An odd symbol shaped like an upside-down triangle appeared clearly before Shaan, stopping him in his tracks. He froze, convinced more than ever that someone had deliberately hidden it here. His suspicion grew stronger when he noticed the symbol’s faint red glow—it meant the spell was still active.
"Wait, if that’s the case, then maybe..."
Shaan’s eyes widened when he saw that the Doppleshade he had seen earlier had been partially destroyed and turned to ash. Even worse, only a small portion remained, and he needed to act fast before it disappeared completely. Damn it. What the hell was going on? Why did the Doppleshade’s body fall apart like that?
"Hello, Shaan. Can you hear me?" asked Dr. Marshal. "Damn, could it be the connection—"
"Yes, Dr. Marshal. I can still hear you," replied Shaan. "Dr. Marshal, there’s something I want to ask you.
"What do you want to ask?"
"Dr. Marshal, is it possible that you have a spell that can destroy certain objects?"
"Huh?" Dr. Marshal paused for a moment, trying to process Shaan’s words.
"Yes, that spell does exist. It’s called the Destruction Spell. It’s one of the ancient spells, cast using the blood of the target and the Hermes language. But this spell is old, and only a few people ever use it," he explained. "Why are you asking about it?"
"Oh my God, don’t tell me..."
Without responding to Dr. Marshal, Shaan tried to cancel the spell by destroying the spell symbol, but strangely, he couldn’t touch the symbol at all. For some reason, it felt like there was a mysterious energy that kept Shaan away from the doppleshade. Darn it. What the hell is going on?
"Argh, damn it!" Shaan grumbled angrily. "Why can’t I touch it at all?"
"Shaan, what’s wrong? Why do you sound so panicked? I don’t understand what you’re saying at all."
"Dr. Marshal, the spell symbol surrounding the Doppleshade—it’s a Destruction Spell. Someone is trying to erase all traces of it," Shaan said, his voice sharp and hurried. "I tried to destroy the symbol, but... I can’t. I can’t break it!"
"Shaan, listen to me. You can’t destroy it that way."
"So, what should I do?" Shaan scratched his head. "We must act as quickly as possible before Doppleshade’s body is destroyed."
"The only way to destroy it is to recite a counterspell," said Dr. Marshal. "Now, listen to me carefully and recite this spell loudly."
"Reversia ex nihilo, lux et pax restituantur!"
"Rever—wait, wait. You’re saying it too fast. Can you repeat it once more?" Shaan scratched his head, frustrated. "I can’t pronounce it as smoothly as you."
Dr. Marshal sighed. "All right. Reversia... ex... nihilo, lux... et... pax... restituantur!"
"Okay, I’m ready," said Shaan, taking a deep breath before reciting it with confidence. "Reversia... ex... nihilo, lux... et... pax... restituantur!"
Within seconds, the energy wall surrounding the spell symbol began to crack, and in a matter of seconds, the cracks spread and destroyed the energy wall quickly.
"Good, now I have to gather the remaining evidence from this doppleshade quickly."
Without hesitation, Shaan approached the doppleshade’s body and retrieved the remaining right hand of the doppleshade. Good, at least Shaan had obtained evidence confirming that what he had said was correct.
"Shaan, did you manage to secure the doppleshade’s body?" Dr. Marshal asked.
"Yes, but I couldn’t get Doppleshade’s body intact and only got the right hand of Doppleshade that was left," Shaan sighed deeply. "I’m sorry, Dr. Marshal. Maybe if I had cast the counterspell faster, we could have gotten more evidence."
"Hey, calm down. You tried your best, and that’s good," Dr. Marshal said calmly. "At least you managed to get one part of Dopplesahde’s body, and that should strengthen your claim that you weren’t the one who caused all the chaos in the cave."
Shaan nodded again. "Yes, it’s just that... I’m still curious. Who actually cast the destructive spell in a place ?" Shaan looked around. "Is it possible that the person is still in this cave?
"Hmm... about that. I have no idea either," said Dr. Marshal. "I think it’s possible that one of the members of the Resistance caused all this. However, without clear evidence, we can’t think that way."
"Yes, I think that’s true. Without evidence, everything will definitely be considered a lie."
"Alright, Shaan, it’s time for you to get out of there before any officers see you. I’ll pick you up at the same spot."
"Okay, I understand." Shaan immediately stood up and walked away from the place. "I’ll get out of here before—"
The same sound he heard when he was in the old water tunnel could be heard again, and this time it was even clearer, coming from behind him. For some reason, it sounded like a series of small knocks followed by a scraping sound, making Shaan even more curious about what the sound actually was.
"I’m sure there’s something here."
Shaan quickly turned his head around, but strangely... he couldn’t see anything. He slowly looked around, but... There was nothing. He couldn’t see anything except the pile of rocks in front of him.
"Wait, I can still hear the sound, so there must be something around here." Shaan paused for a moment. "But, if the sound isn’t around me, that means..."
Shaan slowly raised his head to look up, and his face turned pale when he saw something right above him. There was a large, terrifying creature shaped like a cockroach attached to one of the rocks right above his head.
Not only that, the cockroach’s two large, round, black eyes stared at Shaan relentlessly, causing his entire body to freeze. Damn. He never expected to see a cockroach this big in his entire life.
"Oh, no. This... this can’t be."
"Shaan, are you okay?" Dr. Marshal asked curiously. "What’s happening over there?"
"Dark creatures. There is a dark creature in this cave, and now that creature... that creature is staring at me."
"Oh no. This is bad... really bad," Dr. Marshal replied, panic creeping into his voice. "Shaan, listen to me. You need to get out of there. Move away before that thing—"
"Shaan, can you hear me?" Dr. Marshal’s voice cracked with static. "No... no, no. Shaan!"