As Tawanda opened his eyes he found himself in a plain grey room that was full of pillars.In front of him was a man wearing a grey mask with markings similar to those found on the ground where the gate appeared.
"Welcome new challenger I am the administrator of floor 0, commonly known as the tutorial"
"The tower is for those who are worthy, in short the tutorial is a filter of the tower, pass all three trials of the tutorial and you will proceed to the first floor"
Tawanda looked at the administrator as he spoke, specifically at the markings on his mask which he could clearly see where similar to the ones outside around the area where the gate appeared.
"The ten doors behind me all lead to the first stage of the tutorial, pick only one and move until you reach the starting point.The rules of the first trial are simple reach the destination within three hours, is there anything you would like to ask?"
"I have no questions", replied Tawanda
"I wish you what you deserve"
The administrator looked at Tawanda as he walked passed him with a suspicious eye.
"I cannot sense any mana or aura from him or any trace of pathways of it, its almost like Im looking at a corpse or a doll.Is he using an artifact to hide his magic, but then again the world he comes from does not make that kind of artifacts and even if it was an artifact from the tower it would not be able to stop me from sensing his mana or pathways.What I can only sense is that energies can't reach his bodies or maybe the other way around, how fascinating"
Tawanda chose the seventh door form the right and the administrator vanished after Tawanda closed the door behind him.Tawanda found himself on a high platform and from that platform was a bridge that descended down to an extremely large maze floating in the vasts empty dark blue area.The maze was extremely large in size with a grey light source high up which acted as the sun.It had multiple entrances which were connected to floating platforms via a bridge and these platforms could be accessed through the ten doors that one had to choose from.As Tawanda was looking at the maze from the high ground he took out his not book and mapped out his route from the entrance he would use up to the exit.
#Tawanda descended the bridge and took out one of his sharpened iron rods as a precaution.He passed through the entrance into the maze and just as he did felt something on his arm.A timer which was like a tattoo appeared on his arm with three hours counting down.
Tawanda looked at the high walls in thought.
"I know it can't be that simple but might as well try", said Tawanda as he took out rope from his backpack and attached a hook to it. He then threw the the hook over the wall which successfully hooked on to the wall edge.Tawanda climbed up the wall slowly and cautious until eventual he grabbed the wall edge then lifted his body up and crotched on top of the wall.Even though he drew the path of the maze, his idea was to walk on top of the walls which would guarantee that he would not get lost and move faster.
"What the!!!", Tawanda was surprised as he found himself looking at an empty space in all directions, the sight was so strange that he began to lose his sense of balance and that is when he looked down and noticed that only where his feet where stepping was visible.
" Well I did suspect it would not be that simple but this countermeasure is a bit too much."
Tawanda quickly climbed down, pulled his rope and put it back in his backpack.He took out the map he drew and began following it.Just after making his first right turn he heard a faint whistling sound coming from ahead of him and stopped to listen better, then felt a sharp pain on his left arm.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa shit"
An arrow had grazed his left arm but before he could comprehend what had happened he heard the faint whistling sound again, instinctively dived down on the floor and an arrow flew past just above his head.
"I can't see them shit shit"
Tawanda lay there for a while and no arrow was shot at him.
"So arrows are shot if I move forward, he said whilst looking at the timer"
"Ten minutes have already passed, I need to move, the whistling sound is a warning of the coming arrow I must somehow use that to determine their trajectory and dodge"
Tawanda took in fast deep breaths to master up courage and stood up quickly then dashed foward.He heard the faint whistling sound and listened closely as he dashed forward and side stepped to to the left side and an arrow barely missed him. He hit the left wall with his grazed shoulder and hauled in pain but pushed forward.
He heard the faint whistling sound once more and this time he dived to the ground and the arrow missed his head by by mere centimetres and hit his backpack.The force of the arrow hitting his backpack disrupted his dive that he rolled uncontrollable on the ground but quickly stood up and immediately dodged instinctively with better precision.
" My body instinctively moved to dodge and so to increase my reaction time I need to trust my instinct more and let it lead the way."
