The Shadow Of The Lunar Curse

Chapter 6: Shadow figure 

The school bell echoed throughout the cafeteria, which meant the end of their lunch break, Jerry picked up his tray and followed behind Tim, they both went through the small crowd of students to drop off their trays, The two boys then made their way out into the hallway, Tim kept on rambling about his latest game strategy.

"Alright, I gotta head to practice," Jerry said, cutting Tim off mid-sentence, just as they reached the locker rooms.

Tim smirked, "Oh, Mr. Star Athlete is too good for me now, huh? Go score a goal or whatever lacrosse people do."

Jerry rolled his eyes at Tim, but a small smile tugged at his lips, "Yeah, yeah, Go entertain yourself, Tim."

Just as Jerry stepped into the locker room, the faint smell of sweat and damp gear hit him right in the nose, He tossed his bag into his usual spot and took off his hoodie, and underneath was his practice jersey, The chatter and small talks of his teammates filled the room as everyone got ready for practice.

"Hey, Blade!" a voice called from across the room, Jerry turned to see one of the team captains Connor, Conner then tossed a lacrosse ball into the air, but Jerry caught it with ease, "You ready to actually keep up today, or are you going to trip over your own feet again?"

Jerry smiled and shrugged, "Guess we'll find out."

Connor laughed, slapping him on the back as they headed out to the practice field.

---

The smooth afternoon air greeted them as they stepped onto the field, Jerry stretched his arms and legs, he had been feeling the tension in his muscles from this morning, The events from yesterday and today lingered in his mind, like the quests, the system, and the faint mark on his palm, He subconsciously clenched his fists while narrowing eyes as he tried to push all the thoughts aside.

"Focus Jerry, Just try to get through practice" ran through his head.

Coach duke blew his whistle signaling the team to gather around, Jerry cover his ear from the piercing sound of the whistle, it felt like his hearing had improved.

"Alright, ladies, hustle up!" Coach Duke barked with a booming voice across the field, "We're starting with drills, Let's see some energy out there!"

The team instantly split into groups, they were all running through passing drills and sprints, even the talen twins Raiden and Raiten were there.

Jerry then threw himself into the exercises with his feet pounding against the turf as he chased after the ball, The burning in his legs felt almost comforting, it was serving as a distraction from the chaos in his head.

"Nice one, Blade!" Connor shouted as Jerry caught a pass from him and darted toward the goal where Raiten was standing, He weaved past two defenders which surprised the best player Raiden, Jerry's stick was steady as he lined up his shot.

With a swift flick of his wrist, the ball sailed through the air and slammed into the net, Raiten was unable to catch the ball with his stick in time, The satisfying thud made Jerry smirk.

"Finally!" Connor, the team captain, teased Jerry, "Maybe there's hope for you after all."

Jerry rolled his eyes at Conner, who looked like a smaller version of hulk because of his massive build, but despite this Jerry couldn't help the small sense of pride that crept into his head.

"My senses and fitness improvement does it have something to do with the annoying system" Jerry thought to himself.

---

As they're kept on their lacrosse practice, Jerry's focus began to trail off a bit. 

The system's notifications had been quiet since lunch, but Jerry couldn't shake off the feeling that it was watching or doing whatever a system does and waiting for him to slip up or something.

While taking a break by the sidelines, Jerry glanced down at his palm, The faint mark of a wolf's fang was still there and almost glowing under the sunlight, He used his left hand to rubbed at it absentmindedly with his eyebrows furrowed.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Jerry looked up and saw that it was Connor, who was standing right next to him with a curious expression.

"Yeah," Jerry quickly said while shoving his right hand into his pocket, "Just tired, I guess."

Connor studied him for a moment but didn't press any further, "Alright, man, Just don't pass out on us" he said and clapped Jerry on the shoulder before jogging off into the field.

Jerry exhaled while slumping his shoulders, He didn't know if he was more annoyed by the system or his inability to figure out what it actually wanted from him.

---

*After Practice*

By the time practice ended, the sun was beginning to dip below the horizon and casting long shadows across the field, it was already sunset, Jerry tiredly walked back to the locker room, his body was aching from the drills.

After he finished showering and changed into his normal outfit, that was when the system finally decided to make itself known again.

[Quest 2: Perform 20 push-ups – 0/20 completed.]

Jerry groaned with his forehead resting against the locker door in frustration, "You've got to be kidding me, I feel like I'm being hunted by my gym instructor" he muttered under his breath.

"What's up with you?" one of his teammates asked while giving him a strange look.

"Nothing," Jerry quickly said as grabbed his bag and headed out before anyone else could ask any other questions.

---

*The walked home*

The motion sensor streetlights flickered to life as Jerry made his way home, they were automatically turning on and off, Jerry's footsteps echoed against the pavement, The air was cooler now, carrying the faint scent of rain has it blew, Jerry glanced around while his senses were on edge.

It was probably nothing but Jerry couldn't shake off the feeling that something or someone was watching him.

"Get a grip, Jerry," he muttered and shakes his head trying to focus.

But the uneasiness he was feeling only grew stronger as he turned the corner onto his street which was close to the woods, after entering his street, The shadows seemed darker and deeper like they were alive, Jerry quickened his pace and tightened his hand around the strap of his bag. My

When he finally got to his house, he let out a breath that he hadn't even realized he was holding in, He typed in some code into the security system at the side of the door, his hands were slightly shaky as he unlocked the door.

The warmth of the house was comforting, but the mark on his palm began to tingle again with a faint burning sensation spreading through his hand, Jerry dropped his bag and sat on the couch and stared at the mark.

"What do you want from me?" he whispered.

As if in response, the system's notification popped up again.

[New Quest Unlocked: Investigate the Shadowed Figure.]

Jerry's heart suddenly skipped a beat, shadowed figure? What shadowed figure?

Before he could process the system message, there was a knock at the door.

Jerry froze with his breath caught in his throat, The knock on the door was heard again, but this time it was louder, He glanced at the clock and thought "who would be visiting at this hour?"

He cautiously stood and approached the door, His hand hovered over the doorknob when the faint glow of the mark illuminating his palm.

"Who is it?" he said with a slightly trembling voice, but there was no response.

Jerry's pulse quickened, then he reached for the door handle, his finger brushed against the cold metal.

The moment he turned the knob, the door flew open, and a gust of cold wind rushed past him.

Standing in the doorway, was a figure cloaked in shadow with its glowing eyes locked onto Jerry.

[Quest Updated: Survive the Encounter.]

Jerry's h

eart pounded in his chest as the figure took a step forward with its presence radiating a dark and suffocating energy.