Second time in the challenge

"Yawn!", Gen got up from his bed and said, "Wow, I can't even remember the last time I slept like this".

Soon after he finished eating, Gen followed Dehji's advice and went to rest.

He then thought, 'How long have I been asleep?'

He then got out of bed, changed his clothes, and went towards the kitchen to get something to eat.

When he got to the kitchen, Gen saw Dehji eating and said, "Good morning, Dehji. Do you know how long I have been asleep?"

Hearing Gen's voice, dehji looked in his direction and then spoke, "Good morning. You didn't sleep for very long. I think it was only about twenty hours."

"Twenty hours?! How long before I have to enter the ruins again?"

"Hmmm, let me-, 'GULP', see for you."

"So?"

"From what I've seen, you have plenty of time."

"Whew! How many hours?"

"Hours? No, 'CHOMP', gou ave irty iute."

"What? I couldn't understand anything. Finish chewing first."

Dehji then chewed his food and swallowed it, but in the middle, he choked and then reached for his glass.

He then drank all that was in it and managed to breathe again. Gen then asked him, "Is everything okay?"

"Everything, 'COF COF', OK."

"Well, how much time is left."

"Thirty minutes.", "Thirty what?!"

"Minutes."

"You said I had plenty of time left."

"Yes, and thirty minutes is plenty of time.".

Gen thought about answering Dehji but gave up in the middle and then went towards his room. He then began to pack everything he would need in the desert, and after a few minutes, he finished and then ran towards the kitchen.

When he got there, Dehji was leaving, but before he could leave, Gen asked him, "How much longer?"

"Ten minutes.", and then he went out the door.

Gen then made himself something to eat as quickly as he could, and after finishing, he went back to his room to get his things.

Entering, Gen saw that Dehji was there sitting on a chair waiting for him, and before Gen could say anything, he said, "You have one minute."

Gen then ran towards his things and put away two canteens he had brought from the kitchen and some fruits. He then put his backpack on his back and said, "I'm ready."

Hearing this, Dehji went with Gen toward the door of the challenge.

The two of them walked through it, and soon after entering, Dehji started to leave and said, "Well, Gen, I'll see you in two days."

"Yeah, See you in -, hm? What do you mean two days?!", Gen asked, turning to where Dehji was. However, as he finished turning around, he saw that Dehji had already returned.

Gen then thought, 'He must be joking. This has to be it. Hahaha ...'.

'Well, there's no point in me worrying about it. I'd better focus on getting to that black spot as soon as possible so I can get it over with.'

Gen then began to look around to see in which direction the black spot was, but as he looked around, he thought, 'Wait, where's the black spot? Could some dune be blocking its view?'

Gen then started to look around, and after making a complete turn around where he was, Gen thought, 'Did Dehji leave me in the wrong place? This place isn't where I left off last time, or do I have to go back to the beginning every time I leave?!'

Gen then started going in the same direction as before, and after a few hours, he finally saw it again.

He then started to walk towards it and then thought, 'It seems like every time I come in, I'm going to start from the same place as the first time. If that's really the case, it makes sense that I would have to spend more time here.'

'Maybe each time I fail to reach the black spot, my time here will increase by one day. Good thing I'm used to traveling through the desert, so staying a few days or even a few weeks in here will be hard, but it won't be anything I haven't been through before.'

Gen continued toward the black dot, but after a few hours, he stopped and thought, 'How far is this thing? I've been walking toward it for a long time, and I don't feel like I'm getting any closer to it. Well, maybe two days won't be enough to get there, anyway. I better get some rest, then I'll go on.'

Gen then took his backpack off his back and put it on the ground. He then took a simple tent he had brought with him and pitched it so he could rest. Gen went inside the tent with his backpack.

He then took a drink of water, ate a piece of fruit, and then lay down.

...

After a few hours, Gen woke up and then thought while stretching, 'I had a good rest. Now it's time to move on.'

He then started to leave the tent along with his things, and then started to look around, with a hand shadowing his eyes, and then thought, 'Strange, where is the black dot? I could have sworn it was that way.'

