Chapter 4 Deadly Game Part 2

The room he now faced was a vast expanse of desert under artificial light that closely resembled the blazing sun. The temperature of the room was hot enough to make sweat drip down his forehead, and the sand burned beneath his feet. Lysander was barefoot, his skin feeling every bit of heat from the seemingly living ground.

A soft cough broke the silence that had been in place for several minutes. "Sorry, sorry," Pieter's voice was hoarse, "I was coughing and my voice disappeared for a moment."

Lysander pursed his lips, "No need. Even if you disappeared, I would be very happy," he replied in a deliberately cheerful tone, although there was a hint of tension behind it.

Pieter laughed, a laugh of feigned happiness, "Just the bear? You'll miss me."

The smile on Lysander's face immediately faded. Pieter really knew how to make him speechless. There was something in Pieter's tone that made Lysander's blood boil, a deep hatred, but also a reluctance to fall into the same trap again and again.

"This time," Pieter said more seriously, but with obvious enthusiasm, "you will face a level 3 challenge, the Arcane Duelists." His voice became more cheerful as he continued. "These are the mages you hate and who are desperate to take your magical powers. This will be very interesting, there is no harm in using your legendary power." Pieter's tone, rising and falling with excitement, was like a demon tempting a human. He knew what Lysander wanted and he knew how to push him to the edge.

Lysander lowered his head, his long black hair covering almost his entire face, leaving only half of his face unreadable. He had no intention of giving Pieter the satisfaction of seeing his reaction. Two mages jumped in a very quick motion, one to the right and one to the left. Lysander was in the middle, sandwiched between them. Both mages' hands were covered in high-pressure lightning, the yellow and blue sparks creating sparks in the air. But Lysander was faster. He didn't need magic to subdue them.

In one smooth but powerful motion, Lysander grabbed the wrist of one of the mages and broke it with a sound that reached his ears. With his other hand, he deftly pulled the trigger of the weapon and shot through the second mage's head before his magic could be released. The mage's body fell to the sandy ground with a barely audible thud.

Lysander's face remained flat, though there was a slight glint in his eyes that showed a challenge to the empty space around him. His brown eyes stared in a direction no one could see, perhaps challenging Pieter, or perhaps challenging himself. He wanted to show that he was not a puppet that could be easily controlled.

There was no applause, no triumphant chatter from Pieter. Only silence hung in the air. But Lysander saw it, the gaping doorway in the distance. The next challenge was waiting. The last level of this stupid game was about to end.

He walked towards the door with steady steps, even though the hot sand still burned the soles of his feet. Beyond the door was another room. This time, a more terrifying environment greeted him; an arena filled with towering, blocky buildings. The atmosphere was almost surreal, but that didn't make Lysander feel weird.

In the middle of the arena stood a terrifying figure, the Chimerae. A high-level magical beast with maximum difficulty. It's body was large and muscular, with a combination of a lion's head, a goat's body, and a snake's tail. The creature's eyes burned with hate, while the roar that came from its mouth made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.

Lysander took a deep breath and collected himself. This was the final test and he knew that Pieter expected something from him. Something he might not be ready to show himself.

Lysander took a deep breath and collected himself. This was the final test and she knew that Pieter expected something from her. She had often felt like a puppet in Pieter's game, but this time she was determined not to surprise him.

The final arena consisted of a series of towering blocky buildings, towers connected by thin bridges. The most impressive, however, was a magical beast, the Chimerae, huge in size. Perhaps two meters tall, with various terrifying combinations of a roaring lion's head, a strong goat's body, and a biting snake's tail. The creature's magical aura was so great that it felt suffocating.

Without hesitation, Lysander raised his weapon and fired two bullets at the Chimerae's head. However, the bullets only bounced off the creature's thick skin as if they had hit a steel wall.

"Ah, what a shame. This weapon will never be able to kill the Chimerae," Pieter's witty and annoying voice echoed in the arena.

Lysander tried to remain calm. Maybe it was true that Pieter was not feeling well, or maybe he just wanted to play with him again.

"I am very sure that I can kill this animal," Lysander said confidently,

Pieter laughed, but it was more of a teasing mockery. Something that usually annoyed Lysander, but this time he was able to hold back. "Hahaha. You're so confident."

"Of course." Lysander replied with remarkable calm.

Out of the corner of his eye, Lysander could feel Pieter and Clara's eyes watching him. They probably saw his calmness as strength, a quality they admired. But no one knew what was really going on inside him. Whether he was afraid or not was a secret only he knew.

Facing the Chimerae was indeed very difficult, but Lysander knew that the essence of the creature's magical aura came from something deeper, all within himself.

As the Chimerae's serpentine tail shot towards him at incredible speed, Lysander leapt, nimbly dodging and planting his feet on one of the towering blocky buildings. The shot aimed at the Chimerae's head seemed to be useless. The creature's skin was too thick, and the bullets felt like children's toys.

"If it's useless, there must be another way," Lysander thought.

He jumped to the next building, dodging the Chimerae's sharp claws, which shattered the previous foothold into small pieces that fell to the ground. Despite its large body, the creature had fast attacks and a well-controlled magical aura. So far, however, Lysander had not used any of his magical powers. Maybe Pieter was frustrated, maybe he couldn't wait any longer.

A faint smile spread across Lysander's face, not because he was going to use his magic and satisfy Pieter, but because he was going to use the trump card he had been holding close to his chest.

Lysander ran quickly towards the Chimerae, dropping his body underneath the creature as if surfing on the surface of the ground. With an almost invisible movement, he tied a very thin and very strong thread to the Chimerae's left hind leg. With one tug, the creature fell to the ground, roaring with rage.