Chapter 98 Keep Daydreaming
The arena thrummed under the heavy midday sun, the sand pit freshly raked after the previous matches but still carrying the faint metallic scent of blood from the first two rounds. The tiered benches overflowed with wolves from every allied pack, their voices a constant roar of anticipation and speculation. Banners from dozens of packs snapped in the wind, a riot of colors against the gray sky. The elders sat in their raised box, faces carved from stone. Fernando stood at the head, arms crossed, his gaze fixed on the pit. Samael and Darius flanked him, silent but watchful.
Garrick stepped forward, raising both arms for silence. The roar died to a tense hush.
"The third match of the second round," Garrick announced, voice booming across the arena. "Princess Eliana of the southern ridges versus Lord Cassian of the Emberthorn pack."
The crowd erupted. Cheers for Eliana were thunderous—the southern princess had already proven herself deadly. Lord Cassian entered next, a lean witch-wolf from the Emberthorn pack, known for blending sorcery with combat. His dark robes shimmered with faint runes, and his eyes glowed amber as he stepped into the pit.
Eliana entered first, tall and lithe, dark hair braided tightly with silver threads. She walked to the center with confident strides, smiling at the southern section of the stands. They roared her name.
Cassian followed, calm and composed. He did not shift. Instead, he raised one hand, a faint red glow flickering around his fingers.
Garrick raised his hand. "Fight with wolf or power. First to submission or incapacitation advances. No killing unless the duel escalates. Begin!"
Cassian moved first. He flicked his wrist, and a thin blade of red energy shot toward Eliana. She dodged, but the blade grazed her braid, slicing clean through it. Her long hair fell to the sand in a dark cascade, cut short at the shoulders.
The arena gasped.
Eliana froze, touching the severed ends. Her eyes widened in shock, then narrowed into pure rage.
"You cut my hair," she whispered.
Cassian smirked. "A warning. Submit now, princess."
Eliana's voice dropped to a deadly calm. "You just made the biggest mistake of your life."
Fernando leaned toward Darius and whispered. "The guy's death will be brutal. Eliana jokes with everything in the world except her hair."
Darius nodded once, eyes fixed on the pit.
Eliana summoned a blue light from her palm, the glow cold and sharp. "It will be worth an honor to show you my wolf."
She lunged, blue light blazing. Cassian raised a shield of red energy, but Eliana smashed through it with a single strike. She grabbed his arm, twisting hard. Bone snapped.
Cassian screamed.
Eliana did not stop. She broke his other arm, then his ribs, each crack echoing across the arena. The blue light wrapped around her fist like a gauntlet, amplifying every blow.
"You thought you could humiliate me?" she snarled, slamming her fist into his chest. "You thought you could touch my hair?"
Cassian gasped, blood bubbling from his lips. "Mercy—"
Eliana laughed. "Mercy?"
She blasted him with the blue light, the force sending him flying across the pit. He crashed into the sand, rolling to a stop.
The crowd was silent.
Eliana walked to him slowly. Cassian tried to crawl away, but she stepped on his back, pinning him down.
She knelt, grabbed his hair, and yanked his head back. "Open your mouth."
Cassian whimpered.
Eliana leaned down and spat a drop of glowing blue liquid into his open mouth.
The effect was immediate.
Cassian's body convulsed. His skin blackened from the inside out, veins glowing blue as the liquid spread. He screamed once, then his flesh began to decay, rotting away in seconds. His body collapsed inward, bones crumbling, until only a pile of ash remained.
The podium went silent as everyone watched in terror.
Darius turned away, disgust clear on his face. "Did she have to end him that way?"
Fernando's voice was low. "I feel pity for the person that will cross her after this guy. At the moment she has revealed her other side, which she promised her late mom not to show years ago. It will be hard to tame her back."
Darius looked at him. "Do you want Eliana as your mate?"
Fernando shook his head. "Though she is strong, all I want is Alberto."
Darius reminded him. "The midnight wolves have lost two of their kind. Only two left. They are not even sure they will qualify to the last round."
Fernando nodded slowly. "They will."
The crowd remained hushed.
Garrick's voice trembled. "Eliana wins the match."
Garrick stepped to the center of the arena and raised both arms for silence. The roar of the crowd died down to a tense hush.
"The next match of the second round," Garrick announced. "Beau Crante from the regional west pack versus Lord Draven from the Ironcrest pack."
The crowd reacted with cheers and murmurs. Lord Draven from the Ironcrest pack had come to seal an alliance with Fernando. Beau Crante from the regional west pack was unknown to most.
Beau Alberto in disguise entered the pit masked and cloaked. Lord Draven entered next.
Alberto recognised Draven immediately. One of the worst bullies from the auction house days. The one who had beaten him for sport, taken his food, laughed while others held him down. Rage surged through Alberto, hot and blinding. He flew into attack without warning, fists swinging.
Draven blocked the first punch and countered with a hard elbow to Alberto's ribs. Alberto grunted but kept coming, slamming his knee into Draven's gut. Draven doubled over for a second, then straightened and punched Alberto across the jaw.
Blood filled Alberto's mouth. He tasted it, spat it out, and charged again. Draven caught him by the throat, lifting him off the ground.
Draven slammed Alberto's head against a stone marker in the sand. The mask tore, slashing open across the forehead, revealing a strip of skin and the edge of his hairline.
Fernando leaned toward Darius and whispered. "Why is the Beau guy wearing a mask?"
Darius kept his voice low. "It is not forbidden. He can do what he likes."
Draven shifted into wolf form, a massive black beast with glowing yellow eyes. He lunged, aiming for Alberto's neck.
Alberto rolled aside, claws raking his shoulder. He reached into his cloak, fingers closing around the small bottle Mira had given him. Bloodshade lily powder. One inhale, and the blood gardens, killing within minutes.
He covered his own nose with his sleeve, then shoved the bottle toward Draven's face, popping the cork.
Draven inhaled sharply.
Alberto clipped the bottle shut before the powder could spread.
Draven staggered, eyes widening. He coughed once, blood flecking his muzzle. His wolf form convulsed, veins blackening under the fur. He collapsed, shifting back to human form, body twitching as the poison took hold.
Garrick's voice trembled. "Beau Crante wins."
Alberto stood, blood dripping from his shoulder, mask torn but still hiding most of his face. He walked back to his spot on the bench, breathing hard.
Eliana crossed the pit toward him, her silver armor gleaming. She stopped in front of him, smiling.
"I will be the one to kill you," she said. "Fernando is mine."
Alberto looked up through the torn mask. "Keep daydreaming."
He stood and walked away angrily, leaving her standing there.
The crowd watched in stunned silence, some whispering his crazy Beau was.