...If you can't obey orders, you will die. You will die if you question orders. You'll also die if you fail the test!"
"..."
"All right!" He then nods his head in the silence of all.
He looks at his colleague and nods his head towards the latter.
Now it was his turn to speak, he first put his hand in his sleeve and came out with a small hourglass.
"That hourglass is timed for half an hour. Anyone who does not find any cores by then will be disqualified at the end."
These words made the hearts of the participants beat with fear.
'The same voice... no, perhaps even the same person.' Mystic muttered as she frowned.
It was about the man's voice which sounded like the later man's voice.
Then, the masked man turned the hourglass and looked at the participants with wicked bloody red eyes.
"There are fewer cores than people here, so you better hurry."
Before he finished his sentence, everyone rushed towards the valley behind him.
However, one person didn't move like the others.
With a bold stride at first, that person casually walked a few steps, passing right by the masked man whom no one dared to approach.
Mystic's eyes and the man's met for a moment without either of them saying anything.
Just after passing him, Mystic stopped ten steps away from him.
She was like one of the examiners who were monitoring the participants.
The masked man frowned under his mask as he whispered...
'That candidate...'
Time passed slowly, but no one seemed lucky enough to find a core similar to what the examiner had shown earlier.
This increased the tension beyond what was bearable.
However, after another minute, hope arose!
"I found it!" A red-haired man yelled with a big smile on his face.
Unfortunately, he soon regretted this situation when he saw the girl next to him take the core from his hand at lightning speed!
His facial features deformed with anger at the girl's actions.
"Bitch! It's mine!"
He shouted and chased after the robber.
However, the latter's speed was faster than his.
Although he wasn't the only one chasing the girl, no one else was fast enough to catch up with the girl.
"Khehehe, as if hell I were going to stay here and wait for someone else to steal it from me!"
'I got lucky! As long as I can reach that masked bastard, I won't have to fear the competition anymore...huh!?
She stopped abruptly when she saw another blocking her path.
'When did she...no, she was here since the start!'
She gulped when her gaze met Mystic's.
Although Mystic hadn't moved from her spot yet, she knew she was going to stop her!
To pass the test, the core had to be brought to the examiner.
The masked one was very clear about that.
'She's smart. But...smart isn't everything.'
The examiner looked at Mystic's back with puzzled thoughts.
Due to the examiner's silence, the girl understood that he had nothing against Mystic's sneaky action.
-Splash! Splash!
Besides, she didn't have time to worry about Mystic alone due to the sound of footsteps gradually getting closer to her in the valley's water.
'Shit! Shit!! Shit!!!'
Not having another solution, she unsheathed the dagger that she had on her right thigh.
"You fucking bitch! Get out of my way if you want to keep all your limbs intact!"
Seeing Mystic standing still like a statue, her mind still didn't agree with her.
However, the only option she had was to force her way through.
'With my speed, no one can catch me, let alone hurt me with a head-on attack. I can do it!'
After making her decision, she sprinted like lightning to pass through Mystic's defenses.
However, Beyond all her estimation, Mystic did not draw her sword.
No, what she did was even beyond what the examiner had assumed.
The moment the blonde girl got within half a meter of Mystic, the latter moved faster than her and grabbed her by the throat.
-Keukh!
A wave of surprise and confusion invaded the girl's navy blue pupils, making her face red.
That blush wasn't from her anger, but from the strength Mystic had put into her wrist!
'That piece of bitch!! How can she surpass me in speed!?'
She tried to free herself from Mystic's grip but without success.
The latter's strength far surpassed hers. She felt like she was stuck between two hills.
This realization only made the fear in her eyes grow.
She had a strong feeling that Mystic was going to kill her by crushing her neck.
To prevent such a tragic fate, she opened her palm, holding the core out to Mystic.
Mystic retrieved the core with a weird smile on her lips that she only showed in Devon's presence.
But it was different this time. She had the freedom to express the person she was.
"Please, spare...my...
-Crack!
She broke the girl's neck with her bare hand, without needing to use her inner energy to strengthen her bones.
The man who found the core, closer to Mystic and the thief, fell onto his backside, his face pale as he looked at Mystic like a monster from his nightmares.
His eyes seemed to express an emotion stronger than fear.
However, Mystic ignored him.
She nonchalantly walked towards the examiner without anyone daring to attack her.
Once in front of the examiner, she held the red core towards him with a small smile worthy of a psychopath on her lips.
She seemed to ignore the face she was making at the moment.
However, the examiner did not recover the core, instead, he looked into her eyes, briefly contemplating her insane smile.
"Pass!"
He then declared!
Two minutes were enough to pass the first test.
