I woke up to a sharp, metallic crack echoing through the green.
Around me rose tall, breathing walls of leaves and branches—a maze.
The maze.
The starting point of every trial.
Of course.
We're back here again.
I didn't miss this place.
The system always used it to test our flight capabilities—
without training,
without warning,
without mercy.
The only way out was to kill Mother Venus, the queen of this maze— the creature that listened through the roots.
I pushed myself up and looked around.
Above, the sky glowed bright and colorful, almost mocking me.
Beautiful, but useless right now.
The bushy walls around us began to pulse… tightening.
They were slowly draining the oxygen again.
Time was running out.
Jina sat next to me, frozen—hands trembling, breath uneven.
Her head snapped around as she realized:
Everyone was scattered.
She turned back to me, panic rising in her eyes.
"Lisha… what do we do? W-what do we—"
"Use your first skill," I said calmly.
Her expression cracked wide open.
"H-How do you even know I have one!?
And second—don't you know we FELL from the sky!?"
I looked at her blankly.
"I just know.
And the falling? No clue. I was asleep for most of it."
Jina stared at me like I'd grown two heads.
"Your first skill," I repeated, pointing deeper into the maze.
"Use it.
We'll find the others."
"That's dangerous!" She shouted back.
"What if someone gets hurt?!"
"They'll have to keep up," I replied flatly.
Looking at her, I said coldly.
"There's no room for hospitality here. It's do or die."
Jina hesitated, then swallowed hard. "F–Fine! But—what do I say?"
"As we are surrounded by evil," I said, meeting her eyes,
"give me the power to find—and kill—it."
Jina clenched her fists. "You can do it," Lisha added.
"Just eat more after this."
Jina blinked at me, confused, but focused.
A small sphere of light formed between her palms.
Then—
a beam shot forward,
disintegrating the bushes.
The walls rippled, vines shrieking as the shockwave tore through them—
the sound like burning wood in a fireplace.
In the distance, silhouettes appeared—
the others, shaken but alive.
The walls tried to repair themselves,
but brittle wooden hands burst out from the vines, blocking the way.
Luckily, everyone made it through before the path was sealed.
Lisha watched Jina carefully, praying she wouldn't faint.
Then she scanned the crowd—
searching.
Her eyes locked onto Mei.
Lisha looked at her dead in the eyes, her tone serious.
"Mei, You're coming with me to the center."
Mei jolted back and asked "Why?"
In her mind, she thought "why is she staring at me like that?"
"Don't want to help?" asked Lisha
"N-no, I'll help! But why the centre"
"Yes, the centre." Lisha looked at her seriously
"Want to get lost forever?."
"Absolutely not—let's go." said Mei.
Lisha put Felix and Nina in charge of defense and strategy.
Then she and Mei ran deeper into the maze.
The ground shuddered beneath them, forcing them to stumble.
Vines lashed out from the walls, snapping like stretched rubber bands.
They dodged, barely keeping pace.
Lisha's body was weakening, but she forced herself forward.
No time to waste.
Hands burst from the walls—
dried wood covered in ash, bones cracking as they moved.
They could only dodge or strike them away.
Mei glanced around, panic rising.
"Are you SURE we're heading the right way!?" she shouted.
"Yes!" Lisha shot back.
"A few more turns and we—"
A hand grabbed her by the collar.
The grip tightened instantly.
Lisha choked.
Her feet lifted off the ground.
"LISHA!" Mei screamed, trying to pull her down.
—cough
—cough
"Damn it… how did I forget this part…" Lisha thought, struggling to breathe.
The hand hoisted her higher.
Her vision blurred.
Mei couldn't reach her anymore.
She was going to lose consciousness.Mei froze—
then remembered her blessing.
Blood Hold.
Her mind raced.
Her hands shook.
And she realized the only way she could activate it—
She took the sharpest stick near her ready to stab her hand.
But she couldn't.
She looked at Lisha.
Then her hand.
Then…
She pierced it.
The stick in her flesh. She took it out immediately, she screamed, unable to bear the pain and the blood leaking from her hands. She looks at Lisha– her eyes slowly but unwittingly closing.
