112 The Mysterious Voice (1/2)
”You're on the other side of the exit, aren't you?”
”Wrong!” The voice chuckled, ”Think again.”
”But… your voice isn't coming from anywhere…”
”Exactly, so how do you think I'm talking to you?”
Oli blinked. ”Through… my mind?”
”Bingo, we have a winner!” The mysterious voice's laughter echoed in Oil's mind, mocking the gorilla. ”It took you long enough. And I thought you were supposed to be some sort of prodigy.”
”Why did you put me here!”
The voice sighed and sounded like the man was shaking his head, ”Oli, aren't you more curious as to why I don't sound like the man that captured you?”
”I… I guess…” mumbled the gorilla, growing quieter and giving in to his curiosity.
”Well, that's simple. It's because I'm not that person.”
”That's it?” Oli looked around, showing his disappointment. ”That's your big explanation? You won't tell me how I got here or how I find you and not him.”
”Is this enough explanation?”
Just then, Oli noticed something fall from the cave ceiling with a thud. He got up to get closer, only to be shocked to recognize the disembodied head rolling around on the cave floor.
”So… you weren't working with those bandits?”
”Maybe I was… Maybe I wasn't…”
”Then, if you killed the bandit leader, why did you still take me away if you weren't working with them?” asked Oli.
”I thought you already figured that part out?” stated the voice in surprise.
”What do you mean?”
”Did you really not think figure out what you're supposed to do? Even when I left all those clues on the desk? That scroll for human metamorphosis could be considered a priceless treasure, you know…”
Scratching his head, Oli replied, ”You mean I have to become a human?”
”Of course!”
”But how do you expect me to do that? I'm just a novice plane gorilla with an elder bloodline?”
”Really? I could've sworn that you had a mutated bloodline from your Iron-body Gorilla clan and the Shadow-toxic dragons. Was I wrong?”
Dumbfounded, Oli showed his surprise in his eyes.
”And haven't you already figured out a way to take a human form, albeit a more crude and painful way than what's stated in that manual?”
”I… How…” Oli's confusion was growing more and more with every second, bringing his train of thought to a grinding halt.
”See, I was right to think you could take a human form with enough practice,” the voice proudly stated.
”But… How do you know all of this?” asked Oli, whose brain was aching.
”Simple, because you said so and did so while you were cultivating in your private cultivation room back in Iron Town.”
Gaining a thread of a lead, Oli asked, ”Wait, you were there the whole time? Are you, by any chance, the same person who rigged the final fight at the tournament?”
”Aha! So you are good at critical thinking like I guessed! Then how come it took you so long to figure out that you need to take a human form?”
”That's not the point right now!” shouted Oli. ”I only heard about it from Vloz, but I was almost killed, thanks to you!”
”Well, I had to know if you were worth my time in the first place,” reasoned the voice plainly. ”Since you won and survived, even if they did help you with that last part, you proved that I should keep watching you. And I'm glad I did. To think that you had a mutated bloodline and both dark and earth essence was a splendid surprise.”
”But what about you trying to kill me?! Or how you let those bandits get away with what they did?!”
”Who said I let them get away with it?” laughed the voice. ”If you look now, the head is gone. That's because I need to send it back to the people who dared invade a small territory from a different prefecture.”
”Different prefecture?!”