NOVEL WEB Chapter 31: Eggregious Eggspedition
Chapter 31: Eggregious Eggspedition
We all stared at the egg expectantly.
Ms Reina paused, scanning the crowd of students intently, gauging our reactions. "This isn’t just any egg," she said, holding it up for emphasis. "For the next few days, this fragile little object will represent your team’s life!”
Before anyone could ask any questions, she continued, “Each team will have one egg. If your egg breaks, there will be no replacements, no second chances.” She let that sink in for a moment, her voice stern but excited. "If your egg stays intact by the end of the camp, your group will be eligible for bonus rewards. Your egg must always be with you, so no burying it now and waiting to dig it up on the last day!”
Jonah groaned quietly from beside me. “Man, I bet I’m gonna be the one who drops the thing.”
“Then you don’t carry it!” snapped Scarlette.
“Your team captains,” Ms Reina added, “will come up and collect your egg. Protect it at all costs.” She nodded, signalling for the group leaders to come forward.
Scarlette stepped forward confidently, walking toward Ms Reina as I watched her grab the egg with surprising care. When she returned, she handed it to me with a smirk.
“You break it, and I’m breaking you,” she said, half-joking but with an edge of seriousness in her tone.
Ms Reina's voice resonated throughout our class. "That won’t be all you’re protecting!" she called out, raising her arm to reveal a long strip of fabric. "Each of you will be given a sash—one for each member. The sash must be worn on your body at all times. You may wear it across your chest, tie it around your wrist—anything is fine, as long as it’s visible. No hiding it under clothes or gear."
A ripple of confusion passed through the crowd as my class exchanged puzzled glances. I turned to Jonah, who was frowning. "So, we’re guarding an egg and some pieces of cloth now?"
Scarlette raised an eyebrow. "Seems like overkill, don’t you think?"
“There’s a difference!” Ms Reina raised her voice. “Everyone on your team will be given a sash. Also, unlike the egg, your enemies are permitted to steal, or fight, the sashes away from you—within the bounds of safety, of course. It’s not just about babysitting your egg anymore. You’ll need to defend yourselves, while also trying to outwit the other teams.”
“The teams that return with both their egg intact and their sashes untouched will get more rewards. Of course, if you have sashes from other groups as well…” she let the sentence hang, knowing we would understand what she was implying.
“Day 1 is a grace period, so no combat is allowed today. I’ll be re-iterating the rules when we enable combat tomorrow. Finally, please collect your wrist tags. They have a tracker embedded in them so we know where you are. Keep it on at all times," Ms Reina concluded, signalling for the team captains to come forward once again. “Collect your sashes and tags, and good luck."
Scarlette sighed as she walked back up to retrieve our items, her movements still as confident as ever. When she returned, she tossed a sash over to Jonah, who fumbled with it for a second before slinging it across his chest like a bandolier. She passed the remainder to the rest of us.
"Think we’re gonna have to fight people for these?" Jonah asked, only half-joking.
“We ARE gonna be fighting people for this,” Scarlette said, licking her lips. “And I already know which team we’ll be targeting.”
She glanced over at Kazen, who must have had the same idea, for he met her gaze with a hard glare.
“Um, shouldn’t we, like, focus on the weaker teams?” Jonah added with a nervous chuckle. “I mean, I’m just saying... I can’t guarantee my sash won’t get snatched up if we take on Kazen’s group.”
“We have Cadel. He can solo their group.”
“Hey, let’s not get overconfident here,” I warned. While what he said was true, I still had no idea what Raven could do. She may have some tricks of her own up her sleeve. Meh, I doubted it was anything I couldn’t handle.
Jonah laughed. “I’ll leave it to you, buddy.”
I tied my sash around my right wrist and wore the tag on my left, with Kaede and Mira following suit. Scarlette, however, tied her sash around her head like a bandanna.
I looked back at Jonah. “You sure that won’t get in your way?” I asked him, who still had his sash strapped across his chest.
“It’ll be fine,” he replied with a thumbs up.
Ms Reina clapped her hands sharply, drawing our attention. “One more thing—I never said sash-stealing was limited to just our class. You’re free to target any of the other four classes assigned to this part of the forest: 1A, 1B, 1D, and 1E. More details on this will be given later.”
Interesting. I would be down to target students from other classes, and I was sure Scarlette would feel the same, but I wasn’t certain about the other three members of my group. Maybe I could handle going after the other classes myself while having Scarlette look after the others? But doing so would blow my cover. Still though, sooner or later, the whole school would learn about the true extent of my Ability. Was now the right moment? Before I could delve further into my thoughts, Ms Reina spoke up again.
