“Wake up Noah!” a young girl’s immature voice buzzed in Noah’s ear. Stirring in his bed like silt at the bottom of a river, he covered his eyes, the sun nearly blinding him.

“Shuddup Layla, it’s not even twelve yet,” Noah mumbled, refusing to move. Layla rolled her eyes. Although he was an incredibly hard worker once he got out of bed, getting him out was a whole separate issue.

“Jack from the first group is calling an emergency meeting at the park. If you don’t attend, you’re going to be in big trouble.”

Hearing this, Noah’s fuzzy mind cleared; his mouth that was hidden in the covers widened into a grin.

“Ah, alright. I’m getting out now. You can go ahead of me; I need to dress. Don’t forget to save me a spot,” he told her.

Hearing Noah’s promise, Layla exited, leaving him alone in the room.

He groaned, turning over and pushing himself up from the covers. A bed was a luxury that he found himself liking more and more.

Of course, laziness wouldn’t inhibit Noah in any way. It was merely an act for Layla, a so-called human quality that would bring her closer to him. Liking specific foods, hating hard work, and being polite, these little acts created a relatable character in Layla’s eyes, despite his brutal and murderous behavior.

Dressing himself, Noah left the room, double-checking to make sure that the door was locked. Leaving the hotel, it took him ten minutes to arrive at the crowded park.

Unlike the meeting three days ago, the lush area contained a sense of order. Tables and chairs were laid out neatly, with most being filled by groups of four or five. Looking around, Noah spotted Layla sitting with James and Nicole.

“Sit here Noah,” Layla said, patting the seat next to her. Noah obliged, greeting everyone at the table. They responded in kind, albeit weakly. Nicole, in particular, looked at him strangely.

Leaning towards him, Layla whispered, “You made it just in time. The meeting is about to start.”

“Ahem,” Jack coughed, ending the quiet conversations that were hovering around the park. “I’ve called you all here today to inform you all of an unexpected series of murders last night.”

Murmurs rose up from Jack’s proclamation.

“The people who were killed were all within the top twenty groups.”

Chaos ensued.

A burly man from one of the top ten groups shouted, “Who did it?”

Jack answered him, causing the venue to fall silent. “This is why I have called all of you here today. My group and I are currently investigating this to the best of our ability along with those groups involved. However, there are no leads. The hotels don’t have any electric security measures and the guards have all been killed.”

He leaned over, slamming his palms on the table’s wooden planks. “I hope everyone can cooperate together not only in catching the murders but in clearing this trial.”

Cries of agreement rose up from the crowd.

“Then it’s settled. Today, I hope everyone can tell me if they find anyone suspicious or if they have some skill in investigation. By transferring points to those who helped, I can guarantee a relative reward for your efforts.”

Noah’s face remained aloof through the speech. Layla was staring at him from his side, but he didn’t change his expression.

“Who could’ve done it,” Nicole mumbled. James also glanced at Noah’s heavy raccoon eyes but said nothing.

The meeting continued, with Jack proposing and discussing various ideas and plans. Now many mechanics of the tutorial were known.

Effective strategies in fighting beasts, medical knowledge, and the best weapons in the shop were all things discussed in great length over the course of a few hours.

“Has anyone created a map of the city and the surrounding maze?” Noah asked after waiting for an opening in the debate.

“Yeah, that’s right! We need to know where everything is! I keep getting lost,” a different guy with green hair shouted. The rest also voiced their agreement.

“Calm down everyone,” Jack grinned, his suave smile working wonders. “Do you really think that the top groups have been doing nothing but hunting dogs? We’ve just been making sure that every nook and cranny is detailed, at least to the extent that we’ve explored. It's still far away from covering the whole maze.”

As he was saying that he unrolled a large canvas on his table, allowing everyone nearby to see it. Necks strained as the nearby groups viewed the map, memorizing its contents. While they all had their own understanding of the city, the manpower of a single group was limited.

It was only due to the strength of Jack and his group that they could form an alliance between the top groups. Noah couldn’t help but think to himself that Jack was quite capable.

“Don’t worry everyone, we’ve prepared many copies; enough for every hunting group to have one. We’ll be passing them out shortly.”

A minute later, an attractive woman walked up to Noah’s table carrying a rolled-up map. Nicole thanked her and she unrolled it before leaving, excusing herself. Looking at the hand-drawn canvas, Noah obtained a greater understanding of the trial’s topography.

The trial contained three main ring-shaped sections. The inner city was the smallest, including the park in its center as well as the surrounding buildings. It shared no resemblance to a maze, containing a wide variety of streets, alleys, and other messy passages.

The second section was the suburbs, the host of the waves of dogs and the area that began to resemble a maze. Noah had been hunting there earlier, along with most groups. The buildings were closer together than in the city, with walls occasionally placed between them. However, due to the building’s low height, the walls were often placed in vain.

The third section was the maze itself, located on the fringes of the canvas. Apparently, it hadn’t been explored much.

Yesterday, Noah had taken a look at the maze from the roof of a two-story house and its size impressed him. The walls were no shorter than the inner city’s skyscrapers. However, they were completely smooth like marble. There was no chance of climbing them.

The other groups were all also studying the passed-out maps, making their own interpretations of it and comparing it to their own knowledge. Seeing its accuracy, many groups expressed their thanks, Noah included. Jack received them all humbly, a faint smile lifting his face.

Understanding that Jack already had firm control over the tutorial, Noah couldn’t help but frown.

“He must be looking to improve his own score and obtain some bonuses through leadership,” Noah thought.

Many assumptions could be made about the bonuses at the end of the second trial. Just like Noah increased his score by sabotaging his team, bonuses were awarded for anything that was considered rare by the system. Outstanding leadership naturally was included.

