The group exchanged nervous glances, the weight of the task sinking in.
"Game? I thought it was a prank," the crew-cut hairstyle man murmured, his face pale.
"Time limit? What happens if we don't arrive on time?" The woman questioned while watching the timer.
"Such a brave little soul..." the young man said, watching the old man with a casual wink, flashing a crooked grin, spreading. Moved towards him, "I am Dean. I think I'm already popular because this old dumbass... but, hey, introducing myself is good manners, right?" Dean said, stretched his whole body lazily, turned, and smirked at Danny. "Well, this sounds easy enough. A walk in the park—or, I guess, the desert."
Danny shot him a sharp look, his eyes narrowing in anger because of Dean's last night moment. "You annoying jerk! " he whispered. "You think it's a joke? This isn't just a walk. It's a damn game, and we don't know what happens if we lose. Have you ever played a game before?"
The timer interrupted their conversation with a sharp beep.
Beep... "59:57"
Simultaneously, A sharp metallic sound crackled, and the big box of parcels came out from the sand behind them.
"What was that?" someone gasped, stepping back from standing place.
"Water!" Dean screamed, his voice surprising and playful. "Stop acting like you're in a horror film," the voice already told water is coming...." He opened the box with a casual shrug and chugged the full bottle in one sip. "It's refreshing!" He took another bottle in his hand.
As everyone took their bottle one by one.
"I never thought water had this amount of taste," someone sipping their water in the heat waves, and walking with another player.
At last old man who had been beaten by Dean walked near the box. He watched it, but it remained empty." Water.... No water bottle," his eyes furrowed as he checked the box, flipped the velvet clothes.
But remains nothing.
Danny noticed the empty-handed old man, a flicker of irritation in his eyes. "This asshole" he murmured as he walked towards the Dean, who was causally flirting with other girls and laughing. "Hey, Dude..." he called out, his eyes narrowed in anger, but he remained calm.
Dane, still laughing, turned back, a dismissive wave to the girls. "One second, beautiful ladies... wait for your king, " he said towards them. "Excuse me? " he murmured with a casual shrug. "Do you need any help, my little boy?"
"Little boy? "Danny smirked with irritation as he watched Dean's arrogant face. "Hey, man, that bottle in your hand belongs to that old man. Can you just hand it to him?" he demanded nicely, pointing his finger at the old man.
"What?" Dean laughed maniacally, balancing his hand on his hip. "You are hilarious, man." His eyes shifted towards the old man, then back to Danny. He let out a deep breath. "What if I don't? You gonna punish me or kill me?" His voice was deep and scary.
"I think I need to teach you a small lesson," Danny murmured, raising his brows. Before Dean could react, Danny delivered a quick, precise kick to Dean's ankle, aiming to knock him off balance. Dean, however, moved with surprising speed, jumping back and escaping the kick.
"Not bad...." Danny murmured as his hands were attracted to punch him in a karate stance, ready to strike. Dean, with a smug grin, balanced each of Danny's attacking moves, a fluid counter to every blow.
"This is not your fucking problem" Dean roared as he tries to kick his leg, but Danny blocked his kick with his fast reflexes.
Every strike and movement was perfect in fighting. A blur of motion and quick reflexes brought them to the edge of the inner circle. Dane's eyes noticed the border. He stopped.
"Okay... I give it to him," he shouted, his eyes widened in fear, and his one leg was on the inner circle, the other floating on the outer.
Danny immediately grabbed his shirt with an attitude wink, "Do you want to test this game first?" he challenged, losing his grip slightly, making Dean fear.
"Wait...." Dean stammered, and his hand threw the bottle towards the old man. "Look... I did it... Now your turn. Be a gentleman." He pleaded.
"Stop this fucking fighting? Time is already running out." The braided girl interrupted while folding her hands.
A cruel smirk replaced Danny's lips as he tightened his grip and dragged him towards the inner circle.
Danny walked towards the crowd, and Dean aggressively adjusted his shirt. "Motherfucker… You're gonna pay for this…" he vowed silently.
The other's gaze remains on time, which is now displayed." 49:56"
"With the timer ticking, individuals gravitated into small groups, urgently mapping out their next moves.
"I think we should hold our hands and run in this direction, maybe we can finish it within time." The skinny woman declared her idea to a small group.
Other aged men nodded their heads, but the innocent, silent girl remained silent, her hands gripping her skirt tightly. "Hey, Little one… Your name is Yumaiko, right?" the skinny woman asked, her voice softer.
"No… Yumiko. Mrs. Clara," She replied nervously, watching her sadly, her hands were shaking and gripping her skirt in fear.
Clara scanned Yumiko from top to bottom. "Are you sticking with this plan?"
"Yeah…."Yumiko nodded, facing down as she grabbed the nearby man's hands.
Glancing at the hologram before stepping outside the circle, the timer displayed "46: 56".
"Okay… Let go.." The ten members held their hands and stepped first leg and then their one.
"We are safe…." One man murmured, a whisper of relief. Within a fraction of a second, he dropped, sinking into the sand as if it were quicksand. Simultaneously, another person on the opposite side of the group also dipped into the sand, vanishing without a sound.