I woke up grasping for air. Everything before felt like a dream. But seeing my black bar in front of my bed, I realized it was not a dream. I also learned that the white Mask was still on my face, but this time, I did not feel any sign of dizziness or the urge to sleep.
"Yo." Someone called.
I looked to the side, and on the other bed besides me sat a person wearing a red band.
'Shit. Isn't he the one who incited the chaos?' I had hoped he would die in the 2nd round. He wore a plain white mask, but I recognized him by observing his build, the patterns of bloodstains on his clothes, and the red band around his wrist. There were only about 20 red bands, and none of them were well-built like him. Tall, yet lean. And eyes red as fire.
"My name is James," he smiled.
"Is there any point in introductions?" I retorted.
"Maybe. Maybe not. I am just bored," said James. "Hey, I know, we should share the story of how we ended up in here? It may be fun."
"Fun?" I did not realize that my lips had curled down, and so did my eyes.
"Can I start?.. My father is actully the Paragon of Rem. The Red Knight. He has many children, of course."
My mouth gaped open. I found it hard to believe. The Red Knight? The chief of the Rem Military? Who led an army against the Bristons? No wonder he's strong.
"I am actully not an official child. Just a spawn from a mistress. Anyway, his 1st son lost control of his powers and murdered some servants. And they needed a scapegoat..You get rest." He laughed.
'spawn from a mistress.' Weird way to describe oneself.
"What's yours?" James asked.
I felt his answer was half a lie.
Bizz!
Suddenly, the bells rang. Prison bars sank into the ground.
"Too bad. Next time." James said as he walked out.
I soon followed, but kept my distance from him and blended in the crowd.
We were guided back into the forest.
Many murmured, "Do we have to run again?" They scowed. So did I.
What with those sad faces? Oh, don't cry. I won't make you run again. All you need to do is survive in this forest for 3 days. Sounds fun, right? After three days, you can return here. This is only if your Mask awakens a 'Color'. Now scram."
Color? They need to provide more details. I sighed.
Others also murmured.
This forest is very dangerous. During the run, I could feel the gazes of a lot of creatures–Monsters. Back then, they probably did not attack due to the presence of our trainer.
"Do we at least get any weapons?" some asked.
"Of course." The green-eyed trainer smiled. "Not." He laughed and returned behind the metallic gates. The soldiers also followed, and the gates closed.
Forming a group can be beneficial in such a situation. We may have to face and fight monsters. For a moment, everyone looked at each other. Then they shook their heads and disappeared alone.
It was inevitable. No one knew each other. They were all convicted criminals. In the forest, there would once again be a struggle for food, and without trust for each other, it would only be a risk. I, too, left and wondered. It was an immense forest that stretched as far as the eye could see. I looked at the trees. They were over 120 meters tall and 20 meters wide. They looked abnormal. The branches were long, and the leaves were of different colors, like a rainbow. The roots were large and protruded from the soil.
After venturing deep enough, I took shelter under a tree root..
So far, so good. No encounter with a monster or any danger. Then I thought about the goal. Color in the Mask? They gave no details. What could be the possible cases for success?
Kills someone else with a mask?
Kills monsters?
Racking my brain, I could not think of many scenarios. Well, I guess I have no choice.
I decided to climb the tree.
Thud!
Ouch. 'My fingers and my body are not strong enough. Also, my leg is injured.'
So I just laid there for a while and thought what could be of help to me. Color. Mask.
On second thought, the tree leaves are of different colors. Red, blue, orange, yellow, green, indigo, violet, white, and black. This is a strange place indeed. If I eat the leaves, will my Mask gain color, or does it work with contact?
But I have no way of confirming whether they are poisonous or not. Also, I don't think it would be that easy.
Suddenly, I heard rustling of the leaves. I looked around the bushes and saw just leaves.
My heart beat rose. The fear of the unknown was beginning to take hold of me.
The forest looked so bright and cheerful with colors that, for a brief moment, I forgot the danger.
