There was no telling what Kain had expected. He didn’t know what the seven cots were, only that he could use them to summon an old bridge.
He wanted to be a Keeper like everyone else, but he didn’t have a solid reason for it like most people. It was just a gateway to power and opportunity, basically like money and fa before the Arcane Scripture fell - everyone wanted it, but not everyone knew what for. Until he actually beca a Keeper and was hunted like a lamb.
The imdiate goal was to beco strong enough to fight back against Valkyra. It was a bare minimum if he didn’t want to live in fear forever.
Step.
Kain leaned over, watching the first cot from afar.
White energy trembled as flas quickly took the form of a great beast. Dark eyes with red pupils opened across its body, towering over the crystal.
’Damn, this is bad...’ Kain internally muttered staring at the beast.
He could see the runes around the stone knights, they were on the sa Rank as Kain. He couldn’t fully understand if their Cores were of the sa stage, he lacked experience on that, but the beast was definitely of a higher Rank since Kain didn’t discern its runes, no matter how much he stared.
’Hmm, given the coachman’s words, this place runs by a set of rules, there is a break, contestants, and rcenaries like him. The rank of this beast can’t be too high, a Blighted at most.’
True, Kain’s conclusions were based on logical deductions and available information, not straight answers. He simply didn’t have any.
’So there must be a way to defeat this beast and take the contents of the cot, right?’ Kain rubbed his chin.
He rembered well that his Codex could do almost nothing against the Grim Hunter, even though its core was only one stage above Kain’s. The white beast was one Rank higher, it mattered a lot more.
At the first knights approaching the angry beast, Kain leaned forward.
’If I had even a hundred artifacts, I wouldn’t hold that beast back even for a second. How do I defeat the beast? Maybe just steal the crystal?’
Soon, Kain was about to learn one of the most important lessons on his path.
Information and patience - sotis that was enough to win.
ROOOOAAAAAARRR!!!
In a wild roar, the beast brought its paw down on the knights who got too close. Others took advantage and thrust their spears straight into the eyes located all over the beast’s body.
"GRH!"
Shuddering in pain, the beast sprawled the knights on the floor.
They kept marching, wanting to protect the tomb, hiding under the hill. Each was ready to give their lives.
Kain’s eyes went wide for a mont. ’Wait... It’s gotten smaller?’
Thrust.
Spears pierced two more eyes as the white beast’s fra shuddered, shrinking.
A wide grin covered Kain’s face. ’Oh, I see...’
For the next ten minutes, he only watched as the knights sacrificed themselves one by one to weaken the beast.
Eventually, the beast beca one-fifth its size, and of the dozens of eyes on its body, only three remained - two on its back and one large one on its head.
At the sa mont, Kain jumped off the cliff, leaping from one beam to another. It was easier than he expected, yet his movents were still clumsy.
Thump.
The beast killed the last knight, standing before the crystal, when Kain stepped out of the shadows.
Why?
Because now he saw it - the runes around the beast.
Slash.
The red blade flew out of the dagger as a chunk of the beast, a blob of energy, crumbled to the floor.
It was a test attack. Even if Kain could see the beast’s runes now, it didn’t an he could easily win. The Stray Specters at the Faint Chasm were of the sa Rank as Kain, but against them, he didn’t stand a chance.
"Good."
A chill rang out as a cross thorn pierced his palm.
"ROOOAAAAARR!!!"
The beast roared forward, but Kain’s other hand already had the amulet clutched in it.
The chains stopped the beast as Kain jumped as high as he could, bringing his fist down directly on the beast’s main eye. A layer of ice covered its great fra, stopping the last two eyes.
With a snap, the white energy, along with the frosty vapor, dissipated, returning directly to the crystal.
"Damn, if it weren’t for these knights, I’d have to co up with another plan." Kain took a deep breath as he glanced around. "Where am I anyway?"
Tall columns held up the ceiling, and stone guards, aged statues, stood in empty chambers. There were no passages around. If not for the cot, Kain would never have found this place.
The only clue was a huge stone slab in the wall with a ring mark.
’Hmm, the cot and the old bridge are both a major reward and a condition of getting out of the Shadow Horizon, but that doesn’t an there aren’t other valuable things here, right?’
Deep inside, Kain felt that there must be sothing of value in this tomb, but right now he had a different priority.
Step. Step. Step.
He approached the crystal that cracked as soon as he picked it up. A marble white eye, too big to be human fell into his palm. Nothing special, but the eye had three red pupils.
[Eye of the Fallen Deity
Type: Tool]
[The eye of an ancient deity that lost in a bloody, brutal battle that shook the runes of a distant world. Now... not even a tiny fraction of its forr power remains. The eye still has a purpose, one of seven parts, to open a passage.]
’Good.’ Kain nodded deeply, tucking the eye into his pocket.
He was now convinced that the cots were the way to the old bridge.
Was Kain going to summon the old bridge? Who knows. But, having one of the seven cots was a good trump card.
Kain turned his gaze up.
"And? How do I get out of here now?"
Click.
With the next stride, he stepped on a hidden tile forcing the massive slab into motion - revealing an ancient coffin, large enough to hold a giant.
With a gleam in his eyes, Kain headed forward, anticipating the reward.
At the sa ti, four figures led by Elara appeared from above, their silhouettes like shadows looking down into the tunnel left by the cot.
They were obliged to co down - to find the cot and avenge their kin.
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