“Yes, please sit down.”

Gento Ireng saluted, then sat down on the chair in front of the throne where Dewi Purbalara had sat a few moments earlier.

“Thank you, what is wrong, Your Majesty, that you suddenly called me to come?”

Gento Ireng asked this not without reason, he was just surprised because the White Crocodile Demon Queen did not usually ask him to come after successfully carrying out a task, namely kidnapping a villager to be her follower.

Usually, Dewi Purbalara gave orders a month or two later to do the same thing, but this time, it had only been a few days since Gento Ireng was asked to come again.

“Hmmm, you must be wondering why I asked you to come?”

“Yes, Your Majesty, forgive me if I was presumptuous in asking like that.”

“It’s okay, this does seem sudden because I saw a young man on the edge of the pool with suspicious movements. I want you to check up on him what the young man was doing,” Dewi Purbalara said while giving the order.

“A young man with suspicious movements? Strange, isn't it true that no one has dared to approach the skull pit area, Your Highness? I don't think he's a resident of Serayu Village and I also think the young man doesn't know anything about this skull pit," said Gento Ireng.

"That could be the case, that's why I ordered you to investigate it."

"Yes, Your Highness, I will immediately carry out Your Highness's order."

"Wait a minute, Gento."

Gento Ireng, who had stood up from his seat and was ready to carry out Dewi Purbalara's order, sat back down in his chair.

"You just need to investigate it, there's no need to bring the young man here because I think our current followers are enough," continued the White Crocodile Demon Queen.

"Yes, Your Highness, I will not forcefully bring the young man to this palace."

"Carry out your task now, I will monitor from the magic mirror in the room."

Gento Ireng stood back up and gave a respectful greeting, after Dewi Purbalara nodded her head, Gento Ireng left the room, ready to go up to the surface of the skull pit.

Meanwhile, on land, precisely on the slope of the cliff on the edge of the skull pit, Arya Mandu was still seen brushing aside the grass and small trees while occasionally directing his gaze to the middle of the pit, Arya did that on purpose to avoid any suspicion that might arise over his presence on the edge of the skull pit.

"Wuuuuus..."

A flash of shadow from the whirlpool in the middle of the pit shot to land 12 spears from where Arya was standing, Arya briefly caught a glimpse of the shadow and was surprised, but he quickly pretended not to see at all the figure that flashed from inside the skull pit right in the whirlpool.

Arya felt that his presence on the edge of the skull pit was known to the Crocodile Demon Queen so he ordered one of his followers to investigate him, so Arya was currently pretending to be looking for something in the thick bushes on the edge of the pit so as not to invite further suspicion from the White Crocodile Demon Queen and her followers.

"What is that young man doing there? "It seems like he is looking for something that could be his belongings that fell on the cliff slope," Gento Ireng muttered to himself as he observed Arya from a distance of 12 spears amidst the dense bushes and small trees on the edge of the river at the head of the skull's hole.

After thinking and considering carefully, Gento Ireng decided to approach Arya by pretending to be a resident of Serayu Village who was looking for fish in the Lubuk Ular area.

Although Arya's position was currently facing away from him, the warrior knew that the figure that had shot out of the pool was approaching him.

"Ahem, what are you doing here?" Gento Ireng greeted Arya, making him pretend to be surprised and turn his body towards Gento Ireng.

"Eh, there's someone else on the edge of this river. I was surprised, sorry I was looking for my stuff that had fallen in the bushes."

"Where did you get your stuff from that it ended up falling on the edge of this pool?" Gento Ireng asked again.

"I just crossed the headwaters of the pool there, then I intended to climb up the cliff. Because the cliff there is too high to climb, that's why I came here where the cliff is lower. When I managed to climb to the top of the cliff, I suddenly realized that the object I had put in my pants pocket had fallen, so I went back down to look for it,” said Arya.

“I see.”

“Yes, what are you doing here?” Arya asked back.

“I was catching fish at the head of the pool, suddenly I saw you here again, brushing aside the bushes. I thought something was wrong, you were looking for something that had fallen,” answered Gento Ireng, trying not to let Arya suspect him, who was one of the trusted people of the White Crocodile Demon Queen who lived in the skull pool.

Dewi Purbalara, who was in her room at that time, paid attention again and heard clearly what Arya and Gento Ireng were discussing on the edge of the skull pool through her magic mirror. She also concluded that the young man she had suspected earlier had no idea that at the bottom of the skull pool there was a palace that belonged to her and also that the entire pool area was her territory.

Dewi Purbalara observed Arya for quite a long time, starting from his muscular body shape and handsome face, to the way he spoke so friendly and amicable with Gento Ireng.

If earlier she had only asked Gento Ireng to investigate him, but for some reason suddenly a feeling of liking appeared in her heart for the handsome young man who was also dressed in white standing and chatting with her men.

Dewi Purbalara was confused about what to do so that Gento Ireng could find out about her desire to bring Arya to her palace right away, if she sent one of her palace guards after Gento Ireng it would certainly raise suspicion because Arya would certainly see her order emerge from the middle of the skull.

"Ah, what should we do?!" Dewi Purbalara was worried.