To find a solution, I should better focus on the purpose of this round.
The first round was a test of physical and mental tolerance. Second round? The ability to take quick actions? Or something else? Urge to survive?
I remember after the round waking up half-conscious while they injected something. So, this round is to check our body's reaction to the substance?
I can vaguely guess the purpose of this place. From the little history I learned in school, humans were allowed to wield the power of the 'Divinity' 2000 years ago. However, there were many limitations.
Only those chosen by the 'Angels' and their descendants would be granted the 'Blessings'. Other than that, I have no idea. I'm not sure if that history is true or not. The city I grew up in was populated mainly by normal humans. The only supernatural phenomenon I have seen so far was a priest healing my wound. I too had the potential to awaken but…hehe a tragedy of fate I guess.
The purpose here must be to attempt to replicate the divine power of 'Divinity' within normal humans. Using prisoners as genie pigs. Weren't there adult prisoners? Why use children? To nurture them into soldiers for future use? Or does it have to do something with children being better test subjects?
How is such an experiment even legal? The current government, led by the Rem Alliance, is already in disarray and despised after passing a law allowing for the execution of those with the potential to receive a 'Blessing' after committing a crime. If an experiment like this were to leak, the current government might as well be overthrown.
Sigh! Focus.
Think! I need to survive. Think of ways to survive, not other things….3 days. What do I need? Food and shelter.
Hours passed, and for some time, all I did was look for a safe place to sleep or some food while being cautious of my surroundings.
Hiss!
My skin shivered. 'Huh.' Suddenly, I found it difficult to breathe. 'The hell…" Colors erupted midair around my body, and a creature revealed itself, longer than 25 meters and thick enough to wrap my entire body.
A snake? More like a serpent.
Shit! It hurts as hell, its scales felt harder than sharp rocks. Shit. Shit. Am I going to die this easily? Air! I need air!...my vision blurred and I lost consciousness….
"Hey, wake up!" a loud voice woke me up. As I opened my eyes, I found myself in a dark cave.
"This is a surface underneath the trees. Their nest." Another voice answered.
Looking down, my body was wrapped in black webs. Side by side, two more people were wrapped in black webs. I noticed their red band and gulped.
"A snake that turns invincible like a chameleon and traps prey in a web like a spider? What kind of creature is that?" I asked.
"Probably some mutant creature. Now, at least we know how to awaken our Mask."
"Huh. How?" I asked, confused.
"You are from the outer city, no doubt." The guy on the right laughed. "It's the blood. We have to drink the creature's blood. Heh-that being— if somehow, we manage to break free from here."
'Blood? Why?' My lack of knowledge is ruining my chances of survival. Inside the web, I somehow managed to reach my pocket and take out a small piece of glass. I had stanched a small piece of a milk bottle just in case.
I started rubbing the webs harshly with the glass from inside. The web was thick, but I felt like with enough time, I would be able to break free. With the remaining time, I tried to gather information.
"Since it did not directly eat us? Would it be safe to assume that the creature will take time? For example, eat one person, wait 1 to 2 days, hibernate, then again eat another." If that were the case, then I would likely have enough time to escape.
"You wish. The ones who captured us were most likely children. They are gathering us to offer us to their Queen."
…
I started to stroke the glass faster.
As time passed, more and more snakes, no mutant snakes, revealed themselves, and added more people to the cocoon. Soon, there were about 30 cocoons. We were hanged beneath the tree roots, which extended midair. It was not that high; my legs were at best 2 meters above the air.
"It's here."
The ones piled here started to scream in fear. "No, no." especially those in the front.
The Queen slowly crawled inside the cave, revealing her figure. Colors erupted in the air as its multicolored scales slid through the soil. This one was slightly bigger than the one that captured me, and on its head was a small white crown.
Hurr!
Fire engulfed the man beside me. "I've been waiting." He smiled. His cocoon turned into ashes.
