The crowd of applicants sprinted at the wall. Lace was shoved aside and nearly fell, but cushioned herself with a rush of air and bounced back up. A barrier of young men was quickly forming at the bottom of the wall.

No way I’ll make it through that.

Lace went around the side. She kicked her shoes off and picked a spot further down where no one was climbing. The square-cut stones were expertly placed, and there were only fine seams for her to grip onto.

Lace had no experience climbing, but she couldn’t afford to think about that. She set to it, first hands, then feet.

Her detour had cost her. She struggled with each handhold, her fingers and toes shaking with the effort of keeping her up. She looked up and saw applicants passing her. It wasn’t looking good. She was in the bottom fourth of applicants.

Just like in the last test, Kiren held the lead, climbing as if he was born to do it. Lace watched his movements carefully.

He moved confidently but made sure to always have a solid foundation to stand on. He checked each foothold before committing to it. Lace tried to mimic him and found that she was able to move more reliably.

The blond man from the last test was a close second, almost overtaking Kiren. He still had that grin on his face, but there was something in his eyes that didn’t sit quite right. It was the look of a child who liked throwing rocks at cats or pulling the legs off spiders.

He kicked at Kiren’s legs but Kiren moved out of reach, clinging to a creeper vine. He swung back and kicked the man in his midsection. He slid down the wall but caught himself on a gnarled vine.

It only took the blond man a few seconds to right himself. He kicked the applicant directly below him, who fell with a yelp.

Lace watched him fall the two or so meters to the ground, waiting for the dull thump that would surely come.

Counter swiped his hands in the air horizontally and a sheet of blue energy extended into the air, forming a blanket over the ground. The applicant hit the blanket and his momentum was suddenly arrested. He bounced once, then fell to the ground. The energy dissipated, and he got up no worse for wear, albeit a little shocked as he checked himself for injuries.

Oh. Counter’s Power. Forgot about that. Lace felt a little sheepish for thinking the Heroes would let applicants get hurt on their watch.

As more applicants were knocked off the wiser ones spread out. A few encroached on Lace’s part of the wall, both above and below.

Most applicants were past her now. If she didn’t do something, she’d end up in last place. If her previous years of testing were any indication, a last-place finish would not look good for the later evaluations.

A well-placed wind blast would probably knock off the man above her. The same went for the one below. That would at least get rid of some of the competition.

No, what am I thinking? I can’t win like that.

Lace found a new grip and dug her fingers in. She pulled herself up, found a new hold, repeat. The world around her seemed to fade. All the people, all the sounds, went grey and dull. The next handhold was the only thing that mattered. The next crack to place her foot. The next clump of moss that offered her a few seconds of rest.

She left red handprints on the stones.

I will do it. I will make you proud, Dad. I won’t fail this time.

Lace’s hand slipped. She teetered against the wall and toppled backward.

She yelled, and the wind howled with her.

I will not fail.

Invisible arms carried her back up against the wall. She found grips for her hands, and she wiggled her toes so that her feet were securely placed.

Don’t look down. Don’t. Look. Down.

She kept climbing. Her muscles burned and her fingers were going numb. She employed those muscles she hadn’t yet used up for a greater range of motion, and she jammed her hands where they fit. At least, the numbness allowed her to ignore the pain.

Her hand curled around a thick ridge. She pulled herself up, up, up…

And fell over the crenellation on top of the wall. She lay there on her back, panting, with all the other youths that had finished. After her, a few more were still getting to the top.

“Didn’t think you would make it.”

Lace tilted her head back and looked at an upside-down Kiren, sitting on one of the stone crenellations with his arms crossed. Just like before, he looked utterly unfazed.

“Yeah, well…” Lace panted. “Can’t say I was too worried about you. Is there anything you’re not good at?”

Kiren shrugged. “Probably.” His lip twitched in what might have been a smile. “Haven’t found it yet.”

Lace couldn’t tell if he was joking or not. She smiled back anyway.

How’s he so strong? It doesn’t seem fair.

Eagle-Eyes watched them intently with his yellow-eyed gaze, sat atop one of the crenellations. Lace had a hard time enduring his stare without shivering. It was almost a physical sensation, like a finger pushed hard between her eyes.

Blissfully, the remaining applicants were allowed to descend the wall via the stairs once they were properly rested.

