Chapter 79
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"Ehem." Alex let out a cough as the tried to compose himself. "So, let's continue what we are doing."
"…." Carlie did not say anything, as she just continued on glaring at Alex.
"Wait, before you continue talking to her, let me say something first." Alina suddenly said to Alex. "From the first time that I saw Carlie… I realized that I saw something from her that you could not see clearly..."
"Oh?" Alex looked at Alina with interest, as he realized Alina's emphasis on the word 'see'.
With Alina's All-Seeing Eyes, anything that she can 'see' will always be interesting.
Alina paused for a second, before slowly saying,
"From what I can see, Carlie… just like the 5 little monsters… was also a human before."
"That's quite a surprise." Alex replied in a monotonous tone. "I did not expect that our resident guest was also a victim of the Monsters."
"I am not victim!" Carlie suddenly shouted as she glared at Alex with malevolence. "I was saved by Queen Mother when I became a Monster! She… liberated me from the sufferings of this World! You say that I am a victim? Yes, that was the case when I was stuck on being a Human! But now? I am living the best of my life!"
"She thinks that it is the truth." Alina commented as she shook her head. "She fully believes that her life was better now that she is a Monster."
"....."
Alex did not like how emotional Carlie looked right now. Her face was baring her remaining teeth at Alex, as if she could not wait to sink it on him.
From this sight, it was quite obvious that she was extremely triggered by her past and her transformation.
But even if he was uncomfortable with that, Alex realized that this is his chance now to swoop in over Carlie.
Alex knew that in order for him to get information much easier from Carlie, he must first break her down first, both physically and mentally.
The physical part was already accounted for, with all the injuries that he gave her.
As for the mental part, Alex is about to start it.
"You… had a bad life as a Human before, right?" Alex said as he smiled at Carlie.
Carlie's ears twitched at that.
"Truth." Alina quickly commented.
"Okay, so I do not know how bad your life was before, but that must have filled you with suicidal thoughts…" Alex drawled as he sat cross-legged in front of Carlie. "Surely, you tried killing yourself when you were a Human before, right?"
Of course Alex was buls**tting at this point.
He just gave out the 'suicide' card as this is the most extreme thing that he can think up right now.
Surely, this Carlie did not try to kill herself before, right?
There are no visible twitches that came from Carlie after hearing what Alex just said.
"She… really tried to kill herself before." Alina slowly said as she gave Alex a frown.
"Umm..." Alex floundered after hearing what Alina said, as he felt that there are no words that would come out of his mouth right now.
"..."
Alina's face looked to be full of displeasure as she glared at Alex. "Alex, should you really continue on going on that line? This is getting quite sensitive already, and I am not liking where this is going."
"Umm…."
It was quite obvious to Alex that what he just said made Alina remember her sister whose actions were practically suicide in itself already.
That is not a good thing to think right now, and Alex realized that he was treading on some dangerous waters by reminding Alina about these things.
An explanation is necessary, for now.
"What the hell? I did not expect that this Carlie really tried doing that before!" Alex replied back as he wilted under Alina's glare. "Look… I know that suicide is a sensitive issue, but I thought that maybe I should ask that part first so that I can eliminate it quickly from my questions."
"Hmph, and it seems like your attempt to eliminate it has failed." Alina gruffly replied as she continued glaring at Alex. "So, what will you do now, huh?"
"Well…" Alex scratched his head as she looked back at Carlie, who just glared at him back.
Since they were at this point already, then Alex just had to go on.
"Okay, so no more talks about suicide." Alex raised his hands as he took a deep breath. "Instead, let us talk about your monster transformation."
"…" Carlie once more did not say anything, but with his emotion sensor, Alex could feel that Carlie was tense right now.
Alex liked this feeling, as he realized that he was getting on the right track.
"Was a concoction thrown at your village to turn you all to monsters?" Alex said as he tilted his head.
One twitch from the left eye.
"Or was it given orally?"
Slight trembling from the upper lip.
"It's a concoction." Alina said from behind Alex.
"Good." Alex nodded as he absorbed that information quickly.
So from the looks of it, it seems like the monster transformation process was done in terms of many people.
This piece of info made Alex think of something crucial.
"Your concoction…it has a low success rate, right?" Alex said as he rubbed his hands together. "That could be the only reason that the concoction was used on many people at once. After all, the larger the sample size, the larger will be the minor results are."
A slight fidget on her left shoulder.
"That's the truth." Alina said with satisfaction. "We are having a roll right here…"
"Great…" Now that he had asked the basic questions, it is time for Alex to jump to the Big One.
"Since you are Transformed Monster, and it looks like you are an official, you must know some things like the antidote that reverts monster transformation, right?" Alex said as he tried to not show his nervousness. "You know that there is a cure, right?"
