[[3rd PoV]
The day has entered night, but none of the participants have yet obtained the crystal located in the center point of this forest. They are still having difficulty facing the endless onslaught of monsters.
At the western edge of the forest, a female mage is seen running from the pursuit of 5 wolf monsters.
Her body is covered in cold sweat, her breath is panting, and her vision is starting to blur. She has used all the mana she had while fighting the monsters that endlessly hunt her.
"Hah ... Hah ... Please ... Get me out of this forest ... "
Right now, she is not running towards the center point of the forest but rather back to the barrier where she entered this forest.
Looking behind her, she sees the five wolves still chasing her while showing their teeth, sharp as knives.
"I ... I don't want to die here ... "
Not long after, the woman sees a reddish light at the edge of her vision. An instructor is seen standing behind the barrier enclosing this forest.
"Instructor! Open this barrier, please!" shouted the woman.
The Instructor realizes someone is approaching from a distance, but he just stays silent without changing his expression at all.
"Please, Instructor, let me out of here!" screamed the woman while pounding on the barrier blocking her from getting out. "Please! There are so many monsters chasing me behind! I have run out of mana and can no longer fight!"
Hearing the desperate words of his student, the Instructor does not budge. His face is flat as if he sees nothing in front of him.
· Woof! Woof! Woof!
Hearing the sounds of the wolves chasing her, the woman pounds on the barrier even harder.
"INSTRUCTOR, PLEASE! I DON'T WANT TO DIE, PLEASE ... PLEASE!"
Tears begin to wet the woman's cheeks; she regrets not withdrawing when offered by the Instructor earlier.
"Aaghhhh! My leg! My leg! Instructor, these monsters are going to eat me alive!" screamed the woman in pain as one of the wolves started biting her leg.
The woman falls; she tries to beat the wolves biting her leg.
"Go away, you ugly monsters! Die!" The woman tries to fight back, but it is useless; her body is too weak to hurt those wolves.
The woman's body is then dragged away from the barrier by the wolves; she tries to resist by holding onto rocks or clawing at the ground so she is not carried into the forest.
"Instructor! Please, I don't want to die.... Hics.... Hics...."
But unfortunately, her hope is dashed when she sees the Instructor turn his face away from her.
"Agghhh! It hurts, it hurts, it hurts!"
The wolves begin to eat the woman's flesh; she is still alive as the five wolves start devouring her entrails, which begin to spill out onto the ground.
"Agghhh! Aghhhh! Aghhh! Help!"
Not long after, what remains of the woman's body is only bones with a little flesh still attached. Some of the wolves even lick the remaining flesh still stuck there.
The Instructor who witnessed this event then sighs.
"This is what happens when you cannot distinguish between luck and ability," murmured the Instructor. "In the first and second stages, you might get lucky to have great companions who help you and pass that exam. However, here you can only rely on yourself without help from others."
Many participants think that they passed through to this third stage purely because of their strength and ability. However, if you look at how the exams have gone, the participants have passed, no more and no less, because they were in groups.
If it were not for Brian, Valeria, Elena, and other strong students holding back the waves of Neracion attacks during the second stage exam, it is certain that these participants would have fallen and not passed to the next stage. Not to mention Raul, who killed the real Neracion so that monster could be defeated quickly before they were all massacred.
It is true that most of these participants passed only because of luck, and they mistakenly think that they passed because of their own abilities.
"Torun."
Hearing his name called, the Instructor turns around. He then sees a female mage walking towards him.
"What is it, Erina?"
"I detected an outsider penetrating our barrier," revealed Erina to Torun.
"What? How is that possible? How many have infiltrated inside?" asked Instructor Torun, looking surprised.
"Only one person; he entered from the northern part of the barrier," answered Erina.
"Alright, let's hurry and find that intruder!"
The two then enter the forest after opening the red barrier. Their goal now is to immediately eliminate the Intruder before he makes contact with the participants.
.
.
.
A few minutes ago ...
Under the light of the full moon, the shadows of four people are clearly seen standing in front of the red barrier surrounding this Monster Forest.
The four assassins have arrived in front of the northern part of the barrier; their mage is seen carrying a jug that seems to be an artifact.
"Alright, are you ready?" asked the Mage, who is seen holding the jug. "We will trick those Instructors into thinking that only one person is entering the barrier."
"Yes, after that, Foxy will go in a different direction from us to take care of those instructors," said Marlin—the Sword-wielding Assassin.
"Alright, let's do this, Zed," said Ape to the Mage.
The Mage begins to chant a spell. Not long after, a rune appears on the jug. The assassins, other than the Mage, are then sucked into the jug.
After putting all his companions into the jug, the Mage then opens the red barrier surrounding the forest. He can do this because he is an experienced mage.
He then enters the forest while carrying the jug before the barrier closes again.
The Mage then releases his companions who were inside the jug after performing the Reversal spell.
