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Chapter 3 - 3. The Battle Between the Dragon Serpent Spirit and the Tiger Spirit

That night, the rim of the Mount Seven Lake caldera was still alive with the bustle of the expedition team that had been camping there for months.

Campfires burned brightly. Tents formed a loose circle around the flames.

Inside one tent, its flap partly open, a small folding table held a medical tray. A syringe, antiseptic, and several used bandages lay scattered inside.

Baron, the bespectacled young man, slowly pulled off his latex gloves.

"Lucky you didn't roll over any rocks, bro… otherwise, the back of your head would've gotten more than just a bruise. You'd be picking up pieces of your brain."

He eyed Kairav, who sat shirtless before him, with a look that was equal parts worry and mockery.

The bruises on Kairav's body were already treated with ointment, and the claw marks from the short man of Enchanted on his shoulder had been injected and bandaged.

But Kairav only shrugged. Out of habit, his hand went to the pendant hanging from his neck. A black cord with a red gemstone. Rubbing it lightly.

His head was bowed, brows knitted, mind heavy with thoughts.

"When I told you earlier… that I was chasing the short man of Enchanted to Lookout Point Six…"

"Did you guys feel a strange mist around you too?" he asked seriously, lifting his head to look at Baron and Gavin nearby.

Gavin glanced up from his laptop, frowning.

"What the hell are you talking about? Strange mist? We were busy panicking because your damn walkie-talkie suddenly went silent!" the dark-skinned young man grumbled.

Kairav's frown deepened. He scratched his head, confused. A holographic display flickered to life before him, showing a status window.

Ping!

[ System: Memory Fragment ]

[ User Information ]

Name: Kairav Pikatan

Race: Human

Age: 18

Title: Astral Conjurer (Host of the Unicorn Spirit)

Element: Ice

Clan: Purehearted (Descendant of the Eternalush Royal Line)

"Then you didn't see this thing either?" he asked, gesturing in the air to outline a rectangle.

Baron froze mid-bite on his bread.

He exchanged a glance with Gavin, then looked back at Kairav's bewildered face, clearly exhausted and annoyed. "The only thing I saw was a swarm of mosquitoes having a feast on you, bro."

"I'm serious, damn it!" Kairav's eyes widened, slapping his thigh in frustration.

Gavin turned back to his laptop, which was playing footage from Kairav's thermal glasses, recording the Uhang Pandak sighting.

"This weirdo… you've been spouting crazy crap ever since you ran into that thing…"

He crossed his arms, scanning Kairav from head to toe with a mocking look.

Then he glanced at Baron, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. "Bro… tell me you didn't give him expired meds or shots."

"The hell?! You accusing me of malpractice?!" the tall, skinny guy snapped.

"Then how else do you explain this idiot hallucinating?" Gavin asked, pointing at Kairav like he was worthless junk.

But then Gavin's eyes widened. 

He clapped a hand over his mouth, then grabbed Kairav's shoulders and shook him hard. "Bro! What if you're infected with whatever the Uhang Pandak has? You're hallucinating because you're turning rabid!"

Smack!

"You bastard! You're cursing me with rabies now?! Calling me a mad dog?!" Kairav barked, swatting the back of Gavin's head.

Ignoring Gavin's glare as he rubbed the sore spot, Kairav snatched the laptop and fast-forwarded the paused video. 

When he found the exact scene he was looking for, he shouted, "Look! I'm not lying, damn it!"

"My glasses fell into the ravine, and they caught him on video! Look!"

Baron and Gavin leaned in.

The footage showed tall grass blocking most of the lens. A few meters beyond, partly obscured, stood a broad-shouldered man close to where Kairav had been.

Kairav pointed with his chin. "Right then, I really thought I was dead. When I saw that bright light I told you about… I honestly thought this guy was the Grim Reaper."

Baron rubbed his chin, nodding. "Hmm… his face is ugly enough. Can't blame you for thinking that."

Kairav nodded in agreement.

Gavin, however, was thinking hard. "We don't understand a damn thing about what he told you... Astral Conjurers, animal spirits, Purehearted Clan…"

He looked Kairav straight in the eye, his voice serious. "But out of all that, one thing stands out. The golden-horned unicorn."

"This is too much of a coincidence to just write him off as some lunatic, bro," he said, gripping Kairav's shoulder.

Kairav stayed quiet, his gaze steady and determined. "I know. That's why I have to find him. He might be the key… to finding out what happened to my little brother."

In the middle of that tense moment, Baron noticed Kairav's phone vibrating on his sleeping bag. He picked it up.

"Call from your dad," he said, showing him the screen.

Kairav glanced at the caller ID and immediately rolled his eyes. "Ignore it. He just wants to drag me back to the palace."

He sighed heavily, shaking his head. "That old man… I don't know what else he's been hiding from me all this time."

Baron frowned, his tone shifting. "New message. Your dad's in the hospital."

"That's the same cheap trick he's been using for years to fool me. You guys know it. I'm not falling for it this time."

"But this one's from Prince Arkana. What? Are they working together now to con you?" Baron asked, handing him the phone.

Kairav took it and read the message, raising an eyebrow.

"What if he really is sick this time?" Gavin said, peeking at the screen. "No harm in going home to check, bro."

Kairav stayed silent, weighing the thought, his face serious.

***

Past midnight, the sky was a black canvas torn apart by a raging storm. Lightning flared, casting eerie flashes over a passenger plane struggling through the night.

Turbulence rocked the cabin relentlessly, jolting awake the passengers who had been sleeping soundly.

Kairav, one of them, stared drowsily out the window at the ocean far below.

His quiet thoughts were interrupted by a familiar, irritated voice beside him.

"Tsk! I boarded a plane, not a boat, so why the hell do I feel like I'm drifting through a hurricane?"

Kairav turned instantly, frowning at Casildo, who had just pushed a magazine off his face.

"You!!" Kairav blurted.

Casildo's eyes went wide. "The failed product of your parents! Why is it you again?!"

"You lunatic! I should be asking you! Why'd you run off that day and make me look like an idiot?!" Kairav snapped.

The muscular young man just shrugged. "Sorry, but a warrior like me has many important matters to attend to," he said with fake drama.

Kairav leaned in, seething. "You still owe me answers! Astral Conjurers! Purehearted Clan—"

"Tsk! Forget that for now," Casildo cut in. "Don't you see the bigger problem threatening us right now?!"

"What problem? The turbulence?" Kairav asked, confused.

The turbulence was all he could think of, especially with the shaking getting worse, flight attendants on high alert, and passengers turning pale.

Casildo sighed like he was dealing with a child. "Right, I forgot you're blind," he said, mocking.

"Careful, or I'll knock your teeth out," Kairav warned, fists tightening.

Casildo exhaled and pointed out the window. "Out there, in the darkness… I see two powerful animal spirits locked in battle."

"The spirit of the Dragon Serpent… and the spirit of the Tiger."

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