Plot of "Secrets of Tactics"

1. Arena Keeper: What a fight that was! You don't see that every day! But don't be in a hurry to leave, Ladies and Gentlemen! While the next pairs of contestants are waiting in the wings, we have a special treat for you! A young follower of Master of Tactics... excuse me... of the Godlike Master of Great Tactics has challenged the master of the arena! May the Gods have mercy on him! But wait... It seems our brave man has allies. Now that's more interesting. Release the beasts!

2. Arena Keeper: Unbelievable, they're still in one piece! But don't get too upset - that was just the first round! Next, something more exotic awaits you! An alliance of the elements and magic, sealed with enchanting seals! Get ready for a real extravaganza! You don't see that every New Year's Eve! Let the battle begin!

3. Arena Keeper: It looked like it hurt! It was a horrible sight! It wasn't like flipping through books in a library! I hope they'll have something to flip through after this fight! Now tremble! For the first time in this arena, monsters from the darkest depths of the forest! The horrors of nature itself! And a little surprise - a mechanical marvel! A killing machine! The terror of the fields and crows! Meet the incredible symbiosis of wild embodiments of wildlife and engineering!

4. Arena Keeper: What a surprise! Looks like the young master and his allies know their business! That was spectacular! But wait!.. That's not all! It looks like we're in for a bonus round! Our best tamer and... the Master of the Arena himself enters the arena! Unthinkable! The old master is making a comeback! Oh, watch out, youngster! No one has ever escaped his net.

5. Arena Keeper: It cannot be! The master of the arena is defeated! Don't worry, he's been through worse! But it looks like we've got some winners! May the applause of the audience be your reward! The stands erupted into a mixture of shouts of jubilation and condemnation. Some were genuinely happy for the success of the unknown youngster. Others refused to believe in the defeat of everyone's beloved master of the arena. And meanwhile the silhouettes of servants, cleaning the traces of the finished battle, flashed around, and suddenly the steward himself came to the soldiers of the squad. «Take your elf and get out of here before the old man wakes up, - he suddenly said sternly, - Otherwise this proud man will unleash on him the whole menagerie we have prepared for the Survival Tournament». Rude, but it's a good idea. Except the young man was long gone. It seems someone who looks like him was seen outside the arena. It's better got to find him before he does anything crazy again.

6. «Already better, but still not good enough!» - Bean shouted in a cautionary tone to the fleeing, cursing commander. Then suddenly the young man turned around and shrugged, chuckling lightly: «Fans... Once they've seen all the splendor of Great Tactics' craftsmanship, they always come back for more. Though sometimes embarrassed to admit their shameful pleasure. And you? Are you one of these traditional tactics buffs as well? You are not as bad as many others, although your maneuvers lack a certain lightness and freedom of thought. But I will teach you! As soon as I find my Grace! It wasn't in the arena, but... - The elf suddenly thought about it and started to look around, - I think she flew somewhere over there. Let's go ask somebody - it's full of my loyal fans!»

7. Bean XI: It's strange. The tactics of verbal humiliation they all pick up on the fly. But with the rest of the techniques, they're clearly not good at it. After meeting another "fan" of Bean, the squad slowly approached the small and seemingly quiet imperial village. «Mister Bean! Mister Bean! - suddenly heard the mischievous voice of a little boy running up to the elf, - Tell me more about the Master of Great Tactics!» – «The Godlike Master of Great Tactics!» - He was not able to utter a word, though, for there was an angry shout from one of the local thugs. But no sooner had he uttered another word than the disgruntled shout of one of the local thugs came from afar: «Get away from the kid! Stop filling his head with your stupid nonsense!» – «Like I said, it's a lesson they learn in a heartbeat», - The elf grinned as he drove the boy away and unsheathed his blades.

8. The roughnecks got what they deserved, and they immediately went home. But the trouble seemed to be just beginning. A detachment of local guards appeared ahead - and they were clearly unhappy with the disorder here. The Imperial soldiers might have tried to negotiate, given the status and position of their leader, but not with such a fellow traveler, who was already eager to cross blades with a new, even more formidable opponent.

9. «And you, too! Loser! My herbalist grandmother is a better fighter!» - Bean continued to shout after the retreating guard commander, exchanging verbal outbursts with him, and then suddenly turned to his allies and said with a contented smile: «I love making new fans! It's always so exciting! - He was silent again and looked away sharply, - There she is! Run after her!» - Before the Imperials knew what had happened, the young man had already disappeared around the corner of the nearest hut. A short dash after, and the elf was overtaken again. He was standing in front of two more disgruntled commanders.
Bean XI: My former partners. You still don't understand any of my instructions. Come on, I'll introduce you.

10. Bean XI: Look how they fight with each other. And I was the one with the problem? Just someone who wasn't very companionable. I don't know anything about tactics either. They're already hopeless. You're not. I'll give you a few simple lessons. You see those bad boys up ahead? They've been working out all day. "Pulling iron", as they say. They think they're stronger than a lot of people, especially people like me. But is it true? Let's find out!

11. Bean XI: There! Now ask yourself this question. How strong would they be if they all came together as one fist, instead of rushing forward in small groups? Don't divide what can be one! He willed it! Think about it while we're on the road... And I think I know where she's headed. There's a wandering merchant's camp not far away - fun guys. Taught me some special tactics for playing Two Towers. I didn't know there were so many hidden rules. Even though I lost my last cape to them, I really enjoyed watching the game of real masters of card tactics!

