Mia panted as she crossed the finish line, coming in sixth place. She bent over, hands on her knees, gasping for air. "Oh, thank the heavens! I made it!" she wheezed.
Ahead of her, the true battle had already been decided.
Seraphina, against all odds, had tied for second place with Cathleen. Arthur had barely beaten them, finishing first. But Seraphina had pushed beyond her limits—her legs barely held her weight, and the moment she crossed the line, her body gave out.
She felt herself falling, but before she could hit the ground, a strong hand caught hers.
Cathleen.
However, Seraphina's weight—combined with all the training gear—was too much. With a sharp thud, both girls collapsed onto the ground.
Seraphina barely registered what had happened. Her limbs were numb, her breathing was ragged, and her vision blurred. For the first time, she truly had nothing left to give.
She turned her head, looking at Cathleen, who had already pushed herself back up. The woman stood tall, brushing dust off her uniform.
Seraphina clenched her jaw, forcing her trembling arms to move. Gritting her teeth, she pushed herself up, refusing to stay down.
When she finally stood, she turned to Cathleen and smiled—tired, but still standing. "Thanks."
Cathleen gave her a long look, then simply nodded.
Seraphina didn't wait for more conversation. She turned and stumbled toward a nearby tree, needing to sit before her legs gave out completely.
Mia reached the finish line just in time to see Seraphina collapse under the shade. She immediately rushed over. "SERA! You maniac! Are you okay?!"
Seraphina groaned, closing her eyes. "Mia, if you're going to start yelling again, I'd rather go back and run another ten laps."
Mia pouted but sat beside her, watching her closely for any signs of passing out.
Not far from them, Arthur walked over to Cathleen, eyeing her curiously. "What's the matter?"
Cathleen didn't respond at first. Her gaze was fixed on Seraphina, watching the way she stumbled toward the tree.
"Her foot," she finally said.
Arthur followed her line of sight, noticing the slight but unmistakable limp in Seraphina's steps. His eyes widened slightly.
"Damn…" he muttered, rubbing his chin. "Did she really get second place with a strained foot?"
Realizing he had spoken out loud, he quickly covered his mouth and looked at Cathleen, who still hadn't taken her eyes off Seraphina. Arthur couldn't tell what she was thinking.
A few moments later, the two walked over to the shaded area, sitting near Mia and Seraphina.
Arthur nodded at them. "Hey."
Cathleen gave a small nod as well.
Mia blinked, slightly surprised but not unwelcoming. "Oh, hey! You guys tired too?"
Arthur smirked. "What do you think?"
They sat together in silence, watching as the rest of the recruits struggled to finish the race.
After what felt like ages, the last ten finally dragged themselves across the finish line.
William stepped forward, his expression as unreadable as ever.
"Last ten," he called out, "you stay here and continue practice."
Groans of misery filled the air.
"The rest of you," William continued, "you have one hour for lunch. Be back on time."
Seraphina exhaled deeply. Finally.
She wasn't sure if food would be enough to bring her back to life, but she was willing to find out.