Chapter 334: The Weight of What We Choose

Sophia sat up abruptly, the movement sharp enough that it drew everyone’s attention back to her.

"No," she said, looking straight at Micah. "I understand your fear. I really do. But you’re already setting yourself up to fail, and I hate that."

Micah blinked, clearly caught off guard. "That’s not what I meant," he said slowly. "I didn’t say I will fail."

Sophia tilted her head. "No, you didn’t, but you said if you fail. And yes, that’s a probability. But the way you said it?" She shook her head. "Deep down, part of you already believes you won’t pass. And that part is louder than it should be."

Micah opened his mouth to argue, then closed it because she was right.

"You’re not walking into this thinking you’re going to give this everything," she continued. "You’re walking into it preparing for the fall. That matters."

He frowned, staring at the ground. "I’m just being realistic."

"No," Sophia said gently. "You’re being unfair to yourself."

She leaned forward slightly. "Why did you fail the previous tests?"

Micah didn’t hesitate. "I wasn’t good enough."

The words came out flat, practiced, like he’d said them too many times before.

Sophia turned immediately to Nia. "Why did you fail yours?"

Nia swallowed. "I... wasn’t good enough."

Sophia looked to Laia. "You?"

Laia shrugged, eyes avoiding everyone’s. "Same reason."

For a moment, Sophia said nothing.

Then she let out a slow breath and laughed softly. It wasn’t a mocking laugh, nor was it an amused one—it was more of a tired sound instead.

"If there’s anyone here who should be terrified of failing," she said, "it’s me."

Nia snapped her head up. "What? That’s not—Sophia, you’re the best fighter among us."

Sophia shook her head immediately. "No."

She pointed at Micah.

"It’s him."

Micah stared at her as if she’d lost her mind. "What?"

"You’re the best," she repeated, unwavering. "Right now. Out of all of us... out of all the trainees here, you are the best."

"That’s not true," he said quickly. "You—"

"If you think I’m lying," Sophia interrupted, "ask Orion. Or Instructor Garron."

That shut him up.

"I overheard them talking recently," she went on. "I was trying to sleep that day when Instructor Garron came to Orion with the report. It showed how everyone here had improved greatly. And Instructor Garron told Orion he had high hopes for you."

Micah’s mouth opened, then closed again. His eyes looked almost dazed.

"I... no. I’m sure he was just saying that," he told Sophia.

"They didn’t say it like encouragement," Sophia added quietly. "They said it like it was a fact."

She turned back to Nia and Laia. "And you two—since when did you start getting cold feet?"

Nia bristled slightly. "We’re not—"

"You are," Sophia said softly, "and I get it. But listen to me."

She pushed herself fully to her feet now, despite the way her legs trembled slightly from exhaustion.

"It’s better to fail trying than to give up before you even step forward," she said. "It’s better to bleed, to fall, to crawl out of the forest half-dead than to walk away wondering what might have happened."

Her voice softened. "I’m scared too."

That surprised them.

"Most of the beasts I’ve read about," she continued, "the ones Orion quizzes me on while we spar—I’ve never even seen them."

She held up two fingers. "I’ve seen a Trihydra. I’ve seen a Skylur. That’s it."

She laughed breathlessly. "I don’t even know what a real Trihydra egg looks like. I know it’s olive-colored because I read it in a book—not because I’ve stood over a nest and seen one with my own eyes."

She looked around at them. "That’s where you all have the advantage."

No one spoke.

"And yet," she went on, "I keep going. I keep training. I keep getting back up even when I fall so hard the ground feels like it’s trying to swallow me."

She tapped her chest lightly. "I’m not strong. My stamina is trash. I can’t run for long without gasping like I’m dying."

Nia frowned. "That’s not true."

"It is," Sophia said honestly. "Or at least, it was."

She smiled faintly. "But I kept trying. And now I’m better."

Her gaze drifted briefly toward the training grounds, as if she could still see the ghosts of earlier days. "When Orion first tested me here, everyone thought I’d fail."

She looked at them again. "Some of you gave up on me before I even started."

No one denied it.

"It took hours," she said quietly. "People left. People laughed. People decided I wasn’t worth watching."

She clenched her fist. "That sword was too heavy. I wasn’t strong enough. My hands shook. My arms burned. I almost blacked out."

Her lips curved into a small, fierce smile. "But I wasn’t a quitter."

She met Micah’s eyes again. "Part of it was to prove Orion wrong because he’s, in simple terms, annoying," she admitted. "But the bigger part? I refused to let failure decide who I was."

The air felt heavy, charged.

"So here’s what we’re going to do," Sophia said. "We’re going to make a promise."

She looked at each of them in turn. "It doesn’t matter if we pass this test or not. We don’t give up."

"If we fail," she continued, "we try again. And again. And again."

Her voice steadied. "Even if we only pass when we’re old and aching and slow—it won’t matter. Because we achieved what we set out to do. We didn’t give up."

She shook her head slightly. "No one here is quitting to become a carpenter even if they fail the test. Imagine being a carpenter, Micah." 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Sophia shuddered at the thought.

Micah let out a weak huff of laughter despite himself.

"We will support each other," Sophia said. "We will train together. We will fall together. And we will help each other grow. Apart from Brynhild and some others in the pack who are actually Orion’s friends, like Tobias, Ronan, and Lysander—you guys are my... you’re my friends too. People I hold close to my heart."

She extended her hand toward them. "So let’s turn that into a promise. No one is giving up. No one is going to let the other fail. We will support each other and help each other at every point we can. Okay?"

Nia stared at it for a long moment, eyes shining with tears. She didn’t want to fail, but Sophia’s words told her it didn’t matter. She had friends now. It wasn’t just her and her sister anymore, and they were stronger now too. They were going to prove to Holly that they could pass the test.

She smiled, nodded, and placed her hand over Sophia’s.

"I promise," she said softly, offering a watery smile.

Joren followed immediately. "I promise."

Laia nodded, jaw tight. "Me too."

Cat placed her hand in the pile. "I’m in."

Micah added, "Me too."

Dren smiled, adding his hand last. "So we’re not giving up at all."

Nia nodded firmly. "Not at all."

Sophia smiled at them, something warm and fierce settling in her chest.

She didn’t tell them that she didn’t care whether she passed or not. She didn’t tell them that she had no intention of becoming a warrior or a fighter.

What mattered was this.

She believed in them.

And she was certain of one thing, as sure as steel in her hands and breath in her lungs—

No one here was going back to being just a trainee. Not even her, because after this, she would have achieved her aim of learning how to fight after all.