I rushed in, my heart pounding in sync with my rapid footsteps. His bloodied fist shot forward, and spikes erupted from the walls, all aimed directly at me. He had made me his centre of attention. Ignoring the danger, I sprinted towards him, my mind racing to stay ahead of his attacks.As the spikes closed in, the blue flames danced and hissed, melting the rocks before they could pierce my skin. I kept my focus, pushing closer. Just as I predicted, he stomped his foot, and a spike shot up from beneath me. I leapt and rolled, barely evading it.Now, I was right in front of him. Adrenaline surged through me as I swooped in, grabbing his arm. With my back to him, I used my hip to lift him off the ground. In one fluid motion, I pulled his arm downward, swinging him over my shoulder and slamming him into the ground.As he landed, he swung his arm toward the ground. I lunged forward, grabbing his wrist just before he made contact. He tried to move his other hand, but I caught that one too. Just then, fireballs flew at his face, but a wall shot up to block them.Before I could react, I was thrown into a wall, a burning pain searing my back. Did my flame cloud fail? No… the pillar moved so fast it couldn't melt before hitting me.Gritting my teeth, I struggled to push myself back up, every muscle screaming in protest.I watched as the man attacked Kana with spikes and shooting pillars. Kana skillfully dodged, using boosters on her feet to increase her speed, while regularly shooting homing fireballs back at him. She moved with grace and precision, each step calculated.I forced myself to stand, wincing at the pain in my back. Just then, a pillar struck Kana, sending her crashing into the ceiling. She hit hard and fell back to the ground with a sickening thud, landing without any cushioning.Her body lay there, lifeless and still.I heard the dull thud as Kana hit the ground, and the wall began to move up again. Ignoring the searing pain in my back, I boosted myself with flames and dashed toward her. Pillars shot out from the left and right, but with my mana depleted, I could no longer use my flame cloud to melt them. I had to rely solely on my reflexes to dodge.'ARGHH!' A spike stabbed through my calf, pain shooting up my leg.'AISH!!' I gritted my teeth and pushed through it, refusing to slow down. Reaching Kana's side, I scooped her up and sprinted back to our side, barely making it before the wall closed high enough.'Hah… Hah…' I panted, feeling the spike still embedded in my calf. I couldn't remove it now—it would bleed too much. I could only wait for Kana to regain consciousness. I lay there, refusing to check her breathing, clinging to the hope that she was still alive.. . . "Who the hell are you guys?" the minister demanded, staring at the destroyed wall in confusion."We are the Royal Guard," one of the men replied."For who?!""We are not at liberty to disclose that information," the guard said, his tone unyielding."Royalty? In this school?!" The minster's confusion deepened as he watched the group of men enter through the damaged wall, which was slowly regenerating, the earth manacian visibly struggling to resist it."Everyone, remain wary outside! I will go in alone!" the minister yelled before slowly drifting towards the opening.Intrigued and wary, the president followed behind.. . . "Secretary Gaeun," the president called out as he approached the camp."President!" Secretary Gaeun hurried over, her face etched with worry and fatigue."I've failed you, President," she said, her voice trembling. "I haven't managed to save anyone besides these few students. We've lost most of our agents to just two guys who are sedated over there…""It's okay," the president said, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "It seems we have company. For better or worse, they should be reinforcements.""But where are they from…?" Gaeun asked, glancing nervously at the group of tuxedo-suited men."That I don't know," the president muttered, his eyes narrowing. "But they're elites. Perhaps world-class elites." He watched as the mysterious men moved closer to the block rooms."Team Leader, what's the verdict?" one of the men asked."003?" the team leader responded."On the job." 003 stomped his feet, arms by his sides, trying to spread his mana as far as possible. But his mana bounced back, limited to the ground around him. "I can't. The beast's mana pool is too large.""I see... Then we'll have to defeat the mana beast as fast as we can," the team leader stated, his tone resolute."Yes, Team Leader." They walked further in, determination etched on their faces."Let's follow them," the president ordered. "Leave some men here to continue sedating the Quons and taking care of the students. The rest of us will go with them.""Yes, President," Gaeun replied, steeling herself for what lay ahead. She glanced back at the sedated agents and injured students, her heart still heavy with the burden of their losses.. . . "Mmmffphh…" I watched as Kana stirred awake, her hand reaching up to rub her head, eyes straining to focus. I lay against the wall, my body feeling numb and heavy. It had been an hour or so since the battle—the blood seeping from my wound flowed dangerously fast."Yonu…?" Her voice was groggy, uncertain.'Hah… hi, Kana…' I managed, each breath a struggle. 'I… I need some help…'She crawled over, blinking away the haze of confusion until realization dawned on her face."Ah! Yonu!"'Hah… yeah… Hah…' I gasped, fighting for air."We need to remove and burn the wound," she said urgently, her voice tinged with panic.'No… no way…' I muttered weakly, shaking my head."Too bad... taking it out in 3... 2..." she warned, her grip tightening around me.'ARGHHHHHHHH!!!!!' I cried out in agony, clenching my teeth against the searing pain."1.""Sorry… This one is going to hurt even more… You can… you can bite my hand…" she said, her voice trembling with concern."N-no problem…" I managed, bracing myself as she prepared to remove the object causing my pain.As she applied the flame closer and closer, I bit down hard on her hand to distract myself from the pain.PSHHHHHHH'AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!' I gasped, the intense heat causing waves of pain to surge through me. Tears streamed down my face uncontrollably."I'm so sorry, Yonu," Kana whispered softly, brushing the hair from my forehead. "You protected me, didn't you?"I nodded weakly, the ordeal leaving me drained and in excruciating pain."I guess... all in a day's work," I managed to say with a strained smile.She gently closed my eyelids, urging me to rest.'No... if I sleep now... I'm scared I won't wake up anymore... please talk to me... I'm scared…' My voice quivered, my leg trembled, and my body felt cold despite the sweat on my skin. I fought to stay awake, the fear of losing consciousness palpable."Haha... Back when I was younger... I was actually the best among my siblings," Kana began softly. "To be specific, my brother and sister. I'm the oldest, so I acted as their mentor, teaching them techniques and how to control their mana better. But they quickly surpassed me, learning secret techniques from our parents while I was still mastering the basics. Their mana pools were even larger than mine. Can you believe it? Haha! Anyway, after that, I came here to prove myself. They're still a few years away from this education, so I wanted to show them... but I guess I've stagnated too..."I listened to her voice, feeling comforted despite the pain. Eventually, exhaustion overcame me, and I drifted off to sleep."You're quite something," Kana murmured, brushing my hair gently. She leaned in and kissed me softly on the lips. Her mana flowed into me, a warmth spreading through my weary body.As she sensed her own mana nearing its limit, she settled against the wall as Yonu lay upon her lap. A crippling sense of dread that death might be closer to them than they thought."If we survive.." Kana's eyes fluttered, and she passed out before she could finish my sentence. It was the first time in her life she had experienced mana exhaustion as a fire manacian.And just like that, the room cracked into position, the sound echoing ominously in the tense silence. With a slow, grinding motion, the wall began to lower, revealing a singular figure lying on the ground. His clothes were drenched in blood, and he appeared almost lifeless, but then his eyes snapped open, piercing the prolonged silence.He struggled to his feet, relief etched on his face as he moved towards Kana and Yonu. The air was thick with anticipation as he sat beside them, his gaze flickering to the slowly moving wall. As the wall inched back into position, the figure clenched his fists, steeling himself for whatever awaited them next.It had been 87 gruelling hours since it all began.