CHAPTER 247: CHAPTER 247

I darted forward, my dagger flashing as I closed in on the queen’s guards. The first Viperath lunged, its fangs bared, but I sidestepped smoothly, slicing through its neck in one fluid motion. The creature hissed its last, collapsing in a heap. The others reacted instantly, coiling and striking in a frenzy, their scales glinting under the dim cave light.

Ezekiel, meanwhile, was holding his own against the main horde. His sword swung in wide arcs, cleaving through the snakes that swarmed him like a living tide. "There are too many!" he grunted, dodging a bite that nearly grazed his leg. He stomped on one, crushing its head, but another slithered up his back, forcing him to spin and slash it away. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he kept them at bay, his movements precise but strained.

I pressed on, weaving between the guards. The queen remained coiled, her eyes glowing with predatory malice, but she hadn’t moved yet—waiting for an opening. I feinted left, drawing two guards toward me, then rolled right, stabbing one in the flank. It writhed, venom spraying harmlessly into the air. "Keep them off me!" I yelled to Ezekiel, who was now backed against a rocky outcrop, his sword a blur.

He roared back, "Working on it!" and unleashed a burst of magic energy, sending a shockwave that scattered a cluster of snakes, buying him a second to breathe. But the horde regrouped fast, hissing louder, their numbers overwhelming.

Spotting my chance, I leaped onto a boulder for leverage and hurled my dagger straight at the queen’s head. It struck true, embedding deep, but the monster only roared in fury, her body thrashing. The guards turned on me now, abandoning Ezekiel to protect their leader.

As the guards lunged, I conjured my bow in a flash of golden energy, nocking an arrow infused with mana. The queen reared up, her massive form blocking the path, but I aimed true. The arrow whistled through the air, striking her dead center in the head. She let out a final, guttural hiss before collapsing, her body going limp as the guards faltered, their protective frenzy crumbling.

Ezekiel, catching his breath, slashed through the last of the minions swarming him. "Nice shot!" he panted, wiping sweat from his brow as he finished off the remaining Viperath.

I approached him. "Did you get bitten?" His clothes were disheveled, and his hair was drenched with sweat.

"I think so..." he said, showing me his leg.

I examined it closely, then moved toward a Viperath that was still writhing on the ground. I caught it swiftly, gouged out one of its eyes, ground it to powder, and mixed it with water from my bottle. Then I handed it to him.

"What’s this?" he asked, eyeing it suspiciously.

"Antidote. Drink it before time’s up," I said firmly.

He held the bottle but hesitated. "What’s in it?"

If I told him the truth, he’d definitely refuse. I glanced at my smartwatch and started counting down. "Ten, nine, eight, seven—"

His eyes widened in panic, and he quickly downed the whole thing.

Suddenly, a voice boomed from the speaker phone overhead. "Great teamwork! Team Remillia and Ezekiel, you’re the first team to finish—perfect score! You can come out now!" The instructor sounded genuinely impressed.

Ezekiel, who was sitting there exhausted, shot up with a grin and beamed at me. "Whoo! You heard that?! Hahaha!"

I just looked at him, smiling quietly.

~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~ ~~~

8 P.M.

I was out in an abandoned park with Macaron and Glacier, putting them through their paces to sharpen their defense skills. Normally, I’d have them come at me, but today, I flipped the script—I was the one chasing them, pushing their limits to see how they’d react under pressure.

Macaron darted ahead, his form weaving through the overgrown bushes like a shadow, his eyes sharp and alert. Glacier lumbered behind, his icy fur glinting in the fading sunlight, huffing as he tried to keep up.

I sprinted after them, my boots crunching on the cracked pavement, feinting left and right to test their evasion. "Come on, don’t make it easy!" I called out, grinning as Macaron skidded to a halt and spun around, baring his tiny beak in defiance.

Glacier, not one for speed, planted his feet and let out a low growl, summoning a thin layer of frost around him as a shield. I lunged forward, pretending to swipe, and he countered by blasting a puff of cold air that chilled the air between us. Macaron leaped in, nipping at my ankles to distract, forcing me to pivot and dodge. They were getting better—more coordinated, less panicked. But I chased them toward a rusty playground set, where the swings creaked ominously in the wind.

