Growl of Trial

CHAPTER 5 (Scholar)

The morning light cast a sharp glare over Adamson University, with remnants of the chaos that had happened yesterday very much in evidence. The arena was silent and still, bearing all scars of the fierce competition in the Bloody Circle. My victory seemed like an ever-faraway echo, overshadowed by the hollowness left by Sam's absence.

As I walked, the weight of being a first-day scholar pressed upon me from the university grounds. The halls, once so full of expectations and hope for admission, were now raw and cold. Every step that I took echoed my uncertainty, reminding me of all the trials that lay ahead.

Elias Lockheart was the enigmatic alpha whose gaze had torn through me across the room once. Now he's a distant memory, and his cold demeanor contrasts so much with what I wanted to be comforted by in this place that bullies. I could only watch as he seemed to glide across the floor with an unnatural grace, his staring eyes colder than ice—the only notice he had ever given me, which both piques and infuriates me at the same time.

On the way to class, I saw Elias from afar, warming up for this Friday's grading test. He was doing some series of exercises, fluid and precise in all movements, portraying strength and control. As I had learned, the grading test was designed not only to judge the physical components but also the mental stability, resilience, and core strength. For Elias, it would be a long and tiring test, both for the mind and body; his preparation was simply part of the rigors to which university would demand that he becomes accustomed.

As I watched him, I felt a sort of anxious envy. His attitude was disciplined and only added to my pressure about upcoming trials. How was I to stand up against such high standards when Ethan's relentless animosity was added into it? He already targeted me even outside the test scoring. What if we encounter each other again?

"And speaking of there he is." Diana my inner wolf said.

The whispers followed me from every student on my way to the first class. Disgust and loathing overwhelmed me, their judgment weighing heavy on their faces. Of all of them, Ethan Memorè seemed most resolved to make me feel utterly unwelcome. It all started with him.

"Well, if it isn't the new scholar," Ethan's voice cuts through the chatter with a mocking tone. "Guess they're letting in anyone these days."

I tried to ignore his jibe, looking ahead at the path before me, but it was hard to avoid Ethan. His relentless bullying couldn't help but remind me just how precarious my position was, and he seemed very willing to pound home that point as much as he could.

The day crawled on, yielding very little relief. Every class was like a personal judgment trial with lambasting and innuendos about me from the rest of my classmates. Only in the libraries did I find any solace—the relentless pursuit of research saved me from their scornful eyes.

My mind wouldn't let him go the entire time I was working. It was an aching feeling of his absence in contrast with all the harsh realities of these trials. I missed his presence, the encouragement, and that shared dream to prove ourselves. His failure to move on weighed heavily in my heart, and I found myself reflecting over and over on his last moments in the arena.

"Sam," I whispered to myself, feeling a pang of sorrow. "If only I could turn back time to help you in that situation, I would have saved you so that we could celebrate our success. But it was too late."

As I walked across campus, so continued the confrontations of Ethan. He didn't back off one bit in his pursuit to diminish me with every comment that seemed to be a jab at what was already fragile confidence. Obviously, he had some kind of control over the student body and exactly how I'd become an outcast.

"You're nothing but a f*****g sideshow distraction," Ethan sneered at lunch. "Enjoy it while it lasts."

I clenched my fists, my resolve hardening. I refused to let his cruelty define my experience. Each snide remark only fueled my determination to prove my worth, not just to him but to myself.

Elias kept his distance as I labored through this challenging new phase. His stone-cold stare was the only interaction we had. There he would stand, always there, always reminding me of the expectations that were to be met, and I couldn't help but wonder if he would ever look at me and actually see me for my efforts.

This was topped off with great exhaustion and feelings of loneliness at the end of the day. I had transcended the initial trials, but finding my place in a world that seemed bent on rejecting me was another story altogether. There was an emptiness in the absence of Sam which nothing could fill. Pressures from Ethan's antagonism weighed on me at all times.

That night, I lay in bed; my mind was a jumble of uncertainties and regrets. The trials had opened my eyes to just how stiff the competition really was and just how bad a nightmare Adamson University could turn out to be. But in it all, I held on to a glimmer of hope. With every passing day, I had grown more determined to prove myself, not to let Sam's death be in vain, to find a way forward in this treacherous path, and one day he would also follow me here and pass the trial just like me. That battle was far from won, and the road lay treacherous ahead. With closed eyes, however, I decided to face every challenge with that fire in my soul—a conviction that only through dogged perseverance and resilience would I hammer out a place for myself in this hard and unyielding world.