"Fighting means immediate disqualification. The one who finds the treasure first will become its rightful owner. Also, just for your reference, a single credit can provide you three regular meals in the cafeteria. This will be your only chance to earn credits in the first semester," Sophia declared with a smug smile. "Your twelve-hour time starts now."

The moment she said those words, more than half of the freshers rushed out in all directions while some stayed to form tactical alliances.

Ding...

[A new side quest has been triggered.

Side Quest: The Crownbearer

Description: Reach first place in the Orientation and earn the title of Crownbearer. Show your peers who is the boss.

Reward on completion: Mystery Cube

Penalty on failure: Indefinite lock on the skill: Foresight Eye]

’Hah! I’m definitely not doing this quest,’ Vlad exclaimed inwardly. ’My survival is more important than some mystery box. No way am I having a one-on-one meeting with the girl who seems out for my blood. The penalty isn’t much to worry about either. It’s not like I could even use that skill.’

He turned to Chloe, who was dozing off while standing.

"Chloe, wake up," Vlad said in a hurried voice, shaking her by the shoulder.

"Ang....what?" She groaned, rubbing her eyes.

"Chloe, we are going to leave the life of poverty behind today," Vlad whispered, the corner of his lips curling. "We will monopolise this Treasure Hunting."

"What’s Treasure Hunting?" Chloe asked, tilting her head in confusion. Her eyelids were still only half open. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

"Eh? Did you not hear Senior Sophia’s announcement? Since when were you asleep?"

"I remember giving you the sandwich," she answered, tapping her chin with her index finger.

Vlad released a sigh, a deeper one. He wanted to ask how she had even received her treasure map while sleeping, but there was no point. Knowing her, she must have grabbed it in her sleep.

He wiped the drool from the corner of her lips with his sleeve before continuing, "Chloe, I need your help."

Finally, Chloe opened her eyes fully.

"In return?"

"No veggies for one meal."

"Three days."

"Two meals."

"One day."

"Deal accepted."

Once the duo were on the same page, Vlad gave Chloe a briefing of his plan while moving toward their decided destination at his maximum speed. As always, he told her only what she needed to know. Any more information and she would doze off again.

Although Vlad wasn’t as fast as Chloe, he far surpassed his peers in physical stats. In just a few seconds, the duo left behind all the freshers moving in the same direction.

---

"We are finally here," Vlad said, wiping the bead of sweat from his temple. He was slightly out of breath from running at full speed for a straight seven kilometres. Chloe’s breathing was heavier. Her stamina was still a setback.

The duo arrived at the entrance of a forest with unnaturally large trees. Each tree was as thick as his entire dormitory room. Their dense branches cast a natural canopy, blocking any light from reaching inside. It was certainly true to its name: Greyveil.

This was the location on the map with the most symbols marked.

"Chloe, let’s get to work," Vlad ordered as he climbed one of the trees with practised ease. Chloe reached the adjacent tree with similar precision.

"Found one," Vlad said with a smirk, pulling out a book tucked inside a hollow at the trunk.

It was titled Fundamentals of Magic.

"Vlad, two books here," Chloe called from a branch of the other tree.

"Great, keep finding more," Vlad said, leaping directly to the branch of the next tree.

"I found one more."

"Haha, there are three in this abandoned nest."

"Here...here...and here as well."

"There are so many books."

The deeper part of the forest was cordoned off by barbed wire, limiting their search.

For this young duo who had spent their whole lives beside a forest, it took no more than half an hour to sweep through the entire accessible area and sniff out everything.

"Hmm, two thousand two hundred and sixty-four books in total," Vlad said, taking a deep breath. He sat in the shade of a tree, a neatly stacked tower of books mounted before him.

"You will read them all?" Chloe asked, drinking from her water bottle as she sat beside him.

"Of course not, dummy."

He had separated twenty-two books from the stash, eleven for himself and eleven for Chloe. "We will only read these ones."

"Then what about the rest?"

A wide smirk coiled on Vlad’s face as he snickered behind the palm of his hand.

"They are monopolised, of course."

Turning to Chloe, he asked, "Could you go to this location and find the treasure hidden there?"

He pointed to a remote mark on the map, placed at a hill a couple of kilometres from Greyveil forest.

From what he had analysed from the map, the clustered symbols were for the books since they carried the least credit value, the labels scattered at closer distances were likely for uniforms, and the symbols at the farthest locations marked the hidden treasures.

Chloe let out a groan.

"I don’t want to."

"Please~"

"No, it’s too far. I’m hungry."

"Pretty pleaasee~~"

Chloe gave him a silent, expressionless stare.

"Alright, alright, don’t sulk," Vlad sighed, then continued in a coaxing tone, "if you bring me the treasure hidden there, I will grant you three wishes, as long as they are within my capabilities."

"No backsies," Chloe immediately responded, extending her pinky finger.

"No backsies," Vlad answered, interlocking his pinky with hers.

She rose from the ground and bolted off, leaving dust and leaves in her wake.

"She is certainly fast when there is a reward on the line," Vlad chuckled.

He turned his focus to the group of incoming freshers and whispered with a wide smile, "It’s time to reap the fruits of my labour."