Third person's POV
Hedwig promptly scrambled out of bed and followed the little deer out of the room.
Derek gradually slowed his steps. Although Spike's voice echoed through the empty mountain forest, Derek also distinctly heard Tabitha's voice nearby. She seemed to be in trouble, incessantly crying out for help, "Help, help me..."
"Tabitha!" Derek shouted loudly, but there was no response.
In addition to Tabitha's cries, Derek could also hear the hissing of snakes, and the sounds were coming from multiple directions, indicating the presence of more than just one or two snakes.
At this moment, Derek sensed someone standing not far away.
Even though he couldn't see, he could feel the person's presence—it was Jasper.
Jasper stared coldly at Derek, whose appearance was quite disheveled from his falls.
The resentment in Jasper's eyes was unmistakable. He thought to himself, "Derek, you should have died long ago."
Now was the perfect opportunity to kill Derek.
Without a word, Jasper dropped the recording device in his hand that was playing Tabitha's voice.
The device landed precisely in the snake pit, where tens of thousands of snakes were writhing and entwined. The very thought of the scene was enough to send chills down one's spine.
"Alpha Derek, where are you?!" Spike's voice still occasionally reached Derek's ears.
The phone in the snake pit continued to play Tabitha's cries for help, "Help, help me!"
"Tabitha, where are you?" Derek shouted anxiously.
At this moment, Jasper spoke in a cold voice, "She's right in front of you. You claim to love her so much. Let's see how much you truly love her."
"What do you want from me? What grudge do you have against me to deliberately lure me here?" Derek asked.
"I have no personal vendetta against you. I'm just an ordinary person who disagrees with your ways. Your beloved is waiting ahead for you to save her. What's the matter? Afraid? If you don't dare, I'll give you a push. Stop parading around under the guise of love and deceiving people—it's disgusting," Jasper said.
Although Derek couldn't see, from the continuous hissing of the snakes and the pungent odor surrounding him, he had already deduced the situation.
Yet, there was not a hint of fear on his face. Instead, he calmly asked, "Why should I prove to you who I love? And what relation do you have to Tabitha?"
Spike's cries grew closer, and Jasper began to grow anxious. He hadn't anticipated that Spike and Tabitha would arrive so soon.
"Are you going to jump or not? If not, I'll help you along," Jasper said, preparing to push Derek down.
"She's three meters ahead of you," Jasper deliberately deepened his voice, mimicking an echo.
Derek's eyelashes trembled violently, and fine blood threads seeped from the whites of his eyes.
Suddenly, he halted, his head tilting slightly to the right—straight at Jasper's position. Despite his dilated pupils, he pinpointed Jasper's location as if seeing through the darkness.
At that moment, Derek flashed an eerie smile in Jasper's direction and said, "But today, I'm more than happy to prove it to you."
Before Jasper could comprehend Derek's words, he saw Derek leap into the snake pit of his own accord.
"No!" Tabitha's heart-wrenching scream pierced the air.
Tabitha sprinted forward, her anxiety intensifying as she drew nearer to the snake pit.
Such a place was treacherous even for a sighted person, let alone blind Derek.
The thought of him falling in, surely to be bitten by countless venomous snakes, was unbearable for Tabitha.
The putrid smell of snakes carried on the cold wind made Tabitha's entire body shudder uncontrollably.
Like a predator on the hunt, her mind was consumed by a single desperate thought—run.
She heard nothing else, only the howling wind that heightened her fear.
With a thud, she fell to the ground from sheer tension.
Spike quickly stopped to help her up. "Are you alright?" he asked, only to notice her body was wracked with violent shivers.
"Run, run now! The snake pit is right ahead," Tabitha urged, ignoring the pain in her knees as she scrambled back to her feet and continued her frenzied sprint.
At this moment, pain was the furthest thing from her mind. There was only one thought——Save Derek. She must save him, he couldn't die.
When she finally reached the snake pit, all she saw was Derek's resolute figure as he plunged into the depths.
Among thousands of venomous snakes, she heard her own voice crying out, "Help, help me..."
So, this was why Derek had risked his life, charging forward without regard for the snake pit ahead! She understood, but it was too late.
"No!" she screamed with all her might, yet her cries could not alter the course of events. She could only watch in helpless horror as Derek leaped into the snake pit like a moth drawn to flame.
Derek was not blind to reason. He must have sensed the danger ahead. Yet, he plunged forward without a second thought, heedless of the consequences.
Tabitha, too, lost all rationality and was about to follow Derek into the pit when Jasper seized her just in time. He held her tightly in his arms and, in a voice as cold as ice, whispered into her ear, "It's too late. It's all over."