the Arc Ship, the mere idea of anyone discovering his submission to Leo Skyshard was a devastating blow to his already fragile ego, as such a revelation wouldn't just tarnish his reputation—it would obliterate it entirely, leaving him as little more than a mockery of the authority he once commanded.

The thought alone was unbearable to him, as he clung desperately to the hope that this humiliating truth would remain hidden forever.

However, for him to keep it hidden and under wraps, he first needed to start serving Leo dutifully.

The first order of business was to somehow rig the upcoming final rankers event in three days' time in favor of Luke Skyshard.

And while Kid had boldly claimed that he could handle the task with ease, the reality of manipulating such a large-scale, meticulously monitored event was far from simple.

The final rankers event was the pinnacle of Terra Nova Online, a massive competition that brought together the top 10,000 players to vie for glory, rewards, and the coveted title of 'Grand Ranker'.

It was the last event of such a scale and the one that most recruiter's looked at while bidding for the top talent of the batch.

It was split into two stages, each designed to test a player's skill, strategy, and adaptability, with the first stage this year being a monster-slaying contest.

For the first stage, players were dropped into an enormous procedurally generated arena filled with monsters of varying difficulty levels and point values.

To advance to the second stage, participants needed to place in the top 100 by scoring the most points.

Monsters ranged from low-tier, which could be killed quickly for small rewards, to high-tier elite creatures that were far more dangerous to face and defeat but yielded significant point boosts.

Then depending on how many points one scored at the end, rewards were distributed based on what range one ranked.

Rank 1-100: Guaranteed access to the second stage, along with legendary-tier rewards, including rare skill scrolls, unique equipment, and access to exclusive quests.

Rank 101-1,000: High-tier rewards, including epic-grade gear, crafting materials, and enhancement items.

Rank 1,001-3,000: Solid rewards, such as advanced potions, blueprints for rare items, and considerable in-game currency.

Rank 3,001-7,000: Moderate rewards, primarily useful for players to improve their gear and abilities.

Rank 7,001-10,000: Participation rewards, including small bundles of in-game currency and consumables.

These rewards ensured that even those who didn't make it to the top 100 would still walk away with something worthwhile, making the event fiercely competitive at every tier.

However, breaking into the top 100 was the ultimate goal, as it not only guaranteed access to the second stage—a brutal PvP tournament—but also provided the most lucrative rewards.

The second stage was a single-elimination bracket where the top 100 fought one-on-one until a champion emerged, earning fame, glory, and an unparalleled prize pool that included legendary artifacts, unique skills, and the prestigious title of Grand Ranker.

For Kid, rigging the odds in Luke's favor during the monster-slaying stage was the immediate challenge.

Using his administrative privileges, he planned to increase the density of high-value monsters in Luke's vicinity, ensuring that he could farm points faster than most competitors as by carefully balancing mid-tier monsters for efficient kills and selectively spawning a manageable number of high-tier creatures, Kid could optimize Luke's scoring potential while minimizing the risks.

Furthermore, Kid could subtly adjust the arena's algorithms to favor Luke's positioning. For example, ensuring that elite monsters spawned farther from Luke while steering clusters of players into areas with fewer resources. These tweaks would make Luke's path smoother without drawing attention to the manipulation.

If Luke secured a spot in the top 100, Kid could then influence the PvP matchups in the second stage. While the tournament brackets were designed to be random, Kid's access allowed him to ensure that Luke faced weaker opponents in the early rounds, giving him a significant advantage as he progressed through the tournament.

However, even with all these interventions, Kid knew he couldn't guarantee Luke's victory. The PvP stage was a pure test of individual skill, and no amount of interference could shield Luke from stronger opponents in the later rounds.

As Kid leaned back in his chair, his mind raced with calculations. Manipulating the event without detection was a precarious task, but if successful, it would secure Leo's favor and, perhaps, allow Kid to salvage his own precarious situation.

"The A.I. model shows that no matter how hard I try, Luke has less than a 3% chance to win the tournament in the end, as PinkLotus is vastly superior to him as a warrior.

Hence, although I can smoothen his path till then, the ultimate victory can only be achieved by him" Kid muttered to himself, as although he promised Leo that he would help Luke win, he could do nothing about the finals itself, where he was most likely to face his girlfriend Alia.

"Well, I hope Leo understands my predicament here….. but just incase he doesn't, I'll clarify the matter with him tonight.

For now, I've done everything I could to alter the event's source code, but doing anything more will make it obvious that I was cheating" Kid concluded as he shut down his computer and walked out of his office to perform his daily rounds, and collect reports of his staff's work.

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