Four Minutes

'System, where's our current location?' James mentally asked.

Despite his ability to see in the dark, he couldn't see through the darkness surrounding him, nor did he feel any of his other senses.

Scanning...

Scanning Completed.

Location: Temporal Spatial Bridge.

Integrity: Imminent Collapse Expected.

Estimated Time Until Collapse: 4 minute... 3 minutes 59 seconds... 3 minutes 58 seconds...

'It's the same as last time, but will it really take four minutes?' James mused.

He couldn't forget the system's response when he entered the portal in the Tiodon Kingdom. It told him he would only spend a minute in the portal. To his surprise, however, he had missed three weeks. What baffled him the most was that it didn't feel like he had spent such a significant time in the portal.

Now that system repeated an even longer duration, James felt anxious.

'If a minute resulted in three weeks outside, does that mean three months would have passed when we return? Why would the Caretakers generously hand us something so convenient?'

The thought alone frightened James. However, it also stirred his curiosity. After everything the Caretakers had done, only a fool would believe they were anything remotely close to being generous.

'Something big must have happened during the beast horde... it's a shame I can't communicate with the damned souls right now.' James mused.

Apart from Items in his inventory, he had lost contact with the damned souls he sent after Piri and the Caretakers, and the damned souls roaming the island surrounded by the Odon Sea.

Scanning...

Scanning Completed.

Location: Temporal Spatial Bridge.

Integrity: Imminent Collapse Expected.

Estimated Time Until Collapse: 1 minutes 09 seconds... 1 minutes 08 seconds...

'It's almost over... Hopefully, my body has built some tolerance to the side effects. Who knows what's waiting for us when we get there...'

Absorbed in his own thoughts, James quietly watched the system's countdown.

Scanning...

Scanning Completed.

Location: Temporal Spatial Bridge.

Integrity: Imminent Collapse Expected.

Estimated Time Until Collapse: 10 seconds... 09 seconds...

Just then, a blinding light illuminated the once dark Spatial Bridge. Before James could react, his body shuddered uncontrollably. While a deep ringing filled his eyes. He could neither open his eyes nor utter a word. He felt paralyzed from the waist down while iron balls bound his wrists.

Scanning...

Scanning Completed.

Location: Temporal Spatial Bridge.

Integrity: Imminent Collapse Expected.

Estimated Time Until Collapse: 03 seconds... 02 seconds... 01 second... 0!

'Damn it! It's happening all over again...'

The exact moment James had the thought in mind, a vortex opened in front of him. A second later, James crashed on a smooth surface. Albeit one that was strangely cold.

'Where the hell am I?'

James's blankly stared at his surroundings, however, everything appeared blurry. He had yet to readjust from the effects of the instant teleportation.

Just then, James felt something crash on his back. With his dull senses, he couldn't determine what it was. Let alone muster the strength to remove it.

A moment later, James's blurred vision returned to normal. Right where he lay, he could a see the boots of a youth. Only a few inches separated it from his face. What's more, he could see hundreds of youths laying on the floor.

'Fuck! Where the hell is this?'

James brows creased as he scrutinized his new surroundings. With each passing second, his frown only worsened. To his surprise, he was in a room similar to the room which had the White Rose Quartz. The only difference between the two rooms, was the increase in the number of unconscious youths.

'It seems the teleportation affected them more than me... This has to—huh?'

Mid-thought, a portal suddenly opened. From where James lay, he could see Henriksen slowly walking out of it. He looked haggard and pale. From James's point of view, the slightest push would send the former monk crashing to the floor.

'He can still stand? How?'

The moment Henriksen emerged, the portal instantly disappeared. At that same moment, Henriksen reached for his pocket. James could see him retrieving a vile containing a blue liquid. Wasting no time, Henriksen downed the contents of the vile.

A split second later, Henriksen's body shuddered uncontrollably. His breathing became short and quick. His eyes turned listless, while several black sores decorated his body.

James could see whitish red foams seeping from the corners of his mouth, while blood dripped from his nose.

