Pixel dashed through the forest as she focused on regulating her breathing through her nose. She scanned her surroundings attentively, determined not to trigger any traps. Despite her caution, Pixel stumbled over a thin string and unwittingly activated a trap. Suddenly, several daggers flew toward her. With lightning reflexes, Pixel leaped to her feet and evaded each blade. Unfortunately, one dagger grazed her right arm, causing Pixel to gasp and bite her lip in agony.

Nonetheless, she cannot afford to remain stagnant and must continue her journey. Fortunately, Pixel rescued her with a Hearty Peach, which instantly healed her injury after taking a small bite. Nevertheless, she must exercise caution in her surroundings, as she cannot always rely on the Hearty Peach to save her. Pixel carefully tucks away the Hearty Peach in her pockets. As she does so, she suddenly senses a strange presence and feels her eyes on her. She turns around, scanning the area for any signs of an intruder, but to no avail. Despite the uncertainty, she knows she cannot let her guard down and must remain vigilant. Pixel decided not to stand there and continued running through the forest. While training through the woods, Pixel avoided some traps as she wasn't successful in dodging them. Her uniform was ripped and covered in dirt, which Pixel shrugged off and kept running. Pixel is halfway through the Pre-exam and has yet to find Jean. And Pixel starts to get worried about her. Pixel will soon reunite with Jean—just for now, she has to worry about herself. Before Pixel could proceed with her training, in the middle stood a mysterious pink-haired figure holding a wooden bo staff and resting it on her shoulder. Pixel stood there, unsure what to do, as she didn't have any weapons with her.

'Who is that? That can't be Rose,' thought Pixel as she eyed the mysterious pink hair figure. Soon, the mysterious pink-haired figure turns around to reveal her wearing a smiling white mask with a pink heart on her left cheek. Her mask wasn't covering half her face as it showed her lips.

"Greetings, new trainee! You're about to finish the Pre-exam, and I must say, you're doing a wonderful job!" the mysterious lady praised, spinning her wooden bo and soon stopping. Pixel stared at her, puzzled, as she chuckled and moved her arms behind her.

"Thank you. But, umm–who are you?" Asked Pixel.

"Me? Well, I prefer not to say my real name. But for this sake, you can call me Lia," said Lia, making Pixel nod.

"So, Lia. Are you perhaps lost or?"

"Lost? Not at all! But I'm here to fulfill my unfinished job," said Lia as she confused Pixel. Pixel rested her hands on her hips and asked,

"What would that be?" Lia chuckles as she appears in front of Pixel, holding her wooden bo near Pixel's neck. Pixel is stunned as her eyes widen, and she stares at Lia.

"Similar goal as Rose. If you don't take this training seriously, you're going through a challenging exam that could cost your life. One small mistake is the end of your and your friend's life. But to help you survive the Entrance exam, you must awaken your hidden power," informed Lia.

'Hidden power? I can awaken a thing called hidden power. Cool!' Thought Pixel as she couldn't wait to awaken her hidden power.

"What can I do to awaken my hidden power?" Asked Pixel, making Lia move away from Pixel.

"Unlocking your hidden power isn't easy, but it's worth it. It requires unwavering dedication and constant perseverance. The key to unleashing your hidden power lies in focusing on yourself. You need certain qualities to succeed, but the most important is maintaining a clear mind. Your emotions and energy are intertwined, and if you let your emotions spiral out of control, you risk draining your energy and ultimately losing yourself. So, keep your mind focused, and let your hidden power shine through," informed Lia as she rested her hand on her heart. Pixel looks down at her chest and softly touches her heart.

"To awaken your hidden power, concentrate with your energy and basic spiritual training. Have you trained in your spirituality?" Asked Lia as Pixel stood there, giving Lia a blank face. Lia gazed at Pixel, anticipating a response. Pixel nervously sweated as she shook her head. Lia sighed, her head drooping in disappointment. Lia stared back at Pixel, who shrugged. Lia isn't going to train her to awaken her hidden power and knows a good person who is good at teaching spirituality. But for now, Lia jumps away from Pixel and spins her wooden bo. She stopped by pointing her weapon in Pixel's direction.

"What a shame. I won't be able to let you pass if you can't lay a finger on me," said Lia, grinning as Pixel gripped her fists and glared at her. Instantly, Lia dashed rapidly at Pixel. Lia moved her wooden bo to the side and swung it at Pixel, who quickly dodged the attack. Lia giggles as she turns her body around and kicks Pixel's side. Pixel flew and hit the ground as she groaned and held her side. It pains her, but she can't stop there if she wants to finish the Pre-exam. Pixel slams her right hand on the ground and pushes herself up. She glares at Lia, who sees her running toward her at full speed. Pixel tries avoiding Lia's swing, but Lia tricks her as she goes behind her, kicking her.

Pixel flew, but right as she landed on the ground, Pixel turned her body around, and Lia became impressed. Pixel isn't sure how she will defeat Lia as she is more experienced than her. Once again, Lia dashed straight at Pixel, ready to attack her. Lia moves her weapon back and takes a swing at Pixel. However, Pixel swiftly avoided each of Lia's attacks as she blocked the other swings. Pixel clenched her jaw as it hurt her, but she wasn't going down that easily. Lia was about to take another swing until she faked Pixel out as she stabbed the ground and landed behind Pixel. Pixel instantly turns around and quickly blocks Lia's kick again. However, it sends her flying backward. Pixel again turns her body around and slides back. Pixel was breathing heavily, her body bruised and annoying her. Pixel's arms trembled as she couldn't hold her weight, wishing to lay down and take a break. Pixel swallows her saliva as she groans and tries to look at Lia. But Lia was nowhere to be seen, so she made Pixel check her surroundings. Suddenly, Lia came from above, ready to strike Pixel. Pixel's eyes widened as she rapidly moved to the side and avoided the potent attack. Pixel stood there as she saw how powerful the swing was and how fast and careful she needed to be.

