«Penny!»

Her name was the first thing that came to my mind and left my lips as I regained consciousness. I opened my eyes only to find myself still in the dark. It took me a few seconds to realise that I was lying on my side, my arms wrapped around a warm body pressed against mine.

«Elizabeth,» Sophia's voice called my name as I pulled away from her.

«Penny, we have to get to her!» I exclaimed, grabbing my wand from the bedside table to turn on the light. My eyes quickly went to the clock mounted on the wall on the opposite side of my room. It was 10:40 pm. As I had guessed from the lack of sunlight peeking through the crack under the door, it was night.

"But... of what day?"

I couldn't remember what time I'd gone to bed before being trapped by Penny's innate power. Could it be that time had really frozen and we still had four days to find a way to save her?

There was only one way to find out.

"The calendar next to the leaderboard... it should show us how much time we have until the next elimination."

Without even bothering to look for my boots, I quickly planted my feet on the floor and stood up, only to immediately lose my balance.

"Uh?"

Before I could fall face first onto the wooden floor, I felt the strong grip of Sophia's hands around my waist. With her help I was able to sit down on the bed, even though my legs didn't seem to have the strength to support my weight. Suddenly I also began to feel extremely dizzy. I turned around to see my girlfriend biting her lip with a worried expression on her face.

«Sophia…»

«It’s as I feared, we were asleep for a long time,» she muttered.

«Oh…»

With the surging panic that had taken over when I woke up I hadn’tnotice how stiff my body felt.

«Does it hurt anywhere, Elizabeth?» Sophia asked, her griptightening.

«Aside from how tight you're grip is... No.. I just feel like my legs are super weak and my head is spinning like crazy,» I sighed.

"In this state, how am I going to fight?"

«That’s normal. Looks like Penny's innate power was not perfect since she just awakened it. It did freeze our bodily functions, but we are still feeling the effects of lying down for such a long time,» she explained, letting go of me to come sit at my side, «It’s a good thing we got out or things would’ve gotten dangerous… it’s already a miracle we are not covered in bedsores. Let's take a minute to pick ourselves up.»

«But we-» I started.

«I know. We need to get to Penny. But even if it’s really Sunday we still have a bit of time,» Sophia cut me off in a firm tone while pointing at the clock, «Do you intend to crawl all the way to Penny’s room and fight whatever Skylark’s sends after her on your knees?»

Her tone was harsh, probably due to nervousness. She seemed to realize it and her expression softened.

«Come on, let’s stretch a bit and get the blood flow going on our legs so we can actually move. If the old bastard was also lying down all this time, he may be in way bigger trouble than us that are still young. We can use the time to come up with a plan,» she said while brushing my cheek gently with her hand. Just that touch was enough to calm me down a little.

Sophia slowly stood up and began the stretching routine she had taught me back when she was teaching me swordsmanship. Unlike me, she didn't even look like she was feeling the effects of our prolonged immobility. As usual, I couldn't help but be impressed by how unstoppable she was, both physically and mentally. Sure, I knew by now the weakness that lay deep in her heart, but the way she was able to control her emotions in a crisis was something I admired so much.

But I have no time to fawn over her at the moment.

"A plan..."

«Even if we have some time left, I want to get Penny as soon as possible, even before we go to class, to check if time has really moved forward so much. I don't want to give Skylark the opportunity to do anything funny,» I started rambling, massaging my temples to try and concentrate, «Speaking of the old bastard... Does he even know what happened? Maybe he's also confused about what day it is.»

Sophia, who was busy touching the tips of her toes with her fingers, thought for a second before answering:

«I suspect Skylark knew about Penny's innate power before all this happened.»

«But if she never manifested it before!» I objected.

«True... but then why was she invited here then? She's not a very powerful mage and...»

Sophia suddenly fell silent, but I had understood what she was getting at.

«Unlike Amy, she didn't have a connection with anyone else before she came here...» I finished for her.

