"Next task!" announced Professor Emberfell. "Create a self-sustaining resonance chain from all eight Essence types. Time: ten minutes!"

  Valentina took a deep breath and prepared herself. The strange Essence patterns danced before her eyes, but by now they felt almost familiar. With practiced movements, she began to weave, creating intricate structures of Leb and Ard, interwoven with flowing streams of Wazzer and Luvt.

  Suddenly, Vyxara's constant stream of comments in her head stopped. The silence was so abrupt that Valentina almost stopped in her tracks.

  "Wait a minute," the demon finally muttered, the voice unusually strained. "Something's not right here."

  Valentina frowned without breaking her concentration. "What do you mean?" she whispered barely audibly.

  "These patterns... They do kind of look familiar to me. But... how can this..." Vyxara sounded increasingly worried. "I've seen this before, a long time ago..."

  An image flashed through Valentina's mind, so strange and disturbing that she almost lost her train of thought. She saw strange buildings, people with brown skin, painted all over with eyes and wearing strange robes that also had eyes painted on them. They were standing around a bronze artifact, a cube. The cube was also covered in eyes and distorted the Essence that wafted around it.

  "These aren't normal Essence patterns," Vyxara gasped. "They're just effigies, simulacra that bear no relation at all to the actual patterns. A demonic artifact. Damn, how did he get his hands on that?"

  Valentina froze, her hands stopping in mid-air. "What?" she breathed, horror in her voice.

  Around them, her competitors continued to weave, completely unaware. Faustus' smug grin had given way to a look of intense concentration as he worked on his resonance chain.

  "Look closely," urged Vyxara. "What you are creating is not a resonance chain. It's a completely inert pattern! Your senses are being deceived, little Weaver!"

  Valentina stared at her work, trying to see what Vyxara saw, and then she felt her stomach tighten. What she had thought were elegant structures were now revealed to be... complete nonsense. The supposedly complex patterns made as much sense as a child scribbling on parchment.

  "How is that possible?" she whispered, panicking. "How did I not notice?"

  "It's not your fault," Vyxara replied grimly. "Someone is manipulating your perception of reality. With a very powerful artifact. The others are also feeling a shadow of a touch of the effect, but you are the focus."

  Valentina let her gaze wander around the room. The other students seemed completely absorbed in their work, but now she recognized some signs of the effect in their weavings. Only Faustus seemed completely calm, almost as if...

  "Faustus," she hissed, "he must be behind this." She had expected him to sabotage her patterns, maybe mix laxatives into her food, something, but certainly not that.

  "Most likely," Vyxara agreed. "But that's beside the point now. You have to turn things around before it's too late!"

  Valentina nodded imperceptibly and forced herself to calm down. All her plans of how she was going to fight back against Faustus were completely worthless in this situation. With trembling hands, she began to carefully manipulate the actual structure in front of her.

  "We have to be careful," Vyxara warned. "If he used a demonic artifact, he's more dangerous than we thought."

  Sweat formed on Valentina's forehead as she worked feverishly.

  Valentina desperately tried to grasp the actual Essence patterns before her. It was as if she was groping through a dense fog while her mind continued to trick her into thinking she was weaving brilliant structures.

  "Concentrate," urged Vyxara. "Ignore what you think you see. Trust your feeling for the Essence."

  Valentina closed her eyes, took a deep breath and let her fingers glide over the invisible streams of Essence. Slowly, agonizingly slowly, she began to feel what was really in front of her.

  "Five more minutes!" shouted Professor Emberfell.

  Panic rose in Valentina. She had barely begun to untangle the mess she had unwittingly created. All around her, she heard the quiet murmur of the others, who were clearly working on their projects with ease – or at least thought they were.

  Professor Veilford approached her station, his brow furrowed. "Is everything all right, Valentina?" he asked curiously. "You seem to be... having difficulties."

  Valentina forced herself to smile, which looked more like a grimace. "Everything's fine, Professor. I'm... Just experimenting with a new technique."

