"Hurry up! It's starting!"
"That idiot, I hope it's a joke!"
Hope and Cid raced through a corridor of the arena and arrived at the stands where the crowd was roaring.
They were leaning against a fence, their eyes wide.
On the ground, Maxim, in combat uniform and fuming with determination, stood facing Dora, who was sitting on the ground.
"Why? Why? Why is this happening?!" Hope trembled.
Near the barrier, Candace, the nobles, and the council members watched with tense gazes.
Maxim, with a headband on his forehead, had saliva dripping down and showing his teeth.
"I'm here, monster! Now let's hurry! Come on!"
In the audience, people were murmuring, worried about the fate of the young man.
The council members trembled a little, then a wave of panic swept through the arena as Dora stood up.
Hope flinched and struggled against the fence.
"Why? How? Why is he here?!"
