THUMP THUMP THUMP
The horse's gallop echoed against the stone road, each strike vibrating through the carriage frame and into my bones.
"Pleasant sound, isn't it?" The driver's voice carried easily over the rhythm. "Don't you think so, Layla?"
Silence from beside him.
"Still upset with me?"
A sigh. "How long are you going to drag this out?"
He chuckled awkwardly. "Alright, alright. We're here anyway."
The carriage slowed, wheels scraping softly against cobblestone as he tied the reins to a post. Harness bells jingled once, then stilled.
I stepped down onto the street. The morning air carried salt from the distant harbor and something sweeter—bread baking, maybe, or flowers from a window box I couldn't see.
"Thank you, sir."
"Oh, no worries. We were headed this way. Figured we'd help you out."
I nodded and watched the couple ride off before turning toward the academy gates.
I don't know if there are other candidates here.
But that girl from before—Astrid. Something—something was wrong about her. The way she knew I was left-handed.
The way she'd looked at me like she was waiting for something...
A quiet dread settled in my stomach.
It's nothing. I'm overthinking.
Still—
[You will be transmigrated shortly to the competition.]
I stopped mid-step.
"Competition?"
[Transmigration will occur in thirty minutes.]
[A trial between candidates.]
The words hit harder than any blade. My chest tightened, each breath scraping against my ribs.
Thirty minutes.
The system hadn't mentioned a trial. Hadn't mentioned any of this. It had just—decided. Informed me like an afterthought.
The system is painfully unreliable.
"No."
I crouched on the street, fingers digging into my hair, the stone cold beneath my shoes. People walked past without looking. Just another student having a rough morning. They didn't know.
"No—no, no, no, no."
There has to be another way.
"Right?"
Silence.
"Hey, kid. You alright?"
I flinched. A middle-aged man stood outside a café, concern written across his face. The smell of fresh bread drifted from the open door behind him.
"I—" My throat felt dry. "Could I get some water?"
"Sure thing. Drinks on me."
"...Thank you."
---
Inside the café, the smell of roasted beans filled the air, rich and bitter against my tongue.
I sat at a corner table, palms pressed against my face.
I need to get out of this. But how?
The answer was obvious.
I couldn't.
"I don't want to die again…" I whispered.
Thirty minutes...
Maybe I could buy potions. Defensive charms. Anything.
I stood abruptly—
Potions are strictly prohibited.
"You've got to be kidding me."
Of course.
The system didn't believe in fairness...
I sank back into my seat, the faint hiss of the espresso machine echoing like a reminder.
"…Great."
[Prepare for transmigration.]
I took a slow breath.
When I blinked—
The world shifted. Stone rose around me in towering arcs. Sand crunched beneath my boots. The wind carried a dry, gritty scent.
Open sky above. A colosseum.
"…Familiar," I exhaled.
The arena stretched endlessly, ringed by towering walls. Scattered across the sand were groups of people. Some were whispering, some were laughing, and some were standing alone.
The distant clatter of armor and murmurs of the crowd echoed faintly.
"Candidates…?"
I scanned the crowd.
And then I saw her.
The same woman as before—the carriage.
"Impossible," I whispered.
As if sensing it, she turned and our eyes met.
Then she smiled.
My stomach tightened.
[All candidates are requested to remain friendly for at least ten minutes before the commencement of the competition.]
"Friendly…?"
A scream cut through the arena.
"AGHH!"
"You little piece of shit—who do you think you are?!" a man roared.
I turned—
He was stomping on a child.
I ran toward the growing crowd—
And stepped into something warm.
Blood soaked into the sand, seeping through the soles of my boots.
"Damn it, Carlos. Spare the lad," a young man sighed.
He crouched beside the child and placed a hand over his chest.
A soft glow.
The broken body mended instantly.
Skin sealed. Bones realigned. Breathing steadied.
As if nothing had happened.
My fists trembled.
"Didn't that boy just—"
"Just forget it," I muttered to myself.
The man—Carlos—rolled his shoulders lazily, cracking his neck as if he'd just finished stretching.
I looked around.
Some watched with amusement. Ruthless.
All of them.
I could feel it. The fear beneath the cruelty. The desperation beneath the arrogance.
They're all scared.
They're just hiding it better.
[The Trial Begins.]
[You may kill, judge, or do as you wish with one another.]
[No restrictions apply.]
"Oh God…"
----
[Day One]
The trial had begun.
I stayed hidden behind the cracked stone walls of the colosseum.
This would last three days. Three days of slaughter.
And I had a task.
Judge five candidates.
At first, I thought the Trial and my mission were the same.
They weren't.
Every candidate has a different objective.
I overheard one laughing—he had to slit the throats of five others.
I swallowed, the metallic tang of fear sharp on my tongue.
"Wasn't this about sending people to Heaven or Hell…?" Guess not.
I sneaked past three candidates.
They never saw me coming. A hand on the forehead.
Judgment.
They all went to Heaven. But the memories—God, they were burning my brain.
Flashes hit whenever I blinked. They just don't fade...
"Enough…" I pressed my fingers against my temple. I needed food, or I'd start thinking about things I didn't want to.
Cannibalism? Probably wouldn't surprise me here.
[Judgement remained: 0/3]
"Three...? That's it?" A quiet unease settled in my chest.
What happens if I need one more?
I stepped forward—and froze.
Carlos.
He was ahead, watching. Cold smile.
"What the hell—" I turned. He was behind me. My stomach dropped.
I poured fire magic into my dagger and lunged.
For a second, I thought I was faster.
CRACK
Pain exploded through my arm, white-hot.
"AHHH—!" He broke my left arm like it was nothing.
Before I could react, he grabbed my throat and slammed me into the wall.
My feet left the ground.
He leaned close.
"Do you know how long it takes..." He paused.
"...for someone to stop screaming?"
My vision blurred.
"I stopped counting after the third."
My hands clawed at his wrist. He didn't flinch.
"Do you know how it feels… committing atrocities?
"…thinking they meant something?
"…like someone up there actually cared? "
"They don't."
"I hated myself so much… I stopped feeling anything at all."
His thumb pressed against my pulse.
"Nothing."
"Except when there was blood on my hands."
"That was the only warmth I ever knew."
His eyes drifted to the fragment in my grasp.
"And with that fragment… I'll end your life."
Black crept into the edges of my vision.
"Go on," he whispered.
"Judge me. Tell me where I stand."
For a moment, his eyes weren't furious. They were empty.
"Here's a secret," he leaned closer.
"The gods don't care about any of us."
So keep that to your grave."
Suddenly, a voice rang.
[Fragment Awakening Starting in—]
[3.]
[2.]
[1...]