Deciding to get it over with, Gil stepped forward.
Instantly, all eyes locked onto him, and a heavy silence descended over the hall.
For most of the captives, there wasn't even any real suspense.
"If anyone's going to trigger it, it's him, right?"
"Yeah, after all, he managed to take down one of those damn beasts."
Whispers rippled through the crowd as they watched him walk toward the device. Arya clenched her fists and shot him a warm, encouraging look. Gil offered her a quick nod of thanks before turning his attention away from Helena, who observed his approach with an unreadable, impassive expression.
In the back, Mao's face twisted into an increasingly ugly mask of bitterness and jealousy.
Please fail. Please fail...
Deep down, the Scholar knew it was a foolish hope. Given everything Gil had demonstrated—and the intense, uncomfortable interest Hector showed in him—it seemed almost impossible for him to fail this test.
Yet Mao couldn't stop the venomous thought from looping in his mind. Having been thoroughly humiliated by his own failure, he couldn't bring himself to look away, yet he loathed the thought of Gil succeeding.
The healer watched Gil with a stoic, detached expression, but he too shared the crowd's assumption that the boy would pass easily.
Gil, on the other hand, was desperately trying to figure out how to deliberately fail this damn test.
His mind raced at breakneck speed, searching for anything—any loophole or trick—that could help him fake out the device.
Pretending to touch the prism was out of the question; the healer was standing right beside it, watching his every move.
What about invoking the sphere inside me to block whatever energy the crystal measures? he considered for a split second.
But he instantly shot the idea down.
No way. If I channel the shield, it'll probably backfire horribly and set off the crystal before my hand even makes contact.
In a high-stakes scenario where every variable mattered, bringing out his most dangerous secret in front of their tormentor was an absurd gamble.
With no viable tricks left and his options completely exhausted, Gil reached the base of the device.
He took a slow breath, steeled his nerves, and reached out, pressing his palm firmly against the smooth surface of the flickering crystal prism.
Everyone in the room held their breath.
One second passed. Two seconds. Three seconds.
Nothing happened.
"Huh?"
Gil himself was caught completely off guard, tilting his head in sheer disbelief.
By the time three full minutes elapsed without the slightest flicker of light from the stone, the silence in the room was so thick you could hear a pin drop.
An oppressive, confusing atmosphere settled over the captives.
"No way..."
"What just happened?"
"Maybe the device is broken? Wait, if it's broken, does that mean all our results are wrong? Do we get a second chance?" whispers began to ripple through the crowd.
Even without his mask, the healer's brow furrowed in deep confusion, entirely unable to make sense of what he was witnessing.
Arya looked genuinely heartbroken for Gil, her eyes filled with concern. Helena and Kuro both briefly lost their cool, indifferent composure, their expressions breaking into sheer astonishment at his failure.
Even Mao—who had just been praying to every god and saint he could think of for Gil to fail—stared in absolute disbelief. How could he fail? How is that even possible?!
Only Orphée, standing near the back, stroked his chin with a thoughtful expression, seeming to catch onto a subtle piece of the puzzle, though he kept his mouth shut.
Greg, on the other hand, having already been briefed on Gil's suspicions, let out a massive sigh of relief.
He didn't know whether this was ultimately a blessing or a curse, but seeing that their leader—who couldn't dodge the spotlight—had safely failed the test was enough for him.
Gil pulled his hand back from the cold stone.
Suppressing a triumphant smirk, he rubbed the back of his neck and let out a light, airy laugh.
"Well, look at that. Guess I'm just not destined for that kind of power. Bad luck, huh?"
"Wait."
Just as Gil turned to head back to his group, the healer's firm voice cut through the silence.
The man hesitated for a split second, but his resolve quickly hardened. "Do it again."
"Huh?"
Murmurs of surprise rippled through the room, with several captives inwardly complaining about the blatant unfairness.
Gil's brows knit together as he scrutinized the masked healer.
What is this guy pulling?
Fearing their earlier confrontation might have pushed the instructor to screw him over, Gil narrowed his eyes, every muscle in his body tensing in suspicion.
The healer stepped closer to Gil. Leaning in, he spoke in a low murmur, his voice so quiet that only Gil could hear him. "I don't know how you tricked the crystal, but I strongly advise you to stop whatever you're doing and take the test again properly."
Gil replied in the exact same subdued, icy tone. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I didn't trick anything. Your device just didn't respond. I failed fair and square. What could I have possibly done?"
The healer let out an exasperated sigh, realizing that trying to convince the skeptical youth wouldn't be easy.
