Six friends shared a few beers in a private room, but EeDeChi disliked the dim atmosphere, prompting the Last Defender of the Way adventuring team to wave goodbye to Yaso and Deus and leave the tavern.
As dusk fell, a half-hidden sun dipped behind the low, dilapidated buildings, casting a pale red glow over the wispy clouds in the sky. At the mouth of an alley, EeDeChi suddenly stopped, puzzled, and said, "I hear a dog barking."
Pausing, she added, "I hear many dogs barking."
As an orichalcum-level adventurer, EeDeChi's senses were sharper than the others. Barrett was no longer surprised by this. He looked around at the surrounding streets and recalled a memory, "Yes, we're not far from the arena. I remember there's a dogfighting ring around here."
"A dogfighting ring? Let's check it out." EeDeChi spoke and, without waiting for the agreement of her three teammates, headed toward the sound down the alley, with the others reluctantly following.
Turning several corners, they came upon a spacious tent. The ferocious barking of dogs emanated from within. A skinny man holding an iron bar stood lazily at the entrance. He glanced at the adventurers' outfits, collected sixteen copper coins for the entrance fee, and let them in.
The tent was noisy with the sharp barking of dogs, shouts, and curses, creating a raucous atmosphere tinged with the smell of blood, reminiscent of the afternoon visit to the arena.
Like the arena, the center of the tent was separated by iron bars, but instead of human fighters, it contained two blood-soaked, ferocious dogs locked in combat.
The crowd gathered outside the iron bars to watch the vicious dogs tear at each other. Many of them were ragged and filthy, mostly laborers who, after a long day of hard work, rushed to the dogfighting ring without time to change clothes. Watching dog fights was one of the few forms of entertainment they had.
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Inside the iron enclosure, two similarly sized dogs were driven purely by their primal instincts, fighting fiercely, blood mixing with fur and kicking up dust. The scene was bloody and brutal, yet it heightened the tension among the spectators, who cheered and clapped, encouraging the dogs they had bet on.
Sean pointed at one of the mottled dogs, exclaiming, "That dog has some wild ice wolf in it." He had once had his leg bitten off by a wild ice wolf, so he remembered the traits of these vicious winter wolves clearly.
However, the dog with wolf blood was at a disadvantage because its opponent was a pit bull with iron jaws and copper teeth. This pit bull was the very definition of "iron jaws and copper teeth."
It wore a thin layer of iron armor on its head, and its teeth were fitted with long, sharp copper spikes by its owner. Each time it opened its mouth to bite, its teeth sank into its opponent's flesh, tearing away chunks of blood and fur.
Barrett pointed to a pile of mangled meat on the ground. "Both dogs were fed a low-quality alchemical energy potion mixed with bull's blood."
EeDeChi asked, "Like giving them doping?"
"doping?" Barrett skipped over the strange word. "It brings out the bloodthirsty nature in beasts."
The two savage dogs clawed and bit at each other, but in the end, the advantage of equipment overpowered the advantage of bloodline. The pit bull's sharp copper teeth latched onto the other dog's head and wouldn't let go. Seconds later, its opponent's body went limp, no longer moving.
The victorious dog didn't fare much better; one of its eyes was a bloody mess, its fur matted and dirty, and its exposed skin was covered in scars.
But the victorious dog was completely unaware of its injuries. After lowly growling at the corpse of its opponent, it suddenly lunged at an iron bar, using its still-dripping copper teeth to gnaw at the railing, trying to break free and bite the spectators outside.
The onlookers were startled, a crowd of people pushing back in panic. Once they realized the vicious dog's sharp teeth couldn't penetrate the thick iron bars, they began to laugh.
"You scared the life out of me!"
"This beast..."
"Looks like it's full of that potion; it's not done biting yet... still wants to attack, haha."
Inside the dogfighting ring's tent, the walls were lined with tall, square iron cages, each containing dogs of varying appearances and sizes. Some of these dogs were agitated by the bloody scent of their kind, crouching low and barking wildly. The gruesome fate of the two fighting dogs was clearly sealed.
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"How cruel!" EeDeChi's face flushed with anger, her fist clenched tightly.
Barrett glanced at her, knowing the captain well; he understood that a brawl was about to erupt. But that was fine—after all, they were just a bunch of weaklings, easily dealt with using just fists, no fatalities to worry about.
Suddenly, a piercing scream erupted from the crowd watching the fight, as if someone had been bitten by a wild animal.
"Dog!" "Why is there a dog?!" "Who let the dog out…?"
Outside the iron enclosure, panic spread among the spectators as they shoved and scrambled to escape. One of the cages nearby had been opened, the door swinging back and forth, but there were no dogs inside.
Clearly, the dogfighting venue had dealt with such situations before; a few enforcers rushed in with iron rods, raising the heavy sticks high before bringing them down with a thud, the dull sound of metal striking skulls echoing. Some dogs whined in pain, and the chaos among the crowd began to settle.
"Who let the dog out?" growled a burly man holding an iron rod, his eyes scanning the crowd fiercely.
EeDeChi, Barrett, Sean, and Stella exchanged glances, uncertain. The chaos of the dogfight was happening on the other side of the iron bars, and the crowd was packed tightly, making it hard for them to see what was going on.
