The final day of the Trials arrived with a thunderstorm.
Rain hammered the Academy grounds, turning the stone pathways into shallow rivers. Students who hadn't entered the gorge huddled under covered walkways, watching the entrance with growing anxiety.
Lan Yue stood at the gorge gate.
She had been standing there since dawn.
Liu Ruyan had brought her an umbrella two hours ago. Lan Yue had forgotten to open it. The rain soaked through her robes, plastered her hair to her face, and she didn't care.
"You're going to catch a cold," Liu Ruyan called from under the covered walkway.
"I'm fine."
"You've been saying that for three hours."
"Then stop asking."
Zhao Han sat nearby, wrapped in a thick cloak, watching Lan Yue with knowing eyes. He wisely chose not to comment on the ear situation.
One by one, pairs began emerging from the mist. Some stumbled out bruised and bleeding. Others limped, supported by their partners. A few were carried out on stretchers by Academy medics.
