While Aurora went out searching for demons, the rest of us set up camp. We didn't know how long it would take her, so we settled in for the long haul. With the clear weather and the beautiful landscape around us, it almost felt like we were on a camping trip. If it weren't for the demons in the area, as well as the monsters that plagued the entire region, we could have relaxed and enjoyed ourselves.
Instead, tension filled the air as we waited for Aurora to return. We kept ourselves busy with various tasks. Leroy and Richard trained with one another, while Andre stood nearby offering pointers. Lorelei and Corrie huddled together, talking. Every once in a while, they threw glares in my direction.
I kept a watch out for Aurora as well as any potential threats. Due to the bond we shared, I knew my spirit companion's general location and distance from . She was sowhere to the north of us.
As for Anna, she ambled over to keep company.
"So," she said, "You mind telling about Aurora? Did you steal the Frostheart's spirit?"
I glanced at her.
"You know about the Frostheart?" I asked.
Anna nodded.
"Clan Head Charity let cultivate in the Heart Chamber for a ti." She said. "That's how I reached Second Star."
I considered the implications of this.
"You must co from a prestigious Clan," I said. "Not only did Clan Frostheart give you a token, but they also let you cultivate in their sacred land."
Anna grinned at .
"Curious about my true identity?" She asked.
I snorted.
"Not really." I said. "I already figured out who you are." I gave her a sideways look. "However, it's no fun if I reveal it now." I shrugged. "Besides, we'll officially et soon anyway. There's no need to rush things."
Anna chuckled.
"Funny how that worked out. Fate is a strange thing. In the First Tiline, Lady Sturm reached out to my Clan as well. However, you died before anything ca of it."
For so reason, I thought back to the dinner we shared so ti ago, the one at the Red Dragon Restaurant. Snippets of our conversation floated to the top of my mind.
"Wait a minute," I said, "Am I the other suitor you ntioned? The one who wouldn't be a problem for much longer?"
Anna looked away with a faux innocent expression on her face.
"I don't know what you're talking about." She said.
I narrowed my eyes at her.
"Anna." I said, a warning in my tone.
She sighed and faced again.
"In my defense, I didn't know who you were at the ti."
"Still, that's… Morbid."
Anna shrugged.
"After everything I've been through, it was either get used to death or go insane."
I didn't know how to respond to that. It was clear that Anna and the other regressors endured a lot of pain and suffering. I an, they experienced the end of the world. No one could co out of that unscathed.
"To get back to my original point," Anna said, looking at once more, "Did you steal Aurora from Clan Frostheart?"
"Aurora isn't an object to be kept or stolen." I said. "However, she is the spirit of the Frostheart. Rather, she was. Now she's my spirit."
Anna sighed, before she looked over at Lorelei and Corrie. They followed Leroy and Richard's example and were now training. They made for an interesting duo. Lorelei was a fist fighter, while Corrie was an archer.
"Clan Frostheart won't be happy about that." Anna said. "I'll do what I can to smooth things over with them, but be prepared to pay compensation."
I shook my head.
"Thank you, but that's not necessary. I don't need you to fight my battles for ."
"Ha! I'm not doing it for you. I'm doing it for . You're my man now. What affects you, affects as well."
Huh. I hadn't considered that. Damn. I needed to be more careful from now on. My actions didn't just affect . They affected everyone connected to , which now included Anna.
"You know," I said, "at so point we're going to have to sit down and discuss the details about…" I gestured between the two of us. "… This."
"Later. After we officially et." Anna gave a sly smirk. "However, I'll say this. If you marry into my Clan, you won't regret it. The won of my Clan know how to treat their n."
I opened my mouth to respond. However, before I could, I felt Aurora rushing back towards us. I tensed, ready for the worst. Anna's gaze sharpened.
"What's wrong?" She asked.
Rather than answer her, I pitched my voice so everyone could hear .
"Everyone get ready." I said. "Aurora is coming back."
