Chapter 6
1022 Words
Arden's pov
--------------- [Quest completed] ------------------
Name: Grandiose m******e
Objective: kill everyone within the juvenile center within 24 hours.
*Rewards: 500 reputation points (Acquired)
*Encounter with the Morettis (In progress)
*Physique upgrade (Processing…)
Quest completion progress… [10%] – (wraith’s essence)
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‘A quest?’ I questioned inwardly.
It seems the system has its reasons for assigning these quests to me, and from the looks of it, it’s not a single quest but rather a chained series of quests I have to complete.
“Are you ok, brother?” Jamie questioned with a raised brow.
I snapped out of my reverie, my expression aloof.
“Carry on, I’m fine.”
He sighed.
“If you say so…”
We stepped into the interior part of the Moretti family’s mansion.
It was equally as grand as the exterior part, with expensive paintings lined along the hallway and several structures that seemed to have been sculpted by a revered artisan.
There were several antiques and relics placed on glass-crafted tables alongside the statues.
More paintings surfaced the deeper we went; it got to the point where the Moretti family mansion seemed more like a museum rather than an actual house.
Noticing my blank stare, Jamie paused, then turned to look at one of the paintings on the sidewalls of the hallway.
“It’s magnificent, isn’t it?” he questioned.
As he did, I glanced towards the painting he was referring to.
Unlike the rest, the one seemed more archaic and large, and it was secluded.
Somehow, it looked lonely, and in a sense, it signified Moretti’s family.
From what I had seen so far, it was the impression I had of the Moretti family; they were out of the city, away from people, and they seemed isolated even within their own residence.
Within the painting was a man holding an odach; he donned a long robe made entirely out of a black fabric, and his long hair was tied into a ponytail by a red string.
His eyes looked melancholic and hollow, not dead like mine but rather tired, like someone who wanted nothing more than death’s cold embrace.
Averting my gaze toward Jamie, I inquired.
“Why do you say so?”
He merely smiled.
“I mean, at a glance, it’s obvious that he’s our progenitor, the one who started the Moretti family.”
As he continued, his voice took on a darker tone.
“That being said, it means he’s the one responsible for whatever predicament the Moretti family is in; he’s the reason for our curse, the reason we’re no longer humans, the reason we were given a second life but at the cost of something we’d rather die than offer; we revere him, yet we loathe him.”
He chuckled slightly, then lingered for a moment or two before speaking.
So then… isn’t it magnificent, the look on his face is one of silent agony, in a sense it’s refreshing to know that even he couldn’t escape the clutches of whatever he made a deal with.”
As he spoke, all I could do was listen. I couldn’t relate to him, nor could I understand what he was feeling.
I died, I was given a choice, I took it, and was reborn as something different from a human, an empty shell of my former self who wanted nothing but revenge.
While I was sure the Moretti ancestor had his reason for doing what he did, I didn’t point it out because I could also tell that Jamie knew that as well, he,h just needed a direction to point his hatred to.
After the talk with Jamie, we continued forward until we got to an elevator lodged on the walls of the Moretti household.
Jamie pressed his thumb against a fingerprint sensor, as he did; the elevator made a ding sound and then slowly opened.
He got in first, and I followed almost immediately.
No words were spoken throughout the lift; Jamie seemed to have his thoughts to sort out, while I was in no state to converse.
I wanted some answers, any clue to knowing what the system was, maybe… just maybe, I might find a way to contact that entity, but that could wait.
A few minutes later, our lift came to an end, and the elevator doors slid open with a ding.
Jamie stepped out first,t, and I followed immediately. We took a few steps forward, then followed a narrow path that led to a gargantuan door.
When we got to the door, I could instinctively tell that someone or something strong was beyond that door.
With a light push, J amie swung the door open.
While it could've been considered light to Jamie, that was because, like me, he was physically enhanced; to a mundane person, they would've had trouble opening the door.
It was also another way of the Morretii family warding off outsiders, since a normal person wouldn't be able to open it. Naturally, I'd assume it was a place only the Morretii family could use.
The pressure emanating from within the room was heavy enough to make my knees weak, but somehow I remained on my feet.
There was no doubt about it, the patriarch or the rest of the Morreti family was beyond that door.
The pressure emanating from the room wasn't something a mundane human would be capable of. The room reeked of death, something cold and suffocating, soothing yet vile.
As Jamie and I both stepped inside, we were swallowed by the darkness. I couldn't see anything, but I could hear Jamie's footsteps continuing forward, so I stuck closer to him.
A couple of seconds later, er we got to another room; however, unlike when we came through the door, this room was bright.
The space of the room wasn't anything grand, but it was definitely not mundane either.
My gaze was naturally drawn to the walls, which were riddled with different kinds of weapons, but they didn't linger for long.
A gruff voice sounded; it didn't sound human but rather like the growl of a feral beast.
"Sit down, boy."
- Writer
