Sid POV

  Sid was panicking. His breath felt trapped in his throat. He cursed himself for being careless with the skill and for underestimating a black crystal skill. They were not just rare. They were on a completely different level. One had sent him back in time. Another had shut down his status and cut him off from all of his skills.

  The brush around the clearing rustled as the two teenagers stepped in properly. Dry leaves crackled under their shoes. They looked around, taking in the scattered members of Sid’s team who lay frozen in place.

  “Hey, did you guys hear that sound?” the boy in the football jacket asked, looking around with mild confusion. His voice echoed slightly in the still air.

  The boy in the polo shirt scanned the unmoving figures. “Did you guys hear that? Anybody?”

  The boy in the football jacket approached Rohan, grabbed his wrists and lifted his arms. He watched them fall back down. “Looks like they are out of it.” There was a hint of amusement mixed with unease.

  He turned to his friend. “I told you that stuff kicks in an hour.”

  The boy in the polo shirt did not respond. His jaw tightened. He walked toward Sid and crouched until their eyes were on the same level. Sid could see anger trembling beneath the boy’s expression.

  “My mom is dead because of you.” His voice broke as he slapped Sid twice. Sid watched the movement without feeling the blows. He felt the humiliation more than anything physical.

  Sid felt the anchor of his vision move back a little. The boy in the polo shirt likely pushed Sid down and started stomping on his stomach; he only stopped when the other boy put a hand on his shoulder.

  “Let us finish it and go. Why are you beating him up?” The boy in the football jacket pulled his friend’s shoulders back, turning him around.

  “It was this bastard who threatened Aditi. If she had been with Dad, then my mom would not have died,” said the boy in the polo shirt, his voice cracking. Tears gathered at the corners of his eyes, and he blinked them back.

  The football fan snorted. “It was also because of that bitch Aditi. She could have cried out, and let us know he was threatening her.” His spite was open, as if he had been waiting for a reason to blame her.

  “Do not talk about her like that. She might be our future sister-in-law.” The boy in the polo shirt wiped his tears quickly, as if embarrassed to show them.

  “Who, that gold digger? You thought Uncle actually agreed to that? To marry outside the church? It was all your mom’s idea.” The football fan breathed out loudly in contempt. “With what happened to Tony, she thought no woman would want to marry that orc.”

  The boy in the polo shirt stiffened. “You will not make fun of Tony.” His tone shifted, protective and hard. Sid noticed the shift and wondered what had gone wrong.

  “What? You used to make fun of your goodie two shoes brother more than me. What has changed now?” The football fan leaned in, his stance challenging, as if daring his friend to deny it.

  “Let us take care of things here, collect the skill crystals and go.” The boy in the polo shirt stepped back, lowering his shoulders and letting out a shaky breath. Sid noticed the hesitation in his eyes, a flicker of doubt he was trying to hide.

  “If you are having fun, then so will I,” the football fan said, his tone light, almost cheerful. He walked toward Pallavi without looking back. He grabbed her under the arms and pulled her upright. Pallavi leaned against him, blinking slowly as she tried to make sense of her surroundings.

  She remained the most aware of the three, though her movements were sluggish. Rohan and Varun lay sprawled nearby, too far gone to even lift their heads.

  “What are you doing?” The boy in the polo shirt turned sharply, his gaze locking onto the football fan’s hold on Pallavi. His voice carried confusion and rising anger.

  “I will just have some fun with her before we finish her. I would rather not do it in front of you, unless you want to take turns?” The football fan’s lips curled upward. He sounded entertained, as if expecting a laugh.

  “Don’t do it.” The polo t-shirt boy moved in front of them, forcing the football fan to stop.

  “What’s with this sudden moral compass?” The football fan tilted his head and studied his friend in disbelief.

  “Are you really lecturing me about morality while planning to kill three people?” His tone hardened. “Murder is the original sin. You are worse than I am.”

  The boy in the polo shirt reached out and pressed his palm against the football fan’s chest. “There are lines we should not cross. She will die with dignity.” He took out his dagger with his left hand, showing his intent to fight.

  “What is your problem, Joe? No one is forcing you to do it. Bunty also wanted a taste of her. We will finish her after it’s done.” The football fan’s smile faded when he realized Joe’s hand was not moving. His friend pushed him back with steady pressure.

  “It is too late to back down, Joe.” His voice dropped into something colder. “We cannot leave them alive. They will know they were drugged.” He glanced at Sid, his eyes narrowing. “You messed up that guy’s face. They will not believe this was an accident. They will come for us.”

  Stolen novel; please report.

  Joe’s hand fell. His head lowered, and tears dripped down his cheeks. “Go.” The word sounded hollow. He walked toward Sid, his steps heavy.

  The football fan pushed forward, pulling Pallavi along. Her eyes fluttered open briefly. “Where am I? Who are you?” Her words slurred together.

  The football fan looked down at her and snarled. “I am your husband, honey. And we are going to make love in the moonlight.”

  Joe reached Sid and sank onto his chest. Sid felt the faint pressure only through sight, not sensation. Joe lifted the dagger, closed his eyes and thrust downward. The blade struck soil instead of flesh. The boy froze, the realization sinking in.

  He covered his face with both hands, shoulders trembling as he cried.

  Sid watched the football fan disappear into the trees with Pallavi. The helplessness pressed down on him, and his thoughts spiraled into guilt. He blamed himself for everything that was about to happen to her.

