The lady was pressed hard as Aren came in with a punch. She blocked the attack and skidded back a few feet. When she looked up, the shadow wolves were already lunging at her.

She roared and swung her sword in a wide circular arc, the blade ripping through the shadows instantly. But a few still got through. One lunged at her lower leg. Despite her armor, it managed to coil around and yank hard, flipping her off balance. She slammed toward the ground, but planted her hand at the last second, stopping herself from falling completely. Pushing off the floor, she twisted and drove a kick straight into the wolf's head, shattering it into shadows.

But those few moments were all Aren needed.

He closed the distance and unleashed a close-range Claw Strike. She barely dodged, but the attack still slammed into her chest. The claws dug deep into her armor, failing to reach her body but carrying enough force to send her flying. She crashed into the ground, rolled several times, and finally came to a stop.

She lifted her head, eyes burning with fury.

She was no ordinary Awakened. She was an S-tier warrior, one who had awakened two abilities: a boost to strength and a boost to speed. She was not supposed to be stopped in physical combat.

If only she knew that Aren wasn't even going all out.

If only she knew he still had unassigned stat points, enough to make him far stronger than he already was.

If she had known that, she would have exploded on the spot.

She stared at Aren, disbelief, anger, and hatred twisting together in her expression. But stubbornness was what had brought her this far. Stubbornness was what made everyone in her group follow her orders without question.

She was defiant by nature.

And she had no intention of backing down.

She pushed herself back to her feet.

The archer who had leaped out of the cave landed behind her.

"Lady Sophia!" he called out.

She turned sharply and glared at him. "What are you doing down here? You were supposed to stay up there. You're no use in the middle of a battle."

After all, he was meant to be their support—raining powerful arrows from above. From the moment they had entered the trials, she had noticed him and recognized his unique talent. That was why she had done everything she could to keep him alive. His ability with the bow was rare—and terrifyingly powerful.

He shook his head slowly. "I'm not going to let him harm you anymore, Lady Sophia." His voice carried defiance as he spoke against her orders. He wanted to protect her, even if it cost him his life.

She clicked her tongue and scanned the battlefield. Everyone else was fully engaged in their own fights. No one would sneak up on him.

"Fine," she said sharply. "Attack from range and keep me covered."

With that, she lunged forward.

Aren, who had been watching calmly, raised a brow. "you brought backup?" he muttered. "Doesn't matter."

He launched forward, leaping into the air and unleashing another Claw Strike. She sliced through it cleanly, but his follow-up punch came crashing down. She parried it, her sword swinging to the side as his arm recoiled. They clashed again, his punch, her slash.

His fist, wrapped in the wolf's guard, struck the edge of her blade.

The shockwave shook the air.

For a brief moment, the two of them stared at each other before leaping backward at the same time.

The archer immediately nocked an arrow and fired.

Instantly, the lightning wolf unleashed a breath of lightning. It collided with the arrow midair, detonating in a massive explosion.

Aren burst through the blast, charging straight at her.

But Lady Sophia was ready. She raised her sword and blocked his attack. Before she could counter, however, he had already moved, slipping behind her and striking toward her exposed back.

The boy reacted instantly.

He fired a quick arrow, not as powerful as the others, but far faster.

Aren sensed it and leaped backward just in time. The arrow streaked past him, slamming into the ground and carving out a small crater.

He turned his gaze toward the archer.

'He's going to be a problem.'

Without hesitation, Aren summoned his shadow ants. Dozens of them burst forth and swarmed toward the boy.

Lady Sophia frowned. "Even more summons…" she muttered.

She had barely managed to deal with the wolves, the lightning wolf was still attacking from a distance, and now he had added shadow ants into the mix.

Her teeth clenched. "Run! Get away from them!" she shouted.

The boy obeyed instantly, sprinting away, but the ants were fast, and there were too many. They began closing the distance rapidly.

Aren tilted his head. "What are you going to do?" he asked calmly. "Save him, save yourself… or go for the crystal."

He raised three fingers. "Three options."

Dropped two fingers. "You can only pick one."

Lady Sophia's jaw tightened.

This operation had fallen apart the moment Aren appeared. If he hadn't been here, she would have shattered the crystal already, regardless of how strong his team was.

She looked toward the boy in the distance.

Was she really going to abandon him now?

The boy seemed to sense her hesitation. "Don't worry, Lady Sophia!" he yelled. "I'll handle myself!"

He fired an arrow at the ground in front of him. It exploded, scattering several shadow ants, but there were still far too many.

Her teeth clenched hard.

She turned away.

She needed to finish the mission.

Lady Sophia locked her eyes on Aren and bolted toward the crystal.

She went all out.

Her speed skyrocketed. She moved so fast that when the lightning wolf fired a blast in her direction, she had already passed the spot. She leaped into the air, evading it completely, and landed hard, eyes fixed on the crystal ahead.

Behind her, the shadow wolves were summoned and gave chase at full speed.

Aren watched her run.

There was no way he could catch her like this.

He smiled.

"System," he said calmly, "add four points to Speed and four points to Constitution."

Power surged through his body instantly.

With the enhancement from the insect armor boosting his physical attributes even further, Aren exploded forward.

He closed the distance in a heartbeat.

Just as she was about to reach the crystal, he dove into her, tackling her to the ground.

They rolled violently. He kicked off her and sprang back to his feet as she slammed into the floor. She rolled again and forced herself up, staring at him in disbelief.

He walked toward her.

Her armor was badly dented. Her breathing was ragged. She had pushed herself to the limit, her soul energy was nearly depleted. Her grip on her sword was loose, her strength fading.

Aren noticed.

"Are you giving up?" he asked.

But the defiance in her eyes hadn't faded.

He raised his hand, ready to strike the final blow—

—when a powerful arrow tore through the air.

Aren sensed it at the last moment. He turned sharply, planted his feet, and raised his wolf guard. The arrow was deflected upward, slamming into the ceiling and exploding.

The archer saw his attack fail, even as the shadow ants tore into his body, there was a smile on his face.

In that instant—

Lady Sophia moved.

She lunged forward, thrusting her sword straight toward Aren.

STAB!

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