Lace passed Eagle-Eyes on her way to the stairs. As she did, he said something, almost too quiet to hear.

“Succeed.”

She looked back, but he was looking another direction. The other applicants pushed her forward.

Did I hear that right? Was he even talking to me?

Lace went down into the courtyard and put her shoes back on.

She had placed fourteenth of forty in this test. Another sixteen had dropped out, bringing the number of applicants down to twenty-four. She hadn’t performed as badly as she’d feared, but she wasn’t doing well enough, either. She had to make a strong impression in the last two tests.

One of Counter’s apprentices, the green-haired young man, asked to see her wounds. She had scraped up her fingers, skin practically shredded.

Tommyn, he introduced himself. He got Lace some bandages and bound up her fingers so that the blood didn’t soak through.

“I watched you climb,” he said. “You were tearing yourself ap-part up there.”

“I guess,” Lace said. “I’m sure you would have done the same during your tests.”

“Yeah… B-but I had someone in my corner, too. We got through the tests together.” He nodded over towards his bulkier comrade, Haden. “Anyway, t-those wounds are pretty bad. I wouldn’t blame you for dropping out.”

Lace shook her head. “No way.” She forced out a smile. “I wouldn’t be much of a Hero if I couldn’t put up with a few scrapes and bruises.”

Tommyn hid a smile behind his hand.

“That creepy guy. The one who won’t stop smiling. Do you know who he is?”

“Oh, him.” Tommyn shook his head. “I think his name is B-Bits. That’s what he calls himself, anyway. He seems like the violent type.”

Bits. Like something you’d name a dog.

Lace scanned the courtyard. She saw Bits invite himself into a conversation between two other applicants, arms draped over their shoulders. They looked uncomfortably at each other but tolerated his presence. He glanced back at her, and in an instant before she looked away, their eyes met.

Something tells me he’s not done with me yet.

The third test was a straight-up demonstration of Powers. More Heroes had gathered for this one. There were no winners or losers for this test, it was just a chance for the applicants to show off and impress their prospective future masters. And gather information on each other, of course.

The fourth test will be one-on-one duels. I need to be ready for anything.

Lace took note of the more powerful abilities and who they belonged to.

Kiren, who seemed to have no end to the tricks up his sleeve, had the Power to regenerate physical injuries. He got one of the Heroes to pass him a knife and drew long cuts along his arm, blood spattering on the ground. Within a minute, only fine white lines remained, and after a while, not even that. A few of the Heroes nodded eagerly. Kiren was going to be in high demand, she could tell.

The only other woman to apply, whose name was Veera, demonstrated her Power of summoning glowing chains from her skin and from the ground. A boy named Gantho, who looked about sixteen, could produce explosions by marking objects with his Power and then detonating them. A son of a noble, Jahn, could create snow and ice, making both barriers and weapons.

Bits, surprisingly, had no Power at all. He declined his opportunity to show the Heroes what he had going for him.

Lace wasn’t about to make that mistake. She went out there in front of the Heroes, their eyes boring into her.

She knew most of them by reputation. A few of the veterans had worked with Dad, years ago.

She decided to keep it simple. She had Counter’s apprentices bring over one of the practice dummies and performed a simple combination on it. Her punches didn’t need to connect—the air pressure that came off her hands sent the dummy wobbling and shaking. She gathered her strength and put both her arms out. She mustered enough wind to knock the dummy over.

She went down on one knee and slammed her hands into the ground. The wind whipped up a cloud of gravel and dust, funneled upwards and dropped back down in a miniature whirlwind.

Lace was left panting. She watched the Heroes for any reaction. They chatted amongst themselves. A few glanced her way.

“She’s here again?” one of them said.

“Not the worst I’ve seen, but it doesn’t seem very useful against Villains,” another murmured.

“Hey, if we ever need a dummy brought to justice, she’s the one to call on,” said a third.

“You shame yourselves,” Eagle-Eyes interjected. Even the Heroes shuffled uncomfortably under his gaze. “Show some respect.”

Lace’s cheeks flared. She turned and walked away, letting another applicant take her place as she merged back with the crowd.

The mockery was bad enough. For someone to step in on her behalf…

Damn it. It’s like that time with the merchant guards all over again. Why can I never take care of my own problems…?

