Apocalypse Trade Monopoly
Chapter 53: : The Oracle’s Invitation

Chapter 53: : The Oracle’s Invitation

Lucas shook blood off his hands like it was nothing, stepping out of the alley with an easy, unbothered stride.

Ava followed, exhaling sharply. "So? What now?"

Lucas grinned. "We have a meeting."

Ava arched a brow. "With who?"

Lucas tilted his head, golden eyes gleaming. "A system holder. Not from here."

Ava stiffened. "Another bunker?"

Lucas nodded. "Visitor. An oracle type."

Ava’s stomach twisted. "As in, sees the future?"

Lucas chuckled. "Something like that."

Ava narrowed her eyes. "And you trust this person?"

Lucas sighed dramatically. "Beauty, I don’t trust anyone."

Ava folded her arms. "Then why are we meeting them?"

Lucas flashed a sharp grin. "Because they asked for us."

Ava went still.

Not him.

Us.

Her Blueprint System flared to life, scanning the statement itself like a puzzle that needed solving.

[ANALYSIS: INCOMPLETE]

[UNKNOWN SYSTEM HOLDER DETECTED]

[REQUEST: SPECIFICALLY FOR USER & LUCAS BAI]

Ava exhaled. "I don’t like this."

Lucas grinned. "That makes two of us."

Ava shot him a dry look. "And yet, we’re still going."

Lucas laughed. "Of course. Wouldn’t you want to know what someone who claims to see the future has to say about you?"

Ava hesitated.

Lucas led the way, weaving through Level One’s polished streets like he owned them.

Ava kept pace, scanning their surroundings, her mind already calculating.

A visitor from another bunker.

An oracle-type system holder.

Someone who specifically requested them.

None of this felt like coincidence.

"Where exactly is this meeting?" Ava asked.

Lucas smirked. "Neutral ground."

Ava tilted her head. "You’re being vague on purpose."

Lucas chuckled. "Obviously."

Ava sighed. "Fantastic."

Eventually, they reached an older section of Level One.

Not dirty. Not rundown.

But...forgotten.

A private tea house stood at the end of the street—simple, elegant, and completely out of place compared to the wealth surrounding it.

Lucas didn’t hesitate.

He pushed the door open, stepping inside.

Ava followed.

And the moment they entered—

The world felt different.

Not in a way she could explain.

Not in a way her system could define.

But something in the air shifted.

Like they had stepped into a space untouched by time itself.

A single figure sat in the center of the room, waiting.

A woman.

Dressed in deep blue. Dark hair pinned up, loose strands framing an unreadable face.

She looked...ageless.

Not young. Not old.

Just...there.

Her eyes—deep, endless—lifted to meet theirs.

And then—she smiled.

"Lucas Bai. Ava Zhang."

Her voice was smooth, warm, knowing.

"You’re late."

The woman lifted her cup of tea, her movements slow, deliberate.

Lucas grinned, dropping lazily into the chair across from her. "You didn’t give us a time, Oracle. Hard to be late when there was no appointment."

The Oracle—because there was no doubt that’s what she was—smiled. "Time is not a chain, Bai. It flows. Whether you are late or early depends on where you choose to stand."

Ava slid into the seat beside Lucas, her body relaxed, but her mind sharp. "So, what exactly do you see?"

The Oracle studied her, eyes deep, endless. "You assume sight is a gift."

Ava tilted her head. "Isn’t it?"

The Oracle sighed, setting her cup down. "Not always."

Lucas chuckled, leaning back. "And yet, people pay good money for it."

The Oracle folded her hands. "Because people are obsessed with knowing what comes next."

She paused, gaze steady. "But the future is not a single road, Lucas Bai. It is a web. And you—" her lips curled slightly—"are tangled in many threads."

Ava exhaled slowly. "I assume we weren’t called here for poetry."

The Oracle laughed softly. "No, child. You were called because choices are coming. And I offer three things."

She lifted one delicate finger. "An offer."

A second. "A suggestion."

A third. "And a prediction."

Lucas smirked. "Let’s hear it, then."

The Oracle studied him, then Ava, before speaking.

"My offer: Walk away now. Leave this city, leave your ambitions. You may not have peace, but you will live."

Ava’s stomach twisted.

Lucas chuckled. "You already know the answer to that."

The Oracle nodded, unsurprised. "Then my suggestion—"

She leaned forward slightly. "You must understand the nature of your power. Not just what it can do—but what it will cost."

Ava felt her system pulse.

[UNKNOWN PARAMETER DETECTED]

[WARNING: SYSTEM PATH UNCLEAR]

Lucas exhaled dramatically. "You’re saying there’s a price to pay?"

The Oracle smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. "Everything in this world has a price."

Lucas tilted his head. "And the prediction?"

The Oracle stared at them for a long, quiet moment.

Then—softly, simply—

"One of you will break."

