Part 1.

April 13th.

5 pm.

Leaving behind all I had to discover, I crossed all the sections that I; along with Sagasuga, previously had come through. It took me around 3 hours to regress back to the first mine's entrance. I still remember it in my mind; how it's adjoined with vagrantly brilliantly illuminated green crystals emitting a mystical sensation.

The outside atmosphere was truly tropical; surprisingly. However, being so ecologically fragile has its disadvantages. Wooden trees that threaten the sky from my perspective swiftly ravaged by the imperial winds from a not-so-distant time. Specifically speaking, winds from this morning blocked us from going out of this mine. As addressed, this is the first mine, and the one up ahead is the second one. Earlier, before coming into the entrance, I re-checked the password computer and nothing changed. In addition to that, I had attempted to break into the door with Sagasuga's ax, but it was all for naught.

I've come to the conclusion that each section holds two key components to be discovered. The first mine held Sagasuga's ax to be discovered. Just through that analogy, it didn't become clear what had to be discovered; nonetheless, through the second mine, I discovered that there were two massive components. The one that's discovered via the normal way and the other one which is discovered through the secret passage. In the second mine, I discovered a tablet and a battery which would perfectly fit inside the back of the tablet. Furthermore, the battery clearly gave the tablet the necessary energy for it to function.

Is it a coincidence that these two components significantly complement each other? It is not. Henceforth, it's essential to undercover the two complimenting components in each mine. Regardless of that desire of mine; access of the secondary component in the first mine has been restricted by Sagasuga's sneaky methods. Upon the discovery of the secondary component in the secondary mine I have additionally concluded that these secondary components must be discovered at all costs; regardless of the quantity of effort that must be put into the task of doing so.

"Never one; without the other. And so on."

Alas, as I stepped outside of the mine, basking under the primordial light of the rising sun, my two feet felt the soft embrace of the yellow soft sand. It was then that I reflected once more on the current scenery and my necessities; as a sole human being.

This gorgeous fertile island's blessings thus far have been settled in variety. Yet as of this moment, not so far away; crystalized pure water seemingly infinite from this distance extends itself abundantly in that geographical horizon. Lush green midst leaves only holding the spotlight whilst shaming the circular structure of the tree itself. A canal so linear yet so abstractedly curve at the same time; flowing towards the light ocean up ahead, to lead the way out of this place. None of those compelling factors truly mattered as I climbed onto the tree holding the coconuts on top of it.

Borderline howling amidst this endless starvation of mine, my eyes supremely reached a whole new level of wide as my brain woke itself. Scraping through the leaves savagely, I took out three coconuts and they fell mercilessly onto the basically dilapidated sand.

Failed I had to notice that the moment I flew out of the height that was supporting my body, I was going to face a high elevated altitude due to the sheer difference of ten meters. Naturally, I resisted the impact but it caused a small sharp pain onto my legs once I landed.

"Guuuh...!"

As I looked to my knees which were immediately breaching the color of red though nonetheless skin-colored as the nature of human anatomy dictates, I reminded myself that this occurrence was equally benefited due to the keen factor of lack of nutrients. Therefore, I extended my legs on this deader dry sand and allowed my naked feet toes to be embraced by the perfectly bright lukewarm water basked under the imperial sunlight.

Subsequently, I did not even try to break the coconuts with my bare hands and instead took out Sagasuga's ax which neatly did the job by cutting the first coconut in a perfect oval shape. And then, I scourged the surface of the coconut as fast as I could and thus started my meal.

Never in my entire life did I enjoy a coconut this much. Each bite out of the fresh delicacy deep within the young shredded coconut made me feel eternally blessed. The absolute ecstasy was nowhere near enough so as I was utterly done with the first coconut which I made sure to eat as much as I could out of it; I advanced onto the second coconut that met the same fate as the other one.

My hunger did not stop and so, I settled for five coconuts in the long run. I felt stuffed and complete. The energy coursing through each element of my body gave me the inner strength to take the deepest inhale in a while.

"Mpphhhhhh..!! Fuuuuuuu..."

Onto the main attraction now.

"This is amazing! The tablet itself does not operate like the average one, at all. Furthermore, the more I advance, the more it uncovers."

After I had washed my hands with the canal's clean water and only after drying them with the uniform did I take out the tablet that was in my bag.

Unlike an average tablet, it never shuts down. The battery is infinite. However, earlier, I confused the battery for the percentage where it said "10%"; until I was taken away by the abundantly amazing factor that this tablet has provided me with. In the first place, if there are two percentage bars, then it wouldn't make sense for the two of them to symbolize the energy percentage; therefore the other one which isn't symbolizing it is referring to another factor.

