As the figures of Rossa, Artian, and Estelle quickly disappear into the distance, an oppressive mood then drowned those who were left behind. This was the result of multiple realizations that hit far too quickly and were hard to swallow.

At this point they feel it was hopeless to try and fight and simply wanted to give up. Except for a few who still stood tall. Among these were the members of the Guardians of truth and the Clarentum Inquisitors.

But even they, despite their defiance, could feel the pressure mounting as the high of adrenaline began to wear off.

Letisia at this moment feels an unbridled frustration swelling from her heart, it was a mix of feeling small and weak, realizing she was but another fish in a larger pond. This was a sentiment shared by those who were born from long standing mage families.

It was common for them to think so highly of themselves while looking down on others, thinking that their bloodline to be the best among the rest while completely dismissing those not of magical descent.

Yet this time, it seemed that they were dancing on the palm of one man. While the name Clearsight may have some notoriety among the mage circles, they are in fact not from any sort of old lineage.

Their reputation is brought about by their own feats, and it seems that the child of the Clearsights is continuing to exhibit this method while also finding incredibly powerful allies of his own.

But, Letisia refused back down and still wanted to fight on for her own pride. With her heart made up, she then took out her ID in order to track the location of the treasure, an action that her group all followed.

“Third quadrant, near the clock in the middle of the area.” Letisia said out loud as she returned the ID back into her pocket.

“Of course, they would go there.” Letisia thought to herself.

“What do you plan to do my lady?” Frieda asked with her face still serious yet expressionless.

“What else? I plan to fight and till the very end. I will win this festival no matter what.” She declared in a determined tone, undeterred by the overwhelming odds.

“Then I shall follow you as well my lady.” Josef declared. “I swear by my blade.” He added.

“Me too my lady.” Ronald joined in. “I shall fight alongside you and see this endeavor to the end.”

“Just as I thought.” Letisia said while showing a slight smile. “I expected nothing less from all of you.” She then turned her back and walked forward.

“Come, let’s not waste time on idle chatter. We must make haste.” Letisia declared when suddenly a voice called out to her.

“Wait!”

Letisia then stopped on her tracks and turned to see who it was who tried to take her attention, it was the man she had been antagonizing this whole time; William Wright.

William Wright was no mage by birth, he had no heritage whatsoever, he was merely a normal boy until one day he stumbled upon the world of magic and was subsequently dragged in. It was a miracle that he managed to enter the walls of Inanis Orbis, it might as well be a testament to his innate talents.

He thought he could simply continue on as a somewhat average magician just barely under the radar and find the answers he seeks. But this encounter made him realize that he needed to do more.

In his heart he knew he had to get stronger, he needed to have the drive to win, or else he will not only lose his life, but those around him as well.

If he wanted to act, he had to act now. Despite how insignificant this little treasure hunt may be to the grand scheme of things, if he walks out of this without learning anything, it will all just be wasted.

But he knew that he alone would not be enough, and right now he is more than willing to bite the bullet for even just a very small chance at victory.

“Hey uh, Miss Letisia. Let’s join forces.” He openly suggested without mincing for words. A straightforward declaration that caught everyone by surprise as William stretched out his hand towards his once heated foe.

Letisia was taken aback by William’s words and so was everyone else. The crowd was soon entangled in hush whispers and speculations. This was an unexpected development after all.

William expected her to decline his offer immediately but he didn’t care, he planned to try his best to convince her no matter what because he knows this is the only way.

Letisia at first did not respond, but contrary to all expectations she suddenly walked towards William without even saying a word. She then stood and looked him in the eye before opening her mouth to speak.

“Very well.” Letisia seemed to agree, but before William could respond, she continued with her words. “I suppose only a fool would refuse a hand of cooperation at this point.”

“Wait what?” William and his friends all screamed in unison as confusion and disbelief took over the crowd. Confusion that almost instantly turned into excitement for this truly an unprecedented development.

“Whoa whoa whoa!” William continued to yell. “Are-are you serious!?” He asked again to which Letisia only scoffed in response.

“Don’t get too happy with this arrangement, after all this is simply a means to an end. I can only promise to cooperate until we’ve dealt with our common enemy. And once that is fulfilled, I will be standing on top as the victor. Do I make myself clear?” Letisia then revealed her intentions.

All in all, this was sort of in line with William’s best expectations.

