A Second Life, A New Power novel Chapter 17

"Why is the vicious gal so mean? Ana has already apologized!"

"She has such a poor attitude."

"How would Ana know if the vicious gal ever had wine?"

"Does the vicious gal think that just because she's Ana's assistant, Ana is obligated to care about her life and know everything about her?"

"Wait. Don't you think it's odd? The vicious gal is supposed to be Ana's assistant, yet she's being so rude to her."

"Could she have been fired?"

"That must be it! No wonder she's so hostile toward Ana."

Sensing the growing tension, Matt quickly raised his voice to redirect the group's focus.

"Okay. Demi has passed the challenge. This bottle of wine will go to her as a reward, and she's earned herself a spot."

Demi asked, "Mr. Hahn, can I give my spot to someone else?"

"You can. However, let me remind everyone. Each participant can only give up their spot once per episode, and a recipient can only accept a spot once. Understood?"

"Understood," the group chorused.

"I'll give the spot to Maria," Demi said, gesturing toward Maria.

Her reason for participating was to secure the spot so that she could give it to Maria.

Wendy had her husband help her compete for a spot and carry her heavy bags, while Ana had her brother take care of her every need.

Demi, on the other hand, could manage on her own. Maria had been nothing but kind to her since the start. It only felt right to help her get a spot.

Maria's face lit up with joy. To be honest, she had reached her limit and couldn't walk another step.

"Thank you." Maria got up from the rock she'd been sitting on and pulled Demi into a warm hug.

Demi froze. She wasn't used to such enthusiastic displays of affection.

"If you weren't so shy, I'd plant a kiss on you right now," Maria added with a playful grin as she let go.

Demi was speechless.

"Okay. Let's start with the second challenge. Listen carefully. You must light this candle without using matches or a lighter," Matt instructed while gesturing to the staff member holding a thick, red candle.

The group stared at him, bewildered.

Thomas hesitated before finally taking the candle. Like Nigel, he knew that Ana was running out of stamina. That meant he had to step up and give it his best shot.

However, after ten minutes of futile attempts, Thomas' face was covered in soot. He then handed over the candle to Chad.

Chad hesitated as well but eventually stepped forward.

It didn't matter if he succeeded or not. As a newcomer, he needed as much screen time as possible. That meant he had to try his hand at every game, no matter how impossible it seemed.

"Is fire-starting with friction really so difficult?"

"Honestly, while starting a fire with sticks is commonly known, how many of us actually know how to do it without searching the web?"

"I checked online and it's super complicated! You need to shape stones into a round form, drill a hole, and so on. No way I could pull that off."

Shortly after, Chad also gave up, brushing off soot as he shook his head.

"This method doesn't seem to work," Nigel said with a hint of regret.

"Mr. Hahn, we give up. Do you have another challenge for us?" Thomas asked.

"Wait, don't give up so soon! Let Demi try. Who knows? She might be able to do it!" Maria said while linking arms with Demi.