"It shows the map of the island, but only unveils what I have walked with it. In other words, the more I walk with this tablet, the more the island becomes known to me. Though, that's it. I thought that it would indicate a hidden location to where I would have to go should I had discovered it, but no. As far as I can tell, it's the island's map that is slowly unraveling itself. The other percentage which is now only at 15% stands for the expansion of the island's areas that I have discovered. The moment it gets by 100% it will mean that the island as a whole will be visible to me, Rayazaki, and Kuzan. Akihiko too, if we find him."

Nevertheless, this is an unfathomable discovery! And to think that Sagasuga was attempting to block me out of this...

I forgot to mention something. There is a red indicator which is the location of the tablet, and this is extremely good because I now KNOW where I am, EXACTLY.

"This stays at the bottom of the island. Fully towards the south. The proximity towards the volcano which looks to be in the center is massive. However, there's nothing really telling me that a volcano is a place that must be approached."

If anything, it's a place that supposedly shouldn't be approached. Aside from all this information, there is an additional good factor here. This mine appears on the tablet's map and it has a name to it. All I have to do is to click on the talking balloon icon which is above the entirety of the mine itself.

"Necrohol of Canopus... That's the name of it."

It's a bit confusing but due to my immense knowledge of the Latin language, I've managed to draw out a logical conclusion towards the etymology behind the name. First of all, Necrohol. The obvious part is how "Necro" translates into "Death". However, depending on what follows it up, it could change from "Death" to; for example: "Dead", which is the case because what comes next is "Hol". Hol here either means "Hollow" or "Hall". Dead Hollow could be an alternative but I believe that the most accurate translation would be...

Death Hall or Dead Hall. Both mean that it's not a mine. It's a hall of the dead. However, when we crossed that hall, nothing really reminded us of what the hall translates into. How can it be a Necrohol if there is nothing related to death on the surface?

"Unless there is, of course. That would change things. What if there are bodies buried underneath the green crystals? Slightly terrifying, to think about it. Nevertheless, it could've been random."

In addition to "Necrohol", there is Canopus. A star from the constellation of Carina and most notably famous for being the second brightest star in the night sky. Only Sirius outwits Canopus in terms of shine.

"Though, I don't think it's actually random. Because if I go over the second section where I discovered this, it says something rather..."

Outside of this map, the moment I click on the icon, it goes to another map and it represents another battery percentage at the top. It is at 20% unlike on the surface map which is at 15%. It's fairly simple to get something here so I'll get to it right now. The other world map is at 20% because I've crossed and discovered two sections. Each section contains 10% to be unveiled. Therefore, should I discover the remaining eight sections, it will be at 100%.

I wonder if something will happen once the percentage hits 100%... Will it trigger something?

That aside, in the other world map, I clicked on the additional talking balloon icon that was towards the north. However, it was only slightly to the north. If I had to describe it, it wouldn't even reach a quarter of the map; vertically. That symbolizes the gap of the other sections, most likely.

Once I did, I read what the second section was called.

"Rigil Kentaurus Mines. Yup, there's no doubt about it, it's a mine alright. Unlike the Necrohol. Though, they both resembled a mine, for sure. But I'll certainly say that the second section had the appearance of a mine far better than this one."

So I said while looking at the entrance to which I am currently twenty meters away. Still, this wasn't all there was to it. In this other world map, I found the tower's name firstly. It only makes sense because I obtained this in the tower, after all. As I clicked the talking icon, the name of the tower unraveled itself.

"Tuwile Skyhigh Tower."

Unfortunately, I have no idea what "Tuwile" means, but the second part is a reference to its immense height as it threatens the sky itself. I saw it with my own two eyes; the abysmal depth whenever I was looking down below from that enormous colossal height. The difference is terrifying, to say the least.

And that's all. So far, I have to focus on the real-world map. Although I say "other world" I am aware that it's actually part of this world. It's just an easy distinguishment.

I got up and stretched. Then, I started to make my way towards the ocean and took a swim for about 15 minutes. It was very relaxing because my body was slightly tired.

Afterward, I decided to meet up with the rest in the place where we had agreed to meet up yesterday. There was no guarantee that they would be there but I had to try.

Part 2.

8 pm.

Nobody is here.

At the current moment, I am standing in front of the burned bonfire that was our source of light a day ago; in the night.

Our meeting point would be here at dusk and it is currently dusk. The sun is no taller than the high majestic trees right now yet no one is at sight. I am aware that I will be questioned about Sagasuga's whereabouts, but preferably, I would like if Rayazaki and Kuzan were to come instead of Tsudo and Tatsu.

On the borderline of the bonfire, I took a seat and felt the rigidness of the forest's ground. Furthermore, the night's winds were starting to blast wildly. My hair fluctuated rampantly.

