The three shadows in front of the massive wooden door disappeared in an instant, leaving no trace of themselves.
The young man and the skinny guy couldn't resist, Magnus just took them away, plunging deeper into the shadows until they found themselves in some completely different place.
It was a small room, not far from the principal's office, some sort of technical room with everything necessary to spend a cold, lonely night.
Magnus tossed the young and skinny guy onto the couch, quietly stepping aside, and leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest.
"Magnus...! Is it really you!" The young man exclaimed in disbelief. Despite what had happened, his eyes shone brightly as if he had met his idol.
"Hey, there's no need to shout like that. We don't want to wake up the others, do we?" Magnus calmly said, in a threatening tone.
The young man immediately fell silent.
"Why did you bring us here?" Skinny guy asked with a great frown, "Are you now Ethan's subordinate? If so, I missed the moment when you became his loyal dog."
Magnus smirked, he didn't bother to answer anything and just turned around turning on the electric kettle, making the water bubble pleasantly.
"About your question... I obey only myself." Magnus replied, casting a hard stare at the skinny guy, "So, what about you? What's your name and why did you try to attack Ethan?"
The skinny guy didn't want to answer, but it wasn't a problem for the young man since he vigorously said, "My name is Hilo!"
"Agh... What an idiot you are after all..." The skinny guy complained, sighing, "Loto. My name is Loto."
"Good, now I know who I'm talking to." Magnus said satisfied, turning off the kettle, and filling a cup with boiling water.
Then, in Magnus's hands appeared a small paper roll with unusual blue dried leaves. There was only enough for one serving, and as soon as the leaves touched the water, they glowed brightly, emitting an azure light.
Hilo and Loto even had to squeeze their eyes shut since they were already used to the darkness.
"What is that...?" Loto asked with obvious concern.
Magnus smirked, taking the cup in his hand, "Nothing much. Just a remedy to help me with my little problem and keep me awake."
Magnus took a sip and all his veins surged in an instant, then a smile of pleasure formed on his face.
"Dimensional Market is actually an amazing place. What a pity I couldn't earn more points." Magnus muttered staring into the void, then he gazed intently at Loto, "You're in charge here, right? In that case, tell me what you wanted to do to Ethan?"
Despite Loto's obvious dislike of him, Magnus chose to speak to Loto specifically, hardly paying any attention to Hilo.
"Haven't you noticed?" Loto asked arrogantly, "After the table disappeared, Ethan kept one hand closed at all times. It might not mean anything, but I'm sure he got something since he became the best at Zero Epos."
Magnus nodded silently, taking another sip.
"So, what do you plan on doing next?" Loto glanced at Magnus, "Beat us up and continue on with your weird tea?"
"Hah, not a bad option." Magnus chuckled evilly, "However... I chose another, more boring one. We're at the academy, so I'll give you a lecture."
"A lecture...?" Loto raised an eyebrow puzzled, it was the last thing he expected to hear from Magnus in such a situation.
Magnus nodded, "Earlier you called me Ethan's subordinate, but you must realize that somehow harming him or antagonizing him is the worst decision you can make.
Don't misunderstand me. I don't care about you or your lives, I didn't even know you existed until now. However, I do care about my life, and part of it depends on Ethan."
Loto and Hilo looked at each other, then Loto asked the question, "What the hell are you talking about?"
"It seems you were inattentive during the display of our Area results. Thanks to Ethan, we will get a bonus in one of the next Trials, and it's unknown if it will be maintained if Ethan dies. Moreover, if we fight against another Area, we need Ethan since he is the strongest at the moment." Magnus sternly said.
"The strongest...?" Hilo muttered with wide-open eyes.
Magnus glanced at his black veins and nodded slightly, "Yeah... Let's just say... After he slaughtered that Angel, he's only gotten stronger and more dangerous. Until things are clear, it's best to choose which side you want to be on, I've already made my own."
"Oh... In that case. What will you do if I say I want to be Ethan's enemy? What if I want to obstruct him and I don't care about the success of our Area?" Loto said menacingly in a deep tone.
Magnus shrugged nonchalantly, "That's okay. Everyone is entitled to their opinion."
Loto was surprised by this answer.
Then, Magnus took a last sip and said, "You just won't leave this room and see the dawn, so if I were you, I'd think it over."
Loto gulped, as a chill ran down his back just as Hilo's did. Magnus spoke calmly, but his words sounded like a death sentence.
...
Seven hours later, faint rays of sunlight entered through the windows, falling on the face of a young man with gray hair. With a slight wince, Ethan opened his eye, gradually waking up. He glanced at Alisa, who was in a similar state.
"Agh...? Is it morning already...? Waaahhhh....!" Alisa yawned, seemingly completely forgetting that she wasn't alone in the room. When she noticed Ethan's stare, she immediately blushed.
"Eeeeek! Why are you looking at me like that!" Alisa exclaimed with puffed-up cheeks.
"I was just wondering when you'd realize how stupid you look." Ethan shrugged, then he lifted up and stared out the window that overlooked the east side of the academy.
The dome was still in place, but nothing had happened overnight, so Ethan nodded and pulled out the jerky he'd bought at Dimensional Market.
They were fighting for their lives by participating in Trials, but they couldn't forget about food.
Alisa watched Ethan's snack with obvious desire, it seemed like she could drool at any moment.
"Ethan... Can I have some too...?" Alisa asked hopefully.
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
Ethan silently continued to eat, just looking at her without any emotion on his face.
"Please, I'm really hungry!" Alisa folded her palms with her eyes wide open.
"I thought you had enough points." Ethan said calmly before handing the nearly empty package to Alisa, whose eyes began to sparkle brightly.
She quickly ate it all, enjoying her first meal in twenty-four hours.
'Hmm... It's dawn already, so everything should have started by now, shouldn't it?' Ethan pondered, grabbing the doorknob.
Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.
Suddenly the ground shook like an earthquake. The trembling quickly calmed down, then a flash sparkled brightly over the academy.
Running out into the corridor, Ethan saw a massive spherical mechanism, like the core of a large magic clock. Dozens of rings of different sizes were spinning around the center in various directions, hovering above the main square of the academy.
[First Epos - Discord and Union, begin!]
[Beginning of the Fifth Trial - Four Princesses!]
"Aaaaaaah!"
At the same moment, Alisa's scream was heard from the room. Ethan immediately rushed towards her with a worried face.
In front of Alisa hovered an ordinary playing card, the Queen of Hearts. It slowly rotated, emitting a light glow.
"Hmm? Ethan... Why do you have such an expression...?" Alisa flinched, and what she saw startled her.
Ethan had a crazy grin and a mesmerizing look with frightening darkness inside. It seemed like what he had waited so long for and placed many bets on, was finally happening.
'Scenario B... Four Princesses... Obviously one of them will be a key girl from one of the past Trials! Fuck yeah!' Ethan internally exclaimed, unable to contain his emotions.