Steeling myself, I crept closer from my hiding spot, readying my hand to try that fire spell again. I didn’t understand how I’d managed it last time, especially with my mana running on empty, but if I was going to survive this, I had to take the risk. There was no turning back now—the Queen’s punishment would be far worse than whatever Suzan or her mother could throw at me. Fighting went against everything I’d believed in, every rule I’d followed to keep myself safe, but survival was on the line.

Emerging from behind an old, weathered bench, I extended my hand, focusing on summoning that elusive warmth. But before I could even attempt the spell, a sharp gust struck me, nearly knocking me off balance. I staggered to the side, catching sight of Suzan’s mother smirking, her gnarled fingers wrapped around a wooden staff.

“Well, look who wandered back,” Suzan purred, a twisted smile spreading across her face. “Missed us, Axy?”

“Seems he didn’t get a taste of our special chicken soup,” the old woman jeered, a glint in her eye. “Wasn’t chicken in that pot, you know. Just leftover travellers.”

“You’re both out of your minds,” I said, keeping my voice steady. “This ends here. Surrender.”

Suzan let out a cold laugh. “So they can string us up? Hardly. Mother, I think we’ve found our next course. I bet the customers will love him.”

The old woman’s eyes gleamed. “Indeed they will, my dear.”

Suzan lunged, her grip tight around the Queen’s dagger. I sidestepped, throwing out my arm and shoving her off balance. She hit the ground with a snarl, but before I could gather my thoughts, her mother was already on the attack. I barely registered the fireball streaking through the darkness before it slammed into me, sending me hurtling backward. My body hit the ground hard, rolling from the impact, but I forced myself to get up, ignoring the sharp ache radiating through my side.

Suzan was on me again in seconds, dagger flashing in the moonlight as she aimed for my throat. I twisted, narrowly dodging, but her blade tore into my wounded shoulder. I gasped as pain shot through me, and she took the opportunity to drive her knee into my stomach, knocking the air from my lungs.

“Come on,” she taunted, her voice dripping with mockery as I stumbled back. “Don’t go soft on me now. You’re ruining the fun.”

Desperately, I opened my palm, focusing on that spark, feeling the heat gather—only for Suzan to strike again, her dagger grazing my leg. My spell shot off course, igniting a nearby tree instead.

The old woman crouched, placing her hand to the ground, and I barely had time to react as thick branches sprang up from the earth, coiling around my legs and pinning me down. Suzan approached, her face twisted with a bloodthirsty grin, lifting the dagger high, poised to strike. I wrestled against the branches, freeing an arm just in time to block her downward strike, knocking her arm to the side and sending the dagger skidding to the ground.

In one swift move, I grabbed a fistful of her hair, yanking her back and landing a punch square on her jaw, dropping her to one knee. With a quick kick to the back of her head, I dislodged the final branch from my leg, seized the dagger, and sprinted into the forest, my pulse pounding.

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“Not so fast, young man!”

As I sprinted, the ground suddenly surged up around me, walls of dirt rising like hands closing into a fist. I spun left, only to see the earth shifting again, boxing me in. Within moments, all four sides were sealed tight. I was trapped.

Suzan pushed herself up, dusting off and clapping her hands together with an unsettling smirk. As she spread her hands apart, a sword materialised, floating in midair. She snatched it by the hilt and swung with a force that sent a gust of wind barreling toward me, knocking me back a few steps. They had spells—magic I hadn’t even heard of. My body ached from wounds that hadn’t fully healed, and the weight of it all hit me: I didn’t stand a chance. I had to escape, somehow.

“Where are your manners?” Suzan taunted, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Clearly, someone needs to teach you some respect.”

“Just let me go,” I pleaded, struggling to keep the desperation out of my voice. “You don’t have to do this. I’ll keep my mouth shut. I won’t tell the guards you were here.”

“Oh, you think I trust you?” Her eyes narrowed. “I’d be an idiot. Thanks to that blabbering headmaster, everyone knows my real name, and now they’re after me.”

“We can still walk away,” I tried again, searching for any crack in her resolve. “This doesn’t have to end in blood.”

“Oh, but it does,” she purred, a cruel gleam in her eyes. “I’ll find a new town, open my little tavern, and you’ll be the special on the menu.”

“You’re insane.”

“Who isn’t?” She laughed, gesturing grandly. “We live in insane times, don’t we?”

Before I could respond, she snapped her sword, and a dark, whip-like energy lashed out, striking my arm with a sharp sting. I gritted my teeth, staggering back as pain flared, only to trip over a rock and hit the ground hard. Suzan closed the distance in an instant, pressing her boot firmly onto my chest, her smirk hovering above me.

“Goodbye, Axy-Axy.”

“Get… off… me!” I managed, grabbing her leg and shoving her back, scrambling to my feet just in time for a fireball to slam into me, sent flying by her mother’s quick spell. I slammed into the dirt wall, barely recovering before Suzan landed a solid kick to my chest. I tumbled backward, crashing into a weak tree that snapped under the impact, pinning my arm beneath it. Grunting, I freed myself just as another attack loomed.

This time, the old woman conjured razor-sharp ice shards that hung menacingly in the air before streaking toward me. I twisted to dodge two, but one embedded itself deep into my shoulder. Pain tore through me as I leaned against the nearest tree, gasping for breath, my mind clouded with panic.

“Surprise, surprise!” Suzan laughed as she kicked the ice shard, driving it deeper. The blade pinned me in place, anchoring me painfully to the tree. I forced myself to raise my hand, gritting my teeth as I summoned that faint warmth. And then, fireballs—dozens of them—blasted from my palm in rapid succession like a minigun.

Suzan’s eyes widened as she danced out of the way, deflecting them with her sword. Her mother quickly summoned a barrier, the flames dispersing harmlessly against the shield.

“What the hell?” Suzan blurted, shock flashing across her face. “How are you casting like that?”

“Just… leave me alone,” I growled, ripping the ice blade from my shoulder with a shudder, blood dripping down my arm. “This isn’t necessary. Just… go.”

Suzan’s mother glanced around. “They’re waking up. We need to go—now.”

Suzan’s sneer faltered, her bravado slipping. “Fine. But I’ll be seeing you again, Axy-Axy.”

“Ugh…”

“Well, at least I got this!”

With a mocking wave, she flashed the Queen’s dagger, her eyes dancing with malice before she disappeared into the darkness. As the walls receded, melting back into the earth, I slumped against the tree, spitting blood onto the ground.

I’d failed to get the dagger back… but at least I was alive.

“That was… way too close.”