“Who here has heard the story of Damocles?” Neil asked.
The group exchanged glances. It was too soon to tell whether this was just a theoretical lesson or the prelude to another ‘practical’ one.
Only one hand went up.
Trudy. Of course. Kai wasn’t surprised—sometimes, it felt like she knew everything. That’s what happened when you were practically a gazillion years old.
Neil smiled. “Trudy, you’re a better storyteller than I am. Want to enlighten the others?”
Trudy cleared her throat and began. “There was once a man named Damocles. He praised his king as a truly fortunate man—one with all the riches and power anyone could desire. Damocles often said that no man on Earth would not want to change places with his king.
When the king heard Damocles’ praises, he summoned him and offered to swap places. That way, Damocles could ‘taste’ all the power and riches he admired.
Damocles quickly accepted. He sat on the king’s throne, thrilled to be surrounded by luxury and gold. But before the day could begin, the king made one final adjustment.
A sword was brought and placed above the throne, its pommel tied to a single thin thread.
The king explained that no ruler lived without enemies, and that with power came great peril. If Damocles wished to be king, he must ‘feel’ what it was like to rule under constant threat.
Damocles tried to enjoy the riches at his feet, but his eyes never left the blade above his head. He couldn’t eat. He couldn’t relax. Not half a day passed before he caved and begged the king to take back the throne.”
As Trudy finished, the group gave her a small round of applause. The fire crackled, filling the brief silence.
Neil nodded in approval. “That’s it. Now you know the story of Damocles’ sword.” He paused, letting the weight of the tale settle.
Then his grin widened.
“Today, we’ll have a ‘practical’ lesson.”
Kai’s stomach tightened. His mind raced through the possibilities. “No way,” he thought. “There’s no way Neil would actually—”
“Kai,” Neil called, “come sit under this tree.”
Kai hesitated, then walked over, his eyes darting upward to check the branches. Nothing. No hidden contraptions, no snakes, no dangling objects.
Relief settled in. “See? You’re being paranoid.”
Then he turned and saw Neil tying a rope to his cane.
A second later, he unsheathed it, revealing the blade within.
Kai stiffened. “Oh, come on.”
Neil tossed the cane’s blade over a thick branch, positioning it directly above Kai’s head.
“Now,” Neil said cheerfully, “you have a sword hanging over you, just like Damocles did.”
Kai exhaled sharply. “Neil, you’re insane. Have I ever told you that?”
The old man ignored him. “Clara, come here. Quiz Kai on flora or fauna or whatever you want. He has to answer. I’ll hold the sword here.”
Kai gulped. “What’s the point of this?”
Neil’s grip on the rope tightened. “To teach you to remain calm under stress.” His voice was light, but his arm was steady.
“Now hurry, Kai. The blade is heavy, and my arm is growing tired.”
*
Present, 353rd Daisy Trials.
Kai resisted the urge to take off running and start snapping photos of whatever he found. Neil had always stressed the importance of staying calm during exams. Most mistakes happened because trial runners lost their composure under pressure.
His eyes flicked upward. No sword. His mouth twisted. Neil’s sword might be gone, but Daisy’s wasn’t.
Neil’s blade had been inches above his head, a breath away from fatal impact. But Daisy’s blade was worse—it loomed over everyone in his sector, and in a way, Daisy had placed it in his hands. Depending on how well he performed, his sector would either thrive or wither. He took a deep breath.
Regardless of how many questions were still unanswered, he had to focus on what he did know. The machine around his neck was the key to this challenge. Some snapshots were valid, others weren’t. He didn’t know the exact criteria, but for now, he’d assume that each one had to be unique. Every valid snapshot created a card with hit points and victory points. The trial runner with the most victory points likely won the game, though he still had no idea what hit points were for.
Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.
He needed more information.
The [Pine Tree] card was labeled common, which made sense. There were pine trees everywhere.
If rarity was based on how difficult something was to find, then the best way to get better cards was to search for things that stood out.
Kai took off running in a random direction, keeping his strides controlled—fast enough to cover ground quickly, slow enough to spot anything out of the ordinary.
From an outside perspective, I must look like someone sprinting aimlessly through the woods. I wonder if Daisy can tell that this isn’t blind panic but a strategic decision.
The terrain stretched endlessly in all directions, repeating itself with no variation. The trees all looked the same. The ground had no noticeable landmarks or changes in elevation. Five minutes passed, and nothing stood out.
Then—impact.
His body jerked backward as if he’d slammed into something solid, though he couldn’t see what. The force wasn’t enough to hurt, but it was enough to throw him off balance.
He stretched his hand and felt the invisible barrier in front of him. It was as if it was made of perfectly transparent glass. It was an energy shield similar to the ones that separated the sectors. This should be one of the edges of the arena.
Now what?
All he had seen so far was trees, trees, and more trees. He still didn’t know how big the arena was. When he first took off running, it had been in a random direction—one that could have led him straight to the nearest wall or the farthest from his starting point. Since the walls were invisible, there was no way to tell.
