Mr. James only chuckled lightly, brushing dust from his clothes like nothing had happened.
"Stop that, Mr. Ogre. There's no need to be so harsh on them. After all, I haven't even introduced myself properly yet."
With a smooth flourish, Mr. James placed Isaac gently back on the ground, turned to us, and gave a low, exaggerated bow.
"Hello, my four little fuzzy bunnies. You know me as Mr. James. However..." he straightened, eyes gleaming sharply, "my real name is Master Intel. I am in charge of gathering and distributing information across all sectors. Sorry for the confusion—and it's a pleasure to meet you all."
The air hung thick between us.
None of us said anything, stunned at the sudden weight behind his words.
Until Isaac, ever the bold one, clicked his tongue.
"Tsk. I don't care if you're Mr. James, Master Intel, or the Tooth Fairy. It won't mask that nasty attitude of yours."
The cyclopean giant snarled again.
"How dare you, insignificant bug, insult Master Intel! You should be scorched to ashes for your insolence!"
A deafening boom rocked the stadium floor as the monster fully revealed itself.
I froze, my instincts screaming.
A shadow darker than night loomed over us.
We slowly turned around—and had to crane our necks just to take in its full height.
Feet like craters... arms thicker than tree trunks... and a single, bloodshot eye glaring at us with killing intent.
I grabbed Isaac's arm and whispered, trying not to tremble.
"Is that a cyclops?"
Isaac nodded, lips thin.
"Based on games and myths, most likely."
"Oui... He's huge... and his breath—ugh! Even though we're so far from its mouth, it stinks like rotten corpses."
I gagged and whispered again, panicking.
"Why are they always obsessed with big monsters? Don't they know obsession is a sickness?"
Master Intel grinned wide, his teeth gleaming.
"Yes, yes. That sharp mouth of yours. I like it. You're very honest."
His eyes turned toward Isaac, filled with something like twisted admiration.
"And you," he said, reaching his hand out toward him, "what about you? Will you be my disciple?"
At his words, the ogre—Mr. Gregory—stepped back obediently, head bowed low to the ground.
The tension was suffocating.
The audience watching from the stands leaned in, holding their breath.
The stage was set.
One wrong move, and we'd be flattened like insects.
Isaac groaned, stirring weakly. "Just to clarify... if I become your disciple... can I reach Master rank?"
The crowd gasped audibly.
Master Intel's smile dropped.
He straightened slowly, radiating a pressure so heavy it crushed the air from our lungs.
He leaned in, so close his breath ruffled Isaac's hair. "Do you think you can, son?"
The stadium fell silent.
Even the cyclops froze.
Isaac stared back at Master Intel without flinching.
"I know it," Isaac said simply.
Ba-dump.
A heartbeat echoed in the stillness.
Master Intel threw back his head and laughed, a bellow so loud it shook the ruins.
"Bwahahaha! YES! This is what I've been looking for!"
He thrust out his hand. "Be my disciple, and I'll make you my successor."
Chaos exploded in the audience.
"Successor?!"
"Master Intel's successor?!"
"That brat?!"
But Master Intel ignored them all.
He held his hand out.
"What do you say, son?"
Isaac grinned sharply and grasped it. "You can throw anything at me. I'll never back down."
Master Intel's eyes gleamed.
"Words are cheap, son."
Mr. Gregory's voice rang out across the stadium. "Congratulations! After years of searching, Master Intel has finally chosen his successor!"
The audience erupted into deafening cheers.
I clutched my ears, wincing. "Oui... I'm going to need earplugs."
Master Intel turned to us, smiling.
"This is goodbye, my little bunnies," he said.
"Bye, Master Intel!" we chorused.
I smirked at Isaac. "Bye, shorty."
"Stop calling me shorty!" Isaac snapped. "I'm still growing!"
I ruffled his hair. "Sure. Sure. I'll wait."
Rona grabbed Isaac suddenly. "TsunTsun, group hug!"
"Wha—NO, WAIT—!" Isaac yelped as Rona, Ronald, and I tackled him into a suffocating hug.
When we finally let him go, he cursed under his breath, but his ears were red.
A swirling portal burst open in the center of the stadium.
Master Intel waved. "It's time."
Isaac nodded, turning back to us with a rare, genuine smile. "Let's reach out soon."
We nodded, waving frantically as he and Master Intel stepped into the portal.
And then, just like that—they were gone.
Rona pressed her finger against her lips, tears sparkling in her eyes. "Rona misses TsunTsun."
I patted her head, smiling bittersweetly. "Me too, Rona... me too."
Mr. Gregory turned to the assembly above, his voice slicing through the rising tension.
"Due to some unforeseen circumstances," he said, each word deliberate, "I shall now introduce the 9 Masters behind the red curtain."
Snap!
The sound echoed like a blade drawn from its sheath.
The thick velvet curtain trembled—and then dropped.
Our heads tilted back instinctively, eyes locking onto the figures now revealed.
The 9 Masters stood in full view, towering above us like judges at an execution.
But unlike Master Intel, their presence wasn't just overwhelming—it was suffocating.
Their murderous aura rolled off the stage in visible waves, staining the very air around them.
Rona immediately grabbed onto my sleeve.
"Rona prefers Master Intel 'cause Master Intel smiles. They don't," she mumbled.
I let out a short, dry laugh, trying to shake off the pressure crushing my chest.
I stole a glance at Ronald, expecting him to be holding strong—and paused.
Huh. Ronald seems fine...?
Rona leaned closer, whispering urgently,
"Don't touch Ronald or else he'll fall."
I blinked at her, confused. What? He looks fine though—
But when I turned to him again, realization slammed into me.
Ronald's eyes had rolled so far back into his head that only the whites were visible. He swayed dangerously in place, mouth slightly ajar.
Rona patted my arm calmly. "He'll be fine after a while."
I nodded slowly, choosing—for everyone's sanity—to believe her.
Mr. Gregory lifted both arms high, his voice booming over the eerie silence.
"Now, let the official ceremony... begin!"
Blaring horns erupted from all directions.
The crowd exploded into wild cheers, their bloodthirsty excitement hammering into our skulls like battering rams.
I squatted down and clutched my ears.
Oui... my poor ears...
And yet, beneath the chaos, an even worse feeling gnawed at my nerves.
Why do my senses keep screaming that something awful is about to happen? One is already too many!
Rona tugged urgently on my sleeve, trying to say something, but her voice was completely drowned out by the deafening roars.
I leaned in, pressing an ear close to her lips.
"Rona smells lots of meat inside those three cages," she said, sniffing the air, her nose twitching like a curious fox.
She sniffed again.
"Cat, bunny..."
A third sniff, deeper, more puzzled.
"Rona's not sure about the last one. It smells like lots of different animals mixed together."
I frowned, thinking fast.
"A chimaera?"
Rona's eyes lit up with a disturbing sparkle.
"Doesn't that mean it has lots of meat? Ehehehehe..."
... Creak.
... Creak.
A metallic groan sliced through the stadium.
Ronald stumbled to me, grabbing my arm with trembling hands.
"Why are those iron bars rising?"
I smiled at him sweetly, despite the sick feeling coiling in my gut.
"So that they can release those monsters inside to kill us."
Ronald's face crumpled, tears instantly pooling in his eyes.
"Scary!!!" he wailed.
I snickered under my breath.
Heh... teasing Ronald is way too fun. Though—
I wiped a bead of sweat from my brow.
—what I said is actually true...