The invitation wasn't written in ink.
It was scorched onto aged parchment, slipped into my weapons locker behind a hidden panel I didn't even know existed.
> "Crimson Trial: Initiation begins tonight. Mask required. Come armed. Come silent. No second chances."
No name. No signature. Just that ominous serpent-sword sigil Axel had shown me.
---
The location: Underground Arena C, the part of the university blueprints labeled "restricted archives."
At midnight, I slipped through passageways only the top-tier assassins and mafia heirs were supposed to know. The air grew colder, the lights dimmer, replaced by red-tinted lanterns that pulsed like heartbeats.
When I entered the arena…
It was a gladiator pit.
Dusty, vast, surrounded by old stone walls etched with symbols from dozens of underworld factions. A dozen masked figures stood in a circle, all wearing red.
Some were tall. Some smaller.
But all of them carried real weapons.
And every one of them turned toward me.
---
I wore a sleek black mask shaped like a fox—fitting, since my real name wasn't Ash Vane.
It was Anya.
But no one in this room could ever know that.
The circle parted.
A new figure stepped forward. Silver half-mask. Military boots.
He walked like a general—but younger.
It was Mikhail.
---
"Welcome, initiate," he said, voice echoing. "Tonight, you prove if you bleed red... or disappear in silence."
Then he threw a dagger at my feet.
"And you do it with a partner."
He clapped.
Another masked figure stepped into the ring.
I froze.
It was Liam.
The mafia heir.
Wearing a red serpent mask and carrying a katana that glowed faintly under the red light.
He tilted his head toward me.
"Oh?" His voice was amused. "I get the fox?"
"Lucky me."
---
Mikhail barked, "Survive 10 minutes. Together. Against them."
He pointed to the side.
The ground shuddered.
Three large iron gates opened—and six feral inmates were released, armed and unhinged.
Murderers. Real ones. The kind this school kept for 'educational experiments'.
---
Liam didn't blink. He unsheathed his blade and stepped in front of me.
"Try not to die, fox. You're cute."
I had no time to glare.
Because the first psycho lunged.
---
My body moved on instinct.
I ducked a spiked bat, slid under a chain, and elbowed a man's knee until it cracked backward.
Liam moved like liquid fire beside me, sword slashing through the air with deadly precision.
He grinned like he was enjoying it.
---
One minute in, and three were down.
I panted. Blood—not mine—splattered across my shirt.
"Still alive?" Liam asked.
"Barely," I snapped.
He laughed.
---
Then something strange happened.
One of the inmates stopped attacking.
He stared at me.
No—through me.
And he murmured, "You… you're her…"
My blood froze.
"You're the girl."
---
Time slowed.
My mask. My disguise. My act.
Broken.
The inmate lunged at me—not to kill—but to expose.
Liam moved faster than I thought possible. He sliced the man's leg mid-air and knocked him unconscious.
Then turned to me, mask dark.
"You wanna explain that later, sweetheart?"
I didn't answer.
---
At the ten-minute mark, a horn sounded.
The gates reopened.
Mikhail stepped forward.
"Impressive," he said. "Most don't last five."
He looked at me.
"Especially... you."
Liam subtly stepped in front of me again.
But Mikhail only smiled.
Then whispered, "Welcome to the Crimson Council, fox."
---
As the others dispersed, Liam and I walked in silence through the underground corridors.
Finally, he said, "You fight too clean for a boy."
I said nothing.
He smirked.
"Don't worry. Your secret's safe with me. For now."
He looked sideways.
"But I'm curious…"
He stepped closer.
"Who are you hiding from?"
---
I looked into his eyes.
Dark. Sharp. Curious. Dangerous.
And for the first time...
I didn't know if I was still in control of this mission.
Or if I was just another pawn on their board.
---
End of Chapter 14
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