"Defend yourselves!" I shouted, closing in.

Macaron zipped up a slide, Glacier following with a determined stomp. They were learning to use the terrain, turning the park’s decay into an advantage.

Just as they were about to ambush me, my phone rang from the bench where I’d left my things. We all froze—me staring at them, not moving an inch, while they glared back with those intense, predatory eyes.

"Good work today. Let’s take a break," I said with a smile, tossing their favorite snacks into the air.

A chunk of lamb meat for Glacier, who leaped high and caught it mid-air with a satisfied chomp. A juicy steak for Macaron, who swooped through the air and landed on a nearby tree branch to devour it.

I headed toward the bench, only to see my group chat endlessly pinging on my phone.

"Hey! Why didn’t you tell us what was going on?" Christian texted.

"You witch! You could have just told us!" Rex snapped back.

"We were planning to come crashing into your room like we always do, but we didn’t expect to see someone else in there," Whitney added.

"Since you haven’t changed your room password, Rex, I just used it like always. When we got inside, we saw a student walking around completely naked," Angela explained.

"Why didn’t you tell us you’re moving out instead of staying here in our dorms?" Cypher asked.

"They almost beat that guy to a pulp, thinking he was intruding into your room, witch," Edge said.

My head throbbed as I read through their messages. Why did they have to find out this early?

"Did you only see that?" Christian asked.

"No explanation?" Angela inquired.

"Did you leave your room because we’re bothering you too much?" Cypher wondered.

"Wow... you’re so heartless, witch," Rex commented.

’Should I reply to them or not?’ I sighed, thinking that I would also meet them again tomorrow. I knew I should be slowly detaching myself from them, but it was hard, given all the time we’d spent together.

In the end, I decided to respond. I typed, "I’m sorry for not telling you guys earlier. It just slipped my mind."

A cold wave of loneliness washed over me. Goosebumps prickled my skin, and my knees shook. I gazed up at the night sky with forlorn eyes. The darkness felt like it was swallowing me whole. Up above, there were no stars, no moon, no light—just emptiness.

A moment passed, and my phone lit up with countless notifications.

"We even bought snacks. What should we do with these now?" Rex asked.

"Do you think a simple sorry will fix this?" Whitney wondered.

"What about the psychological damage we suffered seeing a naked guy walking around?" Edge added.

"Remi, is something bothering you?" Cypher messaged.

"Where’s your location? We want to visit you on the weekend," Angela inquired.

"And what about our study session?" Christian asked.

Study session.

They call it a study session, but it’s never really about studying. Instead, they just lounge around in my room, pestering me to no end. Looking back at those memories, I couldn’t help but smile at how they kept whining—sometimes, they act like kids.

"Don’t worry," I typed, "we’ll still have our study session. But it will be in someone else’s room. So, pick who we’re wrecking the room of next time."

Almost instantly, they burst into a heated bickering, arguing about who to pin on someone else’s room—just not theirs. A moment later, Angela’s name popped up on my screen. I froze. Ever since that ’incident,’ I’ve been avoiding her, feeling guilty every time I think about it.

But even with that, I still pressed the call button and answered.

"Hey, witch," Angela greeted softly.

"Gela..." I blurted out unconsciously, my mind flooded with Raphael’s words.

"When I’m gone... please call my little sister Gela... That brat loves it when she gets to hear her name like that..." His voice echoed in my mind.

There was a pause on the other end of the line, then I heard her sniff. "You witch... only my brother gets to call me that..."

"Why did you call?" I asked instead, guilt creeping steadily into my chest.

"Let me know where you’re going next time," she replied, her tone a bit softer, which made my brow furrow.

"What if I don’t want to tell you?" I challenged, feeling a mix of defiance and dread.

"Do you wanna die?" she snapped angrily, then fell silent. After a beat, she added, "I’ve been short-tempered lately, but please don’t leave us... me so suddenly. You were the only one close to my brother before he died."

Her words hit me hard, deepening my guilt until I wanted to disappear. If I stayed by her side, I knew I would only remind her more of her brother’s loss.