"So, how should I proceed? Crush them all under my thumb? Should I toy with them? Take them seriously and let them keep their pride? Invite all challengers to approach at once? What should I do? Come to think of it... Elden duels usually bet their hair as status. Will I even have any challengers, or will they be running scared? I can imagine a challenger calling out my hair as a lie, challenging me arrogantly, losing dramatically, ending up being distant royalty of some kind..."

"Are you stupid?"

"Of course not. Well. Maybe. But all my points are valid. That is usually how these things turn out. There have been parodies in other cultures."

"There is no way that is going to happen."

Reiss hunched his shoulders and laughed maniacally while touching his fingertips together.

"Mwahauahahaha! You've fallen for my trap."

Lizzy smacked his head.

"Mwahauhaha...ha?"

The glare he received made him keep his head down.

Mwauahaha! The flag is set! Commence Operation RAS.

=

"You dare elect a fake as your Duel Substitute. Your arrogance this day will cost you everything."

The young Elden man that stepped into the dueling field reeked of bravado. His olive-green hair was short, a sign of a recent loss. His pointed chin raised high regardless.

The proclamation of Reiss' new role was recently announced, and there was already a massive line extending past the dueling arena. It was a field on the backside of the Queen's Hall, the area warded to prevent damage from spilling outside, scaling up all the way to the sky.

Zones marked the arena. Rocky areas. Crevaces. Swamp. A small stream steamed as it came into contact with lava. Fresh grass folded underneath the challenger's boots.

A scenario that wouldn't be found naturally in nature except maybe in Luddle Land.

"Are you prepared to answer for your blasphemy? I will pull out your dyed roots at their stems."

Reiss rolled his head dramatically, landing his gaze on Lizzy and the Queen. They sat in a separate raised booth and would referee the first fight. Lizzy twirled her thumb and index finger in a familiar gesture. It only made his shit-eating grin grow wider.

The growing spectators gathered in a nearby viewing area, hoping to learn something if the first challenger failed. Some were other challengers looks for a read on their potential opponent. Others watched in hopes of learning something new. The majority took bets, as was tradition for Elden duels. The wager was an odd one to other cultures.

They bet locks of their hair.

There was no gain other than bragging rights. If someone bet their entire head of hair and won, it showed often showed their foreknowledge and intuition. The losers would have to cut off anything they wagered. The shame was multi-purposed. One, it reminded them they still had more to learn. It humbled them.

The other one was to deter gambling addicts and thrill-seekers. If you had no hair to wager, no one would take you seriously. Their status diminished, making any business or work they regularly ran several degrees more difficult. Being ridiculed for having ill judgment did wonders for motivating future decisions.

And those that didn't learn would only fall farther and be separated, for the greater good.

Strangers might call it a ruthless system. Reiss thought it was ingenious. The politics were weird here, but the process had been refined into a tool that made its people stronger through their own decisions.

Seeing his opponent uncomfortable at the prolonged silence, Reiss flourish, declaring regally.

"Of course, challenger! Defeat me, and you will not only gain the keys to the Queendom, but I will also throw in an entire world for the taking!"

"What nonsense are you spouting, delinquent?"

The word was a curse on the boy's tongue. Reiss felt that the kid's perception was twisted. Shrugging it off, he spread his arms wide.

"Just what I said. I will add in the prize of an entire planet for the taking. If you can defeat me, that is."

The boy looked at Reiss like he was mad.

"Enough talk. Ready yourself. This will be over soon."

The kid set his stance wide, an old boxing stance.

A fist-fighter? No. A trick—points for trying, though.

Reiss relaxed his stance, turning off his barrier. Anything that hit him would hurt, but nothing would kill him save a dragon's fang. He needed to reaffirm his power. It also helped cement his confidence to the spectating Eldens.

Queen Eli addressed the crowd.

"The first match holds no consequence for the challenger, but should my new Duel Substitute lose, the reward remains the same. On my word."

To each fighter.

"May the Primal forces favor you."

The Queen waved her hand in commencement.

"Begin."

The fighter took a step, crossing thirty feet of grass in a single bound. The kid bounced, twisting his body, feinting a punch. Then the twisting continued, and his whole body flew like an arrow for Reiss' head. Hands behind his back, Reiss inched his head sideways, the blast blowing his hair back. A little closer, and it would have come undone.

"Frightening."

The kid didn't flinch, landing and sweeping low.

Reiss hopped. A second leg came up. Reiss caught it. Then the other came back around, aiming for his head again. Reiss let go of the leg he was holding. The boy swung wide, missing. The Elden landed with a flourish while Reiss finished his small hop.

"Don't underestimate me, trash."

"Putting the trash in trash talk, I see. Come then. Where is your magic at?"

The boy roared, sprinting forward before disappearing in a blur.

Predictable.

Reiss bowed, lifting a leg in a backward arc. Reiss' heel narrowly missed the kid's chin as he flipped away. Landing with a mana-infused stomp, the evergreen grass swayed with anticipation..

The ground beneath Reiss' remaining foot sank, putting him off balance.

The challenger aimed an enhanced fist at Reiss' opening. The next thing he knew, he was sent flying only to crash a dozen yards away, inches away from the lava. Hurrying to the stand, the Elden reassessed the hair-dying lunatic.

That should have landed. I didn't see what happened.

The pause allowed Reiss to retake his stance; he effortlessly extricated his foot from its rocky prison.

"I am still waiting. If you don't go all out, I will end this."

The boy snarled. Vanishing.

There was no trace. Reiss nodded.

"Better. But..."

