Everyone enjoys watching electoral battles, especially when the candidates, instead of fighting with words and arguments, do so with weapons and magic, don’t you think?

  “Well, well, well… What a surprise we got this year. Totally worth coming, don’t you think, Valdomo?” said a hyena beast, chuckling under her breath and staring intently at her companion beside her.

  “Zizi, in all my years as a spectator, no human had ever dared to go this far. I wonder what her plan is?” replied a bear beast sitting next to her, speaking thoughtfully as he carefully observed the contenders.

  “Who cares! Ha! Hunter will gut her, skin her, and hang her hide as a trophy—no matter what tactics she uses. I'm sure of it,” said the hyena, miming a slicing motion across her own throat.

  Let me introduce you to the crème de la crème of electoral combat, the know-it-alls of know-it-alls from all over Lydenfrost. Rumor has it that the two of them have known each other since cubhood, and over time, developed an obsession with electoral battles—so much so that they haven’t missed a single one since they met. And… if we have them, who needs a commentator?

  “The king finally showed up. What are you waiting for, old man?”

  You’ll get to know them better later. For now, the decisive moment had arrived. Both Hunter and Griezu stared into each other’s eyes, not uttering a single word since Griezu revealed her true form. The only thing she wore was a brown tunic and sandals.

  To ensure the battles remain one-on-one, a magical force field is generated that only deactivates once one of the two contenders can no longer continue. As a curious fact, the barrier functions as a sound amplifier so that the audience can hear everything the contenders say.

  Hundreds of beast spectators tried to break through to assassinate the witch; however, their efforts were in vain.

  “Tch... Is the fight going to start when I die of old age or what? Fight already! I want to see blood!” Zizi complained, slamming her empty beer mug against the bleachers.

  “Patience, dear friend. The king decides when it begins,” said Valdomo calmly.

  “Grr… I already know that. Meanwhile, go fetch me another beer, will you?” said the hyena, gently nudging her bear friend with the mug.

  Yes, that’s right: the king decides when the contenders may fight. To prevent surprise attacks, both are protected.

  The king should have already given the signal, although… he didn’t seem as excited as one might expect. His face remained serious as he approached the edge of the arena terrace to speak. His expression cracked slightly as he raised his right hand over his head.

  “I decree…” said the king. His voice was low—shaky, even. A tear slid down his furry face, and his tone quickly shifted to a grim and serious voice. “I decree a duel to the death. Humans are not a race to be trusted. They broke their side of the pact by sending her; we have no reason to uphold ours. And Hunter… have fun with her.”

  Finishing the sentence, he lowered his arm, signaling the commentator that it was time to begin.

  “You heard my father. I already told him negotiating with humans was pointless. Turns out I was right,” said Hunter, mocking. “Plagues must be exterminated. And when I become king, your race will be nothing but history.”

  “And when I become queen, I’ll make sure each and every one of you meets a fate worse than death, you filthy vermin,” replied Griezu, pointing her staff at him. “If I’m to die here, I’ll die fighting for my species.”

  The spectators were ready. They stomped the arena stands in unison, sounding like war drums, announcing the arrival of an invading army.

  “Let the first battle for the kingdom begin!”

  The crowd roared in support of Hunter. Some beasts were still pounding the barrier. It was clear: humans had no place there… or maybe they did. Only a radical change would determine that—and that’s what Griezu intended to bring.

  “You're dead, human!”

  The second… no, the instant the commentator announced the duel, Hunter charged at Griezu at full speed—so fast that within two blinks, he was already almost on top of her. He prepared his claws, aiming them at the witch’s throat to end her life swiftly.

  “Erevisfelct Magna!” the witch chanted quickly, spinning her staff with both hands before slamming it into the arena floor. In front of it, a large mirror materialized.

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  Hunter launched himself directly at the mirror, trying to smash it with his claws, but instead of breaking it, he was absorbed into it. A few seconds later, he emerged from the same spot, getting stuck as his claws dug into the ground due to his momentum.

  “She’s using beast magic?! But how? Humans can’t tolerate mana flowing through their bodies,” exclaimed Valdomo, shocked.

  “And how would I know? You’re the magic expert, Val. If even you don’t get it, I sure won’t,” said Zizi, leaning back against her furry friend. “Stupid prince, even I know you can’t attack a mirror spell head-on.”

  “Ah… yeah, I remember. It was during one of your bounty hunting missions, right?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. That never happened,” Zizi replied, laughing sarcastically.

  “But I remember that…”

  “Silence! Shh… Not another word about mirrors, got it? Besides, I’m missing the…”

  Zizi cut her sentence short at what she saw.

  The beast audience was stunned. Prince Hunter couldn’t pull his claws from the arena floor. He was practically giving his back to Griezu, who could finish him off with a single spell.

  “Hunter, you idiot! Moron, moron, moron, moron, moron! Pull your damn claws out already!” yelled the hyena, smacking her face with her paw.

