Freya’s gaze dropped to the small rune clasped in her palm.

The thing weighed almost nothing – no wider than her thumb and carved from polished obsidian with faint etchings across the surface. When she poured mana into it, it turned into a thin sheet that could be attached onto any hard surface.

"So you want me to slip this onto the statue?"

"Yes."

She looked up at Ronan. "While everyone’s focused on the nodes?"

"Correct."

Her thumb traced the rune’s edge. "And you believe I can reach the base without being noticed?"

Ronan tilted his head. "Class S will arrive first. Grace already moved the camp near the statue’s northern location. You’ll be close enough before Class B, Class A, or anyone else arrives."

Freya stiffened.

She’d suspected Grace’s base placement was strategic – too intentional to dismiss – but hearing confirmation from Ronan made it worse somehow. He spoke as though Grace’s decisions were already written.

"And you think Iris will be vulnerable."

"I don’t think," Ronan corrected. "I know."

Freya’s fingers tightened around the rune. She wanted to ask more. Press deeper. Find out how he knew.

But Ronan’s expression shifted before she could speak.

"What is your goal in this exam?"

Freya blinked. "What?"

"Your goal," he repeated, slower this time. "What do you want from the Inter-Class War?"

She frowned. "To win."

"Wrong question." Ronan stepped closer. "Let me rephrase."

His voice lowered.

"Would you rather win the exam with your class... or would you rather use this opportunity to cause damage to Iris?"

Freya stilled.

The answer arrived without hesitation.

"The latter."

Ronan nodded, satisfied. "Good."

Freya felt her pulse quicken because the admission had come too easily. She should have lied. Pretended nobility. Claimed she valued Class S’s success above personal revenge.

But Ronan had asked the real question. And he already knew of her true nature. He knew a lot more than that somehow.

He began walking north, and Freya followed, her mind already shifting back to the rune. Aura walked beside them, and Freya almost forgot she was here.

"What does it do?" she asked. "The rune."

Ronan glanced over his shoulder. "It disrupts mana flow."

Freya’s eyes narrowed. "Elaborate."

"The final statue requires two minor nodes working in tandem," Ronan explained, calm and unbothered by her demand. "Unlike single nodes, dual-node configurations need constant regulation. Someone has to balance the channels. Smooth the flow. Prevent destabilization."

Freya processed that. "And you’re saying Iris will be handling that?"

"Yes."

"Why her?"

Ronan smiled faintly. "Because she’s competent, calm, and trusted by Grace. Iris won’t panic if something fluctuates. She won’t overcorrect. And unlike Freya Lockhart–" his smile widened slightly "--Iris doesn’t carry the risk of sabotage."

Freya’s jaw tightened. "Grace doesn’t know anything about–"

"She does," Ronan said. "Not only that, she probably also knows about you spreading rumors to get Aura blamed for the death of Marcus in your class."

Freya’s eyes widened. She turned to Aura, who shot her a pointed look and rolled her eyes, as if she was insulted that Freya thought she wouldn’t notice.

Ronan continued.

"Iris will stabilize the flow," Ronan continued. "Which means she’ll be stationary. Focused. And when the rune activates..."

He trailed off deliberately, letting Freya finish the thought herself.

"She’ll lose control if the rune activates."

"Exactly."

Freya stared at the rune again, calculating. If the mana destabilized while Iris was regulating it, the backlash would hit her directly. Not fatal – Class S healers would respond – but painful. Embarrassing.

And the disruption would likely fracture Class S’s attempt to claim the statue before they could recover.

"You can’t place it yourself," Freya said slowly. "So you need an insider."

"Correct."

"And because of where Class S’s base is located, we’ll arrive first."

"Yes."

Freya glanced at him, suspicious. "You knew I’d figure that part out."

Ronan shrugged. "You’re not stupid."

The compliment – if it even was one – felt more clinical than warm. Freya ignored it and focused on the plan.

"I assume I don’t need to explain why disrupting Iris benefits you," Ronan added.

"No. You don’t."

She understood perfectly.

If Iris failed publicly, the Lockhart main family would lose face. Grace’s coordinated strategy would falter. And Freya would appear reliable in comparison—someone who didn’t collapse under pressure when given a critical task.

It wasn’t everything she wanted.

But it was a start.

Freya studied the rune more closely now, noting its craftsmanship. The lines were too clean. The shape too deliberate.

Her gaze snapped up.

"Where did you get this?"

Ronan didn’t answer immediately.

"It’s far beyond your abilities," Freya pressed. "You’re Tier 1. Weak mana control. No runecraft training worth mentioning."

She knew she was pushing, but curiosity overrode caution.

"Who made it?"

Ronan hesitated. He didn’t look insulted, but it looked more like he was deciding whether or not to confide in her that information.

Then he sighed quietly and answered.

"Sapphire. A girl in our class."

Freya’s breath caught.

Sapphire – the runesmith from Class B. The girl who’d reinforced their base, balanced the acceleration method, and turned Class B’s defenses into something formidable despite their limited resources.

"You got her to make this?" Freya demanded. "Why would she–"

"She didn’t know what it was for," Ronan interrupted smoothly. "I told her I needed disruption runes for defensive traps."

Freya stared at him, stunned by how casually he admitted to lying to his own classmate.

Then Ronan smiled.

"I also had her make exact copies."

Freya frowned. "Copies?"

"Multiple identical runes," Ronan clarified. "Same design. Same function. She delivered them to Class A earlier during an artifact trade."

Freya’s eyes widened.

Understanding washed over her like cold water.

If the rune was discovered – if Iris or Grace or anyone else traced it back – it wouldn’t lead to Freya.

In truth that was her only concern with this, and she was about to decline due to that, but now this whole plan was looking like it had a lot more merit.

It found, it would lead to Class A.

Because Class A already possessed identical disruption runes made by the same runesmith.

Freya exhaled slowly, her calculating mind piecing together the layers.

"You’re covering my tracks before I even leave them."

"No, I don’t actually think you’d get caught. It was just a small step I took at the moment because I thought it could be useful going forward."

She looked at him differently now. Not with fear, nor with trust.

With recognition.

Ronan wasn’t reckless. He wasn’t improvising. Every move he made had contingencies built underneath it.

He’s like me in that sense. Extremely cautious.

"I understand," Freya said quietly.

"Good."

Ronan turned toward the north and started moving.

"Class S should already be at the statue."

Freya nodded, and she moved to follow.

But something stopped her.

A thought that had been building since the mask came off.

She turned back.

"Ronan."

He paused, turning back. His pitch black hair fluttered over his matching eyes. It looked unnerving now that she thought about it.

Her eyes narrowed.

"Are you actually Ronan Ashbourne?"

The question hung between them, silence taking over the clearing.

Then Ronan smiled.

"No."