Pressing his palms together, the sky above the canopy opened.

"...You've given me time to cast."

Taking inspiration from some annoying pests, an icy comet soared, breaking through the canopy above. The crowd was mesmerized. The kid reappeared behind Reiss, gazing up in astonishment. Lizzy's eyes twitched in recognition. Reiss was a fast caster.

The comet wasn't nearly as large as the one the Winter Sprites threw at him, but at half the arena's size, the disparity made little difference. If it landed, the duel would be finished.

"You're insane."

"So I've been told. What are you going to do? Can you defeat me before it lands?"

"Tch."

The kid took a stance. Clapping his hands together, his fingers pointed toward the massive projectile. Some of the crowd became nervous as nothing happened. Reiss only waited. He could see the power coalescing around the boy's hands.

The comet trailed ice—small pieces landing around the arena. Some skidded against the barrier, vaporizing. A stray piece landed in someone's soft drink.

The main mass closed in, breaking past the lower leaves.

The boy shouted.

Hands splitting.

Silence.

The comet separated. Two pieces. Sliced vertically.

"Better than I thought, to be honest. Now what?"

The comet landed to either side of them, creating a narrow passageway. In that instant, the kid charged through the divide—a straightforward approach.

A second shadow eclipsed them. The crowd shouted over the chaos.

The kid stopped, looking back up.

"Impossible."

A second comet trailed behind the first. Reiss smirked.

"Well?"

"It's too close."

"As I thought."

[Accelerate].

The kid didn't have time to think before he impacted the cascading comet. Blinking away the pain and tears, he felt the overwhelming chill of frost. The enormous pressure of the comet propelled him back towards the arena below. On the ground, Reiss made a familiar gesture, repeating the kid's earlier move.

Paling, he squirmed in his rocky prison.

"Prepare yourself."

"Wait-Wait-Wait!"

Too late. Reiss separated his hands. Slicing.

Eyes shuttered closed, he awaited death.

Nothing.

The pressure was gone. So was the cold. Only the wind on his cheek. Curiosity demanded his vision to return.

Stardust.

Trickling down in shining snowflakes, it blanketed the arena. The lava turned dormant. The stream froze, and the marsh solidified. An angelic figure waiting on the ground, arms outstretched. Hair as white as snow. Glittering magically.

Time seemed to slow for the still falling challenger, a moment to remember. The majesty of complete obliteration and serenity. Destruction and art. Beautiful as dangerous in equal measures.

Reiss caught the falling figure. Gently setting him down on his own two feet. Reiss patted a flinching shoulder.

"There. I believe that should wow the crowd. Although, I'm covered in glitter again..."

Reiss glowered, realizing his mistake.

Damn. I hope people won't mistake me for a woman again. I've already established I am a man, so it shouldn't be a problem, but there is always a chance.

Lost perusing his own thoughts, he didn't see the prostrated form at his feet. Then he heard the words.

"I have lost. Your skill and grace put us all to shame. Destruction and beauty intertwined."

His voice continued.

"I, Weyn Islly Sostro, heir to the Sostro throne, accept my loss."

Reiss had time turned to Lizzy off in the distance with another shit-eating grin. Queen Eli had her face in her hand, and Lizzy had folded her arms.

Weyn stood. The short, pale green hair falling to the ground. Weyn sported a shaved head.

Reiss questioned the loss. The hair wasn't on the line; the Queen had said so. By the color of the hair, it should have been precious. Reconsidering that it was already short when he arrived, Reiss concluded it wasn't as huge a loss to the young man as initially believed.

Good on him. It seems his attitude is in the right place after all.

The boy bowed before him—speaking words of gratitude.

"Please. Will you take me as your partner?"

The sound of a foot slamming the brakes. Tires screeching to a halt.

"Excuse me?"

"Will you take me as your partner?"

Weyn repeated, eyes sparkling. Reiss felt a chill down his spine.

"I'm sorry, but I am not attracted to men."

"But I am a woman."

Raucous laughter. He didn't need to look to recognize Lizzy's cackling.

Did she know all along?

A woman? Now that Reiss looked...

Yup. Weyn was a woman. Her physique could be misconstrued as boyish if one were fooled by her previous attitude. But the subtle details were unmistakable this close.

Was this how things were supposed to go? Did he just get proposed to? No, No, No! This wasn't right. Lizzy was playing a prank.

"I am sorry, but I'm already married. I can't accept."

"I don't mind being a second wife. If I can be your partner, I can raise the strength of my country."

"Ahaha. Ah... No. I refuse. Harshly."

"Then be my master?"

"Definitely not."

"Teacher?"

"Nope."

"Sensei?"

"How do you even—No. I won't teach you. Feel free to sign up for a rematch, but I won't go easy on you next time. I'll ruin that gender neutral face of yours."

To his horror, Weyn beamed widely, showing her perfect teeth. The leylines circling her cheeks bending upward.

"Really? Can we go again? How about right now? I can still fight."

"No. Others need a turn."

"It's fine. They are busy throwing up."

Startled, Reiss looked to the audience. They upchucked one after another in a gross and bizarre ensemble. Several more passed out entirely, lying in puddles of rainbow vomit.

Lizzy called out between fits of laughter.

"They all looked at your mana."

She was glad it wasn't just her.

"Mana? What about his mana?"

"Ohnoyoudon't. Not over these brand new clothes."

Reiss covered Weyn's eyes.

The Queen declared the duel over and that a short break would commence before new challengers could approach.

Weyn's vision returned. Reiss teleported away.

Far. Far. Away.