Chapter 107

——The Second Demon Princess, Belith Harl, officially announced that she would attend the match as a spectator.

——The Adventurer Guild declared it would dispatch its ace adventurer to participate in the tournament, aiming to expand the guild's influence and thereby attract more individuals to become adventurers.

.........

News of this kind had been emerging endlessly over the past two days.

For a time, it seemed as if the eyes of the entire world were focused on Aurus.

All attention was fixed on this match—on who would ultimately claim victory.

But in truth, the identity of the victor no longer mattered.

After all, the arena, originally intended for entertainment and martial contests, had subtly taken on the air of a major international showdown. Even audience members were required to undergo strict vetting before being allowed in, marking a clear shift in the nature of the event.

And the most explosive piece of news was fully announced just today.

This announcement ignited the already volatile tournament completely.

——The First Demon Princess had been officially released and would participate in the arena match under the title of Peace Ambassador.

Upon hearing this, the citizens of both the Kingdom of Aurus and the Demon Domain were left utterly stunned.

In the Demon Domain, celebrations lasted through the night as they rejoiced at the princess’s regained freedom.

However, confusion abounded over her designation as a “Peace Ambassador.” Public opinion leaned toward the belief that the princess had been coerced by the kingdom. Lacking any concrete evidence, a considerable number of Demon Domain nobles were already preparing to travel to the Aurus arena, intending to verify the situation firsthand as spectators.

As for the Kingdom of Aurus, the situation was even more chaotic. The people, upon receiving the news, were thrown into a panic. They could not comprehend the higher-ups’ decision to release the demon princess, only feeling as though an impending catastrophe loomed over them.

If not for the Kingdom’s Knight Order urgently disseminating the message along the streets—“There is absolutely no danger in this matter. The Demon Princess’s identity as a Peace Ambassador is entirely genuine, and the Aurus royal family fully guarantees and takes responsibility for it”—

If not for that, quite a few residents of the royal capital might have already packed their bags and fled into the night, wouldn’t they?

Though the populace could not grasp the risks involved in the decision, they did at least understand that since so many national leaders were attending the tournament in person, the level of danger must be considerably lower.

After all, the nobility cherished their lives far more than the common folk did. They would never make such a reckless gamble.

And so, under the eager anticipation of citizens across multiple nations—

The night before the arena match had finally arrived.

That night—

A pillar of pale crimson flame surged from the forest outside the royal capital, piercing through the night sky and scattering the clouds.

Pedestrians on the bustling streets who witnessed the scene were all left dumbstruck.

——Yet few among them panicked or fled in terror.

Had they seen such a sight just days earlier, they surely would’ve been scared out of their wits. But now that the eve of the tournament had come...

All they could say was—they had grown just a little used to these strange disturbances.

What else could they do?

Who didn’t know by now that elite fighters from various nations had already gathered around the kingdom?

What was wrong with warming up a little before the match? If anyone got scared and ran off in panic because of those warm-up rumbles, they’d definitely be laughed at with people clutching their stomachs, mocking them for being inexperienced. Right now, the royal capital was teeming with visiting powerhouses—get with it!

Because of that, the Kingdom’s Knight Order had been run ragged lately. They patrolled everywhere, tracking down the zones where these disturbances originated, repeatedly warning the participants to follow the kingdom’s prohibition against unauthorized magic use. But incidents like the one just now still happened over and over.

After all, not everyone coming to the tournament belonged to the Kingdom of Aurus. People from other nations or certain races naturally held a sense of superiority. That stubborn pride of theirs compelled them to show off their power before the competition, which also served as an indirect way of intimidating their opponents from afar.

Of course, what awaited them was arrest by the patrol knights led by Eclight and the Wright Family.

Those who managed to escape—good for them.

Those who didn’t—well, they were thrown into confinement at the Knight Order’s barracks to eat prison rations. Maybe they’d be let out when the tournament actually began.

Even so… that pillar of flame piercing the heavens just now still drew many onlookers to stop and gawk.

