Xane stood there, waiting for the others to get on the carriage. It was going more in a systematic order, so not long after, only the last carriage remained.
As he walked into the wooden carriage, he saw two other guys already sitting inside.
When they saw him, both of them nodded at him. He just nodded back and sat in front of them.
The guy sitting next to the door asked, "Is there anyone else outside?"
Xane shook his head. "No, I'm the last one."
The guy nodded and closed the door.
It wasn't long before they heard a loud scream.
Mouuuuu!
The bull beasts attached to every carriage screamed in unison, and with that, they started moving.
There were no windows attached to the carriage, so Xane just looked through the gaps in the doors, trying to see the outside world, but all he could see was trees passing by.
Zayn said to him,
Xane just slumped against the carriage wall at that and focused on the other two.
Both of them were also glancing at him and at each other. Finally, the one by the door, with a bulky build with a big mark on his jaw, broke the silence and said, "Congratulations on your survival, Viyron."
The other lean one also chimed in, "Yeah, you're really lucky this time."
Zayn asked in panic,
[Don't tell me they're Viyron's acquaintances?]
Xane mentally shook his head at Zayn. This guy really panicked at every little thing.
Not bothered by Zayn, Xane just smiled. "Oh, thanks. But why am I lucky?"
The bulky guy asked in confusion, "Didn't you hear about the others?"
"Others?" Xane tilted his head.
He didn't have to say anything, as the lean guy said, "Ah, I heard you came back in super bad condition? Was that true?"
Xane nodded. "Yes, I almost died inside that place. I barely regained my senses just a few hours ago."
Both of them nodded. The bulky guy said, "Ah, that explains it. Let me tell you, there are only two people—including you—who survived the Abyss Cursed Land."
Xane raised his eyebrow.
The lean guy added, "And you know, the other guy barely had bronze potential."
Xane nodded. "Well, that's interesting."
Then he asked Zayn,
[Nah. But didn't I already tell you how the ancient three cursed lands are? I think it's common for only a single-digit number of survivors from each family to come out of those cursed lands.]
Xane was really surprised. If it were just about those going to the academy, he could understand. But he had just seen almost 200 pulse teens who, despite passing the trial, had only low potential.
Only two coming out of the Abyss Cursed Land made the survival rate around one percent. If you added the downside of mental corrosion, then getting linked to the Chaos Cursed Land was basically a death sentence.
Then the lean guy said to the bulky one, "Man, Viyron has Miss Melina's protection, but what about us?"
The bulky guy nodded. "Yeah, Viyron, you're lucky to have Miss Melina as your sister."
Xane just smiled, as he understood the only reason these guys were interested in him was because of his sister.
Zayn said, [Well, you can't blame them. They're just trying to score some points for survival.]
After that, both of them started talking about random family members.
Xane soon lost interest as he leaned his head against the carriage wall.
He could hear the creaking sound of the wheels. From time to time, the bumps on the road sent minor jolts through the carriage.
He just stared at the two of them, lost in his thoughts. It suddenly hit him that this was not the world he was familiar with.
What was more, only now did he realize that he had lost his purpose—his drive to move forward. Was he just here to survive?
Xane was not the only one—Zayn was also feeling the same.
Unlike Xane, Zayn had always lived a trapped life, bound by his family with no freedom.
Even when he gained freedom, instead of cherishing it, he rushed for revenge. But now, in this world, his entire past life had lost its meaning.
He was far away from his family, yet he still felt this deep sense of emptiness. He could relate to Viyron's situation, but it wasn't the same—it just wasn't his story.
The carriage continued to move along the bumpy road, with both of them still lost in their thoughts, searching for their purpose.
It was at this moment that a buried memory resurfaced.
Both Zayn and Xane found themselves pulled into it.
Zayn opened his eyes inside the body of a small boy. The world around him was hazy and unclear.
Meanwhile, Xane found himself floating in the air like an observer.
Zayn tried to move, only to find that the boy was wrapped in chains from head to toe.
Before he could make sense of the situation, he saw two hazy figures walking toward the boy.
Xane watched as the hazy figures approached. Their outlines didn't sharpen, but something about their presence felt... familiar.
The little boy kept fidgeting, trying hard to run, but the chains binding him were just too strong.
The two hazy figures didn't care about the boy. One of them took out a whip and stepped forward.
The boy opened his mouth, saying something to the figure. Zayn couldn't make out any of the words, but from the boy's desperation, he knew the little guy was begging.
In response, the figure tilted their head back—likely laughing—and then raised the whip.
Zayn closed his eyes in shock, expecting pain, but all he heard was a grueling scream.
Ahhhhhh!
Zayn opened his eyes and saw the child screaming his lungs out while the hazy figure continued to whip him.
Even though Zayn didn't feel any pain, those screams echoed in his head like a hammer.
Xane watched with interest. No matter how much the child screamed, the hazy figures didn't seem to care.
They didn't stop. Midway through, they even removed the chains from the boy.
That's when Xane saw the boy jump toward one of their legs in desperation.
He bent down and started licking their feet while the two figures continued laughing.
Xane just stared at the scene, but instead of the boy, he saw a teenager inside a prison cell.
One of the inmates spat on the ground, and the skinny teen rushed to lick it while everyone laughed.
The teen desperately licked it, his blue eyes wide—and then the others began kicking him.
Xane shook his head as he found himself back in the scene with the little boy, who was desperately licking the floor while crying tears of blood.
But all he got in return were kicks.
It reached the point where the boy passed out from exhaustion.
But it wasn't the end—the hazy scene around the boy shifted.
Zayn thought it was over, only to find himself once again wrapped in chains.
The same thing happened again, but he knew it wasn't a repeat—this time, the hazy figures beat the boy with a stick instead.
Both of them went through the same cycle of torture—Zayn experiencing it from within the boy's body, and Xane watching as an observer.
With each passing second, Zayn became more and more silent. On the other hand, Xane started to laugh.
After going through this torment for what felt like the hundredth cycle, everything turned dark.
A bigger bump jolted the carriage—and both of them found themselves back.
[What the hell was that?] Zayn's voice trembled for the first time.
Xane stared at the wooden wall of the carriage and muttered aloud, "Hehe, that was amusing."