The disorienting pull of the portal vanished in an instant, leaving Hugo standing in the middle of a dense jungle. The air was humid, filled with the cries of distant beasts.
The ground beneath him was uneven, covered in patches of grass and gnarled roots. He adjusted his footing, taking in his surroundings, and whispered to himself.
"This is it... Survival starts now."
With that, he vanished into the thick foliage, ready to face whatever the island had in store.
____________________
Hugo trudged through the dense jungle, his feet crunching on the uneven forest floor as he shoved aside yet another low-hanging branch. His arms were scratched, his patience worn thin, and his sanity was dangling by a thread.
Every inch of this place looked identical trees, bushes, vines, and the occasional suspicious rustling noise that always turned out to be something unhelpful, like a squirrel or a bird.
His latest attempt at searching had brought him to a clearing with a shallow stream. Hugo crouched beside it, peering into the water. "Alright, maybe it's underwater." he mumbled, rolling up his sleeves. "A shiny badge floating in a stream? That'd make sense, right?"
With determined fervor, Hugo plunged his hands into the cold water and began swishing around.
A few seconds in, his fingers wrapped around something solid and smooth. His heart leapt. "Finally!" he exclaimed, yanking the object out of the stream.
It was a rock.
A plain, boring, completely unremarkable rock. Hugo stared at it, his face blank with disbelief. Slowly, he tossed it back into the water with an unceremonious plop.
"Of course.." he said, his tone deadpan. "Of course it's a rock. Why wouldn't it be!?"
Standing up with a groan, Hugo stretched his arms over his head and scanned the jungle again. "Alright, like instructor Everhart said, the objective was to find a badge hidden within the island."
he muttered, his voice tinged with sarcasm. "Where's this legendary badge you're so proud of? Hiding it wasn't enough? You had to not tell us what it looks like too?"
He continued walking, his eyes darting from the ground to the trees, trying to spot anything remotely badge-like. His frustration bubbled to the surface with each step, and eventually, he snapped.
"WHAT DOES THIS STUPID BADGE EVEN LOOK LIKE?!" Hugo yelled, throwing his arms into the air. His voice echoed through the jungle, startling a flock of birds into the sky. They scattered with indignant squawks, as if scolding him for disturbing their peace.
Hugo grabbed a random stick from the ground and swung it like a sword at a nearby bush. "Is it shiny? Is it hidden in plain sight? Is it camouflaged like a freaking chameleon?!" His makeshift weapon snapped in half against a tree trunk, and he tossed the pieces away dramatically.
He stomped to a nearby tree and leaned against it, his arms crossed. "You know, it's probably just a leaf." he muttered bitterly. "A shiny leaf. Or worse, a leaf I already walked past ten times."
As he sulked, a rustling noise came from the bushes behind him. Hugo whipped around, squinting at the movement. "If that's another squirrel…" he began, but nothing emerged.
He groaned loudly, dragging a hand down his face. "I swear, if I see one more leaf, I'm going to lose it."
He stomped over to another patch of bushes and started digging through them, pulling out random twigs and foliage with zero regard for subtlety. "No badge. No badge. Surprise! Still no badge!"
Hugo stood up, brushing dirt off his hands and glaring at the jungle. "This is ridiculous!" he shouted at the sky, his voice cracking slightly. "How is anyone supposed to find something when we don't even know what it looks like? This isn't a trial, it's a glorified game of hide-and-seek!"
He paused, realizing how loud he was being, and looked around sheepishly. "Great.." he muttered. "Now I'm like a crazy guy yelling at trees."
With a long, dramatic sigh, Hugo flopped down onto a mossy rock. He stared at the canopy above, the sunlight barely filtering through the dense leaves.
His expression was a mix of frustration and exhaustion as he mumbled, "I bet Instructor Everhart is watching me somehow, just like he said before. He sounded serious about being able to see everything. Right now, I can imagine him laughing his head off, probably sitting in a cushy chair with a bowl of popcorn."
The thought of the stern instructor eating popcorn nearly made Hugo laugh, but he quickly pushed the image aside. He sat up and clenched his fists.
"Fine." he said resolutely. "I'll keep looking. But if this badge turns out to be something obvious like glowing neon or covered in sparkles, I'm going to throw it into the nearest river."
With renewed, albeit begrudging determination, Hugo stood up and marched deeper into the jungle.
Behind him, a squirrel peeked out from the bushes, its tiny paws clutching what looked suspiciously like a shiny golden badge. But Hugo was already gone, oblivious to the irony of his situation.
