Alex was hurled forward after being yanked out of the black circle that had been pulling him in just moments before, all because of a girl whose strength was so astonishing, especially coming from such a small body, that he could hardly believe it. The force sent him tumbling across the muddy, grassy ground, rolling over and over until his back finally slammed into a tree and he came to a stop.
He groaned as he tried to lift himself up, his whole body aching from rolling across the ground. He had tumbled over and over, hitting thick roots that jutted everywhere and only made things worse, each one tossing his body slightly into the air so it felt like the roots were bumps placed just to punish him.
Thankfully, he was wearing armor, which saved him from any serious injuries, but his whole body still throbbed with pain despite the protection, and even the armor's interior bruised him as he was tossed about on the ground.
Alex tried to stand up, but his head spun in circles, and he lost his footing again.
Before he could fall, the girl who had rescued him from the black circle caught him and supported him, steadying him so he would not collapse.
She even produced a water bottle from her dimensional space, and he had no idea where she got it from. She pressed the tip of the bottle to his lips without asking, and he drank it without protest, spilling half of it over his armor.
There was less than half a bottle of water left, and he drank it all at once, spilling much of it down his suit. He had not drunk any water since arriving, and after running so long, he was thirsty. Extremely thirsty, and his throat felt parched and lifeless.
But with his mind focused on running and staying away from the black hole, he had hardly noticed his thirst because his primal instinct to survive had taken over, but the moment a drop of water touched his mouth, all the thirst he had ignored came rushing back, and even after finishing every last drop in the bottle, he still felt unsatisfied.
"It's empty now. How much do you want to lick it?" the purple-haired girl asked, raising her right brow as she watched him, her stare so intense it felt like she was searching for something hidden deep inside him.
Alex did not like the way she stared at him, so he shoved her aside and stumbled backward, barely keeping himself upright as he grabbed hold of a tree to steady himself.
"Who are you? Why did you save me?" Alex asked. He turned to look for his sword, which he had stuck in the ground earlier, but when he looked to where it should have been, he saw only empty earth. He thought the black space must have swallowed it, but the purple-haired girl suddenly drew the sword from her own dimensional space and pointed its tip at him.
"Is this what you're looking for?" she asked.
Alex glanced warily at the black circle creeping closer, its pull so strong that even from this distance, he could feel it trying to drag him in.
Alex did not answer and simply dashed forward. Whoever the girl was and whatever her reasons were did not matter right now; he had no weapon for close combat. All he carried were daggers which he was not so confident about since his primary weapon was a sword but the sword was currently with her.
"You're running away without even thanking me. Don't you know it's basic courtesy to thank someone who helps you?" the girl said, pouting as she kept pace beside him, weaving in and out between the trees so quickly she seemed to blur and reappear at his side.
He knew nothing about her except that she was incredibly strong, so strong that if she had wanted to kill him, she easily could have already. Since she had not, it meant she wanted something from him, or maybe she was the kind of person who enjoyed torture and wanted to kill him slowly instead of giving him a quick death, and saving him was just a way to increase her kill count.
But why had she said "found you" when she grabbed him? Alex remembered her words as she was pulling him out. Had she been searching for him? If so, why? He had no answers, and the uncertainty made him anxious and tense.
He nearly tripped over the thick roots of a tree and only managed to jump clear at the last second, barely avoiding another fall.
Alex forced the thoughts out of his mind and glanced left to see the girl keeping pace with him so effortlessly that it was clear she could run much faster if she chose to, but for some reason she stayed by his side.
Alex felt a knot in his stomach watching how easily the girl leapt over the roots and kept up with him. The things that put him in danger or made him struggle meant nothing to her, and probably nothing to the other examinees either.
"Who are you? Why did you help me?" Alex asked, unable to keep his mind off the questions that had been crowding his mind, no matter how hard he tried to ignore them.
He wanted to know who she was, and if she was planning to torture him to death, he would rather just jump into the black circle that followed behind them, which now seemed to be slowing, its voracious force no longer eating up the land and trees at the same speed as before.
"I'm Lara Chronveil. Don't you know me?" she said, giving him a curious look as she pressed her index finger to her chin and tilted her head toward him.
***
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