Sophie leapt down from the massive tree branch she had been clinging to and landed lightly on the gravel bank. The stretch of pale stone was completely exposed, without a single obstacle large enough to block anyone's line of sight. Here, the only method she had for suppressing Jane's Gift no longer existed.
If Jane really decides to attack me... Sophie forcefully pushed the thought aside. Why imagine pain I've never experienced? What if I frighten myself before anything even happens?
It had taken every ounce of courage she possessed just to leave the protection of the forest.
The gravel bank appeared completely undisturbed. Caius's concealment was flawless. Had she not been using Demetri's exclusive tracking technique to "see" the unique signature that belonged to Caius, she would never have discovered his hiding place.
Stepping swiftly across the loose stones, Sophie sprinted toward the center of the gravel bank. Behind her came the faintest series of footsteps, so soft that only a vampire's extraordinary hearing could detect them.
Jane had caught up.
The blonde girl, cloaked entirely in black, glided gracefully over the pale-gray riverbed like a phantom. One of the most feared specters in all of the Volturi was calmly pursuing an unarmed newborn.
Logic screamed at Sophie to flee, to break Jane's line of sight before it was too late. Yet her body's instincts betrayed her. The instant she recognized Jane's footsteps, an unexpected sense of relief settled over her. Of everyone within the Volturi, Jane was still the person she knew best.
Following the trail her borrowed tracking sense revealed, Sophie confirmed that the largest boulder on the gravel bank marked her destination. She finally stopped running and carefully examined the area around the waist-high stone. There was no one standing behind it, yet she remained convinced this was Caius's hiding place.
Jane halted as well, stopping several meters away.
Her red eyes slowly swept over Sophie from head to toe. Every piece of clothing Sophie wore had been personally chosen by Jane before they departed, from the style of the sleeve buttons to the color of the hairpin securing her hair.
After several rounds of training, many corners of the outfit had already been damaged, and the neatly arranged hairstyle had long since fallen into disarray. Most of the damage had come from falling into Alec's traps. If Jane attacked her now and forced her to roll across the jagged stones in agony, the clothing would undoubtedly be ruined beyond repair.
Sophie felt Jane's gaze lingering on her.
While enduring Jane's meticulous dressing routine earlier that day, she had jokingly imagined herself as nothing more than a walking storage cabinet, carrying around Jane's personal belongings. Unfortunately, she wasn't a very competent one. Every outing seemed to damage something. Thankfully, Jane had never developed the habit of demanding compensation.
Jane stepped forward.
Her gaze locked firmly onto her prey.
The training was meant to simulate genuine combat, and the vampire world had always been cruel. Once opposing sides had been determined, Jane had no choice but to fulfill her role.
"You chose to run here." Her red eyes remained utterly emotionless. "That means I have no reason to let you go anymore." After a brief pause, she added quietly, almost reassuringly, "It might hurt... just a little."
As the ruthlessness gradually surfaced in Jane's eyes, Sophie didn't believe that "just a little" for even a second. The unfamiliar sharpness radiating from Jane reminded her that they currently stood on opposing sides.
Without hesitation, Sophie spread her fingers and gripped the waist-high boulder. Her five fingertips punched deep into the stone, leaving five holes as fragments crumbled into powder that coated her fingers white. Although the boulder stood only half a meter tall, its width was nearly the size of a dining table.
Before Jane could activate her pain illusion, Sophie made her move.
With one explosive motion, she flipped the enormous stone toward Jane as effortlessly as tossing aside a pillow stuffed with goose feathers.
The sudden attack interrupted Jane's concentration.
She remained perfectly calm.
Standing exactly where she was, she waited until the massive rock reached her before casually raising one hand.
The boulder split cleanly into two pieces, which crashed harmlessly onto the stones behind her.
It had been nothing more than a crude distraction. The gravel bank was far too open for Sophie to escape. After brushing aside the obstacle blocking her vision, Jane calmly focused on her prey once more.
Where had she gone?
Gone?
Jane's expression changed ever so slightly.
In the blink of an eye, an entire person had vanished from the empty gravel bank.
Just as she prepared to move toward the spot where Sophie had been standing, a familiar voice rose from beneath the ground.
"The match is over."
Once the boulder had been removed, the concealed pit beneath it was finally exposed.
Sophie had crouched and jumped straight inside.
Now she stood face-to-face with the hidden Caius.
No wonder no one had been able to locate him. Who would have guessed that he had personally dug himself a temporary trench and disguised it using the surrounding terrain? Had Sophie not overturned the boulder to interrupt Jane's Gift, Caius's camouflage might never have been exposed.
Afraid that Caius might suddenly change the rules or create another complication, Sophie wasted no time. She pulled out the red tag Chino had issued earlier and slapped it firmly onto Caius's chest.
A newborn's uncontrolled strength was terrifying.
The impact forced a muffled grunt from Caius, and he had to steady himself to avoid being knocked backward. His clothes, however, were far less fortunate.
The fabric over his chest burst apart beneath her palm.
No...
Every single layer of clothing beneath it tore apart in the exact shape of her hand.
Only after Sophie removed her hand did the shredded pieces drift slowly onto the ground between them.
Once the final prey had been captured, the round ended immediately.
With Caius, worth forty-five points, successfully caught, Sophie's team claimed the final score they needed.
She raised her voice proudly.
"The match is over!"
Everyone returned to the starting point, and only then did the invisible tension gripping Sophie finally dissolve.
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