A brief, deathly silence fell over the entire arena.
The once-roaring lake surface seemed to have been muted.
The competitors on the other canoes, who had been busy tripping each other up, froze in their movements, staring dumbfounded at the boat that had been effortlessly cleaved in two and the black monster that slowly retracted its giant axe, reverted to its original form, and licked its lips as if still savoring the moment.
It was unclear who was the first to let out a terrified gasp.
The next second, as if by prior agreement, the other two boats that had been trying to approach the "black cat"—"Crow Swarm" and "Red Death"—acted as if they'd seen a ghost. The helmsmen desperately turned their rudders, and the rowers frantically back-paddled, putting as much distance as possible between themselves and that dangerous stretch of water.
Their faces were etched with the fear of "We're out, you guys have fun on your own."
For a moment, an eerie no-man's-land appeared around the "black cat."
"Wow," Victor blinked, looking at Venom, his voice filled with newfound admiration. "Buddy, you must be a pro at chopping wood."
Venom snorted proudly, its large white eyes narrowing. "Next time, we can try splitting something harder."
Wednesday took a deep breath, forcing herself to recover from the simple yet brutal visual shock. She glanced at the opponents giving them a wide berth and the "Golden Beetle" ahead, which also seemed to have picked up speed.
"Target unchanged," her voice regained its icy calm, though a keen listener might detect a trace of tightly suppressed... excitement?
"Full speed ahead. Run them over."
The "black cat," like a black arrow freed from all restraints, cut through the water, heading straight for that glaring patch of yellow.
Venom seemed thoroughly ignited by the exhilarating feeling of chopping wood—and a boat—and was in a state of extreme excitement.
Its massive white eyes gleamed with wild light as it suddenly poked Victor with a tentacle, its voice brimming with the joy of discovering a new toy:
"Hey, bro! Can I use... use that? Right now! The mood is perfect!"
Victor was momentarily stunned, then as if a switch had been flipped, a huge, maniacal grin instantly spread across his face, his eyes sparkling with the same light as Venom's.
"Oh! Great idea! You're a genius!" He laughed, his voice sounding a bit torn by the lake wind. "If not now, when?!"
Venom grumbled excitedly, its massive body squirming like a black, viscous bag of tricks.
The next second, several round, blackish objects were "spat" out from within it, landing steadily in its outstretched palm.
It coiled a few up with several of its own tentacles and enthusiastically stuffed the remaining ones into Victor's arms.
"Hey! Girls! Do you want some? Let's play together!" It even "politely" asked the petrified Wednesday and Enid, shaking the dangerous black spheres in its hand.
Enid's hair stood on end! An icy chill of fear shot up her spine to the crown of her head!
Hand grenades?!
Even for a "no-rules" competition, this was going too far! Were they trying to blow the entire Black Lake sky-high?!
"Don't worry~" Victor, as if seeing through their terror, explained casually in a "lovely weather today" tone while deftly pulling a small pin from one of the black spheres.
"Homemade! Cocoa powder, potassium nitrate, sugar... and a bit of my secret ingredient! Very, very low yield! Just like big firecrackers! Mainly for the bang, to scare people..."
Before his words even finished, his arm swung in a standard throwing motion—
Whoosh—BOOM!!!
The black sphere traced a graceful arc, landing on the water surface less than five meters behind the "Red Death."
Immediately after, a dull yet immensely intimidating explosion roared! A thick column of water shot skyward, reaching two or three meters high.
The murky lake water poured down like a torrential rain, drenching everyone on the "Red Death," who screamed in terror. Their rowing movements became completely distorted, and the boat began spinning wildly on the water.
Victor and Venom tilted their heads in unison, observing the effect.
"Seems the potassium nitrate ratio was just a tad high?" Victor scratched his chin.
"Perfect!" Venom roared excitedly. "That's the right kick!"
"I don't see anything 'low yield' about that at all!!!" Enid finally found her voice, shrieking tearfully.
Wednesday's expression could no longer be described as icy; it was a dead silence on the verge of unleashing destructive force.
Her fingers gripped the steering oar tightly, the joints emitting faint cracking sounds from the strain.
This was more powerful than the military-grade hand grenades she'd used for fishing in the lake outside the manor.
Are small workshops this capable?
She wanted to stop it, but it was already too late.
Venom and Victor, having received "permission" and "encouragement," were like two huskies caught in the throes of a frenzied carnival!
"Watch this!"
"Hahaha! Over there! 'Crow Swarm'! Give them a heavenly shower!"
"Take this! Chocolate-flavored depth charge!"
One grenade after another was hurled by them.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!
It was as if the lake surface was under intense bombardment!
Columns of water erupted one after another, the tremendous booms continuous, the murky water churning as if boiling.
The competitors went completely insane. This was no longer a competition; this was a fucking reenactment of the Normandy Landings!
The instinct for survival overwhelmed any desire to win. Every boat that could still move mustered every ounce of strength, rowing desperately away from the "black cat" at speeds that seemed to break historical records.
Their faces no longer held competitive focus, but pure, primal fear of the two maniacs behind them and their monster that could conjure weapons from thin air.
"Madmen! They're all madmen!"
A crew member of the "Crow Swarm" shouted tearfully while rowing for his life, "I'm done with this competition! I quit! Mom, save me!"
The entire arena descended into utter chaos. Order vanished, leaving only the sounds of explosions, cries, and the increasingly excited, maniacal laughter of Victor and Venom.
Meanwhile, on the distant spectator stands, the once-deafening cheers and shouts had long since disappeared without a trace.
All the spectators, including the teachers and Headmistress Larissa Weems, had fallen into an eerie, deathly silence.
People stared open-mouthed, dumbstruck by the war-movie-like spectacle on the lake: the pitch-black "black cat" continuously firing "shells," the columns of water erupting around it, and the other boats scurrying for cover.
Many faces were devoid of expression, filled only with bewilderment and shock.
This... this had far exceeded the bounds of "no rules."
This was simply... a performance of... terrorist attack proportions?
Headmistress Larissa stood at the center of the viewing platform, her silver-gray eyes slightly narrowed as she watched the central boat causing the chaos. Her face was expressionless, and no one could guess what the Headmistress was thinking at this moment.
Only the slight tightening of the corners of her mouth betrayed an extremely subtle emotion that might be called... a headache.
Aboard the "black cat," Victor pulled another pin, excitedly aiming at the patch of yellow ahead—Bianca's "Golden Beetle"—which was also accelerating frantically due to sheer terror.
"Hey! Captain!" He looked back at Wednesday, his face beaming with a childlike, pure joy of destruction. "Next target?"
Wednesday looked at the chaos they had personally created, at the opponents crying for their parents, then at Victor's radiant face full of "praise me," and the eager Venom beside him.
She was silent for two seconds.
Then, she issued her newest command, extremely slowly, coldly, and clearly:
"Aim better. Don't waste ammunition."