As Ferrin's feet slowly got illuminated by the light peeking inside the dark passage. Screams and shouts rang around.
Welcoming him... on stage.
"KEEEE!"
"KKKKK!"
Ferrin's steps remained unperturbed.
The light crept up his feet and lingered on his bewitched face.
Aria remained seated in her throne- Ferrin's arms. And unknown to anyone, her eyes quivered under the intense noise.
The two girls, despite standing in Ferrin's shadow sweated as if they were being steamed alive.
Their eyes trembled weakly as they sized up the near hundred something monkeys standing tall with their buff chest puffed out.
Their arms leisurely folded over their chests. Their mouth busy roaring aloud- pumping adrenaline even through the inanimate all around them.
All theirs eyes pierced through Ferrin.
Their feet rose and and stomped the ground, their erect tails striking down again and again.
"KEEEEEE!"
THUD! THUD! THUD! THUD!
Yet the blessed one... ignoring his blessings like an ungrateful scum.
His eyes trailed behind the monkeys, onto the glass stairs leading even higher.
In the middle of the stairs stood the Dwarf.
And up above, on the upper empty floor, Ferrin could see him through the thick glass... the mastermind. The fiend... the orchestrator of this mess.
The one responsible for Aria's suffering. The cause of Ficko's and Paul's death. The reason of Aoci's despair!
It was him! All him!
Genius!
"KKKKEEEE!"
The shrill scream plunged with venomous hate passed through the transparent roof and echoed in the Genius's ears.
He tilted his head, his closed eyes shot open. He gazed forward for a while, before he looked down, at Ferrin.
"You..."
The monkeys' screams died down.
"Didn't have to announce your presence. At least me... I can always recognize your scent." Genius chuckled, "There's something unique about it!"
The conditioner's stopped cooling and instead switched to spreading heat.
But the environment already chilled to 16 degrees would take time before creating the unnecessary heat.
"KEEEEE!"
Ferrin's heart throbbed more and more crazily. His swollen eyes blew up even more.
"Now! You can walk up these stairs and leave those pawns of your's to fend for themselves... that includes her!" The Genius's finger pointed down towards Aria.
"KEKK!" Ferrin didn't need words to show he rejected.
"Or you can stay there, down with my pawns. And play with them until you kill them. Once you step up here, if the pawns are alive, they will kill your pawns! If the monkeys are dead, your pawns are alive, no body! As long a they stay here, not even Death itself shall take them away from you! Hahaha!" His eyes lit up, his tongue peeked out, moistening his lips. His eyes turned into arcs.
His preposterous words ringing in everyone's head. The monkeys laughed, the girls gulped and Ferrin... mocked.
"HAHAHAHA! Oi puny insect," His eyes were bloody, his veins swollen, "If God desires it! In this very instant death will come for you! Who are you? An insecure insect, one who doesn't know if he's going to live to fight me or not, daring enough to proclaim the safety of my people? Humph! Bug! Start counting, your hours... are limited!" Ferrin bared his fangs. Hissing arrogantly.
"As for your pawns!? Albeit I pity them for choosing a retard as their leader, they will all... die!"
Claws pierced out of Ferrin's hand. Freezing the air, slowly turning it cold.
"Hmm! Truly... truly strange. You are very special indeed. You always do the expected! But you do the expected in an unexpected manner." Genius chuckled, his eyes turning malicious, "Pawns... move!"
THUD!
THUD!
THUD!
Ferrin's pupils thinned down, 'I need to keep... mom safe!'
Ferrin stepped back, retreating in apprehension at their single step.
His feet traced back further, Seilo's eyes lit up, she grabbed Ano's hand and walked back into the passage. Hiding in the darkness.
"Leave her to us!"
Ferrin chuckled hearing Seilo's words. How did she always catch on?
His tail wrapped around Aria, before gently delivering her back.
The monkeys watched silently, they wouldn't... they couldn't move until Ferrin initiated.
His strategy was simple as well. Keep the girls and his mom in the passage, kill the monkeys as they try to rush behind him- to his mom and the girls.
