"This is the only way, so get a hold of yourselves if you don't want our sacrifices to be in vain."
"Ahhh!" Second cried out.
She didn't know how, but while everyone was standing where they were, they promptly fell to the ground just as had happened when they arrived. The depth was about 50 meters compared to the previous 150 meters. She was inside an elevator made of glass while screaming during the extreme ride. After a minute and a half, the elevator also stopped. It opened on its own, but unlike before, she did not walk further because she was in a vast land instantly, with few trees and a mixture of green and blue-colored sea. The glass elevator that everyone rode on disappeared. She composed herself after the thrilling ride.
***
LOCATION: Seaside TIME: Afternoon
Windy, cold, fresh, and quiet.
"Wow..." The cool sea breeze calmed her entire mind and body.
"This is where the water category will take place. The mechanics are simple: Those gold and silver flags standing in front of you will be your starting line..."
She gazed at the front because of what Author said. There were gold and silver flags stuck in the sand. Others also ran near the nailed flags on the ground.
"The goal is to find your opponent's base by solving the riddles that will guide your path. Seize their three flags hiding in their bases. The two small flags cost 30 points each, and the big flag costs 70 points."
"Another riddle? Give us a break!" Seventh complained, but Author did not mind him.
"With the size of the sea, you must be kidding. How do we know and find their base?" Aeith questioned with furrowed eyebrows.
"That's why..."
Everyone just stared and waited for Author to continue when the sea became longer and narrower. It looked like a huge swimming pool, but with sand instead of concrete and tiles. There were waves.
"The area of the sea has decreased. The enemy bases are a group of coral reefs with hidden flags. It is not necessary to gather all flags. The team should collect a greater number of flags than the opposing team. You will then swim until you cross the finish line to win."
Swim? Dive?
Oh no, she did not know how to swim!
"Hey, how can we breathe underwater? We don't have any swimming equipment with us!" Nice one, Aeith. Good question.
"Swim so you will know."
What kind of answer was that? Were they supposed to guess every time they played a game?
"This is not fair to us! There are only six of us," Sectwen questioned. Hearing her tone, she was irritated. She had a point.
Fifzen stepped forward. "Yeah, it's not that we're too desperate for it, but we're at a great disadvantage here."
"In this game, unfair is not in its vocabulary." What did Author mean? "Follow your team colors' flags, and several numbers of sea creatures will help you find your opponent's base."
Sea creatures? Would they encounter another monster? This must be another type of monster, but a sea monster this time.
"What sea creatures?" Sixth asked this time.
"No ordinary underwater creatures that will either help you or hinder you."
Second was getting a hunch from this.
"Wealth Level: Stage 3, water category will start in 10, 9,"
Immediately?!
The instructions were simple yet vague. They positioned themselves on the right, where the silver team was, and on the left was the gold team.
"Finally, time for a beach bath! Let's all jump," Seventh urged while he was warming up his body, ready to dive.
Then Second realized that when she bent down, they needed to jump approximately 10 meters below the ground to enter the water. And plunge into the vast blue sea. Mind you, they would jump and swim, then there would be sea creatures or, worse, underwater monsters. Then they would find the gold team's base, and then take their 3 flags?
Second no longer wanted to be a burden or cause their team's downfall. She blamed herself because she fell from the air. Because of that, their necklace was stolen. The face of their leader, Third, showed his determination that they should win this game to make up for their defeat earlier. She didn't blame him because their lives were at stake here. She saw that the gold team was ready. They even seemed to know how to swim and didn't have problems like her. Then she noticed that it seemed like she was the only one who couldn't swim because her team was ready. She bit her lower lip. This was bad.
"From what I heard, jump with your feet first. Before landing, hold your arms tight against your body or chest like this," he demoed. "Then press your feet together, pointed down." Fifth gave them tips.
They tried mimicking Fifth's actions.
Sixth chimed in. "You can close your eyes if you're in doubt."
"Of course, don't forget to inhale deeply, hold it, and release after the plunge. Swim up until you reach the water surface, then breathe again." Fifth concluded.
This must be the result of Fifth being a school athlete on Earth. How handy in times like these.
"And last but not least, let's have fun!" Seventh implied with great enthusiasm.
"8, 7, 6,"
"Everyone, if you're not confident in yourselves, better partner up. Guide and support each other, then we will plunge together," Third instructed them.
Someone touched her right shoulder; it was First. He always surprises her. "You can ride on my back," he offered while sitting and made a gesture as if to say, 'I'll give you a piggyback ride'.
"H-Huh?" She felt embarrassed.
"You can ride, so you won't drown."
"How did you know?"
How did he come up with the idea that I didn't know how to swim?
"I can read your face."
Was she that obvious?
She hesitated but had no options left. "Thank you."
"5, 4, 3"
As embarrassing as it was, she couldn't do anything. She opened her two hands and was ready to hug him. First stood up, and since she could only see the back of his head and hair, she didn't know what expression he made. Fourth partnered with her twin brother, Fifth. Third was with Seventh, while Sixth, Aeith, and Ninth preferred to jump on their own. They were confident enough about themselves.
"2, 1"
She took a deep breath so she wouldn't run out of breath right after they jumped.
"Go!"