The proctor arrived without ceremony.
One mont the lane was filled with quiet breath and shifting weight—
the next, a tall figure in regulation black stood before them, cloak falling still around well-defined shoulders.
His face was unreadable. Most proctors' were.
But this one had a sharper tilt to his jaw—
the kind that said he'd seen enough students panic to stop being impressed.
"Group C–3," he said, voice level. "Step forward."
Elara moved first.
Valeria matched her stride half a second later, Ren and Liliana falling in behind. The four of them ford a clean line before the proctor, boots aligned against the glowing crescent etched into the floor.
The illusion do thrumd above, its light intensifying with each breath.
The proctor's gaze swept across them—slow, appraising, and precise in that military way that asured not just mana flow or posture, but discipline.
"You will enter the do as a unit," he said. "Your assessnt is collective. Your mistakes will be tracked individually."
Ren exhaled through his nose. "Great."
Liliana elbowed him. "Shh."
The proctor continued, unbothered.
"Your objective is survival and situational analysis. Neutralize threats as they appear. Do not scatter unless the illusion forces you to. Do not expect your teammates to compensate for negligent positioning."
His eyes flicked toward Valeria.
Not accusatory.
Just… noting.
Valeria didn't say anything.
Elara's breath remained steady. She could feel the do's energy sharpening, condensing around her ankle bones like frost forming on glass.
The proctor lifted a hand.
The runes carved into the do brightened in response.
"For scoring purposes," he said, "each contact from an illusion construct will be recorded. Pain will be simulated but not inflicted. The damage you take will not injure you, but it will count."
Ren nodded.
Liliana swallowed.
Valeria didn't move.
Elara listened.
"When the ward pulses," the proctor said, "begin."
He stepped back.
The do sealed with a soundless hum.
The air changed.
A soft thrum rippled through the floor—
once—
twice—
building like a heartbeat tightening behind a ribcage.
Ren lowered into stance.
Liliana slid an arrow into place.
Valeria's hand hovered near her forearm sheath. Not gripping. Not tense. Just ready.
Elara inhaled again, feeling frost settle beneath her skin, her mana threads aligning in smooth, unbroken lines.
'This is fine.'
'Eyes open. Breath steady. Don't overthink.'
The proctor's voice echoed through the do:
"Trial—start."
—KRSHHH!
The world split.
The marble floor dissolved beneath their feet, replaced by fractured stone and jagged ruins—broken pillars, half-collapsed archways, a sky choked with illusory storm clouds. The scent of dust and cold iron rushed in with startling clarity.
Elara felt the shift strike her magic instinctively.
Zone C was a ruin-field.
Wide arcs. High vantage points.
Perfect for ranged traps.
Valeria moved first.
"Front!" she ordered.
Ren flanked her instantly.
Liliana stepped back, bow rising.
Elara slid to the midpoint, mana blooming beneath her palms.
The first sound wasn't a roar.
It was a chitter.
High-pitched. Fast.
Like tallic scraping across stone.
Liliana's breath tightened. "Left ridge—"
They appeared before she finished.
Four illusion-beasts tore over the ridge—wolflike forms with elongated limbs and jagged bone-plating across their backs. Their eyes glowed a soft yellow—the signature of mid-tier constructs. Fast, coordinated, built for pressure.
The beasts hit the ground running.
Valeria surged forward, blade flashing in a single, controlled draw.
Ren t the second one head-on—spear braced, boots grinding into the stone.
Elara didn't cast imdiately.
Not out of hesitation.
Out of understanding.
Illusion constructs reacted to movent speed. The first one angled for Valeria; the second pivoted toward Ren; the third—
straight down the middle.
She raised her hand.
[Glacier Vein.]
A spiral of frost surged across the stone—thin, sharp, angled upward. Not to block. To tilt.
The incoming beast's weight skidded, its front paw slipping. Just enough.
Elara pivoted—
[Slipcast: Ice Needle.]
Not aid at its face.
At its foot.
CRACK—!
