I opened my eyes with the morning sun still lazing over the horizon, dyeing the sky in a dim-gray hue.
[Soul Contamination] - Your soul shall be corroded in 1006 days
Taking a glance at the grim reminder crawling ever-so-close to triple digits, I quickly got up.
The first thing I did, even before dressing up and washing my face, was move my arms, spinning and waving them a few tis.
I could tell for sure – the injury had completely healed, or, at least, was very close to fully healing.
After getting fully equipped, I opened the door, ready to head to the Guild.
This ti, I had no qualms about spending 5 silver on a free buffet breakfast. In fact, just with my money, I could eat 3 als a day in the Guild for over a year.
However, just as I was about to head down the stairs, my walk was interrupted, with suddenly hearing the sound of a door opening wide behind .
“What?..”
I turned around, to see Bern walk out of his room with haste. Now that I looked back, I noticed the door to Ornor’s room was ever-so-slightly ajar as well, albeit clearly not enough to disrupt the function of the Sealsense barrier.
“What’s going on?”
Between the tense expression on Bern's face, his rushed movents, and the small, compact backpack on his back, it was clear he was aning to depart with haste, and was probably just waiting for the dwarf to get ready as well.
“I’m sorry, Sebastian. We're in a hurry.”
A mont later, Hilda, who must have co back here during the last two days, followed Bern from the sa room, fully equipped.
“What- wait, where's Xin?”
At the ntion of his na, I could see a shadow montarily fall upon Hilda's eyes. After a mont of hesitation, Bern decided to answer.
“He’s had so trouble with his mission. We're going after him.”
I stood there for a mont, scanning the pair's expressions. Their faces were tense, and Hilda's cold gaze concealed a tinge of worry underneath, while Bern looked like soone heading into a deadly battle.
“I’m coming too, then.”
“What?”
‘What?’
Bern's and Sebastian's voices overlaid on top of each other, causing a mont of confusion, but with a bit of effort, I shook off the daze a heartbeat later.
“It looks like he's in grave danger, and you don't seem confident in his rescue. Wouldn't every single sword matter in this situation?”
For a few monts, Bern stood in silence.
“Does that-”
“Don’t get it wrong. I still haven't agreed to your proposal.”
I decided to nip the misunderstanding in the bud.
“But, if I do, it will be par for the course. And, if I don't, I'll have at least paid back that favor. In full.”
“...”
After a mont of silence, Bern threw a glance at Hilda, who nodded in return.
“Alright. Th-”
BAM!
Hilda’s words were cut short by Ornor's door being thrown wide open, crushing into the wall on the inside of his room.
“Oi, what'a ya'll dawdling– Sebastian? Bah, by the blazes, never mind. Let's go!”
Without any further remarks, the dwarf rapidly moved past us, forcing everyone to press themselves against the wall, before rushing down the stairway.
“Hey, hold on! You don't even know where-”
“Then stop yapping and move, damn it!”
At his words, Bern tightened his lips, switching his fast walk to a jog.
Hilda followed right after, with dead last.
‘You’re going to risk our life again, aren't you?’
‘The Slayer trainer did suggest a 1 to 1 ratio of real battles and regular training.’
‘Real battles don't require you to rush into an unknown, deadly danger.’
‘Bern wouldn't lead his party into a suicide mission.’
‘He’s targeting that syndicate, isn't he?’
‘...just consider it high intensity training.’
Although I didn't want to admit it, he had a point. Still, despite that, I refused to concede it.
‘You don't care about training. No, rather, it's secondary.’
‘There might be a reward. Maybe I can grab so loot, too, from wherever we're heading.’
‘You care about those even less.’
Sebastian's voice wasn't questioning my intentions – it was stating a fact.
‘You just don't want to see another person you know die. No, even if it's out of sight – you don't want to look at their faces, afterwards. To hear the subtle note of emptiness in their voices. To-’
‘Shut up.’