It was at that moment that I felt uncertain. A part of me just wanted to not care at all.

A part of me was starting to speak on the other side, as it sometimes does. It's a voice that doesn't come often as I would like.

This is what people call "alter-ego". It has a tendency to manifest in face of insecure moments however only when the source of insecurity is absent. It never shows a mental face whenever vis-a-vis with the source.

I started to fiddle with the ashes and felt their lightweight falling from my right hand's palm's surface.

That was when, in front of me, a mental construction was formed. A figure of myself, far more confident than what I already am, something inhuman in terms of characteristics, attempted to strike a deal one more time.

He has the devil's horn underneath his hair due to my image of Satan as a whole. My counterpart is nothing like a mirror. It's a corruption of the reflection.

Grinning, he spoke, without making a fuss in his speech, unlike I always do. No exaggeration; a perfect composed speech without any flaws.

"ⱤɎØɄ₴Ʉ₭Ɇ, ɎØɄ'VɆ ฿ɆɆ₦ Ɽ₳₮ⱧɆⱤ Đł₴₳₱₱Øł₦₮ł₦₲ Ⱡ₳₮ɆⱠɎ. ₳ⱠⱠ ₮ⱧØ₴Ɇ ₩ØⱤĐ₴ ₳฿ØɄ₮ ₵Ɽł₥Ɇ₴, ฿Ʉ₮ ɎØɄ ₵ØɄⱠĐ₦'₮ ɆVɆ₦ ₭łⱠⱠ ₴₳₲₳₴Ʉ₲₳ ₩ⱧɆ₦ ɎØɄ Ⱨ₳Đ ₮ⱧɆ ₵Ⱨ₳₦₵Ɇ."

He threw a rock at me, which was still in the borders of the bonfire.

"I gave him a chance. Plus, isn't what I did enough? Rationally speaking, he will have to do something insane to get out of that."

To this, he erupted the missing flame of the bonfire with a simple snap of fingers and his face was no longer in the infinite darkness. I could see the glimpse of his devilish eyes emitting powerful contrast.

"₦₳łVɆ. ₦₳łVɆ, ₦₳łVɆ, ₦₳łVɆ... ⱧØ₩ ₥₳₦Ɏ ₮ł₥Ɇ₴ ĐØ ł Ⱨ₳VɆ ₮Ø ₮ɆⱠⱠ ɎØɄ? ł₣ ₴Ø₥ɆØ₦Ɇ ₴₵ⱤɆ₩₴ ɎØɄ Ʉ₱, ₮ⱧɆɎ ₩łⱠⱠ Ø₦ⱠɎ ₴₵ⱤɆ₩ ɎØɄ Ⱨ₳ⱤĐɆⱤ ₴ⱧØɄⱠĐ ₮ⱧɆɎ Ⱨ₳VɆ ₮ⱧɆ ₵Ⱨ₳₦₵Ɇ. ØⱤ ₩Ⱨ₳₮? ₳ⱤɆ ɎØɄ ɆӾ₱Ɇ₵₮ł₦₲ ₮Ø ฿Ɇ ₴Ø₥Ɇ ₴ØⱤ₮ Ø₣ ₱Ɇ₳₵Ɇ ₮ⱤɆ₳₮Ɏ ฿Ɇ₮₩ɆɆ₦ ɎØɄ ₳₦Đ ɎØɄⱤ Ɇ₦Ɇ₥Ɏ? ₭łⱠⱠ Ⱨł₥. ₲Ø ₮ⱧɆⱤɆ ₳₦Đ ₳฿₳₦ĐØ₦ ɆVɆⱤɎØ₦Ɇ ⱧɆⱤɆ."

"...I can't do that."

"₳₦Đ ₩ⱧɎ ₦Ø₮, ⱤɎØɄ₴Ʉ₭Ɇ? ₳ⱤɆ ɎØɄ ₮Ⱨ₳₮ ₳₮₮₳₵ⱧɆĐ ₮Ø ₮ⱧɆ₴Ɇ ₵ⱤɆ₳₮ɄⱤɆ₴? ĐØ₦'₮ ⱠłɆ ₮Ø ɎØɄⱤ₴ɆⱠ₣, ɎØɄ ₭₦Ø₩ ɎØɄ ₳ⱤɆ ₦Ø₮. ₳ⱠⱠ ₮ⱧɆɎ ₲łVɆ ɎØɄ ł₴ ₮ⱧɆ ₥ł₴₴ł₦₲ ₴Ɏ₥฿ØⱠł₴₥ Ø₣ ɎØɄⱤ ₱₳₴₮. ₮ⱧɆⱤɆ ł₴ ₦Ø₮Ⱨł₦₲ ₲Ɇ₦Ʉł₦Ɇ ₳฿ØɄ₮ ₮Ⱨł₴ ฿Ø₦Đ."

