Chapter 13: Rewards and Ruptures
Chapter 13 — Rewards and Ruptures
The seventh day dawned with a clear sky and the air charged with expectation. The students of Group 4 returned to the base camp with fatigue in their eyes, but also with the satisfaction of having survived their first real exam. Trebol was waiting for them with his arms crossed, wearing his usual expression: stern, almost indifferent, as if he already knew what he was going to announce.
"Good," he said without preamble. "The tally is complete. Your efforts have been assessed. From now on, your levels will change based on your performance this week."
The three students tensed.
"Liana Feolynn, 45 wolflys eliminated. You rise to level 40.
Ares, 32 wolflys eliminated. You rise to level 28.
Agust of the Kingdom, 23 wolflys eliminated... you drop to level 46."
A tense silence took hold of the place.
Agust clenched his fists, his icy gaze fixed on the ground as if he could freeze it with a mere thought.
"Drop... a level?" he muttered, incredulous. "This must be a mistake."
"It's not," Trebol replied, without a hint of compassion. "The progression system doesn't care about bloodlines. Only results. If you hunt less, you get weaker. That's how it works here."
Ares tried to speak, but Agust cut him off with a sarcastic laugh.
"Of course… The elf raised by dwarves rises, and I, a prince, fall back. What a joke."
"Agust, I just want us to get along. I'm not competing with you," Ares said calmly.
But Agust looked at him with contempt.
"I don't need to get along with trash."
The air grew even colder, as if Agust's magic was reacting to his anger.
Liana stepped forward, subtly placing herself between the two.
"We gain nothing by fighting each other. We're teammates. We should act like it."
Agust didn't respond. He turned and walked away from the camp, leaving a trail of frost that crackled beneath each step.
Trebol sighed, though a barely noticeable smile appeared on his face as he looked at Ares and Liana.
"Maybe this group isn't as hopeless as I thought..."