xoxox

Reiss had been poisoned, likely by Viktor, but without solid proof of his involvement, there was reasonable doubt. Considering that the church and countless other spectators were betting on him, it could have easily been someone else. It seemed there was only one way for Noah to make the fight go how he wanted. He had hoped to avoid involving himself in the tournament like this, but considering how he screwed up Falco’s chances at revenge in the previous round, perhaps it was fitting he be the one to punish Viktor. He placed his hand on Reiss’s corpse and cast his cloning magic, taking on the dead man’s appearance. He then stuffed the body back into the closet, planning on dealing with it later.

“And thanks to that, my magical strength and dexterity have greatly improved since yesterday. Now, let’s try something a little more vigorous.” Noah drew his sword. “Shall we?”“You’ve never beaten me before, and now you want to try and fight me while wearing that headband?”

Abner was silenced as Noah, in his invisible state, covered his mouth with a rag dosed with Duska’s succubus powder. He tried to resist, but in his wounded and weakened state, the dust did its work quickly, and he couldn’t even raise his arms. “Shut up. Shut up. Shut up,” Noah silently hissed as Abner passed out. Thanks to the dust cloud providing extra cover, it looked like Abner had simply fainted from his injuries. He’d wake up, barely remembering the fight.“And the winner is Reiss!” the referee announced to the adoring crowd.