After saying that she hopped in, followed by Jack soon after. Although Mia and Jessica hesitated, they also followed through. The two of them braced themselves, however, they were overreacting. In the end, they only felt a sensation that was just like when they were transported into the games.
They suddenly found themselves in the cave once more. However, at a certain point, the cave walls and gravel suddenly transitioned into perfectly clean marble that looked even more pristine than the ones back at the Hub.
Past the marble was a rather grand-looking venue, unlike the other ones. A neon sign that was several times larger was hung up in front of them.
'The Zoo.'
Underneath that sign were four small compartments in the wall, each about the size of a large changing room. Along with that, there was a sign at the front that had two simple lines in bold.
'Basic Reward - Instant Singular Hub Warp'
'Punishment - 7'
Unlike the other games they had seen before, this one had a higher punishment, requiring anyone that failed to pay with a seven. Emma looked up at the sign and let out a small hum.
"So it appears this is the game the warp gate led us to. I wonder what it's like."
With a bit of an uneasy feeling, Jessica spoke up.
"Is this the only game available? The punishment is quite steep if we fail the game."
Emma shrugged her shoulders before looking over her shoulder.
"All of the games near the edges of the floor have a steep punishment. Although we could follow the wall until we find another game, it will also be likely to encounter other people. And the kinds of people that roam these kinds of places are very willing to start a fight if it's a benefit to them."
Jack wasn't really paying attention. The only thing he could really think of was that this game looked cooler than the rest, and rushed in with a smile.
"Let's go play!"
When he stepped into one of the compartments, it sealed itself from the outside. Mia panicked slightly when she saw this.
"Eh? What happened to him?"
Emma giggled lightly before glancing at where Jack went.
"Unlike other games, the ones at the edge must have enough people before it can start. By stepping in one of the cubicles, you have chosen to be one of the participants. Only when all four of them are filled, will the game start. This means you might end up waiting for weeks just for a game to begin if you don't have enough people."
She put a finger on her bottom lip and narrowed her eyes slightly.
"In other words, unless you want a stranger to be playing with you. Then you should gather a group before you start one of these games."
With that, she stepped into one of the compartments, quickly getting sealed within as a wall rose up. Jessica let out a small sigh while holding onto the side of her head.
"We should hurry on as well. It would be bad if someone randomly snatched one of the spaces."
Mia nodded, but she first pulled out the Gameboy.
"I will go soon, I just want to confirm the situation with Anna."
She promptly booted the device up, and the moment Anna got through, she spoke up excitedly.
"Ah, Mia! It's been so long since you contacted me. Oh, but more importantly, the game I was leading you to is actually pretty close to here!"
Mia bit her lip nervously.
"E-Er, sorry. I was away for a little bit because I was resting after being hurt. Right now I want to ask you about the games at the very edges of this floor. Could you just give me a basic rundown to confirm the information that I was given is true?"
Anna seemed a tad bit upset but explained everything. In the end, it was all more or less the same as what Emma said. Right after Mia let out a small sigh.
"Thank you, Anna. I'll be going to this game right now."
Though she expressed her discontent through a digitized voice.
"Ehhh? But what about my game!? Why won't you come to play with me?"
Mia gave a few quick bows.
"I'm really sorry, but a person I care about has already gone in and I'm too afraid to let a stranger take part in the test with him. But I will try my best to convince the rest to go play your game right after, all right?"
Anna made her display huff out a cartoon puff of air.
"Alright... go have fun."
Mia let out a small sigh.
"Thank you."
With that, Jessica and Mia each stepped into their own compartment. For a few seconds, nothing happened. Most of them were expecting to be teleported, yet it didn't happen for a while.
But then, the other side of their compartment suddenly opened up, revealing something they hadn't seen in a while.
The outside.
There was lush green grass that reached up to their knees and occasional trees within the soil. The sky was an incredibly clear bright blue, the kind that would never be seen in cities. Only a few clouds could be seen, along with the bright sun.
This wasn't the very first time he had seen something that resembled the outside, but he was still very excited to see the foreign sights. He looked around before running around in the fields.
Emma walked after him, casually moving through.
As for Mia, she furrowed her brows, feeling quite uncomfortable.
"What is this?... Aren't you normally restrained for the most part in the games? Or has it not started yet?"
As though on cue, a system notification appeared in front of everyone.
[Welcome to The Zoo!]
[This game is a rather simple one. All of you will take turns drawing cards from a deck, with the values from blackjack. After that, you will need to search the plains for a cage labeled with that specific number, and suit!
You will each have an hour to find one of the cages that match. Otherwise, it will count as your loss. Once the cage is unlocked, you must then have a fight to the death with your special zoo animal! No surrendering is allowed after the cage is unlocked, and other people are not allowed to interfere after the cage is open. I will see to that.
Oh yeah, you can also use your playing cards to lower the value of the card you get, but the suit will remain the same. Although it isn't an ironclad rule, the monsters with a higher value are usually a little bit stronger.
The game will only end after there has been a fight with all the monsters from levels one to ten. While the fights themselves do not necessarily have to be won, only after they are finished will the remaining survivors be considered winners!
Now, we will begin!]
While the four of them were reading the system message, a man in a suit had crawled up from one of the trees, standing on top of it rather effortlessly. He was wearing a simple white mask that covered the face completely, and a top hat along with it.
His hands were also covered with plain white gloves that went well into his sleeves. Along with that, he had long socks to cover the legs as well. Each inch of the man's body was covered like he was deathly afraid of getting a tan.
There was a dove on the top hat, perched there rather comfortably. Though usually, the dove was inside the top hat.
The man pointed two fingers at where his eyes probably were before pointing them at Jack.
"I am watching you. It will be your turn first."
He then took out a deck of cards before doing the Vegas shuffle and Bridge in the air. After that, he tossed the top card toward Jack, which flew at him like a bullet. Still, he was able to catch it with surprising ease.
It was a 9 of diamonds.
Mia's eyelid twitched when she saw that.
"That number is just one off 10. Won't the monster be pretty brutal then? I'm not sure if we should go through with this. Why don't you use a playing card?"
Jack tilted his head to the side.
"But we will have to do every number anyway. Let's just hurry up and go!"
With a smile, Jack ran off into the fields, with the aim of searching for the proper cage. In the end, Jessica and Mia chased after him while trying to convince him otherwise.
"At least not for the first fight! We should properly gauge their capabilities before rashly going forward!"
As for Emma, she followed along, but only walked rather leisurely, almost like she was unable to run in the first place. In the end, it didn't take very long for her to be left behind.
Though it didn't seem like she minded.
Once they were well up ahead, the man in a suit appeared behind Emma.
"Did you really have to come to one of my games again? I really don't want to see your face..."
Emma let out a chuckle without even turning around.
"It's not like your name was on it. Besides, I'm a player like everyone else, monkey."