Seeing them remaining silent, and only pressuring him by take a heavy step, Ferrin felt mocked, but it wasn't his concern.
He sighed heavily, closing his eyes to catch his breath before shooting them open.
"Come!"
His claws pierced out, His tail swaying left and right. Ready to smash up somebody.
***
On the top most floor of a tower, Loki glanced down at the abyssal-pit from the broken wall.
"Is it... planning on chilling there forever?" Sike scratched his cheek awkwardly.
Night had fallen, the sun had risen yet... the Giant didn't even let out a growl for a long time.
Loki pushed his glasses and moved towards Tipp.
There was a screen in front of him.
Showing two different things, one was the Giant.
Legs crossed as he sat on the ground, eyes shut, arms crossed.
For the last many hours!
"Is it ever gonna stop its meditation? Or is it a pesky coward?" Posco slammed his fist into his palm. His brows knitted together.
"Who knows..." Vop shrugged his shoulders, his gentle smile still on his face, "Maybe he's just really tired and is contemplating whether to become a good guy?"
Loki sighed, 'These juniors...' Another sigh.
"It's definitely no coward... just that, it's no fool either. Its probably choosing its next plan or... maybe has already set it in motion." Loki's glasses reflected bright.
The Guardians instantly turned tense, their fists clenched tightly.
Their eyes involuntarily shifted to the Giant, his solemn figure morphed into a scheming Devil.
"But it can be that its not so smart and is just sitting like a headless duck?" Julet raised a brow.
"...You wish to propose we head down?" Loki shifted his attention to her.
Julet chuckled before she gazed into Loki's eyes, her smile receding, "I think its better than sitting here, having no clue of anything."
Loki kept a straight face for a while, his lips trembling as if he was suppressing something, but he couldn't keep it in and burst out in it, "HAHAHAHAHA!"
"No clue? What do you mean?" Loki swaggered towards her and pierced into her eyes.
The guardians stared at him in bewilderment.
"Everything... everything it has done, everything that it's going to do. Its plan, is its cooking it up? Is it already in motion... everything is laid bare to me." Loki's eyes turned cold and aloof.
"Listen juniors, you will one day have to advance to a second circle, then third circle. You need to stand on your feet, towering and powerful. I am letting you practice, figure out things on your own! But know... I won't let you die!" Loki's eyes squinted slightly, "No matter what!"
The guardians gulped... even in their wildest dreams they didn't imagine that Loki could... peer into other people's mind without permission.
Some of them sweated, fearing Loki might've heard what they said... ahem thought.
"T-The fourth circle!" Tipp suddenly exclaimed, his eyes quievering as he gazed at the screen.
Loki pushed his glasses and while maintaining a composed posture hurried to the screen.
The second screen, on which the horrifying number of monkeys were busy standing around the edges of streets of a particular area, a woman walked over.
The earlier sight of Ferrin had all been captured, but the Guardians didn't move... they couldn't leave the Giant unguarded.
They were curious of the monkey guarding the girls, but Loki shushed their curiosity by telling them the fourth circle was on the case.
The bored guardians slowly surrounded the screen.
***
Hinomi walked aloofly, her presence startling the monkeys into actions.
Her whole body was covered in dried blood. Even her silvery white hair looked to by dyed red.
Her blood colored eyes mingled in with her same face.
Last night, she kept killing every monkey trying to reduce the weight on Ferrin. But then suddenly the monkeys started fleeing and dispersed around.
She chased and killed as many as she could thinking she could cause the monkeys to entre a do-or-die mindset.
Yet the monkeys didn't even budge and kept fleeing from the corpses of other monkeys, mostly from the one killing them.
Hence she gave up trying to kill them and rested the night far, far away from anywhere near this place. Now that she woke up, she felt an ominous premonition coming from this place, so she hurried here coming face to face with this hellish scene.
She took a deep breath seeing the monkeys charging over and tightened her grip over the intricately designed red spear, "Come, I will certainly kill you all! But I am not an ungrateful person, hence I say my thanks for showing me the way this clearly."
With a whoosh, she vanished from the monkeys' eyes. Ass they looked around cluelessly, blood started to drench the ground.