Duelcrest Academy

As Penny continued to examine the room, a terrible thought ran through my mind:

"I just need to get her to touch the pedestal and I can get out of here..."

My partner did not seem to have noticed the inscription, if I had urged her to put her hand in the hole, I was sure she would have listened to me.

"If I do that… I’ll go back to Sophia… Sophia…"

If the final test was the same for everyone... how would she get through it? I was sure that Wilhelm would never let her deceive him. With how much he despised her, he would never trust her. Sophia's only chance of getting out of this kind of room was to force him to put his hand on the pedestal.

"But that's the same as her killing him, this test... will make her kill again!"

I kept my eyes on Penny.

Was I ready to sacrifice my new friend's life to get out of here? Right after she had saved my life with her quick thinking?

"I… don’t know what to do."

After my duel with Finch and Foster, I thought I had left behind every shred of humanity.

But now, faced with the possibility of condemning to certain death the girl to whom I had given back the will to live... I couldn't make up my mind.

"Maybe… maybe I’m overthinking again like the last trial. Maybe there’s a trick to this one as well."

Did Skylark really want to wipe out half the students in one fell swoop? I could not rule it out, but...

"Why am I with Penny? Knowing how sadistic he is, he would have paired me with Sophia if this was the last test... oh!"

This thought reminded me that Celeste was paired with Philemon.

"Is Philemon ready to sacrifice himself for her?"

If he wasn't... Celeste would have been in danger and that would have gone against my theory that she was being protected by Skylark.

«Only those that sacrifice something can go further.» Penny murmured.

While I was thinking, she had found the small inscription.

My chance to trick her into sacrificing herself was gone. But... I was kind of glad.

"If it's about going back to Sophia... I wonder if I would have done it."

«What do you think Liz?» asked Penny, «there's nothing in this room apart from this writing.»

«I... give me a minute to think.»

She still hadn't realised the grim truth or maybe she didn't want to say it out loud.

"A way out... my only clue is this sentence... wait... it says sacrifice something, not someone!"

As for what it wanted from us...

"Could it be that we actually got extremely lucky?"

«Penny, help me get my hand out of here!»

It would have been a surprising coincidence... but the shape on the pedestal pointed in that direction.

«Your hand?! Why would - oh!»

«This room is asking us to sacrifice something. Perhaps the pedestal will cut off our hand if we place it on it. Luckily, we happen to have one already... at hand,» I joked, trying to lighten the desperate situation we were in.

«How can you even joke about something like this...» Penny huffed, «but why would Skylark want us to sacrifice a hand?»

It was a good question. Mutilating his future weapon was obviously not ideal, but perhaps the hand would be sent immediately to the Academy's infirmary, ready to be reattached by the healers. It was flimsy, but...

"It's a hope to hold on to."

«I don't know, maybe they want to see how brave we are or some bullshit like that... so let's try!»

«Are you sure? You could lose your hand forever!»

"I'd rather lose my hand than sacrifice you..."

«Yes, it's all right. We have to get out of here quickly, I feel like I'm going to faint again any minute.»

Finally convinced, Penny grabbed the bundle out of my hands and opened it. The girl immediately looked away in horror.

«It’s better if you levitate it on top of the pedestal, so you don’t risk touching it by mistake…»

«This is so messed up... but I guess we have no choice,» Penny blurted out.

It really was messed up. Seeing my severed hand slowly rise into the air was extremely gross. I probably would have thrown up again if I hadn't been concentrating on what would happen when it landed on the hole in the pedestal.

"Please... let this work..."

After a disgusting plap, the hand finally reached its destination. I waited eagerly for something to happen, my heart pounding furiously in my chest.

One second, two seconds... ten seconds. The solid stone door that sealed the exit stood still.

In silence, Penny put the hand back in the bundle and, after making sure it was cooled by the ice, looked at me.

«What now? Should I try to touch it? I don't see any other way out...»

"No... it can't be..."

But it was useless. I had to accept the truth: there was no trick this time.

My solution didn't work. The pedestal probably had some way of detecting if the hand was attached to a living body. Maybe it could sense if mana was flowing, just like the device we had used on the first day at the Academy to decide the provisional rankings.

"So... there is only one way out. And... if I want to see Sophia again..."

I swallowed my saliva and... nodded.

Penny turned and extended her hand towards the pedestal. I could see the hesitation in her movements. It was clear that she suspected something, but she was trusting me.

Only a few inches separated me from freedom and the arms of the person I loved.

But...