"Even so, I won't. I have this under control. Go away."

"ⱤɎØɄ₴Ʉ₭Ɇ. ɎØɄ'ⱤɆ ₲Øł₦₲ ₮Ø ⱠØ₴Ɇ ₳₮ ₮Ⱨł₴ Ɽ₳₮Ɇ. ɎØɄ ₳ⱤɆ₦'₮ ⱤɆ₳ĐɎ ₣ØⱤ ₩Ⱨ₳₮'₴ ₮Ø ₵Ø₥Ɇ. ł₣ ɎØɄ Ⱨ₳Đ ₮Ⱨł₴ ₥Ʉ₵Ⱨ ₮ⱤØɄ฿ⱠɆ ₳₲₳ł₦₴₮ ₴Ø₥ɆØ₦Ɇ Ⱡł₭Ɇ ₴₳₲₳₴Ʉ₲₳, ₮ⱧɆ₦ ɎØɄ ₩Ø₦'₮ ฿Ɇ ₳฿ⱠɆ ₮Ø ₣₳₵Ɇ ₩Ⱨ₳₮'₴ ₮Ø ₵Ø₥Ɇ."

"You don't know what's to come. And you always run away at the crucial moment. I don't fucking trust you anymore."

"₦Ø, ĐØ₦'₮ ɎØɄ ₲Ɇ₮ ł₮?! ₩Ⱨ₳₮ Ⱨ₳₱₱Ɇ₦ɆĐ ł₦ ₮ⱧɆ ₱₳₴₮ Ø₦ⱠɎ Ⱨ₳₱₱Ɇ₦ɆĐ ฿Ɇ₵₳Ʉ₴Ɇ ɎØɄ ₴₮₳Ɽ₮ɆĐ ₮Ø ⱤɆJɆ₵₮ ₥Ɇ! ₥Ɇ!!! ₩Ɇ ₩ɆⱤɆ ₦Ø ⱠØ₦₲ɆⱤ ł₦₮ɆⱤ₮₩ł₦ɆĐ ₳₦Đ ɎØɄ ₴₳₩ ₩Ⱨ₳₮ Ⱨ₳₱₱Ɇ₦ɆĐ ฿Ɇ₵₳Ʉ₴Ɇ Ø₣ ₮Ⱨ₳₮! ł₮ ĐØɆ₴₦'₮ Ⱨ₳VɆ ₮Ø ฿Ɇ ₮Ⱨ₳₮ ₩₳Ɏ ₳₦Ɏ₥ØⱤɆ... ₮Ⱨ₳₮'₴ Ɽł₲Ⱨ₮! ₩Ɇ ₵₳₦ ฿Ɇ ₩ⱧØⱠɆ Ⱡł₭Ɇ ł₦ ₮ⱧɆ ₱₳₴₮! Ø₦₵Ɇ ₥ØⱤɆ ₩Ɇ ₵₳₦ Ɽł₴Ɇ Ʉ₱ ₳₦Đ ₦Ø Ø₦Ɇ ₵₳₦ ₴₮Ø₱ Ʉ₴! ł₴₦'₮ ₮Ⱨ₳₮ ₩Ⱨ₳₮ ɎØɄ ₩₳₦₮?!"

His words started to spread fire all over them as his body soon enough was engulfed in flames. Like a rising fire.

"It will never happen again. ...Daku."

"₩Ɇ'ⱠⱠ ₴ɆɆ ₳฿ØɄ₮ ₮Ⱨ₳₮."

Rapidly, his form began to deform and went inside of me once again.

All alone, I came to the full realization that it all happened in my mind. I was talking to no one except my own mental construction.

I never know when he will come. But he always says the same things.

It's a voice in the back of your head that silently judges all of your actions and you can't do anything about it.

You can't beat him up.

You can't fully argue back and feel like a winner.

Because, in the end, that would be making you the loser, wouldn't it?

"Pathetic..."

Midst my self-talking, I heard footsteps entering the parameter and didn't hesitate to look behind me. That was when I saw the two of them, waving at me with a smile on their faces.

Seeing their faces made me so happy and I don't even know why.

I suppose I've been feeling lonely lately on this rather lonesome island.

"Kuzan!!! Rayazaki!!!"

I ran as fast as I could towards their direction in the middle of the trees and they did the same.

However, they were quick to express their spite towards me.

"Master, what the hell?! We WERE supposed to meet with each other yesterday!!! We had to stand in the rain for hours!"

"That was such a dumb idea! I'm never doing it again!"

As I heard Kuzan and Rayazaki talk to each other; full of spite, I got immense laughter of happiness. A small tear in my eye leaked out as I rolled on the rigid ground out of sheer felicity.

