Celeste’s POV

*****

Mixed Combat Lab, 8:12 Am

"Alright guys," I managed a smile as each team hurdled together, my eyes sweeping past all their faces. Including — dear goddess — Lysandra. "Do you think we need a leader for a test like this? Or—?"

"Pfft." Sure enough, Lysandra scoffed, already being a bitch. "Of course, you’ll talk about picking a leader. One Blood Trials win is already getting to your head."

My mouth parted. "You can’t be seriously trying to antagonise me right now."

"Did I lie?"

"Enough." The female senior year hybrid stopped us before things could escalate. "Since it’s a free-for-all, I doubt we’ll need a leader. What we should plan now is tactics and who’ll face whom in the other teams."

At the mention of that, my head turned to the other teams.

The wolf side had picked out Luther as one of their representatives... as expected. He and his teammates muttered amongst themselves, his face stretched with a grin when our eyes locked.

So far only the witches’ team was missing one more member.

"The witches section has two more minutes to pick one last member." Professor Varrick announced. "If not, I’ll be forced to pick someone for them."

"Lysandra," Caelum called out just then. "That reminds me. Weren’t you sanctioned from using your magic for a week by the Dean?"

Surprise flooded me as my gaze trailed to the Australian princess’s reddened face. "W–Well... yes. But I still have my wolf to rely on."

"You can’t use magic?" The senior hybrid nearly exclaimed. "Dear gods, is it too late to pick someone else?"

"The few other hybrids we have are lacking compared to her," Caelum admitted. "I think we should just keep her. Besides, time for nominations is almost up."

I drew in a deep breath, fists clenching and unclenching as I reached out to my wolf. ’And here we are. Still unable to shift.’

’Hey, don’t beat yourself up.’ She reassured me. ’We can still learn with time. For now, at least your physical abilities are far better than before I awakened. Besides...’

She paused as my eyes swept back to the witch’s side. ’... We don’t want too much attention on us. Not after the Montecito drama.’

Sigh.

Fair points.

"Alright!" Professor Varrick boomed, bringing silence to the hall. "Since the witches are unable to decide on another member, I’ll pick someone myself."

Murmurs rippled through the crowd as the man scanned past the audience seats. He squinted, placing a finger on his chin.

Then—the unexpected happened.

"You," he pointed at someone. "Azrael Vaelmont, right?"

Gasps erupted through the hall while my eyes bulged. I noticed the way Caelum shifted beside me, remembering he had once warned me about the witch.

However, no one was as pressed as the witches’ side.

"He’s supposed to represent us?" Someone complained with a shout.

"He’s only a year two student."

"A transfer worst of all... does anyone even know which school he came from?"

Many who spoke were probably people who hadn’t witnessed Azrael’s power firsthand. Not me though.

The few times I’ve seen him in action made me know he hid a lot of his potential on purpose. Could he be pushed to reveal more of his abilities now?

"Hmph." Lysandra harrumphed as Azrael walked to the hall’s centre. "If only I could use my magic in this. It would be fun to teach that emo jerk a lesson."

I glanced at her from the corner of my eye, a smirk playing on my lips.

Be careful what you wish for, Lysandra Carrington.

"Alright, combatants!" As Professor Varrick yelled, as a white force dome surrounded the arena ground. "Stay in position. No lethal attacks or spells allowed. The last team standing wins."

Each team stayed at a different corner of the square arena. The witches moved uneasily around Azrael, the latter standing with his hands in his pockets.

His sunglasses glinted under the arena’s white lights. They were facing the hybrids so I had a feeling he was staring at me. It was always hard to tell with those damn glasses.

"Ready?" Professor Varrick phased through the dome, giving us space as he raised an arm.

"Celeste!" Luther’s voice carried through the arena, teasing. "Try not to lose too fast, Princess."

I smirked. "Try not to embarrass your pack."

Wolves howled with excitement from the audience stands. I could feel a hint of embarrassment from Luther through the bond but he quickly brushed it off.

No hard feelings.

As the Hunters drew out their weapons, the cheering from the crowd intensified. The professor’s raised arm stays suspended for a few more seconds.

Then—he lowered it sharply. "Begin!"

"I’ll go first." Caelum charged first, as a female Hunter, Luther and Inari—one of the other witches who competed in the Blood Trials—also darted forward.

Although my brother was fast, rocketing into the air with glowing hands... Luther excelled at speed.

He tackled Caelum mid-air with a beastly growl. But before they could crash into the arena floor, Caelum vanished in a flash of light.

"Nice..." Caelum spread out his arms, feet rooted to the ground.

Oh, no.

Years of growing up together made me know what he was about to do.

"... TRY!" A devastating sonic roar boomed from his mouth, vibrating the air around the arena and heading straight for Luther who hadn’t touched the ground.

Luther clutched his ears with gritted teeth, plopping with a resounding crash like a plane shot down. However, when Caelum stopped his attack to get some air—

—Inari sent a blast of orange flames at him, her other hand keeping the Hunter girl occupied with ice spikes erupting from the ground around her.

Caelum crossed his arms, creating a force shield that blocked the fire attack.

"Is Luther down?" Lysandra placed a hand on her face, sounding more anxious than she should.

I gave her a side eye, keeping myself from saying something sarcastic.

Fortunately for the Alpha, he was on his feet within seconds, snapping his neck with an impressed grin. His gaze slid past me once before locking on my brother.

"Now the party’s getting started!" He cracked his knuckles, an invisible Alpha aura emanating from him like a hurricane.

"Come on, girls." The senior year hybrid whistled at Lysandra and me. "Time to step in."

And just like that, everyone from every team tagged into the brawl, spells flying and claws unsheathing. I exhaled once, my magic bristling underneath my skin.

Through the chaos, Azrael hadn’t moved yet.

This was about to get hella messy.