Chapter 379: Blatant Blackmail
Mavis shivered under the unyielding words, as did several of the other centaurs who had never seen their commander speak with such intensity.
But Sigrid didn’t care and instead gestured at her sister’s small equine body and coldly said,
"If you had been born with the body of a normal centaur like the rest of us—capable of traveling the same distances, possessing the same strength to wield a sword properly—then there would be no issue. None whatsoever."
Her voice sharpened. "But how can you accomplish any of that with such a small frame?"
She took a step forward, looming over her sister.
"The moment you venture beyond our territory, you will be killed. Instantly. Some monster will snap you up before you even realize you’re in danger."
She shook her head.
"And even if by some miracle you survive—you’ll drag the entire group down. Endanger the formation. Put Queen Poppy herself at risk."
She took another stepp forward, while Mavis stepped back.
"Do you want to do that?"
Another step forward. Another step back.
"Do you, Mavis? Tell me—do you truly wish to endanger everyone here?"
Now Sigrid stood directly over her sister, and the contrast between them was stark beyond words.
Sigrid was the largest centaur present, a towering figure of muscle and authority, twice Luca’s own size.
Mavis was half her height, a tiny creature cowering beneath a giant.
It was like watching a mountain loom over a pebble.
But still—Mavis did not surrender.
"I don’t care, Big Sis!" She shouted, her voice trembling but determined. "Just because I’m small doesn’t mean I can’t fight! I have my own way of doing things—my own methods—and I’ve shown you! I’ve shown you so many times!"
Her hand darted toward the satchel on her back, reaching for something inside.
Luca caught a glimpse of tools—strange implements, metal parts, something that looked like a modified hilt—
But Sigrid scoffed, and the sound was devastating.
"It’s useless."
Mavis’s hand stopped mid-reach.
"Whatever shortcuts you’ve devised to compensate for your weakness...
"...whatever tricks you’ve cobbled together in that workshop of yours..."
"...they are completely and utterly useless."
Sigrid’s voice was cold, final as she said,
"No matter what you do, no matter what you invent, you will never match up to the knights standing around you!"
"You will never be their equal!"
The silence that followed was devastating. The other centaurs shifted awkwardly, their expressions pained.
They had been caught in the middle of a family conflict they wanted no part of, witnessing words that should have been spoken in private.
But it was Mavis who drew every eye.
Her confident mask had finally shattered. Her eyes glistened, the sting of tears clearly visible despite her desperate attempts to hold them back.
The words had truly, deeply wounded her in a way that no insult from her could ever wound anyone else.
Even Sigrid’s expression softened as she saw the damage she had inflicted.
The ice in her eyes melted slightly, replaced by something that looked almost like guilt.
She hadn’t wanted to say these things. That much was obvious.
But she had forced herself to do so anyway.
She let out a deep, exhausted sigh and pressed her fingers to her forehead.
"Mavis..." Sigrid’s voice softened, turning almost pleading. "We have had this exact conversation a hundred times. I do not enjoy saying these things to you. It kills me to say them. But please..."
She looked down at her tiny sister with eyes full of sorrowful love.
"Just go back. Go back to the forge. Go back to the inner village, and leave this fight to us. You cannot handle the Hero. You will lose, and you will get hurt."
"So, please...before you suffer a injury you can’t undo...just go home."
Mavis stood frozen, her small body shaking.
Her eyes glistened with unshed tears, and for a moment, she looked like nothing more than a child who had been told, once again, that she was not good enough.
Then her expression hardened.
"No."
Sigrid’s eyes widened.
"I said no!" Mavis’s voice grew stronger. "In the past, I let you push me around! I let you tell me what to do and where to go and what I could and couldn’t be."
"But I’m an adult now! A grown-up! And grown-ups don’t need permission from their sisters to live their lives."
"Mavis—"
"So if you won’t let me be a knight..."
Mavis continued, her voice cracking at the edges.
"...then I’ll prove to you that I can be one. I’ll fight the Hero! I’ll beat him! And you’ll have no choice but to admit that I was right all along!"
Sigrid opened her mouth to respond—
But before she could, a third voice cut through the tension, carrying just a hint of amusement.
"Now, now. Is there really any need to push your sister away in such a harsh manner?"
Every head turned toward Luca, who had been watching the entire family drama unfold with an expression of profound interest.
Sigrid’s eyes narrowed. "Hero, this is a family matter. I apologize for any inconvenience, but please do not insert yourself into—"
"Family matter?" Luca raised an eyebrow. "You’re having this conversation in front of your entire clan. In front of your queen. In front of me, a complete stranger who was just invited to duel every single one of you."
He gestured around the clearing. "How can you possibly call this a private matter?"
Sigrid’s jaw tightened.
"And besides." Luca continued, pointing at Poppy. "Even your queen is uncomfortable. Look at her. She’s hiding behind Thea."
Poppy immediately straightened up, coughing.
"I was not hiding! I was...I was inspecting Thea’s mane for parasites. It’s a very important queenly duty!"
Thea’s expression remained completely flat.
"So you see." Luca said, turning back to Sigrid with a smirk. "This is very much a public matter. And as the guest of honor at this little gathering, I think I have a say in what happens next."
Sigrid’s eye twitched. "And what, exactly, would that say be?"
Luca turned to Mavis, who was staring at him with a mixture of suspicion and guarded hope.
