—

  —

  My eyes snapped open, a sharp breath escaping as I pushed myself upright and brushed off the dirt. Pain throbbed along my ribs, but I forced myself to my feet and grabbed the tablet.

  Five minutes. I’d been out for five minutes.

  More than enough time for Akira to disappear and be anywhere by now. Still, I couldn’t waste another second. I snatched my walkie-talkie.

  “Everyone, we’ve got a situation. Tomiko’s team took our totem,” I said, and almost instantly, the device buzzed with shocked replies. “Right now, Akira has it. I’m activating Individual Search and Entire Map Scan. I need everyone to converge on her location immediately.”

  I tapped rapidly on the tablet as I activated both features. Within seconds, a red marker pulsed among twenty-nine others.

  Got you.

  “Circle around D5,” I ordered.

  Without wasting a second, I dashed forward as I pushed my body to maximum speed. I kept glancing down at the shifting marker.

  “Update—she’s in D6. Adjust routes.”

  I cut through a narrow trail, sliding down a mossy slope until I broke through the ferns, and there she was.

  Akira froze, eyes wide. “How did you—”

  I didn’t give her time to finish as I lunged, tackling her to the ground with a thud.

  

“Where’s the totem?”

  I pinned her, knee against her thigh, forearm across her collarbone. She struggled beneath me, but I didn’t let up. Her expression twisted in surprise, and then… amusement.

  “I see… so you were holding back. Just as I thought.”

  Tch. So she noticed that. I shouldn’t be surprised. I guess with her combat experience and enhanced instincts, it’s not hard to tell when someone’s pulling their punches.

  “You didn’t answer the question,” I said.

  “And why would I?” she smirked, even as I kept her pinned.

  “Because I’m in the mood to pay you back,” I snapped.

  That got a reaction. She lunged and tried to buck me off; I shifted my weight and drove her back into the earth. Her eyes flickered—my grip was stronger than she expected.

  “Then I get to see your full potential this time?” she taunted. “Just don’t leave yourself open again.”

  I let out a breath. “You’re not carrying the totem, are you?”

  I had already guessed it, but hearing nothing from her in response just confirmed the truth.

  During the Entire Map Scan, I noticed a marker move away from her position. Under normal circumstances, I might’ve dismissed it as random movement, but Tomiko wouldn’t leave the totem with a single target for long; she’d switch carriers the moment she could.

  Even if I pursued it now, it would be a lost cause.

  Location masking could’ve been another tactic she used. Either way, the only real chance of recovering the totem now was by locating Tomiko’s site.

  I climbed off her, backing away as she sat up and brushed leaves from her sleeves. “Not interested in fighting anymore?” she said, shrugging it off.

  I stared at her for a moment, then turned my back. “Just tell Tomiko… I’m coming for my totem.”

  Akira didn’t follow. She stood there quietly, watching me walk away.

  Good.

  Once I was deep enough into the trees and sure she wasn’t following, I keyed the walkie.

  “Team, regroup at base. We need to change strategy.”

  —

  —

  It didn’t take long for everyone to return. The air was thick with tension as I stepped forward and bowed deeply.

  “I’m sorry. This is my fault,” I said. “I got careless. I underestimated Tomiko.”

  Amara drew in a sharp breath, fists tightening. “How did she even find the site?”

  “Tomiko’s been tracking me from the start,” I explained, watching as Amara bit her lip. “She must have been tracking my movement patterns around the site, probably using Individual Search to pinpoint our grid.”

  “That damned Tomiko,” Tylan muttered, pacing in frustration.

  Amara’s voice cut through. “We can’t collect points without the totem. How could you let them take it? Did you even put up a fight?”

  “I did,” I said quietly. “But Akira is a talented fighter... much better than I expected.”

  “Enough,” Kameko interjected. “We need to focus on getting the totem back.”

  “Oh? And do you have a plan?” Amara snapped.

  Kameko shook her head. “Not yet.”

  “Then just stop talking,” Amara shot back, her words surprising everyone.

  “Hey,” Tylan said, stepping between them. “I know you’re stressed, but you need to relax.”

  “Relax?” Amara repeated, stepping back. “Why would I do that? And honestly, why is everyone so calm right now?”

  This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

  “Panicking won’t help,” he said firmly.

  “Sure, sure,” she muttered sarcastically.

