I sit on the bed. Feeling more and more Lumin coursing through my body. The small fire of Lumin dances around my skin. My strength is coming back.
"Zain."
I turn around to see Aurelia standing near the door, slowly stepping inside. "How are you feeling?"
"Much better. Better than I've ever felt after everything. My strength is coming back."
She breathes out a small sigh of relief. "I'm glad. We'll need you, Zain."
Aurelia looks weird. Her jaw is tighter, and I can see a small bead of sweat on her forehead. Her posture has gone rigid. Something's wrong.
"Aurelia, what's going on?"
Her eyes widen before going back to normal. She fiddles with her vest before opening her mouth.
"I think we should consider the alliance with Zora. Listen, I understand his presence isn't really good, but we need him. We can't face off against Eighty rookies at once."
"I was also thinking the same thing. I should've said no to his proposal, but did you go?"
She nods. "I went with Rela and Alexandria. But tomorrow, I'm going to say yes. You want to go with me?"
"Sure. Plus I can walk properly now. But something else is bugging you, Aurelia. What is it?"
"Well... before we left, Zora told me not to go outside by midnight. And I'm just suspicious about it."
"Zora has always been a suspicious and weird person. He's just... I can't even describe it."
Aurelia sits beside me. "Same for me. But he's our last hope."
I cross my arms. "I know that. So do you want to go and see what Zora will do?"
She looks at me with a shocked expression. "Are you crazy?"
"I ripped a man's jaw off. I bit off a gorekin's snout. I fought undead adventurers. My life is already... crazy. And crazy lives create crazy people, you know."
Aurelia's eyes widen. "You really have a crazy life. So things like this are normal to you?"
"Really normal."
She laughs. I've never heard Aurelia laugh, but it's unique in a way. She holds my shoulder. "Alright, let's go investigate."
Both of us get up and walk out of the infirmary.
We continue walking around the walls. The ship feels weird this late. No one around—just silence and waves. This place feels strange at night. Really strange. Like some kind of horror environment where a monster could pop out. The dark oak walls don't make it any better, despite the lanterns attached to them.
I catch a faint smell. A familiar smell of metal and leather.
Zora.
Aurelia hides behind the wall. I stand beside her, hiding.
I turn slightly to check. My eyes narrow as I see—
Edward stands with his arms crossed, leaning against the wall. Zora is there, shirtless and in some shorts. Rowan sits against the wall, leaning back.
What's this? Edward's a psychopath. Rowan's a psychopath. And Zora's a psychopath. What is going on?
They're just standing there silently, as if waiting for something. Or someone.
Black fire spreads from the floor as one of the moderators enters, standing tall like a behemoth.
"The psychopath exam has reached its conclusion. All of you have participated and have done your roles efficiently. Unfortunately, Ren isn't with us, for he has fallen at the hands of Zain. Now we shall rank each psychopath."
"Fourth place—Edward, with one kill."
"Third place—Ren, with two kills."
"Second place—Rowan, with three kills."
"First place—Zora, with five kills."
"Winner of this exam is Zora. You shall be rewarded with a wish that will help you in the final exam."
A wish?!
I place a hand over my mouth. What do you mean, wish? Aurelia turns to look at me with narrowed eyes.
I lean forward to see the conversation. Then Zora's nose wrinkles.
"I smell medicine and chemicals."
Everyone turns their heads toward our direction, but we hide just in time. Aurelia tugs my arm, moving her head. We should leave now.
"I should check what's going on, in case there are unnecessary visitors," Zora says. His footsteps grow louder.
I grab Aurelia's arm and rush out as fast as possible. Each step is careful, yet swift.
We reach the infirmary, and I close the door shut, catching my breath. Aurelia leans against the wall.
"So those are the psychopaths. We finally have their faces. Now we can vote them out without accusing someone innocent."
"Yeah."
She turns to me. "Zain, are you alright?"
"No. These moderators—they were the same entities who came to my dreams to lecture me about accountability. Saying my sorry should be the engine of my values. But the same people who told me that now made this exam."
"It was because that priest was a non-combatant. We knew what we signed up for. Rookies will die in the process. Though I participated in it, I didn't get that message from them."
Then why did I alone get it? If Aurelia didn't get that dream, and probably Dominio didn't either... why me? Was it because I started the attack? Maybe...
The memory of the dream flashes back to me. The lecture. The jaguar's judgment. The moderators' words.
Why me?
I turn around to see a man leaning on the wall on the other side of the room. Was he there when we were gone? His body looks... normal. No injury. Nothing. My senses should have identified his presence—but they didn't.
Unless...
He's a rogue.
Aurelia draws her wand, pointing it at him.
"Who are you?!"
He pushes himself from the wall and walks toward us.
His complexion is light. His physique is that of a gymnast. He wears the same white vest with white baggy pants. A dagger far larger than Dominio's is strapped behind him—almost the size of a forearm. His face is covered with a flat wooden mask with round eye holes.
"Who are you?" I clench my fist.
He looks at Aurelia and speaks. His voice is deep.
"Zora gave you one instruction. And it's clear you haven't followed it."
He draws the dagger.
"Now it's time to pay the price. No witnesses."