’Hmm, so this is a labyrinth-type gate,’ Soren muttered inwardly, his eyes moving across the damp stone walls.

While he knew of their existence, he had never entered one. After all, these types of gates were notoriously rare. Their internal geometry shifted and twisted in ways that made navigation treacherous and mapping nearly impossible. Most hunters steered clear of them unless the potential rewards outweighed the significant risks.

He had studied what he could during the journey, yet the available intel remained sparse because the gate had surfaced only two months prior. Only three parties had successfully cleared it before the academy seized control for the midterm exam. With such a short history, the gate’s shifting patterns remained unpredictable and its variables dangerously unknown.

’Did the academy choose this site to push their students beyond their limits, or was their hand forced by a lack of options?’ Soren wondered. Either way, the lack of data made this a high-stakes gamble for a group of teenagers. He decided to keep his suspicions to himself, maintaining a silent, watchful presence as he followed the group.

It had been nearly an hour since they crossed the threshold, and surprisingly, there had been no major incidents. Well, almost.

"Be quick! We are losing time because of you!"

Garin’s voice cracked like a whip through the humid air of the corridor. He was standing over Ryan, who was currently on his knees, his hands shaking as he used a small extraction knife to pry a mana core from the chest of a fallen stone-crawler.

"I-I’m trying," Ryan stammered, his fingers slick with the dark, viscous ichor of the monster. "The core is lodged deep within the—"

"I don’t care about your excuses!" Garin snapped, his red hair seeming to glow with his rising temper. He kicked a loose stone toward Ryan, narrowly missing the boy’s hand. "At this rate, Team 7 will finish the exam before we even find the sub-boss. You’re a support, so do your one job and move those legs!"

"Y-Yes!" Ryan flinched, his head bowing lower as he redoubled his efforts.

Garin clicked his tongue in annoyance, the sound echoing sharply off the damp masonry. "Whatever. Let’s go. He’ll catch up if he doesn’t want to be monster bait."

The other team members offered silent nods, turning their backs without a second thought. Left alone in the oppressive silence of the labyrinth, the blue-haired boy could only grit his teeth, his knuckles white as he forced the extraction knife through the stubborn cartilage.

He finished as fast as his trembling hands allowed, shoved the core into his satchel, and exhaled a ragged breath. Just as he raised his head, wiping a smear of dark ichor from his forehead, his eyes fell on Soren.

He was leaning against the jagged wall, his spear held loosely but ready, his expression unreadable.

"Y-you’re still here?" Ryan stammered, surprised.

Soren gave a brief nod. "Let’s go. They’re not that far ahead yet."

"O-ok," Ryan replied, scrambling to his feet and hoisting the heavy pack onto his narrow shoulders before falling into step behind him.

Soren caught a glimpse of the boy from the corner of his eye.

Earlier, he had offered to lend a hand with the equipment, but Ryan had refused immediately, his eyes darting toward the body cams. He probably feared that any assistance from a supervisor might be flagged as an irregularity, potentially tanking his exam results.

Soren hadn’t pushed. He understood the desperate need to prove oneself on one’s own merits, so he simply acted accordingly, maintaining his distance as a silent observer.

What he felt wasn’t pity, though. Pity was useless in a place like this. Instead, he respected the sheer grit Ryan displayed. Every time the boy stumbled and got back up, Soren saw a trace of his past self in him, the same stubborn refusal to stay down. Ryan was simply unlucky to have these teammates, just as Soren had been unlucky to be born into a family that saw him only as a failed investment.

’Sigh, forget it.’ He shook off the thought and refocused on the task ahead. ’Hmmm.’

While Team 14 was technically doing their job, efficiently dispatching monsters and advancing through the zone, this wasn’t how one should treat a teammate. A party was supposed to be a single unit, yet here, it was a predator and its subordinates.

He didn’t know whether the academy intentionally allowed such toxic dynamics to persist as a test of mental fortitude, or if they were simply blind to it. Regardless, his role here was clear: observe, intervene only in life-threatening situations, and let the exam run its course.

But that didn’t mean he had to like what he was seeing.

In fact, he might even turn the academy’s foolish oversight to his own benefit. After all, the boy was a walk—

"AAAAAAAHHHH!"

A scream tore through the corridor.

"!"

Soren’s gaze sharpened instantly, his lethargy vanishing like mist.

Without hesitation, he grabbed Ryan by the arm and hauled him up, breaking into a sprint. The boy let out a startled yelp as his feet left the ground, but Soren didn’t slow. His boots pounded against the stone as he navigated the twisting passage, following the echo of voices ahead.

They rounded the corner at full speed.

And then Soren stopped.

The team members stood frozen in a semicircle, their weapons lowered, mouths hanging open. Garin stood at the front, his head thrown back in triumphant laughter.

"Do you see this?!" Garin shouted, his voice echoing off the walls and bouncing back in every direction. "Do you see what I found?!"

Soren set Ryan down carefully, the boy stumbling slightly as his feet touched the ground. He stepped forward, his eyes narrowing as they adjusted to the sudden brightness.

There, embedded in the far corner of the chamber, stood a gate.

But not just any gate.

It was massive, easily twice the height of a man, its surface rippling like liquid gold. Swirling patterns of radiant light danced across the frame, casting a regal, flickering glow that turned the damp stone into a gilded hall.

’This is...’

Soren’s breath caught.

"..A Golden Gate?!"