*Lei*

The rest of the day went by rather quickly. Sirius, Stella, Orion, and Yuzuki had managed to get gold on the second part of the track race. While I won silver in acrobatics.

While we were piling up medals, Tora still maintained the overall lead. At this point I doubted we could overtake them, still, at least we managed to defeat them in two of the events where we overlapped.

The biggest event left was the survival event. Though we didn't really see much of the survival aspect in the first part... but perhaps that would change soon.

Before heading there, my group (, along with Iah and Adela) decided to pay An a visit. If only he had woken up... Aief needed him. But more importantly, it was disheartening to see a friend in the hospital.

Ning and Vermeil stood watch over An when we arrived. The others were also there, seated. Some looked pensive, while others looked as if they were praying for a miracle.

"Hey," Yen said, breaking the ice.

"Hey," Ning said. Dark rings surrounded her eyes. Had she even slept since yesterday?

"Thanks for coming, but shouldn't you guys be heading to the forest area?" Vermeil asked.

"We're heading there next. We still got time," I responded. "Uh, Ning, are you planning to participate."

The cyan-haired girl stared at her childhood friend. "Yeah, though I'm not sure how much help I'll be. But An would want me to help out the team, so I'll try to pull through."

"As will I," Yanyu said, standing up from her seat. Xing and Guang weren't around, then again, neither seemed particularly close to An.

I tried to smile, but my lips remained stuck in place. This place, it always drained my energy. More so now that a friend is hurt.

"They'll be performing some more tests on him," Xue said. "Though they've yet to tell us the results of the first couple..."

"That's... odd," Nyima said, furrowing her brow.

"Maybe the results are inconclusive," Adela said. "They probably prefer not to create either false hope or unnecessary worry."

"The silence itself is concerning enough," Vermeil snapped. "Why can't they tell us? What are they hiding?"

"Calm down," Xue said, rubbing Vermeil's shoulders. "The doctors know what they're doing. We need to put our trust in them."

Vermeil let out a cry. "They aren't helping... our prayers aren't either. Nothing seems to be working!"

"Don't give up hope," Adela said. "When all else is lost, hope is all that remains. If we give up hope then only the endless pit of despair awaits."

Vermeil curled up. "Despair..."

"It has only been a day. An has fallen unconscious for a whole day before," Xue said.

"But he never looked like this," she whispered, pressing her head against the wall.

My eyes darted toward An. He had lost fat and muscle after his battle. It was the result of his body converting the lipids in his body into prana.

Shivers ran up and down my spine. There were times in which I could've ended up like this. Magic wasn't a play thing. It was dangerous. Like a gun, it had to be properly maintained and used with the outmost care.

Vermeil gasped. She turned around and saw Sarah. The princess took the blonde's hand and moved her finger across her palm.

"E-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g W-i-l-l B-E A-l-r-i-g-ht. Everything will be alright?"

Sarah nodded.

Vermeil's amber eye fell to the linoleum floor. "What makes you so sure? We thought the same about you, but look at you."

"That's uncalled for!" Kun yelled.

"It's the truth!" Vermeil cried. "None of us expected Sarah to be confined to a wheelchair, unable to speak."

Aida's words in the park last night rung in my head. She called An a vegetable. What if that was true? What if he wouldn't be able to move?

"What if it's the same case here? Or worse?" Vermeil continued.

Sarah turned around.

The blonde reached a hand out for her. "Sarah, wait! I... didn't mean to yell at you. It's just... I can't overcome this dread building up."

Sarah took Kun's hand and began to write out letters on his palm.

Kun nodded as she continued to write.

"What did she say?" Arima asked once the princess had stopped.

"She says that she accepts her apology."

Vermeil ran over and wrapped her arms around the princess. "Thanks, Sarah."

"It's rather noisy in here. I'm going to require you leave if you continue being this loud."

We all turned our attention to a crimson-haired doctor.

"How is An?" Yanyu asked.

"We aren't sure yet. We'll need to do more studies on him still, to determine the state of his cognitive functions."

"His mind?"

The doctor lowered her head. "Yeah. I can't say much, but there's two likely outcomes. One is slight better than the other."

Two outcomes? The mind... Please don't tell me that Aida was right... Wait, that other option... it...

"You think he might be brain dead?" I blurted out.

Everyone in the room gasped.

"What?" Alto asked, standing up.

"Is An brain dead?" Ning asked.

The doctor sighed. "We aren't sure, but that is a possibility. The other is that he's in a vegetative state, preferably one he can recover from. For now, I do ask not to make assumptions. This is a delicate matter."

"No, An..." Yanyu said, stepping back.

"Though it might be a good idea to consider what you would do with him, if the worst case scenarios prove true."

"You mean pull the plug?" Arima asked.

She nodded.

"No," Vermeil said, cupping her hands over her mouth.

Sarah began to hyperventilate.

"Sarah, calm down. Lei, lend me your inhaler!" Kun yelled.

I took it out.

The doctor rushed over. "Relax, Sarah. Take deep and controlled breathes."

Sarah took Kun's hand and began to move her finger rapidly.

'It's my fault. If I had only been stronger, I wouldn't have gotten hurt and An wouldn't have pushed himself this far for revenge' is what I managed to read.