«Liz... what are you doing?» Penny said, looking at my hand that had gripped her wrist.

«Penny... don't touch it,» I said in a firm voice, «I'm pretty sure if you do you won't be able to leave this room.»

Penny looked at me without a trace of surprise.

«So you think so too...»

«Yes... I wanted to tell you, but... I kind of hesitated, I'm sorry. But... why were you going to touch it then?» I asked.

«I... if only one of us is going to get out of here alive... it should be you.»

I looked at her with my mouth hanging open:

«You were going to sacrifice yourself without saying anything?»

«I don't think you have any right to be angry with me for hiding things,» she said.

«But this... you are going to die, Penny!» I exclaimed.

«I am... but what's the alternative? Do you want to die?»

Penny looked me straight in the eye, a stern expression on her face.

«I...»

I could not say anything. The answer was obvious in my heart.

The steaming rift I had left in the previous room was proof of it. As were the intrusive thoughts that had assailed me moments before.

But... was I willing to see another person die in front of me in order to save myself?

"Maybe... maybe I am."

How could I leave Sophia alone?

I was the only person who had ever given her any affection. Without me... what would become of her?

The normal life I had dreamed of for us would never come. She would probably let herself die within the walls of the Academy, alone, without a shred of hope left...

«As I imagined,» Penny said, reading the answer on my face, «you have someone important to return to. Now let's do it. There's not time to waste.»

Her hand rested on mine, gently pulling it away from her arm.

«Thank you Liz, I would never have made it this far without you. You've given me hope again and now I can leave you with a smile on my face,» Penny said, giving me a big smile.

A smile... like the one Amy had given me before she left me.

«Wind Stream,» I said, extending my hand towards her.

I saw Penny's eyes widen as she was blown away by my spell and landed on the ground not far away.

«LIZ?!' the girl screamed, but before she could get up I had already placed one hand on the pedestal.

The sensation I felt was exactly the same as the one I had felt on the first day, during the mana assessment. It was as if my whole self was being sucked inside the pedestal. Instinctively I tried to lift my hand, but it did not move. At the same moment, the exit door began to shake, confirming that the test had been passed.

"So this really was the solution..."

Half of me had hoped it might be some kind of twisted joke. That I'd be set free after proving my courage.

But now, with my hand completely glued to the cold stone of the pedestal, I was sure this was not the case.

I could feel my mana being probed by an invisible force. If I miraculously managed to free my hand, I was sure that the exit would close immediately.

«LIZ WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!?» screamed Penny, beside herself.

«I'm sorry... I couldn't let it happen again in front of me. I refuse to let another one of my friends die.»

But as I said those words, I realised that I had begun to tremble. The reality of what I had just done was only just dawning on me.

Penny grabbed my shirt and said:

«Are you some kind of fucking hero? I never asked you to save me!»

«I... y-you have n-no right to be angry with me. You were sacrificing yourself, I'm just doing the same» I replied in a shaky voice, lowering my eyes.

«Unlike me you have someone that is waiting for you!» yelled Penny.

"Sophia… I’m sorry…"

«If I'd let you die here... the person who came out wouldn't be the Elizabeth Sophia fell in love with. She knows I'm willing to sacrifice myself for the people I care about...» I replied, trying to pull myself together.

Penny grabbed my chin and forced me to look into her eyes.

«Then why are you crying?» she asked.

«I'm not...»

But the tears were falling and I didn't even have a way to wipe them off.

Penny's expression softened a little.

«You really are a piece of work... you don't care enough about me to give up on life. I mean, why would you? We barely know each other.»

«I...»

I couldn't argue with her. The reason I'd put my hand on the pedestal wasn't to save her.

«I'm sorry, but I've told you before. I'm not your dead friend, Liz. And giving your life for me won't bring her back...»

«I know, but... this... this is my way of atoning for letting her die...»

Penny's face hardened again:

«What about me? Should I leave you here to die so you can feel good about yourself? You are the one who gave me the strength to look forward again, Liz. Did you stop for a second to think how I would feel about this?»

«I… I’m sorry I didn’t… but now you should go or-» I muttered, but Penny interrupted me.

«Of course you didn't. That's because you're just a selfish little girl who likes to play hero. You don't think about how your actions make other people feel,» she blurted out mercilessly.

To think that the girl I had just sacrificed myself for would talk to me like this. But I couldn't say anything because I knew she was right.

When I had put my hand on that pedestal, I wasn't thinking about Penny. I was thinking of myself: I did not want to face that terrible survivor's guilt again.