"Hahaha!! You absolute fools! You waited in the rain for me?! You guys are soooo dumb, muhahaha!!!"

I received small light kicks in my stomach from both of them as a response after they said their fair share.

"Go fuck yourself, dude!"

"We probably caught a cold!"

Part 3.

Kuzan had brought fruits along in his bag, so we were able to have a wholesome feast revolving around fruit only for dinner.

After we had made yet another bonfire using the same strategy as last time, it was time to collect the information.

But before that, there are a lot of fruits here; such as golden bananas, which are very mature thus making it extremely easy to enjoy them. There is also plenty of star fruits which is an immensely rare fruit in general. Alongside it, there are green mangos that are absurdly good as well. Ultimately, a bunch of papayas was thrown right into the middle as we formed a triangle mirroring the frontal side of the bonfire.

I was the one who started to talk; after I put my uniform on and surely, they both did the same because the cold was starting to become unbearable.

"Brr... COLD!"

"Um, master, can I ask the obvious?"

"I think we both have the same doubts, Kuzan."

Rayazaki and Kuzan both looked at each other in order to complement their similar thought processes. I waited not for Kuzan to make a question and as I started to eat the papaya thoroughly, I talked after each bite.

"Sagasuga betrayed me. Or, he was aiming to betray me."

To this, Kuzan was shocked, but Rayazaki already thought to himself as this was extremely obvious.

"Why would he do that?!"

"What did you expect, Kuzan? Calm guys like him are probably deep down nuts!"

Rayazaki's analogy isn't too off the charts here. Still, these guys have no manners whatsoever. They just talk while chewing.

I like to believe that they are upholding this behavior because we are only boys here and there are no girls to judge our savagery.

"It's still... I thought he was a nice guy... I can't imagine that Sagasuga doing something like that..."

I moved on from this topic and addressed some questions on my own.

"Alright, it's time. Tell me something, Rayazaki, and Kuzan. Yesterday, did they show up?"

They answered instantly without thinking as there was no room to think about something utterly obvious.

"No!"

"...I see."

Maybe I'm drawing a conclusion here too fast but I highly suspect that they were conspiring against me with Sagasuga. Either Sagasuga told them a lie with a similar objective or he straight up told them the truth and nonetheless was aiming to screw me up.

The fact that they did not appear here yesterday very well meant that Sagasuga already told them ahead of time. I don't believe that they possess the individualism to create an independent path of action while tricking Sagasuga.

That's not possible.

"Kawahara, are we going to wait around for them? Hey, what happened to Sagasuga?"

"We had a fight. He's in critical condition so to speak."

"Wait, what?!"

"Master, we should go and help him."

Towards their panic, I presented the benefits that would silence their worries.

Out of my bag, I took the words that I had collected. Furthermore, I showed Kan's word; therefore seven words were present. I tossed them the boxes and they could see for themselves my progress.

Before they could speak their surprising opinions, I took advantage of that to further give them the good news.

"Only three words are left. Our way to victory is not far!"

I got up and shouted that whole sentence which prompted them to rise up and join me.

First, Kuzan started to jump around like a little kid while holding the majority of the boxes.

"Master, this is amazing!"

"No fucking way we lose now! Kawahara, dude, you're a genius! Holy shit! And you got Kan's word too?! My God!"

I admit it, I got pretty satisfied right here.

My face quickly got smug as my smirk rose up to full height.

"I told you! If I say we are going to win, we are going to win! But, take a seat, you two. I need to ask more questions."

"Yeah, sure thing, Master!"

"Ask anything if it will help us win the exam!"

Their trust is fully on my side.

Sagasuga's downfall has profited immensely already. However, it can all fall should I not have the correct information in my arsenal.

That's why I went straight to the point the moment I resumed eating my papaya.

"What did you two find? I found some pretty neat things along the way, but I want to know what you two found."

While it's amazing that I got seven general words along with me right now, it's imperial to know more! To never be satisfied with the bare knowledge a victory can give me! To seek out more in my surroundings! Because, the moment I am truly satisfied, is the moment I lose. I feel like, whenever I cross the line of satisfaction and settle for something that doesn't ultimately feel like a victory is a moment where I actually lost.

And so, I won't make that mistake. I will accumulate and accumulate information about this island and ace this exam.

In regards to Kuzan and Rayazaki, they both expressed joyful enthusiasm while explaining their situation.

Kuzan started off by bursting into flames while speaking.

"Master! Master! We found a mystic mine! It was unreal! You won't believe it!"

Rayazaki added to the excitement as well; now that he's seating down in front of the bonfire that is burning ardently.

"It's not really a mine, but it resembles more of a temple! As soon as we were done scourging through the jungle, we found it!"

