On the trophy, a piece of paper was magically attached to it. The heart of the mountain is where I lie, but will you see me with just your eye? I realized that the heart of the mountain must mean the middle of the mountain. Eyeing the map suspiciously, I saw 4 tunnels leading to the middle of the mountain: the Tunnel of Dragons, the Tunnel of Death, the Tunnel of Life, and the Tunnel of Nothing. I thought it would be the Tunnel of Dragons, but I turned around the paper for the second part of the clue, which read: The poor have me, the rich need me, but if you eat me, you will eventually die. What am I?

I chuckled involuntarily; I knew this riddle by heart. The solution was nothing. I put the trophy in the bag and then sprinted to the other side of the mountain to enter through the Nothing Tunnel. Inside, 5 trophies glimmered brightly, a plaque at the bottom congratulating me and telling me the dangers in the other tunnels. Each of the other tunnels was dangerous, so I was glad I chose correctly.

The Tunnel of Dragons was full of dragon-like creatures with razor-sharp claws that probably would’ve torn through titanium as if it was paper. The Tunnel of Death ended in an empty chasm, an endless void into death. The Tunnel of Life, however, looked like a paradise; however, when a stray monster walked into it, arrows shot at it from all sides, the floor dropped in, and something dropped from the ceiling that caused the monster to instantly disintegrate.

I flicked my eyes back onto the trophies. I knew one of them was real, and the others fake. I was afraid to pick the wrong one, as I didn’t know what would be the punishment. I thought back to my classes about gold. I suddenly remembered something important. I sprayed acid on each of the trophies using Acid Spray. 4 of the trophies changed color, so I knew they were fake. The one second from the right, however, shone the same. I waited for the acid to drip off, then I grabbed the trophy.

I did, and then I frowned, realizing the next test was going to be in the ocean. Although I used the Hurricane-Lightning Bolt combo frequently, it was going to be useless underwater, as I would electrify myself if I cast Lightning Bolt underwater. I could only use Lightning Bolt as a last resort, and maybe not even that. Plus, my water spells were likely going to be rendered useless, whilst my fire spells would barely have an effect, even with Elementalism. In addition, I couldn’t even properly swim; I only knew how to stay above the surface and dog paddle.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

I read the note on the trophy. On the front side, it read

Highly intelligent, and usually gray in color,

I am also very playful in behavior.

In my domain is where it is hidden,

But beware lest you find what is forbidden.

“Huh, what could that mean?” I wondered aloud, “A species of life that is intelligent. If it is playful, it is likely able to move, so I think it’s an animal. Well, what animals are intelligent? To list some, I guess there are chimpanzees, gorillas, elephants, dolphins, pigs, dogs, octopi, and parrots. Chimpanzees are black and white, so it’s not them. Pigs aren't, like, pink or black or something, I don’t know. Dogs… usually brown I think? I’m also pretty sure that octopi are red or yellow or black or something. Parrots are out of question, they’re so colorful! Hmmm…. Gorillas are gray-ish, elephants are gray, and dolphins are usually gray as well! It has to be one of them, right?”

I looked at the map again. The ocean held the Domain of Gorillas, the Domain of Elephants, the Domain of Dolphins, the Domain of Octopi, the Domain of Killer Whales, the Domain of Crabs, and the Domain of Doom, I knew it had to be the Gorilla, Elephant, Dolphin, or Killer Whale Domain. Since all of them were playful, and all of them were gr- wait, killer whales aren’t gray!

I joyfully eliminated the Killer Whale Domain. Then, I thought of something. Wait… don’t some killer whales have gray saddle patches?

To solve this problem, I flipped over the piece of paper. It read,

This is where all life began,

Necessary for life on sea, sky, and land.

Where life took its first breath,

What keeps life away from death.