"It's him! That kid!"
"I saw him sneaking around..." The people who had nearly been bitten were furious, and their anger quickly focused on a suspicious boy.
The boy, shrouded in a dirty robe and hiding his face with black cloth, blended into the crowd, appearing quite young for his height.
He gripped a short wooden stick, and with a loud bang, the tip of the stick exploded, shocking everyone for a moment. Seizing the opportunity, the boy attempted to flee, but the crowd reacted swiftly, with countless strong arms reaching out to grab him.
"He's just an apprentice mage! Don't be afraid!"
"Catch him!..."
The boy, clearly outmatched, was quickly subdued. His wand was kicked aside, and a burly man twisted his arm behind his back, pinning him face down on the ground, immobilizing him.
No one noticed that a side door made of thin wood in the dogfighting tent was quietly opening. A masked old man in a light blue robe entered, holding a slender black stick, similar to a conductor guiding an orchestra. Facing the restless crowd, he waved the stick in the air and gently pointed it:
"Everyone, sleep!"
A blinding white light erupted from the ceiling above the dogfighting ring, resembling a small sun. Under the brilliance of the light, the sounds of bodies hitting the ground echoed repeatedly as everyone in the tent—spectators and guards alike—fell, unconscious.
Stella's body went limp, and she collapsed to the ground. Barrett quickly grabbed her shoulders to prevent her head from hitting the floor. Sean staggered back a step, kneeling, but gritted his teeth and managed to stand again, supporting the unconscious Stella.
At that moment, the only ones still standing in the dogfighting ring were the masked blue-robed mage, EeDeChi, and Barrett.
Barrett pulled a giant sword from his spatial ring, gripping the hilt firmly, his expression serious. He didn't know who this mage, hiding behind black cloth, was, but the fact that he could cast a powerful area stun spell with just a flick of his wrist marked him as a dangerous person.
The mage removed his veil, revealing a face lined with wrinkles and speckled with brown age spots, beneath which was a distinctive gray-white goatee. He smiled and said, "Barrett, don't make any sudden moves; I can't take you on. Sorry for accidentally knocking out your friend, but don't worry, she'll wake up in half an hour."
"Old Tony?" Barrett and EeDeChi were stunned to see it was Tony Ulea, the guildmaster of the Adventurer's Guild from the capital. What was he doing here?
The boy, who had been pinned under the burly man, struggled to crawl out from beneath the unconscious mass, picking up his wand and running over to old Tony.
Old Tony patted the boy's head and explained, "This is my nephew, also an apprentice mage. I was giving him a practical magic lesson."
What a great teacher you are. Barrett glanced at the sprawled-out crowd on the ground, silently scoffing.
Old Tony waved his wand again, muttering a spell under his breath. With a gentle tap of his wand, a powerful surge of magic erupted, and the sound of grinding metal echoed around the dogfighting ring. The doors of the iron cages stacked against the walls swung open, and fierce dogs burst out, trampling over the unconscious bodies as they rushed for freedom.
One of the dogs, still fierce, opened its mouth to bite into a nearby person's body. To the dog, the sprawled, unconscious bodies looked like a feast. Old Tony raised a hand, and a bolt of lightning shot from the tip of his wand, instantly killing the vicious dog.
Fortunately, most of the dogs were focused solely on escaping the tent. EeDeChi and Barrett stepped aside, watching one dog after another rush out the door.
"Is this really meaningful?" Barrett asked. "They leave here, and they'll just become stray dogs."
"But it's better than dying fighting each other," old Tony shrugged. He patted the boy on the shoulder and commanded, "The first test has failed. The second test begins now: you have forty seconds to set up a teleportation array for two. I don't need to repeat the coordinates, do I?"
The boy immediately rummaged through a spatial leather bag hanging around his neck, pulling out magic crystals, potions, and other items. He quickly knelt on the ground and started sketching the teleportation array. His hand trembled slightly as he held the ink bottle; this "practical lesson" filled him with both excitement and anxiety.
"Oh no! I drew it wrong!" Old Tony slapped his forehead. "Second test failed! The more urgent the situation, the calmer you must stay. You've stolen the dragon's treasure—hurry up! By the time you redraw that teleportation array, we'll be roasted by dragon breath!"
He snatched the ink bottle from the boy and, in less than ten seconds, drew a complex magic pattern, placing the magic crystals within it. The blue crystals faded to clear, colorless stones, with magic flowing along the runes, glowing a ghostly blue.
He led the boy onto the teleportation array, and a surge of magic erupted, as if someone underground were shining a powerful spotlight through the array.
In the brilliant white light, old Tony waved goodbye to Barrett. "See you later." Then, with a blinding flash, their figures vanished, leaving behind only the remnants of a small teleportation array.
"Is magic really this interesting?" EeDeChi's eyes widened at the sight.
She had little interaction with serious Arcane Magic mages and only knew a few destructive spells like explosions and fire. At that moment, she realized she should probably delve deeper into understanding the workings of extraordinary powers in this world.
"Sean, take the unconscious Stella back first," EeDeChi ordered in the dogfighting ring. "Barrett, you'll take me to Tony's place. I have questions for him."