The moment all Group crossed the academy barrier, the area changed.
Not dramatically.
Not violently.
Just enough to be wrong.
The air beyond Starcrest's protective formation felt thinner, stripped of warmth and comfort. Sounds didn't echo the same way.
Even footsteps seemed to sink too deeply into the cracked stone beneath them.
Harven Holt rolled his shoulders, muscles tightening instinctively as his Body Forging circulated.
"So this is it," he said, exhaling slowly. "The Ruin Zone."
Beside him, Silas walked with his hands in his pockets, shadow clinging unnaturally close to his feet. The outline of his bonded Shadow Cat flickered faintly, ears twitching as if listening to something none of them could hear.
"Doesn't look that bad," Silas said with a smirk. "I've seen worse training grounds."
At the rear, Lena Moore frowned.
Her senses extended outward, brushing against the unstable energy saturating the ruins. It wasn't chaotic in the way raw power usually was.
It felt… aware.
"Don't relax too much," she said calmly. "Places like this don't announce when they turn on you."
Harven laughed, clenching his fist.
"That's why we're here, right? To prove we're not fragile."
Silas glanced back at Lena. "You worry too much."
Lena didn't respond.
She'd learned long ago that people who ignored warnings rarely listened twice.
They hadn't gone far when the first creatures appeared.
Low-tier ruin beasts—twisted, malformed things that crawled from broken stone and collapsed pillars. Their movements were jerky, unstable, driven by corrupted energy rather than instinct.
Harven didn't hesitate.
He surged forward, Body Forging flaring as his fist crashed into the nearest creature. Stone shattered. The beast disintegrated into ash.
Silas moved next.
His shadow stretched, the Shadow Cat partially manifesting as it struck from the side, claws ripping through another creature's core before vanishing again.
Lena's mind power expanded smoothly, reinforcing her teammates' focus, suppressing stray fear, and sharpening reaction speed.
The fight ended quickly.
Too quickly.
Harven stood over the remains, grinning.
"That's it?" he said. "The academy really oversold this trial."
Silas chuckled. "Guess they wanted to scare the weaker groups."
Lena walked to the glowing crystal embedded in the rubble—the Trial Core. She examined it carefully before extracting it.
"The first kill is always cheap," she said quietly.
Harven waved her off. "You're thinking too hard again."
But as they moved deeper into the ruins, Lena couldn't shake the feeling that something had shifted the moment the core was removed.
Cracks Beneath Confidence
The Ruin Zone grew denser.
Collapsed structures loomed closer together, shadows stretching unnaturally across broken ground. Sounds echoed half a second late, just enough to disorient.
Lena slowed her steps.
"The energy density's rising," she said. "We should adjust our pace."
Harven didn't stop.
"If we slow down, other groups will get ahead," he replied. "This is a competition."
Silas nodded in agreement. "Besides, nothing's touched us yet."
Lena clenched her jaw.
She didn't argue further—but she expanded her mental defenses, reinforcing them layer by layer.
Her instincts were screaming.
And instincts like hers were rarely wrong.
It started subtly.
A vibration beneath their feet.
Then silence.
Too much silence.
Silas stopped abruptly, shadow coiling tighter around his legs.
"…My beast doesn't like this," he muttered.
Harven finally slowed, scanning the surroundings. "You sensing something?"
Before Lena could answer, the ruins exploded.
Creatures surged from every direction—not wild, not random. They moved in coordination, flanking rather than charging, forcing Group B inward.
"Formation!" Lena shouted.
Harven roared and charged, smashing through the first wave—but his strikes didn't end the fight this time. The creatures reformed, energy stitching them back together.
Silas cursed as his Shadow Cat fully manifested, claws flashing as it tore through multiple enemies—but each kill cost him control.
"They're adapting!" Lena shouted, mental pressure slamming outward to keep the team synchronized.
The creatures pressed harder.
Faster.
Smarter.
Harven felt it first.
His movements slowed, Body Forging straining under sustained output. Blood trickled from a cut along his arm.
Silas staggered as his beast bond fluctuated violently.
Lena's vision blurred.
Her mind-space trembled as foreign pressure pushed back.
This wasn't a normal battle.
This was attrition.
Harven slammed his fist into the ground, sending a shockwave outward—but the response was immediate.
More entities surged forward.
Lena's breath hitched.
Her hand trembled as it moved toward the emergency talisman at her waist.
Her fingers brushed it.
Silas noticed.
"Lena—don't," he snapped. "Not yet."
She laughed softly, strained and breathless.
"Easy for you to say," she replied.
"My barriers are cracking. Another wave like this and I won't be able to tell friend from enemy."
Harven turned sharply.
"We can still push through!" he growled. "We didn't come all this way to retreat!"
Lena met his gaze, eyes sharp despite the exhaustion.
"Push through what, Harven?" she shot back. "You're bleeding. Silas is losing control. And these things are learning from us."
Silas grit his teeth.
"She's right," he muttered. "They're not fighting like beasts."
Another entity lunged.
Harven intercepted—but his punch was slower this time.
Too slow.
The creature nearly reached Lena.
Her grip tightened around the talisman.
For one terrifying second, she almost activated it.
Then Silas screamed, forcing his Shadow Cat into full manifestation. The beast roared, ripping through the attackers in a violent burst that finally created space.
The pressure eased.
Barely.
Silence fell.
Harven dropped to one knee, breathing hard.
Lena released the talisman, hands shaking.
"…We were seconds away," she said quietly.
Harven stared at the ground.
"…I thought strength was enough."
Silas scoffed weakly. "Strength's loud. Survival's quiet."
Lena looked at both of them.
"This trial doesn't care how strong we are," she said.
"It only cares how long we last."
The Ruin Zone hummed faintly.
As if amused.
Far above, within the academy's observation chamber, instructors monitored the unfolding chaos.
"Group B nearly forced a withdrawal," one muttered.
"The Ruin Zone's resistance is rising faster than expected," another replied.
A pause.
"…And one group?" someone asked.
"Group F," came the answer. "Minimal output. No talisman use. No visible strain."
Silence followed.
Somewhere deeper within the ruins, energy shifted.
Something listened.
Something waited.
Group B regrouped in silence.
Harven wrapped his arm, jaw tight.
Silas leaned against broken stone, shadow finally calming.
Lena stared toward the deeper ruins.
"If someone's moving through this place without struggling," Silas said quietly, "they're not normal."
Lena didn't respond.
But in her mind, a name surfaced unbidden.
The ruins pulsed softly.
And the Trial continued.