Book 4: Chapter 26: Sudden Change
-Mountain forest in the western districtâ¦
Lilith, Thea and Brea trudged through the dense forest, searching for the legendary Resurrection Grass that could restore Mr. Miguelâs memories.
âThis forest is too huge!â
Lilith cut her way through the dense primitive forest with her dazzling bejeweled gold sword while grumbling.
The forest that made up nearly 90% of the entire St. Caroline Academy was undoubtedly vast. In fact, most of it remained unexplored since the founding of the academy. It was no wonder why the place was overgrown with weeds, thorns and thistles everywhere, making it difficult to traverse.
âI really have no idea how long it will take us to find that Resurrection Grass.â
âDo you think youâre in the position to say that, Lilith? Arenât you the root cause of why we are in this situation?â
âNot me! I didnât do anything! Donât talk nonsense. No matter how you look at it, itâs Elder Mordâs fault.â
âDonât try to blame someone else!â
Thea followed behind Lilith and sighed, âDonât you feel the slightest guilt now that class is canceled and the entire class is helping you to find it?â
âNope.â There wasnât even a single trace of doubt in her reply.
ââ¦â
âBesides, didnât I offer a reward of five million to whoever can find the Resurrection Grass? Can you stop harping on this and move on already? People who always dwell in the past tend to lose direction in their life.â
Lilith suddenly stopped in her tracks while giving her life lesson.
âWhatâs the matter?â The others stopped too. Thea couldnât help but ask in concern when she noticed the serious look on Lilithâs face.
The latter looked around their surroundings and spoke gravely, âI think Iâm lost.â
ââ¦â¦â
Thea pinched Lilithâs cheeks and pulled them. âDonât talk about life when youâve already lost your way! Canât you just be useful for once?!â Thea wailed.
âHow wud I knoooo? Iâbe been here beporee but por zome reason I got lost.â
âReally?â Thea asked skeptically.
Lilith turned her face to escape Theaâs evil clutches.
âOf course! Although I often blame others, I never lie!â
âStop saying such things while looking smug!!â
Thea massaged her temples and looked around the unfamiliar surroundings. âIf Lilithâs memories didnât fail her, how come weâre lost? Although this is indeed a vast forest, it shouldnât be vast enough for us to get lost in it.â
âThatâs right.â Lilith nodded solemnly. âIâve never lost my way.â
âSays the person who got lost the first time she was here!â
ââ¦â¦â¦â
âUmmâ¦â Brea, who had been silent up until now, suddenly spoke up. âA-Actually⦠I sensed something was wrong from the very beginning.â
âWrong? What do you mean?â
Brea pointed around. âHavenât you two notice that itâs been too quiet since just now?â
âQuiet? Isnât that expected in an uninhabited ancient forest like this?â
âNo, wait.â The smile on Lilithâs face suddenly faded and she continued solemnly, âI think what Brea meant is that⦠thereâs not even a single living creature here.â
âNo living creature? For real?â
âOf course.â Lilith looked back at Thea. There were still traces of gold in the depth of her pupils.
âThis place isnât only devoid of living creatures, it is also boundless. There are no changes in the scenery no matter how far you look.â
âThatâs a problem then.â The expression on Theaâs face turned grave. âLooks like we might have walked into someoneâs trap.â
âBut we are only a bunch of new students. Would anyone go through all these troubles for us?â
ââ¦â¦â
âHuh? Hold it right there! Why are you two looking at me?â
ââ¦â¦â
âWow, donât tell me you guys think itâs my fault again. I have tolerated you all pointing your fingers at me about Mr. Miguelâs incident, but Iâll be pissed no matter how well-tempered I am if you all keep pushing every responsibility to me.â
âAfter that offensive speech you delivered during the opening ceremony, it wouldnât be a surprise if someone bore grudges against you.â
âIs it my fault if someone bore grudges against me? If thatâs the case, then the apocalypse is the veggiesâ fault!â
âHey, veggies are innocent okay? Just how much do you hate eating veggies?!â
âHmph, in any case, this has nothing to do with me. Right, Brea?â
âUm⦠Actually, I also want to believe that Lilith is innocent, butâ¦â
Brea pointed to an old crooked tree that was blocking their way. Its trunk was thick enough that it would take a few people to completely wrap their arms around it.
A few prominent wordings were engraved on the old treeâs thick waist.
âGet ready to pay the price for your arrogant speech, you arrogant flat-chested b̲i̲t̲c̲h̲!â
Thea looked at a certain body part on the three of them, then nodded. âHm, itâs obvious who is flat-chested here.â
ââ¦â¦â¦â
âIf I found out which b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲ is behind this, Iâll definitely strangle him to death!â
Lilith kicked the old crooked tree furiously, wishing so badly to tear apart the guy who was behind this dirty trick.
However, Lilithâs kick didnât connect.
The old crooked tree rippled like water. It was as though Lilithâs foot went into a lake, causing her to lose her balance.
âLilith!â
âL-Lilithâ¦!â
However, both Thea and Brea reacted too late.
Lilith couldnât even recover in time before an unexpected burst of powerful suction came from the old crooked tree. As a result, she was sucked in before she even had the time to put up any resistance.
Thea and Brea looked at each other. They hesitated for two seconds before Thea clenched her teeth, grabbed Breaâs hand and ran toward the old crooked tree.
However, when Thea kicked on the tree trunk, her kick connected even though it wasnât supposed to.
It was a real tree!
The expression on her face contorted. She didnât expect to fall into the enemyâs deadly trap of separating them before they even found out who he was.
âBe careful, Brea! The enemy is probably trying to separate us before attacking us.â
âOh, you are quite smart, little girl.â
A voice that sounded totally different than Brea came behind her.
Thea turned her head back stiffly, only to realize that it wasnât Breaâs hand that she was grabbing.
It was an alluring woman who was a total stranger to her.
The woman licked her lips like sheâd just seen a piece of delectable treat.
âYouâre such a smart little girl, I bet your brain must be delicious.â
â¦â¦
At the edge of the forest in the western districtâ¦
After completing a whole set of warm-up exercises, Mr. Miguel, the class teacher of Class 9 of first-year, looked at the sun and mumbled to himself, âThe little bunnies should have fallen into the trap by now.â
An extremely cruel smile crept across his lips. The amnesiac-looking Miguel was long gone.
âWell then, the wolf should also get into position.
âI wonder how long these little bunnies could survive under the hunt of this big bad wolf, especially the one named Lilith who added two more bumps on my head. Iâm really looking forward to finding out.â