  Veilford nodded slowly, obviously unconvinced, and walked on. Valentina heard him whispering quietly to Professor Emberfell and pointing in her direction.

  "They're getting suspicious," warned Vyxara. "You need to pull yourself together."

  With renewed determination, Valentina set about organizing the tangled threads of Essence. It was as if she was trying to untangle a gigantic knot while someone had tied a blindfold around her eyes.

  "Two minutes!" announced Emberfell.

  Sweat trickled down Valentina's forehead. She felt the eyes of the other students on her and heard their astonished whispers. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Faustus watching her with a triumphant grin.

  "Ignore him," Vyxara growled. "Concentrate on the task at hand."

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  But it was too late. Valentina realized that she wouldn't be able to clean up the mess in the time she had left. With a suppressed curse, she began to hastily weave a simple pattern – anything was better than the nothing she had produced so far.

  "Time's up!" shouted Emberfell. "Please step down from your stations."

  Valentina slumped her shoulders and stepped back. In front of her floated a puny collection of Essence threads that would barely pass for a resonance chain. Around her, she saw the complex, shimmering structures of her competitors – or at least what they thought they were.

  The judges began their rounds. Valentina watched in growing horror as they went from station to station, nodding approvingly here and there or exchanging quiet comments. When they came to her, she could clearly see the disappointment on their faces.

  "Well, Valentina," Professor Emberfell began hesitantly, "this is... not quite what we expected."

  Valentina swallowed hard. "I... I tried to try something new," she stammered.

  The examiners exchanged meaningful glances. "Perhaps you should stick to tried and tested techniques in future," said Professor Emberfell gently but firmly.

  As the commission continued, Valentina heard the suppressed giggles of some of the other contestants. Her face burned with embarrassment.

  "There’s still a chance," muttered Vyxara grimly. "We have to find a way to turn the tide."

  But Valentina knew it was too late. She had failed, and failed spectacularly.

  The final task was announced: "Create a manifestation of your deepest understanding of Essence. Time: 15 minutes."

  Valentina stared at the empty room in front of her, her hands shaking. She didn't even know where to start.

  "Listen," Vyxara said urgently. "You know more about the true nature of Essence than anyone else here. Show them!"

  With a deep breath, Valentina began to weave. She ignored the illusions her eyes were telling her and focused entirely on her sense of Essence. Slowly, carefully, she began to form a pattern that represented the connections between the different Essence types as she truly understood them.

  Around them, the other competitors were busily weaving, creating magnificent but ultimately meaningless illusions. Only Faustus watched them with growing concern.

  When the time was up, a simple but elegant structure floated before Valentina, like the dream of a silken cloth lying gently in the wind. She knew it represented the truth – but would the examiners recognize it?

  The commission approached her station. Valentina held her breath. This was her last chance to turn everything around.

  Professor Emberfell looked at her work for a long time in silence. Then she turned to her colleagues. "I'm afraid we can't give Valentina any points for this," she said quietly. "This in no way meets the requirements of the task."

  Valentina felt the ground give way beneath her feet. She had lost everything and she couldn't even explain to anyone why.

  Faustus' triumphant laughter echoed in her ears as the world around her sank into a fog of shock and despair.

  The hall was buzzing with excitement and nervousness. Exhausted students huddled together in small groups, whispering and speculating about the outcome of the competition. But Valentina didn't really notice it all.

  She stood apart, her face pale and tense. She felt the pitying looks of her fellow students and the gleeful grins of Faustus' followers.

  Professor Emberfell stepped up to the podium and the room immediately fell silent. She cleared her throat and began with a serious face: "Dear students, we have just experienced one of the most challenging rounds of the Greystone competition. We were deeply impressed by your creativity and skill."

  Valentina snorted softly. "If only they knew," Vyxara muttered in her head.

  "Before we get to the results," Emberfell continued, "I would like to commend you all for your dedication and commitment. Each and every one of you has done an exceptional job today."

  A nervous laugh went through the crowd. The tension was almost palpable.

  "Now for the placings," Emberfell said, unfurling a parchment. "In third place, with an impressive performance, Ignacio Flintside!"

