For a moment, no one moved. Then, Kael noticed groups forming: three or four students huddling together and whispering, their voices swallowed by the fog. Some turned their heads toward him. Fingers pointed. Liam stood at the front of one group, a devilish smile stretching across his face. His eyes burned with a cold, predatory gleam.

  Great, Kael thought bitterly. Run or die.

  Without hesitating for a second, he dashed toward the nearest opening in the massive walls. His boots kicked up swirls of white sand as he disappeared into one of the labyrinth's many openings.

  He didn’t look back.

  The others still hesitated behind him, their instincts warring between caution and ambition. Even Astra stood motionless for a moment, her eyes narrowed as if calculating something only she understood. But as soon as Kael vanished inside, the spell broke. One by one, they followed, some in packs and some alone. The game was set in motion.

  Kael kept running, weaving through twisted corridors and deliberately choosing turns that led away from the central chamber. The walls stretched endlessly, their smooth gray surfaces unbroken and giving no hint of his location. His heart pounded in his chest, and the sound of his breath echoed softly in the enclosed space.

  After what felt like an eternity, he finally slowed down. He leaned briefly against the cold stone and caught his breath.

  So far, so good, he thought between breaths. I managed to put some distance between us.

  He glanced around. The fog here was denser, clinging to the ground like a restless tide. For the first time since entering, he hesitated. Should I just keep going straight?

  He frowned. No, that’s exactly what they’d expect. If I double back, I might throw them off my trail.

  After making his decision, he pushed himself away from the wall, turned left, and moved along a passage that ran parallel to the one he had used before. He made his way back toward the central chamber quietly and deliberately, but from another direction.

  As he entered a new hallway, something changed. The gray walls were no longer smooth. Faint, intricate symbols appeared along the stone, deeply carved into its surface. Their edges shimmered faintly in the mist as if the labyrinth itself were beginning to speak.

  It can’t be that easy, right? Kael narrowed his eyes at the faintly glowing symbols. They wouldn't just announce the traps like that. There has to be more to it.

  Even as doubt stirred within him, his curiosity won out. He retraced his steps, his gaze fixed on the intricate carvings. The symbols were beautiful in a way that made his stomach tighten. Elegant, flowing lines interwoven like veins of light; each one hinting at the power sleeping beneath the stone.

  But then he stopped.

  The passageway behind him was gone.

  Where he had just run moments before, a solid gray wall now stood, seamless, as if it had existed there for centuries.

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  "What?" His voice cracked slightly. Panic flared in his chest. That can’t be. I didn’t hear anything. I didn’t see or hear anything. It just appeared.

  The fog seemed to lean in, swallowing the edges of his vision. For a few frantic seconds, he pressed his hands against the wall, searching for a seam or a sign of some kind. There was nothing: Cold stone. Silent. Implacable.

  Was this what they meant by a living maze?

  The initial panic slowly ebbed, replaced by a cold, focused calm. He stepped back and looked at the wall again. This time, he didn't see it as a student caught off guard. Now, he saw it as someone who understood he’d crossed an invisible threshold.

  I get it now. That’s why they announce the traps. It’s not about avoiding them; it's impossible. The labyrinth decides when you face them.

  He turned back toward the hallway where the symbols waited, their faint glow reflecting in his eyes like distant fire. He studied them intently, but the carvings offered no clear indication of what was to come. They were simply ancient, perfect, and indifferent.

  Kael exhaled slowly and straightened his posture. "There's no point in brooding over it," he muttered to himself. "Let’s get this over with.”

  With steady steps, he walked toward the trap.

  Kael advanced cautiously, each step crunching softly on the white sand. The air shifted as he neared the glowing symbols, growing warmer and heavier. The mist clinging to the floor began to retreat, sucked toward the walls as if by an invisible pull.

  Then, the symbols flared into fire.

  Lines of red and gold ignited across the corridor, racing like sparks through dry grass. Within seconds, the dull gray stone transformed into a blazing conduit of energy. Heat slammed into Kael like a wall, stealing the breath from his lungs.

  A deep rumble echoed through the labyrinth. The ground trembled beneath his feet. Narrow jets of fire burst from the glowing etchings, shooting across the corridor in sharp, rhythmic bursts. First one, then two, then a chaotic pattern that turned the corridor into a shifting inferno.

  "So this is it," Kael muttered through gritted teeth. "The fire trap."

  The labyrinth wasn’t giving him time to think. The jets increased in intensity, their timing unpredictable. The flames licked hungrily at the air. The only way forward was through.

  He pressed his back against the wall, his eyes darting across the flames as he tried to track their rhythm. There has to be a pattern...come on... He inhaled deeply, feeling the heat sting his lungs.

  There! A brief hesitation between the second and third jet. Barely a heartbeat, but enough.

  Kael exploded into motion. He dove through the first gap, rolling as a burst of fire shot past where his head had been a second earlier. The scorching floor bit at his exposed skin. He didn’t stop.

  The second set roared to life. He ducked under one jet and twisted past another, feeling the flames singe the edges of his clothes. His heart pounded in rhythm with the eruptions; adrenaline sharpened his senses.

  Halfway through.

  Suddenly, a wall of fire erupted ahead, sealing the corridor completely. Kael skidded to a halt, coughing as the air became unbearably hot. Sweat stung his eyes.

  Think! He scanned the walls. The fire wasn’t random. It followed the carvings. A single, larger symbol pulsed faintly in the upper left corner. His instincts told him that this was the key.

  He grabbed a piece of loose stone debris and hurled it at the symbol. The moment it struck, the flames faltered—not gone, but weakened, stuttering like a candle in the wind.

  Kael didn’t hesitate. He sprinted through the wall of fire, which split open just long enough for him to pass through. The heat clawed at his back, but he emerged on the other side and stumbled into a cooler chamber.

  The jets died behind him. The corridor returned to silence. Only the faint crackle of cooling stone remained.

  Kael dropped to one knee, gasping for air as his heart slammed against his ribs. His clothes were scorched and his hands were blistered, but he was alive.

  The mist swirled again, forming a faint, door-shaped outline at the far end of the chamber. The first trial was over.

  He looked back at the symbols. They were fading now. First, they turned to dust the color of the white sand. Then, they darkened until they vanished completely, like fragments dissolving into a starless night.

  His gaze shifted toward the exit that had appeared ahead. Without hesitation, he stepped through it and entered a new passageway. His peace was steady, and his mind was still fixed on his destination.