Ava spent days reading books without doing anything else. And Josef never expected that.
He frowned as he stared at the crystal ball, he wondered what was she up to.
Ava wasn’t the type to be submissive. Was it possible that he was wrong in his initial judgment? He narrowed his eyes at the sleeping Ava. She looked so serene as she took a quick nap, a book was still on her chest.
Of course, he didn’t know that Ava was talking to the Shaman outside of The Pits.
"I must say... this is actually the best way to practice my ability." Ava smiled. Right now, she could stay outside of the pits for at least ten minutes. After that, she would become too dizzy, too tired to function.
"Dream Walkers are sought after because of this ability," the old man said. "We can walk on other dimensions and tell other dream walkers what we know. Many people would want that."
Ava nodded.
"Well, I knew that the Duke wanted to use this opportunity to test if I am a Daemon or not so I cannot really use my magick inside his house." Ava already told the Shaman about the Duke that had taken her captive. However, she didn’t tell him that he coincidentally looked like Matthew.
"Hey... what do you think about doppelgangers?" Ava asked.
The old man lifted his eyes from what he was reading and look at her.
"Have you seen one?"
"I don’t know. I think I saw someone." Ava said.
"They should have the exact opposite attitude of the— Though I haven’t seen one as of yet, I would love to find one and check the similarities."
"You are not talking about experimenting on them, right?"
"No. But I would love to meet one."
"Liar." Ava chuckled.
"Doppelgangers are said to have tremendous powers when ... they happened to meet. Though I cannot explain everything right now. We are running out of time. Do you have anything else... other than what you have told me before?"
"That’s it. I suspected that the one who opened the portal is a dream walker. Someone really good. As to why she opened the portal, I wouldn’t know. The histories that I found so far are fragmented. All legends. The only thing that they were sure of is the fact that it was a woman. Some say it was because her lover was a demon."
"Some say, she wanted to make a deal with the devil. Some say, she wanted to sacrifice herself to save a loved one." Ava started talking about various legends that she read about this ’other- worlder’ who opened the portal to the demon world, unleashing a catastrophe in the pits.
"I am currently inside the Kingdom called Erduva and people, I mean the natives are called Erduvian. They call us other worlder. From the books, they couldn’t really identify us from normal Erduvian but most other- worlder would immediately declare that they are one when they arrived. Most of the other- worlder in this world were in the North and South of Erduva where there is really no law. Nada. You can kill someone, rxpe someone, steal, or adultery."
"It was just one... messed up place." At least, in the capital, people are scared of the Dukes or General or King.
But the other- worlder who were forced to run to the south and north are just lawless. It was complete anarchy.
"I also discovered that once you get in, you will be transported into various locations. And some other worlders who transported on the north and south just never had the chance to explore the capital. I think the reason why Damon West has a high survival rate is that he was a Lord inside the Pits. He was born inside and people knew him as an Eduvian."
"Why do you think he travels out of The Pits?" The Shaman asked.
"Hmmm.... I think he might be a witch hunter."
"Oh?"
"I have a hunch that he is hiding his real self and the reason why he travels out of the Pits is that... he wants to kill people."
"A mere conjecture?"
"No," Ava uttered. "I think I heard James say those words before. But again, I cannot provide any solid proof."
"Well then... Damon West is a very well-known personality in the Mourning Pits. He has someone here and has established a pretty good reputation. I did my research about him before I sent you to the Pits and I knew that he owned a couple of properties on Earth. A beach house in Indonesia. A large mansion in Russia and Australia. The man is not playing it low."
"What’s his job?"
"Roughneck."
"Oil Rig?"
"Yes. Of course, we knew it was fake. But at least he has reasons to disappear for months."
"I understand." Ava nodded.
"So, this Duke. What was his name?"
"Oh... Duke Josef Asad."
"Asad, you say?" again, the old man changed his expression. He looked at Ava and frowned.
"Yes."
"Then I believe you should leave that place as soon as possible." freewёbnoνel.com
"Why is that?"
"That man... I’ve heard about him two hundred years ago."
"Uh....." She was about to say that Josef didn’t look old. But she knew that some powerful people simply don’t age.
"That man... is a Demon."
"A what?"
"Who haunts Daemons."
Ava’s eyes widened. She blink and thought about how Josef let her stay inside the room to read. She knew that he was watching him. That was the reason why she was reluctant to use her ability.
"Did you think Demons... looked like Monsters?" the Shaman asked.
"I— "
"Demons... the ones who were able to escape their worlds have different abilities and methods to stay in hiding. We call it camouflage. They change their appearance, make themselves look, humans." The old man sighed. "For now, the only possible reason why he had taken you is that he too must have suspected that you are a Daemon. So, you should get out of there as fast as you can and proceed to the arena. So, you can leave that place."
Ava stared at him. She pursed her lips and started to frown.
"You are hiding something from me," she asked "What is it?"
When the old man didn’t answer her, she continued, "Was it, Matthew?" Her heart started to thump loudly inside her chest. "What is it?"
"Matthew is fine if that’s what you are asking. However... Lycans are here."
"Lycans?"
"One of them is a bit too much but four at the same time is considered extravagant."
"You think... they are there for me?"
"No." The Shaman shook his head. "Even if they are here for you, there is no way that they could defeat you. Not at your current rate. You are more powerful than Babaylan and most witches right now."
"So..."
"I think they are looking for someone else. And I don’t want you to get involved."
"But they are not going inside, right?" Ava asked.
"Yes. They wouldn’t want to risk losing their memories when they go out."
Ava turned quiet. She couldn’t help but wonder if this has something to do with the fact that she’s a Daemon.
She knew it was impossible but she still couldn’t help but overthink things.
"Hey, old man?" Ava called out. "How many Daemons developed their abilities?"
The old man stared at her for a long time before he sighed. "I only knew one of them. He had been in hiding for... three hundred years. The last time I have seen him was in world war two. He pretended to be a priest."
"So, he is the good kind?" Ava asked.
In response, the old man snorted. "There is no good or bad kind. There is only the evil kind."
Ava pursed her lips, unable to utter another word.
"He became a priest to feed on fears of the dying and wounded soldiers. Do you know the despair that those soldiers felt in the infirmary?"
"I can imagine."
"That man... was evil."
"Then... can we see him when I get back?"
Again the old man didn’t answer her for a few seconds.
"Why?" he asked.
"I just— "
"If you wanted to confirm if you are indeed a Daemon then... I can help you. There is no need to see that old man."
"I see." Ava faked a smile. "Well then... I am running out of time. I think I should leave now."
Ava disappeared before the old man could say anything.
Watching at the now vacant space the old man sighed. Then he used his magick to remove the magick that barred anyone from eavesdropping on their conversation.
"Ava... will have a very hard time once she comes back," he murmured.
.....
Ava woke up and let out a loud gasp when she saw Josef Asad’s face just a few inches on top of hers.
"What— What the fuck are you doing?"
The man was staring at her with a blank look on his face.
What a creepy freak!
"Wasn’t it obvious?" he spoke without moving his face away. "I am staring at you."
She frowned. His smell was slowly suffocating her.
"Move away," she said.
But instead of moving away, he smirked and said, "I am really curious. What would happen if I kiss your lips?"
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