Nor had I thought about how Sophia would feel when she finally discovered that I had been hiding my worries from her. I had tried to run away from the problem, I had bottled everything up so as not to have to face the consequences of an inconvenient truth.

Penny was right, behind a facade of selflessness I had always acted on impulse plenty of times, without thinking of the consequences. And I had often hurt other people and myself. And now... I had done it for the last time.

This realisation hit me so hard that I began to sob uncontrollably.

«Sophia… I-I don’t want to d-die! I want to go back to h-her.»

Penny pulled me into a hug.

«So much for showing me we had a chance to escape...» she whispered, throwing back the words I had said to her the day before.

«You're so mean...» I sobbed.

«I am. I guess that's what you get when you sacrifice yourself for someone you barely know!»

The way Penny was reacting to the situation was strange, almost as if she didn't realise I was about to die so she could leave the room.

But, somehow, the fact that she wasn't crying desperately like me made me feel a bit better.

«Penny... p-please, tell Sophia that I love her so much,» I said, sniffing.

There was a moment of silence.

«I’m sorry, but I’m not going to do that.»

"Uh?"

Penny pulled away from the embrace and looked me in the eyes:

«I'm going to stay here with you until the end.»

Astonished, I opened my eyes wide, still filled with tears.

«What?!»

«You have been selfish, so I will do the same. I refuse to leave you here to die alone.»

I looked at her horrified.

«Are you really going to let me die for nothing?»

I could barely breathe because I could tell she meant it. After all, she had already accepted to die a few minutes earlier.

Penny smiled at me:

«Yes. I won't leave my first friend behind.»

"She lost her mind... and I feel I'm about to do the same..."

«Penny! Please go, I beg you... I feel like I'm going to pass out any second... if you don't go now, you're really going to be stuck here. Please do this for me... you have to tell Sophia my last words...» I cried in despair.

But the girl didn't move.

«You made your choice, ignoring my feelings. Now I'm making mine.»

As I looked at her serene expression, I felt what was left of my mind leave my body.

I tried to cast a spell to push her out of the room, but suddenly I realised I couldn't. The magical force inside the pillar was preventing me from using my mana.

It was then that reality dawned on me. I was about to die... for no reason. I began to struggle, trying to free my hand.

«LET ME GO! LET ME GO!» I screamed with what little strength I had left.

«Liz...»

Penny put her hand on my shoulder. I tried to wriggle out of her grip, but even that was impossible, so...

«Cut it off...» I murmured.

«What are you-»

«CUT THIS FUCKING HAND OFF! YOU WANT TO DIE?! GO AHEAD, I DON'T CARE! I WANT TO LIVE! CUT IT OFF!»

Penny pulled me into a hug from behind.

«I can’t do that Liz. If I do you’ll die anyway. You have already lost way too much blood.»

«I DON’T CARE, LET ME GO!»

But I had no strength left in my body. I slipped to the floor, my hand still stuck to the pedestal.

Penny's grip on me tightened and she whispered:

«I'm sorry Liz. I really can't let you die alone in this cold place. You may not have had the purest of intentions... but you gave your life for me anyway. Thank you. I'll be with you till the end.»

I didn't want any of that... I felt like I wanted nothing more than to escape from her grip. In that moment she really was the person I hated the most in the world. But...

«Penny...» I had no energy left to be angry with her, the only thing left inside me was a wasteland of despair, «I don't want to die...»

«It's okay... cry as much as you want. It's just you and me here.»

The girl put her hand on mine.

I immediately felt something change.

"What?"

The magical force that had been emanating from the pedestal had suddenly stopped.

"...no way..."

I felt Penny gasp as my hand moved beneath hers. She pulled away, allowing me to lift it. My eyes immediately went to the door: it was still open.

"..."

Penny helped me to my feet. Without a word, as if we both thought that a sound would shatter this illusion of hope, we walked towards the exit.

It was only when we had passed it that I was able to breathe again.

«This... why...?» asked Penny.

«I... think it's because we were both willing to sacrifice ourselves. It was, after all, a test of cooperation...» I said, as we walked down the new corridor.

«But the inscription... we didn't really sacrifice anything to progress in the end...»

"I'm pretty sure I lost part of my sanity."

«I... I think the answer was 'the will to live'. That's what we gave up.»

«That's so messed up.»

«I guess.»

I really didn't know how to behave around her now. Part of me really wanted to never see her again. What had just happened in that room was something I never wanted to think about again.

But now really wasn't the moment to decide something like that... there was something else much more pressing on my mind.

