Team Rose had barely finished bandaging their wounds when the announcement echoed across the island:
"Stage Three: Completed by Team Father — Honeymoon Trial cleared."
Silence.
Prince Rose dropped his water bottle 💧.
The elf princess's ears shot straight up.
Their healer's mouth hung open like a broken door.
Prince Rose whispered, voice cracking,
"Impossible… the Honeymoon Bride…?
That spirit rejected challengers for years."
The elf princess trembled.
"She… she didn't reject Aren…?"
Another teammate stammered,
"D-Did he fight her…?
Run…?
Survive somehow…?"
The next announcement chimed, colder than ice:
"Trial cleared via emotional compatibility.Romantic synchronization: 100%.The bride's soul has departed peacefully."
Team Rose went pale.
Prince Rose grabbed his hair.
"ROMANTIC WHAT!?SHE NEVER LET ANYONE NEAR HER!"
The elf princess collapsed to her knees.
"H-He… talked with her… like lovers…?"
The crystal screen shifted to Team Father's camp.
Aren leaned against a tree, exhausted, muttering softly:
"My back hurts…but she talked so gently…held me so softly…I decided…she would be my first crush."
Prince Rose coughed blood 🤯.
"FIRST HE MAKES PROMISES TO A GHOST!?"
The elf princess stared blankly at the sky.
"…Even spirits fall for him…"
Their healer covered her face.
"This isn't a tournament.This is a romance massacre."
An upperclassman whispered,
"He didn't defeat the bride…He healed her heart."
Another added,
"Team Father is napping like it's a picnic 🧺.Team Rose is bleeding like it's war ⚔️."
Prince Rose clenched his fists.
"We trained for years.We fought monsters.We pushed past our limits…"
He pointed at Aren on the screen, calmly feeding the tiny blue horse 🐎.
"…and he clears stages with therapy!?"
The elf princess groaned.
"I knew he was dangerous…but I didn't know he was emotionally lethal…"
A long silence followed.
Then one teammate whispered,
"…I think we lost."
No one argued.
Because deep down, they all knew:
You can't beat someone who wins trials by making spirits fall in love.
🌅 A Village Too Peaceful
Aren read quietly.
Ben and the blue horse played together, smacking each other like children.
King sharpened his sword, sparks flying ✨.
He glanced at Aren.
"How long until the next stage?"
Aren didn't look up.
"Tomorrow."
They nodded.
The next morning, the guide horse trotted confidently ahead.
Team Father passed through a stone archway…
…and stepped into a peaceful village 🏘️.
Children laughed.
Mothers cooked.
Old men played cards.
Too peaceful.
King smirked.
"I know this one.Classic trial.A demon family hiding among villagers.Small girl. Thorns on her head."
Ben nodded.
"So… easy?"
Aren closed his book.
"If it were easy, it wouldn't exist."
King paused.
"…True."
Then—
Drums 🥁. Singing. Laughter.
Villagers gathered in the square.
A priest stood on a wooden stage.
And behind him—
A small girl.
Rope around her neck.
Thorn crown digging into her scalp.
Eyes shaking with terror.
Ben clenched his fists.
King stepped forward.
"What is this?"
The priest raised his arms.
"BEHOLD! THE LAST DEMON CHILD!"
He pointed at her.
"Her family tried to destroy this village!
We killed them yesterday!
Now… we finish the last one!"
Villagers screamed:
"Kill her!"
"Monster!"
"Demon!"
"Finish it!"
Aren's eyes narrowed ❄️.
The priest turned to him.
"You. Newcomer.Do the honor."
He placed the sword in Aren's hand.
Applause erupted 👏.
Aren walked to the stage.
The girl whispered,
"P-please… don't…"
Aren looked at her for one second.
Then turned—
SHHK!
The priest's head fell cleanly.
Silence.
Then chaos.
"HE KILLED THE PRIEST!"
"DEMON LOVER!"
"ATTACK THEM!!"
The villagers rushed forward.
Aren stepped back.
"Ben. King."
Both nodded.
💥 The slaughter was brief.
Ben punched through bodies like paper.
King moved with surgical precision.
Aren became a wall between the girl and death.
The blue horse headbutted villagers like a divine battering ram 🐎💢.
When it ended—
The village was silent.
Bodies everywhere.
Aren untied the girl.
She hugged him without words.
King stared at the corpses.
"…We were supposed to kill the demon child.
Not the whole village."
Across the Academy, screens exploded with panic 📺🔥.
"TEAM FATHER KILLED EVERYONE!?"
"THE VILLAGE WASN'T EVIL!?"
"AREN EXECUTED THE PRIEST!?"
"WHAT IS THIS STAGE!?"
Teachers shouted.
"This isn't in the records!"
"This trial never ended like this!"
"They weren't meant to do THAT!"
The final announcement echoed:
"Stage Three outcome: Undetermined.Judgement pending.All eyes on Team Father."
Aren carried the girl away calmly.
Ben whispered,
"Aren… how did you know?"
Aren answered without turning.
"They enjoyed killing.Evil doesn't hide in horns.It hides in smiles."
And the world watching…
fell completely silent.