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Chapter 62 - The Ice Cave
🕑 Added 2024-10-29 00:14:15 +0000 UTCDamian struggled to walk through the deep snow. Each step seemed to sink him even deeper; however, along with the other groups, they needed to descend from the top of the icy hill.
As soon as they exited through the security gate, they were launched into the world. All the hundreds of groups were focused on the areas near the city to obtain an easy and safe score. However, the groups that wanted to stand out began to separate to go deeper.
Some walked toward the forest north of the city, while others went south to a terrain with various recesses and caves. Yet no group was foolish enough to go east or west, heading toward the enormous mountains outside the exam area.
Damian looked at his other teammates. "Where are we going?" he asked Armadillo, the boy with a professional name in the market.
He had a power that would generally be useless but was essential for this exam. He could use Energy to send low-impact Seismic Waves and analyze where there were sources of Energy in the region.
This allowed them to avoid opponents but, above all, to find valuable anomalies.
The boy with thick glasses crouched down and pushed the snow away from the ground, where he inserted his bare hand. His face trembled, sometimes seeming pleased and other times contorting in pain.
'Weird as fuck.' That was all Damian could think about this power. 'But extremely necessary.'
"South. I still don't know what it is, but it seems to emit a lot of Energy," Armadillo said in his nasal voice.
In addition to the two of them, Leo accompanied the group, listening to everything around the four. To complete the team, there was Anchor—a boy from the first battalion who owed some favors to the Nemo family.
He had been 'hired' as a bodyguard for the group. They wouldn't need to battle since they had two of the best terrain reconnaissance recruits, but Damian preferred to invest in something more secure to ensure safety in case of any 'incident.'
Anchor had the power to increase his weight several dozen times, proportionally increasing his density, literally making him a human tank. His ability was already at a level where he could easily be a mercenary for the Houses; however, he wanted to graduate as a Ranger, and this was his chance.
Leo constantly moved his head, trying to change the direction of his ears to hear better what was happening.
"Anything important?" Damian asked.
"Nothing. We're still very close to the other groups; they're interfering with the sounds," the boy explained.
Anchor remained impassive and focused on following the group.
As they walked south, they found a vast field, even with some spaces with no snow, just some patches of grass.
However, as they were about to advance, Leo raised one of his hands.
"Stop!"
Hiss
Whoosh
A geyser exploded a few meters ahead of them.
"I believe the field must have more of these; follow me," the boy said before they resumed walking.
"We need to go there!" Armadillo pointed to one of the recesses on the other side of the field. "That's the entrance to a cave."
"Got it," Leo confirmed.
They gradually advanced while Armadillo continued using his gauntlet to mark the positions of the geysers and the cave entrance.
| +5 Points - Geyser discovered.
| +5 Points - Cave discovered.
| Time remaining: 05:15:32
Leo guided the group step by step. "Don't take a single step away from where I'm walking."
As soon as he finished speaking, another geyser erupted, expelling hot water.
Soon, they crossed the field, reaching the cave's entrance. The opening made it seem like the cave was small and shouldn't have anything special; several others were like it in the region.
"Are we in the right place?" Damian asked.
"Yes, yes, yes," Armadillo replied with a strange excitement.
They began to descend into the cave, trying not to slip on the small loose stones on the slope. However, something caught the group's attention: although the ground was covered with rocks, the walls seemed made of ice.
"Confusing," Armadillo commented. However, he didn't pay much attention and continued his exploration.
"Damian," Leo called his partner.
"Yes?" The boy looked at him.
"I think we're being followed. There are three other groups close to ours, but..." Leo paused for a second, listening to the sounds around. "But one of them is constantly getting closer; they still seem to be in the geysers' field."
"Hmm." Damian thought for a moment. "Do you think it could be a problem?"
"From what I hear, they seem light; they shouldn't be a combat team. I haven't heard them perform any aggressive actions," Leo commented.
"Then let them be. They must just be looking for more points. Since we're ahead and better prepared, we'll get them before they do," Damian replied. "Besides, the points only count for whoever discovers first."
Leo nodded, returning to focus on the sounds he was picking up.
"Attention! Goblins ahead. Let's divert to this side of the cave."
--
--
| +1 Point - Terrain discovered
The notifications kept appearing for Isabela as she walked ahead of the group.
Upon reaching the plain, the group was also presented with the same problem as the others. Stay near the city or advance to more distant terrain.
"Staying here will give us a mediocre score," Isabela commented. "I'm only receiving one point when we advance to a new territory."
Alan confirmed the notification.
If the four only wanted to graduate, it would be enough, but everyone there had the ambition to become Rangers except for Alan.
"What do we do?" Alan asked, looking at Oliver. Oliver had inadvertently become the group's leader by inviting everyone there.
"Let's get out of here," Oliver commented.
"But to the north or south?" Katherine asked.
Oliver looked around, trying to find more information.
"We'll go south. To the north, there seem to be forests. Closed areas like that make surveying difficult and hinder long-distance battles," the boy explained his reasoning.
Without any counterargument, they began to walk south of the city.
"How are the notifications?" Oliver asked.
"Um, we've received some points, but it seems this territory is already being mapped," Alan explained.
"Then we must have other groups that also came this way. We need to speed up our pace," Oliver commented.
The four tried to walk faster but soon noticed they were getting tired from the snow.
After a few more minutes of walking, they reached the field of geysers.
Hiss
Whoosh
"Damn. This is quite dangerous," Alan commented, seeing eruptions.
However, Oliver's attention was on something else. In the middle of the field was a group walking, and there was someone he was particularly interested in—among them was Damian.
Oliver approached Isabela. "Bella! Bella!"
The girl, who was focused on the field ahead, looked concerned.
The boy pointed to the group. "Was that the boy you heard?"
She squinted her eyes, trying to observe them. It was pretty difficult, especially with the water jets between the fields. "I-I think so. It's hard to tell from this distance, but I think so."
"Alright," Oliver confirmed and began to look at the ground around them. They could see the trampled grass.
'Should I follow them? Would that be the best option for my team or a personal decision?' The boy debated what he needed to do. 'Let's follow them at least to find new territory. If any opportunity arises, I'll take it. But I need to focus on the exam.'
"Guys, look at the ground. There's already a group ahead of us. They've left their footprints marked; step exactly in the same places," Oliver commanded the team.
The boy began to walk ahead, using his vision and agility to navigate between the geysers. Fortunately, the falling water wasn't enough to erase the footprints on the ground, allowing them to advance to the other side of the field.
'We can continue further south or keep following them,' Oliver thought.
Before the boy could make a decision, he heard a deafening noise.
Roar
The four turned south, seeing two groups running back toward the field of geysers but being chased by a giant Snow Tiger. The creature quickly leaped over the two groups and landed in the center of the field, creating a small crater with its weight.
"Mark it," Oliver pointed to Alan.
"You two, into the cave." The boy spoke to Katherine and Isabela.
Acting quickly, Alan grabbed his gauntlet and pointed it at the monster, marking it on the map.
| +15 Points - Snow Tiger discovered
| Captains notified.
"The Gauntlet called the captains to rescue them," Alan explained.
"Alright, now it's our turn. Into the cave."
