With his whole body shaking with fear, he finally dared to cut the rope that held the weight of Tamika from the tree. While getting her down slowly, he started reciting every damn prayer of Lord Itba that he knew, he just wanted her to be safe. And when he finally got her down, and when he felt her pulse and heard her steady rhythmic breathing, he sighed with relief. It was at that moment, he couldnt hold back, tears started rolling down his cheeks.

Tamika has been his childhood friend, a very precious friend. She was his first crush and had been the only person who had been supporting him in his bad times. Whenever he gets down, or feels that he is a worthless man, Tamika has always been there for him, supporting him. And he wouldn't have been able to forgive himself if something would have happened to her.

“Remember this moment, for the rest of your life.” came a dark and heavy voice. He turned around, to see a man standing behind him. Clad in dark armor, with red draconic eyes staring down at him, he recognized the man, it was Bakemono.

“You.” He mumbled.

“She would be fine. I made sure that nothing bad would happen to her.” It was then he realized something crucial. “You knew that Juno would kidnap her? You knew all about this?”

Bakemono chuckled. “Of course, I knew. I wouldn't let something happen to you or that Siberian boy for the sake of a test. So I have been keeping an eye on the movements of your target,”

He was enraged, the marks on her body were sending chills down his spine. He cannot even fathom the pain and suffering Juno would have caused her. And Bakemono could have saved her from all of this. But he didnt did do so, all for the sake of a fucking test. With murderous eyes, he screamed, “LOOK AT HER! YOU LET THIS HAPPEN TO HER SO THAT A STUPID TEST CAN GO ON? WHAT KIND OF MONSTER ARE YOU?”

Bakemono sighed. “A monster, who hunts worse of the worst that this world has to offer.” He still was enraged, seeing this Bakemono bent down. “I wouldn't have let anything happen to that lady. If that old man had gone too far, I would have intervened. And then I have planned to disguise myself as the old man and then fight you.”

“You could have killed that monster yourself! Who the fuck gave you the right to play with people's lives like that?”

Bakemono chuckled, “Calm your anger. It is not good for your health.” He then tried to console him by putting his hand on the shoulder, but he immediately brushed him off.

Bakemono then got up. “If you wanna be angry, then be one. But remember this, one day you will finally understand why I did what I did. And when you will, you will apologize to me.”

He barked angrily, “In your dreams.”

It was then Bakemono, conjured a red color vial in his hands, probably from a spatial artifact. He then tossed the red vial to him. “This will help her heal her wounds.” Curious of the contents of the vials, he took it. He was desperate at the time.

So, Bakemono continued. “Even with the vial, she would need medical attention. Get her out of here.” then continued again. “Also, dont worry about Serbian boy. That boy is fine, he will stay here for the time being and help me erase the traces of the battle. If someone asks you what happened here, tell them the truth.”

Immediately he looked up, and then Bakemono continued. “Tell them everything that happened today, except for the fact of you possessing the Devil’s Trap. It is illegal to brew or own that potion in the country. And dont tell anyone that you fought Juno. Just say that you fought a man, who is around your power level. And if authorities tell you to bring them here, just bring them here. And if you have any more questions, just ask the Serbian boy.”

He just kept looking at the man for a few seconds, then quietly he pushed Tamika’s unconscious body up and threw her over his shoulders. He then set off to the Emerald City…

***

‘This a nightmare.’ Stacy thought as she saw the daily report cards of candidates of Mana Battle.

With the new arrival of Theoritical Arts in the game, she had no idea what to expect in the games. Traditionally, the games used to be all about fighting Mana Beasts, trying to find a way through a maze, and one-on-one fighting among candidates. She still reminisces about those days, things were pretty easy back then. Now, she dont know what to expect.

The Council of UCA has been haunting her for weekly updates, which itself was an easy task if wasn't for the brats that she was ordered to train. Angela, like her name, is an Angel. She sticks to the training schedule and adheres to the rules that were sent by the UCA, but the same couldnt be said for the other participants. Gerad doesn't let the soldiers accompany him, doesn't train with the professors, and instead opts for personal and private training.

Tamika doesn't like soldiers accompanying her, and she has even beaten the soldiers who had been following her. Although she follows every training regimen that professors throw at her. And there was Solaris, the wild card. A Serbian with a knack for books, according to his record and professor’s testimonies, that boy was proficient in Alchemy, Runic Engineering, Mana circuits, and Mana circles. Mastery in all these subjects is commendable, but he was the weakest of them all.

According to Juno, that boy has some potential. She believed the old man, had experience when it came to these kinds of things. But the boy refused to train physically. She understands that boy’s condition, as a Mage and a theoretical Mage at that, he had never trained in his life. Now suddenly along with the responsibility of mana battles, the responsibility of training also fell on his shoulders and could be pretty overwhelming. But it was something he was supposed to do.

Her sources had revealed to her, that this Mana Battle would be fairly different from all the past battles. This time the physical and mental limits of participants would be challenged to extreme levels, and their theoretical knowledge about Pandora will also be tested. And she had no idea what to expect from the battle because the person who designed all the tests was none other than her mentor, Harry Grizzly. And as far as she knew him, that old man meant every word that he said. And he is kind of insane as well.

‘I can only pray to Lord Itba to show mercy on me and my students.’ It was then her eyes fell on the cup of tea, that she had forgotten about. ‘Great, now my tea is cold.’

She was about to push a button on her table, that would call her secretary. But before she could do that, the door of her office swung open, her secretary hurried inside. Her secretary looked visibly pale, which made her curious about what happened.

Her secretary screamed. “MAM!” She got up, something awful must have happened. “At the gate! At the…”

She asked calmly. “What happened?” While shivering, she replied, “Tamika Gregory… she was attacked.”

Blood drained from her face, she couldnt believe that this was happening. “HOW?” She instantly grabbed her keys and started making her way towards the door, and her secretary followed her from behind.

“I dont know. I just received the message. Raiden Gregory is with her, he is also injured. Solaris is missing.” She turned and turned around, her face was becoming more pale. “Solaris is missing?”

Her secretary nodded, “And… Juno is dead.” She immediately turned around and started running. Before she thought that training these brats was a nightmare, but now she understands, now the real nightmare was beginning.