Chapter 138
I thought light was descending from the sky, that it was a passage connected to the outside. But alas, it wasn't sunlight.
The ceiling was blocked by wooden bars, like the iron bars of a sewer. Through the wooden bars, I could see the flickering of a torch hanging on the wall.
It seems to be the upper floor, not the outside.
"I think I need to go up."
There was no way to walk further forward. It seems the path I came through wasn't the official passage but a side path.
I couldn't reach the ceiling just by standing on tiptoes, so I had to jump up lightly. But no matter how hard I pushed, the bars wouldn't budge. I tried jumping and climbing the wall, but it wasn't easy to lift the bars.
"Damn it."
I gave up for a moment and sat down.
There must be another way to enter, so I have to go back the way I came and find a new entrance.
"……."
That seemed to be the only way I could think of right now, so I felt very uneasy. It feels like a waste of time.
Then suddenly, a question crossed my mind.
'But who lit the torch on the upper floor?'
There shouldn't be anyone here.
As I was thinking that and leaning against the wall, the wall behind me suddenly disappeared. Thanks to that, I fell straight down.
I don't even know what happened. Whether one side of the wall was missing from the beginning, or whether it disappeared the moment I leaned against the wall.
I jumped up from my seat and rushed back into the original corridor. There was a hole in the wall I was trying to lean on, creating a new path.
I looked around the newly created path and stared ahead. Even with the torch lit, I couldn't tell what was at the end of this path.
"I'm getting more and more anxious because it feels like I'm entering a maze."
With a firm resolve, I held the torch tightly in my hand and passed through the opened path.
I was walking down the endless corridor again.
Suddenly, I felt my feet getting soggy and sinking, and this time I fell forward. It was because I was only lighting the way ahead with the torch and didn't see the floor properly.
My feet kept sinking deeper into the swamp, or whatever it was. Damn it.
Just in case, I threw the bag I was carrying towards the relatively intact-looking floor. Then I struggled to get out of the swamp. But the more I did, the deeper I sank.
At that moment, several white bones popped out of the mud. They looked like the arms of a skeleton. They were soon groping out of the mud as if looking for something.
'Fucking hell. If I get caught, I'm fucked.'
I hurriedly tried to pull my body out of the mud, but my lower body was already completely submerged.
Eunji, who was wrapped around my arm, didn't know what to do and climbed onto my shoulder and over my head. He spewed fire at the bones rising from the swamp, but it didn't catch fire. It definitely seemed to be imbued with Mana.
Why are these things here, and what do they want? Whatever it is, let me go!
Then, two skeletal hands near me found me and grabbed my shoulder tightly. Eunji, who was on my head, jumped up and down and spewed fire, but it was no use.
I flailed my arms and reached out for the flat ground, but it was already too late. Something pulled my ankle violently from below. I quickly threw Eunji, who was on my head, towards the flat floor.
"Sorry for throwing you, Eunji! You have to live!"
With those words, my whole body was completely submerged in the mud.
Just as I was preparing myself for death, I suddenly fell to the floor.
Surprised, I looked up at the ceiling. The mud-covered ceiling spat me out and then wriggled before flattening out to its original shape.
"What the hell is this."
I scanned my surroundings, but it was too dark to see well.
Then something fell from above. It was Eunji, wiggling and approaching me. He was even holding my bag strap in his mouth. He must have followed me as soon as I was sucked into the mud.
"You're the only one I have."
My eyes welled up. I hugged him and sniffled for a moment. Eunji, who was rubbing his head against my cheek, poked his head out and looked around, then breathed fire. Thanks to that, my vision cleared for a moment.
I fell backward in surprise when I saw the piles of skeletons stacked around us. Moreover, the two skeletons that were presumed to have dragged me here were each holding my ankle.
"Ah, you scared me!"
I calmed my surprised heart and pushed away the skeletons holding my ankles. They fell to the floor powerlessly, like toys that had stopped working.
The space was very narrow. This place was like a tomb for those skeletons. There seemed to be no way out except for the mud-covered ceiling.
I took out a lighter from my bag. There was some oil left over from using it for the torch, so I lit the lighter. I gradually scanned my surroundings, using the small light to keep my vision alive.
Here and there, things presumed to belong to the skeletons were scattered on the floor.
Among them, I picked up a Pendant and a ring that caught my eye. It was a Pendant of the Rohade Family and a ring for clerics issued by the Papal State. It seems that people from the Rohade Family and the Papal State also met their deaths here.
