Mirana gestured up at the sky projection.
[Candidates Remaining: 505]
Just then, two names turned grey on the list. Someone, somewhere else in the maze, had just been eliminated.
[Candidates Remaining: 503]
Mirana's eyes narrowed slightly. She realized instantly that fighting ten elites would be a waste of time. She didn't need to defeat them all. She just needed to trim the excess.
She turned to Ryn, completely ignoring Marcus, who was shouting something about "respect."
She tilted her head slightly toward the back of the scavenger group, where two slightly less armored students, ranged supports, were standing near the edge.
Then, she extended her arm toward Ryn.
"Let's go."
Ryn stood up, dusting off his pants. He understood the assignment.
"Your driver awaits," he quipped, reaching out and gripping her forearm.
The scavengers frowned, confused by the interaction.
"What are you doing? Don't let them escape!" Draven roared, shadow tendrils erupting from his back.
"Too late," Ryn whispered, glancing one last time at the remaining candidate numbers. 'Hmm...'
Vwoom.
Space folded.
Ryn and Mirana vanished from the center of the encirclement.
In the same heartbeat, they reappeared directly behind the two support mages at the rear of the enemy formation.
The two students didn't even sense them. Their eyes were still glued to the empty spot where Mirana had been standing a microsecond ago.
Mirana didn't waste a second. Ryn stepped back, letting her take the stage.
She extended both hands, her palms glowing with a sharp, concussive light, and struck the back of their necks with surgical precision.
Thud. Thud.
The two students collapsed to the floor instantly, their shields flickering out before they even hit the ground.
[Eliminated...]
[Eliminated...]
Ilene whipped around, her rapiers raised. "Behind us—!"
But before she could strike, a deafening siren blared across the entire arena, shaking the very air.
[DING! DING! DING!]
The red light of the barrier dome turned green. The holographic counter in the sky flashed violently.
[Candidates Remaining: 500]
[THE CULLING IS COMPLETE.]
[CEASE ALL COMBAT IMMEDIATELY.]
Ilene, Marcus, and Draven froze mid-motion. Their spells sputtered and died in their hands. They stood there, weapons drawn, looking completely foolish as the announcement echoed around them.
Mirana stood tall over the unconscious bodies, her expression unbothered as she finally acknowledged the rankers with a bored glance.
"Exam is over," she stated flatly.
Ryn stretched his arms, hearing his joints pop as he faded into the background, happy to let her take the credit and the glares.
"Finally," he yawned. "I can take a nap..."
As the siren's echo faded, a deep, mechanical rumble vibrated through the floor.
The reality of the arena shifted. The towering stone walls of the maze sank heavily into the ground, retracting like the teeth of a giant beast. The poisonous moat drained rapidly into hidden vents, and the rugged terrain shifted and flattened as the massive plates of the training ground realigned.
Within moments, the complex battleground was gone. In its place, the familiar, flat expanse of the Academy's central coliseum returned.
The 500 remaining candidates stood revealed, blinking in the sudden openness. Some were nursing injuries, others looked ready to collapse, but all wore the same expression of relief.
High above them, a figure descended slowly on a disc of wind.
"Congratulations."
Instructor Shaylo looked down at the survivors with a faint smile. Her voice was amplified, reaching every corner of the field.
"The Second Phase has concluded. You have successfully secured your positions."
She checked her watch.
"You have twenty minutes. Rest, recover your arcana, and tend to your wounds. The Final Assessment will begin precisely after the break."
Mirana let out a long, silent breath. The tension in her shoulders finally released.
She maintained her cold, composed mask as Ilene and the others glared at her before walking away. However, inwardly, she felt a wave of relief wash over her. It had been close. Her arcana reserves were scraping the bottom. If the fight had continued against ten elites, she might have lost.
She turned around, intending to express her gratitude to the boy who had made her victory possible.
"Ryn, I..."
She paused. The space beside her was empty.
He was gone.
He had vanished the moment the walls dropped, slipping away while everyone was distracted by Shaylo's entrance.
'He's fast,' she thought, shaking her head.
I will thank him later, she decided. Right now, she needed to meditate and restore her energy for the final round.
She walked toward the designated resting area in the stadium stands, seeking a quiet corner away from the noise of the other students. She climbed the stairs to the upper rows, finding a secluded spot in the shade.
However, as she approached, she stopped.
He was already there.
Ryn was slumped comfortably in the seat, his arms crossed and his head tilted back against the wall. His breathing was slow and rhythmic. He was already dozing off.
Mirana paused, her hand hovering slightly as if to tap his shoulder, but she pulled it back.
'I shouldn't disturb him,' she thought, noting the shallow rhythm of his breathing.
Teleporting was one of the most taxing abilities in existence. To warp himself and another person continuously, especially that last jump behind the enemy lines, must have taken a massive toll on his reserves. She had felt a slight tremor in the spatial fabric during their final arrival, a sign that he had reached his limit.
She looked at his sleeping face, a flicker of genuine curiosity breaking through her stoic mask.
He was... an anomaly.
In an academy filled with peacocks desperate to spread their feathers, he was a ghost. He didn't care about fame, connections, or glory. In fact, when she had transferred the points to him, helping him secure a spot as the second-ranked student, he hadn't looked happy or pleased.
In fact, he had looked rather reluctant, almost burdened. It was as if she had handed him a heavy rock instead of a crown.
"Strange," she whispered to herself.
She shook her head, dismissing the thought.
She needed to focus on herself now.
Moving silently, she sat down on the bench next to him, leaving a respectful distance between them. She straightened her back, placed her hands on her knees, and closed her eyes, instantly drifting into a deep meditative trance to replenish her own drained core.
A few seconds passed in silence.
Slowly, Ryn's left eye cracked open.
He shifted his gaze sideways, looking at the silver-haired girl meditating beside him. Seeing that she wasn't going to talk or demand anything, he let out a tiny, inaudible breath of relief.
He closed his eyes again, settling back into the darkness.
'It's really exhausting to deal with people...'