The others stopped what they were doing and readied themselves. A few minutes later, Aurora popped out of the ground in front of . She wore an excited expression on her face. When I saw this, I relaxed a little.
"I found them!" Aurora shouted.
I blinked at her in surprise.
"Already?" I asked. "It hasn't even been two hours."
Aurora nodded.
"Yes. The demons aren't too far from here." She gestured to the north. "They're that way."
The others gathered around Aurora.
"If the demons and their summoners are that close, how co no one has found them yet?" Corrie asked, skeptical. "Plenty of people have searched this area already."
Aurora bristled at that.
"You dare doubt , Human?" She demanded.
Corrie opened her mouth to retort, but Anna silenced her with a gesture.
"I assu they're hidden." I said.
Aurora threw one last disdainful look in Corrie's direction, before she faced .
"Yes." She said. "They're occupying an underground tunnel complex. I didn't have ti to explore it all, but it's quite extensive." She frowned. "They also used spells to hide the entrances to this complex. However, these spells don't hide the tunnels themselves. That's how I found them."
I shared a look with the others. They all wore grim expressions on their faces.
"That explains how they managed to remain hidden this entire ti." I said.
"We should scout out one of these entrances." Andre said. "Not that I'm doubting your word, Lady Aurora. However, people will be more likely to believe us if we see things for ourselves." He gestured to Lorelei. "Especially Young Mistress Lorelei. As the heir to Clan Frostheart, her word holds a lot of weight around here."
Everyone looked at Lorelei. She looked troubled, as if burdened by the weight of everyone's expectations. Despite this, she didn't falter.
"Young Master Andre is correct." Lorelei said. "I need to see things for myself before I report this to Mama."
I frowned.
"If we do that, we risk alerting our enemies that we've discovered their hideout." I looked at Aurora. "Are these entrances guarded?"
My spirit companion nodded.
"The ones I saw were, yes."
I clicked my tongue in displeasure.
"If we brought an Earth wizard with us, we could've bypassed the entrances by digging our way in."
Leroy and Richard shared a look.
"We might have a solution, Lord Gabriel," Leroy said. "Our family has an affinity for Earth. One of our techniques allows us to move through the Earth, albeit at a slow pace."
"We could use this technique to dig out a tunnel." Richard said. "However, this will take us so ti."
I gave them a strange look.
"That's an…oddly specific technique," I said.
Leroy shrugged.
"Our family practices the Breaking Mountain style," he said. "Sotis it requires us to be one with the mountain, in a literal sense."
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I glance at Richard. He nodded.
"Huh, interesting," I said, before deciding to move on. "That idea could work. Anna and I both have enchanted items that can make us invisible. After Leroy and Richard dug out a tunnel for us, we could use those enchanted items to scout out this tunnel complex."
"I can also use this as an opportunity to plant the magical tracking device that Cally gave ." Anna said.
I nodded.
"Perfect." I said. "Sounds like we have a plan." I looked over at Leroy and Richard. "We'll be relying on you two." I looked at Aurora. "And you as well. We'll need your help to find a suitable location to dig."
The three of them nodded.
"In that case, what are we waiting for? Let's go."
It took a while for Aurora to find a good place for us to dig into. We wanted a relatively unoccupied area. This proved more difficult to find than expected. According to Aurora, the tunnels were infested with hundreds of demons. Most were imps and hellhounds, but there were also Tier Three demons. Thankfully, she didn't see any Tier Four demons. Otherwise, I would've called the whole endeavor off.
Yes, we wanted to see the tunnel complex for ourselves so that our word held more weight when we reported back in. However, going against Tier Four demons at our current level was akin to suicide. Anna and I might be able to escape, due to our skills and experience, but everyone else would die.
Once we found a suitable target, we needed to find a good place to dig from. Our enemies had deployed lookouts to keep watch over the surrounding area. If we dug too close, they would notice our presence. We wanted to avoid this. This took us so ti.