I tried to banish his voice from my mind, even though I knew it was impossible.
‘Your softness is endangering the mission.’
‘You said the sa thing last ti – and guess who was right, in the end?!’
For a few monts, there was silence. Well, not really – there was the sound of multiple boots hitting the cobblestone, as I rushed behind the group, with Bern now taking the lead.
‘I’ll let you do this. For now. But mark my words – if you truly attempt sothing reckless… I will stop you.’
I did not reply to his words. Instead, I picked up my pace, reaching Bern, who was running at the speed of our slowest mber (which was Ornor).
“Where are we going?”
The leader of the Silver Claymore threw a quick glance.
“Western. From there – down the sewers. Xin’s sowhere deep under the city – the closest path we know is up ahead.”
By now, we have already reached the northwestern wall, running along it towards the inner gate.
“The sewers? Wait, even deeper?”
I knew a bit about the city sewers, which, beside a breeding ground for so low-level monsters and abominations, also served as a common hideout for various criminal groups.
However, while I did hear about there being a network of tunnels even deeper below, the only thing I heard about it was that it was a deadly place, typically avoided by those who value their lives.
“How are you going to find him in there?”
While it wasn’t my place to dissuade them, blindly rushing into a deadly, complex underground maze didn’t seem like a good idea. At all.
“We have a map.. partial one, but enough for where we’re heading. Also, Xin went down with a communication sphere that shows direction and signal strength. It’s not perfect, but we can estimate his location.”
The one who answered was Hilda, running at Bern’s right, the two hand crossbows bouncing at her waist.
“Is there anything I need to know?”
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While it seed they had so idea of the place we were heading into, the sa couldn’t be said about .
“The most common monsters are acidic slis and giant rats. There are also a few insectoids and reptiles, but the dangerous types are rare. Occasionally, there may be others – impossible to predict. However, nothing we can’t handle, at least at the depth we’re aiming for.”
“Also, humans. There are always humans.”
Hilde’s addition to Bern’s explanation made him rember sothing.
“As a rule, we shouldn’t leave any witnesses. Not that most would let us peacefully pass, regardless. But, if we co across any Angels, we shouldn’t act rashly. Picking a fight with them now would be detrintal to our mission. As such, we should try to discern anyone’s identity, if at all possible, before engaging them.”
“Angels?”
“Tainted Angels. The oldest syndicate in this city, alongside the Gray Syndicate.”
I wordlessly nodded.
‘I think Pinpin said sothing about this, way back. I should check up on him sohow. Can’t go there myself, but maybe send a ssenger.’
“Halt!”
Unsurprisingly, at the sight of four ard n (well, three, and one woman), the city guards at the gate deviated from their usual habit of half-hearted observation.
I threw a glance at Bern, who seed undeterred, reaching for one of the armored cases on his belt.
“What are you-!”
The guards, who were still a dozen ters away from us, began raising their halberds, but the thing Bern took out wasn’t so contraption or bomb – well, it was technically a contraption, but, even from my angle, I could see it was an identification token.
Realizing that as well, the guards, lowered their weapons, albeit not fully.
“Where are you hea-”
As we got closer, the guard who began speaking abruptly halted his words, as his eyes, locked on the token, opened wide.
“We don’t have ti! Step aside.”
Barely slowing his pace, Bern moved close enough for the other guard to see the token, too, although, following slightly behind him, I couldn’t make out anything past its general shape.
The second guard glanced at the first one, as they lowered their weapons completely.
“Excuse us, sir!”
Without shooting them as much as a second glance, Bern picked up his forr pace once more, as we rushed past the gate, drawing a few curious looks from the passersby.
Of course, I was also curious about what had just happened, but decided to put it aside, for now. After all, he did say he had connections in the city.
Instead, I focused on the new sight that appeared before , having never visited this district before.
