[Rita]: Teacher GodDraw77, save me!!! [Rita]: Help, I’m in my room, I’m in danger! The moment she sent that private message, a gust of wind swept in through the window, carrying a long green leaf. Before the leaf could fall, it shimmered and transformed into GodDraw77, who stood inside her room. Rita froze. ...So her room really had no defenses at all? But when GodDraw77 saw who else was in the room, the faint killing intent around her faded instantly. Lightchaser. Of course. She had wondered why there would be danger here in Golden Hills. And if Rita had the time to send her a message, was she ever really in danger? Her eyes shifted to where Lightchaser had Rita by the collar, dangling her like a kitten. "What are you doing?" Lightchaser ignored her. She gave Rita a firm shake, as though cards might fall loose from her apprentice’s pockets. "Another round. Make more." Rita clutched her backpack like her life depended on it. "I’m out of money!" "Don’t play dumb. I know you charge five thousand gold every time you swap someone’s divine gift back at the academy." GodDraw77 didn’t intervene in their teacher-student bickering. Instead, curiosity drew her toward the desk, where a tower of parchment nearly as tall as a person leaned precariously by the window. She plucked one sheet from the pile. This must be the source of their commotion. Her eyes widened. Weapon prize up to "World-Class"? World-Class? Not Ancient? Lightchaser had carried her ancient longsword for years precisely because nothing higher existed. The blade’s built-in Ancient-tier ability was too valuable. She had never even been forced to switch to her daggers. GodDraw77 glanced down at the floor, where more than a dozen conjured daggers lay scattered. She crouched, picked one up, then another. Different rarities, but every single one was maxed out for Lightchaser’s current stats, and all were bound exclusively to her. Legendary. Epic. Some lasted hours, others even several Starsea days. The stronger the weapon, the shorter its time limit. One sweep told her enough. She understood how the game worked. Slowly, she lifted her gaze and locked eyes with Rita, who still dangled from Lightchaser’s grip. Rita: ·?·? The source of thɪs content is novelꞁire.net The next morning, after breakfast, the group found themselves still missing one person. They exchanged glances. It wasn’t unusual for them to do their own thing—none of them clung together every second of the day. But usually, if someone skipped a meal, they sent word. And today was different. They had planned a trip to Rock Locust in Dalaran for candy. Maple Syrup asked, "Anyone hear back from her?" Mistblade shook her head. "No." Motor, who had only joined their squad in the second half of third year and had technically only spent half a year with Rita because of her break, ventured, "Maybe she doesn’t feel like going? Wants to stay in the windmill house and prep?" Mistblade shook again. "Not likely. If she felt that way, she wouldn’t have agreed yesterday." In her view, Rita actually enjoyed moving as a group. Mistblade still remembered her shock back in first year, when Rita had grabbed her hand to invite her to the bathroom. Maple Syrup wasn’t one for overthinking. "Let’s just go to her room. If she can’t, we’ll head out ourselves." The four of them left the spatially-expanded cafeteria. Mistblade, last out the door, glanced back and realized something odd. GodDraw77 wasn’t there either. At Rita’s door, Maple Syrup knocked. No answer. She knocked again. The door creaked open. "Your friends are here." That was GodDraw77’s voice. The four of them pushed inside. The first thing they saw was the mountain of parchment stacked by the window, nearly taller than a person. Beyond it, the desk. And on the desk: piles of gold coins. Three figures sat shoulder-to-shoulder. GodDraw77. Rita. Lightchaser. Two adults hemming in one child, both of them hunched forward, furiously scratching parchment. Rita, trapped in the middle, had slumped forward, apparently asleep. She had several accessories clipped into her hair. The others had never seen her wear so much at once, though they recognized at least \[Stop Waiting]. GodDraw77 let out a sigh and tossed down the parchment in her hands. She patted Rita’s shoulder. The girl stirred, eyes still closed, and fished a coin from the pile in front of her. Light flared. A new card appeared. GodDraw77 reached for it, but Lightchaser snatched it first. With a resigned shake of her head, she patted Rita again. Like a wind-up toy, Rita pulled another coin and began crafting another Scratch Card. Only then did GodDraw77 glance at the four standing by the door. "Did you need her for something?" None of them dared ask why Lightchaser was here. Maple Syrup edged closer to the desk, eyes fixed on the parchment, but she answered, "We promised to go to Rock Locust for candy." Mistblade, Fat Goose, and Motor followed, equally drawn more to the glowing parchments than candy. Hearing her friends, Rita blinked awake. She opened her mouth to say she was coming—only for Lightchaser, still scratching, to cut her off. "She’s not going." No. Enough. She shot upright, darted behind GodDraw77, and pointed accusingly at her teacher. "It’s competition season! Why is she even allowed in here?" Lightchaser, without looking up, murmured, "Shouldn’t you be asking the reverse?" Before Rita could argue, Mistblade tugged her sleeve. "What is this thing? Can we play?" She was on the verge of bolting when Lightchaser suddenly slammed her palm against the desk. Rita jumped, clinging to GodDraw77’s sleeve for dear life. The parchment rippled like liquid gold. Lightchaser reached into it and slowly drew forth a dagger—ornate, radiant, breathtaking. Her gray-blue eyes gleamed. "Above Ancient... there’s War." GodDraw77 stood as well. She turned to the four apprentices and said, "Go on. Have fun." She pressed a pouch of gold into Rita’s hands. "Use it for candy." A gust swept through. In the next blink, the four of them found themselves outside the door.