Frey slowly opened his eyes. His head felt heavy, and his mind was still blurry. As his vision cleared, he saw many people lying on the ground, some beginning to stir, including familiar faces.

  "Where am I?" I muttered, trying to sit up.

  The room was vast and dark, illuminated only by dim lights hanging from the ceiling. There were no windows, just cold earthen walls that added to the oppressive atmosphere.

  I turned to the side and saw Darren, one of my classmates, lying with his glasses slightly askew on his face. I gently tapped his shoulder. "Darren, wake up!"

  Darren blinked and sat up hastily, adjusting his glasses immediately. His face looked panicked. "Frey, where is this? Are we still being chased by that dog-headed creature?"

  I tried to lighten the mood. "Maybe we've been abducted by aliens for experiments?" I joked with a grin.

  Darren shot me a sharp look. "Frey, seriously! This isn't the time for jokes."

  I just shrugged and helped Darren to his feet. "Come on, let's wake the others. We need to figure out what's going on."

  Together, we began waking up the others. One by one, they regained consciousness, though most of them were confused and frightened. When most of the group was awake, I realized someone I knew was missing.

  "Elio..." I whispered, my eyes scanning the room. "Where's Elio?"

  Darren, who was helping another friend stand up, turned to me. "I don't see him. Maybe he's in another room?"

  A growing sense of worry and confusion washed over me.

  Just then, a girl approached me. "Frey, are you looking for Elio?" asked Jessica.

  "Yeah, have you seen him?"

  Jessica shook her head slightly. "The last time I saw him, he was on the bus with us... before that dog-headed creature attacked."

  Our conversation was interrupted by one of our friends shouting, "Hey, why are these collars around our necks?"

  I turned and touched my neck. Sure enough, a cold metal collar encircled it. At the back of the collar was a small green light.

  Everyone started trying to remove theirs, but the collars were too strong. As they struggled with them, the creaking sound of a large door echoed, silencing everyone.

  From the doorway emerged a portly man with a smug expression on his face, followed by two tall and muscular men. His gaze swept over the room, as if assessing each of us.

  "So this is today's catch?" he muttered, then chuckled. "Finally, some fresh young faces."

  "What do you mean?!" one of Frey's friends shouted. "Let us go right now, or my family will come looking for me!"

  The portly man only laughed. "Your family? Hah, do you really think anyone will find you here?" He stepped closer, his tone growing sharper. "Forget your previous lives. Here, you are slaves. And for the young ladies who know how to please me, your lives could become much easier."

  "Disgusting! Who would be willing to serve you?!" shouted one of the women from my class.

  The man stopped laughing. His expression turned cold as he pulled out a small device from his pocket and pressed a button on it.

  The girl's collar turned red, emitting a beeping sound that grew faster.

  "BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!"

  "What is this?!" The girl frantically tried to remove her collar.

  The next moment, a loud explosion echoed through the room. The girl's head burst, leaving blood splattered across the floor and walls.

  Horrified screams filled the room. Some people backed into the corners, trying to stay as far away from the man as possible.

  "Anyone who disobeys me will meet the same fate," the man said coldly, putting the device back in his pocket. "Now, follow me."

  With fear still gripping us, we had no choice but to obey and follow him out of the room. I felt Jessica's grip on my arm tighten.

  "We have to stick together," I whispered to Jessica, though I struggled to hide the fear twisting in my chest.

  We walked down a long, dark corridor. Small lights on the ceiling provided minimal illumination. The air in the hallway felt damp and suffocating.

  After several minutes of walking, we arrived at a wide-open area. The sight before us left everyone silent. It was a massive mine filled with workers. The light from torches and dim lamps illuminated the tired faces of the laborers, who stared at us sharply. There was a mixture of curiosity and suspicion in their eyes-perhaps they hadn't seen young faces like ours in a long time.

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  "From now on, you will work in this mine. Remember this well-every move you make is being watched. Don't even think about rebelling, or you'll regret it," said the portly man who had brought us here. His voice was cold and menacing.

  Before we could protest, two of his subordinates approached, carrying trays with glasses filled with a thick, black liquid. "Drink this. Now," one of them ordered sternly.

  I stared at the glass hesitantly. "What is this?" Jessica whispered softly beside me. I could only shake my head, clueless.

  Reluctantly, we all drank the liquid. It tasted bitter and strange as it slid down my throat. My head throbbed for a moment, but the dizziness soon faded.

  "Good," the portly man said with a sinister smile. "Now you're ready to work. Listen to my subordinate; he will explain your tasks."

  A burly man with a deep voice stepped forward. "You will use two main tools: the 'Mole Gloves,' which let you dig through soil like a mole, and the 'Ox Bangle,' which grants you extra strength to lift heavy objects.

  "Ox Bangle" was a circular bracelet featuring a bull head motif on the front, adorned with simple decorative lines and a vertical element on top as an additional ornament. And "Mole Gloves" resembled mole claws with sharp tips for digging, thick palms, and a simple wrist cuff for comfort.

