Fluve Fields are a strange phenomenon.
They form naturally when a Fluvium wants to hide and gain power. Basically, it's a domain of the Fluvium. When more Fluviums entire the field, it becomes even bigger, providing them with more power. They can come out if they are strong enough to devour Fluxers but they prefer to stay inside the fields. Fluviums eat Fluxers and Humans alike. They are attracted by the Xana in their bodies. It's like a drug to them. The more they eat the stronger they become. Also, Fluve Fields take over the environment of the surrounding.
When I fought the cow monster in the rain, it was actually raining in real time. It's similar to a replica dimension, only bigger and durable. When Fluviums are killed inside a Fluve Field, then the Fluve Field vanishes. There are two ways to enter a Fluve Field.
One, it's when one gets close to it and the Fluvium inside traps a Fluxer or Human in it. Or two, they can go willingly through a portal. The larger the portal, the larger the Fluvium Field. Portal colours show danger too. White means normal, purple means medium and black means dangerous. This Fluve Field portal is white but this doesn't mean that it's safe.
Class One to Three Fluviums are known to work in groups, hence the meaning of groups of three. That's when the lecturers wanted us to make groups. The second my boots hit the snow inside the Fluve Field, I froze not because of the cold but because of what lay scattered across the ground.
Dead Fluviums.
Their bodies littered the frost with black blood steaming faintly against the white snow. I recognized some Class Ones, maybe a couple of Class Twos. Their carcasses were torn apart cleanly. There were no scorch marks or half-assed damage. Whoever killed them was efficient.
An Outwr killed them.
Beside me, Verdamona gasped, pulling the fur of the coat tighter around her trembling frame.
"Wh–what the hell?"
Her voice cracked. She wasn't looking at me. She was staring at the corpses like her brain couldn't process it. Thales stepped forward. He bent slightly, brushing snow off a Fluvium's still body. His expression didn't change, but I caught the flicker in his eyes. Behind us, the portal snapped shut. The entrance and exit was gone in a heartbeat.
This is exactly how the story's supposed to go.
In MoDS, once all the students entered, the portal stabilized, anchoring the Fluve Field for the duration of the training. It only shattered when Thales stumbled across the Azure Sword clue. That was the trigger.
Students began panicking almost immediately.
"What?!"
"The portal's gone?!"
"This… this isn't right!"
"They said it doesn't close unless—"
The noise spread like wildfire. Some of the smarter ones—the Outers—stood frozen, their hands twitching nervously on the hilts of weapons or buzzing with half-cast Flux. They were just as shocked as I was and that alone terrified me more than the closed portal.
Because if even they didn't expect this, then someone had rewritten the rules right under all our noses. So it wasn't just me. They've been blindsided too.
I checked my System Inventory. I had seven days' worth of rations stacked neatly in their slots since this was to be expected. The good news was obvious. I could survive this seven day lockdown. The bad news was that this whole section of the story was designed to be a crucible for Verdamona. In the otome game, this was her awakening moment. She'd step up, take charge, rally scared students, and prove her worth as a leader. That leadership was what made her stand out to Thales, what made the other capture targets respect her, what cemented her as a good leader.
But now, with most of the weak Fluviums already killed, the trial was gutted. There would be no gradual build-up and no low-level monsters to cut their teeth on. Someone had gutted the quest itself.
And as if the thought summoned them, the sound of roars tore through the air. Shapes emerged from the treeline. Their bodies dripped black ooze and stretched tight like tar. Their arms had twisted into blades. light. Their glowing eyes fixed on us with hunger.
They were dozens of Class Threes. My lips curled into a smile.
"So that's it. You sneaky bastard."
The Outer responsible hadn't just killed off the weaklings. They selected the difficulty. They pruned the herd, culled the cannon fodder, and left only the apex predators alive because the plot couldn't advance if the clue wasn't found. But, it could still advance if the right enemies were fought.
The Outer carved out a loophole. They didn't touch the Azure Sword clue because maybe they weren't allowed to. Maybe the system restricted them but they didn't break the plot. They found the perfect loophole.
If they killed everything, the Fluve Field would have collapsed and the Azure Sword clue would vanish with it. The plot would be broken but by removing only the low-class Fluviums, they ensured the field stayed intact while turning it into a death trap.
That's actually genius-level cruelty.
So that's one of the rules that they have that I don't. I don't have a rule preventing me from changing the plot but they do. They can't harm the main cast directly but what if they did it without involving themselves by killing mere Class One Fluviums in the Fluve Field?
Damn it. Just how smart is this Outer?
Verdamona stumbled back a step, clutching my arm tightly. Her voice was small.
"Th-Those are all Class Threes…"
Thales rose from his crouch, his hand already near the hilt of his blade.
"This… isn't what I expected."
I wasn't surprised anymore. I was furious and impressed. The enemy we faced wasn't just the Fluviums. It wasn't even the collapsing field. It was the Outer who set this board. That person was someone clever enough to rewrite the difficulty curve of the game itself without breaking the rails.
I hate to admit it but in that moment, I wanted to meet them. Just who is this guy?