Into the World of Twisted Wonderland

🐙The Merchant from the Depths🐙 Chapter 36

A/N: Quick question guys: What's the best flavor ice cream: vanilla, strawberry, or mint chip? 7/12/23

"Anyway," Jack speaks up, getting Azul's attention. "We held up our end of the deal and brought the photo to you within the deadline you gave us. We've completely fulfilled your terms."

"Yeah," Grim smirks. "Real shame about the contracts gettin' sanded before we did."

"But stealing just doesn't sit right with me," Jack admits. "Azul, you're a law-abiding sorta guy, right? Take some responsibility and return the picture back to where it belongs."

"I'll go with you," Angel says, shocking everyone. "We can return it together."

Azul only looks at the photo and sighs. "Fine...But let me at least switch it out got a version I've been edited out of the picture." Everyone only sighs and groans at Azul.

"Hah. You just don't know when to let something go," Leona states.

"He's right, you know," Jade speaks. "Records are valuable treasure."

"Ooh, field trip! When do we go? We're goin' as a group, right?" Floyd happily asks. "I haven't been to the Atlantica Memorial Museum since our elementary school field trip. This is gonna rule!"

Suddenly, Grim starts sniffing the ground, walking towards the scent, getting the attention of a few freshmen. "Hm? Yo, Grim. What are you sniffing at the ground for?"

"My gourmet hunting instincts are tellin' me..." Grim says as he continues sniffing, "that there's a pitch-black treat as delectable as a truffle around here!"

"What are you, a truffle hog?!" Ace exclaims.

Grim walks towards the scent, eventually stopping in front of a familiar pitch black stone. "Myah!" Grim happily exclaims as he spots the stone. "There it is- a black stone! There's no foolin' gourmet hunter Grim's nose!

"A...black stone?" Leona mumbles.

"Time to chow down!" Grim says as he picks up the stone and puts it in his mouth. "HOMPH!" He starts to chew. "Mmm....It's rich, with a briny punch like salted squid guts...This would drive any discerning gourmand wild! Seriously top-tier stuff!" Grim happily exclaims while everyone only look at him with disgust.

"Really? You're eating off the ground AGAIN?" Deuce asks disappointedly.

"Feels like a waste of breath to even tell him to stop at this point. There's just no accounting for a monster's palate," Ace sighs.

Leona only watches Grim, thinking about the black stone he just ate. "Hey," Leona says, getting Angel's attention. "Does that weasel always pick up black stones off the ground and eat them?"

Angel thinks about the question. "Not constantly, but we have seen him eat it every now and then." Leona only thinks about her answer.

"Something wrong, Leona?" Jack asks.

"Nah. Don't mind me."

"Well, then! Since we got our business over with here," Grim says as he looks at Angel. "How bout we go back home?"

"Yeah, that sounds like a goo-" Angel stopped, feeling a sharp pain within her body. It felt, uneasy as she holds her hands to her mouth, trying to cough up something blocking her throat. Everyone looked at her in confusion as she coughs in her hands, then the look of confusion only turned into a look of shock as something black ended up in her hands, making her look at the group in confusion. "What's wrong....?" She strains to ask, looking at everyone, and everyone only stare at her in shock as her eyes turned black. "Why is-" she starts to say but everyone look at her in concern as she tries to process what's going on, but it proved to be futile as she just blacks out.

"Wh-Angel!" Deuce says as he tries to check up on the girl, but she doesn't respond.

"What's going on with her now?" Ruggie asks as he stare on the black liquid in her hand.

Jack puts his head on her chest, feeling that something was off. When he did, her heard her heartbeat, but it was faint, almost as if it was slowly down. "We need to get her to the infirmary. Now." Jack says in alarm. "I don't know why, but if she doesn't get medical attention, she might not survive the day."

"Whoa, Azul, you really did almost make her pop," Floyd says in shock while Azul only looks at her confused.

"What do you mean? I can't remember anything while I overblotted," Azul states as the freshmen only pick up the girl, trying to make sense of the situation. "I'm more confused at what's going on with her."

"Hey...She isn't gonna...ya know..." Grim says in concern as Jack picks her up and carries her.

"She's not," Deuce says as he clenches his fist. "Jack, you might taking her to the infirmary and we can get the headmage?" Jack only nods and rush to the mirror, taking Angel to the infirmary before anything else happens.

Jade only looks at the freshmen concerned faces. "If I may ask," he starts. "Does this have something to do with the fact that she had to help out with Azul?"

"It might be," Ace answered. "Every time someone overblots, she always experiences some sort of pain we don't know about. I think this one might be more serious."

"But why though?" Floyd asks.

"She absorbs overblot, doesn't she?" Leona asks the freshmen, and they looked at him in surprise, not expecting the upperclassmen to know about her situation. "You think I didn't pick up on the conversation from the last time?"

"Yeah, but...how?" Ruggie asks.

Leona looks at Azul. "Let me guess: she approaches you and said something sappy to you and then you felt the blot from you disappear, right?"

Azul's eyes widen at the description. "More or less, yes."

"She has no magic, so that blot has to go somewhere," Leona states, crossing his arms. "If I had to guess, more than likely her life's in danger every time she absorbs our blot right?" He looks to the freshmen.

"Wow...never knew Leona was this smart," Grim mumbles, shocked at Leona's deduction.

"Yeah, that's right," Deuce quickly says. "But right now we need to get the headmage to figure out what's wrong with her."