No visible twitches were seen this time.
Before Alina could say her verdict, Carlie started to laugh, as if she found Alex's question to be extremely funny.
"Hahaha! So the reason that you let me live right now is just because of that question?" If Carlie could move, then she could have been rolling on the floor already. "You two must have been desperate to 'cure' those 5 little monsters, that you allowed me to live! You want to ask me for the antidote to reverse the monster transformation! Hahaha, good luck on getting that!"
"You…" Alex frowned, clearly not liking the tone in Carlie's voice. "I think that you sho-"
"You Visitor Monsters really like to help out Transformed Monsters… Ugh, I really hate that aspect of yours!" Carlie said, cutting off Alex rudely. "Why can't you just mind you own business and let us be? You just disrupt the order in this World with your meddling!"
"Oh, ok, it seems like you have some problems with us." Alex mumbled as he saw how livid Carlie became. "Did the last-"
"Everytime some Visitor Monsters come in our World and hear about the Monster Birth Program, all of them always do their best to take it down!" Carlie spat out as she glared at Alex with hate. "You two, you are just planning to do that, right?"
"Well, we don't care about the program itself. What we want is the cure to help the 5 little monsters with us." Alex slowly said as he shook his head. "We don't plan to stop that program, since I think that I have to fight many strong Monsters if I want that to happen. We just want the cure itself."
"Heh, and you think I will believe you?" Carlie said as she closed her eyes. "Come on, keep on asking me. Whatever you ask me now, it won't help you both. The cure that you are looking for cannot be found if you ask me this way."
The confident demeanor that Carlie is wearing right now made Alex frown. But even with what she said, Alex was not deterred as he continued asking her more questions.
"...."
"...."
"...."
*****************
1 Hour later.
"No way…" This was the only thing that Alex could say as he ran out of questions that he can ask Carlie. "Even with all that questions, we can't still find the cure? D**n it!"
Alex and Alina spent the last hour asking Carlie with a variety of questions, all with the intent to know deduct the cure for the monster transformation.
But no matter what question they asked, they were still stuck!
"Isn't the cure created by one of your Generals?" Alex asked as his tentacles frazzled in frustration. "In that case, you should know about it."
Carlie's reply to that was only a cheeky smile.
"It is not the truth." Alina sighed as she gave her verdict. "From the looks of it, she knows that the cure is not created by any of their Generals... Yes, the cure exists, but from what I have seen right now, it seems to exist in a way that we do not know…"
"Hmph, there is a better explanation for what we are seeing right now!" Alex harrumphed angrily.
"..."
"..."
After a minute of painful silence, Alex suddenly placed a tentacle in his forehead, as if he remembered something right now. "Oh jeez, how could I be so f**king stupid!"
"???" Alina tilted her head as she saw Alex's reaction. "What are you thinking about Alex?"
Instead of replying to Alina's question, what Alex did was to look at Carlie in her eyes, as he slowly asked her,
"Oi you Shadow Monster, you don't know what the cure really is, right?"
Carlie's face went blank after hearing that.
"That is the truth…" Alina put a palm on her forehead, as she looked like she wanted to smack her head on the floor. "We should have asked her that question earlier! If we did, then we should have not wasted an hour asking her pointless things!"
"You f**ker!" Alex snarled as he realized that he and Alina had been played by Carlie.
From the looks of it, Carlie knows that there is a cure and that it exists.
However, it seems like she does not know what the cure really is, and where it can be located.
"Tsk, so much for the trouble." Alex mumbled angrily to himself as he let out a sigh. "So Alina, what should we do with this monster?"
"Well, we can-" But before Alina could say something, Asteria let out a shout, interrupting the both of them.
"Excuse me everyone!" Asteria shouted as she flew between Alex and Alina. The same cocky grin was back in her face, as if there was something that had greatly interested her.
"...."
"...."
It did not take Alex and Alina that long to discover the thing that made Asteria this lively.
"I just received the notification for your first Bonus Mission here in this World!" Asteria declared with the pompousness comparable to that of a royal messenger.
"Ugh, here we go…" Alex was not sure how to feel about the Bonus Mission appearing right now, but seeing that Carlie was with them when the Bonus Mission appeared, it looks like the Bonus Mission is somewhat related to her.
"Tonk."
Since Alex had no more questions for Carlie right now, he resorted to knocking her out first.
With her unable to fight back, Carlie immediately keeled with Alex's blow, bringing her to unconsciousness.
"Hup!" With Carlie currently out cold, Alina was able to safely deactivate her Blood Lock.
