Page 45 of Monster's Baby

“I wonder how far away the targets will be this time.”

“Will the eliminated competitors please find places in the stands,” the announcer said.“The rest of you, find your positions around the arena.”

The European flag lit up halfway across the field, and Clarissa and I headed over to it along with eight others.

Once everyone was in position, the announcer started speaking again.“Each team has ten members.Your targets are the other teams.You may move in any way you see fit.Your spells must be non-lethal.If you injure another player, your entire contingent will be disqualified from the event.If you kill another player, your contingent will be disqualified from the entire Olympics.Your time starts in five...Four...”

My eyes widened.“We’rethe targets?”I hissed.

“So are they,” Clarissa grinned.“This will be fun.”She grabbed my elbow.“They didn’t say anything about other spells being used.”

“Is that allowed?”I asked, glancing around for an attendant.

She shrugged.“No time to figure it out.”

The announcer called the start, and immediately, three color darts headed our way.

I squeaked, cast invisibility on myself, and dropped to the grass.

Seven more darts collided high over my head, my instincts to stay low proving right on the money.Everyone had seen Clarissa and I walking on air earlier.Of course they’d assume I only knew one trick.

I took a moment to breathe and try to figure out my next steps while I transferred my invisibility spell to my hair elastic.We had been banned from wearing any jewelry in case of damages, and my ring finger felt naked without the family ring for the first time in a long time.However, people with long hair had the advantage of using hair elastics, and thus we had an object to attach our spells to.

Several others had turned invisible as well, I noticed, so I cast a spell on my eyes to see invisibility magic.

It wasn’t a common spell.Professor Reynolds had helped me build it for my term project last year when I had pointed out that it would be easier to search for specific dangerous kinds of magic rather than general magic, especially within the academy.

The only problem with the spell was that it dulled my vision for everything else.

About ten people flared to life where there had been nothing.

I got to my feet and started running toward the closest one.I’d have only one shot, and it had to be while I was moving, because as soon as I used magic, the color dart would indicate where I had been standing.

I took aim, fired, and immediately changed direction before I could see whether I had connected with my target.Several other darts exploded where I had been standing.

I moved on to the next person, repeating the process, until there weren’t any invisible people on the field.

Other than myself.

I wanted to remove the spell, since now it was hampering my vision instead of helping, and looked around the field of battle to make sure I was in the clear.

A stray dart headed directly for me, and I jumped to the side, only for it to curve back around and head for me once more.

“Shit,” I hissed.

A homing dart.

I didn’t know how the caster had done it.Tied to invisibility, I assumed, so I dropped the spell, and the dart fizzled out.

But now I was visible to everyone else, and multiple people cast their darts in my direction at once.

I squeaked again and cast incorporeal on my body.The darts passed harmlessly through me, but there was no way for me to cast spells on other people in this form, so I couldn’t stay this way.

Removing the spell and casting invisibility once more, I ran to the side of the amphitheater while I considered my next tactic.

If I shrank, I could target anyone who ran by me, but I’d be limiting myself only to a few people.

However...

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