flash

In the abandoned district of Abert, the figure vanished, leaving only an echo in the air. A piece of paper slowly drifted to the ground, bearing a single message:

*"Glenn is here."*

Arrosa snatched the paper and read it quickly.

"Follow me," she said without hesitation.

Without waiting for approval, she took off running, choosing the fastest route she could think of. It wasn't a normal path—it was a steep cliff at the city's edge. Below, the city of Aux stretched out endlessly.

Linya looked down, a shiver running down her spine. "Are you sure about this, Arrosa?" she asked hesitantly.

"This is a cliff! If we slip even a little, we could die!" Linya tried once more to stop Arrosa. She turned to Dale. "Hey, Dale, what do you think? Isn't this a little crazy?"

Dale just scoffed, a mocking expression on his face. "Hah! You're just scared, aren't you, Linya?"

Linya shot him a glare. "Who said that?"

Dale smirked. "Come on, admit it. This is the limit of your courage, isn't it?"

Linya huffed. "I just don't agree with Arrosa's decision, that's all!" A faint flush rose to her cheeks.

Dale chuckled. "Alright then, let's go, Arrosa. We'll head down and leave this kid behind. He's not serious about saving Glenn."

Linya clenched her fists. "Who said that? I'm coming!"

Arrosa sighed and stared at the cliff before them. "So… how do we get down?"

Linya went silent for a moment before patting Arrosa on the shoulder with a wry smile. "Don't tell me you don't even have a plan."

Arrosa gave a small grin. "It was too sudden. I didn't have time to think."

Dale rolled his eyes. "Ah, great…

Elsewhere, Glenn, who had been unconscious after taking Froslova's devastating kick, finally woke up. His face was pale, contrasting with the expression he had while unconscious—almost as if he had been enjoying something in his dreams.

"You're awake, Glenn?" Froslova's voice rang out.

Glenn blinked. "Yeah… but my head really hurts. I think I had a nightmare."

Froslova chuckled. "What are you, a kid? Having nightmares?"

Glenn gave her a dull look. "I don't know. I can't remember much, but it was really bad. I'd rather not think about it."

Froslova clapped a hand on his shoulder, hard. "Well, now that you're awake, it's time for day five of training!"

"Eh?" Glenn's eyes widened. "I've been out for that long? I mean, I'm still not fully recovered! Let's postpone the training, yeah?" He flashed a nervous smile.

Froslova crossed her arms. "First, I don't care. Second, I don't want to know. Third, I don't want to hear any pessimistic excuses. Fourth, you've been lying in my bed for three days now. And fifth…" She grinned. "Consider this a special bonus since you praised my legs."

Glenn's eyes widened. "Eh? What do you mea—"

Before he could finish, Froslova grabbed him and hurled him against the wall.

And so, the training resumed.

Glenn stumbled forward, still half-conscious, but suddenly his head throbbed. His vision blurred, and he saw something.

*"Is this what they call an anime flashback…?"* he muttered.

But the sensation vanished just as quickly, and he was back to training.

Meanwhile, Arrosa, Linya, and Dale remained at the edge of the cliff. The situation grew even more uncertain as Arrosa hesitated.

But before they could discuss it further—

*"BOOM!"*

A thunderous explosion rang out. The three of them turned at once and rushed back to the district.

When they arrived, they found a large portion of the slums in ruins, though most of the people appeared unharmed.

They immediately questioned the bystanders.

"What happened here?!" Arrosa demanded.

A man with a panicked expression answered, "There was a huge fight!" His raised eyebrows showed he wasn't lying.

The three of them began investigating, but something strange happened. The destroyed buildings and walls slowly started to regenerate on their own.

Arrosa clicked her tongue. "Just how strong is he…?"

Suddenly, their bodies were surrounded by an eerie light. Before they could react, they were teleported to another district—a place filled with bright lights, resembling a grand stage.

"Welcome."

A hooded figure leaped down from a rooftop, a mysterious smile on his face.

"Let's test your abilities, Arrosa, Dale, Linya."

Without warning, he hurled dozens of daggers at them. In an instant, the open space transformed into an enclosed battlefield as a storm of blades rained down from all directions.

Arrosa raised her sword, blocking the attacks. Linya swiftly slashed through the daggers coming at her, while Dale dodged them all with remarkable precision.

Dale scoffed. "Hah, is that all?"

Linya smirked. "This is your best?"

But this time, the hooded figure threw hundreds of daggers at once. The three of them began to struggle.

"Slash! Slice!" Linya cut down the incoming blades.

"Clang!" Arrosa deflected them with her sword.

Meanwhile, Dale weaved through them with incredible speed.

Suddenly, the hooded figure dashed forward, striking at Dale with a dagger in hand. Dale dodged, but he was slowly being backed into a wall.

Fortunately, Linya leaped in, delivering a somersault kick to their opponent's neck. The figure retreated, then unleashed another wave of blades.

Arrosa's eyes widened in realization. "Watch out, you two!"

But it was too late—all the daggers that had embedded into the ground were connected by nearly invisible threads.

The hooded figure yanked the threads in his hand. In an instant, the daggers shot back toward them.

Dale and Linya couldn't evade in time. Their bodies were covered in deep cuts.

Linya gritted her teeth. "Execute—Gale Intro!"

She lunged forward, aiming to slash the enemy apart, but he was faster.

*"Prick!"*

His dagger pierced her stomach.

"Ouch…" Linya collapsed to the ground.

Dale followed, his head slammed by a powerful kick.

Now, only Arrosa remained.

She activated *Stealth Field*, vanishing into the shadows before launching a flurry of attacks. But in the end, she too was defeated—her throat caught in a tight grip until she lost consciousness.

The hooded figure stared down at them. "Still too weak. But no matter… until we meet again."

With only a minor cut on his arm and a faint bruise on his neck, he vanished into the darkness.

The three of them had been utterly defeated.