novelraw Chapter 60: Caught Between Lies
Chapter 60: Caught Between Lies
The group walked out of the rocky mouth of the cave, leaving carcass of the Siren and rubble which were the remains of Verso’s golem.
Verso was busy dusting off his hoodie, his hands moving with annoyance as he tried to brush away the dirt he had accumulated from rolling across the cave floor.
He looked back into the cavern one last time, but the darkness of the cavern remained still. They had been unable to find a second Siren in the depths of the cove.
"I am not enjoying this." Lua said, her voice dripping with an aristocratic disgust.
She held out the Siren’s tongue, gripping it with only two fingers as if it were a piece of rotting shit.
This disgusting trophy served as the official confirmation of their kill, a spoil that they were required to submit to the examiners stationed outside the dungeon gates to secure their points.
As they stepped onto the open beach, Verso noticed a shift in the atmosphere.
The coastline was no longer empty. Dozens of other students had managed to make their way down the mountain, making their way near the coves in desperate hopes of finding a Siren.
When their eyes landed on the bloody tongue in Lua’s hand, the surrounding air grew thick with their obvious greed.
’So that’s why the examiner stands outside...’ Verso realized, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the surrounding groups.
The exam wasn’t just a test of hunting capabilities against monsters, but also their capabilities in dealing with other humans.
The scarcity of Elite rank creatures meant that not every group would encounter a Siren, let alone kill one. Which meant that the real test began the moment a team secured a trophy, making them the main target of other candidates.
"Don’t worry, brother. They won’t dare make a move against us." Han’s cheerful voice cut through Verso’s dark thoughts.
Verso looked over to see Han smiling at him, the cultivator still had his golden revolver in his hand ready in case a fight broke out.
"Nobody in their right mind dares to make an enemy out of the Blood Clan."
Moon, walking at the rear of the group with his massive greatsword resting on his shoulder, let out a loud laugh.
"I think they’re all more scared of the Feng Clan, Han."
Hearing their casual banter, Verso’s understanding of his misfit team deepened.
’Both of them must be from incredibly high ranking clans.’
He didn’t know the specifics of clan politics, but the way other elites, who looked powerful in their own right, behaved around his group was a clear indicator that the Bloodveil and Feng surnames were not just meaningless titles.
"But scum, you actually won me over!" Moon shouted, suddenly closing the distance and slapping Verso across the back with enough force to nearly send him face first into the sand.
"I did not expect you to do something so ballsy. Honestly, I thought you had no stones at all!"
Moon laughed louder at his own joke, but Verso only offered a tired sigh.
He ignored the stinging in his back and focused on the blue light of his status window, flicking it open with a thought.
[✦Summoner Window✦]
Name: Verso
Title: -
Talent: [Endless], [Son of The Seas]
Core: Apprentice (0%)
Stats:
[Strength: 10]
[Agility: 10]
[Endurance: 10]
[Mana: 10]
Summons: [Nameless Skeleton], [Sea Serpent], [Stone Golem (7)], [Stone Gargoyle (3)], [Minor Stone Golem (19)]
’I’m already starting to lose my summons...’
The realization was like a cold bucket of water.
If he had to sacrifice multiple golems every time the group encountered a Siren, he would be drained of his frontline within the hour.
Although, the self destruction strategy was effective, it was also very expensive, like a luxury he could not afford in a long term hunt such as this exam.
’I need to be less aggressive. This is the real world.’ Verso thought. He couldn’t risk getting caught off-guard without any protection.
He glanced at the name of the Sea Serpent in his list of summons.
He had kept it tucked away during this hunt as he was unwilling to reveal his ultimate trump card to people he still did not quite trust yet.
Looking at the faces of Lua, Moon, and even Han, he knew none of them were as simple as they appeared. They were likely hiding their own Elite summons, waiting for a moment of true desperation to reveal them.
"Do you guys think it would be better for us to break off and go hunting in two groups?" Xavier’s voice cut through the silence.
The blonde boy had been quiet since the kill, but his suggestion was grounded in solid logic.
With their current combined strength, they had absolutely decimated the first Siren. If they split up, they could cover more ground and potentially double their point intake.
"Actually, what if we do three groups?"
To everyone’s surprise, the voice that proposed the idea was Verso’s.
Xavier and Moon both stopped, looking at him with varying degrees of confusion. Verso kept his expression neutral, but his mind was racing.
’If I can break off from them, even for a little while, I can finally use my Sea Serpent.’
During the fight in the cave, Verso had felt the stinging inefficiency of his actions.
With the lake in the center, the Sea Serpent would have been the perfect counter to the dwelling Siren.
He could have literally finished the fight in half the time without losing a single golem.
"Three groups?" Moon mused, his eyes glinting.
"The scum wants to go solo? Or are you just that confident in that skeleton of yours?"
Verso froze. He felt a sudden, heavy weight on the side of his face.
He slowly turned his head to see Han staring at him. The usual bright, eccentric smile was gone from Han’s face. Instead, the green haired boy was looking at Verso with a dead look.
He had a cold, piercing gaze that seemed to see right through the secrets that Verso was trying to hide.
It was the look of a predator who had just caught a prey animal in a lie.
’What the fuck is up with him?’ Verso thought, his heart skipping a beat.
’No way... Does- does he already know?’