Chapter 383 - Drip. . . (1/2)

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

The sound of dripping water came rhythmically and periodically, forming an entire symphony of sounds.

The sound of water was both gentle and persistent, like the sound of water tipping from a high point, meeting the low points down below. With enough time, it would wear away even the steadiest of minds, like a single dripping point meeting rock for years on end.

The gentle sounds came from above head, and it was the sound that Alec woke up to.

The entire place was awash with the sounds of water meeting rock, having various points of water dripping with different intensities.

His arms were aching, and so were his wrists, more from being stretched excessively than from damage.

Blearily, Alec blinked his eyes and forced them to open, and despite the dim lighting in the place, his eyes still burned more than they should. They felt crusty, and he had to blink more than once to get the usual clarity back.

It felt like something had died in his mouth, which made his face change slightly in disgust.

The back of his neck was throbbing lightly, and Alec attributed it to the inspector that had knocked the two of them out yesterday.

At least, that was what he assumed.

After all, he had no memories from the time before he was knocked out past seeing the inspector's smile.

Now, he woke up in what seemed like a dungeon.

Looking around, he could see that he wasn't that far off.

His hands were shackled above his head, explaining the ache in them, and the room was barren save for the presence of himself.

On a single glance, it appeared as if the room didn't have a door, instead only having the solid stone blocks around.

Looking up, the water came from the little cracks in the room, causing him to raise a brow. He wondered if it was intentional.

Still, there should be a drainage system underneath, otherwise the water would have long formed puddles.

There was a single dim lightbulb in the middle of the room, swaying ever so gently in tune with the dripping water. From what, he didn't know. It wasn't like there was a draft inside this place.

Alec's feet were bare, and he had been stripped down and changed into plain white clothes.

Had Alec been a normal person, the chill in this place would have caused him to shiver incessantly, but as it was, Alec was made to withstand most of the elements, so other than his arms being sore, and his neck likely being bruised, he was fine.

The place was made out of solid rock, and it was cool to the touch.

There weren't the typical bars that signified a prisoner, like the cells the slaves had been placed in, nor was this like the technologically advanced rooms that had been on the ship that brought him back to the Kaoriht continent.

Alec could see no trace of Nicholas anywhere, and even when he concentrated his ears, all he could hear was the sound of the maddening dripping sounds.

Alec's brows furrowed a little, concentrating harder as he pushed away the sounds of the different water droplets.

He could hear it, but it was so faint that had it been anyone else, they would have been effectively crippled in this regard, leaving them clueless about what was going on.

Alec let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding.

However, this was not the time for him to lose hope or give up. After all, the fact that he could hear the dripping water so clearly meant that they were confident enough in it that they thought they could seal this 'ability' of Alec's.

They treated Alec's extraordinary hearing like they were treating a solution to someone's Magitype.

What they didn't know was Alec's benefit.

Alec could hear a few faint conversations that were going on outside his 'cell' but they were mostly inconsequential.

He didn't hear any of the mention himself or Nicholas at all, which made him frown.