Chapter 89: The Unravelling(1) (1/2)
After the end of the first half, the stadium, along with its crowd, took a long break.
Seated in his designated position, the King closed his eyes as he was bored.
He heard a voice whisper to his ears, ”Caspian.”
The voice was familiar to him, so he didn't have to check who it belonged to.
Also, there were only a few people, who could call him by his actual name, and not his royal title.
He replied back to his brother, ”Conan, what is it?”
Despite not being able to maintain a good relationship with his children, he had an excellent one with his elder brother.
Even when he was chosen instead of his elder brother, his brother didn't hate him or take his frustration and anger out on him.
To him, his elder brother was his role model and someone he could trust as both of them aspires to be able to improve Aztec.
”There's something that requires your immediate attention,” stated Conan.
The seriousness in his words made Caspian open his eyes and look straight at his brother.
”What ”something” is this? Is it that bad,” whispered Caspian as he narrowed his eyes at his brother.
”Well…. It is strange and....just come, I don't know how to assess the situation,” stammered Conan.
Listening to him, Caspian thought, 'Something that could even throw him off his feet!'
His brother was the most composed between the two of them, and for something to startle him, that must mean it is quite peculiar.
He roused himself from his lazy spirit and reported to his brother, ”Lead the way.”
The two walked for a few minutes until the king found himself at the entrance of their destination.
He gave a skeptical glance at his brother, ”The Med Bay?”
”Yes,” confirmed Conan, who then knocked on the door.
The door was opened by a brown-haired young woman, about twenty-five years old.
As soon as she saw the king, she bowed her head, ”Your Highness.”
”Please, no need for formalities,” said the humble king.
He walked into the bay and saw many small rooms; some visible and some not.
He waited for his brother to fully explain the situation.
”It is about a participant. It is better if you see it yourself. Klara, lead the way.”
Caspian was fairly acquainted with Klara. She was the best medical personnel in Aztec, despite her young age.
He had recommended her to the stadium board when they were picking the individual to handle the med bay section.
Klara took them to a room, and the first thing Caspian noticed was the horrible stench.
If not for the material used to build the walls, he reckoned the smell would have terrorized the entire stadium due to the cultivators' super smell ability.
After a second, Caspian adapted and ignored the horrid smell, he went closer to the bed in the room and lifted the veil on it, to see what was under.
”What in Heaven's name?!” whispered the King, trying not to draw too much attention.
On the bed was a body, or rather, a corpse, but that was not the surprising thing about it.
The corpse was rapidly melting….detoriating…..decaying. The king wasn't sure what best describes the corpse.
All its body hair was constantly falling off slowly. The bizarre alteration was moving the corpse towards a creature Conan knew well.
”Zombies!” muttered the king from the corner of his mouth.
He now knew why his brother found it difficult to explain the situation, as right in front of him was a seemingly impossible scenario.
Not wanting to jump to a conclusion, Conan tried to gather information, ”What is this?”
”A corpse, a---” Klara explained before she was cut off.
”--I know it is a corpse, but what exactly is this corpse?!” scowled Caspian.
Pushing up her glasses, the expert divulged fully, ”Well, an hour ago, it was a healthy corpse of a dead participant….I believe his name was Ray, a commoner.”
”Hmmm…..Ray. I watched his match, however, how did he become this?” asked Conan.
He unknowingly exuded a pressure that ferociously demanded answers.
Seeing this, his brother intervened, ”Klara called me when she noticed this….bizarre occurrence. When I asked her, she explained that she could not assess it either, as knowledgeable in transformations like this. I called you here to ask how to proceed.”
”Do we have an expert in things like this?”
”No, but it appears that the corpse is transforming to something similar to a zombie. We can work from that angle,” replied Klara.
”Brother, I only know how to kill creatures like Zombie, I'm not well versed in their habits and physiology. Who do you know is proficient in stuff like that?”
Conan held his chin as he thought deeply. Different names flashed through his mind before he selected a few, ”Only four, to my knowledge. It is hard to find someone with such interest.”