The Queen Who Fights Back (by Lily Hastings) novel Chapter 111

Chapter 111

She chose the word “battle,” not something softer like “self–defense competition.”

Natasha’s words made Nova’s gaze sharpen.

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The term “battle” was something only people in the international underground circles would use so openly.

‘So who exactly is she?‘ Nova wondered.

The two of them only brushed past each other for a brief moment.

In everyone else’s eyes, they were just strangers passing by–nothing more, as if their paths never crossed.

Before long, Casey led Nova over to a corner of the gym, where seven guys were gathered in a tight circle.

All seven were guys.

Nova recognized four of them from her very first day at Rena University, when Casey had introduced her to the lab.

The other three she’d spotted at the KTV party that night–Nova’s memory was sharp, and she remembered. every face.

“These are all the students representing Rena University in the competition,” Casey said. “Zack Fayne, Rhys Sterling, and Cassian Miller–you met them in the lab.”

As she spoke, Casey pointed to two other guys.

“Griffin Shawn and Sawyer Fox–they’re the ones from the group chat, ‘Don’t Fall for Me‘ and ‘Bloodforge.”

Sawyer was the edgy kid with the username “Bloodforge.”

awyer was usually quiet, but when he locked eyes with Nova, he didn’t hesitate. “I’d rather you call me

odforge–my username–than Sawyer. Seriously, thanks.”

eah, he was clearly all about that username.

Nova gave him an easy nod, totally getting it.

“Holden Phoenix, quit playing around and say hi to Nova already!” Casey snapped.

At this point, Casey was getting pretty exasperated.

She shot an annoyed look at the guy clutching his phone, muttering to himself and shaking it back and forth like he was pretending to steer a car.

Holden, caught off guard, glanced up.

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When Holden spotted Nova, his mouth opened and closed in shock, and he was absolutely over the moon.

“Holy crap, it’s a girl!” he blurted out.

Nova didn’t need Casey to say a word–his whole act screamed “W” from the chat, that guy who never shut up about carrying girls in game raids.

“Hey, wanna team up in the game? Stick with me and you’ll win easy!” Holden said, his eyes practically glowing like he was itching to put his charm on full display.

Holden looked at Nova like he’d just found the ultimate chance to strut his stuff.

He flipped his phone upside–down, eyes filled with obvious excitement.

“Go play by yourself then!” Casey cut in before Nova could answer.

“Nova’s a girl–why would she want to bother with you boys and your shoot–‘em–up games?”

Casey answered for Nova before she could say anything.

Nova caught a glimpse of the gameplay flashing on Holden’s phone, and her brows lifted, curiosity sparked in her eyes.

“A shooter?” Nova said, her interest clearly piqued.

“Yep, it’s a shooter! Hey girl, wanna duo up with me?” Holden called out, practically buzzing to show off.

He looked like he couldn’t wait to flex every skill he had, voice brimming with swagger.

“Trust me, my aim’s insane! Once I took down twenty players back–to–back–no one could touch me!”

Teenage boys were crazy about anything that went bang–especially guns and military gear.

But in real life, Zoria had a total ban on firearms.

So the only way to scratch that itch was by diving into all sorts of shooter games.

Playing these games gave them a sense of pride–like they were actual action heroes, showing off with real

guns.

So how did they usually flaunt that pride?

That’s why some guys would be all about finding girls–just for the chance to show off their killer aim and flashy moves.

They lived for that moment when a girl’s jaw would drop, staring at them like, ‘Whoa, is he for real?‘

And if the girl started hyping him up from the sidelines-“Wow, you’re amazing! It’s just like watching the real deal!“–nothing pumped their egos harder.

That was how they fed their egos.

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Holden was always scoping out girls just so he could show off and feed his vanity.

Nova–a pretty girl–had just walked right into his trap.

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He was itching to see her gawk at his skills, hoping she’d look all wide–eyed and clueless, like some rookie who’d never seen real action before.

So he cranked up the swagger.

“He, why don’t you give it a shot? Come play with me!” Holden grinned, practically vibrating with

anticipation.

“I’ve never played a shooter before,” Nova said, her tone flat, unfazed by Holden’s obvious excitement.

Shooter games never interested her–after all, she spent her days handling actual guns, not just pixels on a

screen.

But to Holden, that’s not what he heard at all. In his mind, Nova might as well have been saying, ‘I’m such a total newbie–I’ve never played a shooter in my life.

‘Forget real guns, I don’t even know what to do with those toy guns in the game.‘

Just imagine showing off in front of a clueless girl like her–she’d probably be so blown away, she’d start squealing with excitement!

And with a face that pretty? Man, this was gonna be legendary.