"It's not," Kun said. "Blaming yourself won't help him. Sarah, relax."

"He's right," the doctor said, squeezing Sarah's shoulders. "An is a psychic. If he can perceive us right now, your state would only cause him more anxiety."

"I don't sense his presence," Arima said, glancing around.

"That still doesn't mean he can't hear us."

"I hope he can, if he can then that would mean he isn't brain dead," Vermeil said, holding her hands close to her heart. "An, if you can hear us, please wake up soon. We are all worried about you. So, please, open your eyes, or at least twitch your fingers. Anything is better than nothing at this point."

"Yeah," Hal said. "We're all waiting for your return to the world of the conscious."

Our eyes lingered on An for some time, but there was no detectable movement. Not even a slight twitch.

Vermeil turned around and wiped away her tears. She had to be strong, for An's sake.

"L...let's go," Kun said, walking away. "We got an event to attend to. An... if you can hear me, I hope that one day we can have a true rematch. One-on-one. No interruptions."

My eyes remained on An; there was still nothing...

***

The sound of billions, if not trillions, of leaves rustling in the wind filled my ears.

"Here we are," Nyima said, staring at the metal mesh fence separating the forest from the rest of the world.

"How will this part play out?" I asked.

"There are three parts to a mirror. Whoever gets them all wins," Iah responded.

"The catch is that the pieces are hidden throughout the forest in the reaches which were closed off to us in the first part," Adela added.

"Heard there are dangerous beasts there," Kun said, glancing at Mt. Rios in the distance.

"No worries, we'll just beat them down and anyone else who gets in our way," I said, punching my fists together.

"Hmph, that's our line," Eien said. He seemed a lot better than he did during the first part. He no longer had bandages around his arms and chest.

"The one who will be winning this is us," a voice called out.

Shivers ran down my spine. Standing behind us was Aida and her group...

"What are you doing here?" Sowk snapped.

"We got cleared after you rudely accused us," she responded, flashing her usual grin. She appeared in front of Sowk in an instant and whispered into her ear, "We won't forgive you. Because of you, we missed out on the opportunity to get the national tournament medal."

"Get away from her!" Ayawamat yelled.

Aida backed away and shifted her eyes toward Ayawamat. "Snappy, I like a man with character."

"Well, sadly for you, I am not into witches."

Aida chuckled. "No worries, you aren't my type either. I can tell with one look that you're nothing special."

Ayawamat's right eye twitched. "Nothing special? I'll make you eat your words."

She snickered. "Many have tried that already, and you saw what their fates were."

Eien lowered his head. He hadn't been the same since Aida nearly killed him during the track race.

Kun lugged at her but Hota pulled him back. "Hey, calm down."

Kun took a deep breath.

"Don't worry, prince. Your turn will come," she said, a glimmer in her eyes. "For all of Rios in fact."

"Don't you dare!" I shouted, wind roaring and azure sparks crackling around me.

Aida's wicked grin grew wider. "The weak child wishes to fight, huh? Well, you probably won't be any more of a disappoint than Sarah and An were."

I gritted my teeth.

"Stop, Lei, Kun. Don't let her get under your skin," Yen said, putting her arm over me.

"Hmm, the third triplet. Seems you're the calm one out of the three."

Yen smiled as she walked over to her. "You think I'm calm?"

"Well, compared to them," Aida said.

Yen flashed her a cruel grin. *boom* "Calm, huh?" Yen asked, staring at her red hand. "I am, unless if someone messes with me or my loved ones. Get this through your thick skull, no one messes with my little brothers and gets away with it! Got that?"

Aida glared at her. Her eyes were practically dripping with venom. "So be it. You'll pay for this, princess of Rios."

Yen snickered and she turned around. "You've lost that cool and calculating façade. Now you're like kitsune, crawling on the ground, angrily. Stay like that, I enjoy it."

"Yen!" I shouted as vines rose over her like the tail of a scorpion on its unwary pray.

The vines were suddenly vaporized in a flash.

"You're forbidden to attack participants outside of the event, remember that." Our eyes all turned toward the man leaning against fence around the forest. In his hands was a stack of yellow papers.

"Uncle!" the three of us said at once.

Aida shot him a glare.

Euphonium narrowed his eyes at her. "I'm not sure how you managed to trick the committee that you were innocent of the charges you were accused of."

"We are innocent," Aida said.

"Your behavior betrays your words."

"Aida, don't pick fights. It give people a negative opinion of us," her black-armor clad teammate said.

She took a deep breath. "Hurry up and begin the event," she said, averting her gaze.

Uncle Euphonium sighed. "Alright. One member of each team, come on over and take one," he said, waving the stack of papers.

I walked over and took one. "Cool, a map!" I said. I chuckled. This was going to be so much fun! Though H.E.H. might end up ruining it... No, I won't allow them to. There won't be any more victims.

"Alright, seems like everyone has a map. Good luck, may the best team win," uncle said. He snapped his fingers, covering all the teams gathered there in bright blue light.

**Solar Note: The Mahoulympics is coming to its fever pitch! Only nine more numbered chapters remaining in this book! Thanks for all your support, it means a lot :).**