Ronan moved along the perimeter, mana reserves lower than he'd like after sustaining Stealth for this long. The technique didn't consume much individually, but over an hour the drain added up, leaving him perhaps seventy percent capacity. Not ideal, but manageable.

He'd need to sit down and replenish his strength.

Then he spotted it, a claimable piece of land.

It sat perhaps thirty meters ahead, a marble slab jutting from the grass, its surface carved with intricate geometric patterns that caught the light from the sun perfectly. The point looked legitimate – Academy-standard construction, correct mana signature, no visible tampering. From the looks of it, there didn't seem to be anyone near.

Ronan moved toward it.

An icicle flew past his head.

He didn't flinch – the trajectory had been horrible, off by at least two feet. But it wasn't clumsy. It was clear that it was a warning more than an attack.

Freya walked from around a cluster of trees, her expression calm. Neither of them reacted with surprise at seeing the other.

Ronan approached first, not aggressively, more like someone opening a negotiation rather than a confrontation. "We both clearly want the same thing."

"We do."

"So what would you take to let me have it uncontested?"

Freya didn't answer immediately. Her eyes swept the clearing, calculating.

Ronan noticed she wasn't folding simply because of the leverage he held over her outside this event – she was sharp and self-interested even when cornered.

"I'll cede the node," she said finally. "But I want something for it. Specific information on where the strongest contestants are currently clustering. You've been sweeping the perimeter – I assume you have a clearer read on their movements than I do."

Ronan considered it briefly, then denied it. "I don't have that information. I've been avoiding the center entirely."

Her expression didn't change. "Then I will claim the point, unless you'd like to fight me for it."

Ronan wasn't scared or unsettled by that. She couldn't disqualify him from the tournament because that would go against the contract – sabotaging his advancement would be considered indirect harm. But simply wanting to claim the point wouldn't be considered "sabotaging" him. She also needed it to gain points.

Still. Ronan tilted his head slightly. "I need the point more than you."

She opened her mouth to respond, but Ronan interrupted her.

"You're a top ten student. You will definitely make the top twenty-five."

Freya's eyes narrowed. "That's hardly a reas–"

"I know," Ronan said, cutting her off again. "But you're aware of our previous deal."

Freya froze.

Everything was recorded. There wasn't much they could say without risking exposure. She nodded silently.

"Then you know," Ronan continued carefully, "that the deal favored you. All you had to do was attend a few 'meetings.' I was tasked with something far more difficult."

Her jaw tightened. She didn't look at the recording devices, nor did she glance around. Just stared at him, processing the implication. Finally, she said, voice flat, "There was no refusal."

She didn't specify him specifically, so he knew she was talking about the mana contract. It was true that the mana contract hadn't refused, but that was because he'd accepted it as well.

But the reason he accepted it was because he needed Iris gone as well. He had plans for the future that involved her gone, and they involved Luca.

But Freya doesn't need to know that.

Ronan told Freya plainly, "Pushing this further costs you more than conceding does. I have no intention of backing off the point now that the terms of our arrangement are on the table."

Freya didn't answer immediately. She looked at the node, then at him, doing the same math he already knew she was doing. Weighing whether the conflict was worth it. Whether exposing more of their dynamic in a recorded environment served her.

"Fine," she said finally. Not because he was right, but because she didn't feel like spending the effort proving a point that didn't change anything. "I'll let you have it." She added, "Enjoy pretending this was a negotiation and not just me choosing not to bother."

Ronan didn't argue with the framing. Playing off her ego was a good way to go about this.

"Of course, I'd never think otherwise."

Freya's expression flattened. She turned to leave without further comment, another small icicle forming and dissolving at her fingertips out of pure habit rather than threat – something she did when she was irritated and had nowhere to put it. She'd done it before in the past.

Snap.

Ronan's head turned.

A branch snapped somewhere to the side. Not the kind of sound you would hear in nature. No wind through the canopy to explain it.

Both of them went still for a beat, scanning the treeline.

Freya was tense.

But then the next words that came out of her mouth didn't match her tenseness.

"Probably another contestant moving carelessly nearby," Freya said.

Ronan agreed, dismissing it the same way. "Probably."

Freya moved toward the trees, slipping back into the forest without looking at him again. Before she was fully out of sight, Ronan called after her, half out of habit.

"Wait. One more thing."

Freya turned.

"Yes?"

"Come closer."

Freya looked a little unsettled, but she did what he said anyway.

"Make it quick. I also have points to gather, I don't have time to talk forever."

With a shrug, Ronan continued with what he was going to say. He spoke a little quieter, so no one could actually hear them speak.

"It is simply a request," Ronan said. "You don't have to do it. But if you see Aura, pass her this message for me."

"Aura?" Freya paused. "Then I would rather not."

Ronan sighed dramatically at that.

"Of course. I didn't expect you to say yes, I know you have problems getting along with her for what she did to you."

Freya's eyes narrowed. "Your meaning?"

"Forget it," Ronan said.

Her reaction, however, was just as he'd expected. Her posture became a little more defensive, but only for a slight second.

Freya's expression changed as fast as it had slipped, and she put on an expression of pondering, as if she were considering the option.

"Hmm," she said. "Perhaps I could. You were correct about the deals not being fully equal. I am not a woman who enjoys being under the debt of another. Fine, what is this message? Should I see her, I will deliver it."

She phrased it like she was doing him some grand favor. As if she were rising above the situation and not simply protecting her ego.

Ronan smiled internally.

"How generous," he said. "Well then, if you see Aura…"

Ronan looked left and right, scanning the surroundings to see if anyone was listening.

Freya tensed slightly, becoming more focused.

Then Ronan continued, his tone grim.

"I'd like you to tell her that she left her smut book in my room last night…" He paused. "And that I may have thrown it away."

Freya's expression turned from a serious expression into visible annoyance. She realized he was messing with her.

"You'll regret involving me in these childish games…" She said, her eyes narrowed, then walked away before he could respond.

Amusement filled Ronan's chest.