"Ok, start talking now." Alex said as he nudged Carlie, maybe in an attempt to see if she was still conscious or not. "We need to save time, as every second counts."
"Hmph, you are always a spoilsport!" Asteria pouted as she shook her head in disbelief. Nonetheless, she still followed Alex's command as she said,
[Infiltrate the Human Faction and Infiltrate the Monster Faction. Success will give 2 Years of Lifespan to the Traveler, and at least 10,000 Contribution Points to the Companion. Bonus Mission is optional, although succeeding on it will greatly help on finishing the Main Mission.]
Asteria said these words monotonously, although her face still held a mischievous edge in it.
"That sounds so dangerous and specific." Alex thought to himself as he shook his head. "What do you mean by infiltrate both the Human and Monster Faction? How do we even do that? And should we even do that?"
"Well, if you do it, you can get rewards…" Asteria drawled as she tilted her head. "Wait, why do you even question it? If you do it, you can get something good!"
"Hmm…" Even if Alex was wary of the contents of the Bonus Mission, he's somewhat interested on the rewards.
After all, if he can pull the Bonus Mission off, then he can have enough Lifespan to buy another Abyss Tome.
Something like that will be worth the risk!
"Let me clarify something first." Alex said as he raised his hands. "Do we get the rewards once we successfully infiltrate the Human and Monster Factions? Or do we wait for some time yet before the rewards come in?"
"As long as you do what the Bonus Mission stated you to do, then you two will get the rewards." Asteria replied warily as she saw the crafty expression on Alex's face.
"Oh really…"
"Oi Alex…" Asteria trailed as she seemed uncomfortable with Alex's current expression. "Are you… planning on gaming the system?"
"Well of course I am." Alex cheekily replied, with his face showing his intense confidence. "Right now, I have a plan that will allow me to pull of the Bonus Mission with the least amount of risk! Of course, I would need your help to do that, Asteria."
"And you think I will just help you out?" Asteria scoffed as she placed both her hands on her hips. "Even I have to refuse you too! A fairy queen like me cannot be just ordered arou- Hey what are you doing!"
Alex did not wait for Asteria to say anything else as he grabbed her by her body, dangling her upside down.
Asteria, who was about to berate Alex, suddenly shivered as she realized that she's already familiar with her current scenario.
"No, not again…" Asteria mewled as Alina watched what was happening with curiosity. "Hooman, please help me!"
"I'm sorry, but I won't allow Alina to help you out." Alex said as he slightly raised his hand that was holding Asteria. "After all, Alina is also curious on how your Fairy Dust feels like."
"No!!!" Asteria's words were drowned out as Alex shook her like a salt shaker.
"Chi chi chi…"
Fairy Dust poured all over Alex's body, making him feel the same sensation that he felt before.
"Asteria, make sure that I will have the appearance of Teresa…" Alex said as he ignored the curse words that Asteria shouted out to him.
"As for Alina, use your Fairy Dust to make her look like Carlie…." Alex said as he gave a nod to Alina. "Don't f**k it up, ok?"
"Huhuhu, hooman, why hast tho forsaken me?" Asteria cried out, as if she was facing the worst time in her life. "Help me out here!"
"...…." Alina ignored these words by Asteria, as she watched the shaking action with fascination. "Alex, I want to shake Asteria too…"
"Here you go then."
"No!!!"
Please report us if you find any errors so we can fix it asap!
"Ehem." Alex let out a cough as the tried to compose himself. "So, let's continue what we are doing."
"…." Carlie did not say anything, as she just continued on glaring at Alex.
"Wait, before you continue talking to her, let me say something first." Alina suddenly said to Alex. "From the first time that I saw Carlie… I realized that I saw something from her that you could not see clearly..."
"Oh?" Alex looked at Alina with interest, as he realized Alina's emphasis on the word 'see'.
With Alina's All-Seeing Eyes, anything that she can 'see' will always be interesting.
Alina paused for a second, before slowly saying,
"From what I can see, Carlie… just like the 5 little monsters… was also a human before."
"That's quite a surprise." Alex replied in a monotonous tone. "I did not expect that our resident guest was also a victim of the Monsters."
"I am not victim!" Carlie suddenly shouted as she glared at Alex with malevolence. "I was saved by Queen Mother when I became a Monster! She… liberated me from the sufferings of this World! You say that I am a victim? Yes, that was the case when I was stuck on being a Human! But now? I am living the best of my life!"
"She thinks that it is the truth." Alina commented as she shook her head. "She fully believes that her life was better now that she is a Monster."
"....."
Alex did not like how emotional Carlie looked right now. Her face was baring her remaining teeth at Alex, as if she could not wait to sink it on him.
