Gold team – Forzen (14th), Sixzen (16th), Aeizen (18th), Twentieth (20th), Sectwen (22nd), Fifzen (15th), Sevenzen (17th), Ninezen (19th), Thirtwen (23rd)
Silver team – Second (2nd), Fourth (4th), Sixth (6th), Aeith (8th), First (1st), Third (3rd), Fifth (5th), Seventh (7th), Ninth (9th)
"The gold team will enter the left entrance, while the Silver team will enter the right entrance. The goal is simple. It is to find the treasure that hides inside the labyrinth. The first team that finds it wins."
What treasure?
I did not hesitate to ask. "How can we find that? Then, what kind of treasure are you referring to?"
"There will be riddle cards that will help you. Remember, when something extraordinary happens, expect it to happen. The game will start momentarily."
And Author disappeared for a while.
I felt strange in my body, so I looked at myself and pondered. I also looked at others. In an instant, I am wearing a simple silver tracksuit and white rubber shoes. The gold team wears a gold tracksuit and white rubber shoes. The fabric is a bit stretchy and comfortable, which makes it easier to move compared to school uniforms.
The battle between basketball and volleyball was not just by schools but by male vs. male and female vs. female. Now it is about private schools (gold team) vs. public schools (silver team). Looking at the maze and its area, this will be another extraordinary game. Everything we played here on nth planet is games made to be unusual. As Author said, when something extraordinary happens, expect it to happen.
"Looks like everyone's ready," Author is there again. It only waited for us to get dressed uniformly prior to the game.
"Additional information about the game: Get the map after you enter the door. It is to help you find riddles written on a card. There is a total of 5 cards. Decode those codes that will help you find the treasure. There are 2 labyrinths, one for each team. The two labyrinths will merge as one when you reach the last station, which is near the treasure..."
Hmm…. There are two mazes. And when you get to the end where the treasure is, the maze will converge and become one. This is how I interpreted Author's description.
"Two teams, proceed to your assigned entrances."
We walked closer to the entrance, to the right. Our door is silver, on the other team is gold.
"This game is a matter of life and death... After I count, run as much as you can and find the treasure that hides inside the labyrinth... Wealth Level: Stage 3 will start in 10, 9, 8,"
Another life and death situation! Because in our previous games, six of our comrades had already died.
The door is opening. We have positioned ourselves to take off.
"7, 6, 5, 4,"
"We can do this," Seventh encouraged us. He went in front of us and bent over. I hope I have that confidence he has.
"3, 2, 1, go!"
We ran even though I don't know why we are running so fast. We must find some cards first and answer the riddle to find the treasure that was mentioned. Fourth almost tripped, but she was able to cling to me right away.
"Are you good?" She nodded at me and smiled. We continued running.
We have to strengthen our minds, heart, and body.
As we pass through the maze or labyrinth, I can now see it closely. It is 3 meters wide. The brick walls are about 5 meters high. I turned around and the silver door was closing. We can no longer go back or retreat to what we've started. Again, we are trapped, but this time it is inside the maze.
"The map!" Fifth shouted and picked up the paper that was folded and lying on the side of the wall. We will take the map, pick up and answer the riddles and find the treasure.
Our team stopped running and we approached Fifth, who is holding and reading the map.
I am awed by the map. It might look like an ordinary thick paper when touched where it gets crumpled and torn but its image is 3D-like. Unlike the ordinary map, which is a top view. The view shows us where we are right now. And the angle is what angle our eyes see, not the top view. Its view is like a point of view—according to our perspective. However, this map seems almost useless. There are blind spots where not the entire maze and its surrounding area can be seen. Maybe, the purpose of this type of map is to give us a harder time. There are hidden surprises waiting for us as we go treasure hunting, so maybe this is just the image that can be seen on the map. Author says, there are extraordinary things that will happen, so we have to be prepared. That line of Author has been embedded in my mind.
"What are we going to do?" Fourth asked worriedly.
We were still standing here and staring until the map would reveal something if there were but there was none. Aside from the fact that we have nothing to gain from the map we hold now, we are trapped in the maze. We refrain from going in various directions that can lead us to be lost from the correct path.
"Look," Third pointed at the top of the map Fifth was holding while he was sitting.
I bent down to see it well. A text suddenly appeared above it. It's not just that the image on the map looks 3D, it's now like a touchscreen gadget because text pops out automatically.
Go to the left
This is the text that showed. I turned to the front. I didn't see two directions in which we could turn, but the road is straight.
"Let's run, maybe there's a detour there," Sixth indicated which we followed.
We all ran to find what the map is referring to. After a few seconds, we saw two directions, left and right.
"That's it," Aeith gasped. "Let's go!"
We ran again towards the left. I am confused. Is it that easy to find the riddles? Because there is a map that guides us in the direction, it doesn't matter if we answer the riddle and then look for the treasure. While running, I caught a glimpse of the map Third was holding. Its image is changing. Its image is where we are now. The map magically changes its position and image as it updates our current location, but it still does not show the entirety of the maze. We continued to run.