"What, why…! Eek!"
Elisha fell backward.
'W-What? Why did I fall?'
She scrambled to her knees and looked down. The seemingly solid sand beneath her was swirling into a violent, expanding funnel. It was pulling everything down into the dark depths of the desert. The dreadful name of the trap filled her mind.
"Desert quicksand…!"
She tried to push mana into her legs to jump clear, but the sand was too loose. It absorbed the kinetic force instantly.
"Ah…"
Right beside her, the three unconscious guards were being rapidly sucked toward the center of the quicksand pit.
'No.'
Elisha stopped trying to climb out. She turned around and waded deeper into the sinking sand. She grabbed the nearest guard by his tactical vest and hurled him backward toward the stable edge of the pit. He landed hard in the safe sand.
The other two guards and the cadet were much closer to the center. If she went for them, she wouldn't be able to escape the suction in time.
'Even so!'
