The tunnels split into three directions, each passage swallowed by darkness. Ilwoo's torch threw shadows across the stone walls, and the shapes writhed like living things.
"Which way?" Hayeon gripped her spear, her knuckles white on the shaft.
Ilwoo crouched at the intersection and studied the ground. Dust coated the stone floor, but a dark stain caught the torchlight.
"Blood." He touched the spot with his fingertip. The liquid came away wet and crimson. "Fresh."
"Minji's?"
"Has to be." He stood, following the droplets with his eyes. "Trail goes left."
They plunged into the left passage, their footsteps echoing off the narrow walls. The blood drops grew larger, more frequent. Whatever had wounded Minji was getting worse.
"How much time do we have left?" Hayeon jogged beside him, her breathing sharp in the stale air.
Ilwoo checked his system interface. The trial timer glowed an ominous red.
"Fourteen minutes."
"Shit."
"Your cursed doesnt work here." He picked up the pace, following the blood trail as it curved deeper into the mountain. "But moving faster might."
The passage split again. This time, the blood trail diverged—droplets scattered in two directions as if Minji had stumbled, unsure which path to take.
"Left or right?" Hayeon's voice cracked with strain.
Ilwoo studied both paths. The right passage showed fewer blood drops, but they were darker, more concentrated. The left passage had lighter stains, more spread out.
"Right. The blood's darker there, means she was bleeding heavier when she went that way."
"Or she was bleeding lighter, and the blood had time to dry."
"No." He pointed to a handprint on the wall, fingers smeared with red. "That's fresh. She touched the wall for support maybe three minutes ago."
They rushed down the right passage. The ceiling lowered, forcing them to duck. The blood trail intensified, becoming an almost continuous line along the floor.
"Oh god, how much blood can someone lose and still walk?" Hayeon's face had gone pale in the torchlight.
"More than you'd think. Less than you'd hope."
The passage opened into a small chamber. Ilwoo raised his torch, sweeping the light across the space.
There.
Minji lay crumpled against the far wall, her blonde hair matted with sweat and blood. A dark stain spread across her shirt from a wound in her side. Her chest rose in rapid, shallow breaths.
"Minji!" Hayeon dropped to her knees beside their teammate.
Ilwoo knelt on Minji's other side, checking her pulse. Weak but steady. The wound in her side wasn't deep, but it was wide, a slash rather than a puncture. She'd lost a lot of blood.
"Minji, can you hear me?" He tapped her cheek gently.
Her eyelids fluttered but didn't open. Her skin felt cold and clammy.
"She's in shock." Ilwoo rummaged through his inventory, pulling out one of their precious healing scrolls. "This should help her, but we need to move fast."
"What if it doesn't work?"
"Then we carry her out anyway." He unrolled the scroll, the parchment glowing with soft blue light. " I can't leave here behind."
The healing magic flowed from the scroll into Minji's body. The wound in her side closed partially, the bleeding stopping, though the skin remained an angry red. Her breathing deepened, but she still didn't wake.
"Better." Ilwoo scooped her into his arms, then adjusted his position to carry her on his back. "But not good enough. We need real medical attention."
"Can you carry her and move fast enough?"
"I'll have to." He secured Minji's arms around his neck, her weight settling against his back. "You take point. I'll follow."
They retraced their steps through the winding passages, Ilwoo's legs burning with each step. Minji's breathing whispered against his ear, a reminder that time was running out for all of them.
"Ten minutes," Hayeon called over her shoulder.
"I know." Sweat dripped into Ilwoo's eyes. "Just keep moving."
The passages blurred together, left turn, right turn, straight corridor, another split. Hayeon navigated with determination, her torch cutting through the darkness ahead of them.
"There!" She pointed ahead to where natural light leaked through a crack in the stone. "The exit!"
They squeezed through the narrow opening, emerging into the harsh sunlight of demon territory. Ilwoo blinked, his eyes adjusting after the tunnel's darkness.