«Elizabeth...» Sophia stopped stretching and gave me a concerned look.

«I'm fine! I'm fine!» I exclaimed, finally trying to get up to start stretching myself, only to land back on my butt on the bed.

«Hang on! I'll help you.»

Sophia came closer and, after kneeling down, grabbed my foot.

«Urrgh!» I groaned in pain as she pushed it, bringing my knee up to my chest.

«Sorry! But there's nothing I can do about it,» she apologised, starting to flex my leg back and forth.

«You know I like it rough, but I'm definitely not into this...» I complained, gritting my teeth.

«If you have the strength to joke around in this situation, I'm sure you'll survive!» Sophia scoffed and prepared to repeat the same painful process with my other foot.

As a new wave of pain washed over me, I tried my best to concentrate again on a possible plan of action.

«But you're right...urgh...he may have a way of detecting...ouch!...innate powers that haven't manifested. So we have to act quickly... we should get all the others on board as well. And then... find a good place to fight! Uuuh,» I whimpered as Sophia finally finished her work on my leg.

«I see...» she muttered as she grabbed my boots from under the bed and started to help me put them on, «What about the roof? Or the courtyard? Both have only one entrance and plenty of room to deal with whatever Skylark sends after us.»

"That's right, the barriers of our rooms won't help us if we're fighting the school itself. And even if we try to barricade ourselves with some defensive spells of our own, it's too risky. Our rooms are small so, if they break through, they could wipe us all out with a single powerful spell."

«Sounds good,» I nodded as Sophia finished tying my laces, «let's go with the courtyard, it's further away from the second floor and has a normal door. If we go to the roof, they could disable the magic circle and trap us there and starve us.»

«Alright,» Sophia grabbed my wrist and pulled me up. My legs were still shaking, but it seemed that her techniques had at least made them able to support my weight. My head was still spinning, though.

«Hold still, you probably have low blood pressure and that's why you feel dizzy. How are your legs? Can you walk on them?» my girlfriend asked, still holding on firmly to my shoulders.

«I can... but...»

I leaned against her, pressing my head into her chest.

«Elizabeth...»

«I know we don't have time for this, but... I need you, just for a moment,» I whispered, looking up, straight into her emerald eyes as I went in for a kiss.

"There has been a time when this simple gesture felt awkward, but now it's as natural to me as breathing," I thought as I deepened the kiss. Maybe it was because we hadn't done it for four days outside of that dream world, but I felt particularly needy.

«Elizabeth!» Sophia gasped as I pulled away.

«I know, sorry. It's just... I'm going to risk my life again with my reckless ideas. And as usual, I'm dragging you with me,» I muttered, looking away.

«Is trying to asphyxiate me your way of apologising?» Sophia replied, making me raise my chin by placing a finger underneath it, then with a slight reassuring smile she whispered, «Don't worry, I told you before... Even though it worries me, I love the part of you that is willing to do anything for your friends. Whatever happens, I'll be happy to be by your side.»

«Sophia...»

I really wanted to go for another round, especially since we might not be able to ever kiss again when midnight hit. But for now I needed to be strong, just like her. I nodded and took her hand:

«Let's go Sophia, let's show Skylark that even his stupid rules can be broken!»

My steps were still unsteady and running was out of the question, but thanks to Sophia's support we were outside Penny's room in a matter of minutes. But they felt like hours.

"Is she... still here?"

I knocked on her door with a trembling hand, cursing myself for wasting time with my emotional needs. The second that passed before she answered was extremely gruelling,

«Who's there?» Penny's muffled voice asked, making me breathe a huge sigh of relief.

«It's me and Sophia!» I yelled, too relieved to even bother keeping my voice down. It wasn't like we could wake anyone up here. Her room was surrounded by empty ones, memorials to all the students who had lost their lives at the Academy.

Soon we heard the door lock click.

«Sorry, I used my wand, I can't seem to get up!» I heard Penny say in a pained tone.

