— Does the church provide weapons training? I didn't know that!

Sarah laughed, shaking her head.

— Of course not! All my training was on video games!

— Video games?! — Mira exclaimed, incredulous.

— I'm not good at fighting, but I have complete confidence in my aim! — Sarah said, smiling. — I'm going to the corner, after all, I've already been eliminated. — And she walked away, going to join Fiona.

Mira was still trying to process all of that.

— These suits... this fight is definitely not at the level of ordinary humans — thought Mira, as she watched the fights around her.

— There have been three of them! — boasted Thais, with a proud smile.

— I defeated one! — added Viviane, excited.

— How are the others? — asked Thais.

— The two are fighting in a coordinated manner, their reactions are good! — replied Viviane, watching the fight.

Thais nodded, thoughtful.

— They seem to be younger than us, but they are already trying to become soldiers. It is better not to underestimate them.

San and Dan vs. Enemies

San and Dan faced two competitors simultaneously. One of them carried a gun that shot paint and tried to hit them while moving quickly to avoid being hit. San and Dan confused their opponents, running from one side to the other and slowly approaching.

— We can't aim if they don't stop running! I'm running out of paint! Cover me! — shouted the competitor from Fiona's team.

— Alright! — replied his companion, taking the lead with his sword.

San and Dan exchanged a look, and smiled.

— Too late! — they said in unison, hitting the competitor in the head.

The second competitor barely had time to react before being hit as well. San and Dan's teamwork prevailed.

Fiona's Reflection

Fiona, watching everything from afar, could not hide her frustration. She watched her teammates fall one by one and thought to herself:

— They made a good team... and there are still those three. What are they doing?

— We won? — Dan exclaimed, happy to see his opponents defeated.

— We won the fight, but there's still the war to be had! — Thais replied cautiously.

— But it's a victory! — San said, smiling.

— He's right! — Viviane agreed.

— Can I keep this gun? — Thais asked excitedly, looking at the paint gun.

— It... — the competitor began, hesitating.

— Of course, after all, our team has already been defeated! — Fiona said, watching from afar.

The competitor handed the gun to Thais, and the defeated ones headed to the corner of the wall.

Mira began to count the eliminated competitors.

— Six, seven, eight, nine... one is missing! — thought Mira, alarmed.

She quickly stood up and shouted:

“Guys, the one with the sword...!”

Suddenly, a plastic sword came flying from the trees towards the group.

— Who?! — exclaimed the team, confused.

— Kay! — Mira called out, looking back.

Kay opened his eyes slowly, narrowly dodging the sword that embedded itself in the tree beside him.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

— Let your guard down! — said Kay, still half-asleep.

Thais quickly aimed at the tree and fired, hitting the last competitor from Fiona’s team.

— Right in the forehead! Your aim is impressive! — Kay commented, getting to his feet.

— I’ve trained in target shooting! — replied Thais, smiling.

— Now we just need to deliver the flag, and we’ll win! — said Mira, already approaching the capture point.

— Not yet, — Kay interrupted, walking over to Aurion, who was nearby.

— Why not? — Mira exclaimed, grabbing the sword stuck in the tree and heading toward him.

— The teams are fighting over the flag. Let’s wait for them to tire themselves out first. It’ll make things easier for us, — Kay explained, sitting down next to Aurion.

— Kay, but that’s... — Mira began, hesitant.

— There’s no honor in the way you fight! Take these tests seriously! — Fiona shouted angrily from the corner of the wall.

— Hey, Kay, even I think this is too much, even for you! — Mira said, her tone heavy with doubt and concern.

Both teams were looking at him with disdain, clearly annoyed by his relaxed attitude, even in a tense confrontation.

Kay, however, seemed oblivious to their glares. He stood up slowly, pulled the flag out of his jacket, and handed it to Mira without any sense of urgency.

— I want coffee, — he said flatly.

Mira sighed, taking the flag.

— Here it is! — she said, walking toward Aurion and handing over the flag.

Aurion nodded, and an alarm blared throughout the area. All fights immediately ceased, soldiers appearing and signaling the end of the test.

Sarah approached the group, a wry smile on her lips.

— I knew you’d end up doing that! — she said, looking at Kay.

Kay, however, seemed to have something on his mind. He turned to Sarah, his gaze curious.

— Answer me something: why did you stop fighting? — he asked.

Sarah frowned.

