22: The Judgement of Death?

The three were holding their breaths so as not to be seen by those creatures. Aki couldn't even open her eyes when she saw one approaching them. The creature's large body and sharp claws were noticeable. Its form was strange and terrifying; even Raia couldn't bring himself to look at it again.

"Is this all we're taking?" the creature asked before turning to its companion behind it.

"Yes, that's it. Rayven takes too long to bring out new supplies. I've been saying that we should replace him with Rover," the other one complained.

"Do you think Mr. A would just let that happen?" the one approaching June and co. asked.

"I think Rayven is a kinder servant than his brother," it added before stopping in front of the tube where Raia and the others were hiding.

June and Co.'s eyes widened as they saw the creature about to take the tube. They closed their eyes so as not to see the terrifying creature up close.

The creature slowly leaned down to grab the tube, and in a moment, it was slung over its shoulder.

"Come on, let's go," it said to its companion, who had been peering up the stairs where Raia and the others had come down to the basement.

"Do you think we can go upstairs? Even if we only get one of the new students, that would be okay with me, as long as I could eat fresh meat," the companion said, licking their lips as if savoring a delicious meal.

"Are you crazy? Do you want Mr. A to have you killed? Perhaps you're forgetting the rules in Rayven's territory," the companion reminded him.

"Tsk! Why aren't we allowed to go outside even if we were the same as Glutton, who is allowed to wander freely inside?" This person asked irritably before slowly leaving the staircase. The disappointment was evident on its face as it suddenly caught a whiff of something.

"We know that Glutton is just one of the lucky ones who got accepted as Rayven's associate here. Even though Glutton is just like us, it's undeniable that he could contribute more to the nobles; that's why he was chosen," the other said while still carrying the tube.

The other stopped walking and looked back to where the tube came from.

"Veer," his companion called him. 

"What is it, Lorja?" Veer asked without facing him. Lorja seems to smell something from the basement and keeps sniffing to find out where it is.

"Do you smell what I smell?" Lorja asked Veer. Veer looked puzzled while still holding the tube.

"Smell? What is it?" Veer asked.

"Food smell!   Whiwhiwhi," a smile played on Lorja's lips as he jumped for joy.

"Human?" Veer asked, bewildered, as Lorja walked in the direction where he seemed to smell a human scent.

Aki covered their mouth upon seeing the person approaching them.

"Here! I smell something," the creature happily said; he is like a child now who has just found his favorite food.

The three of them held on to each other as they followed June. It was a good thing they left the area behind the tube earlier, but they were still not safe since they were now hiding not far from where they were earlier.

The creature kept getting closer to them, following their scent, until their companion grabbed Lorja by the back.

"Let's go, or Master will get angry again because of what you're doing," Veer said before pulling Lorja away.

Lorja couldn't do anything but be pulled away by his companion. Although he wanted to freak out, his companion was much stronger than him. Lorja kept his irritated face and just frowned while still keeping a serious gaze in the direction where June was waiting for any movement from them.

The three of them lay down on the floor as the creatures finally left. Raia lay down while trying to calm himself, while Aki pulled her hair while trying not to cry again.

June leaned against the wall while holding his forehead. Silence prevailed among the three of them.

"I don't know if I should believe you. At first, I thought that you just made up the story about ghouls and that this school is a farm and we're the products being fed to that man who kills people, but... but," Aki said before tears started falling from her eyes.

Neither of them could comfort Aki because they couldn't believe it themselves.

"I've been following you guys since I saw you talking secretly every night. I learned about the ghoul thing, which makes me want to mock you two. But I thought there was some catch because something's fishy between you two. Until I saw that book," Aki said.

She was referring to the book she stole from Raia that day. The other two looked at her while listening to what she was saying.

"That day, when I took that book from you, I went to the cafeteria, and Mr. Rayven saw me reading it," she finished.

June and Raia's eyes widened upon hearing it. It seemed like Aki suddenly remembered that time when Mr. Rayven talked to her about that book.

"He slowly approached me, and even if he was just asking how I got that book, I could feel his rage. It's as if there's something behind that smile while he's talking at me," he said.

June clenched his fists. It didn't take long before he convinced Aki and Raia to leave. He knew that the two were not in their right mind now after seeing and learning about what happened. Aki was still so shocked by what happened that she couldn't even move from her seat.

She just kept on crying. Raia looked even more nervous because of what she heard from Aki. He was sure that he was the only one whom Mr. Rayven knew about the ghouls. And he was sure that Mr. Rayven would target him and suspect him when they met. It's not impossible that what happened to him before will happen again, especially if Mr. Rayven finds out that his memories came back. 

June rushed the two of them and pulled them out of the basement. There was no problem since Mr. Rayven was still not in his office. When they returned the door of the basement to its proper placement, they immediately went out of the door.

