The sky above Govart's arena was clear. The crowd had gathered, their cheers echoing from the stone stands. Four floating crystal monoliths hovered at the corners, projecting magnified images of the match for all to see.
I floated slowly to the center of the arena, cloaked in a thin layer of foul-smelling fog — not thick enough to knock out the judges, but just enough to keep my identity hidden.
> "First contestant: The Mysterious Stinky Golem!"
Cheers and laughter mixed in the crowd. Some weird fans even held banners saying "STINK = VICTORY!"
> "And his opponent... the Mini Thunder Dragon: Velthra, Lightning Wings of the Zolgar Mountains!!"
**BOOM!!**
Lightning cracked across the sky as a black-scaled creature descended, wings thin like bat leather glowing blue. Sparks danced across his body, and his eyes shone with electric fury. He opened his mouth and... smirked.
> "You're no golem. But I don't care. I'll melt you down."
I stared back flatly. "Go ahead and try."
---
**DING!**
The gong rang. The battle began.
Velthra shot forward instantly, leaving a blur and a buzzing "ZzZZzzzzTTT!" in his wake. I barely had time to react, but my Titan Stench emerged — the left arm forming a dense fog shield layered like smogged steel.
**BZZZT!!**
The first strike: Velthra's head slammed into the Titan shield, lightning snapping through the air. The impact shook me down to my cracked shell.
> "Fast…" I muttered.
I countered — the right Titan Stench arm turned into a spiked whip. I lashed it at Velthra.
But he dodged with ease, gliding up high. Then—
**ZRAAAAKK!!**
—he spat a bolt of lightning from above. I curled into a ball and summoned both soil and fog to shield myself.
> "Dad, you need altitude!" Abu shouted from outside the arena.
> "Try the Titan Stench staircase!" Belang added.
I immediately reshaped the Titan Stench — into long legs like stilts. Four rotten pillars lifted my body off the ground.
> "Titan Stench... Four-Legged Stink Tower!"
Suddenly, I had a bird's-eye view of the entire arena — perched like a king on a throne of wobbling black fog above a battlefield buzzing with storm winds.
The crowd burst into laughter and awe.
Velthra chuckled too. "Weird. But… interesting."
He charged again from above.
I fired my next weapon: **Putrid Flame Titan Spears** launched from the top of the tower, aimed near Velthra's path. The heat was intense enough to make him recoil mid-air.
Spear after spear — not to kill, but to drive him down.
Finally, Velthra crashed onto the ground, kneeling, his wings flickering from imbalance.
> "Now!"
I leapt from my tower, my body spinning into a foul, spiked ball — propelled by a Titan Stench boost like a rocket.
**BOOOOM!!**
I smashed into Velthra, burying him into a pool of black fog and mud. Lightning still sparked... but weaker now.
---
**DINGGG!!**
> "Winner: The Mysterious Stinky Golem!!"
The arena went dead silent.
Then it **exploded** with wild cheering.
Many were in disbelief... but more were now **curious**.
I rose from the sludge and looked toward the sky.
> One more step. The final awaits.
> And this stench...
> …was just the warm-up.