From this sight, it was quite obvious that she was extremely triggered by her past and her transformation.
But even if he was uncomfortable with that, Alex realized that this is his chance now to swoop in over Carlie.
Alex knew that in order for him to get information much easier from Carlie, he must first break her down first, both physically and mentally.
The physical part was already accounted for, with all the injuries that he gave her.
As for the mental part, Alex is about to start it.
"You… had a bad life as a Human before, right?" Alex said as he smiled at Carlie.
Carlie's ears twitched at that.
"Truth." Alina quickly commented.
"Okay, so I do not know how bad your life was before, but that must have filled you with suicidal thoughts…" Alex drawled as he sat cross-legged in front of Carlie. "Surely, you tried killing yourself when you were a Human before, right?"
Of course Alex was buls**tting at this point.
He just gave out the 'suicide' card as this is the most extreme thing that he can think up right now.
Surely, this Carlie did not try to kill herself before, right?
There are no visible twitches that came from Carlie after hearing what Alex just said.
"She… really tried to kill herself before." Alina slowly said as she gave Alex a frown.
"Umm..." Alex floundered after hearing what Alina said, as he felt that there are no words that would come out of his mouth right now.
"..."
Alina's face looked to be full of displeasure as she glared at Alex. "Alex, should you really continue on going on that line? This is getting quite sensitive already, and I am not liking where this is going."
"Umm…."
It was quite obvious to Alex that what he just said made Alina remember her sister whose actions were practically suicide in itself already.
That is not a good thing to think right now, and Alex realized that he was treading on some dangerous waters by reminding Alina about these things.
An explanation is necessary, for now.
"What the hell? I did not expect that this Carlie really tried doing that before!" Alex replied back as he wilted under Alina's glare. "Look… I know that suicide is a sensitive issue, but I thought that maybe I should ask that part first so that I can eliminate it quickly from my questions."
"Hmph, and it seems like your attempt to eliminate it has failed." Alina gruffly replied as she continued glaring at Alex. "So, what will you do now, huh?"
"Well…" Alex scratched his head as she looked back at Carlie, who just glared at him back.
Since they were at this point already, then Alex just had to go on.
"Okay, so no more talks about suicide." Alex raised his hands as he took a deep breath. "Instead, let us talk about your monster transformation."
"…" Carlie once more did not say anything, but with his emotion sensor, Alex could feel that Carlie was tense right now.
Alex liked this feeling, as he realized that he was getting on the right track.
"Was a concoction thrown at your village to turn you all to monsters?" Alex said as he tilted his head.
One twitch from the left eye.
"Or was it given orally?"
Slight trembling from the upper lip.
"It's a concoction." Alina said from behind Alex.
"Good." Alex nodded as he absorbed that information quickly.
So from the looks of it, it seems like the monster transformation process was done in terms of many people.
This piece of info made Alex think of something crucial.
"Your concoction…it has a low success rate, right?" Alex said as he rubbed his hands together. "That could be the only reason that the concoction was used on many people at once. After all, the larger the sample size, the larger will be the minor results are."
A slight fidget on her left shoulder.
"That's the truth." Alina said with satisfaction. "We are having a roll right here…"
"Great…" Now that he had asked the basic questions, it is time for Alex to jump to the Big One.
"Since you are Transformed Monster, and it looks like you are an official, you must know some things like the antidote that reverts monster transformation, right?" Alex said as he tried to not show his nervousness. "You know that there is a cure, right?"
No visible twitches were seen this time.
Before Alina could say her verdict, Carlie started to laugh, as if she found Alex's question to be extremely funny.
"Hahaha! So the reason that you let me live right now is just because of that question?" If Carlie could move, then she could have been rolling on the floor already. "You two must have been desperate to 'cure' those 5 little monsters, that you allowed me to live! You want to ask me for the antidote to reverse the monster transformation! Hahaha, good luck on getting that!"
"You…" Alex frowned, clearly not liking the tone in Carlie's voice. "I think that you sho-"
"You Visitor Monsters really like to help out Transformed Monsters… Ugh, I really hate that aspect of yours!" Carlie said, cutting off Alex rudely. "Why can't you just mind you own business and let us be? You just disrupt the order in this World with your meddling!"
"Oh, ok, it seems like you have some problems with us." Alex mumbled as he saw how livid Carlie became. "Did the last-"
"Everytime some Visitor Monsters come in our World and hear about the Monster Birth Program, all of them always do their best to take it down!" Carlie spat out as she glared at Alex with hate. "You two, you are just planning to do that, right?"
"Well, we don't care about the program itself. What we want is the cure to help the 5 little monsters with us." Alex slowly said as he shook his head. "We don't plan to stop that program, since I think that I have to fight many strong Monsters if I want that to happen. We just want the cure itself."
