"Huh? Where am I?" A random voice rang out, belonging to some swordsman.
"What the fuck...? I thought that bitch of a Sun God was going to make this a tad bit easier," another voice grumbled.
...I'm in the trial with other people? Neraxis thought with furrowed brows.
He could count 29 others, making it thirty people in total.
Neraxis tried summoning his sword, but it was to no avail.
Funnily enough, he couldn't use mana, nor could he use his strength.
He felt like any ordinary human being, right before he received his powers.
Safe to say, he felt sluggish and vulnerable.
[I'm still here, don't worry. I can't really interfere with whatever this trial is, though,] Evangeline said softly.
"Yeah, it looks is some special trial... and I'm the Oracle," Neraxis replied, taking a glance around.
As opposed to the earlier fighting trials, this one seemed like it had nothing to do with the sun.
They were confined in a prison-like place, with multiple cells scattered around, numbered from 1 to 30.
Looking down, Neraxis noticed he was now wearing an orange tracksuit, with a bracelet around his wrist.
It appeared to be made of metal, with the number 14 etched into it.
Glancing around, he saw everyone wearing the same outfit and bracelets etched with their numbers.
Each one of them was identical, and right off the bat, Neraxis couldn't see anything off.
But all he had to do was find the single Whisperer.
Soon, the last two golden system messages fell, startling everyone reading them.
Time limit? Neraxis tilted his head.
Immediately, the system message disappeared, followed by a timer.
"E-Everyone! Group up!" a woman yelled, standing on top of the only table in the entire prison.
Neraxis decided to humor her, and so did everyone else, as they all approached.
"We need to vote someone out! S-So who's the Whisperer, huh!? W-We don't need to die here!"
No shit. Neraxis scoffed.
A naive person wanting to lead was the worst possible scenario.
However, if he went ahead himself, then a massive bounty would be placed on his head.
Just like it had been on this woman.
—Won't the Whisperer try to gather their own faction?
—Yeah? It makes sense...
—Is she the Whisperer?
"W-What! Why would I be the Whisperer!?" the woman yelled, startled. "I'm just trying to make this easier for us... How about we ask the Warden and the Oracle to step up?"
As her words fell, not a single person stepped up, unsurprisingly.
"Guys...? Don't you know that if we all work together, then none of us have to die!?"
She was clearly panicking by now, as not only did she manage to get a bounty on her head, she was further solidifying their concerns.
—She's suspicious... Look at her hands.
—You're right, they're shaking, almost as if she was nervous... or hiding something.
The citizens were pretty accurate, therefore, Neraxis decided to simply remain in the back.
Of course, his appearance still managed to attract a few gazes.
But what could he do if he was simply handsome?
"E-Excuse me..." a girl whispered, tugging on his sleeve.
Neraxis calmly turned toward her and was met with a rather plain-looking girl.
Black hair, brown eyes.
She almost seemed too ordinary.
Nonetheless, he put a smile on his face as he faced her.
Her eyes beamed the moment he replied, as she let out a relieved sigh.
"Do you want to team up? I think if we have people who don't vote against us, then we have a higher chance of surviving," she asked, fidgeting.
"Sure, why not," Neraxis replied. "What's your name? I'm Neraxis."
"Chloe," she said, and then turned toward the side, before seemingly nodding at someone.
That certain someone soon walked over, and it was some man who had similar features to Chloe.
"This is my older brother, Liam," Chloe introduced.
Neraxis nodded with a smile as he stretched out his hand for a handshake, and Liam accepted.
"It's always nice having someone on your side, isn't it?" Liam asked, flashing a seemingly innocent smile.
However, Neraxis felt something off about him.
Ever since first entering the prison, he had scanned the people thoroughly.
Despite him not being able to use mana, {Cosmic Sight} was still somewhat active, but just not as vivid.
Nonetheless, Liam here seemed like someone who didn't get along with people well, but it was simply because of choice.
He stuck around his sister and was actively evaluating the people, just like Neraxis himself.
"Are you the Whisperer?" Neraxis asked with a smile, his hand gripping Liam's tightly.
"No," Liam replied flatly, causing Neraxis's brow to rise.
It's hard to tell if he's lying, but I definitely had a reaction... Neraxis pondered, but his thoughts were soon broken as a siren blared.
With it, two system messages appeared.
Neraxis's brows furrowed as he glanced toward the girl on the table.
She had the number 4 on her bracelet.
"See you later." Neraxis waved at Liam and Chloe before making his way into his own cell.
It was a small room, with only a single bed and a floating monitor on a makeshift desk.
The monitor had the numbers 1 to 30 glowing in gold.
He approached it and sat down on the bed, until finally, the timer ran out and his door shot closed.
Hmm... They're practically urging us to kill each other. Neraxis thought, amused.
Nonetheless, he stood up, walked to the monitor, and pressed the number 4.
He sat back down on the bed, waiting for the result, until finally, a single ominous system message appeared.
A loud scream rang out, soon distorting until eventually, it fell completely silent.
A frown appeared on Neraxis's face, and soon, his door was reopened.
Following that, a reminder.
A reminder that they were wrong.
But it was obvious she wasn't it, as even without his {Cosmic Sight}, Neraxis could tell she was just some naive girl.
He walked out of his room and approached the room that belonged to the girl.
The door was closed, unlike the rest of the rooms.
There was one tiny peephole through which he could see.
However, the sight was anything but pleasant, as the only thing on the ground was ash, and the smell of burnt flesh flooded his nose.