«Yeah, we had the same problem,» I replied and opened the door.

Penny was sitting on her bed in her pyjamas. Even though I had already heard her talk, it was comforting to see her. The last dance we had in her dream world had really felt too close to a farewell.

"But she's still alive and we have to make sure she stays that way!"

I hurried to her side:

«Apart from your body feeling super heavy, are you ok?» I asked worriedly. I could see that her lips were trembling. Like us, she had probably realised the reason why our bodies felt so weak.

«I'm... scared, but I'm okay,» Penny said slowly, giving me a tentative smile.

«Help her get up, Elizabeth. I'll get the others. Don't move from here, yell very loudly if anything happens and I'll come running,» Sophia said, still standing at the door.

I nodded at her before she disappeared into the darkness of the corridor. Normally I wouldn't have wanted to be separated from her, but time was of the essence.

"And if I actually call for her, she's very capable of cutting through all the walls of the west wing to get to me as quickly as possible!"

«Sorry Penny, this might hurt a bit!» I said as I got a hold of her ankle.

«Eh?! What are you doing?» she asked, struggling a bit in my grip.

«Helping you get that blood flowing!» I explained, «Don't worry, I won't try and murder you like Sophia did to me!»

But despite all the care I tried to take, it wasn't painless.

«Ugh... are you really sure we should... be doing this, Liz?» Penny asked between pained groans of protest.

«Eh? I know Sophia's super jealous, but I can actually touch other girls, you know? Don't you remember we were dancing not even half an hour ago?» I replied, giving her a confused look.

«That's not what I meant, idiot!... EHY!» Penny yelled as I pushed a little harder on her leg in retaliation.

«Sorry, my bad!» I said looking away.

«You did that on purpose!» Penny complained, just before we both started to chuckle nervously.

«What did you mean?» I asked after a moment of silence.

«Trying to fight against... no! Wait!» Penny stopped immediately as I prepared to push on her leg again.

«Then shut up! You were so happy before that I would fight to protect you!»

«I am... I really am. But you and the others... I don't want to put anyone in danger,» she said in a low voice, her eyes fixed on the ceiling.

«It had to happen sooner or later. Getting out of here without fighting Skylark was something I never believed in. To be honest, I prefer this to having Sophia risk her life alone,» I stated calmly.

Now that the person I wanted to protect was in front of me, my determination to fight was stronger than ever and left no room for hesitation.

«Besides...» I continued, grabbing her wrists to help her stand, «we don't really know what's going to happen. Maybe your innate power has put the old bastard to sleep forever. If we are like this, imagine how his decrepit legs are faring!»

My comment made Penny giggle:

«I don't think he's that old!» she babbled, holding on to my shoulders for balance.

«Well, he certainly looks it!»

At that moment, it was as if we were talking about a very strict professor who'd given us a bad mark in an exam, rather than the despicable man who could be responsible for both our deaths in just over an hour.

"But keeping things light is the best way to act when you are on the edge of a cliff."

My time at the Academy had taught me that much. Maintaining a thin illusion of normalcy was the only way to stay sane in this cursed place.

«Are you all right now?» I asked, «we'll go to the courtyard and make our stand there, feel like you can get there on your own two feet? I'm sure Sophia could give you a piggyback ride if you can't!»

«I'm fine!» Penny said, slowly letting go of me. She was a little wobbly, but she didn't fall.

«I want to change into my uniform... if I'm going to die, I don't want to do it in my pyjamas!» she exclaimed as she slowly headed for the wardrobe.

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

«That's just like you, to be worrying about something like that right now...»

«I guess I'm still a little too concerned about appearances. I wonder what my parents are thinking right now... they really thought I would score a rich and high-status fiancé from this Academy.»

«Instead, you got an annoying commoner friend... one who will go on tour after we get out of here. I'll go to yours, Celeste's and Sophia's houses and kick all your parents' noble asses one by one,» I chuckled before walking out the door, "I'll be waiting for you. Don't take too long changing.»