After that ca the digging itself. This took hours. The technique that Leroy and Richard used allowed them to swim through the earth, albeit at a slow pace. Using this technique to dig out a tunnel took even longer. The two brothers had to return every now and again in order to bring up the dirt they cleared away. It was hot and sweaty work, so Leroy removed his armor while he dug.
While this went on, the rest of us made our own preparations. Before we left Icefall City, we stocked up on Holy Water. We distributed it out, so that everyone had a few bottles each.
We also figured out who to bring. Only a few of us would actually go scouting, while the rest would remain and keep watch over the tunnel entrance. Anna was a given, since she had her own enchanted item that allowed her to beco invisible.
My invisibility bracelet wasn't as good, but it allowed to hide two other people in addition to myself. Not only that, but those affected by my invisibility bracelet could see each other. However, all three of us needed to remain within a certain distance of each other.
After so debate, Anna and I decided to bring Leroy and Lorelei with us. My bodyguard refused to let enter enemy territory by myself, while we needed Lorelei to add more legitimacy to our claims.
Andre protested, saying he wanted to go as well. However, if he ca, Richard would as well. That would leave Corrie to watch over the entrance by herself. We couldn't have that. After a while, I managed to convince Andre to stay behind, but he remained unhappy about it.
It was late afternoon by the ti Leroy and Richard finished digging a tunnel into the enemy hideout. We gave them so ti to rest and recover. Afterwards, Leroy put his armor back on and our chosen team headed inside. The rest waited by the entrance.
Leroy took the lead, with second, Lorelei in third, and Anna taking up the rear. Aurora ca along as well, since she could hide inside my body.
Thanks to the brothers' size, the tunnel they dug was rather spacious. However, I still hated it. It felt cramped and stifling. The air inside slled of damp earth. Leroy carried a glowstone lamp to light the way, but that didn't help much.
"We're here." Leroy said when we reached the end of the tunnel. It led to a wall made of stone blocks. "We'll have to smash our way inside."
"Aurora," I said, "Can you see if there are any enemies nearby?"
My spirit companion leapt out of my body and disappeared through the stone wall. She returned a few minutes later.
"There are a few demons in the area," Aurora said. "However, you should be fine if you're careful."
"Let ." Lorelei said. "I can punch my way through. That should be quiet enough."
"By all ans." I said, gesturing for her to go ahead of .
Lorelei was small enough that she squeezed past with ease. Anna looked unhappy about the physical contact, but refrained from saying anything. Leroy moved out of the way by swimming through the earth, allowing Lorelei to pass.
Once she reached the stone wall, Lorelei coated her fists in ice before she started hitting it. She kept her blows steady and even. After a while, her efforts bore fruit. The stone wall started to give in and she dislodged one of the stone blocks. This made it easier to dislodge others. Soon, Lorelei cleared out an opening large enough for us to crawl through.
Anna and I activated our respective invisibility enchanted items, before the four of us went through. It was a tight fit for Leroy due to his size and the armor, but he managed. What we found on the other side surprised .
When Aurora described the enemy hideout as a tunnel complex, I expected to find a series of dirt tunnels, like the one we dug out. However, to my surprise the floors, ceiling, and walls of the tunnel consisted of stone blocks. It took ti and effort to build stone tunnels like this, even with magic.
"They must have been here for a while," I said, "If they managed to build all this."
Leroy and Lorelei nodded in agreent. If Anna nodded as well, I didn't see it.
A foul sll filled the air. I wrinkled my nose. Glowstone lamps lit up the tunnel, though they were few and far between. Shadows pooled in the areas between the lamps.
"Let us see what we can find out before we leave." I said, speaking in a low voice. "Now that we're here, we might as well do so scouting."
"Lord Gabriel," Leroy said, "This is a bad idea. What if we get caught?"
I shrugged.
"We just need to make sure that doesn't happen." I glanced at Lorelei. "What do you think?"