"Your sister told you to leave. But I told everyone that any centaur could challenge me. And you’re a centaur. So the question is..."
"What do you want to do? Will you listen to your sister and back away? Or—"
His eyes glinted with challenge.
"—will you step forward and face the legendary Hero known throughout all the lands?"
Mavis’s breath caught in her throat.
Slowly, almost involuntarily, she turned her head to look at Sigrid.
Her sister was shaking her head silently, her eyes pleading—don’t do this, please, just listen to me—
Then she turned back to Luca.
He was watching her with an expression that was almost...encouraging. As though he genuinely wanted to see what she would do.
Finding courage in his gaze, Mavis straightened her spine.
"I’ll do it, Hero! I...I’ll fight you!"
Then, as if remembering who she was, she straightened her spine and let that familiar arrogant smirk spread across her face.
"Not only will I fight you—I will defeat you! And I’ll show everyone here exactly who the true strongest centaur in this land really is!"
Luca clapped his blade-hands together, the sound ringing out across the field. "That’s the spirit!"
Sigrid watched her sister accept the challenge, and her expression crumpled with helpless frustration.
She had done everything she could. Said every harsh word she could bear to speak. And still, Mavis was walking directly into danger.
But she wasn’t entirely powerless. She turned toward her sentinels, her gaze carrying a clear, desperate message.
Do something. Stop her!
The centaurs caught her signal immediately. One by one, they began calling out.
"Mavis, please! Stop this madness!"
"Look at your frame! One hit from his wooden sword and you’ll be flying across the yard!"
"Just come back, Mavis! It’s not worth it!"
"Even Tiana couldn’t hold her ground! You barely even know how to hold a blade!"
The chorus of discouragement swelled, but Mavis merely sneered, spinning around on her short hooves to face her fellow clanswomen.
"It’s one thing for my Big Sis to tell me to go away."
"But when did you lot get the courage to do the same?"
The voices faltered.
Mavis pointed at one centaur.
"I still have your sword in my workshop, Georgia. Would you like me to return it right now—without finishing the repairs?"
Georgia’s face went pale.
"No, no, no! Mavis, please! Please repair my sword! I beg of you!" She clamped her mouth shut as though afraid another word might escape.
Mavis turned to another.
"You gave me your blade to replace the hilt. It would be such a shame if I...accidentally scratched it during the process. Accidents are quite common when you’re doing delicate repair work, you know."
"I won’t speak another word! Please—please don’t damage my sword!" That centaur, too, fell silent.
Mavis found a third victim.
"I was just forging your new sword. I’m about eighty percent finished. But I think eighty percent is perfectly fine, don’t you?"
"There’s no need for those additional steps. I can deliver it to you tomorrow as-is."
The threatened centaur shook her head frantically.
"No, Mavis—I mean, Lady Mavis! Please! I beg of you—please finish my sword!"
Similar threats flew around the gathering like arrows.
Mavis, it seemed, had every centaur’s weapon in her grip.
Their precious blades, their prized possessions, all dependent on her skills as a smith.
And no one, absolutely no one, dared to risk their equipment by challenging her.
Sigrid watched her knights crumble one by one, her expression growing more desperate.
She tried to signal them again—say something, anything—but every centaur avoided her gaze.
"Sorry, Commander." One of them muttered. "But she has my sword."
"Mine too."
"And mine."
"And my new one."
Sigrid’s face went through several shades of frustration before she finally turned to Poppy, her eyes pleading.
"My queen. Please. Use your authority. Order her to stop!"
Poppy looked at Sigrid, then at Mavis, then back at Sigrid. She was clearly torn between her duty and her very real fear of the tiny centaur.
"Mavis." She said, trying to inject authority into her voice. "A-As your queen, I order you to stand down. You must obey me. It is your duty."
Mavis’s face lit up with a sycophantic smile.
"Of course, my lady! I would never dream of disobeying you."
She paused. "But before I go, I should mention—that item you ordered from me? It’ll be ready in a day or two."
Poppy’s eyes lit up. All traces of royal authority vanished in an instant.
"Really? Really? It will truly be ready so soon?!"
Mavis nodded, but then a calculating look crept into her eyes.
"Unfortunately, my lady, if I am forbidden from fighting the Hero today...I fear I will lose all motivation. All spirit. The work will only be pushed back further and further."
She sighed dramatically. "I may not even finish it at all."
Poppy’s face went pale with horror.
"No, no, no! Go ahead! Fight the Hero! I am not stopping you at all! In fact, I encourage it! Fight him with everything you have!"
Sigrid stared at her queen with an expression of utter, soul-crushing betrayal.
Poppy, for her part, simply looked away, pretending she had absolutely nothing to do with this turn of events.
Thea sighed heavily, shaking her head at how effortlessly her queen had been manipulated yet again.
Seeing every obstacle swept aside, Mavis turned to face her sister one final time.
Her gaze was fierce—not with hostility, but with quiet, burning determination.
It was a look that said, clearer than any words: Today, I will prove you wrong!
She then stepped forward, squaring her shoulders, and faced Luca with the posture of someone who had been waiting her entire life for this exact moment—the chance to demonstrate her strength, her worth, her right to stand among warriors.
"Hero." She declared, her voice ringing out across the silent field. "Prepare yourself!"
"You are about to face Mavis—the greatest smith and warrior this centaur race has ever produced!"