«Don't worry and... thanks Liz, for everything.»

«I told you yesterday, you need to stop sounding like a dying woman,» I replied before closing her door behind me.

I let out a sigh as I rested my back against the wall. If only I could have spent more time with her and the others.

«But I have no right to wish that after I refused to stay in that dream world.»

Reality would soon be upon us and I had to face it. My nervousness began to grow again, but soon something came to my aid.

"That is..."

I let out a small chuckle as I saw a very amusing sight appear out of the corner of my eye. A very annoyed Sophia was carrying Celeste on her shoulders. Her long drills brushed against my girlfriend's face as she pointed forward, as if signalling the attack.

Soon they were close enough for me to hear them hiss at each other.

«You should be thankful the situation is serious or I would have dumped you in the nearest toilet!»

«Less talk, faster legs!»

Behind them were Philemon and Wilhelm, both walking on their own two feet. The smile on my face faded as I realised there was no one else.

"Where's Nicole?"

«Sophia! Celeste!» I shouted as I ran towards them.

My girlfriend let out a sigh as Celeste waved at me:

«Liz Liz, long time no see!» she shouted.

«What are you... oh well, I guess it's been four days...»

«Right? I couldn't believe it when Sophie told me all that stuff! To think I didn't realise anything!» Celeste exclaimed.

But even though she was trying to sound cheerful, I could see a shadow in her smile. By now I had learnt to recognise when she was putting on a happy face.

«Stop yelling and start stretching again! You're far too energetic for someone who supposedly can't walk!» Sophia snapped as she used the nearby wall to roughly lay her down on the floor.

«Hey, this is not the way to treat a fair maiden like me!» Celeste complained, but soon began to comply with Philemon's help.

«Where's Penny?» Sophia asked as she approached me.

«She's getting into her uniform, but... what about Nicole?» I asked, looking over her shoulder to see if she was just a little behind.

«She's not coming,» Sophia replied bitterly.

«She's not... coming?» I repeated, confused.

«That's right. She didn't even open the door for me. I explained what was going on, but she still refused to come out.»

"..."

Why was Nicole behaving like this? Didn't she want to help save Penny? Was she... really the traitor after all?

"But if that's the case... a final fight against Skylark is something she wouldn't want to miss. It would be the perfect opportunity for one last backstab."

«I could go and force her out by breaking down the door,» Sophia interrupted my train of thought.

«If she doesn't want to come, there's no point in dragging her out,» I replied, biting my lip.

"If only I spent more time with her, maybe I could understand what's going on in her head."

But maybe it wasn't all my fault. Nicole had always seemed like she didn't really want us to get close. She was always nice to everyone, but it was almost as if she was keeping her distance.

«Now that I think about it... I don't even know anything about her past. But with Penny... it was different. Weren't they pretty close? So why is she not trying to save her?» I muttered.

«She's a lot more sensitive than she likes to show.»

I turned to see Penny coming out of her room, a sad expression on her face.

«Penny...»

«It's okay... you see.... She told me the night before your duel with Sam Rover: she couldn't bear to see me in danger. That happy dream I forced on her must have killed her spirit. I don't blame her if she doesn't want to have her hopes dashed again,» my friend murmured, lowering her eyes.

«Don't even think for a second that this is your fault!» I yelled as I grabbed her hand.

«It's not hers either. We are all victims here, Liz, you are the one who said that,» Penny replied quietly.

«That's true, but...»

"She should at least say goodbye to her if she thinks she has no hope of surviving."

But in the end, Penny was right. I couldn't blame Nicole for being irrational in the face of her best friend's death.

"I just hope you won't regret this..."

I shook my head. We weren't going to let that happen. Penny was going to be fine and she would have scolded Nicole herself.

«Penny! Are you ok?!»