"Hurry up…"
The blood shimmered, twisting into energy—alive. Mei startled, breathless, as the crimson surrounded her like armor.
She jumped—it wasn't any ordinary jump.
In mid air she creates, a sword
"First skill—Dancing swords."
She cuts the hand with her sharp bloody sword.
Lisha falls face flat as the hand disintegrates. She joltes back up as though she wasn't choked upon.
Mei felt relieved, "Are you okay?"
"Yes– now we go." Lisha answered, running towards a large arena.
Mei seeing her energetic, felt fear– thinking Lisha is no human being.
"What… the… hell?– how is she waking up like that!?"
Looking at where she is heading to realises, it is the centre.
"It feels like a fighting ground for medieval training" Mei mutters, not finding it amusing.
Mei summoned twin blades from her blood.
The ground split into two.
There the Mother Venus emerges.
Tall like the Eiffel tower.
The mouth is like a Venus flytrap, Body like the bones of dead mammals.
The roots dry and the skin of it like the ashes– just like the hands.
Lisha whispered to Mei
"Listen, you cut the roots and I will be the distraction."
"Yea, be the distraction." muttered Mei unconsciously.
Lisha looked at her, not hearing what Mei had said.
"What?"
"Nothing…" answered Mei.
Mei with her twin blades, runs towards Venus,
Herer speed changed, much faster than a human.
Her sight was enhanced, almost like a bald eagle.
The roots turned into spikes, trying to block Mei from reaching the Mother.
She jumped– again, it was inhuman.
Mid air a small platform appears below–launching her towards the first root.
She slices it, the root crumbs, the Mother stubbles.
Mother screamed—a sound that cracked the air.
Explosive flowers erupted– like grenades. One exploded in front of Mei, sending her across the arena.
"these– explosives… aren't to be underestimated" She thought as looking at the monster, it kept bringing in more.
"Lisha! THIS IS SUICIDE!" Mei shouted.
She didn't want to die.
"JUST FOCUS!"
Lisha dodged debris with surgical precision– fighting with a stick. She lands a strike at one of the flower grenades, before it explodes she throws it to the Monster.
It screams, the ground sends roots thick and dark, all over the place.
Forcing Mei to get back on her feet and dodge them.
The Mother opens her venus flytrap mouth to swallow Lisha. She slides under the mouth, pricing the stick, emitting dark mist around the stick, on its long throat and dragging it till she stops sliding, blood all-over her.
The monster screamed, raising its head and looking down on the two human beings.
Mei, amazed by Lisha's bravery, makes a blood barrier to prevent the explosives from coming near her.
She manages to strike one the second root, the Mother stands and trembles on only two roots as her support.
The skin of ash falls like sand, the bones decay, slowly.
The explosives became large in number and in size.
Lisha used herself as a distraction and the Monster noticed her climbing, irritated the ground shakes, large roots came, slamming across Lisha
Luckily she placed her stick in front of her, which emitted black mist around it.
This made Mei worried but also a chance to cut the third root.
She wondered how she had such fighting skills.
"How… can I fight like this– this is impossible."
She put it aside focusing on killing the monster as Lisha commanded.
The root became heavier,Lisha was unable to hold it. Her eyes squinting, sweat dripping from her face.
"I feel like–my bones are breaking!"
Lisha leaps to the side, the root falling on the ground.
It raises its root to attack again.
Mei had reached the final root gleamed—its heart.
Mei tearing at the vines until her hands bled. The monster screamed, unable to bear the pain.
The mother twisted its neck
—crack.
Its mouth springs at Mei.
"EAT THIS YOU DOG!!" Shouted Mei.
Its eyes get shot with blood swords making it go blind, but still it moves forward.
Mei crouchs.
"Studpid as well huh?" Thought Mei,
The head goes directly to Lisha, but she moves away
—crash.
It lands on the bushy wall with roses.
"One strike," Lisha said softly, her body fell down– lying on the ground with heavy breaths.
Mei plunged both blades in.
The monster screamed—earth-shaking,
Soul-rattling…
Then silence. The maze echoed it's shreech.
"Plants die when their life support is gone," Lisha murmured.
Mei painted, trembling. "That's it? It's over?"
"For now." Lisha said, getting up.
