The tension in the air didn't fade.
Lillian and Camille held each other's gazes for a long moment, the unspoken weight between them hanging thick in the air. I could feel it—something just beneath the surface, something neither of them was saying.
Camille wasn't just making an offhand remark. She had noticed something. And Lillian—Lillian wasn't denying it.
Before I could open my mouth to demand what was going on, Ms. Liora clapped her hands together, drawing our attention back to her.
"Well done, all of you. You've survived the first night." She smiled, but there was a glint in her golden eyes that made my stomach twist. "But don't get comfortable yet. You're not even close to being done."
Claire groaned. "Oh, come on. We just fought for our lives. Can't we get a little break?"
Ms. Liora tilted her head. "You'll get a break. If you earn it."
That didn't sound promising.
"Now," she continued, placing her hands behind her back. "Let's discuss the next stage of the Trials."
I tensed, exchanging a glance with Lillian. She didn't say anything, but the slight furrow of her brow told me she wasn't at ease either.
Ms. Liora gestured behind her, and from the trees, a large wooden board hovered into view, glowing slightly with magic. The words SECOND TRIAL: STRATEGY & SURVIVAL shimmered across the surface.
"You proved your ability to fight," she said smoothly. "Now, let's see if you can think."
The air around us grew colder.
"In this next stage, you won't be facing the monsters. You'll be evading them. The goal is simple: make it through the forest to the next checkpoint—without getting caught."
Camille raised an eyebrow. "And if we do get caught?"
Ms. Liora smiled sweetly. "Then you'll just have to hope you're fast enough to escape."
Yeah. Not terrifying at all.
Lillian exhaled, tucking a strand of golden hair behind her ear. "So we're expected to move undetected while creatures are actively hunting us."
"Correct," Ms. Liora confirmed. "And don't get too confident. These creatures are different. They are fast, they track their prey—and most importantly, they hunt in packs."
A heavy silence followed.
Claire groaned, rubbing her temples. "This school is actually insane."
"Agreed," I muttered.
Lillian, on the other hand, remained unshaken. If anything, she seemed more intrigued than anything else. "How much time do we have to reach the checkpoint?" she asked.
"Two hours," Ms. Liora replied. "If you take longer than that, well… let's just say the predators won't be holding back."
Lovely.
Ms. Liora clapped her hands together again, and the board behind her shimmered, splitting into multiple glowing sheets of parchment. They floated toward us, stopping in front of each pair.
"These are your maps," she explained. "They contain basic layouts of the forest and the general location of the checkpoint. However—" her lips curled, "—you won't be the only ones with maps."
I frowned, glancing at the parchment hovering in front of Lillian and me. "What does that mean?"
"It means," Ms. Liora said, "that your hunters will have them too."
Silence.
The meaning of her words settled over us slowly.
The monsters would know where we were going.
They weren't just chasing us at random.
They were tracking us.
Lillian reached out, taking the parchment and scanning it quickly. Her jaw tensed slightly, her fingers gripping the paper just a little too tightly.
Camille whistled lowly. "Now that's brutal."
"Everything about this is brutal," Claire muttered.
Ms. Liora took a step back, her expression unreadable. "Now then. Any questions?"
I hesitated. There was something that had been bothering me for a while now, something I hadn't had the chance to say. What was that thing Camille noticed about Lillian? The way she fought—what had been different about it?
But before I could ask, Ms. Liora lifted a hand. "Then, let's begin."
A pulse of magic rippled through the air.
A soft rumble shook the ground beneath our feet.
And then—
The forest came to life.
The trees stretched, twisting unnaturally, the shadows shifting like they had minds of their own. In the distance, a low, guttural growl echoed through the air.
The hunt had begun.
Lillian turned to me, her eyes glowing faintly in the dim light. "Stay close," she murmured. "And don't fall behind."
I swallowed, gripping the parchment.
No choice now.
"Let's go."
The moment we stepped into the forest, the atmosphere shifted. It was different from the maze—darker, more suffocating. The air was thick with something unnatural, a creeping sensation that crawled over my skin.
