When we stepped into the yard, we found everyone already in position, waiting for us.
Quickening my pace, I leaned in and whispered softly into Luna’s ear, “I trust you, dear.” Then, picking up my speed, I ran over to the others waiting by the sidelines.
Enwoybi glided toward the center of the field and reminded us of the rules in an authoritative voice.
“I assume you’ve already been told the rules.
First to score three goals wins.
As for the reward…
a legendary-tier item for each of the winning duo, perfectly suited to their abilities.”
The moment those words left his mouth, everyone’s eyes flared with greed.
“Legendary?” they muttered.
Enwoybi spread his arms wide, announcing the teams.
“Teams!
Ramia and Luna versus Velmora and Kaju.
I want a clean match—no fouls, and absolutely no use of mana.
Any questions?”
When no one spoke up, Enwoybi blew his whistle sharply.
As soon as the match began, Ramia kicked the ball hard, aiming a pass at Luna.
However, the ball struck the transparent barrier erected by magic to keep it in bounds, ricocheted sharply, and flew straight toward Kaju.
Luna lunged forward with fierce agility to snatch it from him.
Feeling the pressure, Kaju lofted the ball into the air.
Right then, Velmora suddenly unfurled the massive dragon wings hidden behind her back and leaped into the sky.
She swung her wings to deliver a powerful mid-air strike, but the ball soared way over the goal, hit the barrier, and bounced back at an awkward angle—straight into their own net!
Amused by this absurd own goal, Ermo began to cheer wildly on the sidelines.
But he paused, noticing Scatroj glaring at him.
As their eyes locked, the entire yard erupted into roaring laughter.
I walked over and sat next to Ermo, a sly grin tugging at my lips.
“You guys are terrible, you know that?”
Scatroj cleared his throat with a cough.
“Nothing is decided yet,” he said, gesturing fiercely toward the field.
Meanwhile, Kaju was trying to dribble the ball forward.
Luna suddenly cut him off to block his path.
To break free from her pressure, Kaju fired a hard pass to the other side.
As the ball soared into the open space right between Ramia and Velmora, Ramia intercepted it with a swift, graceful move.
But just then, the ball struck Velmora’s massive tail, knocking Ramia off balance and sending her crashing heavily to the ground.
Seizing the loose ball, Velmora ruthlessly blasted it into our net.
Yet, before the ball could even hit the mesh, Enwoybi blew his whistle sharply.
Pointing aggressively at Velmora, he shouted, “Foul!
That’s a foul!”
Scatroj leaped up furiously from his seat.
“There wasn’t even contact, dammit!
What do you mean, foul?!” he roared, instantly driving up the tension.
Fortunately, Ermo and I jumped in right away, calming Scatroj down and ensuring the goal stood.
When the match resumed, Luna dribbled the ball forward, driving toward the goal.
However, a small uneven patch in the grass sent the ball veering off course right into Velmora’s path.
Just as Velmora wound up with all her might to score, Ramia intervened with incredible agility, practically snatching the ball right off her foot.
As Ramia bolted forward with the ball, Scatroj’s voice echoed from the sidelines: “Kaju!
Don’t you dare let that goal in, or I’ll end you!”
The moment Ramia faced the goal, she struck the ball with all her strength.
It flew straight at Kaju, but he dodged to the side with quick reflexes, muttering arrogantly, “Not even close!” Right then, Enwoybi blew his whistle: “Goal!”
It turned out the ball had struck the barrier and curved inward.
The moment Scatroj saw the goal, he lost it; he lifted the table in front of him in one swift motion and slammed it to the ground.
“I’m going to kill this guy myself!” he screamed, trying to march toward Kaju, while Ermo and I threw ourselves on him, struggling to hold him back.
Back on the field, Kaju had the ball again.
He passed to Velmora and sprinted forward.
Realizing the play, Ramia turned to Luna.
“You take Kaju!” she shouted, sprinting toward Velmora.
Seeing Ramia closing in fast, a panicked Velmora was forced to retreat toward her own goal.
Backed right against the net, she suddenly spun around and yelled, “Kaju!” as she blindly cleared the ball away.
Luna leaped up to intercept it mid-air but missed.
However, the ball rattled hard off the post and bounced back.
While Kaju lamented the missed chance, crying, “Damn it!”, Luna had already taken control of the rebound.
Launching the ball forward, she shouted, “Ramia!”
Ramia leaped into the air, feigning a powerful strike, which prompted Velmora to jump instinctively to block her.
But Ramia positioned herself right in front of Velmora mid-air, completely blinding her view of the ball.
As a result, neither of them touched it, and the ball sailed straight into the net.
Enwoybi cheered joyfully, “Goooooooal!” as he ran toward our side.
Scatroj, meanwhile, slumped back into his chair by the overturned table, growling through his teeth, “I’m going to train him until he drops dead…”
As Luna and Ramia embraced in the center of the field to celebrate their victory, we began walking toward them.
I leaned over and whispered to Enwoybi, who was walking beside me, “It’s honestly weird how close Ramia and Luna got in such a short time.”
Enwoybi turned to me, puzzled.
“What’s weird about it, Kaan?
After all, she’s an ice elf, just like Luna.”
My eyes widened at his words.
“An ice elf?”
Enwoybi gave me a knowing, mocking look.
“Did you seriously not know that?”
I shook my head.
“But I’ve never seen her use ice magic before.”
Enwoybi chuckled softly.
“Long story, mate.
Forget about it for now; as long as they get along, I don’t care about the details.”
