February 4, 2023, Past Midnight
"This is strange."
A senior academy student, assigned to oversee the first round of the tournament, witnessed countless corpses strewn around the flag. The bodies had been neatly severed into several pieces.
He was accompanied by two of his peers, their faces twisted with dread. In their minds, the same thought echoed: Who is the perpetrator of such a massacre?
"We must report this to Teacher, and to other Hunter Agents. It seems someone is attempting to ruin first round of Zhan Dou tournament," the leader of the group declared firmly. The two beside him nodded in agreement.
Just as they began to step back and turn around—
At that very moment, their bodies slipped into a Reality Marble.
Inside was a nightmarish place that would make anyone scream in terror.
"What is this…?"
One of the senior students broke into a cold sweat as his surroundings suddenly changed. They now stood in a dimly lit chamber, drenched in blood, a lone flickering lamp dangling from the ceiling.
"Stay calm and prepare the protective incantation! If you see the wielder of this reality marble, attack at once!"
"奉告護淨魂之神,除汝之外,無有力與權.願君庇佑,免我等於將至之禍.
(Fèng gào hù jìng hún zhī shén, chú rǔ zhī wài, wú yǒu lì yǔ quán. Yuàn jūn bì yòu, miǎn wǒ děng yú jiāng zhì zhī huò.)
To the God who protects the pure soul, there is no power or might save except Yours alone. Grant us shelter from the calamity to come."
The three chanted a mid-level protection spell. At once, a transparent dome formed, shielding their bodies from any imminent attack.
The sound of clattering chains rang out. From the only door of that blood-soaked chamber, a foot stepped forward.
Someone emerged—a hulking figure, two meters tall, gender indiscernible, with a bloodstained butcher's apron. In both hands, it clutched massive cleavers, their chains hooked into its shoulders and abdomen.
Its pallid skin resembled rotting flesh, its face grotesque like an orc riddled with pus-filled boils. A grin spread across its monstrous face, delighted at the sight of fresh meat wandering into its slaughterhouse.
"Hiii!" One of the senior students trembled at the sight of the hideous Witch.
"Attack! If we kill it, we may be saved!"
"Hehehe fresh meat! FRESH MEAT! CUT! CUT! CUT! HEEHEEHEEH!!!"
Two of the students, who were preparing offensive spells, were suddenly bound by chains snaking from its body. In an instant, they were hoisted upside down, dangling helplessly.
"Senior!!"
The group's leader managed to dodge and sprint past the Butcher Witch. In a panic, he dashed up the stairs, abandoning his comrades whose screams tore through the chamber.
"AAAAAGGGHH!!!"
"FOrgIVE mE! I dON't WaNt tO dIE!"
He ran and ran, ascending the staircase until he reached a door. Flinging it open—he found himself once again in the same room where his companions were being butchered, their bodies carved apart as they hung in chains.
The Witch was laughing gleefully as it sliced through their flesh, from legs to torso, chopping them into small, neat pieces.
"HEEEHEHHEHHEEHEHHEHEHHEHHEEHE!!!"
The lone survivor froze, tears streaming as madness took hold, his lips twisting into a broken smile.
When the Witch turned its gaze upon him, it sneered:
"Fresh meat that dares to run. But this meat… is already half cut. Not so fun to carve anymore."
The student's eyes widened. Looking down, he realized his body had already been sliced in half at the waist—his entrails spilling out without him even noticing.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!"
He collapsed backward—only to find that behind the very door he had passed through was no stairway, but a moving meat grinder. His lower half had been shredded as he fled, sending him back into the Witch's chamber half-dead.
Pale-faced, writhing in unbearable agony, he screamed and wailed.
Before long, the massive cleaver descended, mutilating what was left of his body into pieces.
"HEEEHEEHEEE FRESH MEAT!"
***
"I need to go. Don't worry about me, everyone. Thank you for the healing, little Mei Mei!"
Gui sprinted in pursuit of the hooded man who had fled into the forest.
Mei Mei, still healing Elizabeth, could not answer. Gui had vanished like a tiger pouncing upon prey.
"Where did he go?" Mei Mei asked. Elizabeth was nearly healed, Sizhu standing guard beside her in case more enemies appeared.
