Immediately Henry exclaimed in disbelief,
"Little Gold?!"
Aviana puffed her cheeks proudly. Then, right before everyone's eyes, golden particles wrapped around her flawless human body. Her black-and-gold armor dissolved into glowing feathers, and in the next moment—
A tiny golden bird landed lightly on Henry's shoulder.
She intentionally made herself small again instead of transforming into her gigantic bird form. Her tiny claws rested comfortably on Henry's shoulder while her golden-black eyes looked at him smugly.
Henry froze for a moment before slowly raising his hand.
Then he rubbed her tiny head carefully.
Little Gold chirped happily.
Henry sighed deeply in relief.
"I was just about to kiss a creature…" he muttered blankly. "Thankfully she slapped me."
The surrounding survivors burst into laughter instantly.
Even some exhausted fighters nearby nearly choked on their food.
Jade folded his arms and smirked.
"Hm. So you almost kissed Little Gold."
Henry immediately defended himself.
"I DIDN'T KNOW IT WAS HER!"
Little Gold flapped her tiny wings proudly.
"That little bird that forcefully sat on my shoulder during training…" Henry continued in disbelief. "She's now human?"
Jade nodded calmly.
"I was shocked too."
Then he added lazily,
"But anyways, welcome. You and your convoy."
Henry finally looked around properly.
The moment he did, his expression dimmed slightly.
Jade's convoy had reduced drastically.
The once enormous force of survivors had clearly suffered heavy casualties. Empty tents remained untouched. Some armor pieces rested near the campfire without owners. Even though the atmosphere looked peaceful, death still lingered heavily around the camp.
Henry estimated quickly.
Jade had probably lost over two thousand people from the original five thousand under his command.
The trial was slowly eating everyone alive.
Henry's expression became serious for a brief moment before Blake suddenly shoved roasted meat into his hand.
"Eat first before looking depressed," Blake said.
Henry blinked once.
Then the smell reached him fully.
His eyes widened.
"…Jade cooked this?"
Jade looked offended.
"Who else?"
Henry immediately sat down near the campfire without shame.
The convoy behind him also received food from survivors nearby. Exhausted people who had been fighting for days nearly cried after tasting actual properly cooked meat again.
One survivor from Henry's convoy whispered emotionally,
"This is the best thing I've eaten since entering the trial."
Another nodded aggressively while chewing.
"If I die tomorrow, at least I tasted this first."
Aaron, who sat quietly near the fire, took a bite calmly before speaking.
"His cooking is suspiciously good."
Jade pointed at him immediately.
"You almost cried the first time you ate it."
Aaron replied calmly,
"That information was not necessary."
Little Gold chirped happily on Henry's shoulder while stealing pieces of meat directly from his hand.
Henry looked sideways at her.
"You're lucky you're cute."
Little Gold puffed herself proudly.
"I know."
Henry nearly laughed again.
Honestly, seeing the tiny bird after witnessing her flawless human form felt unbelievably strange.
Jade sat opposite Henry and asked calmly,
"So, did you guys survive properly?"
Henry snorted.
"Barely."
His face turned serious afterward.
"We encountered blood wolves constantly. Some evolved midway through battle. We lost people too."
Silence briefly fell around the campfire.
Everyone had lost people.
That was simply reality now.
Henry then asked while eating,
"Did you guys save Sarah from the ancient ruin?"
Little Gold was still sitting on his shoulder comfortably.
Jade nodded.
"Yes. We did."
Henry looked relieved.
"And Ella?"
Ella, who sat nearby sharpening arrows, replied before Jade could answer.
"I'm alive unfortunately."
Henry smirked.
"You sound disappointed."
Ella rolled her eyes.
"I nearly died to a screaming ant queen. Let me be dramatic."
Blake laughed loudly.
"That ant scream nearly made my soul leave my body."
Aaron looked calmly into the fire.
"It almost did."
Henry stared at Aaron.
"You actually look tired."
Aaron replied immediately,
"I fought an ant queen while your greatest achievement today was getting slapped."
The nearby survivors exploded into laughter again.
Henry pointed accusingly.
"You people will never let that go, huh?"
Jade answered instantly,
"No."
Little Gold chirped happily as if agreeing.
Henry sighed deeply.
"This camp is toxic."
Cassie, who had followed Henry into the camp quietly, finally spoke.
"At least people are smiling."
Everyone became quieter after hearing that.
She was right.
For the first time in a very long while, people were smiling naturally instead of forcing hope.
That mattered.
Jade slowly stood up afterward.
"We're about to begin the meeting," he said calmly.
