It's already been night. Amon had made a fire outside the cave. He also caught some more fish for night's dinner.

Also, he met with some weird monsters. Though they were rank one as well. Easy kill for Amon.

"Yawn~" he yawned lazily.

It was night. He needed to sleep now. He had brought a huge rock here so he could cover the entrance of the cave... it was really hard work.

"It's not perfect. Will only cover half of the entrance. Still better than nothing," he mumbled to himself.

After moving the rock in front of the cave, he lay carefreely on leaves.

'Good night to me~'

He fell asleep in some minutes. He had worked hard all day after all.

---

Ring! Ring!

A ringing sound spread inside the small cave.

Amon snapped awake from his sleep. He looked around himself to see where this sound was coming from.

Then he noticed that it was coming from his wrist bracelet. Amon narrowed his dark eyes, wondering why it was blinking and ringing.

A glowing red-colored circle was formed on the bracelet.

With confusion, Amon clicked on it.

The moment his index finger touched it, a familiar sound came from it.

It was none other than that of Professor Aria. She was a flicking witch professor.

"Hello, my dear all students. How are you all doing? Well, good morning. Hope you all are okay... now you are wondering why we suddenly sent you a voice message. The thing... there is an interesting twist in this exam. As you know, this forest's particular area is covered with a dome-shaped barrier. Inside, you all are fighting. But... each day, this dome's size will shrink. Those students who will remain outside it will be out of the game~ we will give you this notice every one hour before we shrink it. Oh also, it will shrink by three killometer. Now go! Survive! Bye bye~"

The voice cut.

Silence filled the cave again.

Amon remained sitting, staring blankly at the wrist bracelet. His both palms covered his face.

"Hah... my plan to stay here for three days gone just like that... fuck!"

All he could do was curse.

---

Currently, Amon was outside the cave.

Now cursing his luck. Just yesterday he thought his luck was amazing. Now staring above the barrier.

"It's definitely far from six km. So I can still stay for today here. Three kilometers will get less in after an hour. Tomorrow it will be more."

He sighed sadly.

Well, it's not a big problem. Though other students might find his spot.

Does that mean he needs to get ready for battle? At any time.

"Hah, I am hungry... again fish... shit... it's just one day and I got bored of them tsk." He pushed the sad thought aside and went towards the waterfall again.

But this time he heard some noise while walking.

It came from the opposite direction of the waterfall.

He narrowed his eyes. His expression turned serious. What he heard was the sound of leaves crunching, as if someone was coming in his direction.

Also, there was some murmuring. Someone was talking. He hid behind big leaves and veils, his body perfectly hidden behind bushes.

Slowly, the sound came closer.

"The sound of water is coming from this direction," one student said to the other one. He had brown hair, an average-looking man.

They were two young men. Amon didn't know who they were. Probably from another class.

The other with auburn hair responded, "Yes. It's getting closer. Hah... we can rest here for a while, Ricky."

Ricky nodded. "But still, be cautious, Kai. We can't be so sure. Who might attack us from any side. Anytime."

Kai agreed with him. His eyes were full of resolve. "Don't worry, we can beat them. Unless they are the top one. If they are just like us, we can even team up with them."

Amon quietly observed the two boys from behind the thick bushes, his breath slow and controlled.

'Two of them… both seem around my level. I don't know them... so from another class...'

He kept still, not even daring to move a finger. He wrapped his feet with shadow to conceal any footstep sound.

Ricky was glancing around with a wary look, holding a short sword in his right hand. Kai carried a spear, his stance a bit more relaxed.

"Let's rest near that big rock," Kai said, pointing toward a spot not far from Amon's cave.

Ricky nodded but kept scanning the surroundings. "Still, this place gives me weird vibes. Like someone's already been here…"

Amon's lips twitched slightly. 'Smart guy.'

They stopped right near the vine-covered entrance his cave.

Amon's heart skipped for a moment. He tightened his fist, ready to move if they got too close.

Kai crouched down, touching the ground. "See this? The soil's pressed. Someone was here recently."

Ricky frowned. "Could it be another student?"

"Obviously."

Amon silently cursed in his head. 'Great... now they're investigating my house. Why didn't they go to the waterfall! Rather they perfectly came to my cave.'

He remained motionless, hiding his presence as best as he could. The air around him felt heavier. He controlled his mana flow, making sure even his faint energy wouldn't leak out.

Kai stood up again. "Let's just rest a bit and leave before it gets dark again. We're already low on energy."

Ricky exhaled and sat down near the rock, tossing his bag aside. "Fine... but keep your eyes open. I'm not planning to get ambushed like those idiots from Class D."

Amon's expression eased slightly. 'So they're not planning to stay for long. Good.'

He continued to observe, memorizing their faces and voices.

Kai was calm but alert a careful type. Ricky seemed more reckless, always glancing around but losing focus fast.

Minutes passed. The two started eating something from their packs, chatting quietly.

Amon finally relaxed a little. He leaned closer to listen.

Kai said, "We still need to find a better spot before the barrier shrinks again. Staying here until tomorrow will be dangerous."

"Yeah," Ricky agreed, chewing loudly. "But first, we should hunt something. Points are falling behind. Can't let others get ahead."

Amon's eyebrow rose slightly. 'So they're aiming to hunt nearby... that means they'll likely leave after resting.'

Perfect.

He stepped back carefully, making sure not to disturb the leaves beneath his feet. Slowly, silently, he began retreating toward the other side of the forest path.

But then,

Crunch.

A dry twig snapped under his boot. It's true that his shadow concealed his footstep sounds, but if leaves were to crunch... what could he do? It's not in his hands.

Ricky instantly jumped up, gripping his sword. "Who's there?!"

Kai turned toward the sound, his eyes sharp and focused.

Amon froze behind the bushes, holding his breath.

The forest fell silent except for the faint rush of the waterfall in the distance.

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