'He can control fire?' The sight shocked me. Others were also surprised. How? Did he have this ability before? No, that wouldn't make sense. If he was already a 'Blessed,' why would he be part of this experiment now? Then, after coming here? A fruitful counter in this forest? Blood — I remembered their words. What if not all creatures are big and strong? Maybe some are weak and small — the ones we could kill? And after drinking their blood, we gain abilities. And after gaining some form of ability, he deliberately got captured to lure the Queen? This idea is too far-fetched, as the red band would need to be highly knowledgeable about the supernatural. What if such knowledge is common in the mid and inner cities, and they come from there?
I am really starting to see a new world.
My heart beat rose.
Hiss!
The Queen charged.
Huh!
The red band grabbed both of its fangs, but he kept getting pushed back. He gritted and somehow managed to stop the Queen, but she wrapped her torso around his body.
He gasped for air, struggling, then smirked, "Got ya.." His body was engulfed in red fire, and his Mask emitted a glint of red.
Hiss!
The Queen screamed and immediately retracted her torso, and in a rush, jerked back her head.
Crack!
His arms immediately broke her fangs after she jerked back her head. After that, he did not hesitate; he jerked his arm and aimed straight for her torso. The Queen's scales were tough, but they had been weakened due to fire, so the fangs penetrated.
The Queen screamed before falling to the ground. Her colorful scales all turned white.
"Phew," he huffed. "As expected, mutants are weak to their own fangs."
'I guessed right!' That red band is knowledgeable about the supernatural.
Splat!
My eyes widened. His chest suddenly got penetrated by a thorny vine. 'Wha..' blood splattered everywhere. Following the vine, I saw that it stems from beneath the cocoon of the red band hanging behind me. His Mask glinted Green.
"Haha," he laughed as he broke out of the cocoon and landed. "Never let down your guard! What an idiot! Did you think you were the only one who thought of luring the Queen?" The vine retracted and swirled around his arms.
Plat!
Blood dripped down the Green Mask's back.
Thud!
When I broke out of the cocoon, I landed immediately behind him and slashed his back with the glass in my arm. He was too distracted by looking at his kill and celebrating.
'Too shallow...' I huffed.
"Fucker." he swirled toward me. Vines grew larger and stuck me from the right. I blocked with both my arms.
Drip!
The thorns in the vines penetrated my arm, but luckily, they were not able to break my bones.
"AHHH!" the red band screamed. 'The pain must have finally hit him.'
Seeing him screaming in pain and unable to control the vine, I took the chance and leaped. Vines were randomly swirling around him like mad snakes, but I endured the hits and charged with the glass shard. As the red band cried in pain, I inserted the glass shard directly into his neck.
Swirl!
The vines rampaged. Some hit my legs, but I endured as I slid the glass shard further. Blood splattered as he finally stopped struggling. The vines fell to the ground.
Phew!
My legs gave out, "Argh!" I screamed in pain. I reacted solely on adrenaline, but now the pain was hitting me. My arms and legs felt like they were about to explode. The ones in the cocoon looked in horror.
But I quickly stood up and looked around while gasping for breath. I didn't relax. I couldn't let my guard down. When the guy with the red Mask was fighting with the Queen, I had managed to almost tear through all the inner layers of the webs. My mind was in chaos. On one hand, I could use this chance to escape while the two battled; on the other hand, I thought if the red band managed to kill the Queen and was injured, then there was a chance to kill him and reap the benefits. This involved too much risk; if it weren't for the fact that I had to stay alive in this forest for three more days, I would have chosen to escape. But the red band killed the mutant faster than I expected. And not to mention, another red band immediately killed him. When the guy beside me broke out of his cocoon, I reacted instantly; I didn't think much. All I knew was he was below me and probably didn't expect that someone else had also broken out of the cocoon. No, considering he was patient enough to wait until their battle ended, he was clever, but the same could be said for the red band who killed the Queen. They were intelligent and patient. But just a moment of carelessness got them killed. If the one with the green Mask had surrounded himself with vines, his back would have been protected. And the one who killed the Queen shouldn't have immediately relaxed after killing her. But I can't blame him; he must have been exhausted. Similarly, they must have recently discovered these abilities, so they couldn't utilize them fully.
