Wizard: I crush legends with martial arts.

The deafening sound of war drums seemed to be a summons to all the minotaurs.

All the minotaurs in the maze town put down their work and gathered at the uppermost part of the maze town.

The arena was a very spacious plaza, clearly not built by the minotaurs, but rather a remnant of the original ruins.

At the edge of the square, there is a totem-shaped building that has been modified to resemble a tall tower. A flower trellis has been erected in front of the building, decorated with lush green vines and colorful flowers.

Beneath the flower stand lay a smooth, soft animal skin cushion. A minotaur girl wearing a flower crown, with a face remarkably similar to Leo's, a face as pale as paper, little curvature, and short horns that simply extended horizontally from her forehead, looked sickly and was kneeling there.

Her elaborate attire seemed unable to dispel her deep sorrow, as if this were not a joyous occasion related to her marriage, making her appear exceptionally melancholic and fragile.

Cushions were also placed in front of the flower stand.

Sitting on the cushion was a slightly aged man with graying sideburns and beard, but still undeniably a majestic male minotaur.

He was none other than Tarcoz Asti, the patriarch of the Minotaur tribe.

Beside him stood Ganges Bosak, the chieftain of the fox clan, who had happened to be there to witness the ceremony.

"What a beautiful day!" Takoz looked up at the sky and laughed. "The heavens are blessing the birth of our tribe's new chieftain and your husband, Linna! Isn't that right, Linna?"

"Yes," the minotaur girl called Linna replied softly, appearing resigned.

Gangus glanced at the registration point below the steps. He saw Leo, whom he had met just yesterday, registering with Alphonse and Mia.

He raised an eyebrow slightly, but he didn't intend to reveal that Alphonse and Mia had transformed into minotaurs using the Transformation Orb he had given them.

These minotaurs, whose heads are filled only with muscles, could not possibly see through the disguise of the Transformation Orb.

Ganges was absolutely certain of this.

He chuckled softly. "Chief Takoz, are females also allowed to participate in this tournament to choose a husband for your daughter?"

Takoz naturally saw Leo at the registration point, but he didn't give his youngest daughter a friendly look.

After a moment of silence, he said, "The sacred tournament system cannot be changed. Any minotaur over the age of sixteen can participate! Only the strongest minotaur warrior can become the chieftain of our tribe!"

Ganges, however, seemed determined to rub salt in the wound. "Then I have high hopes for Chief Takoz's youngest daughter, Leo. But if she wins, Linna's husband will have to be someone else, won't it?"

Takoz snorted coldly, exhaling two puffs of hot air from his large nostrils. "That idiot daughter of mine has cut ties with me! She no longer considers me her father!"

As he spoke, his gaze drifted to a massive, dark-skinned minotaur in the distance. "If I can't even defeat a female, I have no reason to entrust the position of chieftain to Linna!"

"So, Chieftain Tarkoz, you already have a suitable candidate in mind," Ganges said with a faint smile, changing the subject. "Can tauren from other races also participate in the war?"

"Sure! As long as they're minotaurs!" Takoz nodded. He had also noticed that the two minotaurs following Leo were not from Labyrinth Town.

Ultimately, it's the ingrained patriarchal mindset that's at play. If Leo were a male minotaur, Tarkots would absolutely dedicate all his resources to raising her.

Unfortunately, she was female, and from birth she took away Tarkots' beloved partner and absorbed a lot of life force, so that her sister was also plagued by illness and was extremely weak from a young age.

Knowing that she shouldn't blame Leo for this, Takoz just couldn't get over that hurdle in her heart.

At this moment, Leo was explaining the rules of the duel to Alphonse: "You can't kill your opponent. You can only win if your opponent loses consciousness or admits defeat. With your size, it's best to snipe your opponent's vital points."

As she spoke, Leo gestured, "The Minotaur race all have bodies of steel. Attacking the head, chest, or neck won't cause much damage. You can choose to actively attack the opponent's lower body to cause the greatest damage."

"The lower part." Alphonse was a little embarrassed. Leo's understanding of combat was truly... in line with his own, going straight for the lowest level.

This reminded Alphonse of his early days in the martial arts world, when he used to frequently use groin kicks.

Men suffer the most pain, and unless they are masters who have practiced Iron Crotch Kung Fu or have protective Qi, a single blow can often be effective.

Alphonse had received the special weapon for the duel: a metal staff as thick as a bowl and nearly two meters long, but both ends were heavily wrapped in soft animal hide to minimize the damage from stabs.

But this stick weighs over a hundred pounds; if an ordinary human were to be hit by it, their bones would break.

However, it seems that the strong minotaurs can withstand the impact of the metal rod.

Alphonse also noticed that there weren't many minotaurs participating in the tournament, only about ten, probably because they were wary of Leo's strength.

Judging from Ganglio's words, she is quite unsportsmanlike when she fights.

Suddenly, a sweating minotaur rushed forward, shouting, "Leo! Something terrible has happened! Melo has been attacked by monsters by the river in the mine! You must save her!"

Leo was startled. "Where?"

Alphonse grabbed the minotaur with annoyance. "At this time, you pull this stunt? It's obvious you're trying to make Leo give up the fight. You're lying, aren't you?"

"Really!" The minotaur struggled violently and shouted at Leo, "I'm not lying! I just happened to be passing by and saw it. Melo's parents have already rushed over, but I'm afraid they can't handle that monster. Only you, Leo, can defeat it!"

"Even if we know he's lying, what if he's not? Then it could turn into a situation that could kill Melo!" Leo was already extremely agitated. "The mine isn't too far from here, I'll be back soon. Alphonse, try to stall for time!"

Without waiting for Alphonse's reply, Leo dashed off.

"I'll go take a look too," Mia said, and quickly followed after them.

Although Leo didn't know any agility techniques, she ran incredibly fast. After a few leaps, she and Mia, who was close behind, had already disappeared from sight.

Alphonse was also quite helpless. Leo was frighteningly honest and naive. She fell for such a simple trick.

If she can't make it back in time and is treated as having forfeited, what will happen to her sister?

It didn't seem to make a difference; she had already planned to lead her sister out of Maze Town. (End of Chapter)