Jasmine drew her sword, ready for battle, with Ethan standing steadfastly behind her. "How shameless," she muttered as the red light drew nearer, her grip on the sword tightening. A mix of relief and embarrassment washed over her as Professor Alexander emerged, looking confused.
"Why are you guys here?" Professor Alexander asked, still holding the flame that cast the eerie light.
"Just taking a walk," Jasmine replied nonchalantly.
"You'd better head back," He warned. "You don't want to experience the night out here."
Jasmine's body tensed hearing what the professor had just said. What is this place…where is this place? She thought.
"If I may ask, where exactly are we?" Ethan spoke, stealing the words out of her mouth.
"The land of suffering" Prof. Alexander replied, his words sending a chill down Jasmine's spine. Her legs trembled, and her mind reeled with fear.
"What is that?" she asked her voice barely above a whisper.
"Beasts roam these grounds," Prof. Alexander continued, his tone grave. "Each one varying in size and length. This realm is reserved for those who misuse their powers, who don't use their abilities for the greater good."
Before he could elaborate further, Jasmine's panicked. "Then why are we here?" she demanded, her voice rising to a shout.
Prof. Alexander's expression turned serious. "Calm down. This is the best place to conduct the exam. The area we're in is protected by barriers, courtesy of the four of us leaders. But you can't always trust the night."
As he spoke, Jasmine's imagination ran wild with terrifying images of the beasts. She'd never seen them, but her mind envisioned horrific images.
"Goodnight!" the professor waved as soon as he was done speaking.
Ethan turned to Jasmine, his eyes locked on hers. He grasped her wrist gently, slowly drawing closer. Why's he being such a coward? Jasmine thought to herself.
She forced a weak smile, slowly extracting her wrist from his grasp. "I'll also be saying goodnight. Bye". Ethan's eyes flashed with fear, but Jasmine chose to ignore it.
As she turned to leave, she couldn't help but glance back at him and look sideways. Despite her tough exterior, Jasmine was terrified. In the human realm, she exuded confidence, but in this extra-natural world, it was different.
Pushing aside her racing thoughts as she got to the dorm, She tiptoed to her bed, careful not to disturb her teammates. She wrapped herself in the blanket, seeking comfort in its warmth, and drifted off to sleep.
The next morning Jasmine woke up to the sound of the same trumpet as the scent of fresh hibiscus wafted through her nose, but to her surprise she was surrounded by her roommates who were watching her with worried expression.
"Jasmine, you're finally awake! You were sweating and moving awkwardly in your sleep, are you okay?" Lydia asked, touching her forehead.
Jasmine nodded slightly, placing her feet flat on the ground, still sitting comfortably on the bed.
"We were just having some early morning tea before the exam" Amanda smiled, as she offered jasmine a cup. "Care to join?"
"Thank you," she thanked before collecting the tea from Amanda's hand. As she lifted it to her lips, she paused, her narrowing slightly as she inhaled its aroma…something felt amiss.
Jasmine possessed a unique gift – the ability to detect poison or toxic substances since birth, and an immunity to them that was both special and surprising. As a six-year-old, she had been bitten by poisonous insects that should have been fatal within an hour, but Jasmine defied expectations and survived. Curious, she experimented with poisonous plants and various toxins, only to find herself unaffected every time.
Suddenly, a fleeting thought crossed her mind: could her teammates be plotting against her? But before she could dwell on it, Amanda chimed in, "It's the famous hibiscus tea from Gary Kingdom. The scent is reminiscent of the gentle breeze from the East Sea. I'm glad I brought it along."
Jasmine's eyes met Amanda's, and for a moment, she searched for any sign of deceit. But her roommates seemed genuinely innocent. Was she overthinking things? She knew they wouldn't try to harm her... or would they?
After a while, Jasmine gulped down the tea, deciding to play along and see where things would go.
"Easy," Lydia scolded, her eyes fixed intently on Jasmine.
Jasmine pretended to succumb to the effects, holding her head before closing her eyes and lying flat on the bed.
"Did it work?" Ruby asked, barely containing her excitement.
"Check if she's still breathing," Lydia ordered.
As a hand approached her nose, Jasmine tried to hold her breath.
"Dead," Amanda announced and the others cheered in triumph. Soon, they left for the exam, abandoning Jasmine's "lifeless" body on the bed.
Feeling disappointed, Jasmine rose from the bed. How stupid she had been for thinking she had friends. Why did they do this? Suddenly, a realization dawned on her – the Four Kingdom War. Was that the reason? A smirk crept onto her lips as she thought about it. They thought they could eliminate her with something as trivial as scorpion venom? The absurdity of it all sparked something dark within her. "Humph," she whispered to herself, her eyes glinting with anticipation. The game had just become... interesting.
~~~
.The crowd had gathered in their respective groups for the exam, but the Fox Team was still incomplete. Professor Flynn's concern was visible as he addressed the crowd.
"Apologies for any inconvenience, but we'll wait two minutes for the Fox Team to assemble. If they're still not complete, we'll have to go on like that." The crowd sighed under the scorching sun, which seemed to beat down relentlessly.
Just then, a girl's voice pierced the air. "She's dead." The leaders' heads jerked up in shock, and the crowd fell silent.
"What did you say?" Professor Flynn asked, his voice laced with disbelief.
"I'm Ruby, her roommate," the girl replied, her voice trembling. "We found her lifeless on her bed this morning".
"She was fine yesterday, how did it happen?" Professor Alexander's expression turned grave.
Ruby looked down at the ground and shook her head vigorously, tears streaming down her cheeks, "I don't know. You can go see for yourself.
The four leaders exchanged uneasy glances, their minds racing with possibilities. As they turned to investigate, the sound of approaching footsteps echoed through the air, causing the crowd to part and form a pathway. All eyes turned to the latecomer, her voice ringing out across the gathering.
"She's not..."