Royal Encounter?

"Glug... glug... glug... PUAH~!"

Lillian walked deeper into the forest, gulping down her second health potion of the exam.

She watched as the red line that dyed her clothes miraculously healed itself.

But soon after, she sighed deeply:

"I used two..."

The four grenades she had gathered were going to be her winning conditions for this exam. Now that she had dropped down to half of what she had initially—she was going to have to rethink her plan.

That Gram Savage took a lot out of her, more than the Xander and Testrie did.

"And I'm going to face more people like him in the future..." While this may seem a bit grim to others, she was actually ecstatic about the thought.

The feeling of her blood pumping from each narrow battle was enough to encourage her to get stronger.

"But... to think he didn't even have anything on him!"

After he disappeared, Lillian looked around to see if he had indeed dropped anything like Xander or Testrie did. Instead, all she was met was disappointment.

It seemed that Gram wasn't the type to carry around objects that he didn't understand.

"It's like killing an enemy you thought was a boss but instead was just a common enemy that drops nothing!" She vented towards her surroundings before sighing deeply—visibly disappointed.

"Oh, whatever... I have better things to focus on anyway... for example..."

She raised her head to check out the still-blinking blue triangle off into the distance. It has gotten dangerously closer compared to before.

She could even swear she could hear echoes of tremors and explosions.

"... Yeah... I'm not going in that direction..."

Like the logical coward that she is, she made a 45-degree turn and began walking in that direction.

On her way, she continued to encounter other contestants. Some tougher than the last but evidently less troublesome to deal with than Gram.

Having come out victorious in each, albeit barely, she stumbled upon a battlefield filled with craters and shallow scars in the ground.

The evidence that a brutal brawl was happening here was enough to deter Lillian quickly. Turning back around, she swiftly walked away.

That was...

"Oh~? Lillian! Hey girl~!"

Lillian stiffened at the familiar voice. Her head creaked back like a rusty cog and fell onto a purple-haired girl waving at her with a jubilant smile.

"... H-hey Millis... say... you mind forgetting I was ever here...?"

"Eh? Hehe... I would ya see... if it was up to meh..." She playful stuck her tongue out at her before pointing towards the sky with her index.

Lillian raised her head up to the sky—there she saw was the Second Prince staring down at her. He was clinging tightly to a metal sword stabbed into the tree—his face tired and weary.

He looked down at Millis with a raised brow.

"Did you have to tell her I was here?"

"Eh~? But I didn't say anything~."

"You using hand gestures still counts as telling her I was here."

"Ehe~!"

Rubbing his eyes, he pointed towards Lillian. Orbs of light manifesting in the sky behind him. From one to five to ten to a couple, dozens soon appeared.

They then shifted and morphed into blades of light—each giving off an oppressive aura.

Lillian stared at this before glancing back down at Millis.

"This is so not fair..."

"You're the one who chose solo, remember!"

Lillian rolled her eyes. She then raised her face towards the Second Prince with a calm expression.

"You don't mind if I stretch first, right?"

"Hm?" The Second Prince then tapped his chin, pondering. He then gave his verdict.

"Very well... take your time." He assured her.

Lillian nodded and began to stretch her legs under Millis's lecherous gaze.

"Oh yeah~ work them legs~..."

Lillian gave her the stink eye.

"You mind?"

"I would if ya trying to get me to look away!"

Lillian clicked her tongue before pulling her hand around her back, silently summoning something from the virtual inventory.

"Alright! Can we begin after a countdown?"

"... You're asking an awful lot, you know..." He then sighed, "Fine..."

The Second Prince then began to count down from three.

"One..."

Lillian's body shook anxiously—her palms sweating and fidgeting with the object in her hand.

"Two..."

The glimmering light of dreadful blades hung in the sky like how stars would in the night sky. It had a beautiful look to it... but an almost sinister one.

But even so...

The anticipation inside her couldn't help but rise radically.

"Three..."

Before the Second Prince could unleash his barrage of light, Lillian chucked a mana grenade from behind her back.

She chucked it with enough force for it to roll just far enough away where the damage from the explosion is negligible but also...

BOOM!

Far enough to where the dust and smoke would still hide her.