"Okay, as you desire, Penny~" Tanya winked and blew a kiss.

"..." Penelope simply looked away and blushed.

"You are too daring, Tanya."

"Surely I have been much more daring~" Tanya continued, b.u.mping Penelope's shoulder with her own.

"Tanya, it is a fine day, right?" Penelope warmly smiled, grabbing onto Tanya's hand.

"Of course, the finest day in months… why do you ask?" Tanya seemed confused. The sun was not setting in some beautiful romantic fas.h.i.+on, it was just a normal good day. So why did Penelope draw attention to the sky?

"It's just odd… such a nice and sunny day, yet I do not hear the laughs of students and the chatter of the birds… It just feels so strange, Tanya. Aside from those two duelling, I hear nothing else." Penelope rubbed her chin. Now since she mentioned it, Tanya also began to realise it was oddly quiet for a day like this.

Considering that almost all students stay in the academy for the first semester holidays, it should be much more lively.

"Tanya, I think we should go back to the dorms…" Penelope suggested.

"I agree."

Penelope waved her hand and the dome was instantly disabled.

"You two, please come with us." Penelope sternly said, directing her voice towards the two duellists.

"Pardon? Can it wait? We are doing something-!" Charles yelled upon getting whacked on the back by the broad side of Erina's sword.

"Don't you two realise that the field is strangely deserted for such a nice day?" Tanya asked, gesturing her hands around her.

"It is the holidays-"

"And? This place is also a popular picnic spot." Penelope interrupted.

CLANG

"Now since you mention-"

PENG

"It does feel too eerily deserted for a day like this… stop the duel, we will settle this next time." Charles directed his palm in the direction of Erina.

"Fine, only because I also feel odd about this." Erina spoke with a voice filled with disappointment. Sheathing her sword on her hip, she walked over to Tanya and Penelope, daring not to speak of what happened a few moments before.

"I am glad the both of you have realised what we are speaking of. Why don't we move towards the female dorms and see whether there is anyone still hanging around there. It could be that the academy announced a stay-in day." Penelope seriously suggested, pointing towards the female dorms.

"Fine by me, but why do you seem so bothered? This is a bit too much if it is just a stay-in day. It makes me think that you believe the school was silently invaded!" Charles laughed.

*sniff* *sniff*

"Come with me." Tanya suddenly began walking over to the female dormitory building with silent steps and a fast pace.

The other three began following close behind, clearly all anxious from Penelope's words.

"I smell blood…" Tanya whispered.

After living on the battlefield for so long as In her past life, Tanya had long since familiarised herself with the smell of blood. Tane was a soldier before becoming the emperor of the Phoenix Empire, so blood was like the back of his palm to him. Every single battle smelled the same, steel and blood. Right now was barely different.

"d.a.m.n it. I did not bring my sword for this." Tanya rebuked herself with a punch to her gut. A knight without a sword was like an archer without a bow.

Tanya's face scrunched up as she recalled the night before.

'They should still be in my room!' Tanya remembered.

"We need to move quickly, drill or not, this might just be an emergency." Tanya began das.h.i.+ng with [Hop] propelling her through the distances. After a mere few seconds, Tanya reached the entrance to the building.

CLANK CLONK

The door would not budge as Tanya tried to turn the k.n.o.b.

"It is never closed like this!" Tanya panicked, sweating profusely as she moved her fingers towards the frame and the key hole.

"What is happening Tanya, is it locked?!" Erina asked, drawing her sword somewhat anxiously.

"It's locked." Tanya replied.

"It is never locked!" Charles shouted.

"And how would you know?" Erina b.u.mped her elbow onto Charles' waist.

"Ow! We don't have time for needless chatter, come help me silently open the door…" Charles took out a bobby pin and began twisting it through the key hole.

"Is this another test?" Erina asked herself.

"The academy wouldn't lock all of the doors if it was just a test for the three of us. Besides, Penelope is also here, that ruins the premise of a student test, right Penny?" Tanya denied, patting Penelope on the shoulder.

"..."

"Penelope?" Tanya turned around.

"It's nothing… I just feel like my senses are slightly m.u.f.fled." Penelope responded at a delayed pace, smiling warmly.

'This is not right.'

"I think I've unlocked it." Charles spoke upon pus.h.i.+ng the door open very slowly.

"Great, now let's proceed slowly."

SWOOSH

"Ergh-" Charles instantly fell to the ground as a projectile pierced into his chest.

BANG

A hulking figure plated in dark steel armour bashed through the door and sent Charles' body flying in the opposite direction. Dressed in dark purple regalia and bearing the emblem of a black goat skull, the figure stood up tall at the height of 2.5 metres. With a heavy crossbow in their grasp, the figure menacingly stared through their dark steel visor.

"CHARLES!"

Now relegated to a mere corpse, Charles laid on the ground, insignificant and as red as rose.

'Please be safe.'