  Applause broke out. Ignacio stepped forward happily shaking their hands.

  "Second place," Emberfell continued, "goes to Lady Innogen Ashbourne."

  Innogen beamed with pride as she stepped forward. Her gaze swept over Valentina and confusion flitted across her face for a moment.

  Valentina held her breath. She knew what was about to happen.

  "And the winner of this round," announced Emberfell, "is Faustus Boarfend, for his exceptional mastery of all eight Essence types and his innovative approach to the tasks set."

  Cheers erupted, especially from Faustus' supporters. He stepped forward, a cocky grin on his face, and bowed theatrically.

  Valentina felt as if someone had punched her in the stomach. She had lost, and in spectacular fashion.

  "However," Emberfell continued, and the room fell silent again, "this result creates an interesting situation. Faustus Boarfend and Valentina of Palewood are now tied at the top of the overall competition standings."

  A surprised murmur went through the crowd. Valentina blinked in disbelief. Had she heard correctly?

  "See?" whispered Vyxara triumphantly. "You're not out of the race yet."

  "Due to this extraordinary situation," explained Emberfell, "we have decided to schedule an additional round. A final tie-break between Faustus Boarfend and Valentina of Palewood, which will take place in a month's time."

  The hall exploded in excited whispers. Valentina stood there in a daze, unable to process what she had heard.

  Faustus' voice cut through the noise: "I'm looking forward to deciding this contest once and for all." His gaze met Valentina's, full of scorn and superiority.

  Valentina felt anger rise up inside her, hot and consuming. She clenched her fists and returned Faustus' gaze with a look full of venom.

  "We'll see about that," Vyxara growled in her head. "He has no idea who he's messing with."

  As the crowd dispersed, Valentina stood there in a daze. The noise around her seemed muffled, as if she were underwater. The anger she had just felt gave way to a wave of exhaustion and despair.

  "Val?" Innogen's soft voice broke through the fog in her head. "Are you all right?"

  Valentina blinked and focused on her friend. Innogen looked worried, her eyes full of compassion.

  "I... I don't know," Valentina mumbled. Her voice sounded strange to her own ears.

  Crispin joined them, his face a mixture of confusion and concern. "What happened, Val? Your patterns today were kind of... well..."

  "A disaster," Valentina finished the sentence bitterly. She felt tears welling up inside her and fought desperately against them. Not here, not now.

  "Pull yourself together," Vyxara hissed. "You can't afford to break down now."

  "It wasn't that bad," Innogen tried to comfort her, but she didn't quite manage to sound convinced.

  A shrill laugh made them all flinch. Faustus approached, surrounded by his entourage. "Oh yes, it was," he said with a broad grin. "It was spectacularly bad, wasn't it, Valentina?"

  Valentina clenched her fists, her fingernails dug into her palms. She forced herself to breathe calmly.

  "Leave her alone, Faustus," growled Crispin, taking a step forward.

  Faustus raised his hands defensively, his grin widening even more. "Hey, I'm just congratulating her on her... unique interpretation of the tasks. Very creative, really."

  His followers giggled. Valentina felt her face burning. She wanted to scream, wanted to go for Faustus' throat and explain to everyone what he had done. But she knew she had no proof, no way of explaining the truth. What was she supposed to tell the judges? That the demon in her head had told her that Faustus had used a demonic artifact?

  "I'm looking forward to our personal little duel," Faustus continued, his voice dripping with false friendliness. "Although, after your performance today... well, let's just say I'm not too worried."

  "You should be careful," Valentina said quietly, her voice barely more than a whisper.

  For a moment, something flickered in his eyes – uncertainty? Fear? Then it was gone again, replaced by his usual arrogant smile.

  "Oh, I would never underestimate someone as... talented as you," he replied smugly. With one last mocking look, he turned and strutted off, followed by his laughing entourage.

  Valentina breathed out shakily. She felt her knees go weak and was grateful for Innogen's supporting hand on her arm.

  "Come on," her friend said gently. "Let's get out of here."