Celeste, who had apparently regained the use of her legs, almost trampled over me to hug Penny.

«I knew it was all bullshit when you said you couldn't walk!» Sophia grunted, making me laugh.

But to see Celeste voluntarily hug someone was something I wasn't expecting.

"I guess she also opened up a bit."

I turned to Wilhlem and Philemon, who had been silent until now.

«Are you two all right?» I asked.

«I feel like I've suddenly lost a lot of muscle mass,» Wilhelm replied, flexing his arm, «but I'm ready to fight for Penny, although I doubt I'll be able to do anything if Skylark decides to face us in person.»

"You look as jacked as usual to me..."

«I'm fine,» Philemon said as laconically as ever.

Looking at his impassive face, I couldn't help but feel guilty once again.

«I'm sorry. I'm putting Celestre in danger again.»

The boy's face didn't change and he slowly shook his head:

«Celeste would have defended Penny even if you hadn't suggested it. She's the leader of our alliance, remember. She wouldn't leave any of you behind,» he stated.

"But you didn't say you wouldn't..."

That uncomfortable thought was interrupted by Celeste's cheerful voice:

«Why are you saying my name, Phil? Are you telling Liz some embarrassing story about me?»

«I don't think he needs to... everyone here already knows you're a weirdo,» Sophia cut in with her sharp tongue, making me and Penny laugh.

But this brief moment of levity was short-lived. We all looked at each other.

«Let's do this guys!» Celeste announced as she started to walk towards the east wing.

And we all followed, walking together through the silent corridors of the school for what might have been the last time. Penny was in the middle of our formation, visibly shaking, but still marching forward.

Before we reached our destination, we stopped at the classroom. Inside, near the rankings, we got confirmation of what we all already knew: it was Sunday and we had less than an hour before the elimination. Without saying a word, we all left and quickly made our way to the courtyard.

«Wait, I'll check just in case,» Celeste muttered, closing her eyes.

The courtyard door didn't have any particular defensive barrier on it, so it was possible for her to use her incredible ability in mana expansion to verify if anyone was inside.

«Ok, nobody's trying to pull a fast one on us,» she said after about thirty seconds and opened the door.

We all covered our eyes to avoid being blinded by the fake sun.

«Will, Sophie, go to the other side with Penny,» Celeste ordered quickly, «Liz, Phil, give me a hand and put as many defensive spells on this door and wall as you can.»

I doubted I had anything in my repertoire that could stop a mage like Skylark.

"But slowing him down, maybe I can do that much."

I quickly began reinforcing the wooden door with all the enhancements I could think of. Then, imitating Philemon, I conjured a mana barrier to cover the entire wall.

"I'd better have a spell ready to launch, I'm not sure I'll be able to triplecast like I did in the duel with Sam."

Meanwhile, Celeste was tracing several complicated sigils on the wall. When she was done, she pointed her wand at the door. Under the grass I could see the ground shaking.

«A hidden trap. Might be good against the guards,» she commented when she saw me looking.

By the end of the job, the door to the courtyard had turned into a heavily fortified position.

«Well, this is about the best we can do,» Celeste muttered. Then she took out her pocket watch, «Still half an hour, but let's get into position just in case the old man decides to pay us an early visit.»

Philemon and I nodded and followed her back to Penny and the others. When we arrived, Sophia stood up:

«I'll go near the door. You know ranged combat is not my thing,» she explained.

«Alright! Take care to not go in front of the door, I put a nice trap. And just in general... be careful, Sophie!» Celeste said, uncharacteristically serious.

«Just don't hit me with a spell in the back by mistake and I'll be fine,» Sophia replied with a slight smile. Then she turned to me.

I bit my lip. It seemed that her habit had begun to affect me as well. I knew it was having her at the front was the right strategy, but I still couldn't help but worry that she would be our first line of defence. That wall suddenly seemed so much further away than usual.

«Don't worry. I'll be fine with you watching my back,» Sophia whispered as she stroked a lock of my hair.

