Genjutsu?

His happy life was short-lived, as Emilly burst his dream bubble. "Hey! Something is wrong.".

"What happened?"

Emily's eyes wander warily towards the surroundings. "I don't know where we are."

"So, we are lost; don't be so dramatic."

"No, we are led here by someone." Isher felt confused How could someone lead them here when they didn't even follow anyone?

"Could you explain, like in simple terms?"

"So, you see, we have been traveling for about an hour but still haven't come across any landmarks showcasing where we are regarding the dome. This shows either we are lost or we are led here by someone. It's the latter since I have absolute faith in my *navigation skills."

"Wait, we have landmarks. Why has nobody told me about them?" He questioned me with disbelief.

She responded, "Firstly, we only share this information with trusted individuals; if it were widely known, it could be leaked to the enemy, risking the exposure of the dome's location." She observed his reaction. He has a hurt expression, which she had anticipated. Quickly, she added, "Secondly, considering you struggle to remember basic monster names, sharing this with you would be pointless." Isher blinked a few times and then laughed awkwardly.

Emily let out a quiet sigh. She hadn't disclosed the truth to him; even if his memory were better, they wouldn't have shared this information. It was a secret laboratory where one of Aquitaine's secret weapons was being developed.

So, you would need to hold a higher rank or, in her case, have a recognized origin with unwavering loyalty to the dukedom.

She had spent enough time with him to be certain that he was neither a spy nor an exceptional actor. However, because of his unknown origins, the staff chose not to share any information about the dome with him.

Isher's voice interrupted her thoughts. "Don't you think we've just lost our way? I don't see how anyone could have led us here."

She shook her head, irritated. "Let's keep going; we'll find out if we're lost or not."

She moved towards a tree and carved an 'S' sign into it with her katana.

"Let's go."

As they continued moving through the forest, Emily remained vigilant, her senses on high alert. Each step was taken with intent. In contrast, Isher grew increasingly bored, even yawning at one point. As another hour passed, suddenly she exclaimed, "Hey, it's here."

"What?" Isher moved closer to see the 'S' sign, and a shiver ran down his spine.

"Woah, Emily, if this is a prank, it's not funny." His voice trembled slightly, and a creeping sense of unease began to tighten around his heart.

Emily's expression silently conveyed, 'Does this sound like a joke to you?'

He looked around in fear, in case someone was following them but couldn't find anyone; there weren't any signs of life around, and even the monsters were nowhere to be found. The feeling of someone squeezing his heart got tighter, and he began to hyperventilate.

Just in time, someone cupped his cheek and facing straight, he came face-to-face with her. "Clam down; it's okay."

Looking into her eyes, he felt safe and secure. Taking deep breaths, he became stable.

"Sorry, I'm making things more difficult for you than they already are."

"No, it's okay; it happens sometimes with new trainees when in an unknown situation or for the first time fighting a stronger opponent." He nods his head at that.

"Do you think it's like that anime Faruto? You know where you have to kill yourself to get out of Genjutsu."

Emily rolls her eyes. "Then are you doing it, or should I help you?"

"No, I was just kidding."

Staring him dead in the eye, Emily replied sharply, "Does this look like a time to joke around?" She felt a headache coming on from his childish antics.

Isher responded defensively, "No need to go on the offensive; I was just trying to lighten up the mood from this horror scene."

"Congrats, You succeeded. Now let's just wait for someone to finish us. Now let's focus on solving our problems instead of bickering with each other."

"So how do we do it? Killing each other is out of the question... Oh, I see." The realization dawned on him. "You think it's a skill, and they trapped us here."

she confirmed. "Yes, or it could be an artifact; what we have to do doesn't change; let's search around for whoever the assailant had to be around."

Just like Isher, Emily was also getting the same gripping feeling. She knew this feeling and was very familiar with it; it was the instinct of the prey when a stronger predator set its eyes on it, but more often she has been the predator. Her strength is her confidence, and she takes pride in it. Not many are as powerful as her at such a young age. 

That doesn't mean she was afraid of fighting an opponent stronger than her, but the situation is already out of her hands. Neither does she have any preparation time, on the contrary, the opposition looks well prepared. Second, with Isher here, the chances of survival are slim to none.

Their best chance is to somehow get out of genjutsu, loop, or whatever they are in and run for their lives. Well, there is another option; it's the most disgusting plan she could use to save her skin. Hopefully, she doesn't need to stoop so low. 

They continued their search around the area but couldn't find anything odd, or anyone, for that matter. As time stretched, the surroundings began to turn dark.

[AN]-

*If it is a Record skill, it will be under [ ]. In the sixth paragraph, by skill, she means her ability to not get lost.