The words hung in the air, heavy, undeniable.

Ava’s pulse remained steady, but something cold slid down her spine.

Lucas? Still smiling. But his fingers tapped lightly against the armrest.

The Oracle sighed, sipping her tea again. "The path is not yet set. But you will have to decide which of you it will be."

Silence.

Then—Lucas laughed.

"Oh, Oracle. You do love a good dramatic twist."

The Oracle smiled. "The truth is never dramatic. Only the people who hear it."

Ava exhaled. "And if we don’t like your prediction?"

The Oracle tilted her head. "Then change it."

Ava met Lucas’s gaze.

The Oracle sipped her tea, the quiet between them stretching like a still pond.

Then—her voice, smooth as flowing water.

"You seek revenge, Lucas Bai. You have built your empire on patience, on careful moves. But you forget—revenge is not a goal. It is a path."

Lucas smirked, golden eyes gleaming. "And?"

The Oracle tilted her head. "And you will find that when revenge is your purpose, you may not recognize yourself once it is fulfilled."

Ava exhaled sharply. "That’s the offer, isn’t it? Walk away from it."

The Oracle nodded. "Turn your back on vengeance, and you will have a future unburdened by old ghosts. A quiet life. A different path."

Lucas chuckled. "And what kind of life would that be?"

The Oracle’s gaze deepened. "Bai Manor is waiting."

Ava stilled.

Lucas’s smile remained, but his fingers tapped against the table.

"You mean for me to live there again?" Lucas murmured.

The Oracle smiled softly. "You have spent time moving forward, but the past is not done with you. Bai Manor was never a house—it is a claim. And soon, you must decide if you will reclaim it or burn it down."

Ava felt her stomach twist. "And if he does go back?"

The Oracle sighed. "Then he will have to face the weight of everything left behind."

A moment of silence.

Then—a shift.

"Your father," the Oracle continued, "sleeps, his body alive, but his mind lost."

Lucas’s golden eyes sharpened. "You see something?"

The Oracle nodded. "He is not gone. But he will not wake until you understand the key to his slumber."

Ava exhaled sharply. "And what is that key?"

The Oracle watched her. "The past. The very thing you both try to outrun."

Ava glanced at Lucas, but his expression was unreadable.

Then—the final words came.

"The blood exchange was never something you signed up for. You should have died. You both should have."

Ava went still.

Lucas tilted his head, smirking. "And yet, here we are."

The Oracle nodded. "Yes. And that is why you are dangerous."

Ava’s Blueprint System pulsed hard.

[SCAN IN PROGRESS...]

[FOREIGN CONNECTION DETECTED]

[SYSTEM ALIGNMENT: 92% MATCH]

Her stomach twisted. "What does that mean?"

The Oracle exhaled. "It means the two of you are tied together in ways even you do not understand yet."

Lucas leaned back, considering. "And your prediction?"

The Oracle watched them both carefully. Then—

"You will need each other more than you know."

Ava swallowed.

Lucas exhaled slowly, drumming his fingers against the table. "Alright, Oracle. We’ve heard your warnings, your wisdom, your lovely poetic threats."

Ava arched a brow. "And?"

Lucas grinned. "Now let’s talk results."

The Oracle sighed, setting her cup down. "You want certainty. I cannot give you that."

Lucas chuckled. "I don’t need certainty. I need probabilities."

The Oracle tilted her head, then finally nodded. "Very well. In the next three days, three paths will unfold. One will be chosen, whether by your hand or another’s."

She lifted one finger. "The first: You retreat. You let the pieces move without you, and the game plays on without interference."

Ava’s stomach twisted. "And the result?"

The Oracle’s gaze darkened. "You will survive, but you will lose what you have built. Level One will belong to another, and the balance you held will be broken."

Lucas tilted his head. "Not an option, then."

The Oracle lifted a second finger. "The second: You strike first. A bold move, decisive. It will give you control—but it will cost you. Blood must be spilled, and the enemy will rise stronger for it."

Ava exhaled. "Meaning?"

The Oracle watched her. "If you go to war now, you will win the battle—but set the stage for something far worse."

Lucas nodded slowly, considering. "And the third?"

The Oracle lifted the final finger. "You wait. You let the pieces reveal themselves. And in doing so, you will learn what truly threatens you."

Ava felt her mind racing. "And the price of that?"

The Oracle sighed. "Risk. You gamble on the unknown. But if you choose wisely, you may yet gain more than you lose."

Lucas grinned. "A gamble, then."

Ava folded her arms. "We’re already playing with fire."

Lucas chuckled, golden eyes gleaming. "Then we just have to make sure we’re the ones holding the match."

The Oracle watched them both, then finally leaned back. "Three days. Three outcomes. The choice is yours."

Ava exhaled. "Then we better start planning."

Because whatever happened next?

They had less than three days to decide.