By now, the meeting was coming to a close. The final arrangements were being made for the defense and attack plans. Countermeasures against assassins were made as well.

From now on, the number of guards will be increased while the distance between people will be reduced.

All groups will now be separated between three nearby hotels. This not only increased the participant’s safety and cooperative spirit, it also allowed for groups to meld together, increasing the efficiency of exploration of the maze.

“Let’s go, Layla,” Noah said as people began to filter outside of the park. Though he appeared nonchalant on the surface, inwardly he was a feeling grim.

They say hindsight was 20/20 and Noah couldn’t agree more. Being the sole survivor of the tutorial would be an arduous task. Jack’s safety measures were incredibly overbearing.

Now that he would be living in a hotel with nearly three hundred other participants, moving around unnoticed would be impossible.

The increase in guards and stable, rotation-based surveillance system Jack implemented didn’t help either. Walking back with Layla, Noah was forced to look at the bigger picture. With his capabilities, he might not be the sole survivor.

A painful headache caused Noah to clutch at his forehead.

Hearing his groan, Layla looked at him, worried. While he kept his smile, faint beads of sweat rolled down his forehead like the morning dew.

“What happened,” she questioned.

“Nothing, it’s just that… things don’t seem to have gotten any easier.”

She looked at him strangely. “What’s easy about surviving in this tutorial? Did you expect it to be easy?”

He shook his head. “Never mind, we’re already at the new hotel anyway. Let’s find a room. Hopefully, all the good ones aren’t taken.”

Noah hummed in surprise, looking around and noticing the name of the hotel. “This is the first one I slept in, what a coincidence.”

Knowing the way, he led Layla through the hallways. As having an escape route was a priority, most groups chose rooms near the ground floor. Noah headed to the top; he knew that if he really had to escape with his life, there was no chance of clearing this tutorial.

He and Layla entered the last room on the top floor. Seeing the familiar ascetic interior, his expression eased up. The sun was reaching its summit, yet here he was, already tired.

“I’m going to sleep for a bit. I didn’t get a lot of hours last night,” he told Layla. “Work on your control over your core in the meantime. Although contribution points are good, they don’t help your internal strength. Items will be outgrown, but your mastery over mana will always stay with you.”

Finishing his short piece, Noah closed his eyes, immediately falling asleep.

Layla watched him for a minute before shaking her head vigorously. She closed her eyes, feeling her mana core and the atmospheric mana around her. Her brows scrunched together as she concentrated on absorbing it.

Like water entering a filter, mana entered her body through her skin, making its way into her core where it was processed and obtained a light-blue color. According to Noah, this was her personal mana.

Feeling invigorated, she continued her practice. Since Noah had taught her how to “meditate” a few days ago, her mana core had increased in its solidity. When she had first seen it, it had the appearance of a navy orb, as if it were filled with seawater.

Now, days later, it was still dark, but a hint of light be seen, shining like a white lamp in the center of her mana core. She had asked Noah why absorbing mana did this, but he denied knowing anything else. Just like always.

A glossy layer of sweat appeared along Layla’s back. Meditation was not simply sitting; through absorbing atmospheric mana, your mana core would gradually increase in capacity. Just like using magic, it requires mental focus and stamina.

An hour later, Layla exhaled a breath of hot air.

“Probably about two percent?” she guessed. Noah had warned her that the rarer a person’s mana core, the harder it would be to meditate and the longer it would take to see results. Meditation not only increased a person's understanding of mana, it also strengthened their core. She was willing to spend hours on it if she could become stronger.

As for what that exactly meant, once again, Layla didn’t know. Feeling uncomfortable in her soaked clothes, she took a quick shower and changed. After grabbing a pack of instant ramen from the cupboard, she didn’t bother to cook it and ate it as is.

Crumbs littered the carpet as Layla walked down the hallway of the hotel. Others milled about, carrying backpacks and bags of items, weaponry, and food into their new rooms. She and Noah didn’t have much to bring besides their weapons, food, and the map, so it hadn’t taken them long to unpack.

Many of those from weaker groups greeted her, offering sweet candies or asking how Noah was doing. She smiled and offered her thanks to them, quickly leaving the conversation.

Attempting to morph her face into something more unapproachable, she darkly stared ahead of herself as she left the hotel. Her attempt appeared to have worked, as no one bothered her anymore. Fiddling with the handle of her knife, she soon entered the blacksmith store.

The building, unlike when she first entered it with Noah, was full of people and lacking dust. She walked to the back counter and after the system’s panel appeared in front of her, switched to the enchanting tab. After selecting her knife as the target of the enchantment, a prompt appeared in front of her.

Select Enchantment

Layla’s eyes widened at the variety of options below it. Corrosion, fire, poison, and all sorts of miraculous effects were available. Though she heard about this from Nicole, seeing it firsthand was something else.

Noticing her hundred contribution points were just enough to place an enchantment, she tapped her foot on the wooden floor. All of them were good options and she wanted to make the best choice.

“Maybe I should ask Noah. He’ll probably know which is the best.”

“Do you need some help with choosing an enchantment?” a familiar voice asked Layla from her right. Startled, she drew her knife, nearly stabbing the man in question. Luckily, she stopped herself in time.

Jack had his hands raised up playfully, a wide grin on his face.

“Relax Layla, I just wanted to help out. My group has already tested most of the enchantments, I can give you some advice if you’re willing to take it,” he offered nonchalantly.

“What do you want in return,” Layla asked suspiciously. She didn’t believe for a second that he would help her for free. Jack scratched the back of his head.

“I just want to ask you a few questions about Noah. Do you mind?”