The woman introduced herself as Donna.
And then she told us more.
“There were at least five vile monsters — bloated bodies, three legs, two tentacles. Most of their hideous forms were made up of large gaping jaws. They came one night and started attacking the village. We tried to fight them off, and ended up driving them away. But many of us didn’t survive the night.”
As she gave us a brief tour of the settlement — or what was left of it, at least — Donna told us about the attack that happened three nights ago.
Both Michael and Kang seemed to grow more and more confused the longer Donna spoke. They were about to ask something, but I jumped in before they could.
“For an attack this big, why is no one outside of here talking about it?”
Donna looked at me silently for a moment, then replied, “The media has been suppressing any news of Spirit Beast attacks.”
“That makes sense,” Kang muttered, as if he’d just connected a few dots. “If they broadcasted news like this freely, it could turn into mass hysteria within minutes.”
It was nice to see he wasn’t a complete idiot after all.
“What about the damages?” Michael asked, clearly still trying to process everything.
Donna shrugged, a sharp, bitter motion. “The Knight Order shows up after every attack, fixes the damages as best as they can, pays people off to shut their mouths, and has them sign non-disclosure contracts.”
Once again, Michael looked confused, his brow furrowed like there was something that didn’t quite add up, but he couldn’t quite find the words for it.
Before he had the chance to stumble through it, I cut in.
“They’re going this far to cover it up?” I frowned. “Media cover-ups are one thing. That is standard. But non-disclosure contracts?”
Kang scratched his chin thoughtfully, a look of realization dawning on him. “And aren’t you technically breaking the law by telling us this, if you signed something like that?”
I rolled my eyes.
Scratch whatever I said earlier. This guy was a complete idiot.
“We’re authorized by Apex Academy to investigate this matter,” Michael interjected, his voice a little too smug for my liking. “One could say we’re backed by the Central Monarch herself. Donna here would be breaking the law by withholding information from us — Obstruction of Justice.”
As Michael tried to explain something that should’ve been common sense to a toddler, I turned back to Donna, picking up where I’d left off with our questioning.
I asked Donna about a lot of things, slipping in my own suggestions and viewpoints without ever directly voicing my ideas.
She stayed composed as much as she could while I pressed her for more.
But there was a slight tremor in her voice when she described the aftermath of the attack.
“There wasn’t much left after they retreated. Crops were trampled, homes torn apart. The village’s water supply was contaminated by the vile blood of those abominations. We managed to survive, but at a cost. More than half of our fighters didn’t make it. And now… it’s just silence.”
Michael was listening, but he just massaged his furrowed brow, clearly troubled.
Kang, on the other hand, looked like he was balancing on the edge of understanding, his head tilted slightly to the side like a curious bird.
“And the bodies?” I asked, breaking the silence.
Donna hesitated. “Taken. All of them.”
“Taken?” Michael paused. “By whom? Y-You… surely you don’t mean the authorities, do you?”
Donna’s lips pressed into a thin line, and her hesitation said more than enough.
I leaned in slightly, my voice dropping low and firm. “Donna. How did you all survive those creatures? No offense, but none of you seem like fighters.”
Donna hesitated for a brief moment. “You’re right. We aren’t fighters. We did what we could, but we only survived because the police showed up in time. And because we had Rob to help us.”
Huh?
I expected the first part, but the second bit caught me off guard.
I glanced toward the city gates. “Rob? I figured he was tough, maybe ex-military, but I didn’t realize he was an Awakened.”
“Oh, no. He isn’t,” Donna shook her head. “He’s just a sniper who’s never missed. He’s been a huge help, and he’s still helping.”
Kang scoffed. “That old bastard? Right.”
“Kang!” Michael quickly shot him down.
There was a brief, forlorn silence hanging in the air before Donna took a trembling breath and continued. “You see, that night we all lost someone. For Rob, it was his son. And his daughter-in-law. Now, he has no one left but his granddaughter. She’s an Awakened, just like the three of you. Rob wants her to join a respected Hunters Academy when she’s old enough — and she’s almost there. That’s why he needs the money. That’s why he guards the village day in and day out. So, forgive him if he acted out. He’s desperate and grieving.”
By the end of it, Donna had her face in her hands and she started sobbing uncontrollably.
Kang looked like he didn’t know what to do. Michael didn’t seem any better. And neither did I!
Look, I had experience in most things, and I could talk my way into or out of nearly anything.
But comforting a crying woman? That was new territory. I had no experience in that!
Women are generally very happy with me!
What the hell was I supposed to do here?!
Thankfully, after a while, she calmed down on her own.
“I’m sorry,” she said, her voice tired and still a little shaky from all the crying. “It’s been a hard couple of days.”
“It must’ve been a brutal battle,” I said, trying to reassure her.
And then finally, Donna said the one thing I’d been fishing for since the start of this interrogation.
“It was,” she agreed. “Those abominations… they were so hideous and… scary. The way they attacked us, it was even more dangerous.”
“What do you mean?” I asked immediately, practically jumping on the opportunity.
“I don’t know,” Donna shrugged. “I’ve never seen many Spirit Beasts, but from what I’ve read, they were nothing like it. The creatures we faced… they seemed intelligent in their attacks. Almost like they could understand what we’d do. It was to the point where even the police had trouble dealing with them.”
“I see,” I nodded, my tone neutral. “Thank you, Donna. Your help is much appreciated.”
We shook hands before she went on her way. We told her we’d talk to a few more people before heading back ourselves.
As we walked off, Michael seemed lost in thought with a deep frown on his face. “What do you think that was about? Intelligent Spirit Beasts?”
“That’s not possible unless the Spirit Beast is ranked Greater, Ancient, or higher,” Kang chimed in, reciting the obvious. “Unless you actually think that’s what we’re up against.”
“Please,” I scoffed. “If there was even a Greater Spirit out, this whole place would’ve been flattened, let alone an Ancient one.”
“So what do you think happened, genius?” Michael shot back, irritation creeping into his voice.
I stayed calm and shrugged. “It was night. Donna was scared. She saw things that didn’t make sense, so her mind shut off. The Spirit Beasts weren’t intelligent. Her subconscious just exaggerated the fear.”
After a moment, Michael narrowed his eyes. “So you’re saying she was paranoid?”
“Exactly,” I nodded. “Unless you believe there are Infant or Minor Spirits capable of showing intelligence.”
Michael opened and closed his mouth a few times, looking like he wanted to argue just for the sake of hating me. “M-Maybe these are some new, evolved Beasts?”
I grinned to myself, despite how ridiculous his suggestion sounded.
“Yeah… sure, that could happen,” I said flatly. “Or maybe there’s a simpler explanation. Like, maybe instead of being intelligent, someone could…”
I let my words hang in the air, watching as Michael’s tried to process the possibilities.
It didn’t take long before his eyes shot wide and realization sat in. “Someone could be controlling them!”
There it was.
I’d been trying to set that trap since the start.
I needed Michael to reach that conclusion on his own.
I needed him to think that it was his idea so he’d own it without feeling threatened by me.
He was stubborn.
Anything I’d have suggested, he probably would’ve just rejected it because he hated me.
It was better this way.
The best excuses are always the ones we make to ourselves, after all.
Just to plant a seed of doubt further, I waved my hands dismissively. “Nah, on second thought, it was a stupid suggestion. I don’t think that’s what could be happening.”
Michael, being himself, latched onto the idea he thought was his own. “No, that’s exactly what’s happening!”
And as we continued talking to others, that seed of doubt continued to take root, growing slowly, while I subtly misdirected his focus from the real threat.
