After some time, Dark and Ingrid were walking through the forest once again. The sound of branches snapping beneath their feet and the rustle of leaves formed the only noise between them. Ingrid still felt uneasy about what had happened to Dark — her mind was filled with thoughts and doubts.

  “Ingrid... I think there’s a river nearby. Maybe it’ll lead us deeper into the forest,” said Dark, furrowing his brows and placing a hand on his chin. “But we’d need to know which side of the island we’re on...”

  “We’re in the northern part of the island. Before I found you, I saw it from above the trees.” Ingrid lifted her gaze, watching the sunlight filter through the leaves. She raised her hand to shield her eyes from the light. “But we’ve moved quite a lot... so I can’t say exactly where we are now.”

  Dark glanced at Ingrid, then at his own paralyzed arm.

  “It’d be nice if your arm were better. Then you could go check it out.”

  “Actually, I can manage with just one arm.” Ingrid removed the improvised bandage and tried moving her injured arm. It moved slightly, but her hand still didn’t respond properly. “I can definitely handle it.”

  She gave a few light hops to regain her balance, and Dark turned away, blushing, not wanting to see too much of what was moving. Ingrid leapt toward a nearby tree, grabbing onto a branch with one arm. Then another jump, and another — moving swiftly until she reached one of the tallest trees.

  At the top, the wind brushed against her face and tossed her long black hair around. From there, she spotted a massive tree in the distance. After studying the terrain for a few seconds, she descended gracefully and landed beside Dark.

  “So? What did you see?” he asked.

  “I think we’re relatively close, but heading in the wrong direction.” Ingrid pointed southeast. “It’s somewhere around there. It’ll be easier to tell once we’re nearer.”

  “Then we should move southeast. But we need to be careful... there could be students fighting each other.”

  Ingrid took the lead, and Dark followed close behind.

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  “We really should be careful. Besides...” he sighed. “There are probably a lot of people targeting me, and I can’t fight. Which means...”

  Dark slumped slightly, losing composure.

  “What a team... my partner’s incredibly strong, but can’t even help me...”

  Ingrid crossed her arms with a dismissive huff.

  “Hmph. If you want to blame someone for my arm, blame yourself. If you weren’t so weak, I wouldn’t be like this!”

  Dark clenched his jaw, forcing himself to stay calm.

  “Yeah, but let’s remember who saved you! That was me!”

  Ingrid turned around, visibly irritated.

  “And let’s remember you only beat Tyson because I helped you! You just landed the final blow!”

  Dark’s frustration grew, but he took a deep breath and steadied himself. His tone turned colder — almost arrogant.

  “We can’t afford to fight. Losing would be the worst thing now. Let’s just keep moving, carefully.”

  “Fine, let’s go.” Ingrid agreed, though it was clear she didn’t want to admit he was right.

  Time passed. After hours of walking without rest, Dark could barely take another step. Sweat ran down his face, and his breathing was heavy. Even without his sword, he had endured more than expected — but his body was at its limit.

  In contrast, Ingrid seemed perfectly fine — as if nothing was wrong at all.

  “Why do I have to depend on someone like you...?” she thought, feeling humiliated by her weakened arm and lack of a weapon.

  Dark collapsed to the ground, exhausted. His chest rose and fell with difficulty.

  Ingrid took a water bottle from her magic storage and approached. Kneeling beside him, she offered it with her usual cold expression.

  “Come on, drink. It’s warm, but you need it. Otherwise, we’ll lose. And if we do...” Her tone shifted, a faint smile curling as her eyes closed slightly — a smile that made Dark shiver. “...your death won’t be painless.”

  Dark snatched the bottle and drank as much as he could. When he finished, he returned it, still panting.

  “Thanks, Ingrid. But... let’s rest for a bit.” His voice almost sounded like a plea.

  Ingrid stood up, placing a hand on her forehead. She had hoped to reach the great tree by the second day — or at least get close — but that plan was clearly slipping away.

  “Alright. We’ll rest. But we’ll have to walk through the night. There are worse monsters after dark.”

  While Dark struggled to catch his breath, Ingrid handled everything on her own — lighting a campfire, preparing food, and finally sitting down beside him, though she kept a good distance between them.

  She handed him a piece of cooked meat.

  “Here.”

  “Thanks, Ingrid. I was really hungry...” said Dark, taking it.

  “Don’t thank me.” She looked away. “I’m just doing what benefits me. You’re the only one who can fight right now.”

  “Hey... once your arm’s better, how will you fight anyway? We lost your sword, remember?”

  Ingrid froze, caught off guard. She’d completely forgotten about that. After a quick thought, she spoke:

  “Then... why don’t you lend me yours?”

  Dark’s eyes widened.

  “M-my sword!?”

  “Yes, your sword. Is there a problem with that?” she replied plainly, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

  Dark lowered his gaze, his expression dim. That sword gave him a sense of confidence and strength... but if it was necessary—

  “Fine. I’ll lend it to you.”

  Ingrid didn’t show the slightest sympathy. Efficiency was all that mattered to her. And since she was clearly more skilled, it only made sense for her to wield that strange weapon instead.

  Standing up abruptly, she looked down at Dark.

  “Rest quickly. Once night falls, we’ll start moving again. Be ready.”

  The sky was still faintly bright, but dusk was approaching fast. The firelight flickered between them as the forest’s silence crept back in — heavy, yet strangely comforting.