"Alright, now they will think that only one person has infiltrated this place," said the Mage. "Foxy, do your job of playing hide-and-seek with the Instructors while we search for our mission target."
"Alright, leave it to me," said Foxy.
---
[Ariel PoV]
Hah ... Hah ... Hah ... Why?
Hah ... Why are they chasing me instead of competing?
"Don't run, you damned woman!"
I am being chased by the man who was previously my partner in the second exam. What is my fault that makes him this angry?
"Aghhh!"
My foot trips over a stone, causing my body to fall.
I am already very tired after continuously running from the monster's pursuit this afternoon. When I was about to rest at night, I was suddenly chased by that man along with two of his companions.
"Hahaha! You can't run anymore, you damned woman!" exclaimed the man. "This time, that stupid Brian won't be there to protect you!"
"Wh-why... Are you doing this to me?"
Hearing my words, the man's expression changes.
"Hehehe... Why, you say?" The man laughs evilly. "That's because we have admired your beauty for a long time, Ariel," answered the man.
"We planned to do this during the second stage exam if one of us was on the same team as you," said the man's companion. "However, the large number of monsters at that time always disturbed us from carrying out this plan."
"I-I don't understand what you are talking about," I said to them.
"Well... It's better if you see what we are going to do so you understand quickly," said the man, who started unzipping his pants.
No, no, no... Goddess Diana, I beg you, do not let these people do that to me.
"We will enjoy your body, then kill you and stage it as if a monster had preyed upon you, Ariel," said the man, who started walking closer while taking off his uniform.
No, no, no!
I try to get up and run again, but a hand catches my leg from behind.
"Hihihi ~ Where do you think you're going? There's no way I'd let you escape!" exclaimed the man.
My body trembles at the feeling of his hand touching the skin of my leg. Those dirty hands of his begin to touch my thigh.
If only I still had a lot of mana, I would have restrained these three men with my magic long ago.
"No! Please, get away from me!" I screamed while swatting his hand away.
· Bam!
My head feels dizzy; the man's companion hits my temple hard.
"Don't resist, you idiot! It's better if you enjoy all of this without pain!"
The three of them start forcibly removing my uniform.
Why can humans commit such evil? What do they gain by hurting others like this? I... I have always been surrounded by good people before.
I never imagined there would be so many disgusting people like this out there...
The world is not as beautiful as my mother said...
The three men have already opened their respective pants; I close my eyes, not wanting to see those disgusting things.
Will my life end like this? Dying defiled by their depraved lusts?
· Thud!
I feel something fall onto my chest.
Opening my eyes, I see a severed human head on my chest; its blood flowing out soaks my undershirt.
"Wh-what actually happened!?"
I immediately move that human head. My stomach feels nauseous seeing the sight I just witnessed.
"Wh-who are you!? What do you want!?"
I see the two men who were about to touch me earlier. Their bodies are seen trembling as three mysterious people approach them.
"Sorry for interrupting your game," said one of the men wearing a mage's robe. "But we don't have time to explain."
"Do you see a blonde-haired man named Brian?" asked another mysterious man holding a sword.
"I-I don't know... Please don't—"
The man's words are cut off; the mysterious man cuts off his head after he answered the man's question.
"Aghhh! Let me go! Please, I will pay you any amount!"
The mysterious man's companion is seen gripping the head of the last person who wanted to touch me earlier. He then lifts his body up easily.
"Let go of your hands! My head is going to explode! Aghhhh, it hurts!"
"Answer the question, boy!" said the burly man.
"Guuughhh! I don't know anything about him! Let go of—"
His voice stops; the burly man crushes his head with a strong grip of his hand. Blood gushes out, wetting his hand; remnants of the man's brain are seen falling to the ground.
They killed the three men who were about to touch me like animals. Seeing this brutal sight makes me want to vomit.
"Only one woman left, let's finish this quickly," said the man carrying the sword as he approached me.
My body cannot stop trembling.
Help me, Brian... Someone, please help me...
Why are humans so quick to kill each other? I don't know; I am just an ordinary girl who grew up around the temple. I didn't know the world was full of such cruelty like this...
"Do you know where the blonde-haired boy named Brian is?" asked the man while pointing his sword at me.
Brian...? Why are they looking for him? I don't know; everything is very confusing. What is actually happening in this exam? Why are they killing the students who are taking the exam? Aren't the instructors supposed to be watching this place?
"I don't know..."
Closing my eyes, I can only pray to Goddess Diana to give me a good ending.
I am scared... I am scared... Brian... You promised you would protect me... Brian... Save me... Please... Hics...
"Then, die like the others!"
Brian... Hics...
· Bam!
Hearing the sound of an impact, I open my eyes slowly.
The back of a white-haired man wearing a black mask is seen standing in front of me.
"You... Are the person who saved me that time..."
How can that Masked Man be here?