"Heh, and you think I will believe you?" Carlie said as she closed her eyes. "Come on, keep on asking me. Whatever you ask me now, it won't help you both. The cure that you are looking for cannot be found if you ask me this way."
The confident demeanor that Carlie is wearing right now made Alex frown. But even with what she said, Alex was not deterred as he continued asking her more questions.
"...."
"...."
"...."
*****************
1 Hour later.
"No way…" This was the only thing that Alex could say as he ran out of questions that he can ask Carlie. "Even with all that questions, we can't still find the cure? D**n it!"
Alex and Alina spent the last hour asking Carlie with a variety of questions, all with the intent to know deduct the cure for the monster transformation.
But no matter what question they asked, they were still stuck!
"Isn't the cure created by one of your Generals?" Alex asked as his tentacles frazzled in frustration. "In that case, you should know about it."
Carlie's reply to that was only a cheeky smile.
"It is not the truth." Alina sighed as she gave her verdict. "From the looks of it, she knows that the cure is not created by any of their Generals... Yes, the cure exists, but from what I have seen right now, it seems to exist in a way that we do not know…"
"Hmph, there is a better explanation for what we are seeing right now!" Alex harrumphed angrily.
"..."
"..."
After a minute of painful silence, Alex suddenly placed a tentacle in his forehead, as if he remembered something right now. "Oh jeez, how could I be so f**king stupid!"
"???" Alina tilted her head as she saw Alex's reaction. "What are you thinking about Alex?"
Instead of replying to Alina's question, what Alex did was to look at Carlie in her eyes, as he slowly asked her,
"Oi you Shadow Monster, you don't know what the cure really is, right?"
Carlie's face went blank after hearing that.
"That is the truth…" Alina put a palm on her forehead, as she looked like she wanted to smack her head on the floor. "We should have asked her that question earlier! If we did, then we should have not wasted an hour asking her pointless things!"
"You f**ker!" Alex snarled as he realized that he and Alina had been played by Carlie.
From the looks of it, Carlie knows that there is a cure and that it exists.
However, it seems like she does not know what the cure really is, and where it can be located.
"Tsk, so much for the trouble." Alex mumbled angrily to himself as he let out a sigh. "So Alina, what should we do with this monster?"
"Well, we can-" But before Alina could say something, Asteria let out a shout, interrupting the both of them.
"Excuse me everyone!" Asteria shouted as she flew between Alex and Alina. The same cocky grin was back in her face, as if there was something that had greatly interested her.
"...."
"...."
It did not take Alex and Alina that long to discover the thing that made Asteria this lively.
"I just received the notification for your first Bonus Mission here in this World!" Asteria declared with the pompousness comparable to that of a royal messenger.
"Ugh, here we go…" Alex was not sure how to feel about the Bonus Mission appearing right now, but seeing that Carlie was with them when the Bonus Mission appeared, it looks like the Bonus Mission is somewhat related to her.
"Tonk."
Since Alex had no more questions for Carlie right now, he resorted to knocking her out first.
With her unable to fight back, Carlie immediately keeled with Alex's blow, bringing her to unconsciousness.
"Hup!" With Carlie currently out cold, Alina was able to safely deactivate her Blood Lock.
"Ok, start talking now." Alex said as he nudged Carlie, maybe in an attempt to see if she was still conscious or not. "We need to save time, as every second counts."
"Hmph, you are always a spoilsport!" Asteria pouted as she shook her head in disbelief. Nonetheless, she still followed Alex's command as she said,
[Infiltrate the Human Faction and Infiltrate the Monster Faction. Success will give 2 Years of Lifespan to the Traveler, and at least 10,000 Contribution Points to the Companion. Bonus Mission is optional, although succeeding on it will greatly help on finishing the Main Mission.]
Asteria said these words monotonously, although her face still held a mischievous edge in it.
"That sounds so dangerous and specific." Alex thought to himself as he shook his head. "What do you mean by infiltrate both the Human and Monster Faction? How do we even do that? And should we even do that?"
"Well, if you do it, you can get rewards…" Asteria drawled as she tilted her head. "Wait, why do you even question it? If you do it, you can get something good!"
"Hmm…" Even if Alex was wary of the contents of the Bonus Mission, he's somewhat interested on the rewards.
After all, if he can pull the Bonus Mission off, then he can have enough Lifespan to buy another Abyss Tome.
Something like that will be worth the risk!
"Let me clarify something first." Alex said as he raised his hands. "Do we get the rewards once we successfully infiltrate the Human and Monster Factions? Or do we wait for some time yet before the rewards come in?"