'What the hell did he take? Has he always been sick?' James thought. However, he quickly threw the thought to back of his mind. Over the last couple of days, he had scanned everyone on the ship, and the system didn't indicate Henriksen suffered from any illness or curse.

However, James still had no idea what was happening.

Henriksen suddenly fell on his knees. With his head lowered, he vomited the whitish-red substance uncontrollably. A second later, James heard a slight echo.

Before he could determine its origin, he saw Henriksen reach for his vomit.

'What the hell is he—huh? Isn't that? System, scan that Item now.' James anxiously commanded.

Scanning...

Scanning Completed!

Name: Artificial Odon-Alloy Ring.

Nature: Impure.

Effects: The Item's impure nature delays the effects of the Item Odon-Alloy Ring.

System Recommendation: Item is useless to the User.

While James read through the system's message, Henriksen's pale countenance had returned to normal. And the various afflictions had also disappeared. He donned a wry smile as he stared at his surroundings. Wordlessly, he placed the artificial ring into his pocket.

At that same moment, he suddenly turned to the side. A deep frown distorted his face. His piercing gaze scanned the unconscious youths littered on the ground. However, nothing looked out of the ordinary.

'Hmmm... I could've sworn I sensed someone staring at me... was it my imagination?' Henriksen thought.

Slowly, his facial features returned to normal.

'It seems the others are in the hall already... They wouldn't be waking up any time soon. I might as well go chat with them...'

Having regained control over his body, Henriksen rose to his feet, before approaching eastern wall of the room. Less than five feet away from the wall, it parted. Revealing a bronze door.

Saying nothing, Henriksen pushed it opened, disappearing through it. A second later, the parted walls once again covered the bronze door.

At that moment, James opened his eyes once more.

'He would have caught me if I had been a second late... that bastard didn't even try to wake us up...' James thought.

After reading the system's message, James couldn't help but see Henriksen in a new light. Although he knew there was more to him than he usually showed, he never expected him to have an Item with such capabilities.

'If he has an Item like that, and he's still unable to leave this place, what kind of place is this Village?' James mused.

Just then, a delightful fragrance filled his nose. However, it was one James was quite familiar with.

'I can smell again... that means my body is recovering. But, why did it have to be her of all people?' James frowned slightly. He finally understood who fell on him earlier. An unconscious Aebalar laid on him, with drool seeping from the sides of her small mouth.

'Wait... this could be a great opportunity. System, tell me if there is anything that can harm my merged damned souls in this room. Hurry.' A devilish smile bloomed on James's lips as he stared at the youths.

Scanning...

Scanning Completed!

There are no threats to the Item—

"All of you come out!" James mentally commanded. He didn't bother to read the rest of the system's message.

At that moment, the few merged damned souls in his inventory appeared. They meekly prostrated on the floor not daring to say a word.

"You know why I have summoned you. Hurry before they wake up." James commanded.

"Yes, Master." The merged damned souls replied in unison.

Wasting no time, the damned souls jumped into the bodies of the nearest youth. At that same moment, the bodies of the youths trembled. However, they still remained unconscious.

Congratulations!

The User has placed The Soul Parasite Curse on 5 targets... 6 targets... 7 targets... 8 targets...

'Hahaha... this fucking fantastic. It's moments like these that make me endure my shitty luck...' James subconsciously licked his lips as he imaged the amount of Exp he would get from all the youths.

'Oh... That reminds me. I haven't listened to the reports from the damned souls I sent after the Caretakers.'

Due to the unexpected scene he witnessed after leaving the spatial space, James had forgotten about the two damned souls he sent after Piri and the Caretakers.

"System, what's the status of the two damned souls? Relay their messages." James instructed.

He couldn't stop himself from smiling as his Exp farm increased.

Item Status: Destroyed!

Messages: 200.

Commencing Message Relay...

Estimated Time Until Completion: 10... 9... 8... 7... 6... 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... 0.

Message Relay Completed!

At that same moment, James felt a splitting headache. However, it only lasted a few seconds. A moment later, James had a wry smile on his face which couldn't hide his confusion.

'So, that's what they went there for. I didn't want to be right... but it seems time really flows differently in the spatial space. I can't believe it's been three months already.'