"Now that we've settled on our competitors, allow to explain the ga. It's a bit unconventional, but I think you'll find it… exhilarating."
She turned to Adrian and Lilia, her smile widening as she gestured toward the far end of the training grounds, where a small, elevated platform had been set up. The structure was surrounded by various barriers and covers—wooden panels, tal shields, and even a few floating mana constructs. It looked like a chaotic battlefield condensed into a confined space.
"The rules are simple," Selene began, her voice carrying easily over the murmurs of the crowd. "Each of you will start on opposite ends of the platform. Your goal is to hit your opponent with an arrow. However," she added, her tone turning playful, "the barriers and covers on the platform aren't entirely reliable. They can be removed or repositioned at random intervals, so don't get too comfortable behind them."
The cadets murmured among themselves, the tension in the air growing as they processed the explanation. The setup was risky, designed to test not only accuracy but adaptability and strategy under pressure. It was a ga that could easily turn chaotic—and Selene knew it.
Adrian chuckled lightly, his gaze flicking to Lilia. "I hope you're ready, Lilia," he said, his tone carrying just a hint of mockery. "This isn't like shooting at a stationary target."
Lilia t his gaze with a cool smile. "I wouldn't expect it to be," she replied evenly. "But I hope you're ready too, Adrian. After all, you wouldn't want to lose in front of everyone."
Her words drew a few chuckles from the surrounding cadets, though the tension between the two remained palpable. Adrian's smirk tightened slightly, but he quickly masked it, gesturing toward the platform.
"Shall we?" he said, his voice smooth as he began walking toward the setup.
Lilia followed, her posture straight and composed, though her mind raced with thoughts. This is exactly what they wanted, she realized. Selene and Adrian had turned the situation to their advantage, forcing her into a match that would test not only her skill but her ability to remain calm under pressure. And yet, she couldn't back down now. She wouldn't give them the satisfaction.
As they reached the platform, the cadets gathered around, forming a loose circle to watch. The atmosphere was electric with anticipation, whispers and murmurs filling the air as everyone speculated about the outco.
Selene stepped forward once more, her gaze sweeping over the crowd before settling on Lilia and Adrian. "Take your positions," she said with a bright smile. "And rember, this is all in good fun. Let's give our audience sothing to rember."
Lilia climbed onto the platform, her crimson eyes scanning the setup as she assessed the barriers and their placents. She noted the unpredictable arrangent, the gaps between covers that left no truly safe positions.
'They planned this.'
There was no doubt in her mind. Adrian wouldn't allow a fair fight—not when his reputation was on the line. If Selene had orchestrated this match, then she had accounted for Lilia's abilities as well. They weren't just testing her accuracy; they were testing her ability to react to controlled chaos.
'The barriers aren't fixed. That ans they'll be controlled remotely. Delays, repositioning, maybe even disappearing altogether.'
Her mind worked quickly, running through possible patterns. If she were the one rigging this, how would she do it? There were a few ways:
Tid Disruptions: The barriers could vanish the mont she took cover, forcing her into open space.
Pattern-Based Manipulation: If they had predicted her style, they would set the barriers to move in a way that funneled her into Adrian's line of fire.
Selective Targeting: The movent of barriers might only affect her side of the field, ensuring Adrian always had the advantage.
Lilia exhaled softly, steadying her breath.
'If I assu that's the case, then I can't rely on cover. I have to keep moving—never stopping long enough to be trapped. And I need to make them think I don't realize what's happening until I turn it against them.'
Across the platform, Adrian stretched lazily, his confident smirk barely concealed.
"Don't take too long thinking, Lilia," he called, his tone laced with amusent. "Wouldn't want you to freeze up."
She t his gaze, a small, knowing smile curving her lips.
"Thinking is exactly what separates us, Adrian," she replied smoothly. "But don't worry—I won't take too long. I'd hate for you to start feeling nervous."
A ripple of murmurs ran through the audience. Adrian's smirk twitched, but he masked it well.
Selene clapped her hands together, drawing attention back to the match. "Both competitors are ready! On my signal, the match begins!"
Lilia flexed her fingers, her mana already flowing subtly into her body. She wouldn't let them control the flow of this fight entirely. If they had set the stage to work against her, she would make sure they regretted it.
'Let's see what you've prepared for , Adrian.'
The countdown began.
Three.
Two.
One.
"Begin!"
The match erupted into motion.
Lilia didn't waste ti standing still. The mont the signal rang out, she shot forward in a fluid motion, weaving between the barriers as she notched an arrow.
Adrian, as expected, took a more composed approach—raising his bow with practiced ease, waiting for the perfect shot.
'You're expecting to rush in, aren't you?'
She didn't. Instead, she feinted toward one of the barriers—then imdiately changed directions the mont she saw it flicker.
'Just as I thought. It's reacting to , not him.'
The barrier she had moved toward disappeared before she could use it, leaving her montarily exposed—but only for an instant. Lilia twisted her body, shifting her weight in midair and landing behind a second barrier before it could react.
A sharp twang rang out as Adrian loosed an arrow. It shot straight toward where she would have been—where they wanted her to be.
A near miss.
Lilia smirked.
'Now, let's turn this into my ga.'
She reached out with her mana, not just to enhance her movents, but to feel the field itself—the slight fluctuations in energy that signaled barrier shifts. This was sothing she had been refining over ti. Others used mana in bursts, but for her? It was a natural extension of herself, an instinct woven into her very being.
She sensed it.
A pulse.
The next barrier shift.
'Got you.'
Lilia sprang into motion again, this ti moving with the shifting barriers instead of against them. Where others saw obstacles, she saw an evolving path—a rhythm that she could step into like a perfectly tid dance.
Adrian narrowed his eyes as he adjusted his aim, realizing sothing was off.
"Too slow."
Lilia fired.
Her arrow zipped through a narrow gap in the moving barriers, aid not directly at Adrian—but at the barrier he was using for cover.
CRACK!
The mana-infused shot struck its edge, causing it to destabilize and flicker uncontrollably.
For the first ti in the match, Adrian was forced to move.
He clicked his tongue in irritation, darting to the side as his cover vanished. Lilia wasted no ti. She was already adjusting, already predicting where the next opening would appear.
Another arrow left her bow—this one not aid directly at him, but at the space where he would instinctively dodge.
Adrian barely managed to twist his body in ti, the arrow grazing past his shoulder.
'Tch. I miscalculated the timing by a fraction.'
Even so, the tide had shifted.
She could feel it. The tempo of the battle was no longer dictated by the rigged environnt. It was dictated by her.
'You thought I'd struggle with your tricks, but all you've done is give a moving battlefield to dominate.'
Selene, watching from the sidelines, had an unreadable expression—but Lilia caught the briefest flicker of amusent in her gaze.
'You planned this too, didn't you?'
It didn't matter.
Because now, this ga belonged to her.
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