I was also incredibly careless when taking shade under a root; I got captured by an invisible snake without being aware.
I have to learn from this! Never relax! Always remain vigilant, even after the battle.
"Help me, help me." The ones in the cocoon cried. But I only looked to see if someone else would suddenly appear with some hidden ability.
…
After observing, I approached the vines and examined the red band's body. His Mask was green. 'If I take this, would I be able to return after 3 days?' I wondered, as it was someone else's Mask with 'Color' on it, not mine.
'What?' When I tried to take it, it disappeared after being in touch with my fingers. Suddenly, I felt a green light around my eyes. My Mask had turned green!
Ha! I grinned under my Mask. I also sensed a change in my body. The trees, the land, the bushes, the vines, the roots— they felt familiar, like I was part of them, and they were part of me.
I rushed near the first red Mask, his corpse was on the ground, covered in blood that flowed out from his holed chest.
"Ha." The same thing happened when I touched his Mask: a red light appeared around my eyes, and my Mask turned red! I felt a layer of additional invisible surface around me. I gained a better understanding of the temperature around me and could sense the heat of the things around me.
'This…'
The first red band should have been able to detect anything that came near him by its heat.
'How was the vine able to penetrate his chest?'
I controlled one of the vines and brought it near me. One side of my Mask turned green while the other remained red. 'I cannot sense it.'
I could sense the heat of the vine when it's not controlled and is in the ground, and while it's being controlled, I cannot. Another ability of the Green mask is stealth? It makes sense now why the Red mask was killed easily.
I smirked. 'I obtain both the ability to Detect and Hide.' But I still kept my guard up.
"Help us, free us. We can also help you." The noises of those trapped in the cocoon grew louder. I did not answer. If I leave them as they are, they will die. I am not a ruthless killer, but to survive this long, they too must have killed others in previous rounds; if given the chance, they will kill me without hesitation. I moved on, looking at the Queen's corpse. If I drink its blood, will I awaken another color? Wait... Is it even safe? Can I trust their information? No, what if it's poisonous? But there must have been a reason they risked their lives to come to the Queen's nest. I avoided touching it directly; I controlled one of the vines to feel its scales. The scales were soft as a leaf. Its body had weathered. So had the fangs that had punctured its torso; the only thing still hard and shining was its small crown. It emitted a soft white glow. Using the vine, I pulled the crown closer to me.
'There must be some way to use it." It was weird; I sensed I would be drawn to it. It was a familiar feeling. Immediately after my Mask turned green, I also felt drawn to the red Mask. Could it be that colors pull each other? Some invisible attraction force? Then why did neither of them know that the other also had a colored mask? Because the masks were inactive.
I took a deep breath. My Mask lost its color and became plain white again. I no longer felt any sense of attraction. 'I see, the attraction only exists when it's in use.'
Since I let go of my control of the vine, both the vine and the crown fell down. I bent and picked it up using my arm. I didn't feel any danger from it. The crown broke when I touched it. My Mask glowed white. All the colors disappeared from the world. I only saw it in black and white. I understood White's ability — to escape from color and enter a separate black-and-white realm. To become a borderline creature that can traverse two worlds at once. I could appear in front of someone and touch them, but if I exerted too much pressure, I would be revealed. The snake that captured me was invisible until it wrapped around me, but it appeared after it started applying pressure. This! This is incredibly useful! I could take a knife and slash someone, and they would only see me after being slashed!
I got lucky! I gained three incredible abilities!
Hmm..
Looking around, I could sense the mutant snakes. Behind the roots, around the trees.
Actually. Why didn't they help their Queen? Why are they not attacking me?
I really don't have any knowledge of these so-called mutants. Too bad the one who knew died.
No matter.