Answers

After the battle against the orc, I appeared lying on the floor of a room on my own, and in front of me a message from the hostess.

How long have I been like this? I tried to look at my watch, but I remembered that it broke during the battle against the orc.

A little lost, I read the message in front of me.

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I've always trusted you Cam <3

Now rest. After the seventh day is over, a meeting will be held with all the survivors.

Your dear hostess :)

PS: You can't leave the room until the seventh day, but I left Panther with you, aren't I good?

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Good? Oh, shit. And who told you to call me Cam?

I complained as I was reading. Then I looked around and saw Panther in a dog bed.

—We survived that hell.

And I petted my pet.

Will the other two be all right? I remembered Igor and Basma. I really hope so.

And I hope that Mason is save too.

*Grrr* My stomach was complaining.

I was very tired and hungry.

Looking at the rest of the room I saw a fridge, a bed, a wheelchair, and a bathroom.

I opened the fridge and saw it was full.

Is this heaven?

I opened a can of coke and drank it at once.

—Aah. Awesome.

Then I lay down in bed and fell asleep. Tomorrow's another day.

I don't know how long it took until I woke up.

How long has it been since I've slept like this?

I saw Panther drink from a dog drinker and approached him. We were quietly playing for a while.

I ate something for breakfast. Tears fell from my eyes when I was with the cookies and the coffee.

Afterwards, I decided to give Panther a bath. And though he resisted, when he came out, I saw that black color on the fur I thought it was beautiful.

Leaving Panther in the room, I took a bath.

And I don't know how long I was in the shower, but I was grateful I didn't have to pay the bill for the water I spent.

After a day of eating, sleeping, and playing with Panther, the door of the room finally opened.

As I left the room, and looked left and right, I saw that I was in a hallway of rooms from which people came out.

The opposite side of the corridor was a balcony facing an esplanade where there were other buildings in different ways.

A blade of air stroked my face. Where am I?

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Please, all survivors go to the central esplanade.

I am waiting for you.

The hostess.

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Seeing people come out of their rooms and go to the esplanade, I went in.

I took a bottle of water and a couple of cereal bars.

—You never know what's going to happen. And less with that hostess.

And I winked at Panther.

As I walked through the bathroom door, I realized that I was still wearing the same clothes, which smelled terrible, from the labyrinth.

Is there nothing here to change?

And I saw that inside the table drawer was a full-bodied blue jumpsuit with sneakers on it.

Everything was marked with the number 739.

—Well, this is better than nothing.

I put on my jumpsuit and put on a cap on Panther.

—Come on. Follow me and don't get lost among the people.

Panther laded me back.

Smart boy.

As I looked out the balcony again, I saw that a large group of people had already begun to form.

I went down the stairs, and even though I ran into someone, I didn't recognize anyone.

The others are fine, aren't they?

I got a little nervous thinking about the rest. But I'm sure they're fine.

As I approached the tumult, I realized that there was an empty scenario.

Is that where the hostess will make the entrance?

As I got closer, I listened to the fuss between the survivors.

There were people shouting other people's names, others silently waited for what had to happen, and others conveyed sadness and loneliness with their eyes.

I guess it hasn't been easy for anyone.

—Cam! cam!

A girl's voice was shouting my name.

As I approached, I saw Basma with Igor.

I ran and hugged the little girl.

It filled me with joy that she was alive, I also went to say hello with a hug to Igor, but he shook her finger.

—I just hug women.

And I laughed.

I guess he's in a good mood, too.

Right now, my heart is happy.

I saw they were both wearing the same jumpsuit as me. Basma is number 312 and Igor number 219.

—It's good to see you alive.

—I say the same thing.

—When I woke up alone in the room, I thought the worst.

On my shoulder the little girl sobbed a little.

—Now, now, we are here.

I put her back on the floor.

—Have you enjoyed the meal?

—I had a lot of mutts and chocolate. But what I've done the most has been sleep.

The girl was laughing.

I don't know about her past, but I get the feeling she hasn't had an easy life.

—Caelum?

A boy's voice surprised me from behind.

—Mason?

—It's good to see you alive.

—Same here, man. Are you alone?

And I hugged him.

Mason shook his head.

He pointed to a group of 3 people who did not inspire me with confidence.

—I was with them and there was more like me. We made them a shield of flesh against the orcs. I was the only one who survived, I... I... I've had a terrible time.

Mason started crying at me and inside me a sense of hate began to emerge into the 3 Mason pointed out.

—Well, stay with us, this is Igor, and the little one's name is Basma. The dog is Panther.

Mason wiped his face a little and turned to the rest.

—Nice t--

—Nice to see you, survivors! Seeing that you all, the 447 survivors, have come, we start the meeting.

In the middle of the stage there were five figures. The girl who spoke in the room at the beginning, the hostess, in the middle. On each side she had two people. I recognized one. The old man who sent me here. What was his name? Milos? Molis?

But have you said 447 survivors? Less than half of us have survived...

But what surprised me the most is that I didn't notice they were there until the girl spoke.

—I know many of you will want to kill me but get that idea out of your head. As you know, I am the hostess, and here are my bodyguards. To my right, Viktor and William. To my left Milos and Megan. Although I think you already know Milos.

Around me I noticed that the hatred people felt was growing, and I understand that perfectly, but I also understand that there is nothing we can do against this.

Sigh.

I raised my hand.

When the hostess saw me, she smiled.

—Yes, honey?

Some people looked at me a little incredulous and even noticed how some of them gave me some look of hate.

Did you need to call me that?

—You see, I just don't quite understand the purpose of the tests. And well, with the week we've been on, I understand that our lives won't be the same, but it's not free, is it?

Some people started talking to each other.

—You'll see Cam, that is why you are here now, so you can get the answers to those questions.

And suddenly, silence.

You can say that everyone was expecting those answers.

Everyone was waiting for the hostess to talk, everyone wanted to know why she had put us through the maze for a week and what was coming now.

—The truth is, we are under the orders of the Goddess. This world is ruled by The Goddess and The God. God wants the extinction of humans. And the Goddess loves humans and wants them to continue living on this planet. For centuries, the two gods have been at war and each has found a way to fight, as they themselves cannot do so. God through creatures that massacre humanity, and the Goddess wants the humans themselves to fight, so She created 'The System'. You are on the side of humanity, although of course, for that you will have to pass the 5 trials of the Goddess. In the end, those who pass the 5 trials will be called 'The Apostles of the Goddess'. And well, only those who really want to work for the Goddess will remain.

Silence.

That was all a lot of information to process and what to think carefully about.

However, someone is ahead of me. If I remember correctly, he's the same one who screamed on the first day, with the longest hair and stronger?

—You talked about the trials, but this first test for what it served? What's the point of us now being less than half of what we were at first?

And the hostess smiled again.

—For some this may sound harsh, but it was a test to discard.

Listening to that shattered me.

Discard?

Discard?

I clenched my fist with anger as I looked at the ground.

Discard?

I know I can't do anything. I know I can't even touch her, but right now, I want to kill her.