At the sound of the whistle, the second race began. Mira, as fast as Kaelina, had already taken the lead. The changing track was no match for her— when it shifted to mud, she effortlessly slid across it with ice. She incinerated every obstacle in her path with bursts of fire.

Elias trailed behind her, but he was equally impressive. He summoned mirrors, positioning them in front of the barriers, multiplying them and using the reflections to confuse his opponents.

But Elias didn't stop there. His body was suddenly enveloped in a radiant burst of light, and he surged forward at an incredible speed, passing Mira in a blur. Then the light vanished, causing him to resume at his normal pace. He knew it wouldn't last long, but the reflected hurdles and the burst of speed gave him an advantage.

Meanwhile, Ronan and Alina struggled to keep up. Unlike the others, their magic was not suitable for racing, leaving them to rely heavily on physical endurance, much like Elysia.

Mira wasn't as invincible as she had been in battle. The constant use of her powers was taking a toll on her. She shivered constantly from the cold of her ice and reacted painfully to the heat of her fire.

Elias also appeared to be nearing his limit. The blinding light had blurred his vision, but he continued on, squinting as he ran. His face contorted with the pain, yet he pushed forward, determined not to fall behind.

While the forerunners slowed down, Ronan did something unexpected. As he ran, dice appeared in his hand from nowhere and he tossed them to the ground. The dice landed with a total of three, and I noticed his speed gradually increasing. Alina lagged behind, but she didn't let it discourage her. She continued running, breathing heavily but not slowing her pace. She was unwaveringly determined.

Just as I had begun to write off Alina, she did something impressive.  Elias, still half-blinded, spotted something—a golden light, glowing in the distance. He ran through it, convinced that he had finished the race. He leaped out of the tracks, posing triumphantly, only to discover that it was not the finish line after all.

Mira, noticing what had happened, rushed forward, her pace quickening as she approached the actual finish line.

"As expected. I won!" Elias declared smugly, oblivious to his errors.

"Elias has been disqualified for leaving the track before finishing the race," Veyra  announced.

" What?! " Elias triumphant grim vanished, replaced by shock. He slowly turned to face the tracks, only to find that the golden light he had chased had vanished.

" Sorry, Elias!" Alina called out with a mischievous grin. " I might have created a little... distraction for you. "

She took advantage of Elias' inability to see and created an illusion of the golden light directly in front of the original one.

Mira dashed through the original golden light, leaving Ronan and Alina behind.

Ronan, realizing he still had time, threw his dice again. This time, the outcome was six, and his speed surged once more. Exhausted, Alina came to a halt and watched him finish the race.

" Good work, guys! " Alina cheered, though her expression was a bit too bright for someone who hadn’t won.

Veyra took a step forward, holding up her hand. " First place goes to Mira, followed by Ronan in second and Alina in third. Elias, unfortunately, came last. "

Elias’s face fell. The weight of the loss struck him hard. He could not take the shame and protested immediately, just like Kaelina. "I can’t accept this! She cheated!"

Veyra shook her head in disagreement. "No, she did not. I made it clear that you were free to use your powers however you wanted as long as you did not harm anyone else."

Elias slumped in defeat. He turned to Mira, who was beaming with delight. Sweat dripped from her brow, but she smiled broadly as she ran toward me.

" Yay! I won. " She was overjoyed.

" Weldone, Mira. Congratulations. " I replied, hugging her tightly.

"Second place?!" Ronan blinked in surprise, then grinned. "Well, well, looks like luck really is on my side today! "He chuckled, tossing his dice into the air and effortlessly catching them before they disappeared.

"Everett, do you think their performance was better than ours, or were we better?" Elysia, who was sitting on the bench, sought Everett's approval.

" Hard to say. Both groups were outstanding. " Everett responded, probably wondering why she asked that question.

Elysia frowned slightly, dissatisfied with his response but said nothing more. 

Riven, who sat far away from us on the bench, did not appear to regret his decision not to participate. He observed everything in silence.

" Talia, stop hiding and come out! " Veyra commanded, arms folded.

" Talia? " Alina glanced around, confused.

" Veyra!" A short girl with bright red hair emerged from behind a nearby bush.

" Be more formal, Talia. " Veyra scolded. It was clear from their conversation that they had met before.

" Hi! I'm Talia. " She introduced, ignoring the instructor's remarks. Her nails were painted a matching red, and her lips were glossed in the same shade.

" Hi! Nice to meet you, I'm Alina. " Alina responded with a smile, extending her hand.

"Nice to meet you," Everett said, nodding toward her.

" I think I missed a lot, huh?" Talia feigned ignorance as if she had not just been hiding in the bushes.

"Yes you did. And you are aware of that. " Veyra said sharply. Talia ignored her once again.

"Alright, everyone. The first phase of the test is over. Those who did not participate will face consequences," Veyra stated.

Talia blinked in surprise. "Wait, what?"

" Did you think you'd get away with it? Allow me to explain."

"When you enter this school, each student is assigned points that determine their status as a protector. They are referred to as merit points. If you are in the Novus class, you each have 1000 merit points. If you were placed in the astrals, you each have 3000 merit points, while those in the celestials will receive 5000 merit points each. "She elaborated.

Ronan frowned. "That's not fair!"

Veyra continued, unfazed. "Points can be deducted for offenses such as missing tests or fighting. After a certain period of time, the average of each class will be calculated. If someone in the Novus class, for example, has more points than the Astral average, they will be promoted."

At the mention of promotions, Everett’s fists clenched, determination flashing in his eyes. Elysia flinched slightly but maintained her composure.

"But a protector can also be demoted," Veyra added. "If someone from the Novus class ascends, someone in the Astrals will be demoted. However, this information is unnecessary for you because you cannot be demoted any further." She mocked us, with a faint smile on her face.

"Talia and Riven will have 100 points deducted for not participating, leaving them at 900 merit points," Veyra stated, and Talia groaned. Riven however, was unfazed by that information.

" Please, can you spare them? " Alina pleaded on their behalf.

" No, those are the rules," Veyra replied firmly.

"I am just curious. Am I going to have an increase in merit points for winning the race? "Asked Everett, who had been quietly observing.

"No," Veyra answered with a smirk. "This wasn’t an official test. It was simply to evaluate your abilities."

" Oh, okay. " Everett shrugged.

" Also keep in mind that  higher-class protectors are expected to handle more important missions. " Veyra added.

"Missions?" Mira inquired, curious.

" Yes. You'll be going on rescue missions soon. "

"What will the second test be?" I asked, eager to know what was next.

"A much more challenging obstacle course," Veyra replied, her tone hinting at the difficulty to come.

A/N

Wow, I didn't expect to update so soon. Anyways, please don't forget to vote and comment. I have been thinking of adding pictures of characters. Can anyone tell me where I can get images for the characters?