The buildings seed completely different from Northern. Or Eastern, for that matter. The stone often looked aged and worn, and even the few buildings which seed relatively newly constructed often tried to imitate that architectural style, making heavy use of sandstone blocks, which looked sowhat like the one you’d see in old European cities, those which were a couple of centuries - sotis, over half a millennium - old.
The only thing reminiscent of the other districts were the light-gray cobblestone comprising the road. However, even the main road, and the visible side-streets, seed to twist and turn sowhat sporadically, unlike the carefully planned streets of the other districts I’ve been at.
“The eastern district remained largely intact after the war. Most of the new land owners maintain its tradition.”
Hilde’s answer to my brief query shed so light on the matter.
“By the way, where is the wizard tower? I heard it’s sowhat close to this gate.”
Obviously, it was Anne I heard that part from.
“If we’d continued onward with the main road, you’d have seen it. It’s tip, at least”
Bern’s answer brought more confusion. Even though we did turn left straight out of the gate, I expected to be able to see it from there, like I could with the temple spires.
“I thought it would be.. taller.”
“If you find ti after we return, you should just go visit its campus, directly. It will more than match your expectations.”
We turned right, entering one of the side streets.
“We’ll be there in a minute.. Once we’re inside, Hilda will act as a guide. I also studied the maps, but she’s a better guide. Helped with so of the charting herself, too.”
Bern’s orders were ant for the whole group this ti, although the last part was likely just for .
After another minute of jogging, and one more turn, we reached a dead end. Before us rested a large tal lid, which, judging by the faint sll, covered a sewer manhole.
“Hop in.”
Effortlessly lifting the tallic cover, the party leader simply jumped into the hole, ignoring the rusty ladder. Judging by the sound of his landing, it was a 4 ter drop.
‘Well, I’ve had higher falls.’
As the scene from my promotion test flickered through my mind, I followed… only to have the edge of my sword sheathe - the new sword, with the two now strapped in an X shape to my back - touch the edge of the hole, almost causing to fall face down.
Luckily, with my reflexes, upon sensing my body shift forward, I grabbed one of the rusty grips. Thankfully, despite its age, it held, only forcing to shift my body so the 2nd sword’s leather strap doesn’t get ripped off my armor, together with the sheathed blade.
Feeling my ears heat up, I quickly jump down, with no nearby obstacles this ti.
The 3 ter fall didn’t even hurt, as I landed beside Bern.
The montary adrenaline from before made forget about it for a mont, but, as I landed, the rancid sewer sll - mixed with so acidic note, compared to regular sewers on Earth - hit my nostrils in full, causing to grimace. For once, I wished my sense of sll remained less sharp.
“You sure have been busy in those last few days.”
I realized the Silver-ranked Slayer had already drawn his (regionally) famous claymore, and had just thrown a glance at my cross-shaped sheathes.
“Rember that Ministry patrol I told you about?”
Bern nodded, as Hilda landed in the spot I occupied two seconds ago.
“It might have ended around 6 o’clock in the evening. Near the water purification facility. We might have gone inside, too. This was the reward.”
I drew my sword, which, at this point, barely had any light to reflect. Still, its surface was visibly bright, about as bright as Bern’s own blade.
“I see.”
Bern accepted my explanation without further comnts.
“Is that.. Brightflow steel?”
I nodded in reply to Hilda’s surprised question, causing her eyebrow to rise higher than usual.
However, before she could say anything else, Ornor’s boots hit the stony floor, which was tiled with large squares made of dark-gray stone, with the tal lid closing a second earlier, allowing the surrounding darkness to claim its rightful rule of this tunnel once more.
Beside us, the rancid stream of filth made its way down the tunnel, on to the northeast, likely towards the purification plant.
“Get ready.”
A second after I now-instinctively switched to Arcane Sense, I realized there’d be no need for it, as Bern took out a handful of small orbs from his sack, giving them a good shake, which caused them to ignite with soft, yellow light.