Holden felt like he was riding high, floating on air.

He was practically beaming, convinced he was about to steal the spotlight.

“Never played? Oh, that’s an easy fix!

“Alright, pretty lady, just watch and learn. I’ll walk you through it step by step–just follow my lead and you’ll get the hang of it in no time!” he said.

Without missing a beat, Holden started playing right away, eyes glued to his phone.

“This game’s called Battle. Once you drop in, you’re tossed onto a huge open–world map with a thousand other players–everyone’s fighting for survival, bullets flying everywhere,” he explained.

“Take a single hit and you’re instantly out–no second chances, game over for that round.

“It’s basically a survival game, really. It’s all about how long you can stay alive–the longer you last, the higher your rank.

“If you manage to outlast everyone and keep from getting killed, that’s how you earn your spot on the leaderboard.

“Most of the time, if you manage to break into the top hundred, that’s pretty sick! And you gotta remember, this is a PvP game–every single player is live, no bots here.

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“If you make top fifty, you’re basically a champ.

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“Crack the top ten, or even the top five? That’s straight–up elite–the kind that other players worship.”

Holden wasn’t just throwing out facts; he was hyping himself up for a brag fest.

“My sickest game? I once landed thirty–eighth on the leaderboard, no joke!” he boasted, flashing a cocky grin.

“Pretty impressive, huh?” Holden grinned, turning to Nova with a smug look.

As he said it, Holden sneaked a glance at Nova, clearly hoping to catch a spark of amazement on her face.

He was totally waiting for her to lose it when she heard his rank.

Out of a thousand players, he’d snagged thirty–eighth place–surely that would get her wide–eyed and stunned, right?

Except… nothing.

She was totally unfazed, not a flicker of surprise–her expression as blank as a wall.

‘Did I not hype myself up enough, or did I actually blow her mind so hard she’s frozen?‘ Holden thought to himself, secretly hoping for some jaw–dropping reaction.

Gripping his phone like it was life or death, Holden started mashing the controls even harder–his moves getting wilder as if that alone might impress her.

Trying to sell the moment even more, he cranked up his commentary with dramatic sound effects.

“Hey, pew pew pew! Look, I’m shooting! Check it out, I’m firing!

“Bang bang bang! Take that!”

But in the end, Holden’s character instantly got blown up by an enemy grenade right behind a sandbag.

Game over.

His final rank-

99th.

“Normally, I could do way better than that!” Holden grumbled, refusing to back down.

Not about to lose face, he instantly started up another round and thrust his phone into Nova’s hands.

“See how I did it? Think you get the gist now?

“Here, you give it a try! Come on!” he said.

‘Once Nova tries Battle for herself, she’ll see for sure how savage this game really is!‘ Holden thought smugly, already picturing her fumbling with the controls.

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She’ll probably crash out in dead last–or for all I know, get KO’d before she even figures out how to aim, he snickered.

And once she realizes how crazy realistic and hard this shooter is, I bet she’ll be begging me for tips. She’ll totally start worshipping my mad skills!‘ Holden grinned to himself, riding high on the thought.

Holden was straight–up giddy, so sure he was about to blow Nova’s mind and score some serious bragging rights.

Nova took the phone.

She’d never touched a shooter game like this–naturally, her interest was piqued.

As she glanced at the hyper–realistic graphics, it gave her an uncanny sensation–like she’d stepped right back onto an actual international battlefield.

So, under the watchful eyes of Holden, Casey, Zane, Rhys, and everyone else, Nova simply stepped up.

Everyone had their eyes glued to her, waiting to see what this girl would do next.

She’d only watched Holden play once, but within seconds was pulling moves straight out of a god–tier playbook–her hands instinctively fluid, her reactions ice–cold.

In just ten minutes, she controlled her character with pinpoint precision–no matter where her enemies tried to camp or hide, Nova sniffed them out from every shadow and dead zone on the map.

She finished them off, either with flawless headshots or perfectly timed grenades, letting nothing stand in her

way.

Even in a video game, Nova’s shooting was next level–her accuracy was freakishly scary, landing every single shot like some unstoppable legend.

And her grenades? Absolute carnage–every toss blew up entire groups, no wasted throws, just non–stop multi–kills.

Ten minutes later, the game ended.

Her final rank for the round-

First place!

The whole crew watched, jaws practically on the floor–none of them had ever seen anything this intense. Nova never played it safe or tried to camp; her character went all in, relentless, gunning straight through every fight and dominating every clash.

Watching her play, it felt like witnessing a battle–hardened warrior in action–she wasn’t just pressing buttons, she was commanding the field with real tactical skill, just like the real deal.