The scream had barely faded when chaos truly began. Students scattered in every direction, mana flaring, barriers snapping into place as the hall erupted into a storm of energy. The sharp pulse of the robed woman's staff radiated outward, like a silent warning that the academy itself had become a battlefield.
I stood frozen for half a heartbeat, taking in the positions of everyone around me. Selene's eyes blazed crimson as she moved with effortless grace, intercepting two students who had tried to flank me. Renvor ducked behind a fallen pillar, glaring at me as if this was my fault.
"Move!" Selene shouted, tossing a glowing crimson orb toward me. I barely caught it, letting it dissolve in my hands into a thin shield of aura. It was a warning—a gift wrapped in danger.
From the back of the hall, the silver-haired girl advanced, her movements fluid, almost predatory. Every step she took seemed measured, like she had calculated my position before even seeing me. Beside her, the tall boy with the eyepatch followed silently, his gaze locked on me as if reading my thoughts.
I swallowed. This is no ordinary training exercise.
The robed woman raised her staff higher, and the energy pulsed outward again. The floor cracked under the pressure of the surging mana, forcing students to leap or stumble. I rolled to the side instinctively, my aura flaring briefly to stabilize the collapse beneath me.
Selene was already moving. "Stay close," she called. "You'll need me."
I hated needing anyone. But I didn't have a choice.
The first attack came from the silver-haired girl. A blade of condensed mana shot toward me, sharp enough to tear through steel. I twisted, barely dodging, feeling the air itself bite at my skin. My heart raced, my hands shook—but I forced the calm I had practiced for years.
Focus. Survive. Adapt.
I raised a thin veil of mana, enough to redirect the blade harmlessly into the wall. The hall shook as it struck, sending debris flying. Selene caught my shoulder. "Not bad," she said, eyes sharp. "But they're testing you. Everyone here is testing you."
"Testing me to what end?" I hissed, ducking another attack from the eyepatch boy.
Selene's lips quirked. "To see if you survive. To see if you're worth something."
I didn't answer. There wasn't time.
The robed woman stepped forward. Her staff slammed into the floor, releasing a shockwave that forced me and Selene to our knees. The silver-haired girl moved faster than thought, striking simultaneously from the side. My defenses barely held. Sparks flew as mana clashed against mana.
Renvor shouted from behind a pillar. "This isn't a test! This is a war!"
I glanced at him. His usual confidence was gone, replaced by fear—real fear. That alone told me the stakes were higher than I imagined.
I rose slowly, letting the thin aura around me flare faintly, invisible to everyone but those trained enough to notice. They'll see it eventually, I thought. Better they underestimate me at first.
Selene leaped into the fray, intercepting the silver-haired girl mid-strike. Their clash created a shockwave that shook the hall walls. I took the opportunity to move, slipping past the crowd, scanning for openings.
A figure darted from the shadows—another student I hadn't noticed. He carried a pair of daggers glowing with dark mana. His target: me.
I didn't hesitate. My hands moved, instinctively summoning a thread of mana that wrapped around the nearest column. I swung, using it to launch myself into the air, narrowly avoiding the twin strikes aimed at my chest.
The daggers embedded themselves in the stone where I had been moments ago. Dust and sparks filled the air.
Not bad, I thought. But predictable.
From above, Selene's crimson aura flared, sending a shockwave that knocked the attacker backward. She landed beside me. "You're slow," she said, smirking. "But I like your style."
Before I could respond, the eyepatch boy and silver-haired girl regrouped, their movements synchronized now. Two attacks, one from each, aimed at me simultaneously.
I froze for half a second, calculating. My heart pounded. My aura pulsed invisibly, condensed like a coiled blade. If I release even a fraction more…
The thought alone made me shiver.
Instead, I redirected their combined attack with a thin veil of mana, barely enough to keep them from breaking through. The barrier hummed, unstable, and I had to drop to my knees to stabilize it.
Selene laughed, sharp and dangerous. "You're holding back. Don't."
I wanted to scream. If I don't hold back, they'll see everything. But I also knew she was right.
The robed woman's voice carried again. "Stop hiding. Show your true strength. Or die."
I swallowed, grit my teeth, and let a tiny fraction of my real power slip. Not enough to kill, not enough to dominate—but enough to shake the very air around me.
The hall reacted immediately. Dust and debris lifted, windows rattled, and even the instructors stepped back. The silver-haired girl's eyes widened. The eyepatch boy's jaw tightened. Selene smiled brightly.
This isn't enough, I thought. But it's a start.
I ducked another strike, barely evading the synchronized attacks. My legs ached, my arms trembled—but my mind was calm. Every movement calculated, every breath timed. I wasn't just surviving—I was observing, predicting, adapting.
Selene moved alongside me, intercepting attacks, creating openings, signaling without words. I realized then why she had proposed the alliance: she understood the stakes. And more importantly, she could survive with me—and maybe, just maybe, we could both come out alive.
The first real strike of the trial ended when the robed woman raised her staff again, releasing a pulse of energy that froze everyone momentarily. Students staggered, some fell. The shockwave cleared the hall, leaving me standing, Selene beside me, and the others regrouping.
The eyepatch boy and silver-haired girl stepped back, assessing me now with real interest. Renvor appeared from the side, wide-eyed.
"You survived the first wave," he whispered. "Barely."
I nodded. My hands still trembled slightly, but my aura was calm. This is only the beginning, I thought. And everyone is watching.
Halvren's voice echoed from above: "Well done… for now. Observe. Learn. Adapt. The next wave will not forgive hesitation."
And as I looked around, I realized that in this academy, surviving wasn't enough. You had to dominate. Or die.