The wind howled again. The vines twisted—and where leaves had been
eyes bloomed— Thousands of them. Watching.
Lisha froze mid-word. "…Run"
"NOW!"
Meanwhile, Nina — sharp beyond her years, almost unnervingly mature — and Arjun — calm, kind, and the sort of person everyone trusted — led the remaining group.
Their eyes scanned the terrain, mapping positions, hazards, and possible ambush points with quiet precision.
The hands come out and Varun cuts them off as fast as he could and Elijah bruns the rest of them.
The wall grows an eye—
deeply stares at Jina and Ezra. Both the look of hate and fear, just like a devil.
Nina looked at all the events happening,
First there were spiders.
Then moths—
Which their mouths filled with iron needles.
Worrying about the others looks back to find her sister laying down, all tired.
"What happened to... Jina?" Nina asked, concerned threading through her composed tone.
"She used most of her power to disintegrate the months."Ivy replied, still catching her breath.
"Without her, we wouldn't have regrouped."
"Why the center?" Nina pressed.
"Dunno," Ivy muttered, eyes flicking toward the distant passage. "How did you know?"
"I heard it, I was beside Mei" said Nina
"Maybe a final boss is there," Hana said dryly.
"They seriously believe she will help-tch," Elara muttered.
The group pushed forward— laughter and exhaustion mingling.
The exit shimmered ahead — light breaking through the chaos. Everyone rushed towards the exit, wanting to leave,
Nina carried Jina, pausing at the threshold, glancing back.
Behind them, Mei and Lisha sprinted from the maze, a surge of eye-filled liquid chasing their heels.
"How much time!?" Hana shouted.
[30 seconds]
"ME, LISHAI! THIRTY SECONDS! HURRY!" Sora's voice cut through the noise like a whip.
Mei pushed harder, body Screaming, every heartbeat an echo of willpower.
Two seconds left.
She and Lisha dove through the exit, tumbling to the ground.
–Slam!
The exit sealed with a thunderous slam.
Both lay still for a moment — not from defeat, but from utter exhaustion.
Ivy crouched beside them and tapped their heads lightly. "Wake up, heroes."
Mei groaned. "Ugh… that was intense."
"Yeah," Ava said with a faint smile. "But we're alive. I'll take it."
"I'm never gonna carry you again" Mei said to Lisha, as she rubs her eyes.
Relief rippled through the group, their laughter faint but genuine. Around them, the maze sighed — its life fading into the wind.
Not far away.
Arjun and Varun noticed the Japanese team— trapped mid-trial.
They had first met them in the void, back when light still existed before darkness consumed the space.
Arjun, ever the diplomat, approached. "Hey — they are still going?"
"Maybe just started," Varun guessed, squinting toward the glowing zone.
"Should we help?" someone asked.
"Only if the system allows," Arjun said. "Otherwise… we wait."
Varun nodded. "Then we watch…"
He looked at the ones at the center, he saw his friend— Kenji.
"What the hell is Kenji doing?"
"Probably gone mad." Answered Arjun.
The both talked about how their maze was completely different from theirs.
Across the river wall, Sora called out — her voice calm but curious. Walking along with Mei.
"How did you and Lisha take down that boss?"
"Cut the roots. That's it," Mei answered, exhaling slowly. "Looked like a grandma in a coffin when it died."
Sora chuckled. "Charming image... but that's rude."
"Yea... But anyway, how are you feeling?" asked Mei
"I should be asking YOU, you were half dead when I looked you!." And Sora remembers Lisha and added "MY GOSH! Lisha too, it's like she took a blood bath and came, what did she even do to look like her scale it ripped off!?"
"Uh... She stabbed the monster and blood spilled one her??" Answered Mei.
Sora looks at Mei and asks her how is she feeling.
"Good. Mira healed me. It wasn't that bad," said, stretching her arms.
"You're really strong," Sora admitted, her tone almost admiring.
"Really?"
"Yeah… I envy you, bro." Sora's smile was faint but sincere.
They talked quietly, voices blending with the rustle of leaves and fading echoes of battle.
Nearby, 2PG finished their trial.
1PG sent Mira and Ezra to check on them — ensuring, as always, that no one was left behind.
They were grateful they were alive.