June led them to make sure that there was no one in the hallway when they came out. And when they noticed that there was no one outside, he quickly let the two out. They were about to leave when they suddenly heard a voice from behind.

"Aki? What are you doing here?" Mr. Rayven asked them. The three of them were like statues upon hearing that voice. Only June and Aki were seen by Mr. Rayven in front of the door because Raia had quickly walked towards the nearby wall to hide due to his fear of being seen by Mr. Rayven.

June and Aki still had their backs turned to Mr. Rayven when they looked at each other as if they were discussing what to do.

June didn't wait any longer and faced the teacher.

"Oh, there you are, Mr. Rayven; Aki has been waiting for you since earlier because she has something to tell you," June said casually. His voice didn't reveal that he was just pretending. It's as if he's an expert in pretending.

Aki's eyes widened as if she couldn't believe what her friend said, but June just smiled at her. Aki had no choice but to go along with the guy.

"Hmm, what is it, Aki?" Mr. Rayven asked and then looked at her.

"Ah, to be honest, sir, I would like to ask about the exam that we will have next," Aki said shyly to the teacher.

The teacher furrowed his brow. "Oh, is that so? Don't worry, I will tell you tomorrow and give you some time before taking it," the teacher assured her.

"I see. Well, thank you. Sorry for the trouble, sir... June and I really want to pass your exam," Aki added. At that moment, Aki's shyness disappeared and was replaced with joy. It seemed like she had become better at pretending.

Mr. Rayven smiled. "Is that so? Don't worry; I'm sure you will pass," the teacher said, putting his hand on her shoulders.

After that, the two said goodbye and went down the stairs. When Raia was sure that Mr. Rayven was no longer in the hallway, he also followed them.

The three of them immediately sat down when they entered June's room. Aki entered the room subtly, and the other two helped her so that they wouldn't be noticed by the other boys since she was breaking the rules by entering the guy's dormitory.

Silence enveloped the three of them, and it seemed like they were finally able to breathe. Afterward, they went to Raia's room to talk about what happened. They explained their plan to Aki and showed her the map they had made.

On the other hand, Mr. Rayven furrowed his brow when he entered his office. It was still dark, and nothing had changed except for one thing.

He immediately noticed a strange smell—the smell of a person coming from every corner of his office. He went to the secret passage, and he could still smell it there.

He immediately looked at the door, his fists clenched as he tried to remember who could enter his office without permission.

The next day, Mr. Rayven announced the exam, just as he had told Aki. At that time, Aki's nervousness was not as noticeable when he looked in Mr. Rayven's direction. The three of them managed to pretend in front of the teacher to avoid getting caught.

While everyone was excited about the new opportunity to pass the exam, it felt like judgment time for June. They couldn't help but feel anxious behind their fake smiles. They felt like it was time to judge who should die next.

For now, the three of them were calm because they were sure that they wouldn't be the ones to pass the exam. There was only one person who could pass each exam. Even if one of them passed, they could still execute their plan to escape from the school and save others.

But they were surprised when they heard the teacher's announcement. Not just one, but two people would pass the exam. The two with the highest score would pass. The room was filled with joy because of that.

"Yes!  I'm sure I'll pass this time!" one of them said joyfully.

"I hope I can pass too; I really want to graduate already; I miss my boyfriend outside," said one in a snobbish tone.

Despite the joy around them, Raia couldn't help but feel nervous. Mr. Rayven immediately noticed Raia's unusual behavior. Their eyes met, and Mr. Rayven seemed to have a threatening look toward Raia.

At that time, Raia seemed to have perspired out of fear. June noticed the strange look between Mr. Rayven and Raia while Aki was talking to Amelia.

After their class, June and Aki walked with their two other friends, Amelia and Kanaye, and headed to the cafeteria for lunch.

As they left the room, June immediately noticed Raia heading towards his dorm with Mr. Rayven following him. Raia didn't seem to have noticed the teacher following him yet. June excused himself and said he would go back to his room. Aki and June made eye contact and understood each other right away.

"Bro, it's lunchtime, and you're going to the dorm?" Kanaye asked.

"Yeah, I just need to get something," June replied.

"Okay, come back quickly to the cafeteria," Aki said before inviting the two to go ahead. June immediately followed Raia, and he was right. At the far end of the hallway, he saw Mr. Rayven talking to Raia, and from where he stood, he could feel the tension between the two.

"Where were you last night?" June heard Mr. Rayven ask Raia.

"Ah... I was in my room, Mr. Rayven. Why?" Raia's voice trembled with fear. June winced because Raia was clearly lying.

Mr. Rayven's back was facing June's direction, so he immediately saw that Mr. Rayven was about to take a handkerchief from his back pocket. June's eyes widened as he remembered Raia's story before.

Before the incident of Raia's lost memory could repeat, June immediately approached the two.

"Hey, Raia!" he called out.