Bastion and the girls spent a full week resting in their accommodations at the Avarice Claw while waiting for their scheduled arena match. During that time, they also spent a significant portion of it watching fights in the arena.
They had to admit the level of combat was noticeably higher than what they were used to. In Rank 2 kingdoms, access to classes and advanced skills was heavily restricted, and the population was smaller overall. As a result, combat tended to be more uniform, with fighters relying on similar, limited skill sets.
In the Rank 3 Kingdom of Paws, however, the combatants were far more diverse, with a wide range of classes and skills on display. Seraphina especially took advantage of this, moving through the crowds and meeting all manner of fighters with unusual skills she could copy. In exchange, she began offering access to her personal skill scroll library, allowing them to select a skill of equivalent rank. It quickly turned into a small-scale trade network that gained popularity with all the fighters.
The tiger demihuman found this arrangement particularly interesting. Seraphina's business meant she was effectively a Scribe, and if he won the upcoming match, all of that earning potential would fall under his control. As for any worries regarding Seraphina's strength, there were none; the panthers would be able to handle her with ease.
Finally, a week later, their scheduled battle arrived, as Seraphina, Ariel, and Lilia found themselves facing two female panthers in sparse clothing and a nervous female cheetah.
The arena itself was an open, circular expanse of hardened bark, smoothed and reinforced to provide stable footing beneath their feet. There were no enclosing walls; instead, the crowd was gathered on elevated branches above, looking down into the fighting space.
A clearly defined boundary marked the limits of the arena, and any fighter forced beyond it for any reason would immediately lose the right to continue participating in the match. As a result, pushing opponents out of bounds was a common tactic, even in a space where aerial fighters could still operate, since flight was also restricted to a set height above the arena floor.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we have a very special fight for you today! On one side, three rogues, slaves owned by Ravok—"
Cheers erupted immediately as the Rank 3 tiger demihuman's name was announced. Ravok's reputation in the Avarice Claw was well established; he was widely regarded as a reliable bet whenever an ignorant idiot came along to accept a challenge against him.
"And on their opponents' side, two mages and an archer, companions of a certain traveling merchant named Bastion Diamondhart!"
Laughter immediately exploded across the arena as the identity of the "idiot" going up against Ravok was revealed. The mismatch was obvious to everyone watching, and the consensus was immediate. This fight, by all appearances, was already decided in Ravok's favor.
"The conditions of the fight beyond the basics will be a 3v3 battle without summoning. As for the wager… whoever wins takes all of these fighters as standard slaves."
A wave of murmurs spread through the crowd, quickly tightening into a scattered chorus of sharp breaths and quiet, disbelieving "Oh…" as the weight of the stakes landed. The poor bastard Bastion was going to lose his harem to Ravok.
"Ready? Fight!"
Immediately, Seraphina's grimoire sprang to life, pages flipping as it unleashed a barrage of randomized Rank 2 spells toward the panthers. Ariel drew her bow and loosed precise shots, each arrow cutting clean through the chaos, while Lilia deployed her Mana Net across the field, expanding the reach and control of her spells over the bounds of the arena.
"You know what to do, Selyn," one of the panthers said as the pair joined hands and began casting a combined skill.
Selyn immediately darted in front of them, her cheetah agility placing herself between the panthers and the incoming barrage in a blur. Daggers materialized between her fingers and flew one after another with pinpoint accuracy, intercepting Seraphina's spells and knocking Ariel's arrows off course, shielding the pair while matching the bombardment with surprising ease.
Cheers erupted throughout the arena as the battle exploded into motion, filling the air with blasts of magic, flashing steel, and deft displays of perfect technique. Every exchange drew louder roars from the spectators as both sides demonstrated why they had reached Rank 2.
Bastion watched from a table in the VIP stands overlooking the arena. Seated beside him, sharing the table, was Ravok, a knowing smile resting on the tiger demihuman's face. A server approached, set down their food and drinks, then quietly withdrew.
"Tell me," Ravok said, lifting his glass for a deliberate sip. "How does it feel knowing I was the slave owner all along?"
"It doesn't really matter," Bastion replied with a shrug. "The contract was acceptable. Who signed it is irrelevant."
"Understandable," Ravok said, leaning in slightly. "So what about your odds now that you've seen what your girls are up against?"
"It is what it is," Bastion answered, expression unreadable. "The terms were favorable. That's why we accepted."
"Because Seraphina can burn through thousands of magic crystals worth of skill scrolls without even blinking?"