"As long as you do what the Bonus Mission stated you to do, then you two will get the rewards." Asteria replied warily as she saw the crafty expression on Alex's face.
"Oh really…"
"Oi Alex…" Asteria trailed as she seemed uncomfortable with Alex's current expression. "Are you… planning on gaming the system?"
"Well of course I am." Alex cheekily replied, with his face showing his intense confidence. "Right now, I have a plan that will allow me to pull of the Bonus Mission with the least amount of risk! Of course, I would need your help to do that, Asteria."
"And you think I will just help you out?" Asteria scoffed as she placed both her hands on her hips. "Even I have to refuse you too! A fairy queen like me cannot be just ordered arou- Hey what are you doing!"
Alex did not wait for Asteria to say anything else as he grabbed her by her body, dangling her upside down.
Asteria, who was about to berate Alex, suddenly shivered as she realized that she's already familiar with her current scenario.
"No, not again…" Asteria mewled as Alina watched what was happening with curiosity. "Hooman, please help me!"
"I'm sorry, but I won't allow Alina to help you out." Alex said as he slightly raised his hand that was holding Asteria. "After all, Alina is also curious on how your Fairy Dust feels like."
"No!!!" Asteria's words were drowned out as Alex shook her like a salt shaker.
"Chi chi chi…"
Fairy Dust poured all over Alex's body, making him feel the same sensation that he felt before.
"Asteria, make sure that I will have the appearance of Teresa…" Alex said as he ignored the curse words that Asteria shouted out to him.
"As for Alina, use your Fairy Dust to make her look like Carlie…." Alex said as he gave a nod to Alina. "Don't f**k it up, ok?"
"Huhuhu, hooman, why hast tho forsaken me?" Asteria cried out, as if she was facing the worst time in her life. "Help me out here!"
"...…." Alina ignored these words by Asteria, as she watched the shaking action with fascination. "Alex, I want to shake Asteria too…"
"Here you go then."
"No!!!"
"Ehem." Alex let out a cough as the tried to compose himself. "So, let's continue what we are doing.""." Carlie did not say anything, as she just continued on glaring at Alex."Wait, before you continue talking to her, let me say something first." Alina suddenly said to Alex. "From the first time that I saw Carlie I realized that I saw something from her that you could not see clearly...""Oh?" Alex looked at Alina with interest, as he realized Alina's emphasis on the word 'see'.With Alina's All-Seeing Eyes, anything that she can 'see' will always be interesting.Alina paused for a second, before slowly saying,"From what I can see, Carlie just like the 5 little monsters was also a human before.""That's quite a surprise." Alex replied in a monotonous tone. "I did not expect that our resident guest was also a victim of the Monsters.""I am not victim!" Carlie suddenly shouted as she glared at Alex with malevolence. "I was saved by Queen Mother when I became a Monster! She liberated me from the sufferings of this World! You say that I am a victim? Yes, that was the case when I was stuck on being a Human! But now? I am living the best of my life!""She thinks that it is the truth." Alina commented as she shook her head. "She fully believes that her life was better now that she is a Monster.""....."Alex did not like how emotional Carlie looked right now. Her face was baring her remaining teeth at Alex, as if she could not wait to sink it on him.From this sight, it was quite obvious that she was extremely triggered by her past and her transformation.But even if he was uncomfortable with that, Alex realized that this is his chance now to swoop in over Carlie.Alex knew that in order for him to get information much easier from Carlie, he must first break her down first, both physically and mentally.The physical part was already accounted for, with all the injuries that he gave her.As for the mental part, Alex is about to start it."You had a bad life as a Human before, right?" Alex said as he smiled at Carlie.Carlie's ears twitched at that."Truth." Alina quickly commented."Okay, so I do not know how bad your life was before, but that must have filled you with suicidal thoughts" Alex drawled as he sat cross-legged in front of Carlie. "Surely, you tried killing yourself when you were a Human before, right?"Of course Alex was buls**tting at this point.He just gave out the 'suicide' card as this is the most extreme thing that he can think up right now.Surely, this Carlie did not try to kill herself before, right?There are no visible twitches that came from Carlie after hearing what Alex just said."She really tried to kill herself before." Alina slowly said as she gave Alex a frown."Umm..." Alex floundered after hearing what Alina said, as he felt that there are no words that would come out of his mouth right now."