I am Just an Average Tamer

A chorus of alarms blared through the forest maze, audible to every participant and professor alike.

From the observation platform high above the arena, Professor Velran barked orders. "Emergency code: Black Tier anomaly. Activate suppression enchantments. Evacuate non-combatants!"

From the observation platform high above the arena, Professor Velran barked orders. "Emergency code: Black Tier anomaly. Activate suppression enchantments. Evacuate non-combatants!"

The instructors around him fumbled with arcane glyphs, fingers glowing with trembling light.

But deep in the forest, that help was still minutes away.

Kai crouched beside Stromeon, eyes wide as he watched the sky itself darken above a portion of the maze. A heavy, unnatural fog seeped outward from the center zone—thicker than Sevyr's illusions, colder than the Riverwake's water magic.

"That's not part of the trial…"

His instincts screamed. His body tensed like a coiled spring.

"Vex, recon. Vael, height advantage. Move!"

A tremor rumbled underfoot. Stromeon growled lowly. Even Vex, fearless as he usually was, hesitated before melting into the shadows.

Then came the sound. Not a roar. Not a scream. A chorus—a sick, echoing harmony of whispers that overlapped each other like hundreds of mouths speaking the same thought.

"Feed… break… bind…"

Kai's blood ran cold.

He bolted toward the fog without hesitation.

❖ Scene: Rashira vs. Fear

Rashira had barely caught her breath before the mist rolled into her area. Her serpent hissed and coiled tighter around her protectively.

She couldn't see it…But she could hear it.

The sound slithered into her ears. Words that weren't words. Screams that weren't screams.

Her body wanted to flee. Every instinct shrieked at her to run.

"No… not again…"

Memories of her past surged forth—of being helpless, overlooked, ridiculed.

"You're not strong enough.""You shouldn't be here."

Tears threatened, unbidden.

Until her Riverwake Serpent snapped at her, lightly, pulling her back to the present.

Rashira gasped—and straightened.

"No," she whispered, placing a hand on her serpent's scale. "I am here. I've earned this."

❖ [Riverwake Serpent - Skill: Aegis Current]A rotating sphere of water spun into being around her, forming a defensive shell that broke through the first wave of miasma.

From the shadows came movement—black tendrils, oozing and snapping through the maze.

Her orb pulsed brightly.

❖ Scene: Kai Breaks In

Kai dashed through a collapsed corridor of twisted roots and shattered earth. Vex blinked into vision at his side—eyes wide, tail lashing anxiously.

"What did you see?" Kai asked, barely slowing.

Vex sent a flash of images into Kai's mind through their bond: Cassian, bloodied. A black mass with too many limbs. Screaming. Fire. Teeth.

"Tch. Too far to wait for backup. We go in now."

They burst into the central clearing.

And there it was.

The creature stood nearly three meters tall, an abomination of bone, tendrils, and warped mana. A massive eye stared blankly in its chest, while its arms split at the elbows into jagged blades. It had no mouth—yet whispers poured from it like a river.

Cassian stood alone, one knee on the ground, breathing hard.

His blades were dented. His armor cracked.

"Kai…? What the hell are you doing here?" he asked hoarsely.

Kai stepped forward, calmly pulling out twin daggers.

"Saving your ass."

❖ Scene: The Professors Intervene

From the viewing platform, Selene gripped the balcony railing hard.

"This shouldn't be possible," she muttered. "That's a Nightspawn. They haven't appeared outside the war zones in over a decade."

Velran looked pale. "Someone summoned it inside the barrier. That's… high-level interference."

Selene's voice dropped. "Or worse, planted it here before the trial began."

She glanced toward the noble observation booths… toward Lady Ashveil, who stood too still.

Velran began channeling a large sigil over the platform. "If we don't move now, students will die."

Selene nodded. "I'll go."

❖ [Selene - Archmage Spell: Spatial Descent]A circle of light enveloped her as she vanished, reappearing above the battlefield seconds later—cape flaring like wings.

But as she appeared—

The Nightspawn turned its eye toward her.

And laughed.

❖ Scene: Kai and Cassian – Brothers in Battle

Kai and Cassian didn't speak again. They just moved.

Vex and Stromeon flanked. Cassian roared, aura bursting as he charged. Twin blades danced in sync—one blocking the tendrils, the other slashing at soft joints.

Kai ducked under a sweeping claw, his daggers flashing.

❖ [Kai - Skill: Viper Edge]His dagger sliced clean through one of the tendrils, venom sizzling into corrupted flesh.

❖ [Cassian - Technique: Howling Spiral]His blades spun like a cyclone, carving a path through the black fog.