Although this was reason to be excited, I quickly started to grow gloomy as a singular thought occupied my mind.

A singular thought; a peculiar doubt that I could not help but ask with the most utmost seriousness in my soul.

"Did you two by some chance; enter the "mystic" mine and did you two, by some sort of tiny fracture of a chance, stood upon a computer that had a password entry?"

I expected a positive answer here which would put me in paranoia for one very simple reason. I truly believe that these two idiots would not hesitate to empty the password entries. Furthermore, their memories are extremely lackluster which would add the recipe to disaster should they had encountered the said computer as I did in the Necrohol of Canopus and in the Tuwile Skyhigh Tower.

By contrast, they were abundantly puzzled by my question.

"Master, are you alright? You just suggested that there is technology on this island."

"I'm with Kuzan here, you know? A computer? Sounds too fucking fancy for me. Plus, password entry? Are you out of your mind? This is an island."

I see. They haven't found it... Though...

"Wait, what did you two found in that "mystic" mine exactly?"

Rayazaki mentioned that it was more of a temple than a mine, which should mean that something about it resembled a mine just like at first the Necrohol of Canopus resembled a mine, but it actually was not a mine but a hall.

What caught me off guard was their answer. Kuzan went from being hysterically enthusiastic to horrified.

"We didn't find anything because we couldn't enter it!"

"That's right! After we climbed the stairs and got to the entrance, we started to lose the ability to breathe!"

Despite their words invoking the need to speak absurdity, I nonetheless remained collected as I have experienced what the other world has to offer. In order to not undermine it, I reasonably asked Rayazaki and Kuzan what they were talking about.

"Be more specific. Describe the order of events chronologically. Kuzan, go!"

"AYE!"

So he said whilst devouring the banana with a savage force beyond my reckoning.

"It was all dark and shit! We took about three steps right into it, didn't we?!"

He looked in Rayazaki's direction for approval; to which Kuzan was obviously successful.

"Literally! All it took was three steps!"

"And then we started to feel like the air was escaping us or something! That's why I call it Mystic Mine!"

"I see."

At least it makes sense. I thought Kuzan was just randomly naming it.

I'll applaud him for that.

"Why are you clapping, Master?"

"Nothing, Kuzan. So, the air started to escape you?"

"Yes!"

With this in mind, I asked Rayazaki something this time around.

"Was the air still escaping you when you turned back?"

"Wait..."

He looked to be reflecting onto something. Something that he hadn't thought about.

Frankly, this air issue that they faced is most likely not natural but manufactured. I am under the impression that they found yet another section but that the passage was blocked and the way was blocked due to a defensive mechanism. I dare argue that the hypothesis of the Mystic Mine being blocked because the prior sections haven't been cleared is fairly possible.

For example... If there was an entrance to the Rigil Kentaurus Mines outside of the one that we entered from then maybe it wouldn't be accessible because the password entry is blocking it. I believe that the password changes everything and that factor has become something far too true to be denied.

"We had to back off to the entrance to catch up the air..."

"You were successful, right, Rayazaki? Kuzan?"

"Yeah, we were..." x2.

In my line of thought, I managed to attract Kuzan's attention and so, he demanded to know what were my thoughts on this matter.

It is not good to cloud information from my lackeys, especially now.

"Master, you know why that happened to us, right?"

"Yeah, you always know more, so what's the deal? Why did we suddenly lose the ability to breathe in face of that mine?"

I kept eating the delicious Papaya and only then did I speak to Rayazaki and Kuzan, who were too hunged up on my answer that was to come to the point where they forgot to eat what they were holding in their bare hands.

Or perhaps they simply did not care either way.

"First of all, I'll have to explain everything that has happened to me in the past day."

It took me around 10 minutes to give it a whole rundown on it, but without the explanation, they could not understand the basics.

Moreso, I showed them the tablet and explained its utility and how I've discovered two sections thus far. And that they most likely stumbled upon the entrance of yet another section. Their entrance was diagnosed as blocked due to the lack of password entry in the past sections; ergo it couldn't be the third section, otherwise, it wouldn't make any sense for the entrance to have a self-defensive manufactured mechanism.

In the end, they were all over me admiring the tablet like some fucking brats. With each speech, their mouth salivas were all over me, which ticked me off.

"Holy shit, you imbeciles! Can you not speak while spitting all over me?! Fuck my life!"

"Kawahara, there is technology in this island, after all! We don't just have to return back to monkeys!"

"We never fucking had to!"

"Master, Master! Does the tablet have scramble?! I wanna play! Hey, I'm bored!"

"Kuzan, SHUT UP! THIS IS IMPORTANT!!"

Fucking scramble, are you serious?!