12. Wandering merchants turned out to be ordinary smugglers, moreover, they rob gullible travellers. However, the Imperials were not at all surprised. Still, this was to be expected. Fortunately, the villains got what they deserved. Most of them. The remnants of the broken gang hurried to crowd around the commander who appeared on the outskirts of the camp. «And now about the basics of verbal humiliation, - suddenly said Bean, - If your partner or student is a complete mediocrity - tell him about it! This should push him to get better! Look here…» The elf looked at the remaining smugglers, took a defiant pose and shouted loudly: «Hey, stupid! What are you sitting down for?! We've destroyed your camp! - the young man's gaze returned to the allies, and he himself said with a satisfied grin, - Now they jump out of their pants to act smarter and quicker».

13. The last enemies were finished - and the elf suddenly bent over the body of one of the smugglers, pulling off a green elven cloak from him. Throwing it over himself, Bean assumed a proud pose and smugly declared: «I told you that one day I will be able to win it back!» However, his face twisted into a grimace as he smelled the sharp smell of hops, with which the cloak was soaked through and through. Throwing it back, the young man suddenly added: «Although without it, it’s even somehow more familiar. Nothing hinders my masterful movements», - he definitely made several graceful combat steps, and as soon as he jumped to the side in the next movement - in the place where he stood a moment earlier, it struck a discharge of magical lightning. It's an ambush!

14. A group of thieves. An interesting question is... Were they in collusion with these smugglers? Or just happened to be around? Something is not clear here. However, Bean didn't seem to care about any of these questions at all. He even seemed to be in some kind of delight from the experience.
Bean XI: These guys know how to deal the killing blow. It's just a pity that their blow turned out to be not very fatal. For them, of course, it's a pity. And the attempt itself is definitely commendable! But let's go soon, I see a lot of footprints here. She must have gone there…

15. Another group of smugglers. It looked like they were waiting for someone - and clearly not the Imperials, who caught them by surprise. Most likely, they have another camp or a secret lair somewhere here - and the stone peaks of the mountain tops visible ahead above the crowns of trees clearly hinted where to look. «Dungeon! - suddenly there was a cry from Bean, rushing far ahead, - We are right there! I feel!» The find is good, but even if the lair is really there, now its inhabitants are fully armed for uninvited guests…

16. Not to say that it was a bad fight, but it could have been done much more gracefully. However, the young Master of Tactics did not seem to bother with a more strategic view of what was happening, completely devoting himself to only tactical moments and acting according to circumstances. So far, luck favors him, but for how long? Meanwhile, the main forces of the enemy were defeated, and the only thing left was to slam the fugitives who had taken refuge in the depths of the lair!

17. Only now, when the smugglers were completely defeated, the Imperials suddenly noticed strange mushrooms growing everywhere. Entire colonies, from small ones, no higher than a human foot, to those that go under the very stone vault. And the clouds of green spores hovering around it clearly warned Imperials to taste it. Looks like they grew mushrooms here to make poisons. Suddenly, Bean's attention was drawn to a strange, floor-height mushroom locked in a steel cage. As soon as the young man opened the valve, the mushroom suddenly came to life. Kicking the elf just below the knee, he immediately ran to other cages, opening them and releasing dozens, if not hundreds, of his brothers. And they don't seem to be very friendly…

18. An army of living mushrooms? Could it be exposure to toxic spores? However, laying down their arms to test this, the Imperials were not eager. And the young elf did enjoy his tactical genius in a fight with a never-before-seen enemy. However, soon the whole cave shuddered, and a huge mushroom monster began to rise above the plantation. «As my grandfather used to say, who lived for two hundred years with an herbal grandmother: «Herbs and flowers are good, but mushrooms are not very», - Bean suddenly said, - «I think I'm beginning to understand the wisdom of his words!»

19. The mushroom monster was defeated - and smaller specimens began to scatter in different directions. Suddenly, strange shadows flickered all over the place, followed by the Vampire count, his face half hidden by the closed collar of his black cloak. Casting a brief glance at the elf, he looked at the rest of the squad and immediately said in his gloomy voice: «What the hell have you done here?! You've thwarted a secret Imperial security operation! Send you all to the carpet to the "Spider", but out of respect for your leader - disappear from my eyes! Just not in the same way. Our people are everywhere. Go through the cave - it's not safe in it, but you won't get lost for sure. Get out of here before I change my mind!»

20. The cave was indeed not very safe, but no underground monster is more intimidating than the gloomy bloodhounds of Councilor Feurlis. It is generally better not to get involved with them, and even not to intersect. In the meantime, the young elf was a little despondent. Either the gloomy situation had such an effect on him, or he finally lost track of the one he was following. Looking closely at the wall of hopeless darkness, he suddenly saw a female face appear in front of him with distinct notes of something serpentine. However, instead of a numbing horror, a friendly smile appeared on his face. «Hello, I'm Bean. And you?» - he suddenly said, in response to which the stranger only hissed furiously and again disappeared into the darkness, and the sounds of approaching monsters began to be heard from everywhere.

21. Bean XI: Incredible! How I envy her! This is probably the first time that the serpentman has experienced the mystery of Great Tactics. I would give anything to be in her place now. Well, except, perhaps, for my own life - it will still be useful to me. Now I understand why she brought me here. Cunning! But where is she herself? Let's go. I seem to see a way out. I must find her soon…