The morning sun was still weak, but Tassi was already walking at a good pace on the concrete sidewalk. The air carried the fresh dew, a pleasant contrast to the dust that had always hung over the Mocambo in the past.

  The birds are especially lively today, she thought, listening to the cheerful chirping coming from the ipê trees she had helped grow. Their long shadows still drew dancing patterns on the ground.

  She watched, not without a hint of pride, a new group of horses—sturdy animals Carlos was acquiring—pulling carts loaded with materials. The clatter of hooves on the packed earth was a common sound now.

  So this is what it was for, she reflected, her gaze sweeping over the unusual width of the streets. Carlos wasn't just building streets for people to walk on, but for carts. He really does see miles into the future.

  Despite the serenity of the path, a complaint echoed in her mind. But, my God, what an endless walk! My house is in the middle of nowhere. I already told Carlos to reserve one of the new apartments for me; I'm tired of crossing the entire Mocambo on foot every single day!

  As she walked, she noticed some workers still balancing heavy wheelbarrows. At least that invention was a relief for many... Speaking of which, he mentioned something else, a thing called... a 'bicycle'? He said it's the next step, that he's just waiting for the priority factories to be finished. It would be wonderful. The farmers live so far from everything, and I have to go from one end to the other! I already asked Kaio to put together a more efficient visitation schedule, with farms close to each other, but my legs are still my main mode of transport.

  These reflections, instead of calming her, only fed a growing irritation. When she finally spotted the town hall, her face was furrowed and her steps were shorter. But the unmistakable aroma of hot chocolate and cake fresh from the oven hung in the air, working like a soothing spell.

  She found a generous slice of "nega maluca" cake waiting for her on her desk. With the first sip of chocolate and forkful of the soft cake, her tension began to dissolve.

  I can't keep complaining, she thought, savoring the sweet and bitter mixture. It was all this work that brought the wheat back and brought the cocoa that makes these delights. There's a certain balance to it.

  She had just finished the last piece when Kaio, her assistant, approached silently and slid a sheet of paper onto the table.

  "Good morning, Minister. The visitation schedule for this morning."

  She took the list, and a sigh escaped her as she tried to read what was written.

  "E- Li..." she read aloud, with difficulty.

  Kaio stood still, watching her attentively, waiting.

  "A, Elia?" she tried again.

  "You forgot the 'S'. It's 'Elias'."

  The voice came from behind her, familiar and slightly amused. Tassi lowered the paper without turning around.

  "Hey, don't you have chief work to do?"

  Carlos appeared at her side, a slight, mischievous smile on his lips.

  "I do. And I'm doing exactly that: supervising my ministers. Especially my Minister of Agriculture, the one responsible for filling our granaries and, more importantly, our cups of hot chocolate."

  Tassi rolled her eyes, defeated.

  "As if the money from chocolate represented 1% of what steel brings."

  "Don't underestimate the power of sweets, Tassi," he retorted, his smile deepening. "The chocolates made with your cocoa opened doors that steel never could. I won over chiefs from other Mocambos with it. Speaking of which, the Popess is coming this week to discuss a serious matter. And I thought I'd sweeten that meeting with ice cream and chocolate. She seemed to really like the ice cream on her last visit."

  Tassi raised her hands in surrender.

  "Alright, alright, you win. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have an agricultural empire to run. Plants don't grow by themselves... I mean, they do, but the wheat insists on disagreeing. You know what I mean."

  Carlos gave a low chuckle, and even the serious Kaio cracked a smile. Defeated, but with her humor somewhat restored, Tassi grabbed her bag and headed out towards Elias's farm.

  Old Elias's property was on the outskirts of the Mocambo, where the orderliness of the streets began to yield to the pressure of the dense forest. The air changed, grew heavier, smelling of rotting leaves and damp earth. The sound of insects was sharper.

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  That's when she felt it—a prickling on the back of her neck, the unmistakable sensation of being watched. She stopped, her senses alert, and stared intently at the green, shadowy wall of the forest. Nothing moved.

  Was it just my imagination? No... The silence was the clue. A deep, unnatural silence, as if the entire forest was holding its breath.

  Instinct took over. She ran towards the house, her hands already trembling slightly as she opened her bag, grabbed her revolver, and loaded it with practiced movements. The attack at the beginning of the month might have been an exception, but caution had become her constant companion.

  She was almost there when a sharp shriek of pure terror cut through the air. A woman's scream.

  She quickened her pace and the scene unfolded before her: Old Elias, gripping a hoe, his knuckles white from the force. Behind him, his wife, trembled uncontrollably, her face pale as death. And before them, the cause of all the fear.