Tawanda dashed forward and then closed his eyes and put all his concentration into running and listerning.Left side, right side, jumped up, right side again, slide.As his ears heard the faint whistling sound his body reacted instantly and was able to dodge the arrows much better than before.
"How is he doing that, its like he knows where the invisible arrows are going to hit but how. I think he is somehow sensing the flying arrows and reacting accordingly but last time I checked he had no mana which means its not a magical ability.The point of the invisible arrows stage is to test the defence mechanism of the challengers and filter out those with weak defence, avoiding the arrows should be impossible"
Tawanda began to get used to the flying arrows as he dodged them perfectly and moved foward.But after some time the whistling sound became a bit confusing and as Tawanda dodged an arrow aimed at his head another pierced just below his collar bone.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa, I should have known that the whistling sound was confusing because two arrows where coming."
"Did he just say whistling sound?, what whistling sound, those arrows are silent, invisible and odourless"
"Aaaaaaaaaaa", Tawanda screamed in pain as he pulled out the invisible arrow, looked at it and saw red particles that faintly made the arrow visible but he did not have the time to think about it since he was running out of time.
"I need to concentrate hard and move faster"
Tawanda took a sachet of ash from his backpack, applied it on his wound, took out a bandage and bandaged his wound as best and as fast as he could. He also cut a small piece of the bandage and covered his eyes.With his eyes closed he dashed forward with more speed than before. First came two arrows slightly delayed from each other and he perfectly dodged the first arrow but barely managed to dodged the second one.After two more times of this he got accustomed to it and the arrows increased their numbers, used a more complex patterns and increased their speed but Tawanda adapted and dodged them all.As Tawanda dashed forward avoiding the arrows with his eyes covered, in his mind he began to see faint red particles that almost resembled the shape of arrows ahead of him.The arrows suddenly stopped but Tawanda kept on running as he was behind time with fifteen minutes remaining on his timer.
Tawanda removed the cloth covering his eyes as the arrows had stopped and a few seconds later a rumbling sound came from ahead.A bright light came from ahead accompanied by the increase of the rumbling sound.
"Something big is coming this way"
It came into Tawanda's sight, a large blue flame burning spiked metal iron ball rolling at great speed towards Tawanda.
"I wounder how he will handle this one", said the administrator as he looked at rolling ball headed towards Tawanda.
"My enhancing ability now comes into play," said Tawanda in his head as he grabbed one of his sharpened iron rods , he looked at the sharpened iron rod as he held it, put as much intention as he could of piercing through the wall and with all his might drove the sharpened iron rod straight into the wall.With the rolling burning metal spiked iron ball being a few metres away from him he moved to the wall opposite to where he stuck his sharpened iron rod, strongly put his back against it, took a deep breath and accelerated towards the iron rod he thrust into the wall.He made a big jump, stepped on the sharpened iron rod he stuck onto the wall and with all the power his legs could master crotched taking a rabbit's stance then sprung upwards.He put as much intention as possible and drove the sharpened iron rod in his right hand into the wall.The burning spiked metal iron ball's spike scratched his boot's heel and passed by.
If Tawanda had been half a second late or his jump a few centimeters below he would have lost his legs.
"If I had been half a second late, I would have lost my legs"
To Tawanda's surprise three more burning metal spike iron balls passed by just after the first one.
"Magnificent most players who pass just use mana to cover their body and weapon and if they are skilled enough can get through the invisible arrows and the burning metal ball yet he completely dodged them all.After all thats said and done the biggest question is how did he manage to pierce through tutorial walls without using mana or a magical weapon.If he can damage the walls of the tutorial without mana or magical weapon that also means he can damage the lobby which only special grade weapons can do, non of this makes any sense."
Four burning metal spiked iron balls passed with Tawanda still hanging onto the iron rod and after some seconds the rumbling stopped.
