---
The night had begun, and the lamps hanging from the high ceiling emitted a warm light that reflected on the faces of those sitting around the long table.
Everyone gathered for dinner after a day that seemed to have drained all their energy, yet the seats were not fully occupied. Dante and Harman were absent from the table, which caused concern among some, as they were the most exposed to exhaustion and injuries.
Ray raised his eyes toward Black With, who sat in her seat calmly, though the traces of fatigue and exhaustion were still evident on her features, and asked her in a tone of curiosity mixed with astonishment:
"How many ghouls did you fight outside?"
Black With sighed slightly before beginning to count on her fingers, hesitant as if trying to recall the numbers accurately:
— "Not one or two… seven… no, no… I think the number was around ten."
A moment of silence fell over the place before everyone erupted in collective astonishment, exchanging shocked glances.
Ray was the first to speak, opening his mouth without being able to close it, then swallowing hard, he said in disbelief:
— "Ten?! Impossible! And… how… how did you defeat them?"
Black With smiled faintly, a hint of pride in her tone as she recounted the details:
— "At first, six ghouls attacked us all at once. We had to use Dante as bait to distract them, while Harman and I attacked from both sides."
Jason fidgeted in his seat, raising an eyebrow in surprise:
— "And you can really aim properly?"
Black With straightened in her seat and said with clear confidence:
— "Yes… what did you think of me? I used to be a famous singer, and I was assaulted more than once. It was my duty to learn how to defend myself and master aiming skills."
A moment of admiration passed, but Ray couldn't contain himself; he lowered his head apologetically:
— "I'm so sorry… I used to say behind your back that you were a hindrance to the team."
Black With responded kindly despite the fatigue evident on her face:
— "It's okay… even Dante and Harman thought the same."
— "Once, a ghoul grabbed me by my hair, and if it weren't for Dante intervening and fighting, and Harman who finished them off, I wouldn't be here with you now."
She continued in a tired but sincere tone:
— "And in the end, three more ghouls attacked us. I killed one myself, then Harman detonated a small bomb on them, taking out the remaining two."
Lily gasped in astonishment, then said with sparkling eyes of admiration:
— "Amazing! You're truly incredible, Black With."
Jude nodded his head and added:
— "You… you are the best team formed right now. You survived despite the massive attack. The credit also goes to Linda, as she brought you all together into one team."
Linda smiled shyly, then murmured:
— "Ah… didn't you criticize me this morning for my team selection?"
Ray laughed sheepishly, then said while scratching his head:
— "Sorry about that too… it seems I was wrong."
Dinner gradually ended, and Black With stood holding some food in a small bowl:
— "I'll go deliver this to Dante and whoever will take it to Harman."
Vivian raised her hand and said:
— "I'll take some food to Harman. He needs to eat too to regain his strength."
The rest began withdrawing one by one toward their rooms, while Linda stayed with Jude to clean the table. The scattered dishes and empty cups filled the space, and the sound of plates scraping against wood accompanied their silence.
As Linda gathered the dishes, Jude's words from earlier came to her mind, when he said she was his type. A blush quickly spread across her cheeks, and she shook her head, trying to push the memory away. But Jude noticed her embarrassment, stepped closer, gently held her shoulders, and asked in a low voice, his face near hers:
— "Are you okay?"
Linda felt a warmth spreading across her face and stepped back slightly in embarrassment:
— "N… nothing. I just remembered something…"
Jude paused for a moment, then said as if a thought had suddenly occurred to him:
— "I remembered… I used to see you a lot at the café. You would pass by there all the time. Your hair was long back then… truly beautiful."
A faint smile appeared on Linda's face as she whispered:
— "Yes… it was very long, but I cut it later."
Jude smiled even more shyly, then said in a barely audible voice:
— "Honestly… I admired you a lot back then, but I never dared to talk to you."
Linda's eyes widened in surprise, feeling a heat of embarrassment she had never known before, but she didn't respond. She remained silent, studying his eyes full of sincerity, before suddenly they were interrupted by a sharp, feminine scream echoing from the upper floor.
Both of them jumped in place, exchanged a panicked glance, and hurried together to the stairs. The rest of the members had also come out of their rooms, wondering about the source of the scream. It was coming from the room where the strange girl had been placed.
Elias opened the door quickly to find the girl lying on the bed, her face wet with tears, her hands nervously pulling at her hair. She looked up at him in terror and shouted in a trembling voice:
— "Who are you?!"
The other members entered the room one by one and stood before her, puzzled. Her terrified gaze swept over their faces as she asked in broken words:
— "Who are you? And where am I?"
Camellia stepped forward, trying to speak to her calmly:
— "No, we should be the ones asking you first…"
But suddenly, the sound of heavy footsteps echoed behind them, and Dante and Harman entered the room, staggering from exhaustion. The moment they entered, their expressions froze, and their eyes widened in indescribable shock. Dante shouted, a mix of astonishment and fear in his voice:
— "Nina…! What are you doing here?"
Everyone quickly turned toward Dante and Harman, stunned by their reaction. As for the girl, her eyes widened even more, and she rose from the bed with unsteady steps before collapsing to the floor from sheer exhaustion, whispering in astonishment:
— "Impossible… Dante? Harman? What are you doing here?"
At that moment, a memory from "Chapter Three" flashed into Linda's mind.
---
At that time, Linda's shoelace came undone, and she bent to tie it in front of one of the doors. But suddenly, a trembling whisper came from inside, a feminine voice:
— "You… run quickly… save yourself… I'm warning you."
Linda gasped and whispered:
— "What? Who are you?"
The voice came even more shakily:
— "I… I'm Nina… they will kill you… and eat you… they are ghouls… run no matter what."
She remembered the strange mark on Dante's head, which was beginning to fade due to the length of his hair. She looked up at him in embarrassment to confirm that the name engraved on his head was indeed: "Nina."
Dante approached the fallen girl with hesitant steps, his body trembling and his voice choked with words:
— "Why… why are you here? Who brought you to this place?"
Elias responded quickly, trying to explain:
— "We found her outside… she was unconscious, so we brought her here."
Nina lifted her head with difficulty, tears flooding her eyes, and said, trembling:
— "This place… don't tell me we're in a mansion… on an island… and with ghouls too?"
Dante tried to get closer, but Nina gasped sharply, screaming in despair:
— "Damn it! No no no… you will all die just like those before! No one will survive… you're all dead… every single one of you!"
A deadly silence filled the room. No one knew how to respond to her words. Fear was etched on all their faces, while Dante and Harman stood frozen, as if suddenly transported back to a past they both tried to forget.
And here, the first season ended at this moment, charged with shock and mystery.
The second season will begin afterward, introducing a new heroine along with other heroes the first resurrection heroes who will reveal greater secrets, deeper mysteries… and also glimpses of the lives of the first season's heroes, one year before they were brought to this island.
Hello, I am the writer, and my name is "Anna." I hope you enjoyed this season full of horror and suspense…
I hope you will tell me later:
_Your impression of the story!?
_Your rating of the first season!!
_Your favorite character (male/female)!?
_How did you find the ending of the season!?
_Your predictions for the second season!?
And thank you to the readers and followers. I don't know when I will return with the second season.
So, see you soon.
-----