Head down, and eyes focused on the sparkling street, Scott took measured steps as he moved aimlessly further away from the administrative building. The occasional curious glance lingered in his direction, but he neither bothered nor cared about the snooping residents. The first phase of the plan is over, now we need to focus on finding that hound. It shouldn’t be too difficult with the help of others, right?

There’s no telling if that petty bastard will suddenly shift the date of the full moon. Since he has done it once, there is a probability he’d do it again. We might need to refine our strategy, Scott suddenly paused in his tracks, and he raised his head.

His gaze swept over the seven-man canine party, all donned in matching togas adorned with brooches depicting a wolf's head.

“You,” a canine pointed at Scott, “Come with us.”

“And what if I refuse?” Scott retorted; arms folded across his chest. Among the seven canines, his attention lingered on the leader, a champion with dazzling earrings adorning his pointed ears. However, the ornaments couldn't compete with his short, silver locks that seemed to glisten under the sun.

“What did you say?” Another canine spoke up, but Scott simply ignored him. Instead, his focus shifted to the silver-haired canine with tribal tattoos on his neck and formidable muscles.

“Do you have any idea who we are?” The leader raised his hand, taking a step forward. Towering over Scott by more than two feet, his iridescent caramel eyes locked onto the eldritch knight.

“I'm Oxxi,” he stretched out his right hand. “Nice to meet you.”

Scott lowered his gaze, studying the canine's outstretched hand. He nodded slowly before clasping arms with Oxxi. “So, to what do I owe this pleasure?”

The two champions exchanged handshakes, their grip neither yielding nor revealing any applied pressure. Oxxi smirked, baring his fangs. “You have quite the grip. How surprising,” he said. “We're here because of matters related to your meeting with Lord Hanzazeelem.”

“Oh?” Scott scrutinized the group even more. “So, what about it?” he asked with an unseen smile. “Did he send you guys to beat me up, or did he promise you special benefits if you subdued me? I'm even surprised that petty fellow sent someone here.”

Thunder rumbled across the skies as Scott finished his declaration. The eldritch knight and several other champions raised their heads, their expressions shifting.

“Oops. Did I say that out loud?” Scott chuckled, his gaze lingering on the canines' distorted expressions.

“You're playing a dangerous game; you know that, right?” Oxxi warned, regaining his composure.

“Spare me the sermons and get to your point,” Scott retorted.

Oxxi sighed, shaking his head. “There are always overconfident people like you,” he said. “If you keep up that attitude, you might meet the same miserable fate as those before you.” His visage turned serious. “Lord Hanzazeelem is willing to forgive your initial disrespect if you swear to apologize and devote yourself to him.”

“I don't know what exactly you did or said, but I'd advise you to take this offer. Rarely does Lord Hanzazeelem extend benevolence to those who have disrespected his paradise,” Oxxi added after a momentary silence.

“Oh?” Scott nodded slowly. “So, am I supposed to go on my knees and beg for mercy, or how does this work exactly?”

A smile bloomed on Oxxi's face. “I'm glad you've seen the error in your ways. If you follow us now, we'll escort you to a place where you can offer your sincerest apologies to..." Oxxi paused, frowning, as Scott giggled nonstop.

“What's so funny?” Oxxi managed to say.

Scott pointed toward the champions behind Oxxi. “While I applaud your acting, it's a shame your companions aren't as proficient.”

“What?” Oxxi turned toward his companions before facing Scott. “What are you talking about?”

“Don't pretend. No one likes an overplayed joke,” Scott retorted. “They might not exude bloodlust, but their eyes were that of someone looking at a dead man.” Scott narrowed the distance between them. “I had a hunch your lord haha or was it zaza? Regardless, I knew he would send someone, and it seems that's you."

“I don't know what you're talking about,” Oxxi said. “You think Lord Hanzazeelem is the type to give special treatment? I'd advise you not to swallow more than you can chew.”

“Don't worry about me; it might not look like it, but I've got a big mouth,” Scott interjected. “You only need to wait a few more days, and I'll fully indulge in this silly game of yours. Until then, you, your companions, and your lord haha, can kindly fuck off, okay? Okay.”

The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Scott brushed past Oxxi, forcing the champion to the side. Oxxi's features turned ugly as he stared at his hand. This strength… How is it possible?

Scott took three steps before coming to a stop. He turned toward the canine party. “I almost forgot,” he said, his harrowing eyes shifting from one canine to another. “Do you perhaps know where the Varkham Hound is?”

Shock twisted the faces of the stunned champions, Oxxi opening his mouth in disbelief. “How does he know that name?” he muttered in a quiet whisper.

Thunder rumbled through the clear skies, and a massive lightning bolt descended in the area, obliterating two of the canines before they could react. The heavenly phenomenon disappeared without leaving a charred spot on the pristine road.

Silence lingered in the area; several passersby rooted to the spot. Their gazes alternated between the clear skies, and the canine group, of which all its members, bar Oxxi, lay on the ground motionless.

Judgment Passed! Those who break the rules will be punished accordingly!

The system message appeared in front of all residents of Enchanted Heights, lingering for a while before disappearing.