“That’s okay, because I am confident that I will still beat you. And when I do, I intend to ask the headmaster to share the rewards between the Guardians of truth and the Clarentum Inquisitors.” He said with a beaming smile.

Letisia for a moment was silent until she suddenly burst into a fit of laughter.

“What a naive fool you truly are, as expected from a lowly commoner.” She said in a joyful but sarcastic tone.

“What? I was just trying to be nice!” William responded as he was annoyed by the sudden mockery he received.

“She’s right though William, you are a fool.” Mary interjected, taking the same stance as Letisia.

“Wh-what?” William could not believe the sudden betrayal.

“Well I guess that’s what makes you, you.” Mary said with a gentle smile causing William to suddenly turn red and blush.

“Are you two done yet?” Sharn then interrupted the sweet atmosphere between Mary and William.

“Wha-wha? Nothing’s going on!” Mary suddenly covered her face in embarrassment as she continually acted like she was guilty of doing something wrong.

“I don’t get it.” Julia then started to talk. “Why are you two blushing badly?” She asked with an inquisitive look on her face.

“No we aren’t!” William and Mary shouted in unison.

“Ahem.” Letisia seemed to have had enough of the little drama happening in front of her decide to cut it short herself.

“We don’t have much time, we really need to be heading out.” She said with an irritated look on her face.

“Ah yes sorry let’s go-” Before William could finish his sentence, a voice called out to him from behind.

“Wait! Let us join you!” Several other students who weren’t tied up in chains walked up closer to Letisia and William.

All in all these students numbered up to 15 more people, eager to give their hand of assistance to William’s cause but not really because of any altruistic belief.

“But you have to promise, if you do indeed win, you also include us in that shared reward.” Another person in that small crowd declared.

“Ugh, you lowly parasites. So quick to try suck up to anyone with a modicum of strength. Maybe I should get rid of all of you now!” Letisia then raised her hand gathering mana and preparing to blast a spell.

“Oh my god please, can’t we just resolve this peacefully!” William then stood in between Letisia and the people who seemed to have offended her.

For a few seconds the two of them looked each other in the eye until finally, Letisia backed off.

“Fine, have it your way. If you want to take these fodders with you then I won’t stop you.” She declared as she walked away.

William then let out a sigh of relief as it seems his plan for a shaky alliance worked, at least, for now.

Once all was said and done, this new temporary super team consisted of 23 people and can be considered a rather powerful force in this continuing struggle.

They all then moved towards the setting for the final chapter of this long and arduous treasure hunt; Quadrant three. Sadly this was the last place they wanted to go and quite frankly it was a miracle that the box never ever showed up there.

Upon approaching the border a large structure started to cast its shadow over them. For all that stood before them was a large and plane stone wall with only a single large entrance greeting them.

They also realized why their opponents chose this place as the final battleground since this would allow them enough time to stall out the timer for as long as they could. The more they get an insight into what Sylveter and his group were thinking, the smaller they simply feel.

They really felt that they were being played with from the very beginning, because there is a chance that their enemies probably prepared for this beforehand. And given the versatility of magic in general, they wouldn’t be surprised if they placed some kind of magical traps in there.

“I guess this is it, let’s go in!” William declared in a positive tone, but did not get a response in return.

The group of 23 then entered the labyrinth with the location of the clock and treasure as their only guide. They tried to scout ahead using a sort of sight spell, but it turns out that the walls caused some sort of interference.

As the group entered a large room illuminated by a single ray of light seeping through, they all felt a sudden surge of mana, prompting them all to tense up and be alert.

With barely any warning, a hail of translucent arrows descended upon them.

---

“Hmm where is it?” A man wearing a tophat asked as he sat alone in a large empty room, barely lit up by a hole on the ceiling.

He sat in deep concentration, his eyes moving underneath the closed lids until suddenly they opened up in an abrupt fashion.

“Aha there it is!” He said loudly as he glanced upwards, to a small faraway corner of the room. “And with that my preparations are complete, all I need to do now is wai-”

Before he could finish his sentence his hat began shaking violently. He then removed and placed it on the ground in front of him. The mouth of his hat then contorted and stretched and shot out an item that looked to be one single wheel attached to a bike seat, causing the man to laugh at his conundrum.

“Really now? Out of all things I could get, I get a unicycle?”