  “Or tell me—have you suddenly come up with a plan to get the totem back?” He said to her, and Amara found herself unable to respond.

  “I know this is stressful, but we need to work together to recover the totem,” Priya said. “We lose ten points every hour it’s gone.”

  I took a breath, meeting their eyes. “I take full responsibility, but I need you all to stick with me. We can still turn this around.”

  Priya gave a small smile. “Come on, everyone. Diya-senpai’s gotten us this far—we’re still in second place thanks to her strategy. Let’s not lose hope over this setback.”

  “Calling it a mishap doesn’t even cover it,” Amara said, sighing. “I need to clear my head.” She walked off, leaving a tense silence behind.

  I stared down at the tablet, my mind racing as I mapped out our next move. Without the totem, point collection was impossible, and our only option left was to rely on bonuses. All we could do was to cut back on using any features or items we didn’t absolutely need and find a way to make up for the time lost while scrambling for points.

  For the moment, all I could do was watch and wait.

  “Diya, can I talk to you?” Kameko’s voice broke through the quiet, worry etched deep into her expression.

  “Sure,” I said, following her to the edge of the site.

  “Diya, I joined your team because I thought victory was within reach. For my own survival, I thought this was the right choice,” she said, eyes on the ground. “But now… I have second thoughts. If we come last, it’s over. And I don’t want to end up like that.”

  She hesitated, biting her lip as if unsure how to finish the thought, then abruptly turned to leave.

  “I understand,” I said softly. “Getting expelled is the last thing I want as well.”

  She stopped, back still turned, but after a moment, she spoke again, softer this time. “I don’t want to regret this decision.”

  I sighed, meeting her gaze as she turned back slowly. “You won’t.”

  She gave a dry laugh. “You say that with such confidence, but look where we are now. Our totem is gone. If we don’t fix this soon, it’s over.”

  Kameko wasn’t the panicked type; rather, she was cold, logical, and calculating. Right now, she was running the numbers and not liking the outcome.

  “I know it looks bad,” I admitted. “If I were you, I’d question everything, too. But giving up now? That won’t fix a thing.”

  “I’m not saying I’m giving up,” she said, stepping closer. “What I need to know is—do you have a real plan, Diya? Not just empty hope, but a concrete strategy to get us out of this mess?”

  I held her gaze, then nodded. “I do.”

  “And?”

  “I need you to trust me,” I said quietly. “This isn’t our first setback, and it won’t be the last.”

  Kameko studied me intently, searching for any sign of doubt. Finally, she exhaled, running a hand through her hair in frustration. “Alright. But if you don’t come up with something soon, I won’t just wait around.”

  “I wouldn’t expect you to,” I said.

  With that, she turned and walked back toward camp.

  I stayed behind, watching her disappear into the trees before letting out a slow breath. I knew what had to come next.

  —

  —

  I waited a while before calling everyone together again. Even Amara showed up.

  “Alright, everyone,” I began. “I think I’ve found where Tomiko’s base is.”

  A flicker of hope crossed their faces.

  Priya leaned forward. “Are you serious? How did you figure it out?”

  I turned my tablet toward them, the screen lighting up the map. “I’ve been tracking movement patterns since the start of the exam. While I can’t identify every individual, the patterns themselves give us valuable clues.”

  I pointed to a trail. “Akira’s exact origin is unclear, but she moved north from here, then handed the totem to someone using location masking.”

  “This person remained invisible to our entire map scans, making them impossible to track,” I continued, “but once the masking timer expires, they reappear.”

  “Huh? But location masking lasts for two hours, right? That’s enough time to hide the totem and get back to base unseen,” Amara pointed out.

  “True,” I said, “but Tomiko’s smarter than that. She likely had them activate masking about thirty minutes before the plan began.”

  Priya frowned. “Why thirty minutes?”

  “There are two reasons,” I explained. “First, it gives them time to prepare quietly, without drawing attention from other teams monitoring the area. Second, if we had activated an entire map scan right when the location masking started, it would have worn off before their plan went into action.”

  Priya looked unconvinced. “Was all that really necessary? Seems like overkill.”

  “Not necessarily. Tomiko is just cautious. Still, even with all those precautions, mistakes happen,” I said. “Akira was the first clue. Even though I knew she didn’t have the totem, I kept tracking her movements after we fought. As for the person using location masking… they slipped up and revealed themselves a few hours before I called this meeting.”

