Apocalyse: Marked by Chaos
Chapter 54 Monsters Don’t Stay Dead (1)

Chapter 54: Chapter 54 Monsters Don’t Stay Dead (1)

The lecture with Instructor Vaelis was mentally and physically draining. Olivia weakly rested her back on the pillar, her hands in her pockets, her mind replaying the events from earlier like a broken tape.

His gaze, although sharp and cold, always softened whenever he looked at her, as if he knew her. "Hmm, he definitely looks familiar, I wouldn’t forget that face... but why has he been stalking me? I have to figure that out..."

(SYSTEM ALERT: You have 68 hours 10 minutes left to complete your mission)

The screen suddenly popped right in front of her. She rolled her eyes inwardly at it. ’For f**k’s sake, stop popping in front of me every second.’

[I am only doing this for your own good. You should begin your mission now. Alexa isn’t easy to deal with.]

"So you knew, so why did you give the mission?"

[Don’t push the blame on me]

[I’m only doing my job.]

With that, the system disappeared. Olivia inhaled deeply. How is she going to uncover Alexa’s past? Should she get her drunk?

’No. I’m scared of her, she is too scary," she shook her head hastily. But what can she do now?

She sighed. She decided to head to her next class, which was Anatomy class. She really doesn’t see the point of experimenting with the corpse of monsters; she was more interested in her power levelling up.

"Look who we have here." Lydia suddenly blocked her path, making her stop midway.

"I don’t have time for this." Olivia tried to walk past her, but she was pushed back by her.

"I want you to stay away from Klaus," she warned, taking a step closer to her.

Olivia didn’t move back. Rather, she stared right back at her. "Is that why you have been sending me those letters?" She chuckled. "That’s so childish of you," she drawled.

Lydia tried to force a smile on her face but failed miserably. "I’m glad you know. Don’t make me warn you again."

"You might as well take him and tie him to yourself. After all, he is the one who has been running after me," she paused, a mischievous glint crossing her eyes.

"If only you were pretty enough, maybe you wouldn’t be trying this hard to make him notice you." She grinned at Lydia’s face.

Lydia’s ears turned red, oozing out hot smoke. No one, ever had dared call her ugly, and from a girl in Section 27? It felt like blasphemy. Every single one drooled after her, and she was looked down on by this wretch.

She flared, her hand aiming for Olivia’s face. Before her fist could land on Olivia’s face, a hand swiftly caught it midway.

Meanwhile, Olivia stood completely unfazed by it. "Stop, Lydia," Klaus warned.

Lydia’s lips pouted in disappointment. "You... you." She shot a glare at Olivia before walking away. Lydia’s heart stung with betrayal and anger. Her fists clenched by her side. She was going to pay her back.

"I won’t say thank you. Your help was not necessary," Olivia sternly said to Klaus, who had been staring at her.

He chuckled. "I wasn’t expecting one from you... By the way, don’t get in a fight with Lydia. You are no where near her level."

Olivia scoffed. Something dark grew inside her. The thought of being known as weak made her want to prove that she is not. Her eyes flickered from gold to green. It was so fast that Klaus missed it.

She let go of her clenched fists. "If you may excuse me, I have class to attend," she said before walking off.

"We are heading the same way. There is no need for me to excuse you," he mused, hastily walking behind her.

As Olivia stepped into the dim, high-ceilinged room, the scent of blood, old decay, and sterilized metal flooded her senses. The walls were lined with cabinets filled with strange jars—floating eyes, pulsing tendrils, and organs that twitched without touch. It wasn’t a classroom. It was a morgue for monsters.

Whispers circled the room.

"Why is it so cold in here?"

"Did that eye just blink?"

"I heard the last class lost a student... something about a parasitic lung beast."

"Shut up!"

Olivia shivered.

The instructor entered—Dr. Verax, a gaunt man with silvery hair pulled back and a single glowing monocle over his left eye.

"Welcome to your first monster anatomy session," his voice echoed, low and clinical. "Today, you’ll dissect a Class-B Infernal Beast, its core still faintly active. That means... if you’re careless, it explodes."

The class fell silent.

With a flick of his wrist, a thick steel door creaked open. A massive, chained-up creature was dragged in, rotting flesh, scaled armor, and twitching claws. Its throat had been stitched shut, and its eye was crusted over, but its chest still rose and fell ever so slightly.

Olivia’s breath caught. The monster looked like it had died yesterday... and regretted it.

"Team up in pairs. Gloves, scalpels, containment jars... and caution." Verax smiled thinly. "If you puncture a venom sac, try not to die near the samples."

Klaus was already beside her before she could pick a partner. "No way I’m letting someone else dissect you by mistake," he muttered.

They approached the beast’s table. Olivia hesitated.

(SYSTEM ALERT: Optional Mission – Extract a dormant Chaos gland from the beast. Reward: 1 core boost + Unknown passive trait.)

Her stomach dropped. Not now. Of all times, the system had to throw her into a gamble while her hands hovered over death itself.

"You cut," Klaus said. "I’ll hold."

Her fingers hovered over the scalpel. What if she triggered something? What if she failed in front of everyone? But the system had given a task, and she couldn’t afford to fail. Not now.

She swallowed hard and reached for the scalpel.

"Easy for you to say," she muttered, pressing the blade into the monster’s chest.

Its body twitched again, a jarring reminder that death in this world was never truly final. A sickening gurgle escaped its stitched mouth, sending shivers down Olivia’s spine.

She swallowed before proceeding with the dissection, the scalpel sank into its flesh, a thick, black ichor oozed out, reeking like burnt sulfur. The flesh peeled back, revealing muscle fibers that twitched beneath her hands. Then...

Snap.

Something inside moved. Olivia’s breath hitched.