Lillian was tense beside me, her fingers subtly twitching near the hilt of her rapier. I could feel the shift in her aura—calculated, poised, ready.
"We can't afford to make any noise," she whispered, glancing at the map. "If these creatures really have our location, they'll anticipate every step. We have to be unpredictable."
I swallowed, nodding. The logical side of my brain understood that. The very emotional, very terrified part of me, however, was struggling not to imagine what would happen if we got caught.
Lillian nudged me forward. "Let's move."
We slipped through the trees, keeping low to the ground. I could hear the distant rustling of the leaves—not ours. Something was moving nearby. Stalking.
Hunting.
My grip on my dagger tightened. "We need to find an alternative path. If we follow the main route, we're done for."
Lillian hummed in agreement, her sharp eyes scanning the landscape. "There's a ridge up ahead. If we climb higher, we might be able to spot a clearer path."
I nodded, and we moved in perfect sync. Every step was careful, precise—Lillian took the lead, her movements fluid and effortless. I trailed behind, matching her pace, ignoring the hammering of my heart.
Then—
A branch snapped.
Not ours.
Lillian reacted before I even processed it, her hand grabbing mine and yanking me behind the cover of a large tree. I barely had time to brace myself before she pressed against me, pinning me against the bark.
Close. Too close.
Her breath was warm against my ear as she whispered, "Don't move."
I couldn't. Not even if I wanted to. Not with the way my entire body had gone rigid, heat pooling in my stomach for an entirely different reason than fear.
Footsteps. Heavy, slow.
Something large moved in the distance, just beyond the trees. I could hear it sniffing the air.
It knew we were here.
Lillian's grip tightened on my wrist. She was still pressed against me, and despite my best efforts to focus, my mind kept spiraling.
This was not the time to notice how soft her lips looked.
Not. The. Time.
Then, the sound stopped.
Silence.
I felt Lillian exhale, just slightly, and I barely registered that my own breath was coming in short, uneven bursts.
This was insane.
Slowly, she pulled away, but not before her fingers brushed against my cheek, almost absentmindedly.
"You alright?" she murmured.
I forced myself to nod, swallowing the heat in my throat. "Y-yeah."
Her gaze flickered to my face, amused. "You're all red."
"I hate you."
She chuckled. "No, you don't."
No, I really didn't.
But before I could get myself together, a new sound emerged.
A low growl. This time, much closer.
We froze.
And just like that, the game changed again.
They had found us.
A guttural snarl echoed through the trees, reverberating in my chest like a distant thunderclap.
They knew.
I didn't need to see them to feel their presence—the sharp prickling sensation of being hunted was all too familiar.
Lillian's grip on her rapier tightened. "Sera," she whispered, her voice steady despite the looming threat. "Get ready."
I didn't need to be told twice.
I drew my dagger, fingers tightening around the hilt as I scanned our surroundings. The darkness between the trees seemed to pulse, shifting with the movement of something unseen. The forest felt alive, watching.
Waiting.
Then, from the shadows, it emerged.
Tall. Lanky. Wrong.
Its limbs were elongated, moving in sharp, disjointed jerks, as if it hadn't quite figured out how to use its body. Its eyes—multiple, black, unblinking—fixed on us, gleaming with an unnatural hunger.
The moment I met its gaze, something cold slithered down my spine.
I swallowed hard. "Lillian…"
"I see it." She took a measured step forward, slipping into a defensive stance. "Just one—for now."
For now.
Which meant there were more.
The creature let out a clicking sound, its mouth splitting open too wide, jagged teeth forming an unnatural grin.
I felt my pulse stutter.
Then it moved.
Lillian was faster.
The moment it lunged, she sidestepped effortlessly, her rapier flashing under the moonlight. I barely caught the way her blade sang through the air before she slashed across the creature's abdomen.
Dark, oily blood splattered the ground.
But it didn't fall. It didn't even flinch.
Instead, it laughed.
My stomach dropped.
Before Lillian could react, its elongated arms lashed out—too fast—forcing her to retreat with a backflip. Its entire body was distorted, shifting like liquid, as if bones meant nothing to it.
