[Elena PoV]
At night, our Clan gathered at the basecamp to rest and discuss the developments of this first stage of the survival exam.
"The Dragon Clan, who controls the northern part of the island, will be scouting around the waterfall located 5 KM from here," said a man named Russel. He was one of the team leaders who formed this Clan. "If I recall correctly, Geralt de Jimena is the leader of that Clan."
Geralt is a student from the elite class. He possesses a fairly strong Fire Nature Mana. I suspect he is just as powerful as Brian is right now.
"It's not just the Dragon Clan eyeing that area; it seems the Lion Clan also wants to explore the region rumored to hold many green crystals and two red crystals," said a woman with glasses. She was Sarah Volkswagen.
Speaking of red crystals, I had just obtained one after fighting Raul. My heart still flutters when I think about it. It's been a long time since I've faced an opponent who didn't just lose to me instantly. He was definitely holding back earlier because Raul didn't use any Nature Mana at all while fighting me.
Could it be that he's saving his trump card for a specific moment?
I stared at the red crystal in my hand. Without realizing it, my fingers brushed against my lips—the ones that had previously pressed against his. For some reason, taking it in that manner didn't make me feel disgusted at all.
"Pres..."
I want to fight him again... I want to feel that adrenaline I felt earlier...
"President!"
Hearing someone call me, I snapped out of my daydream.
"Why are you spacing out like that in the middle of our discussion, President?" Russel asked, looking bewildered by my behavior.
"S-sorry, what were you all talking about just now?"
"We were discussing whether we should join the confrontation to seize the area near the waterfall," Sarah answered.
The waterfall area, huh? There are still several areas on this island controlled by powerful clans. If we enter a confrontation now, it will only weaken our strength and leave the Clan I lead struggling in the final days.
"My suggestion is that we wait and see how the confrontation develops tomorrow first." For some reason, I had a bad feeling about bringing my Clan to fight there tomorrow. "It's better for us to search other areas first this time."
"But President, if we just stand by and watch one of them take control of an area filled with crystals, our points will start falling behind theirs!" Sarah argued, disagreeing with my suggestion.
Sarah's point was reasonable. Currently, our Clan has only gathered about 220 points by the second day. This hasn't even been divided among the 12 teams that form this Clan.
"You might be right, Sarah. But it's only the second day; there is still plenty of time for us to catch up later."
Hearing my persuasion, they finally agreed not to join the confrontation at the waterfall area for now.
***
[3rd PoV]
On the other side of the island, specifically the northern part controlled by the Dragon Clan, a red-haired man stood before the members of the other teams. He was Geralt de Jimena—the leader of the Dragon Clan.
At this moment, they were leading the point standings with a total of 300 points, having obtained one red crystal, 5 green crystals, 25 blue crystals, and 100 yellow crystals.
"Our scouting team has found an area that likely contains a massive amount of crystals," Geralt informed his subordinate teams. "But before returning, our scouts spotted several scouting teams from other Clans. It seems they are from the Lion Clan, who control the southern part of this island."
Upon hearing Geralt's information, the other members began whispering to one another. One man then stepped forward.
"Geralt, are we going to have a major battle with them?" the man asked.
At the man's question, everyone fell silent, wanting to hear their leader's opinion.
In terms of sheer power, the Dragon Clan was the strongest group on the island. This was because many students from the elite class had joined them. Within the Eagle Clan, only their leader Elena was truly a threat. Meanwhile, from the Lion Clan, Brian and Valeria were their strongest fighters.
"Isn't it obvious?" Geralt said, clenching his fist and raising it into the air. "We crush their Clan until there's nothing left!"
.
.
.
On the eastern side of the island, there was a basecamp large enough to accommodate over 100 people. The wooden walls they had built looked sturdy enough to serve as a defense should they be attacked.
In the center of the basecamp, several people gathered around a campfire to discuss their plans. They were the Lion Clan, led by Brian the Hero.
"Are you sure you saw others in that waterfall area?" Brian asked one of the scouts.
"I'm certain; I believe they were members of the Dragon Clan," he replied, confirming what he had seen.
"Brian, what are we going to do?" asked Valeria, who was also present for the discussion. "They definitely want to control that waterfall area as well."
As the two strongest individuals among the rest, Brian and Valeria were appointed Leader and Vice-leader of the Lion Clan. So far, Brian had mostly recruited weak teams that were being bullied by stronger teams.
This made him quite hesitant to engage in a direct confrontation with the Dragon Clan at the waterfall. His Clan was almost certain to lose if they fought the Dragon Clan head-on. However, if they passed up this opportunity, their points would fall far behind. There were too many weak teams acting as dead weight in the Clan Brian had built.
"You all will not be fighting the Dragon Clan tomorrow."
Hearing this, the team leaders looked worried.
"Listen, Brian, if we don't control that area, then it's certain that more than 70 percent of our Clan members will not pass this exam," Valeria explained, conveying the risks of ignoring this challenge.
"I'm not letting you fight, but that doesn't mean we won't be able to control the waterfall area," Brian said with a confident smile. "I will challenge Geralt to a one-on-one duel."
At Brian's words, the team leaders of his Clan looked on in disbelief. Suddenly, they began to cheer Brian's name loudly for his bravery.
"Brian!"
"Brian!"
"Brian!"
***
[Raul PoV]
At night, Scarlett, Piers, and I were inside a cave located around the waterfall area. We had to come here at night to evade the scouting of the two Clans currently interested in this area.
Inside this cave, there was a secret spot that held two red crystals.
"Captain, how much longer do we have to dig?" Piers asked, starting to protest.
Yes, we were currently digging into one of the cave walls to open the secret chamber where the two red crystals were located.
"Let me see for a moment." I walked over to Piers and touched the section of the earthen wall he was digging. "I think this is enough."
"Exactly what are you planning that requires digging this deep, Captain?" Piers asked curiously.
"Well... you'll find out tomorrow," I replied meaningfully. "Do you remember what I instructed? If you hear an explosion from Scarlett, you must destroy this wall, understand?"
"I understand, Captain," Piers replied with a nod.
Yes... I was the one who designed this secret location in the game. There is a trap in the form of a heavy water current that connects to the river behind this earthen wall. I purposely designed it as a trap that Players had to overcome before they could claim those two red crystals.
I heard that Brian plans to challenge Geralt to a one-on-one duel to fight over this area. If my plan goes smoothly, I can crush both large Clans at once. However, I'm afraid Scarlett will be angry with me if she finds out the details of the plan.
Alright, let's keep it a secret from Scarlett regarding what I'm going to do to Geralt later.
"Hey Captain, you're making that terrifying smile again, you know."