Gen then began to look around the area he was in, looking for the dot.

After a few minutes of searching, Gen thought, 'It's gone! What happened while I was sleeping? Did I go back to the beginning while I was sleeping? It can't be. If every time I stop to rest, I go back to the beginning, how do they expect me to get to the black spot?'

Gen then went back to the tent and thought, 'Well, since I lost the black dot, I won't even waste my time. I'll wait until the challenge time is up, and the next time, I'll avoid sleeping. Maybe if I just rest, I won't get sent back.'

Gen then came into the tent to get something to eat and drink, and after eating, he lay down in the tent and then thought, 'At least when the time is up, I'll be able to eat what I want, take a nice shower, and sleep in the best bed in the world, ah, just thinking about it makes me anxious.'

'I don't know why, but when I enjoy these things, I feel a little nostalgic, even though I've never been through anything like this.'

Gen then closed his eyes and waited for the time to pass.

...

The two days had passed, and suddenly, a door opened on the side of Gen's tent. Dehji came out of it, and seeing Gen inside the tent lying down, he said, "Look at that. Here I was expecting to see you all sweaty, sandy, lost in the desert, but here you are, relaxing."

"Dehji? Has it been two days?"

"Yes, but you seem to be enjoying the experience. I think I'll come back in a few days."

Dehji then began to walk through the door, but before he could walk through it, Gen said, "Enjoying it? Who would want to be stuck in a desert?"

"You're right."

Dehji then finished going through and started to close the door.

Seeing this, Gen said while holding the door, "Easy there!"

"What's wrong?"

"I don't want to stay here."

"Then get in."

"I haven't got my stuff yet."

"Oh, that's right. Get it. I'll wait for you."

"Okay...".

Gen then let go of the door and headed for his things, but halfway through, he turned quickly back toward the door and noticed that Dehji was closing it again. He then held the door before it could close and then said, "What about the 'waiting for me', part? Where is it?"

"Well, I waited about five seconds. Do you need more time?"

"Yes. Five seconds is not enough."

"Hmmm, got it. Go ahead. I'll wait longer this time."

Gen then said, "I have a better idea. Why don't you come back to the desert and help me bring the stuff back."

"I think I'll pass. That backpack of yours looks too heavy."

"I'll carry the backpack. You bring the tent."

"I'll still pass. It's too hot on your side."

"Got it. Then wait here a little longer, and I'll get the stuff as fast as I can."

"Okay."

Gen then turned toward his tent, but before he could take a step, he turned toward Dehji and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, throwing him into the middle of the desert. Gen then said, "Thanks, Dehji. You didn't have to come out of there to help me. I could carry the stuff myself."

"Gen, what's the need for that? Now I'm all full of sand."

"Don't worry about it. When we get back, we'll take a bath to get all this sand off."

"Are you calling me to take a bath with you? Is that why you threw me in the sand?"

"You! Forget it. I don't want you in my bathroom, you can spend the day dirty with sand, and I don't give a damn."

"Hold on, Gen, I was just kidding."

Gen and Dehji then gathered up the tent and the backpack and then walked through the door. They went straight to Gen's room, and after putting things away in his closet, Gen and Dehji headed for the bathroom.

Dehji stepped into the shower and said, "Ahh, this water is perfect."

"Yes, the temperature is great."

"Now I understand why you asked me to take a shower. With a bathroom this size, you could have ten more people showering, and no one would be uncomfortable."

"Yes."

The two then finished showering, and as Gen came out of the bathroom, he asked, "Dehji, when I entered the ruin, this time I didn't appear in the same place I was before. Is it going to be like this every time?"

"Yes, that's how it works."

"Too bad, that will slow me down a lot. Oh, another thing. Right after I woke up, after I had rested inside my tent, I realized that I had changed places again. Was that supposed to happen?"

Upon hearing this, Dehji, who was drying his hair with a towel, turned to Gen and asked him, "Gen."

"Yes?"

"Are you dumb?"