Three demons stood nearby, their red skin gleaming in the afternoon light. They turned as the groups that emerged, expressions shifting from boredom to surprise.
How are those lowly demons alive?" one demon said, its voice a low rumble.
"They must be lucky," added another.
"Where are the others?" Hayeon demanded, still gripping her spear.
The first demon pointed toward a cluster of rocks where Kim Donghyun and Jinhyuk sat waiting. Both jumped up as they spotted the returning team members.
"Thank God." Kim jogged over, his posture still firm despite the relief. "We were starting to think..." He froze when he saw Minji's condition. "What happened?"
"Stabbed." Ilwoo lowered Minji to the ground, keeping her head elevated. "Something in the tunnels got to her before we did."
"Stabbed by what?" Jinhyuk knelt beside them, his face creased with worry.
"I don't know. We found her unconscious." Ilwoo checked the bandages he'd made from torn cloth. They still held, but blood seeped through. "Whoever did this knew how to use a blade."
"That's reassuring," Hayeon said.
Kim Donghyun studied Minji's wound with sharp focus. "The cut is clean, not jagged. Someone attacked her on purpose, not out of mindless rage."
"Great. So we're dealing with crazy demons." Ilwoo dropped onto a rock, breath heavy now that the adrenaline was gone. "I don't know, I can't do much anymore."
Minji stirred, eyelids fluttering. She tried to speak but coughed instead.
"Don't talk," Hayeon said. "You lost blood. Rest."
"Did... did I pass?" Minji whispered.
"You lived," Kim said. "That counts as passing."
"Timer shows three minutes," Jinhyuk said, eyes fixed on his system screen.
"Think we all made it?" Hayeon asked, scanning the group.
"We will be in about two minutes," Ilwoo replied. "Assuming the trial ends when the timer hits zero and not when ..."
The sky darkened without warning, twisting into a spiral that burned their eyes to look at. Lightning split the clouds, but no thunder followed.
"Speak of the devil," Kim muttered.
A weathered demon emerged from the storm, drifting down until it hovered ten feet above them. Its voice shook the air.
"Participate." The demon's gaze locked on each of them. "You completed the first trial."
"Completed?" Hayeon raised her spear. "Half of us almost died down there."
"Survival was the requirement. You survived." The demon's shape hardened, hints of a face forming. "The wounded one still breathes. The separated have rejoined. The time has not run out. These conditions meet the trial's terms."
"So we passed?" Jinhyuk asked, hope tugging at his voice.
"You earned the right to face the second trial." The storm above spun faster. "Prepare for transport."
"Transport to where?" Kim demanded.
"The second stage of examination." The demon raised what might have been arms. "Where your true worthiness will be tested."
"Wait," Ilwoo struggled to his feet, supporting Minji as she tried to sit up. "She needs medical attention. Real medical care, not field bandages."
"The second trial will provide what is needed for survival. Nothing more, nothing less."
"That's not good enough. She could die."
"Then she will die during the trial, and the record will mark her failure." The weather demon's tone held no emotion or sympathy.
Lightning struck the ground, each bolt carving a circle of scorched earth. The circles linked into a pattern, a transportation array pulsing with magical energy.
"Stay close," Kim ordered. "Whatever comes next, we face it together."
"Together," Hayeon said, helping Ilwoo hold Minji upright.
"Together," Jinhyuk echoed, his voice trembling.
The weather demon spread its arms, and the lightning raged harder. The world blurred, colors smearing like wet paint.
"The second trial begins," the demon declared. "Prepare for ..."
World twisted.
Everything around him shattered into swirling chaos. Space folded in on itself, dragging them toward an unknown place.
Ilwoo gripped Minji tighter. He refused to lose anyone else to the trials ahead. Her breath rose and fell against his shoulder, a small victory in a world that offered none.
The chaos hardened into new shapes, new colors, new threats.
The second trial had begun.