Bride To His Darkness
Chapter 229: We Only Get One?

Chapter 229: We Only Get One?

"Jack?" Maurice’s voice sounded apprehensive, his brown eyes cloaked with evident trepidation at the sudden disappearance of Jack. The portal that had opened up earlier was no longer visible... but they needed that portal to make it into the finals, it was the only way to proceed... but if the portal isn’t here then does this mean they acted a little too late? Have they failed the event?

But where on Earth is Jack??

"Jack!" He called out with concern, immediately searching the vicinity for his fellow teammate. Bryn, who heard Maurice calling out Jack’s name repeatedly, tried to move, but a sharp pain coursed through his right shoulder joint, making him stay put. When there was no sign of Jack, Bryn clenched his jaw and forced his body to rise from the ruins he had been smashed into. His lean, but youthfully honed body was covered with dust, and his once black hair was tainted brown due to the sand.

When he couldn’t spot Jack, his hands balled into a tight fist.

"That bastard left without us!" The anger in his rising voice could not be misjudged. Maurice had stopped calling out Jack’s name upon hearing Bryn’s enraged declaration, and he would have believed it if the person they were currently talking about was Bryn himself, but Jack? Jack wouldn’t do that to the both of them. They came here as a team and it was necessary for them to win or lose as one. No matter how he chose to view their predicament, he trusted Jack way more than he would ever trust Bryn.

"That can’t be true." Maurice shook his head, feeling slightly offended by Bryn’s unwarranted assumptions. "You can’t presume that he left, what if he’s in some sort of danger? We have no knowledge of this place! So far a lot of things have been sneaking up on us. There’s no way he could leave, it’s not possible since we’re yet to retrieve the Dragon scale. Without the Dragon scale the portal won’t grant us entry to the final round, its importance was noted."

"Well, I hate to screw your new friendship but we’ve been betrayed." He hissed in pain and continued, "you can’t find your bag, we can’t find Jack, and the portal is gone. There’s a DRAGON waiting to listen to our bargain and we have nothing to offer it. We might as well give up the ghost since we’re doomed." He scowled and tried to fix his arm properly, resisting the urge to call Maurice a gullible fool.

"He... left without us?" Maurice questioned yet again, but his voice faltered with disappointment. Listening to the lad, Bryn exhaled sharply and narrowed his eyes at Maurice.

"This is one of your fucking problem you thwart, you trusted him and that was a terrible step to take. Never trust anyone. Work with them, but don’t trust them. This isn’t a real mission, there’s a prize to win at the end of it, and that includes doing everything you can to get there. However, this lesson won’t come in handy once I get my hands on that conniving bastard. He’s so going to regret leaving us here, I’ll snap him in two!"

Maurice couldn’t deny that he was disappointed if that happens to be the case. He trusted Jack, he felt he could count on his fellow lad to stick with him, but how ironic it all turned out to be. In the end, it wasn’t Bryn who betrayed, but it was Jack. Turning his attention to the Dragon that towered before them, Maurice could feel his heart pound at its beastly sight. In the end, he failed to make it to the finals, so what was the use of going ahead with his plans? He might as well just sit and wait till he gets burnt to shrimps, or he returns to GreenHollow as a complete loser.

"I guess you succeeded." He murmured dejectedly, gaining Bryn’s attention as he sat on the bare ground. "You said I’d make it out as a loser, and that has happened. We failed the event, and it’s thanks to my carelessness. I can’t make this bargain without the gemstones, what’s the use of it anyway.. the portal is gone." The light in his eyes had dimmed, he seemed to have given up. Normally, this was exactly what Bryn wanted, he should be happy, should he not? But seeing him all down like a puppy that had been abandoned, it only angered Bryn the more.

"YOU THWART! GET YOUR BUTT OFF THE FLOOR!!"

"Ow! Ouch! Hey! Stop! What’s your fucking problem?" Maurice was startled when Bryn kicked him from behind. He only stopped hitting him when Maurice had risen to his feet. The Dragon, who was now confused by the sight in front of it, watched with bored eyes as the vampire kicked the human till he was standing up again.

