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?
She 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.
She felt strange in her body, so she checked herself and pondered. She also watched the others. In an instant, she is 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 between schools but between 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 they played here on the nth planet is games made to be unusual. As Author stated, when something extraordinary happens, expect it to happen.
"Looks like everyone's ready," Author is there again. It only waited for them 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 they get to the end where the treasure is, the maze will converge and become one. This is how she interpreted Author's description.
"Two teams, proceed to your assigned entrances."
They walked closer to the entrance, to the right. Their door is silver, and 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 their previous games, six of their comrades had already died.
The door is opening. They have positioned themselves to take off.
"7, 6, 5, 4,"
"We can do this," Seventh encouraged them. He went in front of them and bent over. She hopes she has that confidence he has.
"3, 2, 1, go!"
They ran even though she didn't know why they were running so fast. They 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 her right away.
"Are you good?" She nodded at her and smiled. They continued running.
They have to strengthen their minds, hearts, and bodies.
As they pass through the maze or labyrinth, she can now see it closely. It is 3 meters wide. The brick walls are about 5 meters high.
Second turned around and the silver door was closing. They can no longer go back or retreat to what they've started. Again, they 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. They will take the map, pick up and answer the riddles, and find the treasure.
Their team stopped running, and they approached Fifth, who was holding and reading the map.
She is awed by the map. It might look like ordinary thick paper when touched. It gets crumpled and torn, but its image is 3D-like. Unlike the ordinary map, which is a top view. The view shows them where they are right now. And the angle is what angle their eyes see, not the top view. Its view is like a point of view, according to their 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 them a harder time. Hidden surprises are waiting for them as they 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 they have to be prepared. That line of Author has been embedded in her mind.
"What are we going to do?" Fourth mumbled worriedly.
They were still standing here and staring until the map would reveal something, if there was, but there was none. Aside from the fact that they have nothing to gain from the map they hold now, they are trapped in the maze. They refrain from going in various directions that can lead them to lose the correct path.
"Look," Third pointed at the top of the map Fifth was holding while he was sitting.
She 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. She turned to the front. She didn't see two directions in which they could turn, but the road is straight.
"Let's run, maybe there's a detour there," Sixth indicated, which they followed.
They all ran to find what the map is referring to. After a few seconds, they saw two directions: left and right.
"That's it," Aeith gasped. "Let's go!"
They ran again towards the left. She is confused.
Is it that easy to find the riddles?
Because there is a map that guides them in the direction, it doesn't matter if they answer the riddle and then look for the treasure.
While running, she caught a glimpse of the map Third was holding. Its image is changing. Its image is where they are now. The map magically changes its position and image as it updates their current location, but it still does not show the entirety of the maze. They continued to run.