The bck cocoon that had wrapped around Bag split open.
A cw covered in dark scales tore through the viscous surface. Then another. And then the creature emerged.
Nothing remained of the orc he had been.
His body was a mass of deformed muscles covered in gleaming bck scales. Jagged spines jutted out from his back, and his jaw had elongated, revealing teeth far too rge even for his new form.
His eyes…
no longer had pupils.
Only a savage red glow.
The beast let out a roar that made the entire combat courtyard tremble.
And it lunged straight toward Max.
At the same time, the monstrous Maron opened his deformed mouth.
“GLRRRK!”
He fired a rain of green slime bullets that whistled through the air like projectiles.
“Papa!”
Moonlight raised her hand.
“Wind!”
An invisible gust struck Max from below. His body was suddenly lifted into the air just as the bck-scaled creature leapt toward him.
Bag missed by centimeters.
But he didn’t fall alone.
The beast smmed directly into another figure.
Taniel.
“Tch.”
The noble raised one arm and his body shone with magic.
“Get out of here, you disgusting pest.”
The impact didn’t knock him down.
On the contrary.
Taniel grabbed the monstrous Bag by the arm, twisted his body, and smmed him with brutal force.
“Out of my way.”
The creature’s body flew through the air…
straight toward Max, who was still airborne.
“Max!”
Gawain jumped.
The birdman appeared in front of him like a wall.
“Not today.”
The impact was brutal.
Bag’s deformed body collided with Gawain with a dull thunder, and both of them were thrown across the stone ground.
Max nded and rolled several meters ahead.
It hurt.
But he didn’t stop.
He got up immediately.
And kept running.
Straight toward Frida.
“MAX!”
Enor was standing in the stands.
Her hands gripped the railing.
“You can do it!”
Her voice cut through the chaos of the battle.
“You’re almost there!”
But someone else was running too.
Taniel.
His figure advanced with terrifying calm through the rubble of the combat courtyard.
A sword of light formed again in his hand.
“You’re not escaping.”
Meanwhile, at the center of the battlefield—
Moonlight tightened her grip on her sword.
White fire ran along the bde.
“Take this!”
She spun her body and unleashed bursts of frozen fme.
The energy struck Maron and sliced through his deformed arms like burning bdes.
The faun’s limbs were cleanly severed.
They fell to the ground.
For a second, Moon thought it had worked.
But then—
The arms began to move.
Viscous flesh grew again from the stumps.
Bones reconstructed themselves.
Muscles twisted and reformed.
And within seconds, the arms were whole again.
Even longer.
More grotesque.
Maron let out a ugh.
“Hehehehe…”
Moon frowned.
“That’s impossible…”
The faun tilted his deformed head.
“You… are… my next victim…”
Moon made a disgusted face.
“It’s impossible for you to get any more disgusting.”
Maron opened his mouth.
And fired another rain of acidic slime.
The viscous spheres whistled through the air.
Moonlight raised her sword to shield herself when a voice shouted from the edge of the field.
“MAX!”
Frida.
The dwarf was standing near the railing with her arm extended.
In her hand, the ring was shining.
“Catch!”
She threw it with all her strength.
The ring spun through the air, reflecting the sunlight.
Max stretched out his hand while running.
But he was too far away.
He wasn’t going to reach it.
In the stands, Enor narrowed her eyes. No one noticed. Her fingers moved slightly. A gentle, invisible current of wind formed around the ring.
The object shifted slightly in its trajectory.
And nded right in Max’s hand.
The boy caught it.
His eyes widened.
“I got it.”
He slipped the ring onto his finger without stopping.
At that moment—
A blue window appeared before him.
[Item Activated: Portal Ring]
[Enhanced Effect – System Skill Applied]
[You can now open portals to locations previously known by the user.]
Max smiled.
‘Perfect.’
He also activated the Illusory Echo Colr.
Five new Maxes appeared around him.
The copies began to move and ugh.
“Hey! Over here!”
“Come get me!”
“Weren’t you supposed to be strong?”
The monsters reacted instantly.
Bag roared.
Maron spat more green slime.
Both of them lunged toward the Maxes at the same time.
Taniel too.
But Max raised his hand.
“It’s time to end this.”
Two circur portals opened behind him.
Inside them…
there was only red.
Molten rock.
And bck smoke.
A volcano.
On the other side of the continent.
Max knew it perfectly.
He had spent hours farming there in Eldoria’s Entry 3.
The slime bullets crossed the field.
Taniel ran forward with his sword of light raised.
But he suddenly stopped.
His sword pierced one of Max’s echoes, which dissolved into particles.
Another.
And another.
The clones vanished one after another.
When he looked up—
The portals were right in front of him.
Bag and Maron stopped as well.
The monsters hesitated.
But behind them—
“Now!” Moonlight shouted.
The little dragon extended both hands.
“Wind!”
A brutal gust smmed into the monsters’ backs.
At the same time, Gawain tore several stones from the ground and hurled them like projectiles.
The rocks struck the deformed bodies.
The momentum was enough.
Bag roared.
Maron shrieked with a viscous sound.
And both were pushed toward the portals.
For a second, their silhouettes were outlined against the va.
Then they disappeared.
The portals closed.
The combat courtyard fell silent.
Max smiled.
And looked at Taniel.
The noble clenched his teeth.
In a quick motion, he grabbed Max by the neck.
He lifted him off the ground.
His fist began to glow with enhancement magic.
“You stupid little pet—”
But he didn’t get to strike.
Behind him—
Gawain was holding his arm.
Moonlight was pointing her Frozen Fme sword directly at his throat.
Taniel froze completely.
Max looked at him with a tired smile.
“That was fun.”
His voice was calm.
“So I’m going to spare your life.”
Taniel gritted his teeth.
He looked around.
His allies were gone.
His sword of light slowly faded.
“…I surrender.”
In the royal stands, the king raised his hand.
Don nodded.
And struck the ceremonial bell.
CLANG.
The metallic sound echoed throughout the courtyard.
“The duel has ended.”
All the spectators shouted in celebration of the royal pet and his group’s victory.
“MAX, THE PET!”
“MAX, THE PET!”
“MAX, THE PET!”
Gawain nodded slowly.
“Good.”
And then—
CRACK.
His fist smmed into Taniel’s face.
The elf was sent flying and crashed onto the ground.
A bck eye swelled instantly.
Several teeth rolled across the stone floor.
Moonlight blinked.
“Hey… the duel was already over.”
Gawain shrugged.
“I still felt like punching that idiot.”
Max let out a small ugh.
“Thank you for fighting for me…”
His legs finally stopped responding.
His vision went bck.
And he colpsed.