"What was that for?!" Maurice looked at Bryn who huffed at his glaring eyes. It was rather obvious that the Vampire lad derived joy in hitting him all the time– to Maurice’s thinking, but presently, Bryn didn’t hit him to bully him, but to make the human get himself together.

"This isn’t over yet." He said beneath his breath and turned his attention to the Dragon.

Bryn stepped forward and took off his own sack bag, he brought out the gemstones that were still in his possession and poured everything out on the ground. He removed the one from the hilt of his blade and dropped it on the floor. Walking back to Maurice, he snatched his sword and took out the gemstone from his hilt, dropping it with the remaining gemstones. Maurice stared at him in a daze, he didn’t even react when Bryn snatched his sword from him.

Was he trading all his gemstones for the two of them?

"Here! This is all we have, now give us your damn scales already!" Uttered Bryn who bellowed his frustration.

"Don’t yell at it!" Maurice shouted back at Bryn, hoping his words hadn’t angered the Dragon that towered intimidatingly in front of them. The eyes of the Dragon took in the gemstones placed on the ground before it, and there were about eight of the gemstones. The energy pulsing through each was rare and powerful, and Maurice secretly thanked the heavens that Bryn hadn’t listened to him and shared his gemstone with them, else, they would have been stranded.

’This wasn’t so difficult, was it?’ a gentle voice whispered into their brain, startling Maurice and Bryn who alarmingly pointed their swords at one another.

"Did you say something?"

"No, did you?"

Taking in the fact that both of them had no idea where the voice came from, the Dragon gazed at the both of them as though they were stupid miniature figures it had to deal with. This set of humans were different from the ones it had interacted with, although not a saint, their personalities showcased their indirect care for one another.

’I’m keeping the gemstones.’ The same voice was heard again, but rather than hearing it go through their eardrums, the sound waves were channeled to their brain, and at the same time, they turned to look at the Dragon who had gathered the gemstones using its mouth.

"You.. you can speak?" Maurice’s pupils dilated in awe, and the eyes of the Dragon narrowed in his direction. The sight almost had him flinching back in fear, but he heard the Dragon’s voice in his head again.

’I’ve been waiting for you two brainbirds to realize the purpose of your mission. I shall give you one of my Dragon scales for succeeding in your mission into the finals.’

"We haven’t failed?" Bryn’s pupils dilated at the news, and all the Dragon had to do was open its palm– in its palm was a gleaming dragon scale. It extended its mighty claws at Maurice, and the lad, although feeling wary and cautious, stretched his trembling hands forth to receive the scale that was being bestowed on him.

The magnificent scale was cool to the touch, its surface smooth like glass. Light danced upon it, creating a captivating display of shifting colors. It reminded Maurice of the mesmerizing scales of a glistening fish beneath the ocean’s depth.

"We only get one?" Questioned the dissatisfied Bryn as he watched the Dragon turn to leave, but had stopped at his inquiries.

’Your gemstones could only afford one.’ answered the Dragon, and it gnashed it teeths at Bryn who bristled back. Satisfied with his fears, it turned to leave. Maurice gazed at Bryn who gritted his teeth, physically struggling to hold his tongue, and before he said something that might offend the Dragon, Maurice excitedly showed the scale to Bryn.

"Look!"

"Yeah yeah, so now what do we do?" At his question, another portal opened. For a moment, they could not move from their spot as they never anticipated another portal to show up.

"Another portal?" Maurice inquired in a daze, but how was it possible two portals appeared in one realm? Where exactly will this Portal lead them? Back home or onto the final round? Where did Jack go?

"Where the heck is Jack? I swear I’m gonna squash him like a bug!" Bryn pounded his fist into his palm as he headed for the portal.

"Bryn, hold on!" Maurice said, but Bryn had already gone into the portal. "He never listens! " Shaking his head, Maurice went into the portal as well.