Golden Age 13: ‘A Senior’s Experience!! With the Rookies Determination!! Onto Finding the Answer to Ultimate Strength!!’ (Part 1)

The fourteen of them heading inside the same forest from which they just came out sighed.

"Are you kidding me…?" Feng asked, jumping over a rock, "Or is my whole life just kidding me?"

"Who knows? All I know is that I am done now~ yawn~" Ezekiel yawned as Xavier chuckled asking, "But, everything's just begun now. How can you be done for so early?"

"I suggest you don't ask that dear Xavier I have no words to explain. I just want to take back everything I said before gracefully and leave." Cassiel replied back exhausted.

"Like that's possible now…" Azazel rolled his eyes.

"Me too…" Adam cried concurring, "I also want to go back in the past and take everything I said back."

The rest who were walking in front gazed at the map which Kenzo held. "The path sure is clear… but what is this grey dot in between?" Seraph questioned puzzled.

Alan glancing at map immediately looked around to find clues.

"Does this map have a key or something?" Heber asked tracing the corners if the map as Kenzo clicked his tongue annoyed. "Brat, before asking this question. Just remember who gave this to us in the first place." he recalled annoyed.

"Ah… right." Heber corrected remembering the head coach.

"But the key is an important part of the map. How come can we even define our route?" Poseidon questioned puzzled.

"Forget that dot for now it's far away. On the contrary, we might see a cavern approaching anytime soon." Helios pointed out.

"A cavern?" Adam asked intrigued as Ryan and Azazel stood attentive.

"Yeah, a cavern. It is just like the rock protection in which we resided in before. However, a cavern is slightly big compared to that and exposed from both sides. Which means that if we step in from a corner we might lead out to a different corner of the same place. Seeing how this map points we might lead to the back side of this mountain." Helios explained.

"Ah…" Ryan wondered confused.

Adam too stood with question marks on his head. Eyeing Seraph by his side he pulled his shirt. "Hey, Sera, sera, what does stepping in from a corner and leading out to a different corner of the same place mean?" he asked innocently.

Poseidon and Heber blinked their eyes soon chuckling as Seraph exhaled awkwardly. Kenzo, Gabriel and Helios on the contrary stood blank.

"Seriously? How is he even a middle schooler?" Gabriel asked.

"You doofus!" Kenzo stated annoyed. "It means like going inside an underpass and coming out. You aren't in the same place when you come out or are you? Can't you even relate this unbelievable."

Adam with veins popping on forehead angered, "Hey! Who are you calling a doofus hun? I clearly knew about that! I was just confirming you phony headed king! Moreover, I didn't even ask you in the first place."

Alan hearing him instantly chuckled soon hiding his laughter as Kenzo glanced at him annoyed. "Enjoying a lot aren't you hun? Just you wait you rascal." Kenzo gritted irritated.

The fourteen of them walking ahead passed the hovering trees and slipping grounds until two hours.

"Huff… Huff… Huff… come on… break… break please… I'm really sleepy…" Ezekiel panted suddenly lying flat on the ground unable to walk anymore. He breathed hard with his vision giving in alongside Feng who grabbed his stomach which ached from constant muscle stretch. Azazel and Xavier along with Cassiel, Ryan and Poseidon too sat down. Sweat dripping their foreheads like a waterfall even in cold, clearly depicted how tired they were.

"Just a little walk and it took us two hours… why we haven't reached the cavern yet?" Cassiel asked confused. Xavier patted Poseidon's back.

"And, here I thought the cavern was approaching any moment now…" Heber repeated Helios's words sarcastically lying flat.

Alan exhausted too stood perplexed. Walking over to Kenzo who gazed at the map stern. "Why in the world is the route so far? We have been walking just like the map portrayed but every point is so far from each other. I don't get it?" Seraph doubted as Helios sighed.

"Is this the reason why that old hag gave us days to get it over with?" Gabriel realized.

"Who knows? Right now we are in the middle of nowhere. Leading to nowhere. And, god knows what will happen next." Feng replied hopeless.

"What is in the world is going on…?" Alan wondered, still gazing at the map, "No matter much I try and look at it. We are already on the right path. So, how come we aren't reaching the cavern after walking this far? I better check it out…"

Observing the route he walked ahead leaving the middle schoolers behind to rest.

Kenzo grasping his sight called out, "Seraph."

Seraph attentive on his call turned around, "Yes?"

Pointing from his gesture, Kenzo handed him the scroll telling him to follow behind Alan.

Seraph gazing at Alan's back nodded. "Azazel, come." he called following behind.

Azazel looking at him walked over puzzled, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Just come with me." Seraph smiled as the two of them trailed Alan.

Alan gazing at the tallest tree out of all, climbed up. The rabbit peeking from the corner of his shirt squeezed himself closer inside his hairs feeling cozy. Stepping up carefully on the tallest and strongest branch Alan eyed the sight around. A clouded foggy sky hovering a top of the mountain. Until far no sights of a refuge or a cavern opening were to be seen. "Strange… just what in the world is going on? Why can't I find it?" he pondered.

A sudden suspicion hitting him he thought, "Don't tell me that old hag is pulling our legs from behind and handed us the wrong scroll? But… if it's the wrong one, how can we even find the materials he told us to bring. Nah, he can't be that dumb. Nor that he is intelligent though…"

Exhaling clueless he rolled his eyes climbing down. "Then what should we do…? Should we just walk forward like this? But what if we get lost? Won't it be much more of a trouble then?" he stepped down lightly one branch after another.

"Where in the world did he go?" Seraph thought lost looking around.

"Weren't we just following him a moment ago? Where did he disappear?!" Azazel mumbled surprised himself trying to find Alan.

Standing with his back on the tree Seraph exhaled. "Don't tell me we lost him now…" he wondered regretful.

All of a sudden Alan swept upside down before his face from the tree. "Ah…" the two gasped speechless. A moment of silence befalling the two of them they stared at each other puzzled.

"Huh?!" Alan asked stunned suddenly losing balance and falling on the ground with a thud.

Azazel too squinted his eyes from the impact. "Ouch…" he exclaimed instead of Alan who sat back up rubbing his back.

The rabbit on his back dropping flat on the ground too sat with his eyes rolling.

"Are-you alright?!" Seraph asked baffled, trying to help Alan as he hissed. "Hiss… yeah, yeah, I am fine… geez, you should've at least made a sound. You startled me…" he complained as Seraph stood apologetic. "Sorry, I didn't knew you were up there." he apologized once again. "No problem…" Alan stood up assuring.

Tracing Azazel beside him he questioned, "What were you two doing here?" "Nothing… just trying to find the route." Seraph replied hiding his real motive. "There's nothing ahead. I've checked it already." Alan looked ahead.

"Huh? But why? We just saw a cavern's opening on the map. How come nothing's there?" Azazel asked back impatiently.

"Calm down, I know there's a cavern there and we are right on the track as well. But still something doesn't fit." Alan suspected while Seraph opened the scroll. "What doesn't fit…?" he wondered puzzled. Alan too stared at the map beside him. Azazel who was left on the contrary, observed the map from front.

"The point to the cavern is here and as well as the point from where we came down the mountain peak. So, what is it that's missing…?" Seraph read as Alan squinted his brows thinking hard.

Azazel stared at the map from above stern. Keeping his finger on the grey point and the cavern he uttered, "Huh?"

Alan hearing him looked up, "What is it?"

Suddenly realizing, Azazel stood wide eyed, "Huh?!" he uttered back shocked.

Changing his place to where Alan stood and back to his own place again he instantly pointed out, "The map!"

Seraph and Alan looking at each other questioned, "What map?"