Oxxi took a step forward, his lips trembling ever so slightly. “Are you a feline?” he asked, his curious eyes roaming Scott’s body. However, no matter how much he stared, Scott bore no resemblance to a feline. “Only those vermin from Varkham call Sir Thmaz by that name. Who exactly are you?”

“Sir Thmaz, huh?” Scott chuckled softly. “Who would have thought I'd find someone familiar with the Varkham…”

“Don’t you dare call him that!” Oxxi roared, startling a few onlookers. The canine quickly regained his composure as he continued, “Sir Thmaz is the hero of Nuta, and I won’t have the likes of you besmirch his name.”

“Humans weren’t enslaved by that tyrannical kingdom, so you have no right to address him with that befouling title. You must be associated with a survivor from that waste of a nation,” Oxxi wore a twisted smile as he took a step forward. “I don’t know what nonsense you’ve heard or why you’re looking for him, but I assure you that…”

“Hold that thought,” Scott interjected. “Do you really want to end up like your buddies, turned into a pile of dirt?”

Scott shortened the distance, standing side by side with the canine. “I honestly don’t care if he’s a hero or a villain. I’m guessing he’s the leader of your group. Well, that’s not important right now,” Scott said, patting the arm of the canine. “Tell him we’ll be seeing him in ten days.”

As Scott turned to leave, Oxxi pulled him back. The canine’s demeanor had changed completely since their first meeting, the curiosity in his eyes replaced by an icy gleam.

“Your confidence is admirable, but you’ll regret the decisions you’ve made here on the night of the full moon,” Oxxi said softly. “You’ll soon realize fantasies are very different from reality.”

The canine stormed ahead, and his companions rose to their feet, chasing after the muscular canine.

“Are we going to leave him like that?” a canine asked, turning toward Scott as they walked deeper along the street. “He insulted Lord Hanzazeelem and Sir Thmaz. We shouldn’t let him off so easily.”

“And what would you have me do?” Oxxi’s stern gaze landed on the canine. “Do you want to suffer the same fate as those two morons?”

The champion flinched, recalling the scene. Oxxi then spoke up again, “Forget about him for now; he’ll soon realize how cruel this place can be. The night of the full moon is around the corner, so we must prepare.”

“What if he’s all talk?” another canine asked. “He could just be pretending to be confident. After all, this isn’t the first time we’ve seen someone shrink back after acting tough.”

Oxxi stopped and smiled. “Trust me, it's different this time,” he said. “Even if, for some reason, he turns tail, he's not going to have anywhere to hide during the full moon. That much I can assure you.”

The other canines exchanged glances before focusing on Oxxi, who wore a mysterious smile. The party quickened their pace before disappearing into an adjacent street. Meanwhile, Scott remained in the same position, his keen eyes focused on the clear skies above.

That dirtbag didn’t hesitate to snuff out those guys; if I didn’t know any better, I’d think shit head of an examiner had morals, Scott mused, gently lowering his head. “They should be here any moment now.”

“Buddy, we were just on our way to the rendezvous point,” Slim called out from afar, the necromancer along with Zara exiting another street. “What are you doing here?” he waved.

Right on time, Scott smiled behind his mask as he took gentle steps toward his companions.

“So, did you guys confirm it?” Scott asked.

“Yeah, the information is the same as what they said in that weird dream of yours,” Zara said.

“That’s great,” Scott nodded. “We should start making our way to the administrative building. Once we sort out our accommodation, we’ll talk about the next phase of the plan.”

Zara and Slim nodded without any input. Wordlessly, the trio took gentle steps toward the direction of the administrative building.

“Zara, you heard the discussion earlier, right?” Scott maintained his pace without turning toward the cat girl.

“Yeah,” Zara said softly without any changes to her emotions. “But I’m not thinking about that right now. All scores will be settled in ten days,” she vowed.

Neither Slim nor Scott commented further. A hundred paces away from their meeting point, a figure in all black sprinted toward the trio, grabbing Scott’s arm while nestling her head on his chest.

“How could you leave me?” Llorva pouted. “Do you know how hard I searched for you?”

The elf then regarded Zara and Slim, as did the brawler and necromancer. Llorva grinned, saying, “I’m Llorva, and he’s mine. Nice to meet you.”

“Oh?” Slim turned toward Scott, while Zara’s cheeks puffed.

“I don’t want to hear it,” Scott glared at the duo before they said anything. He shrugged off Llorva, but the elf once again latched onto his arm.

“Nice to meet you,” Slim said with a smile. Meanwhile, Zara simply smiled at the elf.

Slim then turned his attention to Scott, giving him a thumbs up. “I admire you, buddy!”

“Please, don’t say anything,” Scott interjected. “Anything further, and I’ll tell Zara about all your plots to do you-know-what.” Scott’s warning echoed in the mind of the necromancer, and Slim’s smile froze, feeling aggrieved. But the necromancer didn’t dare speak any further.

Like that, the quiet days continued in Enchanted Heights; but a storm brewed underneath the beauty and calm the utopia had to offer. Many residents could predict the next full moon would be like none other than they had experienced, but no one could accurately predict why.