Chapter 33- The Unworthy and the Champion(VIII)

Chapter 33 - The Unworthy and the Champion(VIII)

"Here goes nothing!"

Immediately after reaching the lake, the trio exchanged quick glances and dove in, not wasting even a tiny second. 

The black water was surprisingly not the murky mess they had anticipated. Swimming in it was a strange delight. The cool liquid wrapped around Raven like a second skin, smooth and calming, almost unnervingly so.

A smile reached the corner of Raven's lips as he continued diving. 'I don't see anything out of the blue… heh, no pun intended.'

'Weird, why is ❰Seventh Sense❱ silent? This is a monster's lair for god's sake. I expect it to be blaring like there is no tomorrow. Do something.'

Raven channeled ether in his body, boosting his swimming speed and negating the water pressure on his body. He continued diving, looking for more clues. He couldn't linger here for long. Time was not on their side.

'Hmm…?'

Trix signalled to him and Kai. She pointed in a particular direction, towards something at the bed of the lake.

 The trio hurriedly rushed to the region. Their eyes widened almost instantly as they spotted something a few feet away from them.

'What the hell…'

 'Let's get a closer look.' 

They looked at each other and nodded, all of them having the same idea.

As they got within inches of the item, their minds buzzed with numerous questions. They hovered inches from a skeleton draped in tattered remains.

Raven was bedazzled. 'A chained skeleton, most likely a woman from the pieces of clothes around it… but why?'

His gaze shifted. 'What the hell is that? Wait…wow!''

The trio came to the lair in search of answers. At this moment, one of their questions was very much answered, but in its place were more perplexing questions!

The female corpses!!

A circle of the corpses of the female victims, arranged in a grim, ritualistic pattern, had materialised behind the skeleton. 

Raven examined the skeleton. He still couldn't sense anything from it, but he had learnt to be resourceful and not be overly reliant on ❰Seventh Sense❱. He looked around and discovered a name on the metal plate of the chains— Mary Anne. 

'Mary Anne? That confirms my theory that the skeleton is a female. But what role does she play in all of this…? No, I'm rushing deep into this, getting ahead of myself. I should start from the beginning. How did the skeleton get here?'

'Well, it looks like it was chained… it was chained? '

Then it hit him. The skeletons, the chains, the lake, the eerie stillness— it sure as hell wasn't a random death. It was an execution.

Death by drowning!!

Raven pieced everything together, finally seeing the big picture. He wanted to laugh wildly at the grim realization, but sadly, he was surrounded by water and he definitely didn't want to meet the same fate as Mary Anne… no disrespect intended.

The trio had each reached a certain understanding of the situation. They quickly left the lake; they weren't about to test their luck just yet.

Immediately they emerged from the lake, Raven turned to the others and said, "The monster is the least of our problems."

Trix and Kai asked , "What do you mean?"

"I believe you think the monster—"

Raven opened his mouth to speak when a voice interrupted. "Hey friends, what did you find?" 

A boy and his friend approached them.

Kai frowned and said, "Fuck off!"

"Don't be like that. Let's work together. We don't have to be hostile."

"Like I said, fuck off! Talking about teamwork… where was that energy when Sereya Voss and her company asked for help. And don't act like they didn't, because there's no way they wouldn't want to expand their number advantage. Perhaps if you had not chickened out, they would have finished the job."

The boy snorted, "I could say the same for you, Serpent!"

More and more people gathered around the spot. Some didn't waste time and jumped in, wanting to see for themselves what the group of Serpent saw in the lake, while the others turned to Kai expectantly.

Kai laughed, "Unlike you toddlers, we arrived at the grove last so we were not aware of Sereya Voss' intentions. Whatever, I'm done with this."

Kai signalled to Raven and Trix and the three of them ignored everyone. They began to move, but the group blocked their path.

"Where are you going? We are not done here. You have something to tell us."

Kai clenched his fist. "You are that dumb, huh? What a plight for your noble parents. You probably get locked up at family gatherings so they can't show off their stupid little embarrassment."

