Meanwhile, deeper in the woods, the other two hunters were searching in growing frustration.

  “I swear I heard something,” one muttered.

  From behind a tree, Iyak whistled.

  “HEY! Over here!”

  The second hunter’s eyes lit up. “Got you!”

  He charged blindly.

  His partner hesitated. “Wait, don’t rush in—”

  But it was too late. The second hunter sprinted after Iyak, never noticing where he was being led.

  Soon, they were high up in the trees—thick branches like bridges. Iyak stood on one, arms spread wide like a magician at the climax of a trick.

  “You’ve run enough,” the second hunter growled. A flame flickered to life in his palm. “No more games. No more traps. This time, you die.”

  Iyak raised an eyebrow. “Wow. So dramatic. But just one question…”

  “What?”

  “If I’m trash… how’s a flaming garbage spell going to kill me, huh?”

  The hunter’s eye twitched. “SHUT UP!”

  He launched the fireball.

  But Iyak jumped off the branch.

  The fireball missed—and struck a sleeping tree behind him.

  Unfortunately for the hunter… that tree loved magic.

  It groaned, awakened by the spell’s energy. Roots exploded from the branch and coiled around him.

  “Wait—WAIT NO—!”

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  It absorbed the magic from his body, draining him dry. His screams echoed into silence, and all that remained was a dried-out husk.

  The third hunter arrived seconds later, eyes wide with horror. “What… what the hell is this forest?!”

  And from the shadows, Iyak’s voice echoed:

  “One more to go…”

  The last witch hunter stood amidst the scorched remains of what was once lush, emerald woodland—now reduced to ashes by his furious magic. His face twisted with rage, eyes blazing like twin torches.

  “I will not rest,” he growled, voice deep and cracked like dry bark, “until that boy’s skull is crushed beneath my boots and that Lamia girl’s head hangs from my wall.”

  Then—

  A chilling voice whispered from the shadows.

  “Funny… bad things sure happen fast to those who do bad things.”

  The hunter snapped his head around. Behind him stood Iyak, leaning against a gnarled, half-burnt tree, wearing a grin wide enough to curdle blood. The bark beside him still steamed from the last blast.

  “You,” the hunter hissed. “You’re the reason my friends are dead.”

  “Who else?” Iyak smirked, voice dripping with mischief. “I didn’t just do it—I enjoyed it. Like a warm bath, but instead of water, it’s blood… and instead of peace, it’s screaming.”

  Enraged, the hunter roared and summoned fire into his palm. “You won’t escape! After I burn you to a crisp, I’ll rip that snake girl’s head off and gift it to myself!”

  Iyak’s smile didn’t fade. “You talk a lot for someone who’s about to get outsmarted by a guy with no magic. I’m not going to kill you...” His eyes gleamed. “But you’ll wish I had.”

  “Try me!” the hunter bellowed and hurled a fireball.

  Iyak ducked behind a tree. The impact exploded like a mini-sun, shattering bark and sending embers flying.

  “You think trees will save you?!” the hunter laughed and screamed, “Flare Demolition!”

  A wave of fire blasted in every direction. Several trees cracked and collapsed, consumed in moments. The air turned to steam. Smoke snaked into the sky like the breath of a dragon.

  Iyak crouched behind another trunk, coughing. This guy’s insane… but reckless. He’s only two levels above his friends, but so much stronger. Now I get it. Levels matter—but brains win wars.

  The hunter raised both hands, now glowing with wild power. “Fire Regiraction!”

  A swirling homing fireball launched toward Iyak, screeching like a banshee.

  Iyak’s eyes widened. “What the—?! A heat-seeking fireball?! I don’t want to die roasted! I’m too handsome for that kind of death!”

  He sprinted, the fireball chasing him like an angry spirit. Behind him, trees ignited, leaves bursting into flames mid-air.

  “I hate magic! I really, really hate magic!” Iyak shouted, zigzagging, ducking, leaping over roots and logs.

  Suddenly, he spotted Lioris above—balanced on a thick branch, holding a rope, just as they planned.

  “Showtime!” he yelled.

  Just as the fireball closed in, Iyak grabbed the rope and swung up. The fireball slammed into the tree’s base, blasting it apart into flaming splinters. Iyak crashed onto the next branch, panting.

  The hunter, watching from afar, sneered. “Bullseye. That loudmouth finally shut up.”

  Back in the tree, Iyak exhaled. “Holy hells… I was nearly flame-grilled like a festival chicken. Thanks, Lioris.”

  She nodded and vanished into the foliage, slipping into her role.

  Meanwhile, the hunter began stalking the woods again.

  Lioris stepped out slowly into a clearing, eyes lowered. Her hands were up in surrender. Her voice trembled as she spoke, “Please… don’t kill me. I surrender.”

  The hunter stepped forward, sneering like a predator. “You think I’ll let you live after you helped kill my friends? I’ll tear your scales off and sell your corpse to the Black Market.”

  He raised his hand, fire swirling.

  THWACK!

  A powerful spinning kick hit him from behind—Iyak had returned.

  But… the impact stopped inches from the hunter’s body. An invisible wall shimmered faintly, catching the blow.

  Iyak landed, frowning. “An invisible barrier? So magic can do that too… the strength depends on the caster’s magic reserve. Huh.”

  The hunter turned, rubbing his jaw. “You’re alive. Good. Now I can kill you myself.”

  He stepped forward, crackling with energy.

  “You think I can’t fight up close just because I use magic?”

  Iyak rolled his neck and cracked his knuckles. “You look like a walking campfire. Let’s see if you can brawl without burning down the forest.”

  Their eyes locked.

  Lioris disappeared back into the woods.

  Iyak took a stance.

  The forest was scorched, the air smelled of ash and burnt bark—but tension rose like thunderclouds.

  This was going to be a fight to remember.