"Yo. What did you and that rich-looking brother talk about?"

"About the outside. Something bad is happening there… People are missing."

​​

"...Missing? Is that why it took a while before another batch of prisoners were thrown here?"

"Hm." Van only shrugged his shoulders as he walked closer to Gil. He then looked towards Nisha and Cynthia, who seemed to have returned from her husband's grave. Afterward, he looked at the skewers they were eating.

"...Where did you buy that?"

Van may not feel hunger, but that doesn't mean that he doesn't crave food. If anything, it even amplifies his desire as he remembered the skewers that Harvey kept buying from the market. Since they were in the Portal, then the meat they used here should be the same… maybe.

"Oh, they are already closed. We were going to get you one but Cynthia arrived so…" Gil could not help but chuckle awkwardly as he quickly ate the last piece of meat on his skewer.

"...You sure it's not poisoned?" Van slightly let out a scoff as he looked at Gil.

"W… what? No, of course not!"

"The Locals seem to like Gil for some reason," Nisha added as she too finished the last bites of her food. Cynthia also finished hers, but still kept quiet as her sighs lingered in the air.

"Hm… They are avoiding me for some reason." Van shook his head, even if he did try to buy one, he was sure that they weren't going to sell him anything. They've been avoiding them ever since he got here.

"...Have you seen yourself in the mirror?"

Van has completely forgotten it, but just a few hours ago, he was decimating and mowing people down with his bare arms, not to mention even slamming his whole body through the unlucky Prisoners that were in his path.

He was completely covered in dried-up blood.

"...Oh."

"Go wash yourself up. Come, we'll guide you to the well." Nisha could not help but sigh as she started walking, "I swear, sometimes your height really represents what a child you are."

"..." Van's eyes twitched as he heard Nisha's words. But it is true that he needed to wash up, he could feel his hair starting to solidify.

"...Alright."

After washing up, the group was quickly approached by Reed, who has been coordinating their lodgings with the Locals at Latanya's behest. In the end, the Prisoners were given their own space a little bit far away from the rest of the Locals.

Since it was already late, they made do with the houses created by the Mage-types, clumsily made from the mud and earth on the ground. Since the climate in the Pit was quite warm and tropical, the Prisoners were forced to sleep on their own sweat as the mud houses did not really provide any perforation.

Van and the group's houses were once again near each other, with Nisha staying in Cynthia's house for now so that she would have someone to talk to.

Now, once again left alone and protected by four walls and a roof, Van quickly checked all of the souls he has harvested.

[Souls Collected: 48]

"!!!"

Van's jaw could not help but tremble as he saw the number floating in front of him. The most he got in a single time was 6, from Grant's men almost a month ago which took him from level 27 to level 34. He could only imagine how much this would make his level jump once he absorbs everything.

And so, a smile slowly crept on Van's face as he flicked his finger, trying to find the biggest reward that he got today-- Solomon's soul. He didn't have to search long, however, as Solomon's soul was the only Orange Soul amongst his collection, which is weird. Did it have something to do with what Latanya said? That he was kind of like a puppet?

Well, that doesn't matter. What mattered now was how much EXP Solomon's Soul would give him.

He didn't even bother waiting for Solomon's soul to materialize as he immediately sent him to the Afterlife. His smile, however, disappeared as quickly as he sent Solomon to the Afterlife.

[Successfully sent a Lv. 0 Neutral Soul to the Asphodel Meadows]

"..."

"Level 0!?" Van's shock was so great that he let out a scream that almost woke up Gil from the next house. "H… how could that even be possible!?"

Van could not help but panic as he tried to find another Orange Soul from his collection; but alas, even though he spent half an hour dragging the window up and down, closing and opening it, not another Orange Soul was in sight.

Van's breaths were starting to get heavy as the thought of not receiving any more EXP from the Souls surfaced in his mind. His fingers trembled as he tried sending another Soul to the Afterlife.

[Successfully sent a Lv. 23 Dark Soul to the Fields of Punishment]

"..."

He did not even bother with the other notifications popping out in front of him as he sent another Soul to the Afterlife.

[Successfully sent a Lv. 19 Dark Soul to the Fields of Punishment]

[Successfully sent a Lv. 31 Dark Soul to the Fields of Punishment]

"..."

What exactly was happening? Van continued to send the Souls to the Afterlife one by one; by the end of it, he gained 20 levels turning him to level 54 instantly.

"..."

Van still could not think of a reason why Solomon's soul was only Level 0… The only other level 0 Soul that Van sent to the Afterlife was his father, and he was not a System Holder. Could it be…

...Solomon was not a System Holder?

It might seem ridiculous with how strong he was… but that was the only reason Van could think of for now. And speaking of not being a System Holder, Cynthia also mentioned that she wasn't a System Holder. Just… what exactly is going on?

Van just shook his head, thinking about it now would just make him crazy. He should ask Cynthia tomorrow about it. And so, with a long and deep breath, Van distributed his Status Points, evenly this time.

And of course, once again, he fainted from the pain of putting too many Status Points at once.

***

Back in the Chief's house, Latanya has been waiting for Van for almost an hour now, wearing her robes which almost revealed the glorious mountains that bounced in front of her with even the slightest movement.

"I… I did tell him to find me tonight, right?" Her eyes twitched a couple of times as she tried to remember if she did tell him. She was supposed to talk to him about his reward… and maybe try to seduce him with her body… but alas, he was nowhere to be found.

She was also going to ask him what he knew about this Stranger that killed the previous Chief and destroyed the Wall. He mentioned something about a Messenger, so clearly, he knows something about what is going on here.

"...Really, that boy is quite hard to figure out!"

Latanya's moans of frustration lingered in the quiet room. Meanwhile…

...Van once again found himself in a dream.