  The creature was a nightmare made flesh. Over eight feet tall, covered in long, dark fur, like that of an old bear. In the center of its forehead, a single, fixed-pupil yellow eye, and above it, an embedded red gem that pulsed with a sinister inner light. Its hands ended in claws that seemed capable of tearing through steel. But the most terrifying part was its belly: a vertical mouth, a toothed slit that opened and closed spastically, revealing dozens of sharp teeth and releasing a fetid breath, a stench of carrion and rot that filled the air. A Mapinguari.

  Tassi didn't think twice. There was no question, no warning. She raised the revolver and it spat fire.

  Bang! Bang! Bang!

  The shots echoed, hitting the creature's massive torso. The monster roared, more in surprise than pain, and retreated a few steps, shaking its head. But the projectiles hadn't taken it down; they seemed only to have irritated it. Taking advantage of Tassi's pause to reload, the Mapinguari advanced again on the couple, who were backing towards the cabin door.

  "No!" Tassi shouted.

  While her hands worked swiftly to load the bullets into the cylinder, she stomped hard on the ground. One of her wooden bracelets glowed, and a wall of earth and roots erupted from the soil, interposing itself between the monster and the elderly couple.

  The Mapinguari roared, now with genuine fury. It charged the barrier and, with brutal blows from its claws, shattered it in seconds. But its target was no longer the old folks. That magical obstacle had redirected all its rage towards the warrior.

  It turned and charged at Tassi, who finally snapped the revolver shut.

  She didn't retreat. Instead, she extended her free hand. Vines and lianas sprouted from the ground like serpents, coiling around the monster's hairy legs, trying to immobilize it. With a snarl of disdain, the Mapinguari tore the plants away with brutal tugs, but each step was now a burden, giving Tassi the precious time she needed.

  It was approaching rapidly, despite the hindrance. She raised the revolver, aiming. And the monster... dodged.

  Wait a minute, the thought was quick and clear. If it's dodging, it's because the shots hurt. The first ones just weren't enough.

  She tried to aim again, but the creature was agile, moving in a zigzag. Suddenly, it was just a few steps away, its claws raised for a final blow.

  Tassi was expecting this. She took a decisive step to the side and, with another stomp, raised not a wall, but a thick curtain of dust and earth, blinding the monster momentarily. As it roared and flailed blindly, she knelt, touching the soil with both hands, and the earth seemed to open up and swallow her, burying her in a shallow pit that sealed over her.

  Silence fell, broken only by the monster's panting breath. The dust settled. It looked around, confused. The warrior's presence had vanished. Then, it began to sniff the air, its wet snout twitching. Her scent was still there, coming from the ground.

  With a triumphant growl, it began to dig, earth and grass flying everywhere. Tassi, feeling the vibrations above, made the roots and plants grow once more, trying to bind its arms. It was useless. The beast snapped them with ease, obsessed with reaching its prey.

  In a few seconds, its claws unearthed a cavity, a shallow burrow. There in the depths, it saw what it was looking for.

  She was cornered. The monster roared, preparing for the final plunge.

  That's when Tassi raised the revolver. The barrel didn't tremble. The monster stopped, its single eye widening for a fraction of a second. It had fallen into a trap.

  But it was too late.

  Bang! Bang! Bang!

  The shots echoed in the confined space, deafening. One of them hit the yellow eye dead on. A gush of dark, viscous fluid spurted out. The monster didn't die immediately. Instead, it exploded in blind agony, roaring, beating against the earthen walls, making the ground shake. Tassi, protected in her niche, concentrated, sweating cold. The walls of the small cavern began to move, to compress, to crush the creature in a mortal embrace of earth.

  The roar became a muffled groan, until it was completely extinguished. Silence returned, heavier than ever.

  Exhausted, Tassi used the last of her strength to make the earth raise her, bringing her to the surface along with the inert body of the monster, which, as it rose, transformed into the body of a man.

  As soon as she emerged from the earth, like a flower sprouting from the soil, two figures appeared like shadows at her side: Shadow and Espectro.

  "Tassi! Are you alright?" Sombra's voice was firm, but laden with a rare urgency.

  She staggered and let herself fall onto her back on the ground, panting, her face dirty with earth and sweat.

  "I'm... in one piece," she groaned, her voice a thread. "But I used up all my mana... I've never... made a whole cavern before..." She paused, catching her breath, and pointed at the corpse. "And... the Mapinguari... was this man. A white man."

  Her eyelids grew heavy. The welcoming darkness came for her before she could hear the answer.

  Sombra knelt quickly, pressing two fingers against her neck. His dark eyes scanned her, searching for serious injuries.

  "She's just unconscious. Exhaustion and magical depletion. Her vitals are stable."

  He then raised his gaze and fixed it on Espectro, who was observing the body of the man who had been a monster, his face inscrutable.

  "Have any of our warriors... any of them... ever killed a Mapinguari alone?" Sombra's question was almost a whisper, heavy with meaning.

  Espectro kept his gaze on the corpse for a long moment. Finally, slowly, he shook his head in a silent negative. The answer was clear: no, never.