As Xhez sat down in front of Dylan, she smiled widely. Excitement bubbled up inside of her. She wanted to see if she could find out a little about him.

"Forgive me if I'm mistaken," Dylan said, "but you remind me of one of my classmates, are you related to a woman named 'Rin' by any chance?"

"Yes," Xhez lied. "I'm her sister."

"Ah, the resemblance is uncanny," he chuckled. "My name's Dylan. It is a pleasure to meet you."

"Uh, I am Xhez. It is nice to meet you as well."

Then, Xhez got to thinking. What she wanted to ask about, obviously, was Dylan's actual species. However, she gauged that maybe, if she asked right now, the boy would be too spooked to respond. Xhez knew she would react that way if the situation was reversed, after all. She figured that somehow, she needed to find a way to get the conversation to that point.

[Hm… What do I say?] Xhez asked herself. Before she could ask anything, however, Dylan said something.

"Rin never told us she had a sister," he said with a polite smile. "Although, I suppose I have failed to establish any sort of real camaraderie with her."

"Uhm, we…" Xhez looked away. "We had not spoken in a long time. We only m- I mean, reconnected, recently."

"Oh, I see! How nice," Dylan took a bite from his food. "I assume you're not from Libera, then?"

"I'm not," Xhez confirmed.

"Well, I hope you will enjoy the city, then."

As he said that, Xhez thought of something to ask.

"So, are you from Libera?"

At that, Dylan shook his head.

"No, I'm from Cradle."

That was the other of the two large cities Rin had told Xhez about, while she read that book to her. There was a third, it was called Cardana, but due to the distance between it and the other two cities, apparently, people didn't know much about it.

"What is Cradle like?" Xhez asked.

"Haven't been there? I'd say it's… different. Very different. It's rougher and colder, but it's also charming in its own way. There's quite a bit from the Old World to look at."

"The Old World?" Xhez tilted her head.

"Yes," Dylan nodded. "Cradle was the first city built after the Split. As such, there are many old, strange buildings there."

"Ohhhh, I see!" Xhez replied and Dylan chuckled.

However, at that point, their conversation stalled. Dylan took a couple of bites from his food, and Xhez wondered if, maybe, now was a good time to bring up the topic she *actually* wanted to talk about.

[Once I ask… How will he react?] She wondered, looking up at him. Although his spirit emanated some darkness, he seemed like a relaxed and calm individual.

Running out of patience, and eager to learn, Xhez took a deep breath and looked back.

[The only other people in the cafeteria are Eve, and the woman serving the food. No one should be able to hear this.]

With excitement running throughout her body, Xhez took a deep breath and leaned forward.

"Excuse me, can I ask you something?"

"Sure," Dylan shrugged with a smile. "What would you like to know?"

"What are you?" Xhez asked.

"…"

Dylan froze. His red eyes looked back at her, and Xhez waited for an answer.

"W-What?" Dylan asked, his voice shaking. "I'm sorry?"

"Oh, my apologies," Xhez leaned a little closer. "I asked, 'what are you?' I can tell you are not human, I wished to-"

Before she could finish speaking, Dylan wrapped one of his hands around her neck.

---

{Rin}

Admittedly, Rin couldn't quite decipher the emotions stirring inside of her at the moment. Part of her felt excited to show her teacher what she could do, another felt anxious. She half-feared that she'd run into those same creeps from before somehow, though she knew the likelihood of that was low. Still, a number of ridiculous thoughts came to her as Maria led her forward.

"So," Rin asked, in part just so that she could take her mind off of her own paranoid thoughts. "Where are we headed?"

"Your test will take place at the base of a nearby mountain," Maria explained. "There, you will face a group of cheren. Has Cara spoken about them in class?"

"Probably… But, could you remind me of them?"

"Sure. Cheren are Beast-type, Rank D, monsters. They're, essentially, giant spiders that can create numbing webs. Coming into contact with those webs will paralyze you, which is when they strike."

Maria continued to tell her about them as the two walked into a forest as colorful and vibrant as what Rin had seen in old paintings. It was like she was in a dream, almost.

"They might sound intimidating, but they're slow, and they rely almost entirely on their webs. Meaning, as long as you avoid them, you will be in almost no actual danger. If their webs do touch you, however, whichever body part was touched will be paralyzed for up to a minute."

[Okay… Pretty terrifying.]

"Don't let that get to you, though," Maria said, stopping for a moment so she could look back at Rin. "Remember, the only real danger they present comes from those webs. As long as you dodge them, this should be easy, and I know you have the speed to do that."

Maria walked over to her, placing a hand on Rin's shoulder. The rookie looked up at her teacher as Maria gave her a slightly forced, but encouraging, smile.

"I chose this trial personally, for you. As long as you keep a level head, and you remember what I've taught you, you will do just fine."

Nodding, Rin tried to take that in. Maria believed in her, and the beginner adventurer wanted to validate that faith.

"… What about my [Spirit Flame?]" Rin asked. "Can I use that?"

"I would prefer you try to win without it, however, in real fights like this, there are no rules. If you feel that you need it to win, to survive, then, by all means, use whichever tools you have available to you. This is an exam, not a training session, after all."

"Alright, I understand."

"Good. Now, come. We aren't too far from the place."

With that said, Maria continued to guide Rin forward. The nervousness in Rin's heart had been eased just a little by the vote of confidence her teacher had given, but she was still, of course, anxious. At the same time, however, she wanted to get it over with already.

Soon enough, however, the two of them were walking down a steep, dirt incline, and Rin could see what looked like a foggy pond up ahead. But, more alarming than that were the multiple boulder-sized lumps of webs scattered around the area.

[What the hell?] She wondered, as Maria stopped, and pointed toward the place.

"There they are. Take some time to inspect the area, get a feel for your opponents. Once you're ready, just walk up and take them out."

"... Okay," Rin nodded. "Any last-minute tips?"

"Just one. Their eyes are very sensitive. If you strike them, the creature will probably leave itself open for a killing blow. Other than that, remember, dodge the web, and you're good. If anything happens, I will step in and save you. So, do not hesitate. Fight your heart out."

Rin heard that and looked over at the pond. From this position, she could see a few large spider-like creatures walking around the dark waters ahead.

Letting all of her anxiety out in one breath, Rin walked forward.

"... Good luck," Maria said behind her, as Rin moved toward her enemies.