(It’s already evening.)

“You have until sunrise to reach the beachfront, the place where we came from. I'll be cheering on you all. Ciao,"

Uriel winks, then suddenly runs and immediately disappears from their sight.

"He's gone... This is crazy! This island is very dangerous! How can we even memorize the path that we took in that short amount of time? Plus, it's already night. We might die here if we make even a single mistake," the other participants say.

(Suddenly, loud noises...)

"Arrghhh, help me! Aaaahhh! Help me!... Help me!!!... I don't want to die.. Someone help me!..."

These were the voices of people coming from every direction of the forest.

"What was that?!" says one participant.

Three people, coming from different directions, approached them mortally wounded, then died in front of them.

"They're dead," says the participants.

The participants started to feel uneasy.

"What is going on here?!" the participants say.

Participants start to panic. They are anxious about what just happened and what might happen to them.

"If we stay together, the chances of reaching the beachfront and staying alive are higher than going on our own," says one participant.

"Yeah, he's right. We must stay close together if we want to survive this place," says another participant.

"You're right," says another.

"But, is it safer if we do not leave this area?

You know, this place is so dangerous, we might get lost and find some dangerous and terrifying animals or even go to the acidic lakes or mushrooms or plants that the examiners were telling us about a while ago," says another.

"It is safer if we do not move beyond here. I quit, I don't want to risk my life in this exam. I will wait here for rescue, they won't leave us stranded here," says one participant.

"I will go with him and will wait for rescue," says another.

"Yeah, me too! Me too!" says every other participant.

Some of the participants already lost their will to participate in the examination and decided not to move from the spot they are on now.

"But how are you sure that we won't get attacked by those animals in this forest?" one participant asks.

"Yeah, think about it. Wild animals might be attracted to the lights and if they come here, we'll be in trouble," another points out.

"You have a point," the other participants agree.

"So, there really isn't a safe place here after all," Freed thinks to himself.

The tall guy with a sinister smirk is already walking away and sets off.

"What should I do? What should I do? This is scary!" The girl with pink hair trembles, sweating, and panicking.

"It's okay, you can come with me. I will protect you," Freed said.

"Really? You're so kind, mister..." (She starts acting shy)

"Is it really okay?" (She is still acting shy)

"Yes, don't worry about it. The best way to pass this round is to help each other. I'm Freed Mitchel. Nice to meet you!"

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

"Aaaa, I, I, I'm Ween, Ween York. Nice to meet you too, Freed!" (In a very shy tone)

Freed smiles at Ween. Nice to meet you Ween!

Freed reach his hand to Ween for a handshake but Ween is so shy.

Ween keep staring at Freed’s smiling face, then she shook his hand a little.

Freed is delighted he is shaking Ween’s hand non- stop.

Ehh …Mi..mi..mis…ter Freed..My haanndss.(Ween is blushing so much)

Ow, I’m sorry, I almost forgot.

Freed is scratching his head.

Ween is very shy of what happen.

"How about you? What is your name?" Freed asks the mysterious, cold boy.

The boy glances at Freed.

"I'm Sho, Sho An-enlilda."

Sho greeted Freed in a cheerful manner, his face glowing as he reached out to shake Freed's hand.

"It's good to see some people here who are around my age," Sho said.

"What's your reason for joining the agent's examination?" He turned to Ween. "Let's start with you."

Ween, who was a bit shy at first, replied, "I am a bookworm. I spend most of my time reading and learning things through books. I've read almost every book in my hometown. I want to learn more things, know more about cultures, history, new innovations, new discoveries, every plant and animal in the world, sciences, physics, mathematics, biology, the human body, the brain, the heart... it's all so exciting! I want to visit and study every place in this world. I get so thrilled whenever I think about the learnings I will gain." Ween spoke with passion, as if she were dreaming about his future adventures.

The two boys were speechless as they listened to Ween talk non-stop about her desire to learn and explore the world.

"And being an agent will grant me access to those things," Ween said, returning to her shy demeanor.

"That is cool, Ween!" Freed said, showing his support.

Shon thought to himself "This girl is kinda weird"

Shon then turned to Freed and asked, "How about you?"

"My hometown was raided by mercenaries and my parents were among those killed. As an agent, I will have the necessary resources to find the culprits and locate my brother to inform him of what has happened," says Freed with a serious tone, remembering the event.

Ween and Shon are shocked and saddened for Freed.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked," says Shon.

"Are you okay, Freed?" asks Ween.

"No, it's alright, it's not your fault. My main focus now is to pass the agent exam," Freed responds.

(Shon and Ween feeling inspired)

"EHEM!" (Shon tries to change the mood)

"I joined the agent examination to try a different path. I want to reach and explore other places, meet different people, and eat different kinds of food.

I'm a prince, so I was exposed to high expectations. I'm so sick of being held up and taught only what to say or do. I don't want to be in a four-walled room all day, writing and talking only about politics," he explains.

Freed and Ween are shocked.

"What? You're a prince?" asks Ween and Freed.

"Then, I had read about this agent's job and became fascinated by it. So, I ran away to take the examination this year," says Shon cheerfully.

"You ran away?" asks Freed and Ween, both shocked.

Shon nods.

Freed and Ween were both in awe at Shon's revelation. They couldn't believe that he was a prince and that he had run away to take the agent examination. They were also surprised by his motivation for wanting to become an agent, as it was different from their own reasons.

"So, do you have plans on how we can reach the airship?" asks Shon.

"Well, we could go to the beachfront and travel along it until we reach the airship," suggests Freed.

"But, isn’t it weird? If it were that easy going around the beachfront, the examiner should have taken that route awhile ago," says Shon.

"It makes sense, you have a point there," agrees Freed.

"Maybe the surrounding sand of the island is dangerous," suggests Ween.

"It could be," says Shon.

Some of the participants group together, some go ahead straight into the jungle, and some came up with the solution of going around the beachfront until they reach the airship, while the remaining decided to not proceed with the exam and just wait at the starting spot.

The starting spot is located on the other side of the island and is surrounded by large boulders of rock.

"I think we should go straight into the jungle, just the same trail that we had taken awhile back," suggests Freed.

"Did you remember the trail, Freed?" asks Shon.

"I kinda remember it. I was kinda familiar going into the jungle," says Freed.

"That's so reassuring, Freed," says Ween.

"Okay, let's discuss our formation. I'll be at the back, Ween's at the center, and you're in front, Freed," says Shon.

"That sounds good. We should stick together, keep our movements low so we won't attract animals' attention. Be also wary of your surroundings and tell immediately if you saw something while keeping our voices low," advises Freed.

"Ok, copy that, Freed," says Shon.

"O o okay(stuttering)," says Ween, feeling nervous.

"Let's go," says Freed and the three of them set off on their journey, sticking to their formation and being cautious of their surroundings as they make their way through the jungle.