[gratutions on winning 20 matches in a row. +10,000 points][Your team is tied for first pce. Battle the other team to break the tie, or forfeit and be ranked sed.]Sora blinked in surprise at the notification. 'Aeam hasn’t lost either,' he mused, his curiosity piqued.

  [You are the party leader. Please choose an option.][Forfeit] or [Tie-Breaker]

  Snced back with a fident smile, "o ask, right?"

  Everyone nodded in agreement, though Sollmunn, the demon pyer, who was still angry, his expression strange since his drop in power within the group.

  [You have selected the option 'Tie-Breaker'.]The waiting room dissolved once more, and they found themselves in a new setting. By now, they were used to the ever-ging enviros of each battle, but this one radiated a particurly intense energy.

  They stood on the edge of a massive, dormant volo. The grouh their feet was cracked and hot, with thin streams of steam rising from between the fissures. Around them stretched a vast expanse, plenty of room for the battle ahead.

  Melinda let out a quiet sigh, her gaze sweeping over the hot enviro. Her Ice Dragon stood beside her, but she k would suffer in such terrain. While strong enough to resist enviroal damage, her familiar relied on water and ice elements, which were rare in this volic setting. She ched her fists briefly, frustrated at the energy cost her ice dragon would have to bear to maintain its usual effectiveness.

  In trast, su and the Balrog thrived in the heat. Suviro was a natural amplifier for their power. Sora could feel su’s excitement through their bond, his fmes rippling with anticipation as he drew energy from the abundant fire elements saturating the battlefield.

  [Your oppo will be team 287]Sora sed the opposing team, expeg no familiar faces. But as his gaze nded on two figures across the empty battlefield, his eyes widened.

  There, standing side by side, were Emily and Kara, both smiling at him.

  'I've seen some teams with multiple pyers from the same race,' he thought, 'but what are the odds these two end up on the same team?'

  The duo waved enthusiastically. Sora waved bastinctively, only for Emily to blow a few kisses in his dire. His hand froze mid-air, and his expression turning ugly. He immediately dropped his arm, pretending the exge hadn’t happened.

  'So muaintaining my cool...' He’d worked so hard to keep up a posed, formidable image with this eam over the st few days, but all of it was ruined in an instant.

  Behind him, Klunor let out a chuckle, clearly enjoying the rare moment. “Looks like even the master of the mighty phoenix get embarrassed,” he teased, enjoying Sora’s disfort.

  Resting at home, I ying cards with big sister Hiyoko.

  I’d gdly admit that, thanks to master’s eraining, my sight, intelligence, and all my stats were leagues above Hiyoko’s. However, her skill in this matg pairs game was unmatched. Somehow, in the hundreds of rounds we’d pyed, I’d never won a single game.

  I sighed. Master’s words ring true: there is always someoer.

  I still remembered the “lesson” master gave me after I’d boasted that I might be strohan him after eating that incredible fruit the pointy-eared one gifted him. That round of body f had hurt like never before. Did he use that thing he calls densed mana?

  My thoughts wandered as I felt master’s summoning call ignite. After dropping my earned cards as fast as possible, hoping to avoid embarrassing master once again I was forcefully teleported.

  The warmth of fire elements surrounded me, rid hot, fillih energy. I took a deep breath, abs as much as I could, and exhaled, satisfied.

  But as I turo greet my master, I noticed something unusual: the others were ughing, casting amused gnces his way.

  My feathers shook in irritation. 'How dare they mock my master, who has brought victory after victory in this trial? Are they tired of living? Perhaps I should teach them a lesson...'

  The thought of turning up the heat a little, just to see how that block of id its master would react, was tempting. But I remembered master’s words about harassing weaker beasts and grudgingly let the idea go.

  Curious, I followed their gaze and noticed two creatures standing near my master—two who bore a striking resembo him.

  I noticed the small figures from across the battlefield staring at Master with grimaces on their faces. Do they know Master? I wondered but couldn’t be sure. They looked so much like him that I struggled to tell them apart. To make things easier, I focused on their colors—one covered in white, the other in blue.

