Theo and the others quickly followed the path that turned out to be a slope, leading to the next level. As soon as they arrived at the upper level, they found another white room precisely like the previous one, but smaller in size. At the same time, there were two doors on the opposite side.
They saw another screen in the middle of the room, saying, "Congratulations."
The screen changed when the room detected the signal coming from their bracelets.
"Congratulations for reaching this layer. This is the second challenge of the first round. To make it more interesting, there will be a bonus point for the team that passes this place first. The reward is as follows:
1st Place – 25 Points
2nd Place – 20 Points
3rd Place – 15 Points
4th Place – 10 Points
5th Place – 5 Points
"Behind the screen stands two doors. The left door will allow all people to cross easily, but the distance is too far. The right door will allow you to go straight to the finish line of the first round, but three people are required to remain."
After that explanation, three tile floors emerged like the previous one as if telling them to choose. The three were so far apart that one person wasn't enough to hold two or all three of them down.
Even with Theo's clone, they still needed to pick two people.
Current progress:
1. Thersland (6 People) – 0 Point
"…" Theo narrowed his eyes as his group quickly came to discuss their plan.
"Theo, is it worth exchanging 10 to 15 points for 25 points?" Alea asked.
"I think it's worth it. With Theo's clone, only two of us need to remain here, giving us 15 bonus points." Phyrill nodded in agreement. "We can also prevent the other teams from getting those points."
Theo, on the other hand, didn't share the same opinion as them. "If we could go with all members and win first place, we would receive 55 points. And if we sacrificed two people, we would only get 45 points."
The rest turned to him with a serious expression.
"I see. The purpose of this escape tower is to eliminate most participants, allowing only a few top groups to compete with each other on the surface. For example, if we can receive a total of 55 points in the first layer, the second layer and the third layer may give a similar amount of points, but in several hurdles like this.
"That's why there's a certain minimum of points we need to receive from each layer. If we sacrifice two people here, there's no guarantee that you can fight together with us on the surface, so it's not a good option to sacrifice someone here." Theo shook his head before coming to a realization. "I have a plan."
Listening to Theo's explanation, they had realized that the puzzle was actually trying to force them to make a hasty decision. The run and this small bonus point, all of them influenced their mind.
Theo didn't wait for them to reply as he quickly walked toward the door while pointing at the three tile floors. "Laust, Sihan, and Ellen. Stand on the tiles, please. Phyrill, you watch over the screen and tell me if there's another team appearing in the current leaderboard. Alea, you come with me."
"Roger that!" The group smiled as they quickly went to their positions according to Theo's arrangement.
When the three rising floors had been pressed, the right door finally revealed another path leading to upstairs. They realized it indeed brought them to the upper layer.
However, when Theo and Alea approached the door, they realized the left door had a sensor that opened the door when someone came closer.
"Theo! Indonesia has appeared on the leaderboard with six people!" Phyrill shouted as soon as a name appeared on the screen.
Theo nodded and shouted back. "All three of you, you can remove yourself from those tiles."
The three took a few steps away from it and the right door closed again while the left one remained open.
Theo was a bit confused with it since he realized that they didn't need to choose the two doors. The left door would always be opened for them. While he was thinking about the possibilities, it gave enough time for another team to catch up.
"Theo, Australia Team is coming too!"
"Tch. There are too many uncertainties." Theo clicked his tongue. His main concern was how long the other path was… he didn't dare to take the risk for everyone. Hence, he decided to place his hand on Alea's shoulder before using his Blink to transfer Alea inside the door leading to the upstairs.
"Theo? Are you planning to use that skill to bring everyone here?" Alea asked when they arrived on the other side of the right door.
"Yes. Wait for us here since we may need all the team together to arrive at the same time. I need to wait one minute every time I use this technique, so it will take a bit longer than I expected…"
"I understand." Alea nodded without hesitation. "Thank you for doing this… We're useless without you in this competition."
"No, you're not. You can make a quick decision, but sometimes, it's not the best one. I'm just trying to find the best solution for all of us." Theo shrugged as the corridor fell silent, making the atmosphere a bit awkward.
However, he soon disappeared again when one minute passed and shouted, "All of you come here. Phyrill, keep watching the screen, will you?"
"Okay!" Phyrill gave a thumbs up while the three came to him.
When they walked toward him, Theo could see the screen turning into something unexpected.
Current progress:
1. Indonesia (6 People) – 45 Points
2. Thersland (6 People) – 0 Point
3. Australia (6 people) – 0 Point
Theo dropped his jaw in surprise as he realized that his method was wrong.
Those 45 points Indonesia Team received came from four people going straight to the right door while the other two challenged the left door that was available for everyone.
The first place only required one person to actually cross the finish line and the rest would be added as soon as they completed the path behind the left door. It was shown by the fact that Indonesia still had six people instead of four.
'There's no word telling us that all of us need to go together. I've overanalyzed everything!' He gritted his teeth, hurriedly turned around and banged the door while shouting. "Alea! Go straight to the finish line! Don't ask, just go!"