The next morning greeted me with two things: Wallace standing at my door like an inventor who hadn't slept, and a blueprint that looked more like a madman's last confession than an event plan.
"Instructor," he began with wild eyes, "I've done it."
"You've done what, exactly?" I said, carefully taking the parchment from his twitching hands.
"Designed the first leg of the Gauntlet of Glory—Obstacle Hell."
"…I already hate it."
He grinned like a child who'd just learned fire was hot after touching it. "It starts with a pit of illusory spikes, then a rotating platform over water, followed by a collapsing bridge that leads to the gauntlet walls, which randomly shift position every fifteen seconds."
I blinked.
"You do realize most of our students aren't trained assassins, right?"
"Correct, which is why I added the flame rings—motivational, not lethal."
"Wallace."
"Yes, Professor?"
"This is why you don't have friends."
"I have blueprints," he countered proudly.
