We were all given armbands with numbers, each one carrying a thin black filter, tracking devices to monitor our movements in real time.
I am number 263.
Not long after, we stood scattered in the heart of the woods, facing a strange shimmering veil, a wall of darkness that revealed nothing beyond. It felt alive, breathing in silence, like a challenge meant to break us before we'd even begun. Most people grouped up in pairs, trios, even squads of five. Some chose to go solo.
I stood alone.
Elyen had vanished. I had no idea where he'd gone.
We stepped through the veil, eyes scanning the surroundings. But before we could even make five steps, a voice erupted from nowhere, sharp, urgent:
"You need to run! Run until you reach the middle of the woods! If you waste time walking now, you'll get stuck once you reach the center and fail to make it out in time. So RUN!"
No one hesitated. Neither did I. We didn't question who was speaking, nor where the voice came from. The entire crowd broke into a frantic sprint.
The ground thundered beneath our wild, desperate footsteps. If your speed failed you, that was your first enemy.
Branches whipped past, clawing at faces and arms as we ran blindly with no direction, only forward.
Then, the voice struck again, slicing through the chaos:
"You're all moving in the wrong direction!"
I froze for a split second, heart pounding as my head snapped left and right. No one was in view.
"You, turn right! You're heading toward a dead end, not forward!"
I didn't hesitate. There was no time to think. I veered sharply right, legs pumping with a burst of speed like it was my last race.
Behind me, I heard the voice again, barking at three girls:
"You three! Go left, you're heading the wrong way!"
It was deliberate. Each of us was being given different directions.
The pounding of footsteps turned chaotic as the voice kept barking orders, scattering us like prey running from an invisible predator.
A boy up ahead shouted, his voice cracking,
"Wait! What if it's a trap?!"
But no one slowed down, not even him.
One girl among the three, her red hair tied into sharp cat-like ponytails, glanced over her shoulder, panting hard.
"Do we even know if that voice can be trusted?!"
The voice returned, calm yet cutting:
"Those who doubt will be the first to fail. Trust your instincts. AND RUN."
Something in its tone made my skin crawl. It didn't sound human.
Branches slapped against us, roots snatched at our feet, and the forest grew thicker, darker. Every shadow looked like a hand waiting to drag us under. Somewhere behind me, someone tripped, and a cry of pain echoed through the woods.
"Help me! Please—!"
Nobody stopped.
I gritted my teeth and kept running. The voice's warnings, the blind directions, the fear tearing through the groups, it felt like we weren't just running through the woods, but from something we couldn't see.
Then the voice came again, softer this time, almost mocking:
"The first ones to stop moving will meet the ghosts of this forest. You're being watched… don't look back."
And that's when it hit us.
One by one, everyone stopped, every student halting as if struck by the same invisible command.
I froze, chest rising fast, mind racing.
The instructor never mentioned anything about someone giving us directions inside the woods...
---
The group of three girls drew their weapons, standing back-to-back. The tallest, with dark green hair tied neatly behind her, Liana held a strange hybrid of staff and sword, the metal hissing softly as it cut the air. Beside her, the red-haired girl, Mira tightened her grip on a pair of twin blades. The third, silver-haired Aria, hefted a spiked bat over her shoulder.
"Why are we even running?" Mira muttered. "Following orders from a voice we don't even know?"
Liana's sharp eyes scanned the trees. "Did you hear what it said? 'The first person to stop moving will meet the ghosts of this forest.' That means ghosts are what's haunting these woods..."
"That's wrong," Aria snapped. "Demons are the owners of this place. An instructor wouldn't make that mistake."
"Exactly, he said 'the demon forest'" Liana muttered, voice low and tense.
---
Off to the side, a squad of four boys had also stopped, weapons raised.
"This is definitely a trick," said Fin, gripping his gun tight. His tone dripped with suspicion.
"If this is a test of survival, why would someone be giving us directions? And why… different directions?"
Their doubt lingered in the air, infecting everyone nearby.
---
Far from them, under the gnarled shadow of a trunk, I skidded to a halt, chest heaving. My throat tightened as panic clawed its way up, sudden and suffocating.
I murmured to myself, forcing the words out like lifelines:
"I need to get stronger. I need to control my emotions. I need to protect."
The mantra repeated in my head, but it didn't stop the rising tide of fear. My breaths came shallow and sharp, as if my clothes were tightening against my skin, strangling me.
