Exploring the grassy landscape almost seemed like a dream, with its welcoming lush appearance. It came along with many animate plants of many kinds, from flowers to trees, and even some grass. Every single one of them made themselves known and amicably greeted them, with some following along rather cheerfully.
Even though Jack hadn't seen any children's shows before, with this experience he wasn't missing out on much. In fact, it could be considered fulfilling a child's fantasy dream.
While not much was actually happening, the others with him weren't necessarily that bored. Although somewhat tense at the start, considering that there were no real threats around, it felt more like a vacation rather than anything else.
Jack occasionally licked his lips, with his eyes slightly going out of focus every so often, but nobody noticed that slight change.
After wandering around for a while, there was something that didn't really fit in the field. It was a glowing neon retro arcade machine. There were vines growing across, wrapping around it, though despite that the arcade machine was pristine and clean. When they had gotten close, Kenji, Mia, and Jessica were all pushed back off of Seedy, though the plants behind had caught them before gently setting them to the ground.
Mia turned around and briefly flashed a smile.
"Thank you."
The various plants, despite most of them seemingly having mouths, didn't say anything. Though they still made various gestures, essentially communicating a 'you're welcome'.
Jessica was staring at the arcade machine not too far away before speaking up.
"I remember the flower said something about this not being a place we were allowed to be if we were given a push."
Mia gave a small nod, dusting off her pants before curiously looking over.
"Yes, a restricted area. From what it looks like, that appears to be the game for the floor of this building. Only Jack will be able to access it..."
Kenji slowly closed his eyes and let out a small exhale.
"Then I suppose he should go on. It doesn't make sense for him not to simply because we can't."
Jack looked over his shoulder with a finger on his chin.
"Do you guys mind if I go for a little bit?... I feel like this thing will be really fun!"
Jessica seemed somewhat reluctant, putting a hand over her heart. However, she smiled quite brightly soon after.
"So long as you want to, then go ahead!"
Mia covered her mouth with her hand for a moment. Her eyes seemed to be looking at something else.
"It would be great if you could scout what the game was ahead of time. That way, once we are able to pass the test and can similarly play the game ourselves, we won't have such a hard time!"
Jack let out a giggle before waving at them.
"Ok! I'll be back soon."
Seedy set him down next to the machine, which Jack briefly took a closer look at.
[Hunting the Trapper and Trapping the Hunters]]
[Rewards: Five cards - 4, 5, 6, 7]
[Punishment: 6]
Where the controls would've been for the machine were gone, instead replaced with a single indent for a deck to fit inside. Without thinking about it much, he inserted his red deck inside, causing both him and Seedy to disappear in a flash of light.
He found himself teleported into a room with velvet cushions and a table in front of him.
His Joker card had been preemptively taken out, though the design had appeared to change slightly.
[The hunter must find out which one is a liar, Choose to be one of the hunters or a trapper.]
After the system prompt had appeared in front of him, the Joker card was raised in the air and began spinning slowly. On one side, was a black Joker with a reserved and distinguished look, along with a faint knife behind the design. The other side had a red Joker, covered in blood with a wild smile and cracked face. There was a faint bear trap behind the design.
Jack was able to figure out what was going on fairly quickly and began pondering for a moment. He mumbled to himself.
"Trapping sounds boring."
With those words, his hand grasped the card while the black Joker was facing him.
After that, he disappeared in a flash of light.
Jack suddenly found himself once again in the room with cushions along with four others. There was a projected timer on the table, displaying a countdown of nine minutes and thirty-seven seconds.
"Hah? A kid's here?... How the hell did a kid even get to this floor."
A tall and muscular woman had spoken up. She had long gray hair and gray eyes to match, though despite the dull colors, she had a sharp gaze. Not only were her arms crossed, but her legs were too, rather carelessly at that. She was wearing a T-shirt and shorts, revealing her arms and legs which were densely covered in tattoos with patterns of fire across them.
"Anybody can get horrifically lucky. At certain points, it could be considered a skill, but by nature, it's a skill that can run out."
The next one to speak was a man in a black hooded robe that covered most of his face. He looked quite pale, and despite the visible features making him look like an adult, he was not only short but thin, with shoulders that barely stuck out. Other than a few strands of gray hair, it was hard to make out other features since most of them were covered.
"As expected, the two of you are as rude as you look. What's to say that's not a well-grown adult that simply looks like a kid?"
After saying that, the young woman let out a giggle, putting the tips of her fingers just below her mouth. She had short and curly blonde hair, with piercing blue eyes that just barely appeared from her narrowed eyes. Her skin was notably smooth with surprisingly clean green summer clothes on. There was a small bird perched on her shoulder, an Azure Tit.
"Can you all shut up? Your yammering is pointless anyway."
A voice laced thick with disdain came from a man with a blindfold on. He had dark brown hair bunched up into a ponytail with an average physique. His clothes were plain, with a navy shirt and black pants. The sword scabbard he had on his leg was notable, since it was more convenient to store those kinds of items in the black deck, assuming it was a weapon that came from The House of Cards. His hand was wrapped around the handle, ready to draw it at any time.
Considering how they were all placed, there was still one empty spot, seemingly for one more person to enter.
Jack looked around with curious and wide eyes. He licked his lips before swallowing.
"Hi, my name is Jack! I really hope we can all be friends!"
The others looked at him strangely, while the man with the blindfold let out an annoyed sigh and covered his ears.
A gleam of light flashed by the blonde woman's eyes as she spoke up first.
"Of course! Hello, Jack. My name is Lily, and this little thing with me is called Temi. We're both excited to be friends with you."
Lily pointed towards the bird on her shoulder before gently rubbing its chest, prompting the bird to let out a delighted chirp. Jack clapped a few times, with his eyes trained on the bird.
"Ooooh! Lily and Temi both look so cool!"
Lily let out a laugh.
"My thanks. You look quite dashing yourself."
The muscular woman with tattoos let out a scoff. She revealed her grit teeth while looking at Lily.
"You're clearly treating him like a kid, isn't this hypothetical adult going to get mad, hypocrite?"
Jack raised both his hands up as a rather radiant smile spread out on his face.
"I'm not mad! Also, it is true I'm still a kid. Dad said that I wasn't too far from an adult though!"
The muscular woman blinked a few times as her gaze shifted towards Jack. She opened her mouth, about to say something, but closed it shortly after. After a short moment, she clicked her tongue.
"Yeah, alright. Good for you."
Jack tilted his head to the side, leaning towards the woman.
"You didn't tell me your name yet! What is it? I want to know!"
Her eyelid twitched. She didn't seem too keen on being chummy but also appeared a bit overwhelmed by his enthusiasm.
"...It's Elena."
Jack let out a small laugh.
"Hi, Elena!"
The moment Jack turned his head towards the pale and thin man, he waved his hand.
"Malik. I've told you your name, now leave me alone."
As though picking up on what Malik said, the blindfolded man also spoke up.
"Caden."
Jack appeared quite excited to hear everyone's names and raised his hands in the air.
"I can't wait for the game to start with all my new friends!"