"I think thats enough of the burning metal balls"
He shook and twisted the iron rod he was holding on to until he pulled it out of the wall and dropped down to the ground.He looked where he stuck the sharpened iron rod he jumped from and saw that it had been broken by the burning spiked balls and only a short piece remained with most of it being inside the wall and so he pulled it out and put it in his backpack
'Seven minutes left'
Tawanda dashed forward after checking the time he had left.He followed the map turning numerous times,
"After that left turn I should be in the long stretch that leads to the exit"
After turning left and entering the long stretch he saw the exit door and increased his speed even more
" Four minutes left, I can make it"
Tawanda dashed forward but as he was fifteen metres from the door a great amount of water suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
"Shiiiitttttt"
Tawanda pulled out his two iron rods then made a great dive forward towards the ground and stabbed the ground with all his energy.The water came crushing down on him and pushing him back but he held on to the rods he thrust into the ground.
"Im almost there I need put everything into reaching that door!!!!"
Under the heavy water pressure which continuously him back Tawanda held on to the iron rods,
"I have to move"
He strongly held onto the right hand iron rod then pulled out the left hand rod so as to move forward through piecing the floor ahead then pulling himself foward.Just as he pulled the left hand rod the pressure pushed his left hand back that he almost let go of the right hand iron rod.He used everything he had to pull his body forward with his right hand holding on then then pieced the floor with the left hand iron rod.He pulled out the right hand iron rod, pulled his body forward then pieced with the right hand iron rod.He continued to do so one iron rod at a time moving slow but sure against the pressure of the water.
'One minute fifty three seconds left'
The closer he got to the door the more the pressure increased and the more he ran out of breath.
' One minute one second left'
"Come one come one Tawanda!!!!!",He shouted in his head as he charged forward.
"Considering he isn't using any mana this is magnificent", said the administrator of floor zero as his eyes where glued to the display feed.
'Thirty seconds left'
*******************Tawanda looked ahead and saw that he was now one thrust away from getting in close enough range to grab the the door handle.
"Just one more thrust!!!!"
He pulled out the right hand iron rod and whilst holding onto the left hand iron rod pulled himself forward then thrust the ground with the right hand iron rod but as he began to pull out the left hand iron rod his right hand slipped and he got pushed back by the pressure but barely managed to hold onto the left hand iron rod.
"Shit shit shit!!! Come on"
Tawanda mastered up the last of his remaining strength, now out of breath, his muscles at their limit and almost out of time pulled himself forward and grabbed the right hand iron rod.
[Eleven seconds]
He released his hand from the left hand iron rod and pushed his body forward into close enough range to reach the door nob.
[Eight seconds]
He stretched out his left hand to grab the door nob but the pressure was to much that his hand was stopped a few inches from reaching the door nob.
[Six seconds]
He switched hands and his left hand grabbed the iron rod and the right hand stretched out to grab the door nob.
[Five]
His right hand stretched out against the pressure that it was a few inches from reaching the door nob.
[Four]
"Who is that"
"No human has that eye colour and hair"
"Even her skin tone is definitely not human"
"She was the first one to finish the trial"
Many players gave their thoughts as they looked at the mysterious female challenger dressed in all white with her face covered with a veil who had overwhelmingly dominated the first round of the tutorial.The mysterious lady in white, the guy dressed completely in blue and the first human summoner simultaneously looked behind at one of the doors from the maze and a second after the door burst open and water splashed out in a large amounts that it drew the attention of the whole waiting area and with it carried Tawanda through the door and into the waiting area.
" There was still a challenger left?"
" Who is he?"
"Wait isn't that the guy we saw sleeping near the gate"
"It seems he passed the trial"
" I guess he got lucky, even though he is not a trained person from the academy and not backed by any powerful organizational he managed to pass"
The guy in blue looked at Tawanda lying on the ground with curiosity.
"You are wrong", said the guy dressed in blue to himself "he's s not lucky, he passed the first round without any proper equipment and from the looks of it he's not a mage and just like at the gate I sense no trace of mana from him.How interesting, he has it Im sure of it, who knew I would meet someone like him so early on"
The mysterious lady also looked at him but after a few seconds looked away
"He is not moving, is he even still alive?"
"Its pointless to pass the trial but die afterwards"
"cough cough cough"
Tawanda coughed up water he had swallowed.
"I somehow made it", said Tawanda as he looked at the two seconds remaining on his timer.
"How interesting, it has never been done before in the history of the tutorial for a ew challenger to pass without using mana or any magical equipment what so ever, this year has interesting rookies", said the tutorial administrator.