I'm thankful they are understanding this information though, which is why I continued despite them being all over the tablet.

"I believe that there is a defensive mechanism on the entrance of the temple. As Rayazaki said, the moment you two backed off, you didn't feel asphyxiated, right?"

Asphyxiated...! That was the word I was looking for!

"And if that's the case, then it's not something natural. Inert gas asphyxiation. Or, IGA for short. That's most likely what happened to you two."

It's not exactly that common of a method but inert gas asphyxiation can be a method of execution just in the odd case that lethal injections are not available. All it takes is two to three breaths to provoke asphyxiation within the human body. It all results from the rapid accumulation of lost cells due to the immensely fast decrease of oxygen in the entire body.

In other words, there's a very high chance that the entrance of the mine is intoxicated by some sort of toxin which can reproduce the exact result of inert gas asphyxiation. Historically speaking, back in-between 1992 all the way to 2002, in the US, there was a record of at least 80 people who have died out of accidental nitrogen asphyxiation. It is one thing if it's accidental nitrogen asphyxiation.

And a completely different one if it's intentional nitrogen asphyxiation.

Essentially speaking, as long as we don't clear the conditions for the entrance to stop spreading that toxin, we either don't enter the mine or we enter the mine with our dead bodies.

Naturally, the conditions will have to be cleared.

"To put it in shorter terms, it's a deadly toxin that's meant to kill you; should you stay in the atmosphere where the toxin is applied. In other words, entering the mine, right now, will get you killed."

"Right now?" x2.

Hah. I like their attitude whenever I say something remotely positive towards a completely negative aspect. It brings a smile to my face, not gonna lie.

"That mine holds nothing against us should we clear the sections that come after the Tuwile Skyhigh Tower. However, we are going through the passage that was opened inside the Rigil Kentaurus Mines. We are going to have to walk a long way, but that's essentially the plan."

"Man, these locations have weird names, don't they?"

"Yeah, you said it, Rayazaki! I can barely pronounce them, Master! My English is not really that good!"

Kuzan and Rayazaki aside, I somewhat understand the etymology of the Necrohol of Canopus and the Rigil Kentaurus Mines.

Canopus and Rigil Kentaurus are part of the top ten brightest stars in the night sky. However... If this is in order, then it doesn't make any sense. If the Necrohol of Canopus is the starting section, then shouldn't a section that has the name of "Sirius A" in it be the starting section instead? Sirius A is the brightest star... Not Canopus.

Unless there is a prior section...? No, but there wasn't anything connecting to such sect----

"OH SHIT!"

Upon realizing the super-fucking-obvious, I grabbed all my hair strands while rapidly losing my mind; which alerted Kuzan and Rayazaki immediately.

They both kneeled down as they witnessed my insanity.

"Kawahara?!"

"Master?! What's wrong?!"

"It's so obvious! I am so dumb! All along, I could never figure out why Sagasuga truly wanted to block my access towards that door but it now all ads up! The secret passage in the Necrohol is the passage that will lead towards the first section!! And because the Necrohol of Canopus was the first section we found, I just naturally assumed that it was the first! HOLY SHIT!"

"W-What?! I'm shocked!"

"You could just be wrong, Kawahara... But I seriously don't think you are honestly... DAMN, what are we waiting for?! We have so much to discover! Screw sleeping, let's get this shit rolling! I'm dying to discover what's next!"

Rayazaki started to burst into excitement as he put his bag on his back.

Kuzan followed the example whilst being overly excited too.

My quick insanity fleed as soon as I came to reason.

"Settle down, you two. You're not going anywhere. Don't forget you're on a fucking deserted island with limited resources. Plus, we need to SLEEP. Otherwise, our bodies will feel heavy as shit. Think! Just think a bit!"

I hate to be this sassy towards them because I genuinely admire their inner enthusiasm towards the aesthetic aspect of discovery, but it's plain foolish. Plus, I still have some things I want to discuss with them.

"Sigh... You're right."

"If Master says so... I guess..."

They quickly looked dejected and extremely defeated as they additionally cast down their glances; forming negative spiritless expressions.

Their mood fell like a rock on top of a bottomless cliff.

In order to amend this, I said something that lifted their spirits, while they were coming in the direction of the bonfire.

"Tomorrow, we will discover the third section! That's why we gotta sleep and eat! So we can be stronger and faster in our discoveries instead of being dumber and far too reckless! So, don't be sad."

In response to this, they both quickly looked at me with the happiest eyes ever and came rushing in my direction.

"Kawahara!! You're the best, dude!"

"Master always finds a way to make things better!!"

"Alright! But first, I need you two to do something for me."

They looked slightly more skeptical, but that superficial skepticism vanished once I got up; with the open tablet in my hands. I then handed over to them the tablet to which they gradually began to be caused about.

