A World Unwritten

A week has passed since the first cooking class, and now I'm sitting in my homeroom class when our door swings open. Professor Ayla strides in, with her usual calm demeanor.

"Everyone get up, we are heading to a dimensional gate," she announces, catching the attention of all the students.

Aira, is the first to ask, "Professor, may I ask why? I don't remember any trips being planned."

"You will know when we get there," Professor Ayla answers cryptically. "Now everyone, gather your belongings and follow me."

Great, just as expected. We're off for an early survival Island test. A test designed to have these kids experience the difficulty of surviving in the wild, of course, there is more to that. Class B... there is a high chance they were added since Sara is there, it will most likely be a competition between the two classes.

The island is notorious for its challenging conditions, designed to test the students' survival skills. It's a massive leap for our first month into this academy, not to mention our relationships are still in the fledgling stages. Not everyone in this class gets along well, which would only add to the difficulty of the upcoming test. I'm sure that no one in the class has ever experienced a similar situation.

My thoughts are interrupted as I reach over to smack Biana's head. "Wake up, sleeping beast. We're moving," I grumble at her. She groans in response but gets up nonetheless, following the flow of students exiting the classroom.

We walk towards a building a mile away from our classroom. The academy, with its vast expanses, makes the journey feel less daunting. Walking inside, this is the dimensional gate I designed. Hundreds of gates are spread throughout the lands and all of them connect. It's not that simple though, unless both gates accept the connection we wouldn't be able to go through.

The interior is grand, filled with high arched ceilings and tall pillars, each intricately designed. At the center of the room is an imposing piece of artwork - the dimensional gate. Its inactive state renders it a beautiful Arch sculpture, a piece of art rather than a tool for teleportation. It stands tall, its smooth material glistening under the lights, elegantly intertwined with a unique, shiny steel, creating a harmonic blend of strength and beauty. Nice, these gates are quite hard to maintain since they have the capability to allow travel throughout hundreds of miles of land.

"Alright everyone, they will activate it now," Professor Ayla announces, her voice echoing through the room. "We will be heading to the coast in Duke Alister's land."

Everyone's gaze shifts to Isadora. The daughter of Duke Alister, she remains as cold as ever, standing near me with an unfazed expression. I've been feeding her whenever I see her in the cafeteria, from the looks of it it seems to be working as she doesn't completely ignore my presence.

As the portal comes to life, the room fills with a humming energy. Space within the gate starts to warp, the scenery of the coast becoming visible. The sight of the sea shimmering through the gate sends a ripple of confusion throughout the room. No one here except for maybe the prince and the princess should know about the test.

Stepping through the portal feels like stepping into a cool breeze, a faintly tingling sensation tickling my skin. It's not the first time they've gone through one so they don't seem that impressed. As we emerge on the other side, sighs echo around me - they don't seem to like this place.

"Alright everyone, we are going to confiscate any magical devices, weapons, tools, furniture, and food you have with you. Now, line up," Professor Ayla orders, her voice cutting through the sighs and murmurs.

Unease ripples through the students as they look around, they didn't expect this to happen. Reluctantly, everyone begins to line up, while another professor starts going through everyone's stuff, confiscating dimensional bags and other items.

Isabella frustrated, finally speaks up. "Instructor Ayla, isn't this a bit much!? Confiscating our belongings is too much! Do you want me to call mother!?" She threatens, using her family status to try and sway the situation.

A thick silence falls over us, no one daring to say anything. But Professor Ayla merely sighs and responds, "Article 6 line 78; A student is not allowed to use their family name to threaten the instructor as it violates Article 1 line one; all students are treated equally. Now, Isabella, you and your mother signed the contract. Please keep in mind that I'm only confiscating your belongings until the test is over."

Her words hang in the air, causing a chorus of confused whispers to rise up among the students. "Test?" they echo, their faces showing their shock and confusion.

As the initial shock starts to fade, more students begin voicing their concerns. Flora raises her voice timidly. "Professor, may I ask what sort of test this is?"

Kaida, adds to that. "Yes, Professor, isn't it a bit mean not to tell us in advance?"

Professor Ayla sighs, her patience clearly wearing thin. "This is a test made at a random time of the year. In order to maximize the general idea behind the test, we couldn't tell you."

Despite her serious demeanor, I can almost see the amusement in her eyes, her thoughts practically echoing out loud. Hahaha, you kids will be stranded and I will finally have some time off. Haha, I can't blame her though she suffers quite a bit.

Oliver sidles up to me. He mutters under his breath, "Ugh, I hope the test isn't too hard, especially since we have to deal with this thing." He pokes his twin sister Biana, who somehow is still half-asleep standing. "How can this thing be related to me? How do you deal with her V, isn't she annoying?"

I chuckle at his frustration. That's for sure. "Don't worry, Oliver. I'll make sure 'this thing' does something. I have my ways," I smack Biana's head forward, waking her up.

With a startled yelp, Biana's eyes snap open. She blinks a few times before turning to glare at us, her grumpy face almost enough to make Oliver and me laugh. "Why does everyone seem to have a problem with me sleeping?" She grumbles.

Just as the questions are starting to simmer down, Arin throws another one at Professor Ayla. "Professor, where will we be going?"

She doesn't answer immediately, instead focusing on thoroughly checking the students. Everyone's belongings are taken, leaving us in just our uniforms. Then she approaches Biana, who clutches onto her pillow-filled dimensional bag like it's her lifeline. Luckily she didn't seem to care about thoroughly checking me, she probably thinks I won't do anything stupid.

"This is mine! Don't take my sweet sleep!" Biana pleads, but her resistance proves futile against Ayla's firm determination.

"Enough, Biana. You get no privilege here. Now everyone, let's go," Ayla commands, her voice leaving no room for further argument. Two staff members step forward and activate a teleportation array, the air shimmering as we're whisked away in an instant.

We materialize on the deck of a luxurious yacht, a setting so different from the academy that everyone looks around in silent surprise. That silence is quickly broken by the arrival of Professor Thaddeus, he commands attention without having to raise his voice.

"Alright, kids," he begins, his gaze sweeping over us all. "You will all be stranded on an island for three weeks. You will have to work together to survive. Class B will be on a separate island. There are two ways to do this. The first one would be to wait it out and survive by working together. The second option would be to find the right way out. Please know that you are competing with Class B. You will be graded for the choices you make. These choices vary from how you work together to how you solve problems. The winning class of the competition will get personal lessons from a compatible professor."

There's a heavy silence that follows his words. Everyone exchanges uncertain glances, clearly overwhelmed by this sudden turn of events.

Rai, his voice wavering a bit, finally breaks the silence. "We get personal lessons with a professor...would that be for the rest of the year?"

Ayla interjects before Thaddeus can answer. "No, at most you will get personal lessons for the semester." I can see her visibly shudder at the thought, her mind seemingly echoing aloud. NO way, what if I have to give personal lessons? Do you think I want to do that for a year!? Are these damn kids trying to work me to death!?

Ignoring Ayla's words, Thaddeus continues. "Alright, now kids you will be sent immediately. Do not take this lightly."

As his words fade, the world around us shifts once again. The yacht is replaced by the soft sand of a shore, the ocean stretching out endlessly on one side and a dense forest looming on the other. This is it - we've been teleported to the island. Now, where was that ruin Mason found again?