The magic cards I made are absolutely flawless!

That mysterious businessman was definitely Dekan in disguise!

Those epic cards must have been fake cards that Dekan used to deceive Frata in the duel, which could be disguised as Tier 3 epic cards or lower.

The legend of the mysterious merchant must have been fueled and amplified by Dekan in the background, which is why it became a sensation in the capital within a week.

Moreover, given Dekan's cautious nature, he would definitely have Chloeux disguise himself with invisibility magic first, and then use the [Substitute Doll] to impersonate a mysterious merchant, carrying a bunch of [Fake Cards] to "encounter" his opponent and lure him into buying cards at high prices.

All you need to do next is find a way to interrupt the transaction; no substantial evidence of fraud will be left behind.

Cornelia, who had already secretly hidden herself, recorded the transaction using a recording crystal and then retreated as quickly as possible.

The report was made anonymously the next day.

Regardless of whether the opponent is guilty or not, they will be detained and investigated for a period of time for allegedly committing huge-scale smuggling.

On the field, Dekan sighed helplessly.

He walked away with his hands behind his back.

It seems to be lamenting how lonely it is to be invincible.

He displayed the demeanor of a master.

The audience couldn't help but twitch their lips.

"RNM, refund my money!!!"

"But if you say that Putila is innocent, it's impossible for her to be arrested and investigated. There must be irrefutable evidence for them to start the trial so resolutely."

"This player is good in every way, except he lacks confidence. He was probably intimidated by Dekan's momentum at the beginning. He finally saw hope to improve himself and got caught up in it all!"

The matter of Putila going to prison.

Anyone could guess that it's almost certainly related to Dekan!

This was the first time they had ever seen someone use the law to send an opponent to jail before the Hero Festival competition!

287 Dekan Taigong Fishing

"Is this beast planning to win the championship without playing a single game?"

Many viewers saw through Dekan's strategy.

Dekan's direct combat skills are indeed not strong.

But what makes him truly terrifying is that his underhanded tactics are impossible to guard against.

This might be beneficial for Dekan's opponents.

Being able to get to the competition venue smoothly is already half the battle won.

"It can only be said that Mr. Dekan truly deserves to be the most talked-about player. We look forward to his performance next..."

The host was still trying to smooth things over, hoping to get to the second match smoothly...

A few minutes later.

After a brief and successful interview, Dekan returned to his friend's VIP box.

"I'm so tired."

The first thing Dekan did when he got back was to lean back on the sofa.

It's like having just experienced a thrilling battle and finally returning in triumph.

Chloeux on the left smiled helplessly.

Cornelia on the right was secretly smiling.

Teacher Cat realized that times had changed.

These two people seem to have changed too.

"You two just keep spoiling him! As a teacher, I can't stand it anymore, meow! Alice, you have to talk to him! Isn't he ruining the reputation of the Kingdom of Norton?!"

The cat teacher didn't even want to stay with the three of them for a moment and jumped over to Mia's side.

"Huh? Isn't winning good enough? I just want to go up and give a speech as the champion's national representative. Dekan has even thought of the lines for me!"

Alice said with anticipation.

"……Meow."

Teacher Cat was speechless for a moment.

It discovered that this princess was indeed too easily fooled.

After all, the more obvious a person's desires are, the easier it is for Dekan to manipulate them...

"You can only use your first-encounter kill once, so you have to take out at least two of your remaining three opponents off the field?"

Mier was actually quite skeptical that Dekan could really win by default and make it to the final.

"Off-field strategies are also a kind of first-round kill. My opponents will definitely be extra careful in the future, so I'll have to honestly go out and play three rounds."

Dekan sighed.

……

For the remainder of the game, Dekan watched the remaining three matches attentively.

These are all his opponents in the same half of the bracket.

Only one of them can ultimately advance to the finals.

The second match was between a Tier 7 mage and a Tier 7 summoner.

In terms of strength, there is not much difference.

However, this mage has too much experience fighting in the Shadowlands, and even frequently battles the brutal Resurrected Cult.

There were even instances of people escaping from the hands of bishops of the Church of the Resurrection.

Its survivability alone is comparable to that of an eighth-tier being.

Unsurprisingly, the mage named Berica from the northern kingdoms defeated her opponent.

She will also be Dekan's opponent in the quarterfinals the day after tomorrow.

Coincidentally, this Berica is a card maker and also the head of a branch of the Card Makers Association in the northern countries.

When she was making things difficult for Dekante and other card makers in the northern countries, she helped the northern countries deliberately obstruct Dekante's review within the association.

Looking at the results displayed on the screen, Dekan rested his chin on his hand, lost in thought.

"Dekan, what a small world! But if you want to defeat her head-on, you'll have to use all your trump cards, meow?"

"Teacher Cat asked."

Since Dekan said he would no longer resort to off-field tactics.

Therefore, if Dekan wants to face Bellica in Phantom Canyon, it will be more difficult for him to beat her than if he defeats his opponent in the first game head-on.

"No, I'm already studying our opponents for the last two matches."

Dekan said calmly.

Cat Teacher: "Where's Bellica, meow?!"

Dekan, as if he were dealing with a cat teacher, pulled out a file about Bellica and threw it to the cat teacher.

Teacher Cat is preparing to check if Dekan has any cards that can single-handedly counter Bellica, creating an absolute counter.

However, all I saw in Dekan's profile of Berika was a circled line in the past experiences section—

[Cautious and suspicious personality]

"Dekan Meow...you..."

Teacher Cat stared blankly at Dekan and asked.

However, Dekan did not respond.

He was seriously considering how to play the last two games.

Tomorrow's match will be the second half of the round of 16 in the other half of the bracket.

However, you can basically guess the outcome of the matches in that half of the bracket without even watching them.

Because there was a young Imperial Sword Saint named Adair, who was said to possess the strength of a quasi-bishop, making him an outstanding figure even among the eighth rank.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, this player will sweep through his opponents in the other half of the bracket to advance to the finals.

He will also be Dekan's final opponent.

As for Dekan's penultimate opponent...

The third match could be described as exciting or unremarkable, featuring two evenly matched opponents who fought to the very last moment to determine the winner.

In the fourth match that just ended, Alger, an eighth-tier paladin from the Sun God Cult, almost instantly killed his opponent.

He is currently the youngest Holy Knight Commander in the Church of the Sun, and also Judith's successor after stepping down.

They are also among the favorites to win this competition.

In the championship predictions, the Painful Bishop Dekan is first, the Imperial Sword Saint Adair is second, and the Paladin Commander Alger is third.

The differences between the three are not significant.

There were even occasional periods when the odds of Imperial Sword Saint Adair winning were higher than those of Dekan.

However, if the Paladin Commander were to face the Imperial Sword Saint, although the Imperial Sword Saint would have a greater chance of winning, the actual outcome would be uncertain.

Both of these eighth-tier opponents are not easy to deal with.

While being interviewed in the venue, Paladin Commander Ajer was asked by the host who he most wanted to face as an opponent.

He suddenly drew his sword and pointed it in the direction of the VIP section where Dekan was.

Not a word.

However, the aggressiveness in his sharp eyes was already at its peak.

Alger acted as if he had a deep grudge against Dekan.

Moreover, he seemed to be not only staring at Dekan, but also shifting his gaze to Chloeux next to Dekan.