Exam 4

A blur of dark motion.

Faster than Lian could react, Nyx was already at the base of the tree.

Her movements so swift it was as if she was part of the wind itself. Her fingers barely brushed the bark before she kicked off the ground, body twisting mid-air.

Lian's eyes widened.

Nyx didn't climb—she vaulted, her feet catching a low-hanging branch as she flipped herself upward, twisting like a cat mid-leap.

Her fingers caught the flag in one smooth motion.

By the time Lian moved, Nyx was already airborne again.

Nyx hit the ground in a perfect roll, the flag clutched tightly in her grasp.

Lian lunged forward, a hand shooting out to grab Nyx's wrist—

But the moment their eyes met, Nyx smirked.

She dropped backward.

Instead of fighting, Nyx let her body fall, twisting at the last second. She landed in a crouch, momentum carrying her under Lian's arm in a clean slide.

By the time Lian turned, Nyx was already gone.

And then, the whistle.

It was sharp, clear—a single, rising note that cut through the chaos like a blade.

Yellow Team, who had been fighting tooth and nail against Blue, heard it instantly.

They didn't hesitate.

Those still standing—only twelve now—immediately disengaged, twisting away from their opponents and vanishing into the forest like smoke.

One moment, Blue was wrestling them down—the next, they were gone.

Vaelen stepped back, eyes scanning the battlefield. Blue had won, but Yellow had retreated in perfect formation, disappearing before they could be completely wiped out.

And at the edge of the clearing, standing on the thick branch of a tree, Nyx waved the stolen flag before vanishing into the shadows.

#####

Before they knew it,time was up. They had been constantly battling,observing and capturing their opponents for two hours straight.

They all assembled back in the field, no one was late.

Draco stood in the center, arms crossed, golden eyes sweeping over the recruits. He had observed every move, every decision, every hesitation. He had watched as teams rose to the occasion—or crumbled under pressure.

He let the silence stretch. It built tension. Made them think. Made them wonder.

Then, at last, his voice cut through the quiet like a blade.

"Two hours."

The recruits shifted, some straightening, others wiping sweat from their brows.

"Some of you fought well. Some of you wasted time." His gaze flicked to a few teams, making certain members swallow hard. "Some of you learned something today. Others... just got in the way."

The words were brutal. But true.

"Let's see your results."

#

One by one, the teams stepped forward, presenting their spoils.

Team Blue dominated the battlefield field,securing two enemy flags and 176 bands.

Team Red aggressively infiltrated White's base, taking their flag but falling behind in total bands which amounted to 154 in total.

Team Green had strong resistance but failed to secure a flag. They acquired 112 bands.

Team Yellow suffered a major blow, they were able to secure their flag but were reduced to only 12 members. They acquired 87 bands.

Teams Orange, Purple, and White all lost their flags, unable to defend against stronger opponents.

Teams Black, Brown, and Gold struggled the most, with low band counts and high losses, barely holding onto their flags.

#

After the result was called some recruits were all smiles while some were not, but Draco didn't give them time to wallow in defeat.

Judging by the position of the sun in the sky,Draco assumed it to be around 7am. The second phase needed to start early if they were to finish it today at all.

"Follow me,time for phase B." He turned around and moved towards a certain direction.

The recruits followed behind him,not daring to mess up their formation, Draco gave a small nod of approval as they made little to no noise while marching.

After some minutes they arrived at another clearing, only this time the field wasn't empty.

The recruits paused behind Draco as they tried to make sense of what they were looking at. At a side they saw some logs floating in the air,at another they saw some net suspended over some kind of—pit,as for what the pit held,no one knew and they certainly didn't want to know.

At the middle was a huge wall,it was to far away for them to see clearly. At what seemed like the other end of the field were 8 elves standing opposite each other and some distance away from themselves,at the middle were stones placed on the ground at the moment.

The recruits silently took in this sight with mixed reactions, some were excited,some scared while some didn't care.

Draco himself smiled at the sight that welcomed him."She really did plan this well." He muttered. At first when Eira had explained how the test would go,he was intrigued, it all seemed strange to him.

The first obstacle, a stretch of floating platforms,which was only possible because of a team of wind-affinity elves hidden along the perimeter. Their job was to subtly adjust the platforms' stability—tilting, lowering, or raising them unpredictably to simulate an unstable crossing. If a team wasn't careful, they could be thrown off balance, forcing their teammates to pull them back up.

Fpr the second obstacle,A long stretch of thick, sticky mud, with a low-hanging net strung across its entire length.

The recruits wouldn't just have to crawl—they'd have to do it while tied together, ensuring that if one of them lagged behind, the entire team would be slowed down. And, to make matters worse, she stationed wind-affinity elves along the sides, tasked with whipping up strong gusts of wind at random intervals, forcing the recruits to dig in deeper or risk getting dragged back.

By the time they reached the other side, they'd be drenched in mud, exhausted, and struggling to move. But that was the point.

The third obstacle came in form of a sprawling net of ropes suspended over a pit, patrolled by illusionist elves. Any reckless movement would trigger an illusion, making recruits misjudge distances or see gaps where there were none. This was meant to test their communication skills—if they failed to warn each other, they'd plunge into the pit and have to restart.

Next,was the wall. It was enchanted with shifting grips. The earth-affinity elves had embedded their magic within the stone, causing handholds to shrink, disappear, or move just as a recruit reached for them. Strength alone wouldn't work. They had to rely on teamwork, supporting one another through the climb.

The finale was A narrow path of heated stones stretched before the finish line, with fire-affinity elves stationed at the sides. Their role was to keep the stones rising and falling at random intervals, ensuring no single step was predictable. Teams would need impeccable timing to cross unscathed.

Draco nodded his head again then turned to face the recruits.

"Today, you face the Unified Challenge," Draco announced. "In teams of seven, you will navigate a series of obstacles, bound together by a single rope. Success demands unity; failure of one is failure for all. You have fifteen minutes to complete the course. "

Villagers emerged, distributing sturdy ropes. Draco randomly picked the first seven people,the villagers secured the rope around their waists, the coarse fibers a tangible reminder of their interconnected fate.

The rest of the recruits settled down on the floor,looking forward to their performance, Draco quickly explained how the test was meant to go,then he settled down and left the stage for the team.

The team approached the first obstacle and hesitated, trying to find a rhythm, but the moment one of them stepped forward, the platform jerked violently to the side. The recruit yelped, scrambling for balance. His teammates, tied to him, were yanked forward. The rope around their waists went taut, dragging them all down.

Splash.

A collective groan rose from the onlookers as the team landed in the mud at the bottom of the trench. They struggled to their feet, but it was already too late. A horn blared—disqualified.

Draco didn't even blink. He simply motioned for the next group.

The second team approached more cautiously. They watched, analyzed. One of them—a sharp-eyed girl—muttered, "It's a pattern."

They counted the movements, waited for their moment, then jumped in sync. The platforms still shifted, but they were prepared this time. One recruit wobbled, nearly falling—but his teammates caught him, stabilizing the formation.

They made it across.

The crowd of recruits watching murmured among themselves. They were learning.