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Lia pushes herself up and watches as the pieces of the ground fall. Lia turns to face Pixel and sees Pixel's terrified expression. With no hesitation, Lia dashed again at Pixel, ready to swing at her. Immediately, Pixel dodged the attack, and Lia suddenly appeared behind her. Pixel sensed Lia behind her as she swiftly moved to the side and watched Lia's wooden bo narrowly past her face. The intense air pressure stunned Pixel as she quickly moved to the side and tried throwing a punch. However, Lia blocked the attack with her right forearm, pulled the wooden bo back, and hit Pixel's side with the tip of her weapon. Pixel grumbles as she bit her lips, backs away, and harshly stares at Lia. A smile forms on Lia's face as she is proud that Pixel is still standing. But her smile fades as Lia sees Pixel holding her side in pain. Lia also backs away as she watches and rests her wooden bo on her right shoulder.

'It would be easy for her if she practiced her spirituality so she could awaken her hidden power,' thought Lia as she backed away and stared down at Pixel. Pixel breathed as she slowly rubbed her injured side and ignored the pain. Pixel removed her hand and ran once more toward Lia. However, Lia raised her left hand and stopped Pixel in mid-track.

"Outstanding reflexes. I am incredibly impressed, but what you require more in training is offense training. As I said, your dodging ability is incredible, and your reflexes are fantastic. Keep at it, and don't forget to train on your offense AND meditate on your spirituality to awaken your hidden power. Once you train all two, you'll come back here, and we'll have a real fight," instructed Lia, making Pixel nod in determination.

"I'll do my best to beat you," promised Pixel as Lia chuckled.

"Very well. May we see each other again," said Lia as the fog became thicker and unable to see. Pixel covers her face and waves off her hand. The mist goes away, and Pixel can see once more. But what she notices is that Lia is gone, which stuns Pixel. Pixel examined her surroundings as she wondered who Lia was and wanted to know more about her. But seeing alone, she decided to run down the wide path and up to the exit.

Upon emerging from the Pre-exam, Pixel's eyes widened with awe at seeing a stunning garden filled with white gardenias. The tall trees swayed gently in the breeze, their leaves fluttering down to land on the lush green grass or in the tranquil pond nearby, and standing before Pixel was Rose, who was facing two solemn gravestones adorned with a single marigold flower. Pixel couldn't help but wonder whose final resting place lay beneath those markers as she gazed upon the serene scene before her. Before Pixel can walk up to Rose, Jean emerges, falls to the ground, and starts breathing heavily.

"Finally! I'm out!" Jean breathed as she lifted herself. Upon raising her head, Jean saw Pixel and was delighted to see her again. She was about to get up and hug her until she saw Rose. Jean stopped herself as she quickly got up, dusted herself, and stood next to Pixel, noticing what was happening. Jean glanced at Pixel and then back at Rose.

"Congratulations on making it out of the Pre-exam, girls," praised Rose as she turned around and faced the girls. Pixel and Jean could tell that Rose was forcing a smile and became worried.

"Yeah! It was–it was challenging. But we were able to go through it," said Pixel, giving an awkward chuckle and smile.

"Truly challenging! But I need to learn more about my defense," added Jean.

"Yup! And I also need to practice more on my offense," agreed Pixel. Rose nodded in understanding.

"Very well. Let's head back to the tribe and work on what you need to practice," said Rose, walking up to the girls and down a small path. Pixel and Jean quickly looked at the two gravestones and then followed Rose. After leaving, the girls wondered who got buried and why at the end of the Pre-exam.

'Was it meant to be there? Why at the end of the Pre-exam and not somewhere else?' Thought Pixel as she stared at Rose.

'Do I ask Rose about the gravestone? Hmm, I shouldn't. I don't want to sound rude and disrespectful,' thought Jean as she stared at Rose. Rose could feel the strong and intense starting from the girls and wondered why. But she decided to ignore it as they kept walking and soon arrived at the entrance of the Novele Tribe.

Upon arriving at Xóchitl's house, the girls see Xóchitl standing in front of the stairs and gazing down at them. Rose soon stops, turns around, and faces the girls, who wonder what's happening until Xóchitl comes down the stairs and stops halfway as she rests her hands on her hips.

"Congratulations on passing the Pre-exam, Pixel, and Jean. By how many injuries you got, it looked like it was difficult, huh?" Asked Xóchitl, making the girls nod.

"Pretty challenging," said Jean, making Pixel nod. Xóchitl chuckles as she moves her back against the stairs' wooden railings and motions them to her house.

"Well, things are going to change from here. Rose is handing you girls to me to practice your spirituality, which is hugely important to becoming a Demon Slayer and being on the same level as the demons," explained Xóchitl, exciting the girls. They have heard about hidden power and spirituality and can't wait to awaken them.

"Good luck, girls," said Rose as she walked away and soon left the tribe.

"Where is Rose going?" Asked Pixel, watching Rose leave.

"She's returning to her cabin to grab something to improve your training. No worries, she'll be back tomorrow," informed Xóchitl. Pixel and Jean shared a quick look before looking back at Xóchitl. Xóchitl commenced heading up the stairs and inside her house. The girls followed her, and soon, Xóchitl led her to her meditation room.