Chapter 69: Riddle Me This

Chapter 69: Riddle Me This

"Calm down," I knew the gist of the situation. This years exam had some bloodthirsty participants.

"B -But! There were people from the clans who died!" The mans legs buckled under him.

Wasn't he supposed to be the sketchy guy? Why was he panicking? Only exorcists who would have taken part in the exam got killed.

I looked at the paper that had appeared on top of my bed. It was here because of a special ability that only targeted the students. Everyone who slept through the night got one.

The paper didn't smell weird and wasnt made of Ord. Some kind of teleportation ability brought it here.

"Gem and Bets, since we are a team, we will leave first. Agon, Sei, Anika, good luck," after saying that, we went out of the room first.

The exam had already started.

Staying together might become even more dangerous, since Agon was a trouble magnet. I learned that the hard way on our last mission.

At the bottom of the paper was a riddle 'Eight towers dance as one, gloating at the sky, while crying on the river.'

I ripped the note. "Bets, Gem, rip your papers."

Gem looked confused, but they both followed my words without question.

The time we spent apart hadn't ruined our synergy and trust. If we get our teamwork right, we might survive without losing a limb or two.

We walked into the town, and everyone talked about the latest news.

"Did you hear there were fourteen dead at the inn?"

"Some corpses of the deceased were missing."

"Was it some kind of civil war amongst Exorcists?"

"Tsk, exorcists slaughtering each other. Isn't their job to deal with monsters?!"

Bets looked perturbed by this, and he clenched his fists. In contrast, Gem didn't seem to care.

"Don't worry about what they say," I reassured them. "The riddle hints at where the next part of the exam will be at. If participants can't find it, then they fail the test."

"Have you deciphered the riddle already?" Bets glanced at me. He had an expectant look in his eyes.

No, I hadn't solved the riddle. But I already knew the answer.

Kons clan? Yeah, they were pretty sketchy. But the dude at the shop wasnt that bad. However, he looked like the kind of guy who would sell weird things. Well, he sells odd things, so his looks matched his job.

Hey, can we stop fighting? Do this later, after the exam, Agon tried to defuse the situation.

Dont worry. I will deal with this bastard in a second. I know his special ability, and he has no idea what mine is. Anika snorted.

No, this wasnt about who would win! They had to work together as a team, or they would all fail the exam!

If you two dont stop fighting, I will get involved too. Agon clenched his fists. Ord burst out of him like tidal waves, shaking the building they were standing on. The tiles under his feet started cracking. If youre going to act like this, then I will give up on the exam. It doesn't matter how talented you are! At the end of the day, you two will be known as nothing more than losers who failed the exam!

Sei and Anika glanced at him and said nothing at first.

Anika sighed and reabsorbed the Ord back into her body. Sei followed along, letting his mirror dissipate into particles of light.

Then they all started running outside of the capital. Anika had already deciphered what the riddle was about. Probably Sei did too, but neither directly stated where they were going. Only Agon was left in the dark.

As long as we arent fighting, I dont mind being in the dark about the plan. Agon had been in a similar situation with Kons team. He had known nothing, but in the end everything ended up alright.

Once outside the capital, they ran on a grassy field. Agon sniffed the air to make sure no traps were around.

Their journey was interrupted when a figure standing in their way waved at them. Everyone on the team halted and released their Ord.

Hey there, youngsters, the man looked to be in his thirties and had a stubble of a beard. Seems like you figured out the gist of the exam. But intelligence needs to be accompanied by power if you want to become an Expert Exorcist.

He wore a dark cloak with a white jumpsuit and looked like one of those comic heroes. Seeing a full-grown man in a hero suit in real life was lame. But Agon wasnt the guy who would discourage someones hobby.

You look lame in that outfit, Anika, on the other hand, wasnt that sensitive. I can see your beer belly about to poke out and rip up that spandex.

Hahahaha! Instead of feeling insulted, the exorcist seemed to take it well. Thats funny! Sorry, but I was at my kids birthday party. With the whole massacre thing, I didnt have time to change outfits.

Anika was about to go with another insult but didnt get the chance, the exorcist leaped toward her at breakneck speeds.

Despite his silly looks, the man was fast!

He took out a sword, and Anika winced as the surrounding Ord formed into small balls of energy and blasted toward the attacker. His hand flashed, and he cut through all the blasts. Too bad little girl, this is a Magic Weapon that can scatter Ord with a touch. It was specifically made so blasts wouldnt explode in my face as I cut them.

The man swung his sword at Anika without an ounce of hesitation.

Wasnt this supposed to be a test?! Why was he going for the kill?! Did he lie about his identity so they would drop their guard?

Agon felt the world around him slow to a halt.