[Scarlett's POV]
Piers and I were at the location where Raul had hidden our crystals. He had buried them beneath a tree shaped like the letter 'K' near the Eagle Clan's basecamp.
"Did you find them?" I asked Piers, who was still busy digging.
"Yes... I can see the red crystal and several others of different colors," Piers replied as he began unearthing them.
Currently, the island seemed incredibly quiet. It appeared their hunt for Raul was still not over. What exactly was making it so difficult for them to defeat just one person?
"Hm... We have a total of 190 points by combining the Captain's crystals with the ones we gathered yesterday," Piers said after he finished counting.
"Is that so?"
I figured these points would be enough to secure our position and advance to the next stage.
Attention... Attention... The first stage of the exam has concluded. Your artifacts will now activate to transport you back to the main ship.
I heard Master Erina's voice ringing out. It seemed the exam was finally over.
"Do you think that man is alright?" I asked Piers.
"Huh? Why are you asking about the Captain? Didn't you two have a massive argument earlier?" Piers asked back, looking confused.
"No, it's nothing... I just have something I want to ask him."
Shortly after, a magic circle appeared, encircling our bodies. My vision began to fade to black, followed by a surge of blue light surrounding me. When I opened my eyes, I found myself back on the main ship, anchored just off the island.
***
[3rd Person POV]
In the underground mine, specifically after Ariel fired her unique magic at Raul—causing his elimination—everyone remaining was left speechless. Elena, Brian, and Valeria stared at Ariel in disbelief.
It wasn't just because she had defeated Raul, but because Ariel had never used an AoE-type spell in her entire life. Yet here she was—the innocent, kind-hearted Ariel who loathed violence—using magic to strike someone down.
"Ariel! You did it! You defeated that bastard!" Brian shouted as he rushed toward her.
However, Ariel's expression showed neither joy nor sadness. She looked entirely indifferent. Brian reached out to take Ariel's hand, but the platinum-haired woman pulled away from his reach.
"Ariel... what's wrong?" Brian asked, visibly confused.
"It's nothing, Brian," Ariel answered normally. "Let me heal your wounds and the others'."
Brian remained silent, watching Ariel's response. Previously, Ariel never minded physical contact with him. Now, however, Brian felt a completely different aura emanating from her.
After healing Brian, Valeria, and Elena, they began discussing their next move.
"Emm... the exam ends today, right?" Brian asked.
"Yes... but we won't get first place because we gave half our crystals to pay the Eagle Clan to hunt that pervert," Valeria replied, looking slightly annoyed at the realization.
"The important thing is that we achieved our goal, right?" Elena said, staying positive. "In the end, we defeated Raul and avenged our fallen comrades."
Hearing Elena's words, they looked satisfied. Their struggle over the last three days had not been in vain.
Attention to all remaining students: The first stage of the exam is over. You will now be teleported back to the main ship.
"That's Master Erina's voice."
"It's finally over..." Valeria sighed, sounding exhausted.
Ariel remained silent, seemingly lost in thought. Their bodies were soon surrounded by magic circles. Before long, they vanished completely, darkness filling their vision.
When they opened their eyes, the four of them had returned to the main ship. Other students were lined up, waiting for their arrival.
"Eh? What's going on?" Ariel asked, startled by the crowd in front of her.
"I don't know," Elena said, equally confused. "Why are you all gathered here?"
The crowd of students began to smile.
"What are we doing? Celebrating your success in taking down that rotten noble, of course!" one of them shouted.
"Eh? How did you know?" Ariel asked in surprise.
"If I'm not mistaken, the students here can see the artifact signals of everyone still alive on the island," Valeria said, pointing to a large stone not far from the crowd.
"I see..." Ariel murmured.
The students then invited them to disembark and relax on the beach. The instructors allowed them to rest and play on the island for two days before departing for the second stage of the exam.
"To Ariel, who defeated that noble—Cheers!"
"Cheers!"
They held a party, lighting a bonfire and playing in the water. Ariel was surrounded by her friends; she was the star of the day for finishing Raul off with her magic.
On the other side, a black-haired man watched Ariel from a distance in silence. The corners of his lips curled slightly, as if he were proud of someone.
Shortly after, the instructors announced the final point rankings for the completed first stage.
1st Place: Raul's Team (190 points)
2nd Place: Eric's Team (140 points)
3rd Place: Taz, Viera, and Tianna's Team (120 points)
...
40th Place: Ariel, Brian, and Valeria's Team (20 points)
The low ranking of Brian's team was due to their points being split with members who were eliminated early. Nevertheless, they still qualified for the second stage.
"In the end, he still took first place," Valeria said, her voice laced with disappointment.
"Tch, who cares? What matters is that we taught him a lesson, right?" Geralt said, unbothered that his team didn't make the top ten.
"Geralt is right! A person's strength isn't judged by how many points they get!" Brian added.
Valeria looked at the two men with irritation, but she was too tired to lecture them this time.
"Well... we'd better prepare ourselves for the next exam," Ariel said with a smile.
the three of them nodded in agreement. There were still two stages left before the survival exam was over.
The Holy City of Notradame — Headquarters of the Church of Goddess Diana
Four Cardinals were walking through the hall of the Grand Cathedral. They were discussing potential candidates for the position of Saint to replace Saint Josephina, who had passed away six months ago.
"Markus, have you found our four Saint candidates yet?" asked a Cardinal named Nicholas.
"My team has just found several suitable candidates from various lands," Cardinal Markus replied, pulling a slip of paper from his pocket. "There are two candidates in the Empire, one in the Kingdom of Weimar, and the final one is in the Slavic Tsardom."
"We must conduct the Saint Selection Trial immediately so we can refocus on eradicating the Heretics," said a bald Cardinal named Zeno.
The Heretics were groups or organizations that opposed the teachings of Goddess Diana. Their existence threatened the Church's influence if left to roam freely.
"We just lost a Holy Knight after a battle with one of The Masquerade," said a large-framed Cardinal named Carlos.
Last month, one of the seven Holy Knights fought a member of The Masquerade, resulting in both dying in their duel. The Cardinals were also preparing to find a suitable replacement for the vacancy among the Holy Knights.
Cardinal Markus then handed the paper to Cardinal Nicholas so he could study the details of the Saint candidates.
"Rose de Bagartina, Maria di Canossa, Agatha von Freidburg, Anastasya Romanova."
However, among the four names read by Cardinal Nicholas, Ariel's name was nowhere to be found. This indicated that Raul had once again shifted the future of the world away from its original path in the game.
***
In a cave within the territory of the Republic of Venetia, six mysterious figures wearing masks similar to the one worn by Raul were gathered to discuss something.
"Keeper, have you found a replacement to fill the position of the new The Fool?" asked one of them.
"Not yet, Puppeteer. However, I have detected a Masquerade Mask being worn somewhere within the territory of the Empire," The Keeper answered.
They were one of the Heretic groups mentioned earlier by the Cardinals. This time, they were discussing a successor for The Fool, who had recently died at the hands of a Holy Knight.
"In that case, the next time he puts on that mask, will you be able to determine exactly where the wearer is, Keeper?" asked a woman wearing a mask that covered only her eyes and nose.
"You are correct, Dancer. When that time comes, we will recruit him into our group," The Keeper said. "If he refuses, we will kill him to retrieve the mask he possesses."
Who exactly were these six people? What was their objective? Why did the Church of Goddess Diana want to eradicate them? And what would happen next to Raul—the heir to The Fool's Mask they were just discussing?