The forest silence felt heavier the next morning. Indra walked close to the river that flowed from the waterfall where he had taken refuge. The water ran calmly, reflecting the glow of the blue moon that still lingered in the misty sky.
His body still remembered the roar of the beast from the previous night and, more than that, the terrifying pressure that had emanated from the sealed stone tunnel. The mere thought sent a chill down his spine. Whatever was down there hadn't just scared the colossal creature—it had made it flee in desperation.
Indra knew then that he couldn't risk straying too far from the cave. As unsettling as it was to sleep behind a waterfall surrounded by whispering inscriptions, it was still a refuge. And in the Vallencourt Forest, refuges were a rare luxury. He decided: that cave would be his shelter until the end of the Practical Exam.
Following the river's course, Indra noticed something unusual—a stronger metallic scent in the air. Blood. Moving cautiously, he pushed through the vegetation until he found a fallen body. A Imp.
The creature was frozen mid-leap, its body stiff as if frozen in space. But there was no ice. What was there was something worse.
Everything around it was… suspended. Leaves that should have fallen hung motionless in the air. The grass remained bent to one side but didn't move despite the wind. An insect hovered near the nearest tree—without flapping its wings.
Indra held his breath. The air felt denser in that space, heavy. As if time itself had stopped.
Looking closer, he saw circular marks on the ground. Black scars, deep burns forming imperfect circles around the frozen area. He couldn't explain what it was, but the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. Perhaps a Dormant Creature had caused it. Or maybe something worse. Either way, it wasn't something he wanted to encounter.
Without wasting time, Indra sliced open the Imp's chest with a quick cut and retrieved its Inner Core. The crystal glowed with blue hues,pulsing softly. The fourth one he'd acquired that day. Combined with the three he'd already collected from Lesser Creatures, that made 16 points total.
Indra took a deep breath, storing the cores. It wasn't much. He knew that. While heirs hunted Dormant Creatures to accumulate dozens of points, he barely had enough to stay average. But for someone at his level, not being dead was already a victory.
A noise broke the silence. Not a monstrous roar this time, but the metallic clash of a blade against something solid, followed by screeches of pain.
Indra narrowed his eyes and cautiously moved through the trees. The sound grew louder, accompanied by quick, steady breaths. Someone was fighting.
When he reached a clearing, the sight made him gasp.
Before him, a creature three to four meters tall twisted in erratic movements. Its body was translucent, as if made of liquid glass. Every moment, its form seemed to disappear and reappear elsewhere, as if the forest itself refused to register it.
It was a Spectral Lizard. Indra vaguely remembered Reid mentioning something about that monster during classes.Without a doubt, it was a Dormant Creature. Worth ten points. But it was also a death sentence for any reckless Awakened.
Indra was already considering retreating when he saw who stood before the beast.
She moved with impossible grace amid the chaos. Her silhouette was slender yet firm; elegant curves covered in a white and blue robe reminiscent of a priestess from an old RPG. Her platinum blonde hair was tied in an impeccable braid that danced with every movement. Her eyes,blue and intense, remained fixed on the creature, and every gesture seemed like a blend of dance and exorcism.
It was Alexia Valois. Heir to one of the Nine Great Clans of the Esoteric Society.
The forest silence was heavy, almost suffocating. The silver mist covering the ground seemed alive, crawling like veils of smoke around gnarled roots. Indra, crouched behind a tree, kept his gaze fixed on the scene before him.
What his eyes witnessed couldn't be called a fight.
The Spectral Lizard, a translucent creature nearly four meters tall, advanced in bursts of fury. Its body seemed to defy normal laws of vision: it vanished, became a distorted shadow, and then reappeared elsewhere in the clearing, tearing through the air as if ripping reality itself. Sharp claws slid against tree trunks, leaving deep marks. Each time it appeared, it attacked with savagery, like a death sentence no one should escape.
But Alexia Valois didn't just escape. She seemed untouchable.
Her slender body moved with absurd fluidity. A light step back, and the claws passed millimeters from her throat. A short spin, and the monster cut only air. The platinum braid falling over her shoulder swayed in its own rhythm, accompanying the deadly dance with unsettling serenity.
Indra held his breath. This wasn't a fight. It was humiliation. The Spectral Lizard was growing desperate against someone who didn't even seem to be trying.
Then, unhurried, Alexia raised her right hand.
