The forest welcomed them with a rush of green and gold, the sun breaking through the canopy in scattered shafts. The air smelled of wet earth and pine, and somewhere ahead, the faint sound of a whistle echoed, another team shouting clues to each other.
Flora walked behind Suzain and Tessa as they followed the uneven trail. Liam was beside her, quiet as always, his gaze sweeping the surroundings like he was memorizing every turn.
"Let's move faster," Suzain said, stepping ahead with exaggerated authority. "We're already behind."
Rhea groaned. "We've been walking for twenty minutes. Behind who, exactly?"
Suzain didn't answer. Her focus lingered on Liam for a beat too long, her tone softening. "Liam, you're good with directions, right? Maybe you could check if we're going the right way."
He didn't even look at her. "You have the map."
Her smile faltered. "I thought teamwork was important."
"It is," he said evenly. "But the one giving directions should trust their own choices."
Suzain's lips tightened, irritation flashing in her eyes. Then she turned to Flora, a smirk curling at the edge of her mouth. "You're awfully quiet. Or are you just used to following people around?"
Flora stopped walking. The group stilled too.
Her tone was calm not defensive, not meek. Just steady.
"I'd rather follow someone who knows where they're going," she said softly, her gaze on the trees, "than lead everyone in circles just to look in control."
Tessa let out a low whistle. "Ouch."
Suzain scoffed and started walking again, faster this time. "Whatever. Keep up, or we'll lose daylight."
They walked deeper into the forest. The path thinned into uneven soil and twisted roots. Here and there, colorful ribbons were tied to branches, markers left by the teachers to ensure no one got lost.
Suzain clutched the map closer. "Okay, according to this, the first treasure should be somewhere near a clearing with a big oak tree… and a rock shaped like—" she squinted, "__a rabbit?"
"A rabbit?" Tessa said skeptically. "Who draws maps like this?"
"People who enjoy watching us suffer," Rhea muttered.
It took them another twenty minutes to find the place, and sure enough, a massive oak stood in the middle of a sunlit clearing, its trunk scarred with age, and beside it, a boulder vaguely shaped like crouching ears.
A resort staff member waited nearby, wearing a referee's badge.
"Congratulations, Group Three," he said cheerfully. "You've found your first treasure. But before you get the key, you'll need to solve this."
He handed them a folded paper.
Suzain snatched it first. "Easy."
She read aloud:
"Where day begins without a sun,
where water sings yet never runs.
Guarded close by roots and stone,
only those who listen find what's shown."
"It's obviously talking about sunrise," Suzain said confidently. "Something east-facing."
Rhea shook her head. "No, it says without a sun. So not sunrise."
Flora's eyes scanned the riddle again. Her mind picked at the phrases water sings yet never runs… like something that makes sound but isn't a river.
Suzain ignored her and turned to the staff member. "We think the answer is sunrise."
The man smiled politely. "That's one try gone."
"Wait—one try?" Rhea said.
"Each group gets three chances," the staff member said. "Get it wrong all three times, and you lose this treasure."
Suzain's jaw tightened. "Fine. Second answer fountain."
"Two gone."
Her temper flickered. "Seriously?"
Flora stepped closer, her voice even. "Can I try?"
Suzain hesitated, then shrugged, pretending not to care.
"Where day begins without a sun, you said"? That must be a place untouched by light a world where morning doesn't depend on the sky.
"Where water sings yet never runs".... that's the sound of droplets echoing in the dark. They don't flow like a river, but their rhythm fills the silence, almost like a song.
"Guarded close by roots and stone" Something hidden beneath earth's skin, protected by nature itself.
And "only those who listen find what's shown" yes, that's the final clue. In a cave, sight alone won't guide you. You have to listen to the echoes, to the drip of water, to the hush of the dark and only then will its secrets reveal themselves.
She turned back to the staff member. "The answer is cave."
He smiled. "Correct."
A small golden key dropped into his hand. He handed it to her.
Rhea and Tessa cheered, laughing in relief. Liam's gaze softened for a fraction, mysterious story subtly hidden in his eyes.
Suzain said nothing her smile tight, her fingers digging into the map she held.
The staff member stepped aside. "The box is buried near the roots of that oak. Good luck digging it out."
They found it after five minutes a medium-sized chest with a coded lock. Flora slipped the key in, turned it once, and the lock clicked open.
Inside was a sealed note stamped with Team Progress: +1 Treasure.
"Finally," Tessa said. "We're on the board!"