She looked behind her and continued on her way to the other masked man.
'The gates are more interesting, the books were right.'
She muttered, still keeping her demonic smile.
The examiner who was standing near the hourglass showed Mystic the way by indexing at the cave that he and his colleague were guarding the entrance to.
--
Meanwhile,
Eleanor and Ivan were participating in similar tests.
However, instead of doing like Mystic, Eleanor was the personification of what could be called a butcher.
As soon as she appeared in the crowd, she began to kill everything that moved around her.
The escorts were not as strong as those stationed at the foot of the mountain.
Therefore, without a guide, she was still wandering after killing everyone.
--
After a long wait of half an hour, more people joined Mystic in the cave.
In total, only fifteen people had passed the test.
Mystic frowns, feeling the eyes of the same person she found familiar with her.
Unlike the others, this man with short black hair, a pointed nose, and black eyes appears to smile at her instead of showing fear.
'This guy...is dangerous.'
She mumbled, trusting her institution.
However, a man with features similar to the girl the examiner had killed, approached her with a confident smile that reeked of arrogance.
Arriving in front of her, he crossed his arms and puffed out his chest.
Mystic looked at her, confused about what he wanted from her.
"Don't get too confident just because you were the first to win first place in this test. The next time our paths cross, I'll kill you with my own hands."
"..." Mystic looked at him once before looking away from him.
Seeing this action of Mystic, a sly smile formed on his lips.
'That fellow killed three people just for fun. A psychotic doubled as a sadist, that's what he is. The worst part is that he teamed up with another.' As she mumbled, her gaze and that of another girl, with similar features to the guy, met.
The two seemed to know each other before, otherwise they wouldn't have teamed up.
There were other powerful people, like the mysterious brown-haired guy, and a monk who never opened his eyes since the beginning, but this duo seemed the most problematic for Mystic.
Unlike the other guy, they didn't hide their hostility towards her. Like hungry wolves, their eyes were on Mystic, eager to tear her pieces by pieces.
Soon the two examiners gathered in front of them above a stony platform.
"The second test will now begin."
Mystic frowned, asking herself the same question as most of those who were paying attention to these two.
'Among two, Who killed the girl?'
It was impossible to know now. Their clothes, builds, voices, everything was the same.
No matter how sharp Mystic's eyes were, she was unable to see even the slightest difference between them.
'...Whatever.'
Anyway, one of the two examiners spoke to explain the details.
"Behind me, there are three paths leading to the same place. You have one hour to overcome any obstacles in your way.
-If you fail the test, you will die.
-Once that time has passed without reaching your destination, you'll die.
-The last three will be executed as well even if they arrive on time."
As before, his explanation didn't take long.
However, the man that Mystic had suspected from the beginning raised his hand, asking for permission to speak.
Many of the participants frowned at the man's audacity.
The memory of the first scene was still fresh in the minds of each of them.
The two examiners were no exception either.
After a moment of silence and observation,
"Speak!"
His exotic voice echoed with the same echo as a rock.
"Are we allowed to team up?"
"...All that matters is not being the last one."
Hearing his answer, the man smiled in satisfaction.
Mystic could feel his eyes on her, but once again, she paid no attention to his gestures.
"Well, the test will begin when my second gives the signal."
That was his way of saying that the participants had some rest time before starting.
However, since no one knew what kind of signal the other man was going to give, their eyes were all fixed on him.
In a second, everyone seemed to have decided on the path they were going to take.
However, even after a minute of waiting, the other guy didn't move from his spot or even blink.
He stood there like an immovable rock.
As time passed, the tension increased, making many of them nervous.
"...Could it be that he gave the signal without us noticing?"
"Don't be stupid, we would have seen it by now if that were the case."
Soon, nervous murmurs began to resound among the small crowd.
The first test was survival and obedience, however, the second test seems to be more complicated than it seems.
In addition to testing their patience, it also tests their observation skills.
'I think I'm starting to understand how this dungeon works.'
Mystic mumbled as he looked the examiner in the eye.
At that moment, the man who had been explaining suddenly swung his hand and said...
"Start!"
When those words escaped his mouth, Mystic frowned.
'Why is he the one giving the signal!?'
This question was asked by most of the participants.
However, when one man charged in, afraid of being among the last three, two others also followed him!
They had the same fear in their hearts.
However, seeing that the first three were not intercepted by the examiner, Mystic's heart began to beat heavily.
'Something is wrong.'
She mumbled.
The examiner's previous commands were still kept in a corner of her brain.
However, there was a catch.
They would either have to trust those words or act like the others and save their lives.
Everything had its share of risk. It only increased the tension that the others, left behind, felt at this precise moment.