"Wha-What is that thing?!"

"M-Monster?!"

"What’s going on?!"

The people who had remained seated until now finally broke into panic.

Several nobles hurriedly grabbed their children while others stumbled over the stone steps in desperation to move farther away from the royal balcony. The orderly atmosphere that Roger had managed to maintain moments ago completely collapsed into chaos as frightened cries echoed throughout the massive colosseum.

The Mages stationed around the arena were equally rattled by the sudden turn of events.

"Everyone calm down!"

"Please return to your seats!"

But the reassurances only made the panic worse.

"How could we calm down?!"

"That thing is a monster!"

"You said this place was safe!"

"Are there monsters outside too?!"

"I need to go check on my family!"

"Let us out!"

The guards tried to hold the people back before a stampede could break out but fear had already spread like wildfire through the arena. Mothers tightly clutched their children to their chests while some elderly nobles nearly tripped trying to push through the crowd. The younger knights who had remained behind looked just as shaken as the civilians as they stared toward the bloodied creature standing near the ruined balcony.

The thunder roared above them once again.

Rain poured heavily into the open sections of the colosseum, drenching the stone floors and washing streaks of blood across the shattered walls.

Alys, who was still suspended several meters above the ground by Silas’s mana, felt her chest tighten as she watched the situation spiral further out of control. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

And amidst all the screaming, the creature slowly rose back to its feet.

The movements were unnatural.

Its limbs jerked and twitched as if Katherine’s body itself was struggling to contain whatever now resided inside it. Burnt flesh hung from the side of its face while black blood mixed with the rainwater dripping down its chin.

Then it went still.

Completely still.

Its glowing red eyes slowly shifted away from Alys and Silas before falling upon the countless people gathered below.

A low growl escaped its throat.

The sound alone was enough to make several people freeze in terror.

Alys felt cold sweat run down her spine as she watched the creature tilt its head slightly, almost curiously, while staring at the crowd.

It wasn’t rampaging blindly anymore.

It was observing them.

Listening.

The sounds of thousands of frantic heartbeats, terrified breaths and screaming voices echoed throughout the colosseum while the creature simply stood there taking it all in.

Then its maw slowly stretched wider.

Into something that resembled a smile.

Alys’s eyes widened in horror as realization struck her.

The creature had recognized the people as prey.

"Everyone remain where you are!"

Roger’s voice thundered across the colosseum, amplified by sound resonance crystal until it drowned beneath it the terrified screams erupting through the arena. The viewing orbs hovered around him, Silas and Alys as if they had finally found some objective.

For a brief moment, the panic faltered.

Rain poured relentlessly through the open sections of the colosseum, drenching the stone floors and washing blood across the ruined balcony where the creature stood amidst the rubble. Lightning flashed above, illuminating the horrifying figure wearing Katherine’s body.

Roger forced himself to step forward despite the fear tightening around his chest.

The sight before him was enough to shake even him to the core. The twisted thing that now wore the Queen’s face no longer resembled a human being. Yet, as the King of Sestia, he could not afford to show hesitation before his people.

"The royal family and the Mages Tower are handling the situation!" Roger declared firmly. "No one is to leave their places!"

"But Your Majesty-!"

"That thing is a monster!"

"We’ll die if it comes here!"

The frightened voices immediately rose again, overlapping with one another as more people tried to push away from the royal side of the arena. Children cried while several nobles nearly stumbled over the stone steps in their desperation to flee.

Roger clenched his jaw before raising his voice further.

"The barriers around the colosseum have been activated!" He announced. "You are safer inside this arena than anywhere else in the kingdom right now!"

Those words struck the crowd harder than expected.

Safer here than anywhere else.

The realization slowly spread through the people like poison.

If even the King himself was saying such a thing, then just how disastrous had the situation outside become?

Fear visibly settled deeper into the faces of the people but the frantic attempts to flee gradually slowed.

Meanwhile, Silas had already stepped past Alys.

The expression on the Archmage’s face was terrifyingly cold as his sharp eyes swept across the shaken Mages standing around the upper levels of the arena.

Most of them were frozen.

Some stared at the creature in horror while others looked completely lost after witnessing the gruesome scene moments ago.

Silas’s eyes darkened.

"What are all of you standing around for?" His voice cut sharply through the air.

The younger Mages jolted violently.

"S-Should we evacuate the people first?!"

"What even is that thing?!"

"Archmage, the Queen she-"

"Silence."

The pressure of Silas’s mana surged outward in an instant, suffocating the surrounding area beneath its sheer weight.

The trembling voices died immediately.

"Layer the barriers around the civilians and reinforce the royal section threefold. No one lets that creature leave this arena." Silas ordered coldly.

The Mages finally snapped back to their senses and hurriedly scattered throughout the colosseum.

Magical formations quickly began lighting up across the arena one after another. Pale blue barriers shimmered into existence around the audience stands while additional defensive layers enclosed the upper sections near the royal balcony.

The atmosphere of the colosseum changed almost instantly.

The grand arena that had once been filled with celebration and cheers now felt suffocating.

Like a massive prison built to contain a calamity.