  “So this is the best the beasts have to offer? Pathetic,” said Griezu, pointing her staff at Hunter. “I thought you'd be stronger. Oh well… Varneo Axima Improxilan!”

  At the tip of Griezu’s staff, a rotating fiery pyramid formed. You could see the ambience mana being absorbed into her and then channeled into the spell. In a short time, it was spinning at full speed.

  “You fell into the trap, human! He’ll just break the witch’s spell with his claws and—”

  “No…”

  “What do you mean ‘no’? It’s an attack! It looks like an attack, smells like an attack, spins like an attack. It’s obviously an attack spell, genius!”

  “And that’s exactly why it’s not an attack.”

  “Just tell me what you’re smoking—I’ll join you on your little trip.”

  “It’s not that, you dolt! It’s an illusion spell. It hides one spell inside another—but only the most skilled can pull that off. How did that human reach such a level? This is bad for Hunter. If he dispels the outer one… he’ll be hit by the inner spell!”

  “Are you going to tell me the name of whatever you're smoking, or what?”

  “Were you even paying attention? Tch… You’re drunk already, for sure…”

  “……”

  “Bloe-blunip, happy now?”

  “And that’s why we’re still friends, eh?” said Zizi, giving Valdomo a friendly punch.

  With the spell ready, charged, and set, Griezu fired it without hesitation. The fiery pyramid shot across the arena at high speed toward Hunter.

  Hunter immediately dropped the act. He stood at the ready again, turned, and slashed at Griezu’s spell with his claws.

  “You spent two minutes making this. How patheti—”

  Hunter mocked Griezu’s spell, but his insults were cut short as he dispelled the outer illusion and was hit by the inner spell.

  A concentrated shockwave, hidden within the pyramid spell, sent the beast prince flying across the arena. He crashed into the coliseum wall, left embedded and gravely wounded.

  The prince struggled to free himself, but his efforts were futile. He was stuck, unable to move a single limb.

  “I wasn’t going to fall for such a cheap trick, beast prince,” said Griezu coldly. “The game’s over.”

  From inside her tunic, with her left hand, Griezu pulled out the Arcanicon and tore out the first page. It was immediately drawn to the tip of her staff and began orbiting around it.

  “I’ll show the beasts the true potential of humankind. HAA!”

  Griezu hurled the Arcanicon into the air with all her strength and, using her staff, fired the spell contained in that page.

  The spell broke the book’s cover, sending thousands of pages scattering like trails of fireworks.

  “Hey, honey-head… hic What was that?” asked Zizi, somewhere between sleep and drunkenness.

  “It was a silent enchantment, you stinking drunk. The ancients used that kind of magic. They’d channel mana flow into a physical object, with the spell’s properties written on it,” said the bear, holding his head with one paw. “The writings are vague, indecipherable. No two samples ever match.”

  “Hunter wins… hic W-what’s she hic doing now hic?”

  Suddenly, Griezu slammed her staff into the ground again and, gripping it with both hands, let the mana flow through it. Instantly, the scattered pages began orbiting her staff at high speed.

  The wind caused by the swarm of pages kicked up a lot of dust and sand. Visibility was poor, but just enough to see Griezu pluck one page from the swarm; with just a touch, the symbols on the page lit up with fiery tones, burning the page to ashes once the enchantment was complete.

  The pages left a glowing blue trail behind them. Griezu began to manipulate them with her eyes closed, moving her arms in wave-like motions, significantly shrinking the orbital radius.

  Griezu took her staff in her right hand, pulled it from the earth—its gem glowing from the mana within—and aimed it at where Hunter was pinned.

  “Behold! Vermin of the realm! This is what happens when you underestimate human potential!” cried Griezu dramatically.

  The entire audience screamed Hunter’s name in desperation, some even crying. After all, their champion was downed in a single blow. The hyena couldn’t stand—her legs trembled, her gaze fixed, her expression dazed… How impressive her—oh no, she’s just extremely drunk. Meanwhile, her bear companion couldn’t even bring himself to look...

  No guts now? Didn’t you want to see blood? Didn’t you say this would be fun, you cold-hearted cowards? Ugh... I should’ve just stayed with the commentator.

  Griezu took a deep breath and pointed her staff forward. Instantly, a page from the Arcanicon affixed itself to the gem of the staff and, with a simple trigger pull...

  “This ends now, Hunter.”

  In a pentagonal pattern, five stalagmites were launched at high speed toward Hunter, impacting the far end of the arena in under two seconds. But no one could see anything through the dust—not even Griezu herself.

  Seconds passed like hours. The crowd was completely silent. The only sound was the wind from Griezu’s page swarm.

  Seconds… seconds that were decisive. Griezu was about to lower her guard. She believed Hunter was dead… but realized she was very, very wrong, when howls of pain and a faint emerald glow began to shine through the dust.