..."Alina's face looked to be full of displeasure as she glared at Alex. "Alex, should you really continue on going on that line? This is getting quite sensitive already, and I am not liking where this is going.""Umm."It was quite obvious to Alex that what he just said made Alina remember her sister whose actions were practically suicide in itself already.That is not a good thing to think right now, and Alex realized that he was treading on some dangerous waters by reminding Alina about these things.An explanation is necessary, for now."What the hell? I did not expect that this Carlie really tried doing that before!" Alex replied back as he wilted under Alina's glare. "Look I know that suicide is a sensitive issue, but I thought that maybe I should ask that part first so that I can eliminate it quickly from my questions.""Hmph, and it seems like your attempt to eliminate it has failed." Alina gruffly replied as she continued glaring at Alex. "So, what will you do now, huh?""Well" Alex scratched his head as she looked back at Carlie, who just glared at him back.Since they were at this point already, then Alex just had to go on."Okay, so no more talks about suicide." Alex raised his hands as he took a deep breath. "Instead, let us talk about your monster transformation.""" Carlie once more did not say anything, but with his emotion sensor, Alex could feel that Carlie was tense right now.Alex liked this feeling, as he realized that he was getting on the right track."Was a concoction thrown at your village to turn you all to monsters?" Alex said as he tilted his head.One twitch from the left eye."Or was it given orally?"Slight trembling from the upper lip."It's a concoction." Alina said from behind Alex."Good." Alex nodded as he absorbed that information quickly.So from the looks of it, it seems like the monster transformation process was done in terms of many people.This piece of info made Alex think of something crucial."Your concoctionit has a low success rate, right?" Alex said as he rubbed his hands together. "That could be the only reason that the concoction was used on many people at once. After all, the larger the sample size, the larger will be the minor results are."A slight fidget on her left shoulder."That's the truth." Alina said with satisfaction. "We are having a roll right here""Great" Now that he had asked the basic questions, it is time for Alex to jump to the Big One."Since you are Transformed Monster, and it looks like you are an official, you must know some things like the antidote that reverts monster transformation, right?" Alex said as he tried to not show his nervousness. "You know that there is a cure, right?"No visible twitches were seen this time.Before Alina could say her verdict, Carlie started to laugh, as if she found Alex's question to be extremely funny."Hahaha! So the reason that you let me live right now is just because of that question?" If Carlie could move, then she could have been rolling on the floor already. "You two must have been desperate to 'cure' those 5 little monsters, that you allowed me to live! You want to ask me for the antidote to reverse the monster transformation! Hahaha, good luck on getting that!""You" Alex frowned, clearly not liking the tone in Carlie's voice. "I think that you sho-""You Visitor Monsters really like to help out Transformed Monsters Ugh, I really hate that aspect of yours!" Carlie said, cutting off Alex rudely. "Why can't you just mind you own business and let us be? You just disrupt the order in this World with your meddling!""Oh, ok, it seems like you have some problems with us." Alex mumbled as he saw how livid Carlie became. "Did the last-""Everytime some Visitor Monsters come in our World and hear about the Monster Birth Program, all of them always do their best to take it down!" Carlie spat out as she glared at Alex with hate. "You two, you are just planning to do that, right?""Well, we don't care about the program itself. What we want is the cure to help the 5 little monsters with us." Alex slowly said as he shook his head. "We don't plan to stop that program, since I think that I have to fight many strong Monsters if I want that to happen. We just want the cure itself.""Heh, and you think I will believe you?" Carlie said as she closed her eyes. "Come on, keep on asking me. Whatever you ask me now, it won't help you both. The cure that you are looking for cannot be found if you ask me this way."The confident demeanor that Carlie is wearing right now made Alex frown. But even with what she said, Alex was not deterred as he continued asking her more questions."....""....""...."*****************1 Hour later."No way" This was the only thing that Alex could say as he ran out of questions that he can ask Carlie. "Even with all that questions, we can't still find the cure? D**n it!"Alex and Alina spent the last hour asking Carlie with a variety of questions, all with the intent to know deduct the cure for the monster transformation.But no matter what question they asked, they were still stuck!"Isn't the cure created by one of your Generals?" Alex asked as his tentacles frazzled in frustration. "In that case, you should know about it."Carlie's reply to that was only a cheeky smile."It is not the truth." Alina sighed as she gave her verdict. "From the looks of it, she knows that the cure is not created by any of their Generals... Yes, the cure exists, but from what I have seen right now, it seems to exist in a way that we do not know""Hmph, there is a better explanation for what we are seeing right now!" Alex harrumphed angrily."...""..."After a minute of painful silence, Alex suddenly placed a tentacle in his forehead, as if he remembered something right now. "Oh jeez, how could I be so f**king stupid!""