Sizhu shrugged. Elizabeth shook her head.
"Perhaps he has some business with that hooded man," Elizabeth replied.
Moments later, the three rose to their feet, checking their condition.
"What should we do now?" Mei Mei asked again. The Witch's assault and the hooded man's appearance was not expected. Their still live after that fight itself felt like a miracle.
"We must search for the flag," Elizabeth answered, patting dust off her tattered gown and straightening her messy hair. "If we do not secure a flag and return to the academy before dawn, we'll be eliminated from the tournament."
Sizhu nodded. "Then we should return to the path we passed earlier. There may be a flag at its end."
Both Mei Mei and Elizabeth agreed.
The three retraced their steps.
Reza's Group.
A few hours ago there are five members, now its only two remained. After a bloody clash with an assassin squad, only Reza and Amon were left standing. The two swordsmen who accompanied them had fainted but were saved by a senior academy student who carried them back to the academy.
The female swordsman, their other companion, had vanished without a trace.
"You should've surrendered and gone with that senior earlier, Reza. You walking like an undead," Amon muttered, his battered face and bruised body grim reminders of the battle.
Reza grinned. "You should look in a mirror, idiot."
"Hah? What did you just say?"
Amon knocked Reza on the head in annoyance.
"Ow! It's true, you fool! Look at your battered body!"
"This is your fault for being late to back me up, four-eyes! When I was stalling that killer brute, I was waiting for you all to help. But instead, you got beaten by his weak underlings!"
Reza's forehead vein bulged. "Weak? I killed four of them myself, while you struggled with just one! Who's weak now?"
Amon's vein bulged in return. "I fought a monster strong as an Arch Witch! Of course your enemies were weaker!"
They shoved shoulders against each other, bickering as they climbed the mountain path.
Unaware, they had stepped into a wide clearing. The ground beneath their feet was slick with something wet and sticky—human flesh and entrails.
"Amon." Reza tensed, pointing ahead. At the center of the clearing stood a flag. But all around it were strewn limbs, heads, and bones.
Amon grew grim, scanning their surroundings for the one who responsible.
From another path, three figures appeared: Sizhu, Elizabeth, and Mei Mei. Their faces were just as tense as Reza's and Amon's.
Eyes met. Both groups assumed battle stances.
"Who are they? Could those two be the ones behind this slaughter?" Mei Mei whispered from behind Sizhu.
Sizhu shook his head. He could sense they were not the killers; neither carried weapons fit for butchery. Their stance was clearly that of unarmed fighters.
Elizabeth, however, turned pale. What she felt was worse than the hooded man earlier—tenfold worse. Her stomach churned until she vomited on the spot.
"Elizabeth! Are you hurt?!" Mei Mei cried, holding her as she bent over.
"S-something… something truly horrifying is here…" Elizabeth whispered, trembling.
"Reza, grab the flag and run," Amon said, clenching his fists.
"What about you?" Reza asked, even though he already knew what Amon will do.
"I'll distract them. Whether they caused this massacre or not, I won't allow them to take the flag."
Reza nodded.
"I'll count to three."
Sizhu watched the two prepare to sprint. He, too, joining, braced himself.
"One."
"Two."
"Three!"
Amon and Reza charged toward the flag. But Sizhu was faster, his hand reaching for the flagpole—only for a fireball to blast toward him, nearly searing his arm. Amon lunged, landing a heavy punch.
Bam!
Sizhu blocked with his wood staff, forced back three steps. Reza seized the chance to grab the pole.
"Sizhu!!" Elizabeth screamed, sensing the something incoming.
Thick mist engulfed the clearing.
The moment Reza tried to pull the flag free—while Sizhu and Amon exchanged blows, while Elizabeth and Mei Mei stood frozen—the five of them were swallowed whole into a Reality Marble.
A vast, bloodstained chamber. Chains rattling. Quivering chunks of flesh. Rusted torture tools. A single dim yellow light illuminated the center, where a hulking two-meter butcher stood grinning, cleavers in hand, blood-drenched apron swaying.
The five knew instantly—this was an Arch Witch. Not a low-ranked one.
"Welcome… MY CHOSEN FRESH MEAT!"
Grinning widely.
***