As I nodded in agreement, I noticed Velmora and Kaju looking guiltily at the ground, weighed down by their defeat.
I quickly stepped behind Kaju and threw my arm over his shoulder.
“Look here, my dear Kaju, my winnings went down the drain because of you,” I teased.
Just then, Ermo and Scatroj joined us.
Scatroj tapped Kaju hard on the shoulder and said sarcastically, “You better get ready for overtime, champ.” Ermo, on the other hand, immediately hugged Velmora, trying to comfort her.
“It’s okay, sweetheart, don’t worry about it.” Enwoybi and I stood behind Scatroj, smirking quietly.
Luna and Ramia approached us cheerfully from behind.
Ramia crossed her arms over her chest and said, “Well, aren’t you going to congratulate us?” Luna nodded in support, adding, “What do you expect from these blocks of wood anyway.”
I paused for a moment, pulled a small flower I had plucked from the ground earlier out of my pocket, and held it out to Luna.
“I picked this specially for your celebration,” I said with a smirk.
The moment I did, Ramia and Enwoybi burst into loud laughter.
As I turned around, trying to figure out what was happening and where I had messed up, Luna looked at the flower with a strange, slightly pitiful expression.
“Kaan…
I’m an elf, you realize that, right?”
I nodded.
“Elves are the absolute protectors of nature…” she said, clearly upset that the flower had been plucked.
Holy shit…
I thought to myself.
I quickly snatched the plucked flower back from her hand, threw it to the ground, and took a step forward to hug her to make up for my mistake.
As we hugged, Luna began to laugh quietly.
“It’s fine, I’m not one of those old-fashioned elves,” she whispered into my ear.
“But still…
would you like it if I brought you a severed human head to congratulate you?”
Faced with this creepy yet honest contrast, I scratched my head and stepped back.
“I’m sorry, that was really stupid of me.”
Luna smiled, amused by my reaction.
“It’s fine.
Besides…
I like daisies, just so you know.”
I nodded quickly.
“Message received, my queen.”
By then, Ermo and the others gathered around us to hand over the wager rewards.
As Scatroj scratched his beard, I impatiently held out my hand.
“Come on, hand it over, don’t stall.”
Then, turning to Luna, he pulled out an elegant blue cloak shimmering with runes.
“This cloak weaves an invisible protective barrier around you.
It activates automatically if it senses any killing intent or assassination attempts nearby.
It also doubles the effects of any magical enchantments woven into its fabric.”
Examining the cloak with a satisfied look, I said, “Nice.”
When it was Ermo’s turn, he sighed dramatically and held out two shimmering earrings to Ramia.
“A detection device exclusive to elves that activates at night.
It uses environmental sound waves to pinpoint enemies, and it consumes absolutely no mana to do so.”
Displeased with the earrings, Enwoybi cut in, “Well, can’t she already do that using her own mana?”
Ermo rolled his eyes.
“If she uses her own mana, she risks being detected by the enemy.
But with this, she can do it completely undetected, in total stealth.” He then turned to Luna and pulled out a massive, gleaming spear.
“This spear was forged using the fallen scales of the Dragon King himself.
It’s one of the sharpest weapons in this world,” he said, handing it to her.
Luna bowed slightly with great respect as she accepted the spear, and we turned back to Scatroj to claim our share.
Enwoybi laughed.
“I’ll take those rare mana potions you promised, then.”
Huffing, Scatroj handed over the potions.
“Fine, take them and knock yourself out.”
I immediately jumped in.
“Then fire over a few of those enchantment spells that work perfectly even in the demon lands.”
Scatroj stared blankly at my face.
“Mate, I barely have any of those left.
What are you going to do with them anyway, bro?”
I kept my hand stretched out insistently.
“Don’t worry about that.
Just give me the area-of-effect spell scrolls if you have them.”
Reluctantly, he pulled them out and dropped them into my palm, muttering, “Yeah, I have them…
but rest assured, I’ll make you pay dearly for this later.”
Finally, we turned to Ermo.
Shaking his head helplessly, Ermo asked, “Alright, what do you two want?”
Enwoybi smirked.
“I want that famous sword you work on day and night, constantly enchanting.”
Ermo recoiled in fear.
“No way!
That’s my pride and joy!” As he began to protest, I cut in, “A promise is a promise, Ermo.
Don’t back out now.”
With a tearful face, Ermo handed over the sword.
Enwoybi swung it a few times in the air to check its balance.
“It really has hundreds of enchantment spells on it…
It instantly activates an enchantment using just my mana.
This is magnificent!” he said in admiration.
I turned to Ermo as well.
“In return, I want that ancient moon necklace you have.”
Enwoybi shot me a highly suggestive look, knowing exactly what I was playing at.
“Are you sure, Kaan?” he asked.
When Ermo took off the necklace and dropped it into my palm, I turned directly to Luna.
“May I?” I asked gently.
Luna gathered her hair with her hand and turned around.
Stepping behind her, I whispered as I fastened the shimmering moon necklace around her neck, “Congratulations.”
Once the necklace was secured, that familiar, deep, and tranquil silence began to settle over the group again.
Clearing my throat with a cough, I broke the tension.
“Man, we should do this more often.
This was seriously great.”
Enwoybi laughed and agreed with me.
Scatroj, meanwhile, grumbled as he walked back inside, “Now that this is over, is it finally time to crash on the couch and pass out?”
Completely agreeing with his idea, I said, “Exactly.” Together, we all moved into the warm, cozy lounge of the mansion.