«Such a difference in treatment compared to Celeste,» I heard Penny chuckle, just before Sophia hugged me and lifted me a little off the ground with her strong grip.

Not caring that our friends were watching, she covered my lips with hers.

«I'm glad I'm not getting that treatment, at least... I guess?» Celeste exclaimed, making me laugh a bit during the kiss.

After pulling away, Sophia squeezed my right cheek a little before walking away from us. Even with all the anxiety I now felt, my love for her was still strong enough to override everything.

«Just looking at you two makes me want to find my soul mate too!» Celeste said, draping an arm over my shoulder.

«Right?» Penny echoed.

"I'm sorry Philemon!" I could only think.

But I was glad our spirits were high as we began our post, Celeste's pocket watch opened on the ground in front of us. Me, Celeste, Philemon and Wilhelm formed a wall in front of Penny, our wands pointed at the door. Sophia was there, lying on the grass right next to the side of it. ready to pounce.

The minutes ticked slowly, but it wasn't until there were only five left that I began to feel the tension. But even then, my grip on my wand was firm. Part of me was a little proud of how far I had come from the little girl who had cowered under the covers of her bed during the first week. I was pretty sure the me of today would've kicked Valentine's ass without even blinking. But I also knew I had a long way to go. I didn't have the steel nerves of Sophia or the leadership skills of Celeste. I wasn't as cunning as Philemon or as brave as Sam Rover. There was still a long path in front of me.

«But will I be able to walk it?»

If push came to shove, I would use my mana to protect everyone.

"I won't go against our promise, Sophia... but if we're cornered, I want you all to live for me," I thought as the long hand of the clock stopped just before number 12, ready to join the little one.

«Well guys, whatever happens, it was a pleasure. Sorry if I caused you trouble at the start,» said Whilelm.

«There you go, jinxed it,» Celeste sighed, "but yeah, I'm glad we got this alliance going. It was rocky at first, but now we are besties!»

«I don't know about that..." I mumbled, looking at Philemon with my side eye, "but yeah, I'm glad we're all fighting this together.»

«Thanks guys. If it's too much, don't worry about me and...» Penny started.

«Nope.»

«No, can't do.»

«Don't be foolish.»

«Guys...»

As midnight ticked, my eyes moved to Sophia. Her head was turned towards us. I couldn't see her eyes, but I was sure she was looking at me.

"...I love you."

The time had come. Nothing had happened yet, but I could feel the tension building. I gripped my wand even tighter, my knuckles turning white.

Then we saw it.

The door, shining from our defensive spells, had flickered.

«It's coming, prepare to strike,» Celeste whispered, even though there was no way whoever or whatever was out that door could hear us.

The entrance flickered again, our defences flickering. I could feel them draining my mana.

And then... they were broken.

The door opened slightly.

«Meteor!» I shouted as my companions also began to cast spells at the small crack in the door.

Through the fog created by the numerous explosions, I could see Sophia's siloutte at the side, ready to strike at anything that entered. But as the smoke cleared, all that lay before us was a broken door and an empty hallway.

"Have they retreated? No, I have to stay alert."

Seconds went by without anything happening.

My eyes went to Sophia, still lying on the floor near the door. My girlfriend slowly got her knees and started approaching the door.

"Please be careful..." I wanted to scream, but I didn't dare open my mouth.

But Sophia stopped. Even though she was far away, I could see a confused expression on her face. Then she turned to us and...

«WHAT?!»

I had never heard her scream like that before. It petrified me. Soon I heard another gasp, this time from Celeste.

What... had happened?

"I... don't want to turn around."

But I had to. I couldn't run from reality.

"..."

Nothing.

There was nothing behind me. No gruesome spectacle like the one we had seen when we had discovered Sam's body.

But...

«Where's Penny?!» I yelled.

I looked left and right, hoping she had moved to the side of the yard. But she was nowhere to be seen.