Inside the control room, Instructor Everhart leaned back in his chair, a satisfied smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. The room was dimly lit, the glow from countless screens casting flickering light over the walls and ceiling.
Each monitor displayed a different part of the island, capturing the various candidates scattered across its vast, untamed terrain. Some were confidently navigating their surroundings, while others, like Hugo, flailed about in frustration.
Everhart's eyes flicked to the screen displaying Hugo's outburst, where the boy was gesturing wildly at the trees, his voice muted but clearly yelling at the forest. "Heh, He's got spirit. " Everhart mused, resting his chin on his knuckles. "Maybe a little too much of it."
Seated across the room, a younger instructor fidgeted nervously, clearly new to the job. He watched Everhart with a mix of curiosity and trepidation.
After a moment of hesitation, the rookie finally worked up the courage to ask, "Instructor Everhart, how exactly are you able to monitor all of this at once? I mean, isn't it overwhelming to manage such a massive area?"
Everhart turned his head slightly, his smirk widening. "Zone Observer, that's what my ability called."
He said simply, gesturing toward the monitors. "I can create an invisible zone over any area and turn it into my personal surveillance playground. But instead of watching it all directly with my eyes which would fry anyone's brain, so I project it onto an screens like these. Makes it easier to focus on what matters."
The rookie's eyes widened as he took in the sheer scope of the ability. "The entire island? You mean, every single corner of it is under your observation right now?"
Everhart nodded, gesturing broadly to the screens. "Every leaf, every shadow, every misplaced rock. If it happens on the island, I see it." His tone was calm, but there was a subtle pride in his voice. "Though managing a zone this big does take a toll. You can't exactly hold all that information in your head at once."
"That's why I use the monitors. It's less about multitasking and more about prioritizing. Plus, other instructor could see it too, which help alot in efficiency."
The rookie leaned closer to the screens, his nervousness replaced with awe. "That's incredible... No wonder you're in charge of this trial."
Everhart let out a low chuckle, his eyes returning to the displays. "It's not about me. It's about finding the ones who can thrive under pressure. And," his smirk returned as his gaze lingered on Hugo's screen, "The ones who make it entertaining."
The room fell into a brief silence, the hum of machinery filling the space. Everhart's focus shifted to another screen where a dark-skinned elf moved swiftly through the jungle, his posture tense but purposeful.
The instructor's smirk softened slightly. "That one." he muttered. "He's got precision. Every step calculated."
On a different screen, the lanky blonde leaned casually against a tree, his orange eyes sparkling with mischief. A bird swooped down near him, and with a swift, exaggerated motion, he pretended to duck and weave like a boxer, grinning to himself. Everhart raised an eyebrow. "That one's a wildcard. Could be trouble, but he's sharp."
Nearby, a silver-haired boy adjusted his gloves as he crouched low to examine a faint trail of footprints. His cyan-colored eyes narrowed with focus as he scanned his surroundings, a sleek firearm glinting at his side. Everhart nodded approvingly. "The sniper type. Always dangerous when they keep their calm."
On the next monitor, a silvery-green-haired girl moved with an almost ethereal grace, her fingers brushing a leaf as she passed. The jungle seemed to part around her, the foliage swaying slightly as if acknowledging her presence. Everhart tilted his head. "Hmm. Nature types. Always a challenge to predict."
The crimson-haired girl on another screen stretched her arms, her amber eyes gleaming with quiet determination. Her dragon-like tail swayed behind her, brushing against the leaves as she adjusted her stance. Everhart's smirk returned. "And then there's her. Powerhouses like that are always fun to watch."
Finally, his gaze landed on a petite pink-haired girl sitting on a rock, nibbling absentmindedly on a piece of fruit she had apparently found. Her bear-like ears twitched slightly at the distant sounds of rustling leaves, but her relaxed demeanor didn't falter. Everhart let out a low chuckle. "Relaxed now, but give her time. Fighters like her always surprise you."
The rookie instructor, now thoroughly captivated, asked hesitantly, "Do you think any of them have a chance at passing?"
Everhart leaned back, his arms crossed. "That's not for me to decide. My job is to watch and see how far they'll go." His gaze lingered on Hugo's screen, where the boy had resumed his search, muttering to himself as he trudged onward.
Everhart smirked. "Though some of them are already proving... entertaining."
With that, Everhart turned his chair slightly, scanning the array of screens with an unhurried confidence. The jungle trial was far from over, and the candidates still had much to prove. But to him, this was just the beginning.
Continue...