SILVER'S POV
"Who is your accomplice?" the Water God asked again, his once-gentle voice sinking into something cold and menacing.
"No one. I came alone," I replied, forcing confidence into my voice.
I would take the blame for Zoah and Natasha.
By now, they should have escaped.
Please... let them be far away from here.
The Water God stepped forward.
Once.
Twice.
Again.
He didn't stop until only a few inches separated us.
My heart pounded violently against my ribs.
Outwardly, I remained composed.
Inside, chaos raged like a storm I had never known before.
He slowly raised his hand.
My entire body stiffened.
What was he about to do?
Whatever happened next, I had to endure it.
I refused to let them see fear.
I would rather die looking fearless than give these monsters the satisfaction of watching me break.
Without warning, his fingers clamped around my jaw.
"Aaah!"
The cry escaped before I could stop it.
The pain wasn't unbearable.
The shock was.
For a fleeting moment, I'd foolishly imagined he was reaching out to touch my face... perhaps even tease me.
Instead, his grip was merciless.
He forced my face upward until our eyes met.
Instinctively, I turned away.
No...
I couldn't look at him.
Not this closely.
Not when there was a chance...
A terrifying chance...
...that he might recognize me.
If he did...
Everything would be over.
His grip tightened as he jerked my face back toward him.
"Look at me."
His icy eyes searched mine with unsettling intensity, as though peeling away every lie I tried to hide.
Has he forgotten I'm a woman?
A bitter laugh echoed inside me.
No...
To them, I wasn't a woman.
I was prey.
Fresh meat waiting to be carved apart.
And no one handles meat with kindness.
"You're avoiding my gaze," he said quietly. "Your eyes keep darting away. You're nervous... hiding something."
His lips curled into a faint smile.
"Those are the eyes of a liar."
"Or perhaps they're the eyes of someone being intimidated," I shot back, wrenching my jaw free from his grasp. "You're doing an excellent job of terrifying me. Is this truly how you treat a lady?"
"A lady?" another intimidating man scoffed.
"A thief," he corrected.
Cruel laughter erupted around me.
I clenched my fists.
Laugh while you still can.
The Water God's smile disappeared.
"Hmm..." he murmured. "You can deceive everyone else here."
His gaze sharpened.
"But not me."
His voice became almost frighteningly calm.
"You don't have Herb D anymore... do you?"
Silence.
My heart sank.
He already knew the answer.
"I... might have hidden it somewhere," I said.
The excuse sounded pathetic the moment it left my mouth.
Even I didn't believe it.
I had just confirmed his suspicions.
They knew.
I hadn't acted alone.
Lord Miguel, ruler of the cannibals, turned toward the Water God, the true strategist behind their tribe.
"What should we do with her?"
The Water God answered without hesitation.
"As we always do with outsiders."
His emotionless eyes locked onto mine.
"Eat her."
The words struck harder than any weapon.
My blood turned to ice.
They weren't threatening me.
They meant it.
They were truly going to kill me...
...and feast on my body.
A strange calm settled over me.
If this was where my story ended...
Then so be it.
I wouldn't beg.
I wouldn't cry.
I had lived a life filled with impossible adventures.
If death had finally come for me...
I would face it standing.
The decision had been made.
Heavy chains forged from an unknown metal were wrapped around my wrists and ankles before being fastened to the cold stone wall behind me.
The weight alone told me everything.
Escape was impossible.
I lowered my head, bitterness filling my chest.
How ironic.
Only a short while ago, I had been nothing more than an ordinary college student.
Now...
I was a fugitive in the eyes of an entire cannibal tribe.
Never, not even in my wildest imagination, had I pictured my life ending like this.
Without graduating.
Without building the future I had dreamed of.
Without ever finding love... or having a family of my own.
One by one, they filed out of the chamber until only two figures remained.
Lord Miguel...
...and the Water God.
Lord Miguel cast one final glance at me.
"Pray your accomplices escaped," he said coldly.
"Because if they're foolish enough to return for you..."
His voice hardened.
"...they'll share the same fate."
With that, he turned and walked away.
The heavy doors slammed shut behind him.
Silence settled over the room.
Now it was just...
...me and the Water God.
God... why is he still here?
He folded his arms and regarded me with an unreadable expression.
"You know," he began calmly, "I've been wondering why anyone would risk stealing Herb D after witnessing the consequences."
I remained silent.
Every word I spoke only dug my grave deeper.
"I once participated in a competition," he continued.
"It was for Herb B."
His lips curved into a faint smile.
"That was where I met someone..."
"My defeat."
My pulse quickened.
No...
Please don't say it.
"I became curious after losing."
His eyes never left mine.
"So I investigated the man who defeated me."
He paused deliberately.
"You'd be surprised by what I discovered."
I squeezed my eyes shut.
My chained hands strained against the iron as I desperately tried to cover my ears.
The chains refused to yield.
"There was no mistake."
"He was the Dragon God."
"The fifth most powerful god in the supernatural realm."
My stomach twisted.
He was talking about Zoah.
But...
Why was he telling me all of this?
The Water God didn't strike me as someone who enjoyed idle conversation.
Every word had a purpose.
Every pause...
A trap.
A cold shiver crawled down my spine.
"I couldn't understand why an immortal Dragon God would leave his haven to compete for Herb B," he continued. "A herb capable of making someone appear five times younger."
A flicker of surprise crossed my mind.
So that's what Herb B does...
I had never known.
"For an immortal, such a reward is meaningless."
His eyes narrowed.
"So I kept digging."
"And I was glad I did."
"I discovered he wasn't searching for Herb B alone."
"He was hunting all five legendary herbs."
Another deliberate pause.
"And among them..."
"...was Herb D."
The room felt suffocating.
"What does any of that have to do with me?" I asked, forcing my voice to remain steady.
A quiet chuckle escaped him.
"You really believed I wouldn't recognize you?"
His words sliced through me.
My blood ran cold.
"I'll ask only once."
He stepped closer until his shadow swallowed mine.
"Where is Zoah?"
The question struck me like lightning.
It was the one question I had prayed...
Begged...
...he would never ask.
My heart lurched violently against my ribs.
In that instant, I understood the truth.
I wasn't merely captured anymore.
I had become the key to finding the Dragon God.
And if I answered...
Zoah would die.