Each orb hung at the end of a thin rope loop, a poor-man’s necklace.
“Glad I took one for Xin, just in case.. even if he doesn’t really need it.”
I put on the ‘necklace’, with the orb ending up just where my watch would be, if it wasn’t tucked under the chainshirt by now.
“Ah, no need!”
As Bern was about to hand a second accessory - a black head-mask - I shook my head, reaching for my biggest case.
Inside was a crumpled head-mask, one of those I took from that low-level gang, all the way back on my first day in this city.
Truth be told, I didn’t really need the ‘lightball’, either, as its illumination range was slightly inferior to my Arcane Sense, but decided against declining it. There was no reason to disclose sothing like this.
“Oi, Hilda! Lead the way.”
“Right, no ti to waste.”
At the dwarf’s restless remark, Hilda quickly took a piece of paper from a case at her waist. Judging by the scribbles, this was likely a hastily drawn copy of the proper map, enough for soone already familiar with the original to make use of.
“Follow . Try to be quiet – there’s no telling what, or who, can hear us down here.”
With those words, she departed into the darkness, with the rest of us following closely behind.
It was ti for this mission to start in earnest.
***
“Grab it!”
Without further hesitation, Xin reached for the dangling rope, leaping towards the uneven wall, oddly raising from the cavern ground, as if a giant stone splinter (or rather, slab) was lodged into it at one point – although, given how hard such an observation was to make, if that was indeed the case, it happened many, many centuries ago.
A mont after Xin’s legs hit the wall, he began his climb, while the rope was also being pulled up at the sa ti.
“Wwwrrraaa!”
Less than a second later, a large imperial hound lunged forward with beastly ferocity, splashing drops of its rancid, dark-yellow blood from the newly ford puncture wound in the carapace that protected (or was) its nose.
Krrr
Its claws scratched the wall where Xin’s ankle had been half a heartbeat ago. However, it was too late – the target of its fury had already ascended onto the edge of another, higher tunnel.
“Let’s go.”
Without hesitation, the half-elf turned towards the 2nd tunnel to the right, out of the four in front of them.
Evelyn did not argue with his call, silently falling into a similar pace close behind.
They weren’t running, or even jogging – for the last two hours, they made do with fast walking, unless the hounds were at their heels. In long, complex pursuits such as those, conserving one’s energy was important. The humans chasing them realized that, too.
“We can’t take the direct route.”
As they entered the tunnel, Eve spoke, her words filled with certainty.
“There’s no way they won’t wait for us there.”
Given the number of pursuers, they had no reason not to. Even more so…
“They must have called for reinforcents, as well.”
“So did I. Didn’t you? I thought the Angels take care of their own?”
For a few seconds, there was no answer, as the half-elf woman bit her lips.
“It should be early morning right now. Our reinforcents will co – but most of them can’t move openly. Not at this hour. It will take a little bit longer.”
“Eve… please. I think we can at least be honest with each other, after all this ti.”
“I am honest!”
Her raised, slightly shaky voice did not instill much confidence in the authenticity of her claim.
“Besides, it’s not like we have anything else to count on.”
“We do.”
Xin cut her off, his voice steady with certainty. However, that did little to quell her doubts.
“Even if your tiny party makes it down here, to rescue a single level-1 Path-bearer, do you think they’ll make much of a difference?”
“They will.”
The unyielding confidence in Xin’s voice made his companion’s words get stuck in her throat.
“I don’t know about your new ‘family’, but for us, the ti we spent together actually ans sothing. And if there’s one thing I can say with certainty – we truly don’t abandon our own.”
The level 2 Assassin did not respond, albeit her face scowled in insult.
And yet, deep under the shadow of her eyes, sothing else flickered.
Perhaps it was born out of pure despair, but, at that mont, a newfound hope was born.
Only ti would tell whether it was more than a mirage, to be extinguished by the eternal darkness of those gods-forsaken tunnels.
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