If I can protect someone in these woods, just one person.
I'll prove I'm not just a destroyer. I'll be someone's shield. I'll earn someone's trust.
But the fear wouldn't let go. It coiled tighter, burning like rope around my ribs.
Then the screams began.
From the paths where students kept running recklessly, cries erupted, shrieks of pain, ragged pleas for help. The sound made my blood run cold.
Those who had stopped… survived.
We didn't wait for more proof. We turned, choosing our own path, a direction we trusted, not one dictated by that voice.
At that moment, the voice went silent.
A dangerous silence.
It was waiting. Watching. Planning its next move.
---
The three girls exchanged uneasy glances. Liana finally spoke, her tone steady but razor-sharp.
"We shouldn't run anymore. We walk. We think."
Aria glanced at her watch.
"We left the academy at 10:00 a.m. Today is the 14th. We just need to track the date as it shifts. By the 15th, we must be at the center of the woods. But we don't follow any voices anymore."
The students who still clung to speed began to understand: obedience to that voice was a death sentence. From now on, instincts would decide who lived.
They started forward slowly, each step measured. The silence pressed on them, heavier than before. The air itself seemed to shift, thickening, curling around us like something alive.
That's when the forest changed.
Branches overhead creaked, twisting unnaturally as if something unseen brushed against them. Leaves shivered without wind. A low hum almost too faint to hear rippled through the woods like whispers crawling inside our ears. The trees… were shifting, rearranging the way.
"Do you hear that?" Mira whispered, clutching her twin blades.
Liana lifted her weapon slightly, her stance sharp.
"It's them," she said quietly. "They're watching."
---
A sudden, cold breeze swept past my face yet the trees didn't sway.
I dropped to the ground, yanking my shirt off in one sharp motion. Either it was the fabric strangling me, or my own fear closing in. It felt too thick, too heavy. I forced myself to breathe slow, shallow, measured. My body burned hot, but the mark on my back… was quieter than ever, like it was waiting.
I couldn't even name the reason for my fear.
The footsteps in the woods slowed. One by one, students stopped moving, their heavy breaths cracking the silence.
And the woods too… went still.
Not a bird. Not a breeze. Nothing.
The sound of footsteps turned into a cautious shuffle. They all walked, slowly, like prey trying not to be heard.
That's when the forest moved.
Branches overhead curled, the faint creak of wood bending at impossible angles. Roots beneath the ground rose like serpents, snaking across the path, silently sealing the way forward.
Left.
Right.
Ahead.
Everywhere I looked, the trees and roots formed walls, tightening, trapping us in a cage that felt alive. But I decided this wasn't the time to break down. No wailing. No panic.
I yanked my shirt back on and forced myself to stand. Whatever was wrong, I'd figure it out as I moved.
Then, suddenly, a voice sliced through the quiet.
"Hey, good morning."
My head snapped upward and my blood ran cold.
Perched casually on a high branch, like a predator waiting for its prey, was the very demon who had ripped out my heart the previous day. His hand, the same one that I had crushed off, was whole again.
My breath hitched.
"You…?"
The demon smirked, leaning forward slightly, his tone low and teasing.
"Hey, look at you. There I was sitted, bored out of my mind in the middle of the woods. No one was coming my way. Then…" His grin widened like a blade. "…I realized all the fun was over here. So, I came."
My eyes widened in horror. The memory of what he had done tore through me like fresh wounds. For the first time, I understood what true fear felt like.
Am I… scared?
"W-What are you doing here? In these woods?" I asked, my voice cracking despite my effort to steady it.
He chuckled softly.
"Oh, me? You shouldn't look so scared." His gaze sharpened with unsettling amusement. "Look at your eyes, wide and trembling. And yet…" He tilted his head, grinning. "…you're supposed to be the strongest person in these woods right now. But here you are, terrified."
I didn't understand what he meant by that and I wasn't sure I wanted to.
"Chill out." He smiled faintly, as if mocking me.
"What are you doing in the woods?" I asked again, forcing my voice to remain steady.
He tilted his head, resting his cheek lazily against his hand as though we were sharing a casual chat.
"You see, every three years, these exams are held. The demons you meet here? Most of them surrendered after encountering Exo-hunters. They're brought here specifically for this exam."
His eyes gleamed as he continued, his tone calm but dripping with amusement.
"So all I had to do was surrender to an Exo-hunter. And here I am."