In the following days, the only topic of discussion in the group was the strange map. Elpida had secretly photocopied it and studied it every afternoon at her house.
Each time she found a new detail.
"It's old," she said. "The paper, the ink… everything indicates that it wasn't made recently."
The others, however, weren't so sure.
"It could just be some old student's work," said Rania.
"Or a prank," added Christina.
Only Kostas had slowly started to warm up.
"And what do we have to lose?" he said one afternoon. "At worst, we'll go on a trip."
The idea began to seem more and more tempting to them.
Elpida, full of enthusiasm, began to organize everything. She made a list of things she would need: flashlights, water, food, jackets, and even a small pharmacy.
Kostas found an old compass at his grandfather's house.
"I don't know if it works, but it looks nice," he said, laughing.
Christina prepared backpacks with supplies.
Rania, more practical than anyone, checked the weather and routes.
The hard part was convincing their parents.
"We're just going to go hiking in Pangaeos," Elpida told her mother.
"With a teacher?"
"Uh… with friends. But we're responsible!"
After much discussion and promises, they finally made it.
The date was set for Saturday, a few days after Elpida's birthday.
The night before, none of them slept well. Everyone was thinking about what they might find.
Treasure?
An old story?
Or just a nice adventure?