  Sid tried everything he could. His strange vision swept across the clearing, searching for any sign of his own body, yet nothing appeared. His limbs, torso, even his own shadow were missing from his perception. The ground, the trees, and the fallen leaves were all visible, but he remained absent from his own sight.

  He attempted to force the skill to end, but it remained locked along with the rest of his status. Every part of his interface felt sealed behind an invisible wall.

  The dagger approaching his chest triggered a cascade of memories. A core tenet of the system he read somewhere resurfaced—the status screen reflected your soul.

  If he could not see it, if he could not access it, then the skill had blinded him to his own soul. The realization felt like ice sliding down his spine. He could see others, hear them, and track every movement in the clearing. But anything related to sensing his own existence was absent.

  His opponent was inches away, hands tightening around Sid’s throat. Sid watched Joe’s expression change. Anger. Fear. Grief. A storm of emotions played out across the teenager’s face, and Sid could not react to any of it.

  He cursed himself. This fight, this danger, all of it came from his mistake. Pallavi had trusted him. She would not have eaten the mushroom otherwise. She deserved better than being dragged away because of him. The guilt pressed down on him more than his opponents’ hands on his neck.

  The pressure around his throat tightened. His vision flickered. Then pain rushed through him like a floodgate breaking. It was sharp and overwhelming. He welcomed it because it meant he was back.

  Sid’s eyes opened wider. Joe was above him, tears streaking his cheeks as he tried to strangle Sid. Sid lifted his right hand and stabbed his fingers into Joe’s throat.

  Joe recoiled instantly, choking and clutching at his neck. Sid pushed him away and reached for the dagger stuck in the ground. His grip tightened on the handle. His upper body hurt from the beating, and he could feel the swelling in his face. He bent forward to steady himself, keeping his attention fixed on Joe’s next move.

  “Not fun when they fight back, huh?” Sid said, voice rough. He needed Joe focused on him, not on the others lying helpless.

  Joe’s expression shifted from shock to rage as he grabbed the spare dagger from his belt and lunged at Sid with a scream.

  Sid stepped aside easily. The strike was slow and predictable. He countered with a sharp kick to Joe’s ribs, knocking him sideways.

  The thought of using the skill again sent a tremor of hesitation through him. But Pallavi’s face rose in his thoughts. He swallowed his hesitation and targeted Joe with the Veil of the Mind’s Eye. He had to end this before she suffered any further.

  Joe looked around in a panic when Sid applied the skill. His head jerked from side to side, and he kept adjusting his stance, trying to get a better angle on the nearby trees, as if he believed Sid was hiding behind one of them.

  Sid made his way toward Joe, circling behind him, watching the boy’s frantic attempts to track an enemy he could not sense. When Sid reached Joe’s blind spot, he drove the dagger into the back of Joe’s knees, forcing the teenager to fold down.

  Joe reacted instantly. He swung his dagger in a wide arc behind him, slicing through empty air. Sid did not have time to move out of the way, so he raised his arm to block. He saw Joe’s eyes widen in shock when the blade froze mid-swing. The boy’s arm trembled, unable to push forward. He looked confused, just as Sid had been in the cave with the insect-like creature.

  Sid pressed his dagger against Joe’s throat and pulled the teenager’s arm up behind his back. “Do not move or make any sound. I will end you. Understood?” he asked after dropping the veil.

  Joe froze, giving no response.

  “Hey kid, I will not kill you. Come with me. I need your help to save my friend.” Sid kept his tone even and calm, though his hands remained taut and ready to act. It felt awkward calling someone only a few years younger a kid, but mentally he was much older now. Besides, he needed Joe to think he was being treated like one.

  They made their way along the path taken by Pallavi and the football fan. Joe’s movements were stiff and jerky, so Sid started talking to ease the tension. “I am sorry about what happened to your mom. Circumstances like this, this place—it makes people, good people, do crazy things to protect the ones they care about.” Even as he spoke, Sid focused on every step they took and every shift in Joe’s stance.

  Joe swallowed hard before answering. “I am sorry. I was so mad at you, I agreed when Bunty mentioned it.” His words trembled with guilt, and his voice threatened to break every few syllables.

  Sid did not believe for a second that Bunty was the mastermind—he lacked the initiative and confidence. Someone else was behind it.

  “As long as Pallavi is safe, you are free, kid. I do not kill people.” Sid’s voice stayed calm, though there was an edge beneath it. In truth, he had not decided how to deal with Joe. If Pallavi was unharmed, there was value in keeping Joe alive. He could help uncover who orchestrated all this.

  “Who all is in on your plan?” Sid asked, his expression sharpening. “Does Sunny know?”

  “Bunty was supposed to take over the watch from us. So, he and whoever his partner is would know.” Joe spoke with pauses, as if afraid the wrong word might end his life. “No, Dad doesn’t know. If he had, he would’ve stopped me.”

  A faint rhythmic thumping broke through the quiet. It echoed through the trees like distant impacts. Sid’s breath tightened. He quickened his stride, pulling Joe with him. Through the trees, he saw Pallavi’s silhouette. She sat hunched forward on a fallen log.

  As they entered the clearing, the full scene came into focus. Pallavi straddled the football fan, her fists hitting his chest again and again. Blood pooled around his torso, dark against the dirt, and beside it lay a small crystal glinting faintly.

  Every strike landed with brutal force. His chest had caved in almost completely, bones crushed. The earlier rhythmic noise made sense now.

  Sid realized the football fan was dead. The same realization hit Joe, who stood frozen and pale with fear. Sid felt a knot tighten inside him. Now what was he supposed to do in this situation?