The End

At that, Fleur gave a small, exasperated laugh. "You're still thinking about the tournament? Don't worry about that now. The final round's coming up soon, but Drexel has already won three matches. We're set to win."

Arix blinked again, trying to make sense of things. "Wait… the last match? We've already won three?"

"Yeah," Fleur confirmed. "Only one more to go."

Arix was speechless. It felt like she'd been asleep for just a moment, but now it seemed like everything had moved on without her.

"Forget about the tournament for now," Fleur said softly, her expression growing serious. "We really need to thank Cassian. If he hadn't found you so quickly, we might've lost you." Her voice broke as she recalled the sight of her daughter, battered and broken.

A wave of guilt washed over Fleur. She shouldn't have let Arix enter the competition. If she hadn't been so stubborn, her daughter wouldn't be lying in a hospital bed right now.