50. Dread

Before the battle started, Orion had decided to fight head-on with the guardian to get some experience in fighting, but as the fight went on, he was forced to use other methods.

Although he could dominate the guardian in a one-on-one fight, he couldn't do much damage to him because of the armor he wore. His sword only left scratches whenever he attacked with it, forcing him to use his other curses.

Moreover, he felt sure that the armor of the third guardian would be even stronger and more durable than the second one.

Therefore, his lack of an attack that could penetrate armor would definitely hold him down in the fight with the third guardian.

As Orion pondered all of that, he arrived in front of the portal. Looking back at the arena one more time, he stepped into the portal and disappeared from the arena.

***

Before long, he arrived in the temple hall. However, as he looked around, he couldn't shake the sense of gloom that permeated the atmosphere.

He observed that the faces of the soul forms appeared even more depressed and downtrodden than usual.

Orion couldn't fathom what had happened to cause them even more depression.

As he walked into the center of the hall, he saw Runo standing with his teammates. It appeared to Orion that they had also stopped their training with the Three Divine Ways.

But he saw that the faces of all of them didn't look good. It was particularly true for Runo, who stood there as if he had lost his soul while his teammates were trying to talk with him.

It was then that Orion recalled that he hadn't seen Runo in the hall when he came from the level-up area and had speculated that he might have gone to fight the third guardian.

However, as he looked at those defeated eyes of Runo that had always been filled with arrogance and pride, Orion realized something.

'He couldn't have lost, could he?'

A feeling of dread washed over him as he finally grasped the reason behind the gloomy atmosphere in the hall.

Orion clenched his fists tightly as he felt the pressure on him increase tremendously because of Runo's defeat.

He understood Runo's strength, but even he couldn't stand a chance against the third guardian.

Furthermore, as he gazed into the lifeless eyes of Runo, Orion couldn't shake the feeling that their battle hadn't even been close. It may have been brutally one-sided, with the third guardian dominating over Runo entirely.

It made Orion, who had gained some confidence in defeating the third guardian after his battle with the second guardian, feel as if a bucket of cold water had been poured upon him.

The realization shattered all his confidence and hope and once again reminded him of the harsh truth that even if one tried hard enough, it didn't mean success would come to them.

Moreover, the dire situation they found themselves in, where success and failure would determine their very survival, made the whole scenario even more ominous.

'No, he lost; that doesn't mean I would lose too. Definitely not.'

Orion assured himself, trying not to fall into despair once again.

After calming down a little, he looked around the hall and spotted the group of transmigrators.

They appeared to be in the same state as the other soul forms, if not more miserable.

They were just common people like Orion who had transmigrated at the wrong time and place, causing them to face situations they weren't supposed to.

Looking at their hopeless and depressed faces, Orion wondered if he had also gotten a normal talent like them; maybe his situation would have resembled theirs.

As he looked at them, he noticed something strange. He didn't see the white haired girl he saw earlier among them.

'Did she go to fight the guardians?'

He frowned as he thought that if she could fight the guardians, then why didn't she go earlier? Why now?

'Could she have successfully practiced the Three Divine Ways, and that's why she went now?'

Orion didn't feel sure about that as he saw the depressed faces of Feran and Agnar. If she were to really learn the Three Divine Ways, then their faces would have been beaming with joy.

'Did she feel desperate and ultimately take the matter into her own hands?'

He felt that was more likely to be the case. Yet he didn't know why he had this nagging feeling that something was amiss here. He just couldn't put his finger on where.

This feeling stemmed from his earlier assessment of that white-haired girl. Previously, whenever he saw her, he felt as though it was his first time seeing her, but then automatically he could recall where he had seen her last time, dispelling that doubt.

However, that didn't change the fact that he hadn't seen her on the boat with other transmigrators, nor did he see her in the group of transmigrators Runo's team had kidnapped.

And he was pretty sure she hadn't been part of the small group of people who came with the pirates outside the temple.

Earlier, when Walric explained things, he had thought that maybe she was with them the whole time, but he didn't notice her. But now that he thought about the whole situation carefully, he felt sure that it wasn't him who had overlooked her; instead, she hadn't been there at all.

Moreover, she was just too beautiful to be overlooked, and Orion felt pretty sure that if he had seen that girl on the boat or anywhere else before entering the temple, he would definitely not forget her.

Still, he couldn't ignore the fact that all of these were merely his own assumptions, and assumptions often proved to be incorrect.

'Let's hear the truth then.'

Orion thought as he walked towards the group of transmigrators. If anyone could tell him anything about that girl, then that would be his group of transmigrators.

As he approached them, they also saw him. He didn't waste time on introductions or anything and just asked them directly.

"Where is that white-haired girl who was with you guys?"

Hearing his question, their faces became rather strange.

Nonetheless, one of the transmigrators Orion had seen in that huge tree answered him.

"There is no such girl among us," he said, his eyes narrowing. "You already saw us in that huge tree, and the other four came from that pirate ship outside the temple."

Orion laughed suddenly as he heard this.

"Haha, I know that," he said, smiling. "I was just trying to ease up the mood here."

As he finished those words, he turned around and walked back.

However, as soon as he turned around, his expression turned to one of horror. He finally understood that there had never been a white-haired girl among them.

'Then who did I see earlier when I saw her?'