One thing is certain: the scenery hasn’t changed at all. It can’t all be unremarkable like this. There has to be something else that stands out.
He scanned his surroundings, looking for anything unique that could serve as a landmark.
There was nothing.
Fine. If I can’t find a reference point, I’ll just have to create one.
Kai searched the ground for a rock or anything hard enough to make a mark, but there was nothing but pine needles and gravel. He ran his fingers over the edges of the device hanging from his neck. They were sharp enough.
He walked to the nearest tree and tried scoring an X into the bark.
His camera and hand passed through the tree as if it weren’t there. He yanked his arm back, his breath catching in his throat. Slowly, he reached out again.
His fingers slipped through the holographic trunk without resistance.
No way.
Taking a step forward, he walked straight through the tree. The sensation was unsettling—not like stepping through air, but more like passing through a projection, something that felt real but wasn’t.
Have I even left the white cuboid room?
His stomach twisted.
There was no point in trying to map the arena’s edges if he had no way to mark where he had been. If he couldn’t create a reference point, he could waste the entire trial running in circles. He clenched his jaw. Five minutes already wasted, and he was no closer to understanding the rules.
He forced himself to breathe.
Think. Daisy’s trials always have a purpose. Creativity and logical thinking are this year’s weak points. How am I supposed to use creativity here? What am I missing?
His gaze fell on the nearest tree. He had been so focused on the bigger picture that he hadn’t thought to look closer. The bark was rough, but small patches of moss and pale lichen grew in clusters along its surface.
He raised the camera and zoomed in.
Capture successful!
Tries left: 16 of 20.
Moss ?? (Common)
1 of 5
HP: 1
VP: 2
Kai’s guess had been right. He had found another card. Just like before, it disappeared from his hand.
[Moss] has been added to your inventory.
“Inventory!”
The translucent menu appeared, displaying his latest find. Kai compared the stats. They were almost identical to his [Pine Tree] card—except for one key difference.
[Pine Tree] gave one victory point and had two hit points. [Moss] had two victory points but only one hit point. He exhaled in relief. Finally, more points. His total was now three.
As he looked over the details again, another difference stood out. The name.
He had one [Pine Tree] card, not just a generic [Tree] card. That meant there were probably other types of trees cards. But at the same time, the name didn’t specify the type of pine. It didn’t say hard pine tree or soft pine tree. That likely meant all pines were grouped under the same card.
The same was true for moss. His new card simply said [Moss], without specifying the species.
Clara had taught them about moss in biology—there were thousands of species, just like pine trees. If the game was treating all moss as a single card, then he shouldn’t waste time taking extra snapshots of different types. But trees were a different matter. If he found a different species of tree, it might count as a new card.
Kai bit his lip. Daisy wasn’t an easy trial master. She never spelled things out, always hiding shards of information in the smallest details.
Even though he was sure he hadn’t missed anything, he made himself go through the cards again. Sure enough, something else stood out.
Although both cards were labeled common, the [Moss] card read 1 out of 5, while the [Pine Tree] said 3 out of 5.
The numbers didn’t make sense. This was his fourth snapshot. Shouldn’t it say 4 out of 5?
Wait. Could it be?
He zoomed in on the same piece of moss. He needed to understand the rules, and he had just thought of an explanation for the numbering system.
It was a risk. If trial runners were only allowed to hold one copy of each card, then this attempt would fail.
He hoped he was right.
Capture successful!
Tries left: 15 of 20.
Moss ?? (Common)
2 of 5
HP: 1
VP: 2
Now I get it. The numbers aren’t a personal counter. They represent the total available cards to all trial runners.
There were only five [Pine Tree] and five [Moss] cards. He had claimed the first two [Moss] cards because no one else had thought to photograph it yet.
Everything made sense now. That was why his first [Pine Tree] card had read 3 of 5 instead of 1 of 5. Others must have beaten him to it.
If trial runners had been transported to the arena at the same time, then it wasn’t unreasonable to think that their first instinct would have been to test their cameras on the first thing they saw—a nearby tree.
His stomach clenched.
He hadn’t wasted time in taking that first photograph. Half a minute, at most. Yet two other [Pine Tree] cards had already been claimed before he took his first snapshot. That meant there were at least two other trial runners, maybe more.
He squeezed the camera in his hands. If they were fast, he would have to be faster.
This was no time to hesitate.
Kai lifted the camera and snapped another shot of the moss.
Capture failed!
Tries left: 14 of 20.
He frowned.
There are two explanations as to why I’ve just failed. Either at least two other trial runners have just found this card, or each player can only hold two copies of the same card.
He was leaning toward the second option. He made a mental note to never take more than two pictures of the same object, regardless of what happened.
Next, he aimed the lens at the lichen.
[Curiosity ??] + [Follow ??]
?? | HP: 2 → 2
?? | HP: 1 → 0
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