"H-How is this even possible?"
Laren sat on the ground, staring at the scene ahead of him.
Destruction.
Utter and pure destruction.
He couldn't believe his eyes. It felt like witnessing a miracle. At first, it seemed like they'd walked straight into an ambush. But in the next instant, the tables turned.
Just who the hell IS this Maria girl?
The thought echoed in his mind on repeat. He couldn't comprehend it. How was a low-ranker able to possess such power?
It happened so fast. One moment, members from the other teams had jumped them. The next, a massive wave of lightning obliterated everything in its path. Strange. Surreal. And now he was terrified.
[+2000]
"And this was supposed to be hell?" Maria muttered before turning to look at the utterly terrified Laren.
"Get up. We have to go." She headed toward the exit after gathering enough food.
Laren wasted no time. He shot to his feet and followed, keeping some distance between them. "Where are we going?"
She paused for a brief moment. A small, wicked smile crept onto her face.
"Let's go collect our rebellious teammate. It seems he didn't take my warning to heart."
Laren shuddered, fearing for whatever fate awaited Leo.
---
[I told you. I am your guide.]
"In what?"
[The mission.]
"What mission?"
[You are a player in this world, chosen from countless others. You are on a mission, and once completed successfully, you will be given back your memories.]
"You said this exact same thing before. Why do I feel like you're reading a script?" I asked with a frown.
At this moment, I finally retrieved one of the healing potions from my graph watch. I feel SO stupid right now. I wonder how the instructors watching this exam reacted to every single one of my survival attempts. They're probably laughing their asses off.
Damn.
What was I even thinking?
A makeshift spear? Who the hell was I supposed to kill with that? A mana beast? A Tridaqs? A student? Who am I supposed to kill when this whole world revolves around magic?
At least I didn't go too far before I realized it.
I sighed, holding up the potion in my hand. It was greenish in color, typical of a fantasy world.
[.....]
And the bastard went silent. Seems I struck a nerve.
This system isn't helpful at all. I can't even trust it since I don't know its true objective.
With that, I downed the potion in one gulp.
And in that very instant—
"What the...?"
I felt a refreshing, somewhat addictive calmness rush over me. In the next moment, my leg, which had been hurting like hell after my treatment, began cooling down. I couldn't see what was happening since I'd wrapped it in torn cloth, but from what I could feel, it was regenerating.
"This can't be..."
I muttered in shock, dumbfounded by how efficient the potion was.
But then—
BOOM.
"Crap. Someone's making their move."
I stood up instantly, bent low, then tiptoed carefully toward the open to see what was happening.