"Alright... I’m too bored now."

The voice of John Pmurt Dlanod echoed through the chamber one final time, still carrying the same lazy arrogance that made it unclear whether he had been speaking to the chosen participants, to the Capital audience, or simply to himself.

He shifted slightly on the floating golden platform, eyes half-open, one hand lazily circling the rim of the glass still resting in his fingers.

"I hope the next game is more entertaining."

Those were the final words the chosen heard before everything moved again.

No explanation followed, nor any warning.

The moment the King’s platform withdrew and disappeared beyond the closing walls, attendants and drones immediately entered the Lounge. The surviving forty-one participants were separated without ceremony and directed once more toward the transport section.

The pods waited again.

Smooth oval chambers, identical to the previous ones, lined in long rows beneath white light.

This time no one asked questions.

After what they had already survived, most had learned that answers rarely came before danger.

One by one, participants stepped inside.

Doors sealed.

The interior remained just as silent as before—one seat, one bottle of water, nothing else.

Tyler stood inside his pod without sitting immediately. He watched the curved walls around him, trying to detect movement through vibration alone, but the transport system remained too smooth to reveal direction.

The pod moved.

Faster this time.

For several minutes there was nothing but silent acceleration and occasional shifts in pressure.

Then the pod stopped. The door opened.

The first thing Tyler noticed was fresh air. It was Cooler than the sealed systems inside the Capital.

The second thing he noticed was light.

Natural-looking daylight stronger than the artificial brightness inside the dome structures.

He stepped out.

And found himself standing inside what looked like wilderness.

Trees rose in every direction, dense enough to block long sightlines. A river flowed not far ahead, wide enough to hear before fully seeing it. Birds crossed overhead, and somewhere deeper in the forest, insects produced constant sound.

For several seconds the place felt almost normal. Too normal. Which immediately made Tyler suspicious.

He looked upward first. No obvious cameras. No visible drones close enough to explain surveillance. No floating screens..No visible walls.

But all forty-one surviving participants had been placed here as well, scattered across a broad clearing connected to the forest edge.

Some stood still in confusion.

Some immediately looked around for traps.

Tyler also noticed Sector 11 quickly.

Tansy and Rose stood together not far away.

Victor and Kennedy were visible farther left.

Then the ground beneath the clearing changed.

Several sections opened at once.

Mechanical panels split apart beneath the soil with clean precision.

Objects launched upward from hidden slots.

Glasses.

Dozens of them.

Thin metallic frames shot into the air directly toward the participants.

Tyler reacted instantly, catching one midair before it could strike his face. He caught two more by reflex before they fell.

Others reacted slower.

Several glasses dropped directly onto the ground near participants who flinched too late.

Yet none broke.

The material clearly resisted impact.

Soon everyone held one.

No explanation came. So naturally, people began wearing them.

Tyler placed the glasses on. The moment they touched his face, transparent light flickered across both lenses.

Then words appeared directly before his eyes.

Augmented display. AR system.

Outside the game zone, across every screen in the Capital and sectors, viewers saw something different. Above each participant floated small data windows visible only to the audience, revealing details of the players.

But inside the game, participants saw only their own instructions.

Tyler read carefully.

[Welcome to the Workers Game.]

The text remained suspended in his vision.

[The game is simple. Complete your assigned quest and you survive.]

Around him, several participants visibly relaxed.

Even Tyler noticed shoulders lowering.

For the first time since entering the Games, the rule sounded straightforward enough to tempt people into comfort.

A dangerous sign.

Then the next line appeared.

[However, there is one problem.]

Tyler’s expression remained unchanged.

Of course there was.

[Among you exists one Jobless.]

The clearing became still.

Several people immediately looked around.

The text continued.

[Unlike Workers, the Jobless receives no work quest.]

A pause.

[However, the Jobless may pretend to work.]

Then:

[The Jobless may also secretly terminate another Worker’s position and convert them into Jobless.]

That line changed the atmosphere instantly.

The forest clearing no longer felt neutral.

Now every person standing nearby became possible danger.

Then the final rule appeared.

[If Workers identify the true Jobless, the game ends immediately and all surviving Workers clear the stage.]

Tyler’s eyes narrowed slightly.

So there were two victory routes:

Complete the work. Or expose the hidden role.

Which meant suspicion itself would become part of the game.

Immediately participants began looking at each other differently.

No one trusted stillness now.

No one trusted hesitation either.

Even Tyler glanced briefly around, not because he expected to identify anything immediately, but because reactions themselves often mattered more than words.

Then the final line appeared.

[Game begins.]

The sky above shifted.

Several drones appeared far overhead.

This time clearly visible.

Then supplies dropped.

Bags. Boxes. Metal cases. Wooden crates.

All falling into different parts of the clearing.

Tyler moved immediately.

He reached the nearest dropped bag first and opened it.

Inside he found food packets, medical bandages, a bottle of water, and one pickaxe.

He barely had time to register the contents before someone approached.

A young man wearing badge 9 stopped near him.

"I have a mining job," the man said quickly, looking directly at the pickaxe. "Can I take that?"

Tyler looked at the badge first.

Number 9.

That meant Sector 2. The underwater workers.

Tyler’s own display still showed his assigned task. He glanced at it and gave a slight shake of the head.

"Sorry. I have the Same job."

The man’s face tightened for a second.

Then Tyler added calmly:

"Let’s search together. If there’s another pickaxe, we both benefit."

The tension softened immediately.

That made sense.

The man nodded.

"My name’s Craig."

Tyler also introduced himself in return.

They moved together.

Nearby, Tyler saw Tansy and Rose glance toward him briefly before moving away together. Tansy made a small signal— enough to show they were fine.

Good.

Craig soon found another supply crate farther near a tree line.

Inside was another pickaxe.

And something else.

A knife.

Craig took it quickly. Too quickly.

He slipped it inside his clothing before saying anything.

Tyler noticed..But pretended not to. Because noticing hidden things too openly often created enemies.

Around them, more participants opened crates. Different tools appeared depending on assignment.

Fishing rods. Axes. Bows. Bundles of rope. Seeds. Buckets. Woodcutting tools.

Even a metal detector in one crate.

Tansy emerged carrying a bow and arrows.

That meant her task likely involved hunting or she just took those for safety.

Victor had a rope bundle. Kennedy carried something heavier Tyler could not yet identify.

Different jobs indeed.

That meant the game forced role separation deliberately.

Workers.

Actual labor simulation.

Which also made the hidden Jobless harder to detect— because everyone naturally moved differently depending on assigned task.

Tyler crouched near another crate and lifted a water bottle while appearing to inspect other supplies.

At the same time, his nanobots moved.

Tiny, silent, invisible beneath ordinary observation.

A thin layer detached from his suit and spread quietly across several items in the crate—water bottle, food packet, rope edge, metal latch.

Not enough to trigger notice.

Enough to track later if needed.

Craig adjusted the pickaxe on his shoulder.

"Shall we go?"

Tyler stood.

Ahead, beyond the trees, he could already see dark stone rising where forest met exposed earth.

A mine entrance.

So at least the quest route matched the tool. For now. He looked once more across the clearing.

Forty-one survivors.

One hidden Jobless.

And perhaps more than one if their job gets terminated.

Then he nodded.

"Let’s go."

Together, Tyler and Craig walked toward the mine while the forest behind them slowly filled with people beginning work they did not yet know whether to trust.