“Now that we got that out of the way, we can get started on today’s activities. We have some time before lunch, so you’re free to explore and scout the area in the meantime. Familiarise yourselves with the terrain and get a feel for the surroundings. Please be back by 1 PM to collect your meal.”
The group began to disperse, buzzing with anticipation. I exchanged a look with my group. “Let’s make the most of this time,” I said, heading towards the forest edge. “The more we know now, the better prepared we'll be when things get real.”
“Any recommendation for which direction to head in?” asked Scarlette.
“Let’s see if we can find some high ground so we can scope out the forest better,” I responded. “I could just make us all float, but I think it’s better if we immerse ourselves in the forest itself—to really get a feel for it.
We set off in search of elevated terrain with Scarlette leading the way, weaving through the dense undergrowth. The forest was alive with the sounds of rustling leaves and distant bird calls, adding to the sense of urgency and excitement. I could see a couple of other students a distance away, familiarising themselves with the forest. There were students in the sky as well—those with aerial Abilities zipping about. The chirps of crickets stood out in the background.
“Are you guys good with insects? ‘Cus I’m not,” stuttered Scarlette anxiously, checking the compass.
Sensing an opportunity, I broke off a long blade of grass and lightly brushed her ear.
Scarlette immediately recoiled and let out a startled yelp, spinning around and swatting at her ear. “What the hell, Cadel!” she exclaimed, glaring at me with wide eyes.
Jonah burst out laughing, clutching his sides. “You should’ve seen your face! Priceless!”
Kaede covered her mouth as she tried to stifle her laughter, while even Mira allowed a small smile to creep across her usually calm face.
Scarlette shot him a look that could melt steel. “You think it’s funny, huh? How about I show you something even funnier?” She raised a hand, a faint flicker of flame dancing at her fingertips.
“Whoa, whoa.” I raised my hands in surrender, letting a smirk leak through. “Alright, I’m sorry. It was just a joke.”
Scarlette huffed but lowered her hand, the flame extinguishing. “Damn you, Cadel. I’ll get you back for that. Anyway, we gotta focus for now. Looks like there’s a small hill just up ahead.”
Setting the amusing incident aside, we climbed up the gentle slope and shortly reached the summit. The view wasn’t the most spectacular, but we could see a broader expanse of the forest now. A couple hundred meters away, the sea shimmered in the distance. Scattered clearings with tents—like ours—belonged to the other classes.
“Looks like we’ve got ourselves a good view here,” Jonah said, adjusting his sash to get more comfortable. “I can see a few trails that might lead to other parts of the forest.”
Scarlette scanned the area with a critical eye. “Yeah, we should keep an eye on those trails—they could be potential routes for other teams to sneak up on us.”
I nodded, taking in the view. “Let’s mark this spot as a potential fallback position. If we’re ever in a tight spot, we can use this high ground to regroup and strategise. But, uh, what do I do with this?” I added, raising the egg that I’d been cradling the whole time.
“I don’t know, you’re in charge of it!” snapped Scarlette, still unimpressed by the little prank I pulled on her earlier. Honestly, her reaction prodded me to attempt a similar trick again, but even I knew better than to test her patience. Maybe another time.
I could’ve just created an anti-energy zone around the egg, but I wouldn’t be able to keep it up for the entire camp. Therefore, I thought of a more old-fashioned solution.
I pulled out my gym towel and lunch box from my bag. The bread I had packed inside the lunch box was already wrapped in clingwrap, so I set it aside. I then wrapped the egg carefully in the gym towel and placed it securely into the lunch box.
But the egg wouldn’t fit. With Scarlette’s help, who expertly trimmed the excess towel with her flames, we managed to squeeze it into the lunchbox. It fit snugly but securely, cushioned by the fabric. It wasn’t an ideal solution, but it would work for now. If I needed to move quickly or perform any activity, I could always use my Ability to lock the contents of my bag in place.
Kaede gently prodded my bag. “Will the egg really be safe?”
I gave Kaede a reassuring nod. “It should be fine. The towel’s thick enough to cushion it, and if things get rough, I can lock everything in place with my Ability.”
“If there’s anyone that can keep it safe, it’s you,” Kaede winked at me with a grin. “Should we start heading back now? It’s almost time for lunch.”
As we shuffled down the hill, I noticed a slight movement out of the corner of my eye. I peered up, trying to discern its source. There was a large crow perched on a branch, high up on a tree. It was looking directly at us.