"W-We made it to the other side of the forest. But now what? There is no opening we can get out from."

Topper #1 looked disappointed that he had not found a magical exit out of this arena. The more time he spent here, the worse he felt.

Compared to him, Topper #2 was taking this much better now. He was still rude and snappy (especially toward Layla) but much more cooperative toward her actions.

"Unfortunately, we have not found anything until now. It is getting late as well. It would be in our best interest to find a cave and hide there until morning. We can sleep in shifts and keep an eye out like that."

Mary pointed out as she looked at the system map. There were a few safe caves around here where she could spend her time. But what worried her more was the passage of time in this dungeon than the outside.

Only a few system hours had passed, but the sun had already started to set in here. It should have been bright outside, but Layla was beginning to feel the biting chill of the night air.

"Is it getting dark already? The day did not feel that long…"

Topper #2's observation was right. But Layla did not tell him anything since he could not gauge time. There was no point in causing unnecessary panic by telling the kids what was happening.

*Grrr*

The sound of monsters echoed from afar, and Layla decided for the e group about what to do.

"Come with me right now. Let's get some rest and food inside us. Otherwise, we might not last long."

Layla was beginning to feel the strain of keeping her magic up all the time. The system consumed a good chunk of her stamina, and Layla had not collapsed only because of the willpower that kept her going.

As a result, fatigue accumulated across Layla's body, and she felt strained. She could feel herself being spun thin and having a fragile magic power.

'I need to rest before I end up breaking my core. There will be no solution if my core ever cracks. So that is something I would like to avoid at all costs.'

Layla sighed as she led her group to a cave. Only small fries were around, and she cared for them easily enough.

Once that was fine, Layla laid down a secure barrier.

Her eyes threatened to close as soon as her back touched the ground. Layla would have fallen asleep if her stomach had not let out a painful growl demanding food.

She was not the only one hungry, but the other two kids looked too embarrassed to ask Layla for more food and water after what they had eaten in the morning.

Layla sighed as she took out something quick and easy to eat.

At such times, she missed the convenience of modern-day fast food. Her mouth carved the smooth texture of instant noodles and even the spicy taste of other food that she used to have regularly.

'These things just do not cut it for me. I wish I could also get something better to go with this.'

But there was no such food in modern times. If the system had some of it in the shop, Layla would not have been foolish enough to spend her resources to buy it.

'I can ask someone to make those things for me once I return. I may be able to start a business with these ideas…. but first, I need to get out of here alive.'

Layla ate her dinner silently, but her mind was filled with what she could do about this situation.

There was not much, and that made Layla feel even more tense. But she did not give up hope and kept a straight face as she discussed what to do next.

The group devised a system to keep watch throughout the night. They would take turns sleeping, and Layla was the first one to have the opportunity to rest.

She did not argue and closed her eyes as soon as her body touched the ground.

Layla had faith in her system and its ability to inform her if anything was about to happen.

Her eyes fluttered in and out of consciousness for about two hours. She felt more tired than when she went to sleep, but Layla could instinctively tell something was wrong.

After all, the system was blazing alarms inside her mind. This had never happened before, and this startled her.

The first thing Layla saw when she opened her eyes was the empty eyes of topper #2 looking at her.

The young kid's body was twisted, so it was impossible to tell what he had been like before that date.

And the other topper was not any better.

They had both been killed off by something, and Layla felt nervous.

'Shit! Did I sleep for too long? How did I miss two people being killed just beside me?'

Layla wondered with a calm heart.

As a mafia boss, she had seen her fair share of deaths. Some of them were too bloody and gruesome ever to describe sober. So, these deaths did not make Layla lose her mind.

It did make her feel sorry for these kids who only wanted to prove themselves by competing with her.

*Drip*

Something wet fell on Layla's leg and the small drop hurt. She looked up, wanting to see where that acidic rain had come from.

But she did not see any clouds up in the sky.

Her eyes met the fluffy fur of a creature far bigger and much more intimidating than anything she could ever hope for…

'What the hell is that? A giant spider? And it is a strong one at that! Shit! I think I made a mistake in attracting its attention to me. It was happy leaving me alone until now.

Layla bit her lip as she watched the spider grow angrily before attacking her.