He was utterly convinced Gil was hiding something—if anyone tried to tell him this kid lacked the qualifications, he wouldn't believe it for a second.
"Listen to me," the healer urged softly. "I can understand why you're on guard, assuming this is just another trap we're setting for you."
Gil remained silent, but his sharp, disdainful glare spoke for him: You think? It's not like you lot are shining beacons of trust, are you?
"Listen to me," the healer said, his voice hardening into deadly seriousness. "Like I've told you before, whether you like it or not, your greatest asset in this place is Hector. The only reason you caught his attention is because you're special—far beyond the average captive. What do you think happens to you the moment you lose that value? Don't forget, you killed one of Lucius's beasts."
Gil caught the subtle shift in phrasing—the healer had stopped referring to one of their tormentors with reverent awe.
So there might be a sliver of sanity left in this guy after all, Gil noted dryly.
"Lucius is notoriously vindictive," the healer continued, his voice dropping to a low whisper. "Believe me, you do not want to find out what life is like here without Sir Hector's shadow protecting you. I've watched people beg for death after getting into that man's hands."
Gil's relaxed demeanor vanished, replaced by a cold, sharp focus. Turning back toward the cursed device, he gritted out, "I already told you—I didn't fake anything. And I'll prove it to you."
He slammed his palm back onto the crystal, turning his head to stare straight into the healer's eyes. He spread his fingers wide, making it blatantly obvious that his entire hand was flush against the surface and that no tricks were being used.
The healer stepped closer, his eyes narrowing as he scrutinized every inch of Gil's posture. Sensing the tension, the other captives edged nearer, having caught snippets of the hushed conversation.
Speculation flared that Gil had somehow rigged his first attempt.
But they were soon disappointed.
One second passed. Two seconds. Three full minutes came and went—and then several more.
The crystal remained entirely dead, its inner flicker as dim and dormant as before.
A faint, mocking smirk tugged at the corner of Gil's mouth as he pulled his hand away. "Well... as you can see, nothing changed."
Without waiting for a response, he turned on his heel and strolled back toward his group, completely indifferent to the sea of eyes following him.
Helena watched his retreating back, her eyes narrowing thoughtfully, her true assessment veiled.
Arya looked sorry for him, taking an instinctual step forward as if to comfort him, but Helena caught her shoulder and gave a gentle, warning shake of her head.
As for Mao, a swirling storm of complex, conflicting emotions warred across his face—disbelief, relief, and deep, dark suspicion.
As much as Mao had wished for Gil to fail, he wasn't stupid. Nor had he allowed his jealousy and bitter feelings to completely blind him. He knew all too well that Gil had something special. He had proven it beyond a doubt in the arena, and the uncomfortable amount of attention the leaders of this facility showered on him was further proof that he was far from normal.
So what the hell just happened with that crystal?
Mao stared at the device and the unmasked healer, pushing aside his own bitter disappointment at failing the test. Forcing his mind back into a cold, analytical state, he began piecing together everything that had just transpired and what it could truly mean.
Meanwhile, Gil quickly retreated to his group. He clapped Hugo on the shoulder with a light grin.
"You're up, big guy. Let's get this over with so we can get back to business. I still haven't fully adapted to my condition, and we've got a lot to discuss after this."
Though he appeared to be speaking directly to Hugo—who couldn't understand a word he was saying anyway—Gil was actually addressing his entire crew.
Thanks to Orphée's subtle trick, Greg, Kuro, and Orphée himself had slipped completely out of the crowd's line of sight, remaining virtually invisible to the rest of the room.
Having already been briefed by Orphée on what to do, Hugo gave a heavy nod and stepped forward.
Though the captives were still buzzing with wild speculation over Gil's bizarre failure, the sight of the red-haired giant stepping up caused their hushed murmurs to fade once more.
All eyes turned to watch the last remaining contender take his turn.
Still lost in his thoughts, the healer paid little attention to the next captive in line—until he realized it was the red-haired giant.
Remembering the strong impression Hugo had left during their previous clash, a realization flickered across the healer's mind.
Wait... there might be another explanation.
Refocusing his attention, he watched intently as the giant stepped forward and placed his massive hand over the crystal, which looked almost comical in comparison.
One second passed. Two seconds. Three seconds.
Once again, nothing happened.
This time, however, the healer was neither unsettled nor surprised.
On the contrary, clarity washed over his face as he nodded slowly to himself, as if everything had fallen into place.
"I see what happened now," he muttered under his breath. "So that's it."