Tangled By Fate

She raised her head and looked at the flags which were used to decorate the place. The flags were in a triangle shape. Their colors were red.

Veronica's eyes lit up. 'Red! It has to be red!'

She searched for the red board without further delay. The moment she found it, she dashed toward it.

"It looks like our female archer finally found something. We aren't sure yet which board she is going after. It's better than standing still without doing anything. They have only ten minutes before the winner is chosen," the emcee declared.

'Ten minutes… not enough time,' Veronica thought while running. She had to pause suddenly when the plate in front of her suddenly rose, almost knocking her out.

That's when she noticed the red board coming toward her. It was going to pass her any moment. In the blink of an eye, she aimed at her target and shot an arrow.

The audience screamed loudly, cheering for Veronica.

The emcee loudly announced, "Our lady archer hit the target. With her first shot, she was able to find the target. She is one step ahead of other archers. No matter what anyone says, our lady archer proved that not only she is excellent at archery, but also exceeds in intelligence. Such a fighter is extremely needed in the imperial army."

Veronica sighed in relief. 'Thank goodness I found out which one is the target. I can't imagine what would happen if I kept hitting the wrong target and then lost the game. I should hurry and finish the game.'

"Looks like the other archers noticed that the lady archer hit the right target. They are going after the red board. Will the lady archer be able to shoot two other arrows before the game ends? No matter what happens, in the end, if three of her arrows don't stay in the main target, she will lose," the emcee declared.

Veronica looked behind and spotted Lothar and the blonde not too far away. They were also going after the red board.

'Oh no! They found out. What if they hit the target and my arrow drops?' she anxiously thought. She sprinted toward the red board.

However, the speed of the board became faster after one arrow hit the target.

'Wait, wait, I cannot go after it. If I do so, I will only see the back of the board. I can hit the back of the board but the problem is my arrows are only at the front side. But how am I supposed to stay in front of the board? The movement is too unpredictable. If I could just stand somewhere and figure out the pattern…'

Biting her lips, Veronica did her best to locate a place where the ground didn't move. With a panic-stricken heart, she scanned the area once more.

She noticed two pillars standing proudly on the two sides of the field. The pillars were kept so that the red flags could be decorated all over the stadium. The pillars had one ladder each, probably for the servants to take off the decorations later.

'Why are the ladders still there? Shouldn't they be kept in the storeroom until the competition ended? Or is it a chance?' Veronica's eyes lit up with the thought.

'The pillars are inside the field. As long as I'm inside the round field, I won't be crossing the line no matter when I am, right?'

Veronica wiped her sweats with the back of her arm and darted toward the left pillar.

"Our lady archer is running to the opposite side of the board. Did she change her plan? Or is she running away? What is she planning?" the emcee described the situation. "They have only six minutes before the competition ends."

"One of the participants almost reached the red board. He aimed at the target! Looks like he is going to hit… oh yes! He hit the target!" With the emcee's declaration, the whole stadium burst into cheer and excitement.

"However, the lady archer's arrow was knocked out by the participant's arrow. Now her point is zero. She has to shoot another three arrows to win."

Veronica reached the pillar when she heard it. She looked behind and saw the blonde scornfully gazing at her. He had only three arrows left.

'So, he knocked off my arrow.' She didn't think about it anymore and began to climb the ladder.

"Our lady archer is climbing the ladder. What's her deal? Is she truly running away? Is she quitting? Since she is still inside the field, she didn't break the rules. She won't be disqualified if she wants to rest in the ladder," the emcee stated.

"What is Ver thinking? Shouldn't she go after the board? She has only five minutes!" Catherine was panicking.

"Just wait for her. I think she has a plan," Zinnia told her.

"She just wants a stable place to stand. Smart girl!" Ovior commented.

"Oh! That's how it is!" Catherine looked at Veronica with admiration. "Go, Ver go! You can do this!!" she shouted with all her might.

"Don't call her real name. She is known by Monalisa now," Roxana reminded her.

"Oh yes! Go Monalisa go! You can do this!!! I'm rooting for you!!" Catherine shouted again.

While the time was running out, Lothar shot two arrows on the red board. One of them hit slightly far from the target.

Lothar cursed, "Damn it! I was in a hurry. I should calm down."

He took deep breaths when he heard the emcee's comment, "Our lady archer has climbed half of the ladder. She is aiming her arrow at the red board. It's brilliant that she came up with an idea like that. From that angle, no matter where the red board goes, she will be able to hit it. Look at that! another participant understood her plan and headed toward her."

'Huh? Is he talking about that rude guy?' Curious, Lothar looked in Veronica's direction. He spotted the blonde. He was indeed running toward Veronica.

The blonde reached under the pillar and looked up. He looked straight at Veronica. A vicious thought flashed in his mind.

Veronica didn't have the time to think about her surroundings. She had only two minutes to shoot arrows. She had to aim properly to hit the target.

With only her left eye open, she pointed at the red board. The blonde's two arrows already occupied the target. She shot the arrow. Her arrow flew in the direction of the board.

Pushing two arrows in the two sides, her arrow hit the target. However, this time the audience didn't cheer for her.

'Huh? It's awfully quiet,' Veronica thought. Even so, she didn't think too much about it. She took another arrow and aimed at the red board. That's when her body suddenly swayed.

"Ahh!" a short yelp came out of her mouth on its own.

Veronica quickly grabbed the pillar and balanced herself on the ladder and then looked down.

She spotted the blonde down there. He was shaking the ladder.

Veronica gritted her teeth. 'Why on earth is he doing this? Shouldn't he run after the board? Isn't what he just did illegal?'

She desperately looked at the emcee and the judges, wishing to get some assistance from them. However, none of them came forward to help her.

"One of the archers is trying to throw our lady archer off the ladder. If she falls from here, she will break her limbs. Not to mention, her beautiful face will be disfigured," the emcee described the situation.

He sounded like he was showing sympathy for the lady but he couldn't hide his excitement while speaking.

Noticing that no one came to help her and the emcee pretended to worry about her but actually enjoying it, Veronica's face contorted.

'Useless people!' Cursing them inwardly, she stretched one leg and wrapped it around the pillar. Although the ladder was shaking vigorously, with her one leg wrapping around the pillar, she stopped her fall.

Catherine, Zinnia and Roxana stood up in concern.

"Why isn't anyone helping her?" Catherine asked.

"During the competition, accidents like that happen a lot. It's nothing new. No one will come to rescue her unless the time is up," Felix told her.

"She has to hand in there until the time is up," Darius stated.

Catherine covered her mouth, imagining the worst.

Arthur's eyes were focused on Veronica who was desperately hanging in there.

Because of Veronica's new position, she had less chance to fall. Despite feeling scared of the height, she directed her train of thoughts to the red board. She pointed her third arrow to the board and without hesitation released it.

Just then, her body staggered. The arrow's feathers shook by the touch of her bow. The arrow's direction changed. It pierced the red board's corner.

Veronica bit her lip. Her throat was dry from the nervousness. She lowered her head and glared at the blonde.

The blonde had no intention to let her go. He was pulling the ladder now.

'Since you want the ladder so much, I'll give it to you,' thinking that, she pushed the ladder to him.