"Sophia... is she all right? There's no way that Wilhelm would agree to sacrifice himself for her... Sophia, please be safe..."

I tried to pick up the pace, but my injury and fatigue prevented me from doing so. All I could do was let Penny guide me until we reached a dead end.

"No please… no more…"

But it only took a moment for the floor beneath us to light up.

Just as at the beginning of this ordeal, the world was plunged into a darkness that Penny's illuminated wand could not penetrate.

The earth disappeared from beneath my feet and I fell forward. When my one hand touched the ground, it was no longer made of stone, but of shiny wooden planks.

I looked up.

It was hard to see because of the sudden light blinding me but, among the many figures in front of me, my eyes were instantly fixed on one.

I didn't need to take a good look at her features, it was as if I was magnetically drawn to her.

«ELIZABETH!»

There was a mixture of relief, horror and concern in that cry. But to me it was like the sweetest melody I had ever heard.

Sophia was still alive, nothing else mattered. As I sank into unconsciousness, I felt her arms wrap around me and I could only think:

"I'm glad I'm stilll alive..."

When my eyes opened, I knew immediately where I was.

"It's been a while," I thought as I looked up at the white ceiling of the infirmary.

I clenched my right hand, expecting to squeeze Sophia's.

"Weird…" I thought as I looked down at the empty chair beside my bed.

«I see you are awake.»

That voice immediately made my blood boil.

I looked around. The infirmary was completely empty, except for a figure staring out of the window.

«You... why are you here? Where is Sophia?» I said, giving him a hateful look.

«Calm down, Miss Belvoir. Your friends are waiting outside. I have only asked them to leave temporarily so that we can talk in private,» Professor Skylark replied, turning to give me one of his usual irritating smirks.

«Talk? About what?»

As much as I wanted to see Sophia right away, the idea that Skylark wanted to talk to me alone was something I couldn't ignore.

"Is this about... that spell?"

«First of all, how is your hand? The Academy prides itself on the skill of its healers. I assume there are no problems with it.»

My abrupt awakening had completely taken my mind off what had happened in the dungeon.

My eyes immediately went to my left arm. It was covered in bandages, but I could clearly see that my hand was back in place. I tried to close my fingers, but I couldn't.

«Don't worry, from what the healers have told me, it's been immobilised as a precaution. Recently reattached nerves can be surprisingly fragile,» Skylark said as he approached my bed.

«Why are you talking to me like this? Do you really think I'm buying the concerned teacher act?» I asked contemptuously.

«Oh, it's not an act. I'm just making sure my assets are properly maintained,» Skylark said coldly.

«Interesting to hear you say that after what you just put us through,» I replied, throwing daggers at him with my eyes.

«Oh, I see you didn't like this last little test,» grinned the old mage

«What was the point of the last trial anyway?» I asked.

As much as I hated that man, this was a rare occasion when I could try to get some information out of him.

«Oh, you could see it as a test of character. Both solutions to it were valid. A strong mage should be able to convince and inspire their peers in a difficult situation. And if that fails... have the strength to make them bend to their will,» Skylark said.

«I don't think I did any of that...» I muttered, remembering what had happened in that room.

"I don't think I'll ever be able to look at Penny the same way..."

«Well, you must have impressed Miss Pembroke with your character if she was willing to die with you. Anyway, like every test in this Academy, it was designed to push you to your limit so that you might go beyond it,» said Skylark, looking at me amused.

«Why? If you intend to turn the last one standing into a monster like Aldric... why are you trying to make us stronger now, when you can do that with whatever magic you used on him?» I asked.

«Magic... I see you are still far from the truth, Miss Belvoir. As for your question... you should already know the answer from what happened during your fight with my little pet.»

"So I was right... he knows what happened..."

There was no need to hide it then.

«That... was that an innate power? Is that why you push us to the brink? To try and make us develop such abilities?» I asked.

«Innate power... I see. That's what you call them» Skylark said, as his smile widened, «but I'm afraid you're wrong. As much as you are pushed to the edge, an innate power is not something you can develop. It's something you've always had inside you. It just needs the right opportunity to come out.»

«That's just semantics,» I blurted out, irritated, «so you are creating an opportunity for an innate power to reveal itself?»

«Again, you are not entirely correct. After all, what you did in that room can't really be called an innate power. It is something that technically everyone has the potential to do after all. But it's only the second time I've seen it happen,» the professor said, returning near the window.

«Aldric. It's the spell Aldric can use, I know that much. Why would I be able to use it as well all of a sudden?»

