Chapter 178: The Trial (35)
The distortion settled, and the floor beneath Verena’s boots shifted with a faint grind of stone over stone. The doorway dissolved behind them, leaving her, Beatrice, and Saphira in what could only be described as an astral amphitheater. The circular space stretched wide, tiered rows of jagged crystalline seats spiraling upward into darkness, as though they stood inside the hollowed ribcage of some ancient, long-dead star beast.
Above them, constellations twisted unnaturally—familiar patterns rearranged into unfamiliar, fragmented sigils. It set Verena’s teeth on edge. Nothing about this space felt steady. Even the air buzzed with a low frequency, a hum of celestial magic so dense it practically pressed against her skin.
Beatrice whistled, low and impressed. "Trial Two’s really going for the dramatics, huh?"
Verena didn’t answer. Her eyes had already found the centerpiece of the arena—the colossal stone dial embedded into the floor, etched with all twelve Zodiac sigils. And standing squarely in the center, waiting, was their next trial.
It wasn’t a beast this time. It was a person.
A tall, imposing figure clad in segmented armor that gleamed with silver light, their face obscured behind an intricate helm carved to resemble a lion’s snarling maw. The Zodiac of Leo—the trial’s projection of it, at least—radiated authority and raw, oppressive presence. Their arms were folded across their chest, and golden threads of magic snaked along their form like molten veins.
Saphira hissed quietly. That’s not a standard projection. That’s a combat-focused manifestation. This won’t be an illusion puzzle or endurance challenge. It’s a direct confrontation.
"Great," Verena muttered, already reaching for the weave lines of her mimicry construct. The faint shimmer of borrowed constellations coalesced at her fingertips. She wasn’t fully recovered from the last fusion, but there was no backing down now.
Beatrice, to her credit, cracked her knuckles and rolled her shoulders with the air of someone getting ready for a bar brawl rather than a divine trial. "You want me to soften them up first, or...?"
"I’ll draw their attention," Verena decided, already moving into position. "See if you can disrupt the arena glyphs. We’ve seen this before—the floor feeds them power."
Beatrice’s grin widened. "On it."