This confirmed the hypothesis that there were other people on this island besides us and Zenas. It seems that a lot of people lived here. The problem is that they're all dead.
Why is there a tomb in a place like this? And why are these skeletons imbued with Mana? It's as if they were waiting for someone to come.
In another place, clothes were scattered. They were the combat uniforms of Wizards and paladins.
The sight of the combat uniforms of Wizards and paladins mixed together reminded me of the God-Demon War. The design of the combat uniforms was clearly the newly changed combat uniforms from this God-Demon War.
Were these people kidnapped to this island during the God-Demon War?
Wizards of the Rohade Family, clerics, and knights who participated in the Romallizan Battle. They must be related to each other.
"It seems that this island was made for experiments. The Papal State bastards who experimented on me said that there was a list of subjects. Zenas's name was also mentioned, so it seemed that he was related to them. So is our family."
I quietly recalled what Kaiden had told me.
The Rohade Family, the head of the Papal State and the Magic Tower, had been in conflict for as long as a thousand years.
But listening to Kaiden's past experiment stories, the Papal State and the Rohade Family, who were so opposed to each other, were actually cooperating secretly, conducting experiments together and creating a list of subjects.
The God-Demon War was fought after that time. What was the reason the two forces suddenly fought a war? Did their relationship break down?
But the fact that paladins and Wizards wearing combat uniforms from the recent God-Demon War were here means that they also became subjects.
That means that the experiment was continuing, and the relationship between the Rohade Family and the Papal State didn't break down.
Why did the two forces fight a war while maintaining a cooperative relationship?
"……Could it be that they waged war to bring sacrifices?"
According to our previous assumptions, the sacrifices offered to this island were people with Mana or Divine Power. And the only way to steal talents with Mana without being noticed is through war.
The Papal State and the Magic Tower wasted manpower by causing the God-Demon War, even though the number of people with Mana or Divine Power was decreasing day by day.
Among the numerous battles that took place at the time, the Romallizan Battle was the most useless and caused the most casualties. This was because the Magic Tower was caught in the temple's ridiculous scheme.
Moreover, it was said that the number of remains recovered after the Romallizan Battle was significantly less than the actual number of deaths and missing persons.
Was the reason why the Rohade Family was fooled by the Papal State's absurd trick because it was a rigged war? To bring in subjects on a large scale?
"Good heavens."
What kind of experiment are they trying to do that they brought in subjects to that extent?
Even while I was deep in thought, Eunji was scurrying around in this small tomb. He was probably looking for an escape route.
But of course, except for the mud ceiling that spat us out, all sides were blocked. It's a space that anyone with claustrophobia would be afraid of right away. And with moving skeletons.
It's my fault for coming to this place knowing it was dangerous.
'……I miss Enoch. And Kaiden.'
I had to share the new facts I had learned with them quickly.
As I was thinking that and sitting down, Eunji came and climbed onto my thigh.
I stroked his scales, slung the bag that had fallen on the floor over my shoulder, leaned against the wall, and sighed.
'There doesn't seem to be any way out. I have to find a way…….'
\ \ *
Everyone was out of their minds after losing Margaret.
In particular, Enoch and Kaiden's condition was particularly serious. It was different from when they jumped into the river in a hurry. They were like people who had lost all will due to shock and self-reproach.
While Kaiden and Enoch went to look around to find Margaret, Luzef nursed Diego, who had barely regained his senses. Diego's wounds hadn't healed yet, but he found his sword and got up.
"You need to rest more, sir."
"I don't think I can."
Diego said to Luzef, looking at Enoch and Kaiden, who appeared covered in Monster blood.
Enoch and Kaiden had been searching the area all day to find Margaret. Killing almost every Monster in sight.
Diego said he would help too and got up with his wounded body. He had a indifferent face, as if he didn't feel any pain.
Enoch was like that too, and Luzef sighed, wondering if all the knights were insensitive to pain like that.
"Still, just rest."
After dissuading Diego, Luzef turned to Enoch and Kaiden.
The two were sitting on the floor with haggard faces and blank expressions. They looked as if the world had collapsed.
Luzef knew that they were whipping themselves and blaming themselves.
Since Margaret disappeared, the two hadn't rested, eaten, or slept.
Constantly muttering, "It's my fault."