«Has she been teleported away?! But she would have screamed!!»

I looked at Celeste, hoping she would have an answer. But my friend seemed to be in a state of shock: her eyes were closed almost as if rejecting the reality in front of them. We remained silent until Philemon finally spoke.

«You might want to take a look at this.»

«Uh?»

He was holding Celeste's pocket watch.

"...What?"

The clock was signing half past midnight.

«No...»

I fell to my knees as Will covered his mouth with both hands, a look of horror on his face. Celeste, still with her eyes closed, didn't seem to have found the strenght to even look at it.

I punched the ground with my fist.

«What the hell happened?!» I yelled as the first tears began to fall.

How was this possible? In the face of our determination to fight to the death to protect her, Penny had been taken from us without us being able to do anything about it.

I felt a pair of arms hugging me gently from behind.

«It must be Skylark's power,» Sophia's voice said close to my ear.

«You mean...?» Wilhelm began.

«We had theorised that his power had something to do with erasing events and people from history. That's probably what happened. He erased the last half hour,» Philemon explained.

«But... I didn't even notice anything... did you?» Wilhelm muttered in disbelief.

«If I did I can't remember. But now it's clear that something odd happened. If you look at the grass, you can clearly see that someone came in here,» I looked at the patch of grass Sophia was pointing at. It was a bit hard to see, but I could see that someone had stepped on it with a pair of heavy-duty boots.

«It could just be from when we got here!» Wilhelm objected.

«That wouldn't explain the set of footprints I saw near the door. The sigils on the wall have also been deactivated. And even Celeste's trap was triggered. Unless an invisible being somehow got in here, snatched Penny without anyone noticing, and changed the time on Celeste's watch, there's only one explanation. Skylark did something to restrain us and then erased our memories about it,» Sophia stated coldly.

«But... in the blink of an eye... it's almost like he stopped time or something...» Wilhlem murmured, «if he has such powers at his disposal... we...»

«We can't give up!»

«Uh?»

Those words had left my mouth without me noticing.

«Even if he can stop time, kill us with his breath or just end the world with a clap, I will never give up. He has taken too much from me... I will never forgive him and the people backing him!» I yelled, getting up from the floor, tears streaming down my face.

«Elizabeth...»

But even Sophia's voice was not enough to calm down the rage seething inside me.

"Penny... I'm sorry, I wasn't able to protect you now... but if there's a glimmer of hope left, I'll keep chasing it."

«Penny might still be alive. Now we know that people who are eliminated really do disappear. They could have taken her somewhere and are keeping her alive. I know...» I said, before anyone could interrupt me I added, «I know, it's just wishful thinking, but until I see a body I'm not giving up. We have to find her, as soon as possible.»

I expected someone to disagree. Maybe Sophia, saying she refused to let me take any more risks. Or maybe Philemon, telling me how stupid I was for still clinging to hope. But no one did. Everyone just stared at me, even Celeste, who had finally opened her eyes. But I could see something trembling in her troubled expression.

«Sophie, Liz, I have to tell you something!» she suddenly exclaimed.

«What?»

«It's urgent!» She said, tears now streaming down her face as well.

I was silent for a second, thinking.

"Urgent, but she doesn't want to say it in front of Wilhelm and Philemon... it must be about the traitor. Does she think is one of them who took Penny away? Was she looking for some kind of spell with her mana expansion?"

«Alright!» I said, pulling her wrist and walking to the side of the courtyard before Philemon or Wilhelm could protest, Sophia in our wake.

«I really don't think there's any point in keeping things secret with those two... but I promised,» Celeste muttered, wiping her eyes.

«What's the matter? Have you noticed anything that might lead us to Penny?» I asked, grabbing her hands.

For some reason Celeste looked away:

«I... I know where she is. She was taken to the underground facility below the school! I don't know if she's still alive though...»

«What? How do you know?» Sophia pressed her.