— Why? I was hit! — she said, as if it were obvious.

Kay gave a faint smile and shook his head.

— There wasn’t any rule saying you had to stop if you got hit. You just assumed that because of the red paint, — Kay said, looking directly at Fiona.

Fiona, still shocked by the abrupt end of the test, turned to Aurion.

— Is that true? — she asked, clearly shaken.

Aurion nodded, his voice serious.

— There’s no guarantee the wound would be lethal. If you can fight, even when injured, you must continue the mission. That’s the reality of the battlefield, — he said. — If the situation allows, the mission must be completed, regardless of the conditions.

Fiona clenched her fists, frustration clearly visible on her face.

— We could have kept fighting! Why didn’t you say anything?! — Fiona exclaimed, indignant.

Aurion looked at her, his gaze firm.

— On the battlefield, orders are quick. You need to interpret them in the most efficient way possible. If not, it could cost the lives of your comrades and innocent people, — he said. — This is an important lesson. Learn it quickly.

Fiona hesitated, anger mixed with understanding. There was no arguing with that logic.

— You may proceed to the next test! — Aurion declared, dismissing the teams.

Kay's team led the way. Kay glanced at Mira on the way, her eyes assessing.

"Hey, Mira, you had a chance to explain to Sarah, why didn't you say anything?" he asked.

Mira looked away, clearly uncomfortable.

"I... I didn't..." Mira began, but Kay interrupted her.

"Don't be afraid to give your opinion, right or wrong. Whether they follow it or not is up to them. Whether it works or not is up to everyone who accepts it. Just tell your point of view," he said, his tone calm but authoritative.

Mira took a deep breath, nodding.

"Okay... I get it," she replied, still thoughtful.

Kay smiled, a playful glint in her eyes.

"Good job. But if you had lost, I would have doubled your training," he teased.

"Not that!" Mira said, smiling, relaxing a little. It was exactly the kind of comment she needed to feel more at ease.

Next Test - Waiting Room

The team arrived at the waiting room for the next test. Everyone was tired, but the spirit of victory was present.

Raven approached with Kratos and Slayer at her side. She looked at Kay's group, surprised.

"They're here already? Why don't you look tired?" Raven exclaimed, frowning.

Kratos looked at Kay and laughed.

"Kay looks done for!" he said, pointing.

Mira laughed along, shaking her head.

"He's just like that, it's going to be a lot of work to deal with him when he's like this!" she said.

"We prepared everything in advance, but we got machines for a hundred people. Fifty people will take the test later. Start coming in!" Aurion said, calling the participants.

"Which team won the test?" Raven asked, approaching.

"Didn't you hear? It was ours!" — Viviane exclaimed, with a victorious smile.

“Really?” — Raven’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Yes!” — the team members confirmed excitedly.

Fiona appeared soon after, her face serious.

“They won in a cowardly way, but a victory is a victory,” Fiona said, with a look of disdain.

“What do you mean by that?!” Kratos exclaimed, frowning.

Mira intervened, trying to calm things down.

“It’s just that Kay came up with a plan…”

Mira quickly explained the strategy used to win the test. When she finished, Raven couldn’t hide her frustration. She quickly advanced and grabbed Kay by the collar of his shirt, her eyes burning with rage.

“You bastard!” she shouted.

“Wait! It was a decision we made as a team!” Thais intervened, trying to push them away.

Raven let go of Kay, still irritated.

— I didn't make that decision! — Raven said, exasperated.

Kratos approached, placing a hand on Raven's shoulder.

— Calm down. We came out ahead, so we have no right to complain — he said, trying to bring her back to reason.

Slayer also stepped forward, his voice calm and firm.

— Any tactic that leads to the completion of the mission is valid, as long as there is no betrayal among the team — he declared.

Raven glanced at Slayer, surprised by his words.

— It's expected from an assassin... but coming from Kratos it's new. I thought he would be furious... — Raven thought, looking at Kratos.

However, when she looked at him again, she saw something that made her heart tighten. Kratos was clearly trying to remain calm, but his face was red and the veins in his neck were throbbing.

— He really is angry! — Raven thought, swallowing hard.

Dan, hiding behind her brother San, looked at Kratos with wide eyes.

"He scares me..." Dan whispered, barely containing himself.

"Mira!" Kay said, discouraged, looking at her companion.

Mira sighed, already foreseeing what was coming.