???" Alina tilted her head as she saw Alex's reaction. "What are you thinking about Alex?"Instead of replying to Alina's question, what Alex did was to look at Carlie in her eyes, as he slowly asked her,"Oi you Shadow Monster, you don't know what the cure really is, right?"Carlie's face went blank after hearing that."That is the truth" Alina put a palm on her forehead, as she looked like she wanted to smack her head on the floor. "We should have asked her that question earlier! If we did, then we should have not wasted an hour asking her pointless things!""You f**ker!" Alex snarled as he realized that he and Alina had been played by Carlie.From the looks of it, Carlie knows that there is a cure and that it exists.However, it seems like she does not know what the cure really is, and where it can be located."Tsk, so much for the trouble." Alex mumbled angrily to himself as he let out a sigh. "So Alina, what should we do with this monster?""Well, we can-" But before Alina could say something, Asteria let out a shout, interrupting the both of them."Excuse me everyone!" Asteria shouted as she flew between Alex and Alina. The same cocky grin was back in her face, as if there was something that had greatly interested her."....""...."It did not take Alex and Alina that long to discover the thing that made Asteria this lively."I just received the notification for your first Bonus Mission here in this World!" Asteria declared with the pompousness comparable to that of a royal messenger."Ugh, here we go" Alex was not sure how to feel about the Bonus Mission appearing right now, but seeing that Carlie was with them when the Bonus Mission appeared, it looks like the Bonus Mission is somewhat related to her."Tonk."Since Alex had no more questions for Carlie right now, he resorted to knocking her out first.With her unable to fight back, Carlie immediately keeled with Alex's blow, bringing her to unconsciousness."Hup!" With Carlie currently out cold, Alina was able to safely deactivate her Blood Lock."Ok, start talking now." Alex said as he nudged Carlie, maybe in an attempt to see if she was still conscious or not. "We need to save time, as every second counts.""Hmph, you are always a spoilsport!" Asteria pouted as she shook her head in disbelief. Nonetheless, she still followed Alex's command as she said,Infiltrate the Human Faction and Infiltrate the Monster Faction. Success will give 2 Years of Lifespan to the Traveler, and at least 10,000 Contribution Points to the Companion. Bonus Mission is optional, although succeeding on it will greatly help on finishing the Main Mission.Asteria said these words monotonously, although her face still held a mischievous edge in it."That sounds so dangerous and specific." Alex thought to himself as he shook his head. "What do you mean by infiltrate both the Human and Monster Faction? How do we even do that? And should we even do that?""Well, if you do it, you can get rewards" Asteria drawled as she tilted her head. "Wait, why do you even question it? If you do it, you can get something good!""Hmm" Even if Alex was wary of the contents of the Bonus Mission, he's somewhat interested on the rewards.After all, if he can pull the Bonus Mission off, then he can have enough Lifespan to buy another Abyss Tome.Something like that will be worth the risk!"Let me clarify something first." Alex said as he raised his hands. "Do we get the rewards once we successfully infiltrate the Human and Monster Factions? Or do we wait for some time yet before the rewards come in?""As long as you do what the Bonus Mission stated you to do, then you two will get the rewards." Asteria replied warily as she saw the crafty expression on Alex's face."Oh really""Oi Alex" Asteria trailed as she seemed uncomfortable with Alex's current expression. "Are you planning on gaming the system?""Well of course I am." Alex cheekily replied, with his face showing his intense confidence. "Right now, I have a plan that will allow me to pull of the Bonus Mission with the least amount of risk! Of course, I would need your help to do that, Asteria.""And you think I will just help you out?" Asteria scoffed as she placed both her hands on her hips. "Even I have to refuse you too! A fairy queen like me cannot be just ordered arou- Hey what are you doing!"Alex did not wait for Asteria to say anything else as he grabbed her by her body, dangling her upside down.Asteria, who was about to berate Alex, suddenly shivered as she realized that she's already familiar with her current scenario."No, not again" Asteria mewled as Alina watched what was happening with curiosity. "Hooman, please help me!""I'm sorry, but I won't allow Alina to help you out." Alex said as he slightly raised his hand that was holding Asteria. "After all, Alina is also curious on how your Fairy Dust feels like.""No!!!" Asteria's words were drowned out as Alex shook her like a salt shaker."Chi chi chi"Fairy Dust poured all over Alex's body, making him feel the same sensation that he felt before."Asteria, make sure that I will have the appearance of Teresa" Alex said as he ignored the curse words that Asteria shouted out to him."As for Alina, use your Fairy Dust to make her look like Carlie." Alex said as he gave a nod to Alina. "Don't f**k it up, ok?""Huhuhu, hooman, why hast tho forsaken me?" Asteria cried out, as if she was facing the worst time in her life. "Help me out here!""...." Alina ignored these words by Asteria, as she watched the shaking action with fascination. "Alex, I want to shake Asteria too""Here you go then.""No!!!"
