An Awakener's Peradventure

Chapter 7: A Merchant's Offer

He marched towards Afrim's institute without hesitation. He followed its directions until he stopped at an abandoned villa surrounded by a metal fence.

It seemed the villa was built over a century ago. Its stone walls stood strong but showed large cracks around its sides. The front door was missing, and the pictured windows had lost their colours. Vegetation exterminated outdoor garden flowers.

He noticed the gate was unlocked and stepped into the villa's garden. A long pathway was created by moss to the door. The resident plant life had withered away, and only lifeless weeds occupied their soil. He walked along the path, observing the surrounding wasteland.

He entered through its doors and witnessed a bigger wasteland than the previous. All the furniture inside was preserved, yet it felt time had chewed them up.

"This is the institute he was bragging about?" he asked himself. He expected something grand from a man like Afrim. "I'll surely learn something here. Whatever. It's a waste of time to come here."

Turning back, the door behind him slammed shut. He heard nails had dug into planks that restrained the door's hinges. Konstantin tried prying it open, but the nails had dug too deep to be pulled out. He panicked and was confused. Then he noticed a window inside the lounge on his left. He ran towards it, but more nails dug in. More banging surrounded the villa.

"What the hell is he doing?" he thought. "This is insane." He covered his ears and hoped it would drown out the noise. Finally, silence befell again. Torches and lanterns lit up the rooms and presented them on stage.

All the rooms wore eighteenth century furniture with various decorations. The lounge had a long green sofa with green armchairs sitting around a rectangular table. The wooden cabinets carried antique dinnerware and pictures of the former villa and various landscapes.

"This was a bad idea," he said. "I should've walked away and left him be. Now, I've given him exactly what he wanted. He's trapped me in here, some enemy group will attempt to neutralise me and then he'll step in and save me, making me owe him a favour which he will insist that I join his cause. God damn, what am I to do?"

Konstantin analysed the room for any clues. He noticed the rooms were connected to each other. "Surely, there must be something I can use," he said.

He searched each room from top to bottom, downstairs, and upstairs. He then noticed that every room he entered had no sharp items. No silverware was found in the kitchen.

"This is hopeless," he complained. "I've searched every nook and cranny I could think of and there's nothing helpful." He paced around the ground floor hallway to think. Then he stepped on a loose plank. His leg fell in as the plank jumped off its suspended board. When he got out, it dived into the darkness below. It hit the bottom as it tumbled deeper down what sounded like a stairway.

"Well, now," he said, "What could this be?" He knocked on a nearby plank. Its footing stood strong on its floorboard. Konstantin continued to knock on each plank, following the hidden trail beneath. It led him towards a red carpet at the end of the hallway.

He got confused at first. Then he threw the carpet aside and found a trapdoor. He opened it and found a flight of stone stairs leading to the abyss. He grabbed a nearby lantern and lit the candle inside.

The abyss blew a mild breeze at Konstantin. He stared down, frightened. He didn't want to descend, but he recognised the necessity. His right foot moved to the first step and his left foot followed behind.

Konstantin scaled down the stairs and walked through a narrow hallway. He saw a coloured video painted on the surrounding walls.

It began with the creation of civilization and its evolution. Then it arrived at the year 800 A.P. It mentioned a doctor by the name of Imaran Fogle. He wanted to create a specialised DNA gene that would merge with the human body to provide a random super ability of any kind. Despite the difficulty, he remained determined. After much trial and error, he succeeded, and the world was impressed. He skyrocketed to become the richest and most popular man in history.