"Theos!"

The girl's cry made Theos whirl around instantly. Before him, the demon beast opened its bloodthirsty maw.

Qilin Serpent—a high-tier demon beast.

Data on the creature flashed through his mind. Theos swung his sword, blocking the attack. Black energy surged from his body, forming sharp needles that shot out and pierced the Qilin Serpent.

The beast wailed. Just as the youth prepared to strike back, the Bear King slammed a paw down on him from behind.

"Pfft!"

Caught off guard, Theos spat blood. He felt utterly awful.

Surrounded front and back, the Bear King and Qilin Serpent each landed blows on him.

"This is bad!"

Seeing her comrade in trouble, Caina rushed forward. Mana gathered under her feet. She unleashed a shockwave that slammed into the Bear King, temporarily freeing Theos. But the next second, a Ghost Lizard's roar echoed in her ears. Its blade slashed toward Caina.

"Caina!"

Without thinking, the girl dashed over. Her sword naturally blocked the life-threatening strike. Though her mind was blank, her body moved instinctively, wielding unfamiliar sword techniques against the enemy.

Moyu Manatsu had never experienced anything like this. In her seventeen years, she'd never fought for her life against an enemy. Well, except for a month ago.

Acting on instinct, she thrust out her hand. Purple lightning shot from her palm, striking the beast.

As it wailed, her sword came down, severing its head. Green blood splattered all over her.

"Luno!"

"Cough... I'm fine."

The girl wiped the disgusting liquid from her face, ignoring the demon beast's corpse.

She never thought she'd fight for someone else's sake. Back in her original world, she hadn't even wanted to learn superpowers. Yet today, she was using sword skills to fight. And to protect Caina, no less. She hadn't even protected Yuki.

Anyway, Moyu Manatsu had figured out the enemy's scheme.

The enemy was definitely watching from the shadows. He knew the students would come here, so he'd set traps in advance. All these demon beasts were meant to make them retreat. Even if they won, fear would shatter the students' confidence. After all, they were still youths who hadn't entered society. It was natural to fear the unknown. The enemy exploited this trait. The Empire probably didn't send students here as fighters—they couldn't handle experienced adults anyway. The students were all bait. Bait to keep the enemy trapped in the forest. The girl understood it all.

"Luno, are you okay? You look pale."

"I'm fine, Caina. What do you have on you?"

Moyu Manatsu wouldn't reveal her deduction. It was better not to say anything now. She was certain the enemy wouldn't leave the forest; otherwise, he wouldn't have sent demon beasts to intimidate them.

"Hmm, I have a few Magic Artifacts and a healing crystal."

Caina rummaged through her pockets and replied.

"I'm asking, do you have honey?"

"What?"

Caina was confused, thinking she'd misheard. But seeing the girl wasn't joking, she slowly pondered.

"I do have some, but what do you need it for? It's useless in battle..."

That was true. Honey was just food, at best for filling stomachs. It couldn't be used as a weapon. Even for alchemy, there wasn't enough time.

"That dumb bear is probably starving. Look at it drooling; it must be craving food."

Moyu Manatsu watched the Bear King grappling with Theos, muttering to herself.

"But what does that matter?"

"Honey is a bear's favorite food. That bear is so hungry, we have to give it something to eat."

Moyu Manatsu snatched the small bottle of honey from Caina's hand, ignoring her surprised expression, and ran toward the Bear King.

"Caina, cover me!"

Somehow, this girl didn't seem like the Lunorette she knew. Would the real Lunorette ever think of such a ridiculous idea? Impossible...

A trace of confusion crossed Caina's face, but it hardened into determination.

Moyu Manatsu threw her knife, stabbing the Bear King. Then she uncorked the bottle, releasing the sweet scent of honey.

Smelling it, the Bear King immediately abandoned Theos and charged at her.

Moyu Manatsu focused intensely, grabbing the tree trunk. Ignoring her ladylike image, she scrambled up the tree, not caring about her skirt flying up.

The Bear King, driven mad by the scent, wanted only honey. The girl struggled to climb while the beast thrashed its claws below, roaring furiously.

Moyu Manatsu threw the honey down, hitting its face and smearing it all over.

