Chapter 560: Swaying Bodies [1]

"You—!"

The unexpected appearance took everyone in the group aback. However, they were also just as quick to get ready as they surrounded the figure, their nodes churning and their bodies ready to deal with what was before them.

But contrary to their expectations, the figure remained nonchalant as he analyzed the hanging body.

"Mhm, he’s certainly been dead for at least an hour."

As if confirming his thoughts, he turned to face their direction. The moment he did, Esteban’s expression underwent a subtle shift as his entire body chilled at the sight of the dark eyes that greeted him.

However, he was quick to shake himself out of that state as he recognized the figure immediately.

"It’s you?"

There was simply no way Esteban wouldn’t be able to recognize him.

In fact, everyone recognized him. How could they not when he was the man of the hour? The most popular person in Congress.

But there was an issue—

"Who would’ve thought I’d see you here?"

A voice echoed from behind Esteban as a tall figure stepped forward, his frame even larger than Esteban’s. As his bushy brows furrowed tightly, Drake pushed Estaban aside and stood before Seth.

In Drake’s presence, Seth looked tiny.

"...Oh, it’s you."

Seth also appeared to recognize him.

How could he not?

"You’re the guy who ranked behind me."

"You—"

"Work hard."

Seth pulled his gaze away from Drake, not looking at all interested in having a war of words. In fact, he seemed more interested in the body that was next to them.

Drake’s expression changed slightly, his lips parting, but before he could get any words out, Esteban walked forward and pressed his hand over Drake’s shoulder.

"Now is not the time. Jordan is dead."

Drake’s lips closed immediately, but his glare grew more intense.

Esteban sighed in relief.

While it was true that he was the Squad Leader of the team, the strongest person in the group was Drake. There was a clear difference in their ability, but the issue with Drake was his attitude.

He was rather hot-headed.

"Let’s figure out what happened."

"There’s no need to figure it out."

Seth suddenly spoke, pointing at the rope tied over Jordan’s neck.

"He killed himself."

"What sort of nonsense are you spouting?"

Drake blurted out, unable to hold back as he took a step closer to Seth.

"We’re all trained professionals over here. We all take the most advanced mental examinations. Jordan is also one of the most elite members of our Guild. Someone like him would never commit suicide."

"Well, he did."

Seth shrugged, seemingly unfazed by Drake’s pressuring gaze.

He was, in fact, unfazed. He had seen too many things. There was also the fact that they were in hell.

"Haa."

Drake took a deep breath, closing his eyes to keep his cool. At the same time, he turned to look at Esteban.

"I’ll look for whoever is responsible. The body is still warm, so it can’t have happened long ago. I don’t know how this happened right under our noses, but I’ll get to the bottom of it."

"...You won’t find anything."

Seth’s voice echoed once more, causing Drake’s expression to turn even more.

But just before he could say something, Esteban spoke.

"Why do you think so?"

Unlike Drake, he actually wanted to hear his opinion. Not only was Seth ranked higher than Drake, but he had also ranked at the very top in the First Trial. There was no way the input of someone like him wouldn’t be of any use.

’Perhaps, he might even know where we are.’

"This place is affecting your minds. I’m sure you’ve noticed it. The longer you stay, the heavier your thoughts become. Your chest starts to feel empty, and thoughts you’d never once considered begin creeping in."

Seth’s words caused the expression of the group to change subtly.

"What bullshit!"

Drake suddenly spat, his eyes narrowing as he turned around to look at Seth.

"I’ve been trying to hold myself back. From the moment I saw you, I wasn’t exactly pleased, but I kept quiet for the group’s sake. But you’re making that difficult. What would someone at the Second Order really understand about this? How can you spout such nonsense? What thoughts? My mind is completely clear."

"That’s because you need a mind for you to hear anything. I’m also not talking to you, am I?"

Seth looked in Esteban’s direction.

From the start, he was clear with the group’s hierarchy.

"You—"

"Stop."

Esteban raised his hand to stop Drake from saying another word.

Narrowing his eyes, he alternated his gaze between Jordan’s body and Seth. He appeared to be lost in his own thoughts, the silence around them dragging on before he eventually nodded his head.

"I believe what you said is true."

"Squad Leader?! Why would you—"

"Stop letting your prejudices affect your mind. It’s because you’re like this that I’m stuck being the Squad Leader when you’re far more qualified than me."

Sighing, Esteban moved towards Jordan’s body.

Stopping right before it, he analyzed it carefully before speaking again.

"Not long before we spotted the body, Jordan was with us. That’s why we never took notice of his disappearance. Since he probably killed himself an hour ago, someone or something pretended to be in our group."

"...Likely."

"However, the moment we arrived here, there was no longer a fourth member with us."

"..."

"Then you suddenly show up out of nowhere, and you explain all of this?"

Esteban calmly looked in Seth’s direction.

He didn’t attack or do anything. Instead, he calmly looked into Seth’s dark eyes. For some reason, they seemed even darker than before as he stared back at Esteban.

"I’m sure you understand where I’m getting at, right?"

"I can see your point, yes."

But surprisingly, Seth was still relatively calm.

He didn’t look at all fazed by the suspicion directed at him.

"I certainly do look suspicious if you put it that way."

"I’m glad you know."

Esteban nodded.

At the same time, Drake’s figure appeared right behind Seth.

"We’re not going to harm you. However, until we figure out what’s going on and whether you’re truly with us, I’d like you to cooperate."

"....."

Seth looked around, feeling the not-so-friendly gazes from those around him.

He had the ability to escape or even fight them.

But—

"Sure."

He smiled.

"I’ll co-operate with you."

***

I wasn’t tied up or anything of the sort.

However, it felt as though something was locked with me as the group before me closely analyzed the dead body. They asked me questions from time to time, and I answered to the best of my abilities.

Of course...

"You really don’t like me, do you?"

I looked at the big guy in front of me.

His attitude since the Ranking Announcement hadn’t changed one bit.

"I do not like you."

He was also rather straightforward with his replies.

"I still do not believe that you deserve the spot that you’ve achieved. I’ve worked tirelessly throughout my entire life to crack the top 100, and yet, out of nowhere, you come and take over the rankings with minimal work. I do not like it."

"...Is that so?"

That certainly made sense.

’But I wonder if there are more people here. If so, should I try looking for them too?’

As I sat next to one of the trees, I continued to monitor the surroundings. I made sure to check if there were any anomalies in the surroundings, and as the minutes passed, I eventually spotted something.

"There’s an anomaly coming not far from here. North."

The group paused, all eyes turning toward me as Esteban looked at a skinny man with an extremely pale face. The moment Esteban glanced at him, he closed his eyes. Judging by that reaction, he was probably the team’s

[Hunter].

Lines formed on his forehead as he tried to look for anything, but...

"I can’t feel anything."

As he opened his eyes, he shook his head.

"...There’s nothing."

Drake’s lips twisted with scorn.

But before he could say a word, I extended my hand and activated

[Trait Transfer].

He reacted almost immediately, but I laughed.

"Hahaha~"

Whatever he was trying to do stopped at once, causing his expression to change as a dark film spread across my skin, writhing as it reshaped itself into the form of a gun. Without waiting for anyone to say a thing, I pressed the trigger, and—

BANG!

I shot right at Drake’s head.