A golden glow enveloped her skin.
Indra felt his spine freeze. He recognized that energy, even if he'd only studied it superficially. It was Divine Power, the mark of the Priests. Rare, sacred, something even among the clans wasn't commonly seen in battle.
The Lizard charged once more, roaring as if to shake the heavens.
Alexia moved her hand.
In less than a second—no, in less than a millisecond—the creature's head was separated from its body.
And suddenly, silence.
An absolute, real silence that filled the clearing. The kind of silence Indra had only seen in videos of fighter jets breaking the sound barrier. He knew the phenomenon. He knew what it meant.
"She broke the sound barrier…" he murmured, incredulous.
A Priestess. Someone who, in theory, should excel in healing and blessings, not combat, had just executed an attack that defied common laws. And she'd done it as if it were the most mundane thing in the world.
The decapitated body of the Lizard took a few unsteady steps before collapsing heavily just inches from Alexia's feet. She didn't blink. Didn't retreat. Just maintained her upright posture, as if this were nothing more than routine.
With another nearly invisible movement, she opened the beast's chest and retrieved the Inner Core.
Indra's eyes widened.
It was huge, the size of a tennis ball. A black crystal that pulsed with living energy. Inside it, small red sparks flashed like embers about to die out. The sight was disturbing, as if hell had been swallowed by darkness and those sparks were its last breaths.
Indra felt a mix of fascination and horror. He'd seen too much in too little time: inscriptions that danced in the moonlight, a colossal shadow the previous night, and now this—an heir to one of the Nine Great Clans displaying power he could scarcely conceive.
And then, Alexia looked up.
Directly at him.
Indra froze. His entire body stopped responding.
There was no forest, no mist, no river. There were only her blue eyes, serene and icy, staring at him without surprise, as if she'd known of his presence all along. Of course she had. She was a Priestess.
The silence stretched for long seconds. Indra felt every beat of his heart echo like drums in his mind.
Finally, he forced a nervous smile.
"H-hey… that was… amazing." His voice faltered, but he pressed on. "You're really strong. But, you know, I've got some things to take care of, so… I'll be going."
It was a mix of sincere admiration and poorly disguised flattery. Yet, nervousness dripped from every word.
He turned, trying to maintain composure, praying he wouldn't be struck down from behind before disappearing into the forest.
But before he could take his first step, he heard:
"Wait."
Her voice was cold, indifferent, almost monotone.
A shiver ran down his spine. His body reacted before his mind: he turned quickly, almost panicked, but forced a calm expression.
"Yes?" he said with a strained smile.
Inside, however, the thought was clear, desperate, inescapable:
"I'm so screwed."
Alexia observed him for a few moments, like someone evaluating a curious insect that ventured too close to a flame. Then, in a soft tone that brooked no interruption, she asked:
"What are you doing here?"
The question was simple, but Indra felt his legs weaken. A wrong answer could be a death sentence. He took a deep breath, trying to control his anxiety.
"I-I… was hunting." He shrugged awkwardly. "Lesser Creatures, you know? Nothing that comes close to that." He pointed at the colossal corpse of the Spectral Lizard.
Alexia's lips curved slightly. It wasn't exactly a smile, but it wasn't scorn either. It was an enigmatic expression that could have meant anything.
"Hunting." She repeated the word as if tasting it.
Silence.
Indra's heart pounded like a drum, and time seemed to stretch.
Then Alexia stepped forward.
Just one step. But to Indra, it felt as if the entire space had shrunk. The white and blue robe she wore swayed gently, untouched by the forest's dirt. Every detail about her seemed… incorruptible.
"You saw the whole fight, didn't you?" she said.
Indra hesitated, then nodded.
"Y-yes."
She tilted her head slightly.
"Then you know how much this monster was worth."
Indra blinked, surprised.
"Ten points." He answered automatically.
Alexia stared at him, and for the first time, Indra thought he saw something in her eyes beyond icy neutrality. A spark of interest.
"Ten points." She repeated, almost like a teacher confirming a student's attention. "You're not as ignorant as you look."
Indra smiled awkwardly, but the comment had a double edge: recognition and disdain at once.
"Well… I try to stay informed."
She took another step, now close enough for him to feel the subtle warmth radiating from her body. The contrast was disconcerting: she radiated serenity and power, like an untouchable golden flame, and he felt like a panting shadow about to be extinguished.