148: Chapter 149 The Truth?

Chapter 148: The Truth?

Inside the villa.

Everything was exactly as it had been when Locke and the others left.

The hole in the roof, the sword marks on the stone pillars, and the footprints on the floor were all still there. Only one thing was different: Alexander's body, which should have been lying on the floor, had vanished along with the blanket that had covered him.

In its place, a burial mound had appeared in the courtyard, with a sign standing in front of it.

"Tomb of Alexander Corvinus—"

Locke stood before the headstone, completely perplexed.

Previously, he had assumed that Alexander was his teacher, Time, because only then could Locke connect all the clues that had surfaced.

Why would Time let Marcus go, only to kill him later?

Why did Alexander give off the feeling that he was intentionally seeking death when facing Marcus?

Even the timing of the other's appearance on the island was so coincidental. Aside from Jason, everything Locke had experienced along the way felt as if it had been deliberately orchestrated.

The reason for his suspicion was mainly because he couldn't understand why his teacher, whose strength far exceeded Sequence 7 or even Sequence 6, would ask him—a mere Sequence 9—to hunt down William and Marcus.

Locke wasn't stupid. Judging by how Time had effortlessly suppressed the Sequence 7 Jason, he could probably kill those two and take the supernatural polymer with just a flick of his finger.

But instead of doing it himself, the man had gone through the trouble of first cultivating Kraven and then inviting Locke. From all these reasons, Locke could only reach one conclusion: his teacher was restricted by some rule and could not personally act against Marcus and William, nor could he allow anyone other than Vampires or Lycans to do so.

Coupled with the mysterious ring that had appeared on the island earlier, Locke could only think of one reasonable explanation: Time—or Alexander—was perhaps performing some special ritual to seek a breakthrough to a higher Sequence.

He had clearly seen how Alexander had intentionally exposed a weakness before his death.

Locke believed that death might have been part of this breakthrough ritual.

Of course, that was before he saw this grave for Alexander.

After seeing this erected tomb, all the conjectures in Locke's heart seemed to be overturned in an instant.

Looking at the disturbed soil, he was tempted to open the coffin to confirm his theory; if the body wasn't there, it would prove his thoughts were correct.

But standing before the grave, Locke watched for a long Time before finally sighing. "Sigh, is the truth really that important? Teacher hasn't acted against me, hasn't harmed me, and has been so good to me. Why should I care so much—"

Once he dug up this grave, it was very likely to create a situation where there was no turning back.

At the very least, Locke didn't want to have a falling out with his teacher right now. After all, from beginning to end, the man hadn't done much to wrong him.

The only thing he had done was letting Marcus go before Locke arrived.

But Locke felt that was no big deal. After all, later on the island, his teacher had effectively saved his life.

Not only that, but he had also given him a weapon forged from two Sequence 8 Extraordinary Creatures and helped him mask the other miscellaneous auras on his body.

He acknowledged these things.

"Forget it, forget it. Since Teacher is unwilling to say, then as his student, I'd better have a little less curiosity."

Giving the tombstone one last deep look, Locke turned and left the villa with the raven, never looking back.

What the truth was no longer mattered to him.

"Caw caw! Master, did you know the person in that grave just now?"

"I wouldn't say I knew him. We only met once."

"Then why was your expression so strange just now, Master? I thought that person was your friend," Little Seven said, her tone revealing her confusion.

Locke didn't explain further. He walked quickly out of the villa and stepped into the driver's seat of the jaguar. Just as he inserted the key, intending to set off for New York immediately, he stopped after glancing at the sleeping Serena in the back.

On second thought, he pulled the key back out and pondered silently. Should he take this chance to open the mission rewards first?

Mainly because, looking at how Selene wouldn't be waking up for a while, he would likely have to drive the return trip alone. If that were the case, it would take a long Time, and he wouldn't have Time to open the mission chest midway.

He naturally didn't want to wait through a long drive and open the double rewards he had anticipated for so long only after returning to the castle.

Plus, since Serena was already asleep, there weren't many distractions in the car, so the idea of opening the rewards took root.

"Then let me see what good things I've actually gotten after working on this mission for so long."

Just as he brought up the panel and was about to open the mission gift pack for the draw, his phone, which hadn't rung in a long Time, suddenly went off.

Locke suppressed the excitement in his heart regarding the unknown rewards, shifted his consciousness back to reality, took out his phone, and looked at it.

The incoming call was from an unknown number. It wasn't Erica, nor was it Amelia.

"Who is this?"

After the ringtone had sounded for a few seconds, Locke hesitated for a moment before answering the phone.

However, it wasn't some strange person calling him; he knew this person.

It was Michael Corvin, the original protagonist whose identity he had replaced to intervene in the Underworld plot.

"Mr. Locke, I'm sorry to bother you at this Time."

Michael's voice was very easy to recognize. As soon as he spoke, Locke remembered the guy.

He was just a bit puzzled as to why the other would call him at this Time.

Could it be that those Death Walkers found him because of me?

Thinking of this, Locke hurriedly asked, "Michael, did something happen?"

"Uh, it's mainly because I received a call this morning from a place called the Cross Thorn Sanatorium. They said that the nursing fees for your aunt are running low and asked me to pay them quickly. It's just that they said your aunt is only 23 years old, which made me unsure if it's true or not, so I thought I'd call and ask you to clarify."

A 23-year-old aunt?

When Locke heard this news, he was stunned for a moment because he himself was only 23.

Immediately after, the image of a young and beautiful woman with very delicate features but a skeletal body surfaced in his mind.

She had been brought back by his parents on a rainy night when he was eight years old. Since then, she had lived in the sanatorium for a long Time—

In short, this aunt of his was shrouded in mystery from head to toe.

Of course, what surprised Locke the most was that while his entire family was dead, this aunt was still alive in the sanatorium. According to the habits of those Death Walkers, they definitely wouldn't have left a single survivor.

So, this made him feel that there might be something worth investigating. Thus, he made up his mind.

"It seems that after I get back, I'll have to take a trip to this sanatorium to see this young aunt of mine."

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