"Something like that."
"I think you'll find yourself sorely disappointed by the end of this."
"Like I said," Bastion replied evenly, "it is what it is."
Ravok scowled, not getting the reaction he had been expecting, but his attention was quickly drawn as the battle suddenly shifted.
The skill the panthers were casting completed, and a domain expanded to envelop the exact boundary of the battlefield. The small, empty area of hard wooden flooring vanished, replaced by a domed distortion of reality that reshaped everything into a space-expanded forest, enclosing all combatants within it.
To top it off, everyone within the dome was left completely stripped of equipment. Armor, weapons, magic bags, and enchanted rings all vanished in an instant, leaving only the forest and the combatant's own bare naked bodies.
"What an amazing skill, ladies and gentlemen. The arena has been replaced by a space-expanded domain that completely locks out all equipment. It is technically within the rules since the combatants are still within the designated boundary, so the battle continues as normal. Best of all, we get to have a free show!"
Cheers erupted like never before as the crowd took in the sight of the naked combatants, their attention quickly locking onto Seraphina, Ariel, and Lilia, who were all human. Naked demihumans, after all, appeared no different from being clothed due to the fur covering their bodies.
Unfortunately for the excited spectators, the girls reacted immediately, activating a skill that manifested mana constructs as clothing. Seraphina reappeared in her signature fiery red dress, Ariel in tight white leather armor, and Lilia in concealing wizard robes complete with a hat.
"BOOOO~" the crowd shouted in response to the girls' quick recovery.
Meanwhile, the panthers and the cheetah vanished into the shadows of the jungle, fully within their element. Their lithe bodies moved with acrobatic ease through the canopy, claws digging into bark as they climbed and leapt between branches, tails adjusting for balance midair, and enhanced senses tracking their prey with unsettling accuracy.
"What about now?" Ravok asked with deliberate provocation. "Think your girls can get out of this without any equipment?"
"I think they'll be just fine," Bastion said, betraying a small smile that only seemed to further enrage Ravok as he turned his attention back to the battle.
Unwilling to allow the one-sided advantage to persist, Seraphina unleashed her domain, Eternal Flame, igniting the forest in a surge of fire that swept through everything within its reach. She then took position to defend Lilia, who was still working to extend her Mana Threads across the newly expanded space. Ariel moved in sync with her, taking position on Lilia's opposite side and forming a tight perimeter around the young mage as the forest burned around them.
The three cats, suddenly finding their greatest advantage go up in literal smoke, darted towards their enemies ignoring all stealth, ready to rip them to shreds. They could have waited longer for Seraphina to waste her mana but unfortunately, they were on the clock as well due to their own domain in effect. Worse was the fact that they weren't mages hence their mana consumption wasn't sustainable.
They charged through the burning forest and into Seraphina's domain without hesitation, ignoring the steady drain on their health bars. Fur singed and blackened as the flames took hold, each step shaving off more HP, but they forced themselves forward anyway. In moments, they broke through the distance and reached Seraphina and the others in melee range before any of them could properly react.
Both panthers slammed into Seraphina and Ariel, powering through point-blank bursts of Deathflare and Storm Blast that dealt heavy damage but failed to stop their momentum. The collision threw all four combatants into a chaotic tangle, ragdolling and skidding across the ground, leaving Lilia completely exposed.
Selyn charged in, claws and teeth bared, closing the distance to the unguarded mage to finish the opening. Just before she could reach out, however, all strength abruptly left her body mid-motion. Her limbs went slack and she lost control of her footing, pitching forward as she hit the ground and skidded violently across it in a painful-looking slide.
Ravok shot to his feet at the sight. As a Rank 3, he could tell at a glance that Selyn's fall had no natural cause. There was no plausible reason for her to have suddenly collapsed, which meant something was done to her before the match.
"You!" he snarled at Bastion, claw pointing straight at his face. "You cheated!"
"Did you not read the contract?" Bastion asked, unimpressed. "It explicitly states there must be no interference between either party before the match begins. That clause eliminates any claim of foul play. If you don't believe me, check it yourself."
Ravok yanked the contract out and scanned it, confirming it was still valid and the wording precise. Bastion and his party weren't responsible for what had just happened to Selyn. Which meant someone else was.
With the contract already active and the battle underway, there was nothing he could do now. Whatever the outcome of this 2v3, all he could do was watch, and hope the panthers could still turn it into a victory.
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