CHAPTER 49: FINDING SOMEONE WITH A SIMILAR POWER

The two slowly made their way down the stairs, careful not to step in the wrong place and risk falling.

Lindy was visibly thrilled by it all.

For a moment, it seemed she had even forgotten they were stranded on an island, not knowing if they would ever make it out alive.

"This is all so incredible," she said. "There’s a chance we’ve stumbled upon something extraordinary. Can you believe that?"

Damian was excited about the discovery as well, but he also felt a certain fear. A place like this could certainly be dangerous.

They had no idea what to expect once they went inside. The unknown was thrilling, but at the same time, frightening.

The two kept descending the stairs until they reached an area that was a maze of stone-carved tunnels.

Now they had a choice to make: move forward, or head to either side.

There were three possible paths. Lindy stood there thinking, trying to find any clue that could indicate the right way.

"And now?" Damian asked. "Any ideas?"

Lindy used her wind magic to scout ahead. She sent out gusts of air, letting them flow in each direction.

After a while, she said, "I think the best option is to go straight ahead. It feels like there’s a larger area there."

She couldn’t tell exactly what was there, but it was enough to guide them.

Damian trusted her and followed. The two moved forward, the sound of their footsteps echoing inside the abandoned tunnel.

At any moment, something could happen. Damian was constantly scanning for traps or anything else that could harm them. Lindy was doing the same.

"I’ve explored some demonic ruins before, and usually there aren’t that many traps, but it’s better to stay alert," Lindy said.

With her experience, Lindy knew much more about this kind of ruin than Damian, so he let her take the lead. It seemed like the smartest thing to do.

There was nothing inside that tunnel—no decorations or unusual features, only the rough stones making up its walls.

Eventually, after walking for about five minutes—it took that long because they were moving slowly—they finally reached the area Lindy had sensed with her magic.

It was far larger than they had imagined. The place was absolutely massive.

However, it was filled with water! It looked like a huge pit completely submerged.

The water was crystal clear, but so deep that it was impossible to see what lay at the bottom.

"Do you have any magic that can help us here?" Damian asked.

But Lindy didn’t answer.

He called out to her again, but nothing.

Damian stepped closer and looked at her face. Lindy seemed petrified! It was as if something had frozen her in place, leaving her unable to move.

He quickly checked her pulse—she hadn’t been turned to stone, she was simply frozen like that—and she seemed fine. Damian let out a sigh of relief.

"At least she’s still alive," he murmured. "I just need to find a way to bring her back."

But in that situation, what on earth could Damian even do?

He had no idea what had paralyzed Lindy, nor how to bring her back to normal.

With that massive pit of water before him, he also had no clue what to do next. Where could he even go?

"Whatever did this to her must be inside that water-filled chamber... but honestly, I’m not jumping in there," he thought.

Just the thought of diving into that water without knowing what was in it filled him with a deep, primal fear. Very few people would have the courage to enter such a place.

That’s when a voice suddenly echoed inside his mind, catching him completely off guard.

"Hel...lo," the voice said.

It was somewhat feminine, yet raspy at the same time. It spoke with difficulty, as if it had gone a very long time without uttering a single word.

"What the hell is this?" Damian said, stepping back.

No one could stay calm after hearing a strange voice speaking directly into their mind. It was downright sinister.

After a few seconds, the voice managed to form another sentence.

"P-Please... help me get out of here."

"Who are you? And why would I do that?"

The mysterious voice was slowly becoming more fluent.

"If you help me, I can restore your friend to normal... and I can also give you something in return. Please... I’ve been trapped here for many years."

Damian wasn’t stupid.

A creature trapped in this place for so many years? One thing was obvious—it was dangerous and probably needed to stay locked away.

He wasn’t foolish enough to just release something like that. But then, the creature said something that caught his full attention... and made it hard to outright refuse the offer.

"I can feel it... you have the ability to absorb demonic parts to become stronger... What if I give you something to absorb? I can promise you, you’ll grow far stronger now—and even more powerful in the future because of it."

Damian was deeply unnerved.

How could that creature—a demon—possibly know about his power, the one that came from his mysterious system?

This was absolutely not something he had expected to hear.

Before saying anything else, Damian asked, "Is my friend hearing what we’re saying?"

"Of course not. To her, it’s as if she’s in a dream. You can say whatever you want—she won’t know," the voice replied.

Damian felt more at ease speaking with the demon now.

At least he was certain his secrets would remain secrets, and that Lindy wouldn’t know anything.

"And tell me—how do you know I absorb demons?" Damian asked.

There was no point in pretending he didn’t know what the demon was talking about. That would only make him look like an idiot.

The creature chuckled.

"You think you’re the first in history to have this kind of power? I know because I’ve met others with the same ability before—and I can feel it radiating from your body. So tell me... what will it be? Are you going to help me or not?"

"And how exactly am I supposed to help you? It’s not like I’m some powerful person," Damian said.

"And what would guarantee you won’t kill me... or destroy the entire world?"

Damian was already assuming that this creature must be extremely powerful—powerful enough to be imprisoned here and still know about others who possessed a power similar to his own.

It was a being that had lived for a very long time, and now it was trapped. That alone meant it was strong enough to cause serious destruction in the world.

"Why would I destroy the world if I need a place to live?" the creature replied.

"And right now, I’m weak—I need to recover. You can free me if you become my host."

The word host was far from comforting. Damian shuddered at the thought of letting a creature like that live inside him. It felt... deeply disturbing.

"And if I say no?" Damian asked.

"Then your friend stays the way she is—paralyzed. And I’ll just have to wait for someone else to come here and help me. Besides... you’ll be left wondering who else has the same kind of power you do."

"And I can tell you this—they’re alive, scattered all over the world, and some are even planning to destroy the world."

That really was something that shocked Damian. Apparently, there were humans who had the same power as him and who were ALIVE at that very moment, somewhere in the world.

Could it be that they only had the ability to absorb demons, or did they have the same System as him? The question was driving him crazy, but he said nothing.

"This creature didn’t say anything about a System, so maybe the others don’t have one, or she doesn’t know what it is," Damian thought. "I’ll keep it that way."

He then decided to accept the proposal. The curiosity was too strong. Besides, it was the only way to save Lindy, and he would also gain a boost in power, which was something he wanted.

"I accept your proposal," Damian said, "but how can I be sure you won’t kill me in the future or destroy the planet?"

"You’ll have to trust me on that, boy," the creature said. "Besides, I’ve lived on this planet for many years and never destroyed anything, so why would I now?"

Damian decided to take the risk. After he accepted the offer, the creature revealed itself to him. It was simply impressive and terrifying at the same time.

The demon was a gigantic aquatic serpent, but the most impressive thing was that, near the creature’s head, there was a woman trapped, completely naked. This woman was the one who had been speaking to Damian.

"Are you a serpent or a human?" Damian asked.

The answer shocked him. "I was like you once, but I ended up absorbing too many demons during my life."

The woman then began to glow, and that entire massive body transformed into a small white pearl, which flew toward Damian and entered his body.

A strange sensation took over his entire body — it was a bit painful, but it soon passed.

After that, he could hear her voice in his mind, and he could also speak to that woman.

"Now you just need to touch your friend and she’ll return to normal," the woman said. "And now, I’ll give you the power I promised."