Chapter 441 [Event] [Semester-Exam At Vanadias] [29] The Worst Human

Chapter 441 [Event] [Semester-Exam At Vanadias] [29] The Worst Human

"Wake up."

A sharp, throbbing pain shot through my cheek as I groaned, barely conscious. My eyes fluttered open, and I squinted at the blur of movement beside me. A thorny vine, dark green and glistening with moisture, pressed against my skin. It wasn't just poking—it was tearing into my flesh, leaving thin trails of blood.

It might have almost been cute, the way the vine nudged at my face, if it weren't for the unmistakable sting of pain. But then again, this was Alvara we were talking about. I suppose I should be grateful she didn't wake me by ripping off a limb entirely. Small mercies, I suppose.

"We're in the 10th zone," she said. "Now, tell me what you know about Bryelle."

I blinked several times, trying to clear my vision, but everything remained a muddled blur. I could barely make out the silhouette of her figure. The shapes and shadows of the world swirled together in a haze, a sign that something was very wrong.

"I—" My voice cracked, as I clenched my eyes shut against the agony that throbbed through my body. "I need to kill that Viper King..." The pain clawed through me like fire, searing every nerve. I could hardly feel my limbs, numb and useless.

"What did you just say?" Alvara's voice was so cold that I could nearly feel the cold onn my skin. I didn't need to see her clearly to know that she was glaring at me, on the edge of ripping me apart—this time for real.

"I brought you here...to this bloody 10th zone," she hissed, her voice filled with contempt. "Now, you're going to tell me everything I want to know, or I swear, Amael Idea Olphean, I'll kill you where you stand."

"Language, Princess Teraquin."

"Die!"

"W–Wait! It was a joke!" I yelped.

"I've had enough of your jokes," she spat. "I'll end you right here, and leave this accursed forest behind. What will happen to Christina then? Orphaned, because of your idiotic, ill-timed humor."

Her laugh followed, but it wasn't a sound of amusement—it was definitely the laugh of a Major Antagonist.

Ah. She snapped.

"Don't kill me, please!" I shouted, stuttering for my life!

She couldn't kill me yet!

"Oh, begging now, are we? At least now you're making yourself useful," Alvara sneered, amused by my begging.

But I didn't care about my dignity!

I still have things to accomplish! Nôv(el)B\\jnn

"I still haven't had my first night with Ephera and Layla! Kill me after that, if you must!"

"Shut. Your. Mouth!" I barely had time to react before another thorny vine lashed out, this time sinking deep into my arm. It pierced straight through, tearing through flesh and muscle with horrifying ease, pinning my arm to the ground beside my face. I could feel the warm blood pooling beneath me, but somehow, the blinding pain brought a strange clarity, eclipsing the poison coursing through my veins.

She was really going for the kill.

But I couldn't die here, not yet. With a shaky breath, I tried to push through the fog in my mind. "Just... just kill that Viper King. I need... I need to make the remedy with the flower. I'll tell you everything..." My hand fumbled weakly, reaching into my pocket, pulling out a delicate, half-crushed flower. "It's... it's about Utopia... and your sister..."

There was silence. I let out a long, shuddering breath, my body trembling uncontrollably. My Life-Screen should have triggered the emergency signal to the staff by now. They should have come, should have taken me out of this place already. But the forest was eerily quiet. Alvara got rid of all the monsters we faced and no staff appeared.

Where were they?

The answer was all too clear. Something had happened to them. The staff was either dead... or incapacitated. It started.

"We don't have time..." I murmured before falling unconscious.

***

ALVARA

"..." I stood over him, looking down at his pathetic form. His face was drenched in sweat, his chest heaving with ragged, uneven breaths. The way his muscles twitched beneath his bloodied and torn clothes told me enough—he was poisoned. Not just any poison, either. This was potent, gnawing at his insides, slowing his heartbeat. I should've felt satisfaction. Yet, as I stared at his miserable figure sprawled on the ground, something about it irritated me. He was unsightly, pathetic, barely clinging to life—and it made my eyes twitch with annoyance. The image of him, broken and powerless, should have been gratifying. But instead, it filled me with a strange discomfort.

I wanted to leave him here, abandoned to the mercy of the poison coursing through his veins, and be done with it. I had more pressing matters, like joining Bryelle. His mention of her name still echoed in my thoughts. What did he know about her?

But what he said...

"It's... it's about Utopia... and your sister..."

Why did he mention Utopia? Of all things, why them?

I had been so careful, so cautious. No one was supposed to know. Yet somehow, he seemed to know...

Did he realize I was involved? How much did he know? And what could he possibly have to tell me about them?

He also knew something about those filthy hybrids being in this forest...

"Who... are you?" I found myself mumbling, almost to myself. The longer I looked at him, the more I questioned. He wasn't normal. There was something about him that didn't belong. He was out of place.

Why did he seem to know more than I did? I gritted my teeth and without a word, I summoned my sleek, thornless vines. They unfurled like serpents, coiling around his broken body. This time, I was careful, wrapping him tightly yet cautiously. I would find the Viper King. I would end this farce. And when it was over, I would pry the truth from him myself. If he survived, that is.

My elder brother should have already taken care of Mother. He should be on his way to find me, to find Bryelle.

But before that I have to learn what he knows about Utopia because he wasn't lying, he knows something.