  The group stared at me in shock.

  “Wait,” Kameko said slowly. “Does that mean you’ve been running an entire map scan this whole time?”

  I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. “Yes.”

  Tylan’s eyes widened. “Diya-senpai, the cost of that is—”

  “I know,” I cut him off. “But I judged the sacrifice to be worth it. After pinpointing both their locations, I tracked their travel patterns carefully. They each visited grid M20 at different times, but there were no other blips there, which makes that spot suspicious. Even if it’s not Tomiko’s main base, it’s worth checking.”

  The group fell silent as they processed the information. I was certain M20 was one of Tomiko’s sites. Though I didn’t yet know where the other site was, I was certain that, given time, I could piece it together.

  “Diya,” Kameko said quietly, “with how many points you’ve spent, we’ll fall behind. Are you sure this was the right call?”

  “Right choice? That’s not something we have right now,” I replied. “We only have choices. And the outcome, whether it’s right or wrong, will reveal itself in time. For now, I’m acting on what resources and information we have. I just hope it’s enough.”

  Kameko exhaled and straightened. “So… when do we start?”

  My eyes widened at the sudden shift in her tone, and before I could answer, Amara slammed her fist into her palm. “Yeah, when do we take back our totem?”

  Their renewed determination made me smile. “For now, it’s already too late to travel there, retrieve the totem, and return before the penalty kicks in. So, we’ll leave at dawn—eight sharp. That way, maybe we can catch Tomiko off guard.”

  They nodded, and I dismissed them for the night.

  Later, we gathered once more as we received our daily bonuses and waited for the new rankings to be announced. The screen flickered to reveal the team in fifth place.

  “We dropped to fifth,” Amara muttered, frustration etched across her face as she slammed her hand against her thigh.

  The full ranking list rolled out slowly, and a collective gasp spread through the group. Even I was taken aback by who had surged to the top. A slow smirk crept across my face as the pieces clicked into place.

  “So, that’s her strategy,” I whispered to myself.

  The leaderboard read: Natsumi first, Tomiko second, Ran, Savannah, me, and Ayaka in sixth.

  —

  —

  Today was rough. Our totem got stolen by Tomiko’s team, and without the steady stream of points from it, everything slowed down. This entry is shorter than usual because, honestly, there wasn’t much to report on point gains.

  LEADERBOARD (10:30 PM Update):

  1st – Team Natsumi

  2nd – Team Tomiko

  3rd – Team Nagamine

  4th – Team Savannah

  5th –

  6th – Team Ayaka

  Losing the totem dropped us significantly in the rankings. It’s a serious setback, but not impossible to recover from yet.

  BLIP DATA (Location – Time Spawned – Points Earned by Us):

  I10 – 9:30 AM – 20 pts

  N4 – 10:20 AM – 5 pts

  O6 – 10:25 AM – 10 pts

  Q12 – 11:50 AM – 10 pts

  A1 – 11:55 AM – 0 pts

  F16 – 12:30 PM – 0 pts

  F10 – 12:40 PM – 0 pts

  O8 – 12:45 PM – 0 pts

  A5 – 12:50 PM – 0 pts

  O10 – 2:00 PM – 0 pts

  C20 – 2:15 PM – 0 pts

  G10 – 2:30 PM – 0 pts

  M6 – 2:45 PM – 0 pts

  C7 – 3:55 PM – 0 pts

  N6 – 4:10 PM – 0 pts

  O18 – 4:35 PM – 0 pts

  P3 – 4:40 PM – 0 pts

  D19 – 6:15 PM – 0 pts

  B3 – 6:50 PM – 0 pts

  N3 – 8:00 PM – 0 pts

  M8 – 8:10 PM – 0 pts

  E8 – 8:20 PM – 0 pts

  E4 – 8:25 PM – 0 pts

  M20 – 8:40 PM – 0 pts

  POINTS SUMMARY:

  

• Blips Collected:
• Totem Captures:
• Bonus Points:

  EXPENSES:

  

• Items Purchased (55 pts):
• Food Packs – 30 pts
• Bottled Water – 25 pts
  
    

Features Purchased (100 pts):

Individual Search – 20 pts

Entire Map Scan – 80 pts

  

Points Lost from Captured Totem:

Penalties:

  FINAL TALLY:

  

• Total Points Earned:
• Total Spent:
• Overall Total Points: