Lucy raised her head, and in an instant, she discovered what was wrong. She was a second late.
Lucy clenched her fists tightly—almost digging into her flesh—as the words on the screen seemed to cut into her like never before.
> "You're one second too late, but your answer is correct. You can move to the next level, but you score no point for this present level."
The screen glowed in a brick-red color.
Click the green button to proceed.
---
Derek quickly breezed through all the remaining equation doors until he had completed the whole of zone 1 and 2.
As usual, the holographic screen appeared.
> "Congrats! That was the right answer. You have plus 5 points," the screen read.
Derek lifted his head, expecting the next set of equations or logic questions to appear—but to his surprise, there was only a plain white door before him.
He was confused, not knowing what to do next. Then, suddenly, he remembered the holographic screen. He glanced into it—and was shocked by what he saw.
> zone 3 level 1– The Pattern Gate.
68 seconds left.
Derek's eyes widened in shock. When did the timer even start ticking? he muttered inwardly, already groaning. He turned to the shapes displayed before him. All he had to do now was guess the next shape, its color, and its number.
The shapes were arranged in a specific order:
1. Red square
2. Red triangle
3. Blue circle
4. Yellow square
5. Red triangle
6. ???
Derek was still in a daze after reading the instructions. He had just 40 seconds left now. He needed to act—and fast.
Thinking quickly, he mentally divided the pattern into two major sections: by shape and by color.
By shape:
1. Square
2. Triangle
3. Circle
4. Square
5. Triangle
6. ???
By color:
1. Red
2. Red
3. Blue
4. Yellow
5. Red
6. ???
It was very obvious to him that the next shape should be a circle, based on the alternating pattern.
But the color? That wasn't so clear. Why had red appeared three times already? he wondered. What was actually going on here?
The shape was certainly going to be a circle. But what would the color be?
After a few seconds of focused thinking, Derek decided it would have to be green. First, because green was a basic color. Second, because after red appeared twice, it was followed by blue and yellow—two other primary colors. Repeating red again might make the pattern too predictable, and a competition like this shouldn't reward predictability.
Confident with his reasoning, Derek stepped forward to pick his answer—but to his greatest surprise, green circle wasn't even among the options.
These were the available options:
A. Blue circle
B. Red triangle
C. Green square
D. Orange square
Derek blinked at the options, then looked back at the pattern.
He compared the sequence carefully, thinking fast. With only 5 seconds left on the clock, his eyes flinched slightly.
Suddenly, it clicked.
In a single moment of clarity—mixed with courage and faith—Derek reached forward and selected Option C: green square.
He had figured it out. The sequence was based on wavelengths.
Red has a wavelength of 650 nanometers. Blue has 475. Yellow has 570. So, logically, the next in line should fall between 475 and 570. Green fits that range perfectly. It wasn't about random color or visual repetition—it was about science.
> "Green is the most suitable answer for this question. You may carry on to the next level," the screen responded.
With a beautiful, satisfied smile across his face, Derek began walking toward the white door.
---
Thompson was still burning with rage. He stormed through the levels, clearing each one in less than 40 seconds. All that filled his mind was his mother's health. He had to do something—anything. This competition had given him an opportunity, and he wasn't going to take that for granted.
Soon after completing Level 4 of zone 3, Thompson materialized in a completely different room.
It was strange—dimly lit, with four different clocks from ancient times. Each clock displayed a different time. Thompson stared at them quietly, examining each one with careful attention.
A few seconds later, the holographic screen lit up.
To his surprise, it didn't ask about calculations, measurements, or equations. Instead, it simply asked:
> "Which clock hasn't been tampered with?"
Thompson was stunned.
This wasn't his strong point. He preferred toxic equations and raw computation. Logic-based problem-solving wasn't exactly his area of expertise.
He walked over to the clocks, still calm, and leaned close to each one—placing his ear against them, listening to their ticks for a few seconds.
After he made a round through all four, he raised his head and glanced back at the holographic screen.
40 seconds left.
He began replaying each sound in his mind, listening for what was off.
When he reached the third clock, he heard it: a slight delay. The ticking was off-beat—roughly 0.3 seconds behind. Thompson couldn't mistake it.
By his calculations, that could only mean one thing: the clock's internal mechanism was faulty.
Just to be sure, he checked the fourth and final clock. As he expected, it was perfect.
Without hesitation, Thompson turned to the third clock and declared confidently:
"This is the correct one. The time doesn't matter. The truth lies in the mechanism."
> "That is the right answer. You detected the pattern through auditory diagnosis. Feel free to move on to the next level by clicking the green button."
Without a word, Thompson stepped forward and pressed the green button. He still had more levels to conquer.
---
Lucy's eyes began to water.
She couldn't believe what she was seeing.
She slowly walked toward the screen, heart heavy.
She had actually failed. And not just failed—she had failed at the very first level.
Her hands curled into fists as waves of doubt crept into her thoughts.
Maybe I'm just a regular B-ranked student... maybe I really don't have what it takes.
Her heart raced. Her spirit felt low. Still, Lucy reached out toward the green button with trembling fingers.
She was already close to giving up. But then—
She suddenly remembered something.