"Say that again!"

It seemed a fight was ready to break out. Raven and Trix prepared their minds as the group approached them with raging expressions.

"Because if you weren't dumb, you would realize that our time to gather information in the lake is rather limited. Meaning the main priority is to be as fast as possible before the monster returns. Yet, here you are, wasting your time with someone who has already achieved his objective."

The shift in the group was instant— anger gave way to alarm. Realization hit them hard; they were among the few who hadn't explored the lake yet.

"Braston, we have to go!" the group urged the boy they looked to as their leader.

Braston smiled, "You can go ahead. I will be right behind."

The group rushed into the lake, leaving Braston with Kai, Raven, and Trix. 

Braston chuckled as he looked at Kai. 

"What is it? Do you want something? A lollipop?" Kai hissed.

Braston's face was that of perfect composure. He calmly walked up to Kai and whispered in his ears in a low, chilling voice, "I know who you really are, Malachai. I know what you are. We all do. And despite the Serpents' effort to hide that, I know where you came from. You and every serpent, foul stains on this society. And trust me, the nobles have plans for you."

Kai froze. Braston's word has landed deeper than anticipated. He stood motionless, even as Braston smirked and walked away.

"Kai."

"Kai."

"Kai!"

Kai finally snapped back to reality, turning to Raven and Trix, "What?"

Trix said, "What do you mean 'what'? What the fuck was that? What did he say? Wow, he really got under your skin, huh? What did he say?"

"Serpent business. It's nothing to worry about. Let's go. The others are waiting for us," Kai said, brushing it off.

Throughout the way back, Kai's eyes were clouded, distant, as if lost in deep thoughts.

As soon as they returned, Malyk and Leve shouted , "You are back!! Did you find it? All the examinees left shortly after you. We were starting to worry something bad had happened to you guys."

Trix smiled, "It's all good. In fact, we might have struck gold."

"Really! That's awesome," Leve beamed.

Malyk looked at the silent Kai and asked, " What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know. You can ask him later, but right now, we need to get our head around this. Honestly, I think I might miss my bed." 

"Sure… Oh by the way, we have got a guest. Some weird guy who refuses to leave."

Trix whistled, "Sounds like a fun dude. Where is he?"

"I'm right here!" A voice called out from above.

Raven spotted a mysterious looking figure clothed in a thick garment, lounging on a tree branch. There was something off about him. ❰Seventh Sense❱ reacted to his presence, sending waves of intense sensation his way.

Danger. Extreme danger.

Raven kept his composure but inside, he was prepared for just about anything at this very moment, absolutely on high alert. 

The trio climbed onto the tree and discussed.

"So, who are you?" Kai shot a deadpan look.

"Just a fun dude." the mysterious individual joked.

"...."

"Alright. Alright. I came here because you guys seem to be making good progress. I mean, you are very close to uncovering the truth of the monster. I believe I can be of help."

"Help? What do you gain out of it?"

"Fun. And I get to pass time while helping my new best buddies. Believe me, some of us are not really interested in solving this preliminary exam."

Raven asked suddenly, "What's your name? You never told us. Shouldn't you lead with that?"

"Oh, my bad. I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Peter Parker, your friendly neighbourhood examinee."

Everyone rolled their eyes. The dude obviously didn't want to say his name. They had a lot of questions for him but for now, there were more pressing matters at hand.

"Now that the introductions are done. Spill the tea. What exactly did you see in the lake?"

Raven shrugged, "The monster is the least of our problems."

"The monster is not the core of the supernatural presence, is it? I expected that," smiled the mysterious individual named Peter Parker.

"No. The real source should be the skeleton. It belonged to a woman, who was most likely executed by men. She was chained to an iron ball and thrown into a lake. I imagine that could cause a person to go mad, and when they go mad, their emotions are left unchecked. Unchecked emotions in the world of supernatural could sometimes lead to—"

Trix finished his words, "Curses."

Peter Parker nodded in agreement, "A very nasty curse."