However, I was fast in explaining.

"Now, I know you don't know the exact location of this "Mystic Mine"---"

Rayazaki interrupted me as he asked something relevant in regards to the name itself.

"Are we really going with Mystic Mine?"

"Yes. Until we get there and see that it's not actually a Mystic Mine. We'll roast Kuzan then."

"Yeah, alright."

"Huh?!"

Maybe it's actually a really mystic mine and we are looking like absolute fucking fools right now, but there's no way that's the case.

I continued.

"I want you two to point out in the map where the mine could be."

Of course, there wasn't any visible spot for them to point at because all that I had discovered thus far in the tablet's map did not cover the mine's location.

Therefore, I was far more specific about this task.

"Feel free to butcher a guess at the location. In what location did you two go?"

"Northeast!" We went a really long way, didn't we, Rayazaki?"

"Yup and we were dying to sleep, but we are loyal and came back here because we were supposed to meet up..."

"Oh fuck off, Rayazaki, it wasn't my fault! I already explained how Sagasuga was purposely trying to screw me up! He blocked our meeting from happening."

"I bet you didn't even try to escape from that. Anyway, I think it was around here...?"

More towards the center of the map itself instead of targeting the southern areas of the map, Rayazaki pointed towards the northwest direction.

But then Kuzan came in and pointed in a direction more towards the east. It wasn't in the center but on the east of the center.

This caused Rayazaki to get mad at Kuzan.

"Are you fucking blind, bro?! We clearly went THAT way, not THAT way!"

He made sure to point at the real directions through the usage of dramatic expressions which include various arm fiddles.

Kuzan wasn't exactly less dramatic either as his neck veins were all pumped up.

"You're the blind one, Rayazaki! Tsudo said that we should have gone northeast and we did, didn't we?"

I stopped Kuzan right there.

"Why would you ask Tsudo directions, Kuzan?"

"Because he said that we should've gone towards the northeast."

"Yeah, but why?"

"He said Sagasuga told him to say so----Oh..."

"Oh."

That "Oh" from me was sarcastic.

I continued once again.

"Anything that comes from Sagasuga is blatantly false. Therefore, we'll go with Rayazaki's take."

Rayazaki, for some reason, flashed a smug grin to Kuzan; who did not like that at all.

To the point where he felt the need to cry about it.

"Injustice! Master, correct Rayazaki's attitude!"

"Shut up, someone that trusts Sagasuga holds no value to me."

Although I said that jokingly, Kuzan showed a visible gasp.

"Just a joke, chill. The conclusion to take here is that you were fooled, Kuzan."

"Why always me..."

"I know it's sad, but if it's between us, it's fine. Neither I nor Rayazaki will trick you."

I took a seat yet again now with the tablet in my hands and all the word boxes in my bag.

Tomorrow will be another day and I must hurry up and make discoveries as fast as possible.

With all of this in mind, I issued the plan of action for now.

"Let's eat up and sleep. We head northwest at dawn!"

As I finalized my speech and we resumed our usual casual small talks as we made the time until we were truly sleepy, I had some thoughts.

I thought on this mine up ahead that had the inert gas asphyxiation as the opposing challenging factor. However, today, I felt too much like a winner.

Even in the face or in the thought of something lethal, all I could feel was invincibility despite the reality conveying otherwise.

Daniel... Hyunda... Don't think that I haven't noticed...

In the distant future, on that island.

Behind me stands all the hopes of those who have become endorsed in the exam and those who are stuck without a way out.

To answer to their respective expectations, I will climb onto the top of this mine's entrance as I announce the ultimate path to victory.

With each step I took, I allowed myself to only view that which is in front of me. The color of black swims in terror deep within that temple of death, but now, the conditions are clear! There is NOTHING to fear!

I can get these people out of the island! I can, and I will!

Solely based on that, as I reached the top, I focused my undivided attention on the multitude of people below, who are awaiting the answers.

Summoning all the strength in my lungs, I spoke with high mighty vocal force.

"Attention, all of you! Here we stand, in front of the last remaining obstacle! All the conditions have been cleared!"

They already started to chant it.

I can hear it.

"KAWAHARA! KAWAHARA! KAWAHARA!!"

Their numerous cries. Numbers beyond the initial expectations; this absurd contrasting force which had not the chance to be saved is now looking towards a brighter future only because I MADE IT POSSIBLE!

"ONWARDS! We will all get out of here alive! I PROMISE!"

Without traces of hesitation, I lead the way in which they would all follow me; as they believed me.

In an even far closer distant future.

"Don't blame yourself. They all had it coming, didn't they?"

"Daniel... This...! Why...?! How could you...!! What the hell have you done?!"