Accidental Poisoning

The sudden entrance drew Lex's attention away from the fiery woman.

He looked toward the doorway to find a man, seemingly unbothered by the tension in the room, applauding with genuine amazement.aaa

"Well, well, Lex, you've certainly kept things interesting," the man said with a sly grin as he approached.

He wore a crisp suit that contrasted sharply.

Lex glanced back at the woman, who had momentarily halted her assault. "Who is this?" he demanded while his serpent hand still poised for defense.

The man extended a hand, introducing himself, "The name's Damien, a fellow member of our organization. I've been overseeing your mission and was quite impressed with your handling of that demon."

Lex remained wary but shook Damien's hand, his snake retracted. "So, you're with the organization as well?"

Damien nodded. "Indeed, and I must apologize for the rather abrupt wake-up call. But we have interesting things to discuss, especially regarding Kari and the radar."

The woman, presumably Kari's sister, crossed her arms around her chest, impatiently. "Fine, but I want answers about what happened to my sister."

Lex let out a deep sigh, realizing that he was surrounded by people who held an interesting pieces of the puzzle. "Alright, let's talk."

Damien leaned in, a pleasant smirk was seen on his face.

"So, Lex, what was the radar showing before this D rank demon appeared?"

Lex hesitated for a moment, then replied, "The radar was picking up some unusual energy readings, and then it suddenly spiked, indicating the presence of the demon."

A sly grin crept across Damien's face as he leaned back. "Interesting. Was the demon talking when you confronted it?"

Lex nodded. "Yes, it was. It seemed frustrated, but very happy when he saw us."

The woman looked still visibly skeptical, she interjected, "But how did Kari end up in a coma?"

Lex sighed heavily, trying to recall the terrifying moment. "The demon swung her into a tree during the battle. That's when she lost consciousness."

Damien glanced at the woman, he had a knowing look in his eyes. "See? I told you he was innocent."

But she wasn't ready to let it go. "But the snake, what's up with that?"

Damien turned his attention back to Lex. "The snake, Lex. Explain it."

As hd took a deep breath, his face turned pale, "It's the queen's power, isn't it? What do you want me to say?"

The woman's voice trembled as her lower lip shook, "How did the venom get into my sister if he didn't hurt her?"

Lex took a step back, alarmed. "Wait, what? I didn't hurt her. I tried to save her."

Damien suddenly looked at Lex's hands, and then he did something unexpected.

He struck Lex's arm to check something, and the serpent immediately appeared, its fangs looked bared and hungry.

"While you were running back here," Damien said calmly, "did you happen to hit something?"

Lex scratched his head, lifted his eyes up and down.

"Yes, I stumbled and hit a rock."

Damien nodded knowingly. "Aha. So, it's possible that a snake, probably mistook the impact as an attack, immediately appeared and accidentally bit Kari while you were carrying her."

"…"

The room fell silent for a few seconds.

The woman stared wide-eyed, her lips frowned and she lowered her eyebrows in disbelief, "Wh-what?"

Lex, his own shock mirrored in his eyes, could only stammer, "I... I didn't know... I never meant to harm her."

Damien sighed, and then focused on Lex's serpent that had retracted into his hand. "And the snake is still a demon. It needs to eat. It probably took some blood from Kari and inserted its venom."

The room was filled with a heavy, contemplative silence as the truth began to make more sense.

The woman, Kari's sister, looked at Lex, her eyes filled tears.

"You... you poisoned my sister."

Lex shook his head, "I didn't know... I swear, I didn't know."

With calm and steady voice, Damien stepped it.

"It was an accident, a tragic accident. But we can't change what happened. What we can do is find a way to help Kari."

"How?" the woman demanded, choking with emotion. "How can we possibly help her now?"

Damien looked at Lex, then back at her.

The queen's power, the snake... it might hold the key to saving Kari."

Lex looked up, his eyes widened. "What do you mean?"

Damien continued, "The snake's venom caused this. Maybe it can also reverse it. We need to study it, understand it. It's our best shot."

"But that's... that's crazy," Lex protested. "We don't even know if that's possible."

"We have to try," Damien insisted. "It's the only chance we have to find out, otherwise…Kari will die."

Another awkward silence the entered the heavy atmosphere.

Kari's life hung in the balance, and the key to saving her might just be the very thing that had put her in danger in the first place.

"When should we start then?"

Damien looked at Lex and then back at the red-haired woman, "Veneta, you need to relax a little, you're stressing Lex out with your behaviour now."

She rolled her eyes, "if he won't save Kari, I will cook him and his snake as my dinner."

"You can't cook him. He's a demon hunter now."

"And Kari is not. Because of him." Veneta's voice cracked in the middle, she was clearly hurt.

"I understand your frustration, but until the right time, "I need you to restrain yourself from being emotional. Thanks."

Damien glanced at Lex, "I hope it will work…"