«A spell. Again, you get close to the right answer, but still miss it, Miss Belvoir,» Skylark said.

"Not a spell... not an innate power. Then what was it?"

At my silence, Skylark added:

«You should know, just by looking at it.»

"Just by looking at it... it was a bright, pure white light..."

«Mana...»

«Exactly. As you surely know, every spell is cast by refining mana. You skipped that step. You simply expelled raw mana and unleashed its unfiltered power on your opponent.»

"Was that really just mana... so much power..."

«How did I...»

«You wanted something with every part of yourself.»

«Why would that make me do something like shoot a giant death ray?» I asked, furrowing my brow.

«I'm afraid I can't answer that question. That's not why I'm here. I came mainly to give you a warning as your professor.»

«A warning?»

«Never use that power again,» Skylark said, for once without a trace of a smile.

"Huh? I suddenly have a power that could actually help us fight him. There's no fucking way I'm not going to use it again."

«I see... you are afraid. I have seen the devastation Aldric can cause with this... ability. Now I can literally vaporise you whenever I want. You might as well release us now,» I replied, giving him a defiant look.

I was bluffing. At the moment I was struggling to even lift a little finger. But even if I had been at full strength... I had no idea how I had managed to expel raw mana from my body. Skylark, however, could not know that.

But the old professor didn't seem at all intimidated by my threat. In fact, he began to cackle:

«Miss Belvoir, if you think that something like that will be able to defeat me... you are sorely mistaken,» Skylark said, wiping his glasses.

«You're just putting up a front,» I retorted piquantly.

«You are free to think what you want. But tell me... did I ever lie to you students?» said the Headmaster.

«...»

My hatred for this person was so strong that I felt it could burn me from within, but... I couldn't contradict him.

He had hidden things, he had used his words to deceive us, but in the end... I didn't feel that he had ever lied outright. Even in this last test, he had told us the truth. It really was a test of cooperation and trust.

Skylark continued:

«I'm saying this for your own good. I don't want a promising prospect to come any closer to killing herself.»

For some reason, his words filled me with a sense of dread.

«Killing… myself?»

«You see. Unlike what happens when you use your mana to cast spells, when you use it directly to launch an attack like that... things get very dangerous. The mana that has left your body... will never return after all.»

«Wh-what?»

«Don't worry. I don't think using it once will do much damage. After all, you have an extraordinary mana capacity. But if you start using that power liberally... you won't last long.»

The professor walked over to my bedside table and grabbed the water jug that was on it.

«Imagine this is your mana. This is what happens when you cast a spell.»

Skylark poured some of the contents of the jug into a glass.

«After a while, things go back to normal...»

The professor poured the water back into the jug.

«But if you insist on using that attack...»

Skylark snapped his wrinkled fingers and the top half of the jar shattered, spilling water onto the floor.

I swallowed. He couldn't have been any clearer.

«And when that happens, you probably won't even notice. After all, what is left of the jug is still filled to the brim... but one day...»

The jug vanished into thin air.

I remained silent.

The emotions I had felt during the final test came back to me.

I felt like I was standing on the edge of a cliff. My mortality had never been more apparent.

I could feel my time ticking away. And now... I had the chance to move the hands of that clock forward to gain a power that could help us escape from here...

"I... need to talk to someone about this."

It was too much. After what I had been through, my mind was not ready to deal with something like this.

I didn't know if I would ever want to talk to Penny again... but I would take her words to heart.

"I'm going to rely on Sophia for this... I can't keep bottling things up."

I watched as the headmaster placed a new jug on my bedside table and wiped the floor with another snap of his fingers.

«I hope I've made myself clear... Unlike them, I always thought you were one of the most promising candidates. It would be a shame to see your potential wasted in unnecessary acts of rebellion. Your fate is already sealed, Miss Belvoir.»

«Them? Who are you-»

«I look forward to you finding out, Miss Belvoir,» the Headmaster said, heading for the exit.

«You... is that why you left the Aldric sheet for us to find?» I asked.

«Yes. But let me give you some more advice. If you think that finding out the truth will help you, you are once again sorely mistaken.»

Those ominous words gave me goose bumps, but before the Headmaster left I had one last question I wanted to ask him.

«Why are you doing this? Is it for money, power, or are you just a sadistic bastard?» I shouted after him.

The Headmaster chuckled:

«When you are as old as I am, Miss Belvoir, money and power begin to lose their meaning. Yes, I enjoy watching you struggle, but that's not why I designed this experiment. Like any researcher, there's only one thing I long for: an answer.»