Among all the exaggerated magic displayed so far, that had definitely been the most imposing one.

Undeniably so.

Though the magic had already dissipated for several minutes, people remained awestruck—it had left behind spiraling smoke still lingering in the sky, while heatwaves twisted midair, delivering a faint but tangible high temperature to every person gazing upward.

Some speculated that whoever cast that kind of magic most likely couldn’t be apprehended by the Kingdom’s Knight Order.

Others scoffed at such exaggeration—after all, Eclight, the Captain of the Knights, was a Tenth-Rank powerhouse. Surely, there couldn’t be anyone within the kingdom’s borders that he couldn’t capture.

But in truth…

At that moment, Eclight had just arrived on horseback at the site of the flame burst on the outskirts. His brows were furrowed deeply.

Though he had come with exceptional speed, all that remained was a scorched forest. Even when expanding his magic perception to the maximum range, there was no sign of the person who had unleashed the magic.

That could only mean one thing...

Regardless of power, in terms of sheer speed alone, the other party was faster than him.

What was even stranger was that the other person had extinguished the forest fire with magic, leaving no wildfire behind.

“This really is...”

“Captain? Should we expand the search range?”

“Forget it.” Eclight swung his broadsword toward the ground, slicing clean through the grass with a whistling wind as it traced through the air, “There’s no point in chasing. Someone like that... will be gone in a few days. Sigh... the world is much bigger than we imagined…”

"Your orders, sir...?"

"Return to the royal palace. There will be no more troublemakers tonight. Everyone, make sure to rest and recover. Tomorrow, we go all-out to ensure His Majesty and the princes' safety."

"Yes, sir!"

..............................................

At the far end of the forest on the outskirts—

Atop the trees stood a crimson-haired girl with a graceful figure, her toes lightly resting on a branch as her scarlet vertical pupils gazed up at the high-hanging full moon.

Retracting the fiery wings behind her—marked with bold, proud patterns—Timani simultaneously canceled both 【Spatial Leap】 and 【Super Acceleration】.

She had swiftly left the spot where she unleashed the high-tier flame magic 【Spiral Dragonburst】—not out of cowardice or fear of consequences, but because she understood that, at such a critical moment, it was best to avoid unnecessary complications. Less trouble was better than more.

If she had truly been cautious to the extreme, she wouldn’t have released such a conspicuous spell to begin with.

But there was no helping it...

Timani lowered her gaze to her hand, which still emitted wisps of smoke and bore mild burns from the spell's recoil. She brought the hand to her lips and extended her tongue, gently licking the wound—like an injured little animal soothing its hurt with its saliva.

Amid that innocent clumsiness, there was a faintly suggestive air she herself was entirely unaware of.

Then...

Something miraculous occurred.

A green glow of healing bloomed across her red, swollen palm, and in moments it became as smooth and pale as snow, completely restored.

This was a unique healing technique exclusive to the Fire Dragon Clan, one of the higher races.

No need to learn any healing magic—Fire Dragon saliva was itself a potent salve that rapidly healed wounds. It was nothing short of astonishing.

With her palm now free of discomfort, Timani braced herself against the tree trunk with one hand while the other hung loosely. Her vertical pupils gleamed with a cold, determined light, tinged with fierce resolve.

Flames danced around her body, the sound of air burning faintly audible as she murmured under her breath.

"Not enough... still not enough. Why is there no improvement...? I can’t go on like this..."

Raising her hand, she once more gathered intense flames within her palm.

——But when she looked out into the distance, where the vibrant lights of the royal capital twinkled under the night...

The magic in her hand slowly dissolved into scattered particles.

That earlier 【Spiral Dragonburst】 had been a training exercise in magic control.

Timani’s mana reserves were more than worthy of a high-ranked race.

But in terms of control over that mana, she likely fell short of even a novice magician.

Her spells frequently went out of control. These past few days, she had fasted and trained alone in the forest, calming her mind, and only then had she finally managed to direct the 【Spiral Dragonburst】 with a consistent trajectory.