  Use them according to your assigned tasks. And remember, do not try to steal any crystals or use these tools against us. The punishment is death."

  We were left speechless, silently accepting our fate and the tools without asking too many questions. With heavy hearts, we began walking toward the tunnels that had been prepared for us.

  Along the way, Jasper's eyes filled with tears, his face tight with anxiety. "Why has this happened to us?" he muttered, his voice trembling with sadness.

  I gently patted his shoulder. "Jasper, don't worry. We'll be okay as long as we help each other and stick together. We can get through this," I said with a reassuring smile.

  Noticing how downcast the rest of the group looked, I tried to lift their spirits. "Hey, everyone, listen! We might be trapped in this place, but we have to believe that we can survive. As long as we stay united, I'm sure we'll find a way out. Remember, our spirit can't be caged, no matter how strong the walls are!" I said with determination.

  My words began to change the mood. Some of them slowly smiled, and Darren, our class president, joined in. "Frey's right. We've been through a lot together, and this isn't the end. Let's show that we're stronger than this situation."

  Little by little, my friends' spirits began to return. However, the atmosphere shifted when an older worker barked at us. "Hey, new kids! How long are you going to stand there? Get that rock out of here!"

  Darren looked confused, staring at a large rock that was bigger than his body. "How are we supposed to lift this?" he asked hesitantly.

  The older man scoffed. "You've got the 'Ox Bangle,' don't you? Use it! You, the one with glasses, lift it now!"

  Darren hesitated, so I stepped in. "Mind if I give it a try, Darren?" I asked. After he handed over the tool, I put it on and tried lifting the rock. To my surprise, the seemingly impossible weight lifted with ease.

  "What?!" The others were shocked, including Darren. "How are you able to lift that?"

  "It's because of the 'Ox Bangle.' This tool gives you the strength of an ox," the older man explained. "As for the 'Mole Gloves,' they're for digging through the soil like a mole. Now, start working unless you want to face punishment!"

  After returning the 'Ox Bangle' to Darren, I approached the older man. "Sir, may I know your name?"

  "Victor," he answered curtly. "But if you've got time to ask questions, you'd better use it to work."

  Before I could respond, the atmosphere in the mine began to heat up. Some senior workers started harassing the girls in our group. The girls looked scared and tried to move away, but the men kept closing in, their behavior increasingly disrespectful.

  I took a deep breath, realizing this wasn't a situation I could ignore, while my other friends could only lower their heads, too scared to intervene. With my heart pounding, I stepped forward. "Excuse me, sir, could you please let them go?" I asked politely.

  One of the men glared at me. "Who do you think you are, telling us what to do?"

  I kept my smile, trying to calm the situation. "I understand, but my friends are already scared. Please give them some space. I'm sure we can find another way to deal with this."

  The man scoffed, then sneered, "Oh, so we have a hero here, huh? Do you even know how stressful it is to work in this place? No one here cares about rules or manners!"

  Victor, who had been watching from a distance, sighed heavily, as if he already knew this would end badly.

  I stood my ground, even though my knees were trembling slightly. "I don't want to fight anyone. I just want all of us to stay safe here."I don’t want trouble. I just want everyone to be safe."

  The man sneered coldly, and without another word, he suddenly punched me hard in the stomach. I gasped, feeling a sharp pain spread through my body.

  It didn't stop there. Two of his friends joined in, throwing punches and kicks at me. I tried to protect my head with my arms, but the pain was relentless and overwhelming.

  Jessica, who attempted to intervene, was also struck and fell near Victor.

  "Stop it, you three!" Victor shouted firmly, stepping between them and me, who was still sprawled on the ground.

  However, the three men only looked at him with disdain. One of them laughed mockingly and said, "Old man, do you think you can stop us? This isn't your business."

  Victor stood his ground. "I'm just reminding you, if you cause trouble, you know who will step in. Do you want to face the overseer?"

  His words made the three men hesitate for a moment, but only for a few seconds before one of them sneered. "We're not afraid. If the overseer comes, we'll just say it's the new kid's fault for starting the trouble."

  The commotion eventually caught the attention of one of the overseers, a tall man who had been standing next to the portly man. He approached with a cold, intimidating gaze.

  "What's going on here?" the overseer asked, his voice sharp and commanding.

  One of the men tried to speak, but Victor quickly cut him off. "These three challenged the new kid to a game. Isn't that within the rules? They wanted to test who's stronger."

  The three men were stunned by his statement. "What? We never said that!" one of them protested loudly.

  The overseer glared at them before turning to look at me, still battered and bruised. A faint smile crossed his face. "Interesting. In that case, the three of you and this kid will play. Get ready for the 'Tiles of Fate.'"

  The three men looked panicked and terrified. I, still clueless about what "Tiles of Fate" was, could only stand there, limping, as tension consumed me. "What kind of game is this?" I wondered, trying to calm the growing fear inside me.