Like a savior, Vainqueur’s friend rode through the portal on his dark horse’s back.

He looked exactly the same as the day he left, covered by his armor and swinging his scythe. Yet his posture had changed. He seemed more confident, with his back straight and his shoulders high. Vainqueur knew his friend had become the apex of a chief of staff, second only to his dragon master. Two skeletal servants followed after him, carrying bags and a black cup.

The crowd exploded into cheers at the Vizier’s triumphant return, much to his silent surprise. “Wow, they look really happy to see me,” Friend Victor muttered to his mount.

“Don’t count me among them,” the horse complained. “You’ve somehow gotten even heavier to carry around.”

Manling Victor narrowed his head at the sight of Knight Kia standing on the opposite end of the arena, before glancing up at Jolie, and finally his master. “Have I come back just in time for the tournament, Your Majesty?”

“You could not have said it better, minion!” Vainqueur cleared his throat. “Citizens of Murmurin! To celebrate the return of my chief of staff, Grand Vizier Victor shall do the thing! He will fight Knight Kia instead of Corpseling Jules!”

“Oh, thank Camilla,” Jules rejoiced, knowing his master’s honor was saved.

“Fight Kia? What?” Manling Victor looked at his future opponent. “What the Happyland?”

“Come on, it will be fun!” Knight Kia said, eager to be defeated by a dragon; even half of one.

Vainqueur’s Vizier didn’t sound keen on the idea, perhaps out of a misplaced fear of embarrassing his master. “You actually want us to fight?”

“Actually, I’ve daydreamed about it for a while,” Knight Kia admitted, before quickly adding. “In a friendly spar way!”

“Kia will crush you like the rest!” Jolie boasted on behalf of her minion. “She is the strongest minion in the world!”

“Your Kia may be a legendary chief of staff, but mine is better trained!” Vainqueur defended his chief of staff, who had been his starting minion since he started adventuring. “And he has the overwhelming [Dragon] type advantage!”

Victor let out a sigh, before climbing off his horse. The animal immediately teleporting away with a moan of relief, the skeletal servants after them. “Can somebody tell me the rules?”

As Vainqueur reminded everyone of them, the Vizier listened in silence, before muttering, “Six fighters, you give us orders as our trainers and… Wait, is this a dog fight? Are we the dogs?”

“Kia Kia,” Manling Kia replied with heavy sarcasm, clearly stressed at the thought of fighting a half-dragon.

“Oh you, shut up,” Friend Victor replied while swinging his scythe. “I can’t summon minions, but are animated items allowed?”

Vainqueur considered the matter, the problem having never presented itself in a previous minion battle. “Yes,” the dragon said. “So long as they stop working in the unlikely case you are defeated, for the sake of fairness.”

“Good, although it sucks hard that I can’t summon,” Victor complained. “It removes a third of my spell list.”

“I will let you take the first swing then,” Kia said, jumping on place to stretch her legs. “Impress me.”

“Alright, your loss of sleep then,” Victor replied, raising his scythe. “[Nightmare Lord]!”

The very world shifted around Manling Victor, unnatural energies spreading through the arena. A noxious, purple miasma filled the air and covered the ground while screaming, ghostly figures made of mist swirled around Knight Kia; fanged skeletal maws surged from below, while yellow eyes grew on the walls alongside a thick, crimson moss.

Kia backed down, as the Colosseum became alive, the walls growing decorations such as mosaics of whispering humanoid skulls. The strange effect stopped right at the border of the arena before it could spread to the stands, although the phantom eyes glanced at the citizens in the stands with hunger.

Your arena turned into a [Nightmare Realm] Field!