Henry nodded.
"Then let's stop wasting time."
Jade prompted Henry and Little Gold, who still rested proudly on his shoulder, to follow him.
The group soon entered a large tent constructed carefully from stitched monster hides and giant tree branches. It wasn't luxurious, but compared to most shelters in the trial, it looked impressive.
Inside, a large wooden table stood in the center.
The table itself looked rough and uneven because it had been built quickly from trees in the trial. Some parts leaned slightly awkwardly, yet surprisingly it still held together.
Wooden benches surrounded it.
Jade sat first.
Aaron sat beside him silently.
Ella rested her bow against the wall before taking a seat calmly.
Henry sat opposite Jade while Little Gold hopped from his shoulder onto the table itself.
Cassie sat beside Henry quietly.
Blake leaned lazily against the wooden wall instead of sitting.
Sarah arrived shortly afterward and sat beside Aaron.
The atmosphere inside the tent became serious instantly.
Outside, survivors still laughed and ate around campfires.
Inside, however—
The leaders of the remaining survivors discussed life and death.
Jade placed both hands on the rough wooden table.
"Our first objective has been completed."
His voice was calm.
Cold.
Everyone listened carefully.
"We have lost many people accomplishing it."
No one interrupted.
Because it was true.
Too many graves had already been buried.
Jade continued,
"But we still have two remaining objectives."
He raised two fingers.
"First—we survive a night in the shadowed area."
Even hearing the name made the atmosphere colder.
"The second objective…"
Jade's eyes narrowed slightly.
"We defeat the guardian monster protecting the treasure."
Silence filled the tent afterward.
Everyone understood how horrifying that sounded.
Aaron leaned slightly forward.
"According to our statistics," he began calmly, "the casualties are becoming unsustainable."
He tapped lightly on the wooden table.
"When we first began moving toward the ancient ruin, our total force exceeded ten thousand survivors."
His eyes darkened slightly.
"Now we only have seven thousand remaining."
Henry frowned slightly.
Three thousand dead.
And that was only after the first objective.
Aaron continued,
"If we continue losing people at this rate, reaching the final objective may become meaningless."
Blake crossed his arms.
"So what are you suggesting?"
Aaron looked calmly toward everyone.
"We reduce casualties."
Ella sighed softly.
"If only it were that easy."
Cassie, who had remained silent until now, suddenly spoke.
"There might be a way."
Everyone looked toward her.
Henry nodded slightly.
"Cassie has a special data."
Jade's eyes narrowed with interest.
Cassie looked slightly nervous under everyone's gaze but still continued.
"My data can manipulate time within a selected area."
The entire tent became silent instantly.
Even Aaron looked genuinely surprised.
Jade leaned forward slightly.
"…Manipulate time?"
Cassie nodded slowly.
"If used properly, we can reduce the amount of time spent surviving in the shadowed area."
Jade immediately understood.
His eyes sharpened.
"You mean…"
Cassie nodded again.
"If everyone is supposed to survive twelve hours there…"
She took a deep breath.
"I can reduce it to six."
The tent became completely silent afterward.
Even Blake looked stunned.
Henry rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Which means fewer casualties."
Ella's eyes brightened slightly for the first time during the meeting.
Aaron looked impressed.
"That's an absurdly powerful data."
Cassie lowered her gaze slightly.
"But…"
The atmosphere immediately dimmed again.
Jade already knew there was a condition.
Cassie continued quietly,
"It's a one-time-use data."
Silence.
Jade slowly leaned back.
So they only had one chance.
One mistake—
And everything would collapse.
Henry sighed deeply.
"Of course the broken overpowered ability has terrible conditions."
Blake laughed dryly.
"That sounds exactly like this trial."
Aaron folded his arms.
"Six hours is still extremely dangerous."
Jade nodded slowly.
Especially because surviving the shadowed area wasn't simply about enduring monsters.
People needed protection.
Formation.
Coordination.
Endurance.
Panic alone could destroy the convoy.
Jade rested his elbow on the table while thinking deeply.
Then he finally spoke.
"Our objective remains the same."
Everyone looked at him.
"We reduce deaths as much as possible."
Henry smirked faintly.
"You sound more responsible lately."
Jade looked at him blankly.
"Don't ruin the atmosphere."
Little Gold chirped loudly from the table as if laughing.
Then Aaron calmly added,
"If anyone dies because Henry loses focus trying to kiss creatures again, I'll personally throw him into the shadowed area."
The tent exploded into laughter instantly.
Henry slammed the table dramatically.
"IT HAPPENED ONE TIME!"