Alys slowly lowered herself onto the shattered stone floor as Silas released his hold on her body. Pain still throbbed violently through her side but she forced herself to remain standing while keeping her eyes fixed upon the creature.

And the creature was watching them.

Its glowing red eyes slowly followed the movements of the Mages around the arena, the barriers, the guards and the frightened crowd below.

The thing tilted its head slightly as if trying to understand what was happening around it.

Alys felt unease crawl beneath her skin.

It was no longer behaving like a mindless beast.

Rainwater dripped from the creature’s claws while its chest rose and fell in slow, uneven breaths. Then suddenly, the winds around the ruined balcony shifted.

A sharp gust exploded outward across the arena.

Several people cried out in alarm as the pressure swept through the stands and rattled the barriers.

Silas’s eyes narrowed instantly.

"...Wind mana?" He muttered.

Alys felt her stomach sink.

That had been Katherine’s affinity.

The creature had inherited it.

And as if sensing their realization, the thing wearing Katherine’s face slowly stretched its maw wider into another grotesque smile.

Alys gritted her teeth as the creature lunged toward her again.

The shrill screech it released made the very air tremble while its claws tore through the stone flooring where she had been standing moments ago.

"Alys!" Roger shouted from behind her.

"I said stay back!" Alys barked.

She thrust her hand forward and several blazing fireballs surged through the rain toward the creature. The flames exploded upon impact, swallowing Katherine’s body whole.

The watching people gasped loudly.

For a brief moment, the creature disappeared beneath the roaring blaze.

But then, the flames weakened.

A hiss filled the air as the rain poured harder over the fire, suppressing it almost instantly. Steam rose thickly throughout the arena while the creature slowly stepped out from the dying flames.

Its skin was charred black in several places and half of Katherine’s face had nearly melted away revealing glimpses of jagged teeth and something dark writhing beneath the flesh.

Yet the injuries were already healing.

The rainwater slid over its burned skin while the purification mana slowed the corruption from spreading further.

Alys’s expression darkened.

The rain was weakening her fire.

But at the same time, it was also restricting the creature.

The monster snarled furiously, almost animalistic in the way its distorted body twitched. It opened its maw wider and suddenly a violent gust of wind exploded outward.

Silas, by the time had managed to gain control of the inside barrier that was protecting the people. He enforced the layers of the barrier to make sure that the spells of the creature wouldn’t affect the bystanders. He couldn’t fight this one while trying to keep the barrier in place.

Suddenly he felt the another layer of barrier enforcing his and also a strange sense of the warmth as if he was himself enveloped in a layer of protective mana.

Silas instinctively lifted his head looking at Marquis Fairisles who was standing at his balcony. It was his mana.

Marquis was old and thankfully, hadn’t pushed for a fight himself when the young Mage had brought the injured woman to them with Alys’s message. The rain would help fix the woman’s injuries so, all they had to do for now was to trust Alys.

Silas clicked his tongue softly before returning his focus to the arena below.

Another explosion erupted.

Alys slid beneath a slash aimed for her throat and thrust her palm upward. A concentrated blast of flames detonated directly against the creature’s abdomen, sending it crashing through one of the fractured pillars.

The stone crumbled, dust and steam exploded into the air and for a brief moment, silence fell.

The crowd watched with their hearts pounding in their throats wondering if the Mage had won but then the wind shifted again.

Alys’s instincts screamed and she twisted sideways immediately as several compressed blades of wind sliced past her body, carving deep gashes into the arena walls behind her.

The creature slowly emerged from the rubble.

Half of Katherine’s face had peeled away completely now. Torn flesh hung loosely from the jaw while glimpses of jagged teeth and something black writhing beneath the skin became visible whenever it moved.

And yet, it was smiling, or at least attempting to.

Alys inhaled slowly, heat flickering dangerously around her fingertips.

The rain was weakening her flames.

But it was also restraining the creature.

Neither side could fight at full strength and that alone had prevented the battle from spiraling completely out of control.

High above the colosseum, Caelthir watched the scene unfold with mild amusement.

Rain dripped lazily from the edge of the towering spire where he sat while his golden eyes followed the exchange below. Steam constantly obscured the battlefield. The fire lacked brilliance beneath the downpour and the Chimera’s corruption remained suppressed by the purification mana infused within the rain.

"How dull." He muttered.

His gaze drifted toward the distant streets of Oasis where Ocean’s mana still surged violently against the Domina.

A faint smile tugged at his lips.

"Sorry, little Dragon," he murmured softly, resting his chin against his palm, "but this is becoming rather difficult to enjoy."

His eyes returned toward Alys just as she narrowly avoided another claw strike.

"I think I’ll change the weather here."

He brought his other hand up and snapped his fingers casually.

The effect was immediate as the black clouds above the colosseum twisted violently as if seized by an invisible hand before they were forcefully torn apart. Sunlight spilled downward through the sudden opening in the heavens.

Outside the arena, the storm continued raging across the kingdom.

But within the barrier, the rain abruptly ceased.

A single droplet slid from Alys’s chin as she froze for the briefest moment.

Around her, the steam slowly began to clear.