Chapter 181: Expedition (2)
Chapter 179
Even before the bracelets had been activated, Trisha had already positioned herself strategically close to one of those strange, mythically blue flowers.
The moment Sony announced he was about to activate the devices, her finger hovered expectantly over a button marked with the initial ’S,’ which she correctly presumed stood for "Scan."
The very second the bracelets hummed to life, she instantly clicked the button.
A small holographic screen materialized in front of the flora, remaining tethered to the wristband by a thin beam of light.
Moving the projection up and down the petals, the holographic interface analyzed the specimen, and then, with a small, silent ding, the task was complete.
It had been successfully scanned.
All of this occurred within the few seconds of hesitation shown by the others.
At the same time, the rest of squad Kai received a synchronized notification on their own displays.
They had just earned two points?
How?
Glancing up, they saw Trisha already searching for her next target; she immediately spotted another blossom and darted toward it with predatory focus.
Exchanging quick looks of realization, the rest of the team scrambled apart so as not to be left behind by her sudden burst of productivity.
Ray had been designated as the porter of the group, and with the backpack containing their emergency kits resting firmly on his shoulders, he blitzed around the environment.
He worked tirelessly, scanning and analyzing alongside the others.
The whole forest, which had been somewhat silent earlier, was now bustling with a chaotic explosion of movement from the humans.
From the soil on the ground to the different colored, patterned flowers and exotic plants—even the rugged bark of the trees—nothing was spared.
Everything was being documented for reasons the military had yet to fully disclose.
Sony remained in his original position, his foot tapping the ground in nervous anticipation while he monitored the Aspirants who were now delving much deeper into the woods.
With so many students crowded together, more than half the class was finding it difficult to find anything unique to scan.
Consequently, many delved further into the foliage, hoping to discover an untouched specimen to at least secure some points for their tally.
While the others were struggling, squad Kai was actually leading the class.
They were being incredibly efficient.
It was as if the expedition had ignited a side of Trisha they hadn’t witnessed before—the competitive side! She clearly wasn’t about to let anybody else seize any points that she felt they deserved.
In the process, she dived deeper into the dense forest, scanning and recording nonstop until they had racked up a total of twelve points in just five minutes.
They were currently at the top of their class leaderboard, but even so, the girl showed no signs of slowing down.
A cold, determined look creased her face as she pushed forward.
’Can’t stop. The other class could be ahead of us by miles.’
At some point, Ray stopped moving and decided to just watch from the sidelines as the girl wove in between their peers.
The moment she spotted an unusual flower that someone else was about to claim, she darted forward, weaving through the crowd and stealing the scan right from under their noses.
’Wow. Guess she really will do anything for the points, eh?’
Tak. Crunch. Tak.
The sound of rhythmic footsteps approaching caused Ray to turn around, finding Kai standing beside him.
"I have been meaning to ask since yesterday, but I just didn’t have the time," the blonde-haired boy began, his tone uncharacteristically serious.
Ray just calmly raised an eyebrow, nudging him to continue.
Which he did:
"Yesterday, why did you stop me from buying the map? We could actually use that information right now."
’Oh. So this is what this is about.’
Ray just shrugged indifferently, a small smirk playing on his lips.
"That’s because there’s no need to waste money when I already have that knowledge stored in my head."
Kai raised an eyebrow, looking skeptical.
"Meaning?"
Ray just chuckled softly before beginning to walk away toward a cluster of unmapped ferns.
"Let’s just say... I have a pretty good memory."
The expedition continued as usual.
Compared to the others who were frantically rushing to scan any and every plant in sight, Van was simply standing back, quietly observing the surroundings with an analytical eye.
While the points were important, he seemed more interested in the subtle shifts of the alien ecosystem around them.
His gaze swept across the terrain as he shifted from one plant to another.
Every time he attempted a scan, the interface flickered with the same repetitive, frustrating message:
[Error; plant scanned and registered]
Unfortunately, he was unable to contribute to the team’s growing score, so he simply resorted to being an observer while glancing at the dense forest nervously.
’Didn’t Sony mention that beasts could be lurking around this forest? Yet we haven’t encountered a single thing so far.
I would have thought that with all the chaos and noise we’re making in this place, something would have appeared by now. But there’s none? Something doesn’t feel right here. I can feel it.’
He narrowed his eyes, deciding to scrutinize the environment a bit more intensely.
He couldn’t effectively observe the ground since it was littered with the scuff marks and boot prints of the other teens; hence, he resolved to giving the forest itself a thorough look.
Moving from trunk to trunk, Van was being exceptionally careful.
Tracing his finger against a tree’s bark, he saw nothing unnatural about the texture.
It was just like all the other towering trees that surrounded them.
Each had a brown bark without any visible scratches on it, along with thick branches and leaves curling downward to shield them from the punishing solar rays.
Though the canopy didn’t totally cover the area in a way that made it dark, it only permitted a few stray rays of sunlight through the gaps.
’Hm... nothing off,’ he mused inwardly as he stared at the different green vines that were as thick as two sturdy ropes tied together.
They were hanging from the branches of every tree, fixing themselves in a ’U’ shape with the way they were curled back up toward the canopy.
In short, it appeared to be a perfectly normal forest.
A normal human would have thought nothing of the scenery, but still, a persistent feeling was gnawing at Van’s mind as he decided to step closer to the tree directly before him.
Picking up a half-broken branch from the dirt, he stared upward.
Tapping the trunk with the wood, he waited, but nothing happened.
The leaves and the higher branches were positioned far off from the ground, so he wouldn’t even be able to reach them.
But one thing he could reach were those thick vines.
Closing one eye to focus his aim, he poked the hanging vine with the tip of the branch.
It swayed for just a brief second and then...
Van closed his eyes shut in sudden fright for what might come next.
... But there was only silence.
Nothing suddenly lashed out at him in retaliation.
Slowly opening his eyes, he huffed a breath while wiping the sweat that had gathered on his brows and then turned away.
’I guess I was just being paranoid for nothing. This is really just a normal forest.’
He began walking away with a heavy breath of relief.
He hadn’t gone more than two steps when, behind him, the forest changed.
The vine he had poked suddenly transformed.
A pair of glowing yellow eyes ignited furiously upon its surface, locking onto the human who was already retreating.
Then, in one fluid, lethal motion, the vine moved.
It lunged forward with terrifying speed at Van, who was totally unaware of the predator at his back.