The beast shrieked—genuinely this time.

It was hurt.

"Now!" Kai barked.

Vael dove, Sonic Dive enhancing the blow—his talons piercing the Nightspawn's central eye.

It staggered.

Then… the world bent.

The creature's body split open—revealing a pulsing black core.

❖ [Nightspawn - Emergency Protocol: Mana Feedback Loop]

It began to implode.

Kai's eyes widened. "Get down!"

A burst of darkness erupted, forcing them back as the core self-destructed—disintegrating its form in a wave of corrupted mana.

Silence followed.

Kai stood slowly, panting, body aching.

Cassian looked at him and smirked. "You're insane, you know that?"

Kai offered a tired shrug. "Takes one to know one."

❖ Scene: The Fog Clears

The corrupted mist began to recede, burned away by residual mana. Ash and bone scattered across the clearing like the remnants of a nightmare. The Nightspawn was gone, but its presence lingered—a stain on the fabric of reality.

Kai coughed, waving a hand through the settling haze. Beside him, Stromeon growled lowly, the tips of his horns crackling with faint static.

"Report," Kai muttered.

Vex emerged from the shadows and nudged his shin—safe. Vael circled above once, then dove and landed gracefully on his shoulder. Cassian leaned on his blade, glancing at the scorched crater.

"You feel that?" he asked. "That pressure. It wasn't just mana. It was… wrong."

Kai nodded grimly. "It was from outside the natural order. That wasn't some beast that wandered in."

His eyes narrowed as he looked around.

"It was planted."

❖ Scene: Arrival of the Archmage

Selene landed in the center of the battlefield, her robes fluttering like falling starlight. Her gaze scanned the destruction with icy precision before settling on Kai and Cassian.

"Both of you," she said sharply. "Injured?"

Kai shook his head. Cassian gave a vague grunt.

Selene flicked her fingers—runes of inspection flaring briefly around them.

"You'll live."

She turned her gaze to the remnants of the Nightspawn, and a subtle crease formed in her brow. Her hand glowed as she conjured a crystal prism and hovered it over the ashes. It absorbed the leftover mana.

"This isn't natural corruption," she muttered. "This was constructed."

"Constructed?" Kai echoed.

She gave him a meaningful look. "A ritual. Likely masked during the setup phase of the trial. I'll have to examine the full runic array."

"Any idea who did it?"

Selene didn't answer.

❖ Scene: Spectators React

Up above in the noble viewing gallery, murmurs had turned into open shouting.

"This is unacceptable!""Students almost died!""That was no mere beast—it was a cursed construct!""Who authorized this trial!?"

Lady Ashveil remained silent, her golden eyes unreadable as she stared at the battlefield below. Beside her, a veiled woman leaned closer and whispered something.

Ashveil finally spoke, voice calm as falling snow.

"We mustn't rush to blame. Let the Archmage investigate. But... if this is a security breach, it must be rooted out."

No one argued with her. Not openly.

But beneath the surface, suspicion thickened like blood in water.

❖ Scene: Rashira's Awakening

Not far from the center, Rashira sat on the ground, breathing heavily. The mist had made her relive every moment of self-doubt—every echo of failure.

But she was still here.

"You okay?" a soft voice asked.

It was Sevyr, leaning casually against a tree with faint cuts on his cheek and torn sleeves.

She blinked. "You… you didn't leave?"

He grinned. "Nah. Wanted to make sure you didn't get swallowed up by some hellbeast. Also figured you'd be mad if I did."

Rashira blushed, glancing away.

"I… held it back. A little. Not by myself."

Sevyr tilted his head. "Hey, a win's a win."

He extended a hand, and after a brief pause, she took it.

❖ Scene: A Message in the Ashes

Back at the crater, Kai crouched beside the spot where the Nightspawn had died. Something shimmered faintly among the scorched earth.

He picked it up.

A coin-shaped talisman. Burnt black. Etched with a twisted sigil that seemed to squirm when he looked too long.

Selene's voice snapped to attention. "Don't touch that!"

But it was too late. The moment Kai's fingers brushed the edge, the sigil flared—

And a voice echoed in his mind:

"We see you, Abyss-walker."

His pupils shrank. A wave of cold swept his spine.

Selene lunged and snatched the talisman from his hand, encasing it in a spell-sealed crystal.

"Are you alright?" she asked, eyes sharp.

Kai nodded slowly. "It knew me."

She frowned. "We'll talk later. Not here."

She wasn't scolding him. She was… worried.

And that unsettled Kai more than anything.