“Bad luck, sweetheart.”

Lace looked up. Bits was grinning at her.

“Will you leave me alone?” Lace asked.

He shrugged. “You’re the one who’s been staring at me. Although, maybe I should take that as a compliment.”

Lace walked off and he laughed after her. She stewed quietly, shaking her head.

What is wrong with that man?

“Attention, all applicants!” Counter shouted once the third test had been dealt with. “We are moving on to your final challenge! Tag team duels, two versus two. Your teams will be selected by me. Is that understood?”

Lace drew in a sharp breath.

Not one-on-one. That means...

She let her gaze wander across the remaining applicants.

I’ll be grouped with one of them.

Her eyes fell on Bits.

Creator, please not him.

Counter started splitting people into teams of two. Veera was partnered with a lad who seemed to be hardly out of puberty. She dragged him around by his collar, uttering colorful curses at her partner. Gantho was teamed up with a man who was able to create dazzling flashes of light.

Bits was partnered with Jahn, the man who could summon ice.

“Thank you, Creator,” Lace whispered.

Counter stopped in front of her, next, regarding her in grave silence.

“It’s only right that you assist the man who kept you in these tests,” Counter said. “Kiren, is that his name?”

Lace breathed a deep sigh of relief.

That’s probably the best outcome I could have hoped for.

“I wouldn’t be so relieved if I were you,” Counter said. “That stray dog won’t be able to keep his true nature in check, a juicy steak dangled in front of his nose like this.”

“I don’t understand,” Lace said.

“Of course you don’t. Listen, girl.” His eyebrow curled in sincere confliction. “The best thing you can do right now is drop out. I admire your tenacity, if nothing else, but charging towards this dream is only going to bring you more pain. Your father would have wanted you to let it go.”

“Liar,” Lace growled. “I’m going to become a Hero, no matter how many obstacles you put in my way. That’s what Dad would have wanted.”

Counter pursed his lips. “Fine. Have it your way, Amar.”

He stalked off to select more groups.

Kiren was watching her, arms crossed. As soon as Counter was away, he walked over.

“Same team, huh?” he said.

“Guess so,” Lace said, trying on a smile.

“Good. It’s time to see if you can actually be useful. Your Power is air?”

Lace nodded. “I can control the air and create winds that follow my command. And yours is… rapid healing?”

“Yeah.” Kiren cricked his neck. “I can recover from most injuries in a minute or two. Bones take a bit longer. Teeth take longer still.”

“Wow, that’s… a C, maybe B Rank ability,” Lace said.

From the corner of her eye, she saw Bits stroll over to Counter. He said something that was drowned out by the bustle of all the people, smiled, and made an exaggerated bow. Bits walked away, and Counter shook his head as he watched him go. Bits looked over in Lace’s direction and winked.

Lace frowned.

That spider. I wonder what he told him.

“Don’t let me down,” Kiren said. “I should be able to take care of any rabble on my own, but a little backup couldn’t hurt. Especially if you’re going to prove helpful for what’s to come.”

“I won’t let you down,” Lace said firmly.

The match-ups were announced. Lace and Kiren were paired against Bits and Jahn. The blond man was grinning more than ever, and Lace couldn’t help but feel like he had cut some sort of deal with Counter to get this outcome.

The fights took place one at a time in the middle of the practice yard, closely overseen by Counter. Even more Heroes had gathered, almost two dozen of them now. They watched the fight intently, scrutinizing every move and making comments to each other.

“Okay, what’s our plan?” Lace asked, partially because having a strategy would be paramount, and partially because she wanted to distract herself from her jitters.

Kiren shrugged. “I go in and pummel them until they concede. You back me up. Keep them from crowding me.”

“That.. uh… sounds like an interesting strategy. Why don’t we try something a little more… thought-out?”

“Why bother? That grinning asshole isn’t that strong, and the noble boy looks like he’d have trouble wiping his own ass without a servant to encourage him. Nah. Let’s just get this over with.”

Lace swallowed. Could it really be that easy?

She glanced over at Kiren. His jaw was set, his gaze firm and determined. She could not make out a sliver of doubt in him.

I guess when you have his talent, this must all seem kind of trivial. I’ll follow his lead, then.

“Lace and Kiren! Jahn and Bits!” Counter called out. “You’re up!”