Daybreak in the forest

It was a short sleep, but it refreshed Ray like no other. He got up when it was still dark outside and everyone was still asleep, or so he thought.

When he got out of his bed, he heard some thudding on the lower level and went to check it out. and as anyone could have guessed, it was Lucian who was there, cleaning his sword.

"Slept well Ray?" Lucian asked, his eyes still focused on the blade.

"Yes," Ray answered in a low voice. "Did you even sleep at all, Captain?"

"I told you to just call me Lucian, or anything else. I don't like being called captain or anything like that."

"Then what will you do when you become the prince?"

"we'll burn that bridge when we get to it." Lucian finished cleaning the sword and started polishing his dagger.

"Why are you competing to be the prince?" Ray asked a question he had for many months now.

Lucian stopped and looked very distracted for a moment as if the question had made him question it himself. When he looked up, his eyes felt cold. "There are some enemies in the country that need to be removed, and I can't do it without the power of the state under me."

He was so serious that Ray was at a loss for words. He has many questions. (who are the enemies you're talking about? Why do you consider them enemies?) but he kept silent. There were more important things than listening to someone's backstory, as it was only half an hour before the sky turned to a lighter shade and he needed to get ready.

"You should get ready," Lucian said. "I know you didn't mean to intrude, I am not going to start monologuing. The storytelling will have to wait." he gave a slight smile that was somewhat reminiscent of his past.

Ray left without saying a word, more like he couldn't say anything. While in the shower, he thought about how blessed he was to have a happy life, and how little he knew about the people on his team. sure he knew their habits and quirks, but he knew so little about their life before the school. Lucian was the same. Ray knew his preference for food and weapons, the way he kept demeaning himself, and the power he held, but that is all he knew of him. Lucian's life before the sudden appearance at the school is still a mystery to every Scepter member.

After he got ready, Ray realized something he had ignored, he avoided the stairs and directly jumped to the ground floor. and just as he thought, the weapons they needed were delivered already. Ray grabbed his bag full of staff and started looking through all of them. There were multiple styles of staff inside. round tip, pointed tips, collapsible, ball-ended, thorn-ended, and flexible staff. Almost every kind of staff Ray knew how to use, and they were in great condition.

"Looks dangerous." Rose commented, "Why did you have those pointy ones?"

Ray scanned her from top to bottom before saying anything. Her hair was tied tightly behind her head, and she looked ready to fight. Ray finally opened his mouth, "I don't want to hear that from the person who has explosives on her shoes."

"You wanna test them out?" Rose did a kicking motion toward Ray's abdomen and stopped right before touching him. Ray grabbed her leg and pulled her closer to him, trying to get her off balance. that didn't work out as planned, which wasn't less fortunate.

Rose did lose her footing but held onto the ray for balance, which made both wobble for a bit. They held onto each other to keep themselves balanced.

"It's too early for this." Finley grumbled, "don't get distracted when the competition starts. got it, ya lovebirds?"

"We know." Both replied and got back to getting their equipment ready.

The sky started getting lighter in color, which meant that only a few minutes were left before the exam began. Lucian called everyone together for one final discussion, and everyone huddled together.

"We have about four minutes, so let me say a few words of encouragement. We have chosen the name Scepter for this team, which is a symbol of royal authority. I know you all wish for me to get the seat for the 7th prince, and I am thankful for that. I trust you all to hold your own in the forest and climb to the top with me. keep your weapons in your grasp and your mind within your control, and no opponent will be able to drag us down." Lucian looked at the clock before continuing, "We all will be separated for this test, so let's agree to meet at the top of the cage tree at the sunset of the fifth day. trust me, and I will get you your win."

With that speech, everyone joined hands and cheered together. Ray was in the forest when the voice died down, with only his weapons on his back. (So they meant to separate us)

Ray put up his mask and started scouting the area immediately. He climbed the tree nearest to him and hid at the topmost possible spot to look around the place, and maybe figure out his location. from the top, the only view was of the forest canopy with the sun rising in the front.

"Well, at least this side is east," Ray mumbled. The entire land in front of him was covered by trees that camouflaged everything below them. Although the trees were supposed to be fruiting, not one brightly colored fruit was visible from the top, not even in the tree ray was currently on. The sunlight finally hit the opposite side, which was clearly lacking in flora, or maybe any land. "So the swamp is that way, which means the dragon nest should be around… there." He estimated the location of possibly the most dangerous part of this forest.

Although most dragons would have migrated to warmer areas for the winter, the nest was very hard for anyone to survive in. by anyone, I mean anyone, except animals adept at mana usage. (Only intelligent animals are capable of mana usage, so I should stay clear of the island.) Ray thought to himself.

When the sun had risen completely, a loud announcement echoed through the sky. "Now that everyone has finished with recon, we need to confirm the rules. The time of the test is seven days from the sunrise of today to the sunset of the seventh day. you are to survive the forest, including the natural problems and members of the opposing teams. The team which has half members drop out due to any of the following reasons will be removed from the field and thereby expelled. the reasons being injury, exhaustion, loss of weapons for more than a day, and death. give it your all and win for the team."

"Great, so dying is an option here." Ray grumbled. (at least I will get to meet Scribe there.)

(I don't want to see you dead. I will take over if you are trying to die.)

(Aw come on man, we can work together with that.)

(Focus on your game, or do you want me to get you out right now?)

"Why does he have to be so grumpy?" Ray hid deeper in the leaves and decided to wait for the time being. He had to be here for five days unless he got spotted. Many teams had formed temporary coalitions and had truces between them, which meant that their members would be hunting down and eliminating other teams even this early in the game.

Scepter had a simple plan, everyone will be hiding as long as possible, with minimum combat with other teams. this is the reason they trained for combat, to take others down with minimum effort. Although Ray never went out to attack other teams, he knew some of his teammates would be on the lookout for fights. Ray took out the ball-tipped staff and stayed vigilant, but nothing happened for several hours.