The path they chose to return was the same one they had taken before. As a result, the presence of Spirits was almost nonexistent—only a few harmless creatures occasionally appeared in the corners of the cave. They continued walking, avoiding greater dangers and keeping their pace steady.
Time passed unnoticed until they finally arrived at their starting point—the place where the trap had first been triggered.
Lucien stood before the stone wall that had once been their exit. His eyes scanned the room, searching for anything that might help him understand the situation. "Try to find the trap trigger," he said after a moment of thought. "If we can locate it, maybe we can disable the effect and reopen the way out."
Victor wasted no time. Without saying a word, he immediately began examining the area carefully, running his hands along the walls and floor, searching for anything suspicious. On the other side, Elara did the same, her eyes focused on every inch of the room. Their objective was clear: to find a way out of the labyrinth.
They knew their mana reserves were limited. Because of that, the wisest choice was not to push deeper into the unexplored depths of the labyrinth but to find a safer place to rest before continuing their exploration the next day.
However, despite their thorough search, time passed with no clear clues in sight.
"This isn't working..." Victor muttered, frustration evident in his voice.
Lucien touched his chin, his mind beginning to analyze other possibilities.
They could try taking a detour—rather than disabling the trap, they could search for a passage leading to the side and attempt to find another way out. But something was bothering him.
He recalled something from before: the academy envoys who had nearly interfered in their fight against the Phantom Eye had managed to arrive and leave in an incredibly short time. "Did they use some kind of special technique?" he thought.
The only possibility was that those envoys possessed a mystical weapon or a sigil related to Temporal magic—a category of sorcery that allowed the manipulation of space and time.
As he was lost in thought, Elara, who had been silent beside him, observed him quietly. After a few seconds, Lucien noticed and raised an eyebrow. "What should we do now?" he asked, curious about her opinion.
Elara stared at him, traces of irritation still lingering in her expression, though far less intense than before. However, instead of answering directly, she simply averted her gaze in mild annoyance. "We don't have any other choice but to find another exit," she finally said.
Lucien took a deep breath. He agreed with that conclusion.
Victor, standing nearby, also nodded. "Alright then. We'll take the left path at the next junction," he said firmly.
With their decision made, they resumed their journey, their footsteps echoing through the silent cave. The glowing stones embedded in the walls continued to emit their faint light, casting their shadows across the rough, dusty floor.
They moved cautiously, passing intersection after intersection. Each time faced with a choice, they always took the path leading left, hoping it would guide them in the right direction.
However, the deeper they ventured, the quieter the surroundings became. There were no signs of movement.
Then, suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoed from the passage ahead.
Lucien, Elara, and Victor stopped in their tracks. In an instant, Lucien raised his right hand, signaling the others to be on guard.
From the darkness of the dimly lit corridor, several silhouettes began to emerge. Slowly, their shapes became clearer—they were human.
A total of three figures approached.
Click!
A sharp sound rang out from their direction. At that moment, a blue lantern was lit, illuminating the previously dark corridor. As its light spread, the three figures were revealed.
Two young men and one woman. Each wore the academy's freshman uniform: a white shirt, dark blue trousers, and a long black coat with white accents.
The woman on the far left seemed ordinary, but there was something strange about her demeanor. Her eyes kept shifting away as if she were afraid of something. The young man on the far right also appeared uneasy, his head lowered, hands clenched into fists.
However, the most striking figure was the young man in the center—the one holding the lantern.
He had slightly messy black hair, dark eyes nearly void of emotion, and an expression that revealed nothing. Yet, there was something about his presence—an air of arrogance that was impossible to ignore.
Slowly, he lifted the lantern higher, its glow now fully illuminating Lucien and his two companions.
Lucien observed him carefully. At a glance, he recognized the young man. "I've seen him before…" he thought. Then, the memory clicked—this was the student who occupied the room next to his in the dormitory.
But that wasn't what made him wary. The mana flow around the young man felt odd, unnatural.
They halted, watching each other in silence.
The black-haired student finally took a step forward. His movements were calm, but his gaze sharpened.
"Elara Moonveil, Victor Runevele, Lucien Ashthorn," he said in a deep, steady voice that matched the mysterious aura around him.
Lucien slightly lowered his guard. "He's one of the few people unaffected by the academy head's mana release," he thought.
Yet, even though he was talented, Lucien could sense a stark difference between this student and Elara Moonveil. Both possessed great potential, but this young man was far more dangerous—his eyes were sharper, his steps more calculated, his aura more composed.
Lucien knew his chances of defeating Elara were slim but not impossible. However, against this young man, he felt only one thing—absolute defeat.
Suddenly, the young man spoke again, his tone more serious this time. "Should we do this the hard way?" he asked, his gaze locking onto Elara as if ready to strike at any moment.
Elara didn't answer right away, her brows furrowing. "What do you mean?" she replied sharply.
As a response, the young man drew the sword from his waist.
The two people beside him looked even more anxious, one of them even taking a step back.
Lucien watched their reactions closely. He quickly realized something. "They're afraid…" he thought. "That means he's serious about fighting."
He let out a small sigh, feeling slightly annoyed. I really don't like people like this, he muttered internally. At least show some hesitation!
Raising a hand, Lucien attempted to diffuse the situation. "Just tell us what you want."
The young man's brow furrowed as he shifted his gaze from Elara to Lucien.
