KRAKOOM!

The sound was deafening in the enclosed space. The stone spear, easily the size of a car, broke loose from the ceiling with an ominous crack. But the Chieftain hadn't aimed for me or Skylar – that would have been too straightforward.

No, the stalactite was plummeting directly toward the entrance we'd created – directly toward Jacob, who stood frozen in the opening like a deer in headlights, his skinny frame visibly trembling, mouth open in a silent scream of terror.

"Ten seconds remaining," VEGA announced, now definitely sounding entertained.

Time seemed to slow, the world narrowing to crystal clarity as my mind calculated the situation with cold, ruthless efficiency. The Chieftain had exposed its back with that swing. One clean [SEVER] to its neck would end this. Mission complete. Success. My status would rise, my rank would improve, and we'd all walk away with a perfect score.

But Jacob would die.

Jacob Williams. The anxiety-riddled mess of a kid who'd known exactly how many times the written portion of the entrance exam had been used as an elimination round over the past twenty years (seventeen times, with a 42% failure rate). The zero-combat-potential liability who'd nevertheless spotted every trap before we triggered it, who'd warned Juan seconds before the paralysis dart was fired, who'd calculated our optimal path through the cavern with terrifying accuracy despite his stuttering and sweating.

Logic dictated I take the kill shot. Jacob was a support asset at best, a liability at worst. Replaceable. Expendable. A pawn to be sacrificed for a strategic advantage.

My mother's voice echoed in my head: Sometimes the kindest thing you can do is the hardest thing. One of her many platitudes that I'd always dismissed as sentimental garbage.

Fuck logic. Fuck the optimal play.

I planted my feet firmly on the stone floor, feeling power surge through my body like never before, hot and electric. For the first time, I raised both hands simultaneously, feeling my energy split between them, stretching thin but not breaking.

My left hand slashed horizontally toward the Chieftain. "[SEVER]!"

An invisible blade of force, wider and more potent than any I'd unleashed before, screamed through the air with enough pressure to create a visible distortion. The Chieftain's head didn't just detach – it slid cleanly from its shoulders, dissolving into blue pixels before it hit the ground, its body following a moment later in a cascade of digital disintegration.

At the same time, my right hand slashed upward at the falling stalactite. "[SEVER]!"

The second force blade struck the massive rock in mid-air. It wasn't enough to stop it completely – I wasn't that powerful yet – but the stone cracked with a sound like thunder, fragmenting into dozens of smaller pieces that rained down around Jacob without striking him directly. Pebbles and dust showered over him instead of the killing blow the Chieftain had intended.

The effort of the dual cast drained me instantly, like someone had opened a tap and let all my energy flow out. My vision swam, darkness creeping at the edges like hungry shadows. I stumbled, nearly falling to one knee, catching myself on a nearby rock formation to stay upright. Every muscle in my body screamed in protest, a bone-deep exhaustion washing over me in waves.

"Objective complete," VEGA announced, her voice reverberating through the chamber. "Time remaining: five seconds. Well done... unexpectedly well done."

My HUD flashed with completion stats, the holographic display nearly blinding in the dim cave: Combat Efficiency: 95%. Tactical Acumen: 100%. Appeal Score: 100%. Team Leadership: 97%.

The numbers shouldn't have mattered to me – they were meaningless metrics in a rigged game – but I couldn't deny the flush of satisfaction that rolled through me.

The cave, the goblins, everything around us dissolved into shimmering blue pixels, digital reality unraveling like a sweater with a pulled thread. Within seconds, we found ourselves standing in a stark white hexagonal room, the simulation completely gone. Juan was stirring on the floor, the paralysis finally wearing off, his limbs twitching as sensation returned.

Raphael stood in the entranceway, breathing hard, his chest heaving, glaring at me with a mixture of anger and grudging respect that he'd probably rather die than admit.

Jacob was on his knees, hyperventilating, his glasses askew, clutching his datapad so tightly his knuckles had gone white. His eyes were wide behind those thick lenses, darting back and forth as if he still expected the stalactite to materialize and crush him.

Skylar stood off to one side, her knives already sheathed. Her face betrayed nothing, but her eyes watched me with an unreadable expression of intense curiosity, her head tilted slightly as if trying to solve a particularly complex puzzle.

I ignored them all and walked over to Soomin, who lay unconscious on the floor where she'd fallen. Her chest rose and fell in shallow breaths, her face peaceful despite the ordeal her body had just endured. I knelt and scooped her up into my arms, one arm under her knees, the other supporting her back. Her body was limp, surprisingly light despite her curves. My hand "accidentally" landed squarely on her ass.

Well now. That's... soft.

Softer than Natalia's. Natalia is firm, athletic. But this... this is like a pillow. A perfect, divine pillow made of flesh and warmth. I gave it a slight, testing squeeze, feeling the flesh yield under my fingers.

Her eyes fluttered open, confusion swimming in those blue depths as she looked up at me, her gaze gradually focusing. "D-did we... win?" she whispered, her voice weak and breathless, barely audible even with her face inches from mine.

"Mmmph..." A soft, breathy moan escaped her lips as my fingers pressed into her generous flesh. Her face turned scarlet, spreading down her neck and disappearing beneath her collar, but she was too exhausted to protest or pull away. Her body remained limp in my arms, completely at my mercy.

"Did I... do good?" she asked, searching my face with those innocent blue eyes. I could see a desperate need for approval there, a hunger for validation that was almost as strong as her physical fatigue.

"You did great," I said, making sure my voice held just the right amount of warmth and admiration. "We won because of you. That was impressive."

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