"Don't tell me... no, there's no way..."

Probably sensing what I was thinking, Celeste quickly shook her head and quickly explained:

«I'm not the traitor, idiots!» she then lowered her voice and, still avoiding my eyes, added: «Although... I did do something terrible.»

«Then explain yourself, damn it!» I blurted out. The situation was so bad enough that I had no time to be considerate.

«I... when I hugged Penny before, I slipped my familiar into her pocket.»

I widened my eyes.

«You...»

«I thought if we lost our fight against Skylark, I could at least get some information out of it... I know I'm terrible. I was...»

«You're a genius!» Sophia and I cut her off in unison.

«But I...»

«Celeste, this is why you're our leader. You make the hard decisions. But... you were prepared to fight and give your life for Penny, remember? So... don't feel bad. Your quick thinking may save her!» I said in a softer tone. Now that I knew she hadn't really done anything wrong, I could give her the reassurance she deserved.

Celeste smiled through her tears:

«Thank you... anyway, that's the way it is. I concentrated and followed the mana trail of my little sparrow. It goes up and up till it suddenly starts heading down, leading deep underneath the school. Unfortunately, they seem to have found it and cut the connection, but...»

«You know where the other magic circle is,» I finished for her, the glimmer of hope in my heart shining much brighter than before, «so can you...?»

Celeste nodded:

«I can activate it now. We can go down there.»

I took a deep breath as I felt Sophia squeeze my hand.

«We need a plan.»

«Who are you and what have you done to Elizabeth?» Sophia said in disbelief.

«Idiot... I want to run there right now, you know? But if we get killed, we won't be able to help Penny.»

«Exactly. We have to find a way to deal with Skylark and get Penny out of there safely...»

"If she's still alive."

But no one wanted to say that part out loud. Because, for the first time, a way out of this school had opened up for us. But it would not be easy to reach it.

«If it's Skylark who's found the familiar, he must know that we know. If that's the case, there's no point in keeping this a secret,» I said, «let's get Philemon and Wilhelm involved. We need all the brainpower we can get.»

Neither Celeste nor Sophia objected. It was then that something else occurred to me.

«While you do that... I'll try to get Nicole. Now that we might have a chance, she might change her mind.»

«Alright, me and Sophia will explain everything to the boys and start squeezing our brains as hard as we can,» Celeste exclaimed.

«Got it... be careful out there, Elizabeth,» Sophia said before giving me a quick peck on the cheek.

«I'll leave everything to you,» I said before running off.

As I ran out of the broken courtyard door I realised something.

"Why was I the one calling the shots?"

Somehow Celeste didn't seem to mind me taking over.

"Oh well, no time to think about that now."

My legs were still not in the best shape, but I ignored the pain and darted through the deserted school. Soon I was outside Nicole's room. Without wasting a moment, I started pounding on the door.

«N-NICOLE!" I panted, "Get out of there! They took Penny!»

«B-But... we know... where they took her!» I continued after no one answered, «and we know how to get there! We are going to try and rescue her and then escape, so we need your help!»

Suddenly, in the silence that followed, I heard the sound of footsteps from inside the room.

«Nicole!» I exclaimed as the door slowly opened. But my momentary joy for having convinced her was shattered when I saw the state she was in.

There was no trace of the cute and bubbly girl I remembered her to be. Her red hair was messy and unkempt. There were red marks on her face, almost as if she had scratched it with her nails. Her eyes were red and swollen.

«You... are going to try to save her?» she muttered slowly.

«Of course we are!» I said, taking her hands in mine, «but Nicole, are you ok?!»

It was a stupid question. She clearly wasn't.

Her eyes locked with mine. At that moment I began to feel a terrible sensation take hold of me.

«What... is this?» I murmured and took a step back.

I... had felt this way before. It was when I had tried to hide my deteriorating mental state from Sophia.

It was... guilt. Unberable guilt.

«Liz... I have betrayed you all.»