Lillian landed a few feet away, jaw clenched. "Not good."
No kidding.
I barely had a second to think before the creature turned to me.
And suddenly—I was the target.
"Sera, move!"
I barely dodged in time, diving out of the way as its clawed hand slashed through the space where I had just been standing. A split second later, the tree behind me split in half.
Holy hell.
I scrambled back, heart hammering against my ribs. My first instinct was to conjure fire—but I hesitated.
Lillian wanted me to use ice.
The creature pivoted, already advancing, and I had seconds to decide.
I threw my hand forward.
[Frostbind]
A surge of cold burst from my palm, thick ice curling up its limbs, rooting it to the ground. The creature shrieked, its form twitching violently as the ice constricted around its body.
But—it wasn't stopping.
Thin, jagged cracks spread through the ice.
It was breaking free.
Damn it!
Lillian was already moving before I could warn her, a sharp glint in her eyes as she rushed forward.
"Hold it down," she ordered.
I didn't question her.
I thrust my hands forward, reinforcing the ice, thickening the hold as she leapt into the air, her rapier gleaming.
The moment the creature snapped through the ice—
She struck.
Her rapier pierced through its chest, driving deep into where its heart should have been.
For a moment—silence.
Then, the creature shuddered.
Its mouth opened—but no sound came.
It stumbled back, claws twitching.
And then, without warning—it collapsed.
Its body dissolved, dark liquid evaporating into the air.
And just like that, the fight was over.
I exhaled, my entire body trembling with adrenaline.
Lillian stepped toward me, her rapier dripping with inky blood, her breath a little uneven.
"Not bad," she murmured, her eyes locked onto mine.
I swallowed, still catching my breath. "You— You really don't hold back, do you?"
Her lips twitched upward. "You like it."
That shouldn't have made my heart race, but here we were.
Then, before I could formulate a response, she closed the distance.
Too close.
Her gloved fingers brushed against my cheek, tilting my face up toward hers. I stiffened, feeling the sharp contrast of her cool leather against my skin.
"You hesitated," she murmured.
I swallowed hard. "I—I was just trying to—"
Her thumb grazed my bottom lip, and my thoughts completely derailed.
"Lillian," I whispered, my voice embarrassingly breathless.
She tilted her head slightly, eyes gleaming with something unreadable. "You're getting better," she admitted, voice softer this time. "But next time—don't think. Just act."
I nodded, swallowing back the warmth pooling in my stomach.
She smirked, her voice dripping with amusement. "Good girl."
Oh. Oh no.
A shiver ran down my spine, my entire body locking up. I wasn't sure if it was from the residual adrenaline of the fight or something far, far worse.
I turned away so fast I nearly tripped over my own feet. "What happened to the innocent princess in the garden?" I blurted out, my voice an octave higher than usual.
Lillian let out a low chuckle, the sound absolutely sinful. "Whatever do you mean, Sera?" She leaned in, her breath warm against my ear. "Did you think I was some delicate flower?"
I swallowed, hard. "I mean—yes?!" I squeaked.
Her laughter was soft, teasing. Dangerous.
She reached out, tilting my chin up with two fingers, forcing me to meet her gaze. Her emerald eyes sparkled mischievously under the moonlight.
"Sera," she murmured, her tone velvet-smooth. "I was never innocent."
I almost stopped breathing.
Lillian's smirk deepened as if she knew exactly what she was doing to me. Then, just as effortlessly as she had thrown me off balance, she stepped back, adjusting the sleeve of her uniform as though nothing had happened.
Meanwhile, I was on the verge of cardiac arrest.
"You should be more careful," she mused, brushing a stray leaf off my shoulder. "It'd be a shame if you got too distracted during the Trials."
I exhaled sharply, trying to gather the last remains of my dignity. Too late.
"R-Right," I muttered, forcing myself to focus as we resumed our path forward.
Lillian walked ahead of me, calm and composed as ever.
I, on the other hand?
An absolute mess.
It's always the innocent ones.