Without saying a word, he simply stared at him intently—almost as if he were weighing something—while subtly adjusting his grip on his sword, as if preparing for an inevitable fight.
Lucien let out a long sigh, feeling that this situation had been predictable from the start. However, what worried him the most was their current state—they were far from being ready for another battle.
After a brief moment of thought, he glanced at Victor and said something that made the tension rise even further.
"Just give it to him," he said flatly.
Victor frowned, disbelief clear on his face. "What do you mean?"
"The Core Spirit we obtained," Lucien responded firmly.
Victor looked even more confused, while Elara clenched her fists in frustration. "Are you kidding me?" she said coldly, her voice filled with disapproval. "After everything we've been through, you just want to hand it over?" Her sharp gaze locked onto Lucien, her body shifting slightly as if preparing to act. One of her hands was already gripping the hilt of her sword.
Lucien met her gaze with a neutral expression, his voice remaining calm. "Do you really think we have a chance of winning?" He deliberately spoke loud enough for the group in front of them to hear. "If we fight in our current condition, the outcome is already decided."
In his mind, Lucien had already calculated the worst-case scenario. And the most likely outcome is that we'll not only lose the Core Spirit we worked for, but we'll also end up eliminated.
Elara seemed to be struggling with her thoughts, but instead of calming down, her fists clenched even tighter. "I won't just hand over what we earned," she said icily before drawing her sword. The glint of metal reflected the dim light around them.
Lucien's eyes widened slightly, almost not believing what she had just done. Seriously!? he thought. But he knew that voicing his disagreement now would only make things worse.
Beside him, Victor remained silent, his face tense, though he wasn't making any moves to support Elara's decision either.
Lucien sighed once again before turning his attention back to the dark-haired young man standing before them.
"As you can see," he said, "they don't agree."
Kael Draven—the young man before them—simply stared back, his gaze sharp. With a slow but deliberate motion, he swung his sword in the air, leaving a faint trail of glowing blue mana before it faded away. It wasn't an attack, but it was enough to make his stance clear.
Lucien became even more certain that they had no chance of winning.
"If you want it, then take it yourself," Elara challenged, standing her ground. She raised her sword, her stance firm, showing she was fully prepared to fight.
Victor didn't remain idle either. His hand moved slowly toward the hilt of his own sword.
Kael stepped forward, his blade dragging just slightly above the ground, the scraping sound cutting through the silence like a warning bell signaling danger.
Okay… now what? Lucien thought, feeling the situation spiraling out of control.
He knew that if they fought, they would lose. But simply handing over the Core Spirit wasn't an option Elara or Victor would accept either.
A third option? Strategy.
If strength wasn't the best solution, then diplomacy had to be his weapon.
Lucien raised his hand slightly, trying to draw Kael's attention. "Wait a second," he said. "Before we fight, at least tell me your name."
Kael paused for a moment. His cold, emotionless eyes studied Lucien for a few seconds before he finally spoke.
"Kael Draven."
Lucien nodded, feeling like this was his opening. "Alright, Draven. You're obviously aware of our situation… If you want to settle this with a fight, it'll be easy for you. But what if I offer something more interesting?"
Kael's eyes flickered with a hint of curiosity. "Oh? And what would that be?"
Lucien gave a faint, calculated smile. "Instead of fighting right now, how about we make a deal? The exam isn't over yet, and there's still plenty of time to hunt for more Lesser Spirits. If we work together, our chances of getting more Core Spirits increase."
Elara and Victor stared at him, confused. Clearly, they didn't understand what he was planning—especially Elara, who looked outright furious at whatever Lucien was suggesting.
Kael remained silent, seemingly considering the offer.
Lucien continued, "Right now, we have about nine Core Spirits. We'll give you half of them now, and in return, we'll share a portion of whatever we hunt over the next two days."
Victor blinked, finally catching on. He discreetly reached into his bag, hiding his movements behind Lucien.
Meanwhile, Elara looked even more agitated. Her expression screamed disagreement. "What are you talking about!?"
Lucien met her gaze with a serious expression. "It's better to lose some than to lose everything and be eliminated."
Elara gritted her teeth. She couldn't deny that Lucien had a point. If they fought, they'd lose. They hadn't even fully recovered from their last battle. But giving away what they worked for so easily left a bitter taste in her mouth.
Kael suddenly chuckled—a hollow, empty sound. "Heh."
He looked at Lucien, then glanced at Elara and Victor. A small smirk formed on his lips, but there was something unsettling about it, as if it wasn't a genuine smile.
"I'm not interested," he said, his voice calm but sharp.
Lucien tensed.
Kael lifted his sword slightly, pointing it toward Lucien. "It seems you misunderstood," he said. "Do you really think all I want is your Core Spirits?"
Lucien opened his mouth to speak but ultimately let out a slow breath instead. He knows, he thought.
Kael stepped forward, his gaze growing even more piercing. "My priority isn't just collecting Core Spirits. What I want… is first place."
His eyes then shifted to Elara. "You're one of my biggest competitors. Instead of wasting time hunting more Core Spirits, wouldn't it be more efficient to remove a rival?"
Elara tensed, her expression hardening.
Kael smirked, raising his sword slightly higher. "And since you're already weakened… isn't this the perfect time to eliminate you?"
The air around them grew impossibly heavy.
Lucien swallowed hard, realizing that negotiations had failed.
Kael wasn't after their Core Spirits.
He was after them.