The smell of blood was overwhelming. The air hung thick with a bloody mist, and the ground had turned into a sea of blood. The trees dripped crimson liquid, and even Rin and Jin's sweat had transformed into thick blood.
Jin, grimacing, said, "Rin, I don't think he can hold this ability for much longer. And I don't think we can last much longer either."
Rin nodded, his throat dry. "Yeah. He must've used up a lot of mana. Since we arrived, we've only seen illusions. I think he's almost at his limit. Let's try dodging for now."
Verclian smirked, a sinister glint in his eyes. "You dumb humans. I don't even have a Dark attribute. Didn't you realize what you said earlier about how this girl has one?"
Jin's eyes widened. "Then those illusions were created by Hana or whatever her name is? Ah, we're so screwed."
Rin raised his hands, trying to buy time. "Hey, Verclian, let's talk for a moment. We've only just arrived. What do you want from us? We haven't even done anything yet. We can give you the monsters we find. How about that?"
Verclian's laugh echoed through the blood-drenched forest. "Trying to buy time, are we?"
In that instant, blood spikes shot from the ground, piercing the air with deadly precision. Rin's arm was stabbed, and Jin barely dodged it.
"Dammit, I let my guard down," Rin cursed, gritting his teeth.
Ella's voice cut through his thoughts. "Dumbass, didn't I tell you to never lower your guard?"
Jin, swiping blood from his face, asked, "You okay?"
Rin winced. "Yeah, I can handle it. But what the hell are we supposed to do? This isn't just some ordinary ability."
Jin glanced around. "Yeah, I know. Everything... it's all blood. Even the sky is raining it."
Ella spoke again. "If this is a domain, there's a limit to how much he can expand it. Try moving farther away from him."
Rin's voice dropped to a whisper. "I have an idea. If this is a domain, then there's probably a way out. Domains have limits. Let's try to escape."
Verclian's mocking voice broke in. "Are you done? I gave you time to come up with a plan."
Hana chuckled. "Good luck, guys. I hope that plan doesn't work. I really need the money, to be honest. I'm kind of broke."
Verclian laughed again as he began firing streams of blood at both Rin and Jin.
Jin glanced at Rin. "I don't think we have a choice. Let's try your plan."
With no time to waste, they bolted in opposite directions, running as fast as they could.
Verclian's voice followed them. "You really think you can escape?"
Suddenly, a massive wall of blood closed off their paths.
Jin cursed. "What now?"
Rin's eyes hardened. "Just keep dodging and get as far as we can."
They sprinted—but then, they both blinked. To their shock, they were back where they started.
Jin's eyes widened. "No fucking way. That's not just an ability..."
He turned to Verclian. "What the hell did you do?"
Hana stepped forward with a smirk. "Well, to be honest, it's me who did all that. My Dark attribute trait — Manipulation of Fate. It lets me control my opponents' fates. All I had to do was make sure both of you are stuck here, unable to go anywhere."
She tilted her head slightly, her eyes gleaming. "And no, if you're thinking this is just some illusion… it's not. Everything you saw — everything you're seeing now — it's all real."
Rin's breath hitched.
Hana continued, voice calm but chilling. "They were different possibilities. Different threads of your life that could have happened — and I just made sure these were the ones you ended up with. Every path you take, every decision you think is yours… I've already woven the outcome."
She leaned closer. "That's the beauty of it. I don't have to overpower you — I just rewrite what fate had planned. All you're doing… is playing your role."
Ella's voice was grim. "Rin, you and Jin don't stand a chance in this fight."
Rin clenched his fists, frustration boiling inside him. "I know... I know! What the hell are we supposed to do?"
Jin's voice was faint. "Hey, Rin, let's just give up. There's no way we can win against them."
Rin's voice trembled. "And if we give up, what then? You think they'll just let us go? They want the points."
Jin sighed. "We could press the button the instructor told us about."
Rin stared at the ground. "But that would make us fail, and we won't have any points to show for it."
Jin looked at him, trying to reassure him. "I know. I don't want to fail either. But there's no other choice. And let me add something to make you feel better. If we pass the written exam, the academy will just put us through extra training. It won't be a big deal."
Rin clenched his jaw. "That's the problem. If I fail, I fail both the written exam and this exam."
Jin nodded. "So, we're in the same boat."
Rin paused, then frowned. "You also failed the written exam?"
Jin nodded gravely. "We don't have time for this. I don't know why they're not attacking, but I think they know we'll give up. So, what's your choice?"
Ella's voice returned. "Rin... it's not that I want you to fail, but I don't want you to suffer. The best option right now is to surrender."
Rin sighed, his shoulders slumping. "Fine. We'll surrender."
Both Rin and Jin removed their watches, and Jin yelled, "Hey, asshole! We're surrendering! So how about you let us go now?"
Verclian laughed, shaking his head. "Do you think I'm dumb? One of you will press the button, and the other won't. The surrender option only works when both of you agree. I'm not letting either of you escape until both of you press it."
Jin clicked his tongue. "Tch, he figured it out."
With a resigned look, Jin pressed the button.
Rin hesitated for a long moment... then pressed it too.
A voice boomed from the sky: "Team 20 has been eliminated."
---
To be continued...