Ahem... The fasting definitely wasn’t because she had no money for food! She was truly honing her mental state!

But if the spell had been executed with complete precision, it shouldn’t have scorched the surrounding trees or burned her own hand.

These were all signs that her magic control was still immature.

"This time, there must be no mistakes... I have to win."

She had to win...

She had to let the news of her victory reach the Northern Territory, let her kin hear of this honor, let them once again acknowledge... her worthiness as a member of the Fire Dragon Clan.

The wind lifted Timani’s long crimson hair, which had been pressed close to her head—revealing, for just a moment, a pointed ear that did not belong to the Fire Dragon Clan.

Timani hurriedly covered the top of her head, panic flashing across her face as she quickly let her hair fall back over her ear. Then, as if to assert her identity, she smacked the tree branch with her scarlet tail, producing a crisp snapping sound.

She lowered her head in deep thought... her gaze sorrowful as still water.

The days of being without a home had been far too bitter.

She had endured enough of this drifting, rootless life.

And as that faint ache swelled in her chest...

——Grrrrr~~

Timani clutched her loudly growling stomach, her expression turning helpless.

She still couldn’t believe that someone from the Fire Dragon Clan would go hungry every day!

Forget it... for tomorrow’s match to go smoothly, she had better catch a wild rabbit and roast it. She thought she had seen some wild mushrooms while flying earlier—meat and veggies both. If she could find them, that would make for a nutritionally balanced meal.

The roast duck Shaya had treated her to flashed across her mind, and drool slowly trickled from the corner of her mouth.

She really... really wanted to eat roast duck again.

Huh?!

Timani snapped out of it, hurriedly wiped the saliva from her mouth, and shook her head, trying to rid herself of those shameful thoughts.

No—she couldn’t afford to have such weak emotions!

She needed to go catch a wild rabbit and rely on herself. That was the survival code of the Fire Dragon Clan!

...............................

At that moment, Sheffy sat by the window of a villa on the outskirts, tearing into a roast duck leg paired with a donut. She too had noticed that blazing spell that lit up half the sky just moments ago.

She looked up and gave the sky a little wave with the half-eaten duck leg as if offering a blessing.

"That Timani girl must be full and bored out of her mind—probably struck it rich, being all flashy like that."

Then she went right back to gnawing the duck leg, her silver hair swaying side to side, clearly enjoying the feast immensely.

"Huh? That spell just now was from Timani?" Xiarette turned her head and asked upon hearing Sheffy’s remark.

"Yep, same magical signature—it’s definitely Timani. Look at her, still has so much energy and even has the mood to set off fireworks. She’s clearly had a good meal. Probably won’t care for duck legs anymore after this... hehe, guess I’ll have them all to myself! Sluuurp... So good, so good."

"Haah... Miss Timani is so diligent, she surely wouldn’t let herself go hungry."

---

24. VIPs

【The most grand-scale event in the history of Cormier Arena is about to begin! All guests present, please take your seats in an orderly manner and cooperate with the Kingdom’s Knight Order to maintain discipline. Repeating once more...!】

The host designated to oversee the tournament at Cormier Arena was normally smooth and experienced when it came to announcing.

But today, the match hadn’t even officially started, and just getting through the opening speech had already left his palm slick with cold sweat as he gripped the amplification crystal.

Arena matches were usually held in the evening. Yet today, due to the dense schedule, the start time had been moved up to the afternoon.

He was nervous—incredibly nervous!

That phrase—"the most grand-scale event in history"—was absolutely no exaggeration.

He carefully cast a sideways glance toward the eastern platform.

There, seated on a wine-red temporary throne, was His Majesty the King himself, bearing an expression of utmost gravity.

Then he subtly shifted his gaze toward the western platform.

Draped with the crescent insignia of the Holy Theocracy of Coreia, beneath an ornate golden canopy upheld by a lavish carriage, sat the actual Pope of the Holy Theocracy himself—clutching his scepter and gazing across the arena at the King.

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