End Of The First Round

Delilah's footsteps echoed down the passageway. Not too far in front of her was a massive door with a small circular slot at its base. After stabbing Avic in the back and leaving him to die, her next goal was to find the exit and finish the first round. She was certain that the door ahead was the exit.

However, as she drew closer to the door, she noticed that two figures were standing by with looks of confusion on their faces. She immediately realized that they were Zane and Chaz. Quickly, her sadistic smile was replaced by a fake look of sorrow. She started walking slowly and her gaze touched the ground.

"Hey, isn't that the girl the other guy was with?" Queried Zane to Chaz, taking note of Delilah's presence.

"It looks like her. She seems to be holding something in her hand too. It's giving off a heavy amount of Hemo Energy."

Delilah then took a deep breath and came to a stop before them. She even appeared to be crying.

"Where's the other guy?" Asked Zane.

"I... I'm sorry... We found the key to leaving this place but then something terrible happened! We were attacked and he was brutally killed by two strange monsters... But it's only thanks to him that I was able to obtain this orb..."

Delilah then rose the orb so that Zane and Chaz could see it.

"He died getting this? What is it?" Asked Zane.

"It's an orb... I think we need to use it to open that door. It seems to be the key we need to leave this place."

Zane hissed, "Damn it..! So that idiot was right after all. The correct path was to the left. As for us, all we ran into was a couple of Drowned before ending up here. It pisses me off that he died like that!"

"I'm sorry... I wish I could have been more helpful... But even though Avic died, he wanted me to escape with you guys. We shouldn't waste any more time here! We should hurry and use the orb to leave this place before the other competitors beat us to it!"

Zane agreed with an annoyed look on his face. As for Chaz, he remained quiet, staring at Delilah intently. Delilah immediately noticed this.

"Chaz..? Is something wrong?" She asked.

"It's nothing. Just that there's a little blood on your clothes. I guess Avic must have died a pretty gruesome death for his blood to catch you."

"Oh... Yeah, it was quite horrible... I don't want to think about it anymore. It just wasn't a fair way for him to go!"

"In any case, let's hurry and get out of here," prompted Zane.

Zane then took the orb from Delilah before shoving it into the slot at the base of the door. It fit perfectly with a satisfying click. It immediately glowed to life, filling the door with blue Hemo Energy. A second later, the door rolled open, revealing a strange black portal. It looked similar to the one they had fallen into.

Quietly, they walked through the portal before finding themselves out on the school's field. There were already around 32 students who had made it back alive as well. This included Eliisabet who had managed to clear the dungeon with a very reliable team.

By Eliisabet's side was Custos who had come to see the results of the first round for himself. They watched patiently, desperately waiting for Avic to join them. Eliisabet was especially worried. She still hadn't gotten the chance to apologize to Avic about the incident from the previous day. She was determined to apologize to him as soon as she saw him.

"I hope Avic's okay..." She muttered.

"Let's keep waiting. There's still time," comforted Custos.

"I know... I'm just a little worried..."

"Well, I can agree with you there. I have a bad feeling that something isn't right. It's like there's an itch that I can't scratch."

Just then, an unknown man approached them, grabbing their attention. The man then stopped by their side, looking at them intently. This slightly placed Custos on guard.

"Who are you?" Questioned Custos.

"I'm sorry to bother you. My name's Chaz."

"Okay... Is there something you need from us?"

Chaz then carefully looked around, as if to ensure that no one else was listening before continuing.

"I apologize, but I overheard your conversation just now. Are you friends of that guy named Avic?"

Eliisabet and Custos froze as soon as they heard his question.

"Yes! We are! Is something wrong?" Questioned Eliisabet quickly.

"There is. Avic was a part of my team just now. We were split up momentarily but when we were supposed to get back together, the girl he was with came back without him. According to her, he was brutally killed by some strange monsters."

It felt as if time had stopped moving. It wasn't possible. Chaz had to be lying. There was no way that Avic would have allowed himself to be killed by a group of strange monsters. Eliisabet quickly covered her mouth as tears came to her eyes. She refused to believe it.

"That can't be right! You're making a mistake! Avic isn't the type of guy to allow himself to be killed so easily!" Shouted Custos.

"Keep your voice down and don't panic. I wasn't finished. I didn't see him die nor did Zane—the other guy on our team. The only thing we know is that Delilah claimed to have seen him die. But if I'm, to be honest with you, I don't believe she's telling the truth."

"What do you mean..?"

"She claimed that Avic was killed by those monsters, yet still she was able to escape with the orb. That doesn't make sense to me. If the monsters had already killed Avic then it would only make sense for them to attack her next. But she returned to us without a single scratch on her and she obviously didn't kill those monsters either."

"Just get to the point already! What are you trying to say?!"

Eliisabet trembled, "No... I understand what he's trying to say, Custos. The orb she found couldn't have been taken unless those monsters were defeated. Those monsters are called Water Knights! They're not weak! I know this because the same thing happened to my team! Unless you're working with your teammates, it's very difficult to defeat them!"

"That just makes it even stranger now," continued Chaz. "Delilah struggled to fight a few Drowned. I doubt she would be able to take on two Water Knights by herself. What truly stood out to me was the fact that there was blood on her hands and clothes. I can't say for sure what happened but I doubt your friend was killed by those Water Knights as she claimed. Something else happened between them that Delilah isn't telling us."

Custos clenched his teeth and folded his fist in rage.

"Where is she?!"

"I'm not sure where she went. But I think you guys should wait and see if your friend comes out of that place before you confront her. I was just letting you know what happened. I wish you luck in finding Avic."

"Yeah... Avic's always late..! Maybe he's just lagging behind again..." Said Eliisabet hopefully.

Chaz then walked away, leaving them behind. As for Custos and Eliisabet, they continued to wait for Avic but he never came.