Revealed identity.

Well, it must be 1 p.m. now. We took a carriage to the other end of Peor. There we will find the area most affected by the First Impact in Whitfield's history. Although I no longer want to keep thinking with Julian in front of me. It's a bit unsettling. We are sitting in the carriage facing Julian after he attacked us at the academy. Even with my eyes closed, I have that feeling of being alert. Plus, there was no other option; you can't travel first class every day, especially if someone else is paying for it (Julian paid for it).

"Hey, Julian, doesn't this carriage offer anything for free? Like a snack..." I ask shamelessly.

After a few minutes, Julian opens his eyes and speaks to us.

"Regarding the rescue mission: According to reports, the woman was kidnapped along with her team while they were in a carriage on their way to the hunting pit, and the chances of it being the work of a monster are high."

He completely ignored me.

"..."

"Could any of you tell me about the places where monsters reside?"

And out of nowhere, he comes up with that. Obviously, he knows the places, but maybe it's to tell us something.

We glanced at each other to see who would answer. Of course, it wasn't going to be me, so I signaled with my eyebrows saying, "all yours." Sorry, buddy, it's not that I don't know the answer, I just don't want to answer Julian.

"..." I sigh.

After sighing, Jinta, following my humble response, replies:

"After the first impact, the affected area left a pit from which monsters began to emerge to the surface. At the same time, those who were affected, perhaps by the energy wave, developed Sico abilities. They fought to contain the monsters and managed to lock up at least the majority in a pit designed by the 5 nations."

And also that both the pit they emerged from and the pit where they are imprisoned have been sealed. Therefore, only we have control and no monster can escape.

"Very well, but you forget another detail..."

Julian continues:

"Although we know that both the pit they emerged from and the pit where they are imprisoned are sealed and no monster can escape, how do the monsters appear on the surface?"

The answer is obvious.

A fossil fissure. The size of the fissures can vary, and through them, the surface connects with the pit where the monsters reside. They appear out of nowhere, and through these fissures, they can come and go as they please.

We all knew the answer, so we waited for Julian to continue with his point.

"And I haven't even mentioned it yet, but the carriage we're in is the same one where the woman disappeared with her group."

He's connected all the dots.

 "So that means we're not going to the hunting spot, right? But then, how do you know where it is?" Jinta asks Julian.

"I don't know, the monster leads us to it," Julian calmly responds.

Jinta seemed surprised by the response... it's normal, the stronger the Sico, the sharper their senses are. Smell also helps us detect monsters. The smell is described as putrid. I smelled it too, but I thought it was for another reason...

After a few minutes, Julian hits the carriage forcefully. It was like a signal that he wanted to get off. He probably already realized that we were about to arrive.

The carriage stops, and the driver is the one who has to open the door. For some reason, my heart felt pressured. I knew what would come next. I know there are many other variants that can control someone. I have to convince him.

"Julian, listen, there are other variants. It's not necessarily a monster just because it smells like one."

Julian remains attentive to the door and I continue:

"They might be controlling it!"

Julian doesn't take his eyes off the door, but I must continue:

"Even if you let him live, he could be useful for the investigation!"

Julian doesn't seem to care about what I'm saying. Still, I have to continue:

"There are diseases, and you know that very well!"

It's useless, let it go. Don't continue, don't persist...:

"The man might have a family!"

...

The man opens the door and Julian... kills him...

It was a quick death. covered his hand with a sharp piece of glass that quickly pierced the man. There was Julian, a blond man with slanted blue eyes and a sense of justice that many admire.

Despite everything, I don't know why I worried. I mean, it's ridiculous, isn't it? I knew he was going to die, I knew it. I even knew I could save him another way, but I chose to deny myself rather than lift a finger. Jinta and I get off the carriage with the equipment.

"Teo, were you saying something?" Julian asked me as he removed the man.

"No, it was nothing." I replied, avoiding him.

I just approached and took the dead body away.

"What are you going to do?" Jinta asks me.

"I'll leave him inside the carriage."

And so it was. In the process, I see a small pendant fall off him, one of those where you put a photo, but I prefer not to look.

At that moment, I thought maybe I wanted to try to avoid this not out of any sense of justice, let alone sentimentality since I didn't even know him, but maybe for some reason, he reminded me of the boy I once was and at some point forgot...

Now calm, I look at the landscape. Apart from the carriage, there were some ruins a few steps away that were broken but still retained much of their structure. We're in a flat area, so the path to the ruins was flawless.

Upon entering the ruins, each of us focused on finding the fissure. These fissures look like portals, and their sizes and colors can vary. They're usually no smaller or larger than the size of an average person.

"Julian, Jinta! Over here!"

I found it.

I called the guys, and when they arrived, we set off, entering one by one...

