Day two started normal enough.

Renna found some ration bars in the supply bag and handed them out. Emric checked the magic circle’s glow for the fifteenth time. Lyra maintained her quiet watch near the entrance.

Then the light changed.

The ancient runes etched into the temple floor flickered. Like a candle struggling against a sudden draft.

Everyone noticed. The low hum of conversation across the temple died instantly.

Bzzt.

Every academy watch on every student’s wrist lit up at the same moment. A teacher’s voice crackled through the small speakers, calm but urgent.

"Attention all teams. The toxic fog is shifting direction. Beast swarm detected approaching the Safe Zone perimeter. Estimated arrival in ninety seconds. Form defensive positions immediately. This is not a drill."

The warning repeated once more before cutting out.

Panic exploded.

"What? A swarm?"

"Ninety seconds? That’s nothing!"

"Where do we go? What do we do?"

Students scrambled in every direction. Teams bumped into each other. The organized camp from five seconds ago turned into chaos.

Holden stood up.

"To the Front line," he said.

Emric moved without question. He grabbed his heavy shield from where it leaned against the wall and marched toward the temple’s main entrance.

"Logical placement," Emric said. "The entrance provides a natural chokepoint. Width is approximately four meters. Manageable for a coordinated defense."

Renna was already beside him, stringing her bow with practiced fingers. Her eyes were bright and her whole body vibrated with energy.

"Oh man oh man oh man," she said, grinning. "Actual combat! Real fighting! I’ve been waiting for this since we got here!"

She knocked an arrow and took her position on Emric’s left side.

Lyra moved to the right flank, her spear held ready. Other teams started getting their act together, forming a rough wall behind them.

Draven’s team shuffled into position right next to Holden’s. Draven stood in the middle of his group, looking calmer than he had all morning. He met Holden’s eyes for just a second.

Holden looked away.

The fog outside the Safe Zone began to move. The gray mass rolled and shifted like something alive was pushing it from within.

Then the sounds started.

Growls.

Dozens of them. Hundreds.

"They’re coming," Emric announced. "Approximately sixty meters out. Forty. Thirty."

Dark shapes burst from the fog line.

Ashen Hounds. Rank 1 beasts with matted gray fur and eyes that burned like dying coals. They moved low to the ground, all muscle and teeth and killing intent.

The first wave hit like a sledgehammer.

Clang!

Emric’s shield caught the lead hound’s leap. The impact shoved him back half a step, but his feet held firm. He adjusted his angle and deflected the second beast into the third, sending them both sprawling.

"Shield wall effective," he reported. "Maintain positioning."

Twang.

Renna’s arrow took a hound through the eye socket mid-leap. It crashed to the ground dead before it even understood what happened.

"Got one!" she cheered. "Got two! Oh man they keep coming!"

Twang. Twang. Twang.

She fired with almost mechanical precision, each arrow finding a vital point. Her excitement didn’t slow her down. If anything, it made her faster.

Lyra’s spear flashed out, impaling a hound that tried to slip past the left flank. She twisted and pulled, kicking the body into the next beast to trip it up.

Other teams were fighting too. The defense line held, barely. Students shouted and cursed and swung their weapons with desperate energy.

Holden watched the flow of battle. His Star Forged Sword stayed in his hand, but he hadn’t moved yet. The front line was handling the initial rush.

More hounds poured from the fog.

"Second wave incoming!" someone screamed.

The pressure increased. The line started to buckle in spots where weaker teams struggled.

"Fall back! Protect the inner circle!"

Draven’s voice cut through the chaos.

His team stepped backward.

All of them. At once.

The gap opened up in the defense line. Five meters of empty space where hounds could pour through.

"Hey!" Renna shouted. "What are you doing? You’re leaving a hole!"

Twelve Ashen Hounds saw the opening and surged through. They didn’t attack the retreating students. They angled straight for the exposed flank.

Straight for Renna’s blind spot.

She was focused forward, drawing another arrow. Behind her, the beasts closed the distance in seconds. Ten meters. Five. Two.

Draven smiled. The kind that said everything without saying anything.

Renna started to turn. Too slow. She’d never make it in time.

The lead hound’s jaws opened wide, ready to tear into her back.

Holden moved.

There was no windup. No shouting. No dramatic stance.

Just motion.

His body blurred.

Swish.

The lead hound’s head separated from its shoulders before its paws left the ground.

Swish. Swish. Swish.

His sword moved so fast it looked like a silver line drawn through the air. Each pass left another hound dead. Clean cuts. Instant kills. No wasted movement.

It took less than a second.

Twelve hounds hit the ground in a row like dominoes falling.

Renna completed her turn and froze.

She stared at the pile of dead beasts behind her. Then she looked at Holden.

He was standing exactly where he’d been before. Same position. Same calm expression. His sword rested against his shoulder like he hadn’t just done anything at all.

"What," she said slowly, "just happened?"

Emric’s head turned so fast his neck cracked.

"Statistically impossible," he breathed. "Your reaction time was... that shouldn’t be possible."

Across the gap, Draven’s smile was gone.

He stared at Holden with wide eyes. The color had drained from his face. His hands hung loose at his sides, forgotten.

Holden met his gaze.

"Close the gap," he said flatly.

Draven flinched. Like Holden had raised a hand to strike him.

"Y-yes," Draven managed. "Right. Team, forward. Close it. Now."

His voice cracked on the last word.

The remaining hounds in the fog hesitated. The swarm’s momentum had broken. One by one, the beasts turned and slunk back into the gray mist, their growls fading into nothing.

The attack was over.

Silence fell over the temple.

Every student who had seen that blur of motion stood frozen. They looked at Holden like they were seeing him for the first time.

Renna still hadn’t blinked.

"Holden," she said quietly. "How fast are you?"

He wiped his sword clean on a dead hound’s fur.

"Fast enough."