The beast stumbled as the needle detonated into mist, hindering its lunge.
Ren finished it with a clean thrust, spear piercing its illusion throat.
"Nice assist," he grunted.
Elara inhaled once, steady.
The fourth beast leapt at Liliana—only for her arrow to flash sky-blue, static crackling down its shaft.
SHZZZT—!
It struck the beast mid-air, sending the construct spiraling sideways into Valeria's path.
Valeria didn't break stride.
Her blade carved upward in a perfect diagonal, splitting the illusion cleanly in half.
It burst into motes of gold.
Silence followed for half a breath.
Then—
Ren laughed softly. "Okay… okay, we might actually survive this."
Liliana rolled her eyes. "You say that like I wasn't planning for it."
Valeria didn't respond to either comnt. Her gaze stayed forward—
toward the far end of the ruins.
Where the light fractured again.
Elara felt the mana compress.
Another wave.
But this one was different.
Heavier.
More stable.
Less beast-like.
Valeria's fingers tightened near her sheath. "Positions."
Elara moved instantly. Ren mirrored her. Liliana stepped back, arrow drawn.
The proctor's voice echoed overhead:
"Wave two—adaptive humanoid constructs."
The stone floor trembled.
Three armored silhouettes stepped through the distortion. Full plate. Tower shields. Blunt weapons—not ant to "kill," only to overwhelm.
Liliana whispered, "Those aren't basic."
"No," Valeria agreed. "They aren't."
One of the knights raised its shield and struck the ground.
—FWUMMP!
The shockwave hit the ground like a hamr.
Illusory force split into pale gold ripples, tearing cracks across the stone as it barreled toward Liliana's position.
Elara didn't think.
[Snap Freeze.]
Cold burst from her palm in a thin cone—not straight, but angled, slicing across the incoming force like a blade of winter cutting wind. The shockwave fractured, splitting into two pale arcs that curved harmlessly around Liliana's boots.
Liliana's gasp was barely audible.
Ren blinked.
Valeria's eyes flicked to the frost line—sharp, calculating.
That wasn't how Snap Freeze was supposed to behave.
Elara didn't give them ti to dwell.
'No room for mistakes. No room for being careful,' she thought, frost curling around her fingertips. 'Just act.'
The humanoid constructs advanced—three armored knights moving like a single organism. Shields raised. Weapons glowing with stabilizing enchantnts.
Their formation was too clean.
Too deliberate.
Valeria called, "Break!"
Ren swung right, Liliana left—arrows already nocked, static dancing over her fingertips.
Elara stepped forward, weaving mana into her palms.
The first knight charged at Valeria.
The second angled toward Ren.
The third—
straight for Elara.
'Of course you'd pick .'
She inhaled sharply—cold blooming like instinct.
[Glacier Arc.]
Not a normal spell. Not even standard practice. She dragged her hand across the ground, leaving a crescent of frost that snapped upward like a rising wave of ice.
The knight's shield slamd into it—
CRRR—KSH!
The frost didn't block.
It redirected.
The construct's weight staggered sideways, shield jerking off its intended line.
Elara slipped under the opening—
[Ice Lance.]
A short, needle-thin lance, shaped faster than proper form allowed, shot into the gap in its armor. Pale-blue light shattered on contact.
The construct recoiled, stability disrupted.
She didn't wait. Pivoted. Shot backward on a sliding line of ice—
Her own magic carrying her like a low, controlled glide.
Ren exhaled. "She… moves weird."
The knight wasn't finished.
It swung a tower shield overhead like a massive guillotine.
Elara spun—
[Fracture Vein.]
A thin line of frost raced beneath the knight's stance and burst upward in jagged spikes.
The shield slamd down—
but the spikes caught its edge, tilting it again.
Liliana shot a static arrow through the gap—SHZZZT—!
The arrow struck the knight's arm, forcing it to recoil.
Ren surged in from the right, spear thrusting—
"Watch the left!"
Reviews
All reviews (0)