We entered. The look of the place wasn't different from that of a cave. However, its red color was quite striking. It was a red that constantly changed to darker shades. The only path we could take was straight, as there were no other passages, but maybe later we would find some. Now, the biggest problem is where we are, as it only connects to the hunting pit. We have no control over which underground it will take us to. It could take us to sub 3, which is for beginners, or to sub 56, where you need to have a little more experience to go there.

In other cases, the fissures transport people to secret passages.

"Alright, let's go straight. Teo, does your Sico need any condition?" Julian says to me before we proceed.

"Something from the person."

Actually, I don't need any of that.

"How about this?" From his pocket, he takes out a handkerchief.

"Alright, that works for me."

I take it nonchalantly. Although from its appearance... It's a woman's... oh... What did he use it for?... wait... wait... I start smelling it and let my imagination fly. Yes, one day, after a exhausting battle, he takes out his handkerchief and starts wiping the sweat from his face, slowly down to his neck...

"Teo, what are you doing?"

I can't answer you, Jinta. I'm combining her essence to find her with my Sico... Yes, Sico...

"Does it really work for you? I used it to dry his dog." Julian says.

"..."

You're a monster, Julian, in every sense...

"Alright, let's go straight as you said." I say without further ado.

...

We move forward in silence, and that already means clear concern... Where are the monsters? A few seconds later, something bumps into me.

"???"

"Teo, look!" Jinta points at me.

Yes, it's a hadin. They're like surface fairies, small balls of light with wings, but they live in the hunting pit. The only difference is that they're guided by sound, as they're blind.

The hadin were approaching me along with about 4 more and started pulling me. They were doing the same with Julian, but he was crushing them. In contrast, no hadin touched Jinta.

"What are they doing?" Jinta asks.

"They're trying to lure me into a trap to kill me."

"What?!"

Haha, I know it's strange that such cute creatures want to do something like that, but all these monsters share one thing in common: they all feed on the pit, so my death will contribute to their feeding. Of course, they were pulling me in the same direction we were going, so there was no intention of resisting, besides, they were very weak, of course.

"You should kill them." Julian comments as we keep moving forward.

The truth is, yes... but I want to try something.

After a moment, not only the hadin but also my Sico guided me in the same direction.

It's a narrow path to another place. We stopped for a while before continuing and killing the hadin that had accompanied us this far.

"That means it's a trap, right?" Jinta comments.

"Yes, it could also be the reason why there are almost no monsters around here." I reply to Jinta, killing the last hadin.

We enter....

The path led us to a much larger place. The now phosphorescent blue rocky structures were the only thing around us, and the only way out seemed to be the way we had come in.

"Oh."

In the distance, we only saw the feet of a person. She was hidden among some rocks, but she seemed unconscious, so we rushed to help her. We pulled her out of the rocks, and Jinta tried to help her. But Julian and I had the same concern. There was no trap, no monster in sight. Everything was empty, except for us and the woman.

"Teo, is this the area?" Julian asks me.

"Yes, I'm sure."

From his expression, my answer didn't seem to convince him, but that doesn't dismiss our mission. So, Julian, seeing the woman a bit more awake, carries her on his back and starts walking to exit through where we came in.

Similarly, we grabbed the equipment, and both Jinta and I followed Julian.

I remained a bit pensive... the truth is, I just observed.

"JULIAN!"

"!!!"

With a brief glance at the woman, I saw her true form. Silently, she opened her mouth, releasing her fangs to devour Julian, but he noticed in time and quickly let her go. Fortunately, he succeeded, with only a part of his garment torn by her teeth. Failing in her attempt, she propelled herself with her feet from his back and flew through the air until she landed behind us.

We were all on alert. The girl spat out the torn garment, and, pointing to the background behind us, exclaimed:

"Ah!"

The three of us turned around... and there was nothing. So I thought: she escaped or she's about to attack one of our necks. I just thought of something to throw at her in case I wasn't the victim. And yes, once again she was about to bite Julian. Her speed is incredible, but not as much as my throw, so instinctively I throw the bread I had in my jacket, and I say instinctively because later I regretted it. When the bread enters her mouth, stopping her a bit, Jinta binds her and gags her with his shadows, and Julian with a blow sends her flying.

The woman was tied to the ground, trying to free herself, but it was in vain.

"Teo, check again where the woman is..." Julian tells me.

"True, if it's not her, then..."

I started. I looked around, but I didn't detect anything. Still, I felt the need to look up, and there I noticed something. On the ceiling, there were some camouflaged pods with the color of the cave. There were a total of 6, like a nest of spiders. While I was staring at it for a while, Julian noticed it too.

"Alright, let's go over everything. The truth is, I can't be calm having it near me." Julian says calmly.

What?

"What's on the ceiling must be the handiwork of the shapeshifter." Julián was referring to the woman who was trying to deny it.

"And the one who stole your identity, Teo, has always been with us."...

"Although to enjoy tearing it apart, let's call it by its real name, right, Jinta?" Julian said, forming a sword with eyes of madness.

"Or rather... Darkness."

Both of us looked at Jinta, and he just smiled maliciously.