Then, as the dumb bear licked the honey, she leaped down from the tree. Her sword plunged into its eye.

"Roar!"

A terrible scream echoed through the forest. Blood gushed out as the sword drove into its heart.

"Caina!"

"In the name of the gods, grant righteous judgment!"

After chanting the incantation, an explosion erupted, roasting the Bear King to a crisp. Its screams lingered in the air.

The disheveled girl emerged from the smoke. Without time to relax, she had to face other demon beasts.

"Who... is she..."

Caina watched the silver-haired girl, finally voicing this doubt. The Lunorette she knew wouldn't come up with such bizarre ideas. She was already doubting the authenticity of this girl before her...

"After taking down this one, there's still that snake..."

Looking at the Qilin Serpent fighting Theos, the girl's expression turned grim. The battle with the Bear King had drained her stamina. How could she handle fighting this serpent now? Besides, she couldn't use proper magic. Wearing Lunorette's body, she wasn't truly Lunorette.

"What should I do..."

Moyu Manatsu wanted to survive. Her will to live was overwhelming; she didn't want to die now. The enemy's trap was obvious, yet they walked right in. Perhaps it was their own fault. With no power, she had to resort to dirty tactics.

She glanced around. More leopard-like demon beasts had appeared, battling the students. First, she had to eliminate that serpent. The best way was bait. But where to find bait...

The girl spotted a student fighting nearby. She called out immediately:

"Erika!"

"What is it, Lunorette?"

"Come over here. I need your help!"

The girl didn't think this was wrong. She just wanted to survive.

"What do you need me to do?"

"Distract that serpent for me. I'll find a chance to kill it."

The noble girl named Erika saw nothing amiss. She trusted Lunorette's strength. But she didn't know the girl before her wasn't Lunorette at all.

Erika ran toward the Qilin Serpent, using magic to draw its attention. Easily fooled, the serpent left Theos's side.

"Idiot, don't be bait! You're no match for it!"

Seeing the serpent leave him, Theos yelled frantically. He'd chosen to fight it alone to keep it away from everyone. This beast's strength was incomparable to the other students'. Theos's power and Erika's were on completely different levels. If Erika acted as bait, it was like throwing herself into a frying pan.

"It's fine. Lunorette is here..."

Erika ran into the bushes. Before she could finish her sentence, the Qilin Serpent appeared before her.

Time seemed to stop. Her stunned expression froze in that moment. Mana glowed on the serpent's tail, its eyes filled with killing intent.

"Boom!"

Blood sprayed out. The girl's body flew through the air and crashed hard to the ground.

The forest sunlight seemed bright, shining on her, perfectly illuminating the expression on her face.

"Erika!"

A girl rushed to her side in panic.

In that instant, the silver-haired girl emerged behind the Qilin Serpent. As it turned, her sword pierced its throat.

Blood splattered the ground. Under her relentless slashes, the wailing Qilin Serpent finally fell silent...

"Help! Erika's injured! Someone save her!"

The girl's sobs echoed through the forest.

"I told her not to be bait! That idiot!"

Ignoring his injuries, Theos staggered toward the wounded girl.

"This child was attacked by the Qilin Serpent. The wound is deep; she needs emergency treatment!"

"Does anyone know healing magic?"

"Bad news! Demon beasts are coming this way!"

Gritting his teeth, Theos summoned green light. A hurricane swept the ground, holding back the demon beasts.

"What are you waiting for? Heal her now!"

Theos's roar snapped them out of it. They immediately cast healing magic, doing their best to save the injured girl.

Moyu Manatsu watched this scene, shock on her face. After a few seconds, she struggled internally, then gritted her teeth and turned away. Sword in hand, fresh from slaying the serpent, she joined the battlefield.

"This can't be real..."

Caina watched the white-haired girl leave, almost forgetting they were in battle. Others might not have noticed, but Caina saw clearly. She'd been observing this girl all along. Lunorette had deliberately used a comrade as bait to kill the demon beast. Such an absurd thing happened right before her eyes. This must be a lie. That confident, prank-loving girl—how could she do such a thing...

Pain flashed across Moyu Manatsu's face, but it vanished quickly. She gripped her sword tightly, unaware of Caina behind her...