"I actually pulled that off?!" Callista sprinted for dear life.
What she had gravely miscalculated, however, was her host body’s absolute lack of cardiovascular stamina.
Within twenty seconds, her lungs burned like dry furnace pipes, forcing her to hit a brick wall of pure, unadulterated fatigue.
Knees buckled, chest heaving, she dropped hands-on-knees just to breathe.
When she glanced up, three opportunistic examinees were already zeroing in, weapons drawn and eyes glinting with predator instincts.
Yep. Dead. Disqualified. Downsized.
She winced, shutting her eyes tight to brace for the inevitable core extraction. But the impact never came.
Instead, a sharp, suffocating pressure wave detonated right in front of her.
Callista cracked one eye open and saw Corvina was standing over her, panting lightly with her dark sleeves rolled up to her elbows and her raven hair hastily hoisted into a messy high ponytail.
Crimson eyes burned through the settling dust, radiant and downright lethal.
Dammit. The villainess had no right looking this breathtaking.
Callista swallowed hard, her cheeks turning red.
"Well, well. Look at my little stray," Corvina drawled, a smirk tugging at her lips as she hauled Callista up by her collar. "Not entirely useless."
"Y-Yeah... .." Callista wheezed, her brain short-circuiting.
Wait, wasn’t she a guy?!
Technically, not anymore.
But looking up at this radiant, terrifying force of nature, her survival instinct had morphed into pure, helpless submission.
She’d follow this woman straight into hell if she asked nicely. Or threatened to kill her. Either worked.
Corvina arched a single, sharp eyebrow. "Why is your face turning the color of a bruised plum?"
"Nothing! Let’s keep moving!"
"You owe me big time for this, you know," Corvina warned.
"I’ll... I’ll do whatever you want!"
"Whatever I want?" Corvina cupped her own chin, a wicked, thoughtful glint in her crimson eyes. "Oh, the possibilities..."
"W-What?!" Callista’s cheeks flared a blinding scarlet.
Without looking, Corvina casually swatted away a sneaking examinee like a housefly, sending the poor student crashing into a marble pillar. "Get your mind out of the gutter, fool. I mean homework and chores."
Right. Obviously.
Callista clutched her burning face.
Gods above, was this body experiencing ovulation? Is that what women called it?!
"Yes, ma’am..." Callista squeaked out, her wide eyes locked onto Corvina’s face helplessly.
The villainess visibly flinched. Something about that pathetic, wide-eyed submission struck a strange, unmapped wire in Corvina’s chest.
She cleared her throat, aggressively turning away to hide a faint twitch in her jaw. "Whatever. Just stop being a liability and move."
Before Callista could offer another breathless affirmation, a loud, piercing tone echoed across the amphitheater as the holographic banner above them flashed violent amber.
╔════════════════════════════════════════════╗
[LIVE ARENA MONITOR: THRESHOLD WARNING] ────────────────────────────────────────────
Active Candidates: 312 / 665 Disqualified: 353
NOTICE: Elimination rate at 96% capacity.
ONLY 12 SLOTS REMAIN BEFORE PHASE TERMINATION. ╚════════════════════════════════════════════╝
Corvina shoved Callista back with a hand pressed squarely to the girl’s forehead, abruptly turning her face away.
Was this Callista’s strategy with Alistair all along? Corvina thought bitterly, her pulse unexpectedly quickening. Playing the fragile, wide-eyed victim? It’s completely shallow... so why is my heart hammering?
"Annoying," she muttered, clicking her tongue in irritation.
Falling for such embarrassing, amateurish tactics was strictly beneath her.
When Corvina finally raised her eyes, the remaining examinees actively steered clear of her line of sight, aggressively turning on each other instead to scramble for the final available cores.
Cowards, she sneered internally, watching the total quota plummet in real-time.
Forty-five seconds of chaotic metal-on-metal violence later, a long, deafening siren cut through the arena, freezing every desperate student mid-strike.
╔════════════════════════════════════════════╗
[PHASE TWO: TERMINATED] ────────────────────────────────────────────
Quota Reached: 300 / 300 Qualified. Disqualifications: 365
STATUS: PASSED FINAL RANKING: #1 — Team Shadow-Rose (80 PTS)
╚════════════════════════════════════════════╝