  Notig that Master’s head fur was a bit shorter than theirs, I made a mental note. 'Maybe I use that to tell them apart iure.'

  A voice echoed in my mind: 'The two women oher side are my friends. Don’t bully their familiars. No pying with food in this battle. End it quickly if you meet any of them.'

  Master’s friends... I responded with a respectful nod and turned my gaze forward, curious and eager to see which familiar I’d be fag.

  Soon, another message from Master came through, more specific this time.

  'su... I have more information. This fight is going to be different. It’s a group battle. Keep your distance from Binryong, Melinda's Ice Dragon. You’ll just disturb each other. Fight to the best of your abilities, but don’t uimate the woman in white’s beast—knowing her, it’s anything but ordinary.'

  I gave a firm nod, readying myself for the battle. There was a differe to this battle, knowing Master’s friends were watg.

  I couldn’t let them think poorly of him for raising anythihan araordinary familiar. And truth be told, I was also curious—if these women shared even a fra of Master’s brilliahey’d be quite formidable.

  Taking my position at the front, I watched as the other beasts joined me. The [Bck Tortoise] had retly evolved, though I still felt fident I could roast it in its shell if necessary. Our side was strong, with me alongside the [Spectral Dragon], [Ice Dragon], [Balrog], and, of course, the newly empowered [Bck Tortoise].

  On their side, however...

  I turned my gaze toward the creatures across the field—some creatures I had never seen before. They were radiating strange, unknown power.

  The first oppo was a serpent-like beast with blue scales and long horns. Despite g wings, it hovered above us. This creature moved with a fluid elegance, almost as if it were oh the sky.

  I reized the sed beast. It was a dragon.

  I’ve seen so many dragoly that meeting another one has bee routihey all seemed to have immeential parable to mine, but none of them had a master as amazing as mihis one, however, was different.

  This one was quite small, almost transparent, with shiny scales all over its body, refleg the light from the fmes. Its presend aura were quite weak, as if it could disappear any time.

  It was small, almost transparent, its body covered in shiny scales that reflected the light of the fmes around us. Its presence was faint, its aura weak, as if it might vanish at any moment. Despite feeling like the weakest dragon I've ever met, there was something strange about it—something I couldn’t quite pce.

  Master’s voice echoed in my mind. 'That dragon is my friend's familiar. Don't judge it by its looks.' His words sent a ripple of caution through me. If Master felt it necessary to warhis creature was no ordinary oppo.

  The oppo caught my attention—a fox. I’d seen something like it before, but this one seemed to have ara tail. Its fur was a deep red, and its tails dripped with blood that floated around it. The sight was scary.

  'Is it bleeding? Why would its master send it out in such a weakeate?' I wourning the question over in my mind, and asking my master.

  'That is a ailed Blood Fox. It seems to have unlocked seven tails, so be careful as well. It seems to be Emily's beast. Emily is the human in blue.' Master kindly respoo me, always eager to teach me hings.

  I didn't know how to react to the sight of the fourth beast. It had too many heads and its body was covered with shiny blue stones. It had the body of a snake, and its scales looked quite sturdy.

  Despite its uling appearance, something primal stirred i wasn’t unpleasant to my eyes, and something deep in my bloed me to roast this beast and devour it.

  Then my gaze nded on the final beast, and I couldn’t help but sigh.

  H with slow, deliberate fps of its wings, it was surrounded by a faint aura of flickering fmes, radiatihat reached me even from a dista looked... like me.

  The Phoenix across from me was both familiar and strange, like a darker version of myself. Its feathers were bck with streaks of red, while mine was red with golden edges.

  I could feel it dev the fire elements around it, instead of simply abs them. Sensing my gaze, it turned, its calm eyes assessing me.

  I didn’t like its look o, so I let out a shriek, making it clear who was the best Phoenix here. There was only room for one Phoenix in Master’s field of view, and this ugly distant cousier backed off before I got mad.

  The signal for the fight was about to be given, and my mind was already made up. I’d chosen my target.

  Turning to my teammates, I issued a simple and, my voice carrying a note of finality. “Leave the Dark Phoenix to me.” I locked onto my prey, ready to prove who was the best phoenix.

  mimou

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