Lorelei wore a conflicted expression on her face.
"Let us find so actual demons before we leave."
I nodded.
"And you, Anna?"
No response. A pit opened up in my stomach.
"Anna?"
"I'm right here." She whispered from right next to . Her breath tickled my ear. The sensation sent a chill down my spine. "I'm fine with so scouting. Take my hand. That way, I don't lose the three of you."
I felt Anna's fingers run along my arm, before she grasped my hand in her own. It felt rough and calloused. This wasn't a lady's hand. This hand belonged to a martial artist. Despite the seriousness of the situation, I felt my cheeks flush.
"Let's go." I said, in part to distract myself. I tapped my chest with my free hand. "Aurora, can you look ahead and warn us before we run into any demons?"
Aurora crawled out of my body. However, I stopped her before she disappeared from sight.
"Be careful," I said. "We don't know if there is anyone here who can sense your presence."
Aurora hesitated, before she nodded and dived into the stone. After she left, the four of us picked a direction and started walking. Anna held my hand, to make sure we didn't lose each other, while Leroy and Lorelei followed .
The tunnel ran in a straight line for a while, before it ended in a T-section. By so miracle, we didn't run into any demons along the way. After arriving at the T-section, I looked both ways. The tunnel to the right seed unoccupied, while I heard noises coming from the tunnel to the left. The forr seed safer, but we had a higher chance of finding sothing in the latter.
As I debated on which direction to go, Aurora erged from the floor right next to . She seed excited.
"Vessel," she said, speaking in a loud voice, "I found sothing!"
"Be quiet!" I said, shushing her. "Otherwise you'll alert our enemies!"
Aurora looked chastened.
"I'm sorry," she said, quieter than before, "I let my excitent get the better of ."
"It's alright," I said. "Just be more careful going forward."
Aurora nodded.
"What did you find?" Anna asked, her voice coming out of thin air.
"I found a building deep beneath the earth." Aurora said. "It appears that all of the tunnels lead to it."
I shared a look with Leroy and Lorelei.
"What sort of building?" I asked.
Aurora shook her head.
"I don't know," she said, "I didn't want to get too close. There were too many demons. However, the building had a strange symbol carved above the entrance."
I frowned. As much as I wanted to see this building, I didn't think it was worth the risk. The longer we stayed in these tunnels, the more dangerous it beca. We hadn't seen any demons yet, but it was only a matter of ti. Besides, soone would find the tunnel we dug out sooner or later. We needed to leave before that happened. Otherwise, we'd be screwed.
"If we go to this building," Lorelei said, "We might be able to find out who is behind everything."
That was a fair point. Up until now, I assud we were dealing with so random group of demon summoners. However, after seeing this place, I realized that they had more resources and were more organized than I expected. Had we stumbled upon sothing bigger?
"We should leave while we still can." Leroy said. "The fact that we found this place should be enough to convince Lord Icefall and Guildmaster Charity. We shouldn't take any unnecessary risks."
"We're here to scout." Lorelei said. "I'd hardly call that unnecessary. The more information we gather, the better."
I held up my free hand to silence them both.
"We'll keep going until we find so demons." I said. "After that, we leave. Scouting doesn't an anything if we don't make it back to report our findings."
We were woefully unprepared to deal with a place like this. A quick in and out? Sure. Anything more than that? Nope.
"What about the building?" Lorelei asked. "Shouldn't we at least see it for ourselves?"
I shook my head.
"It's too risky," I said. "We can have Aurora describe everything she saw once we get out of this place. That will have to suffice."
Lorelei looked unhappy about this.
"Anna," she said. "What do you say?"
I frowned at her attempt to undermine .
"I agree with Gabriel." Anna said. "The longer we stay here, the more dangerous it is. Let us find so demons and leave."
Lorelei opened her mouth to respond, but I held up a hand to silence.
"Enough," I said, "We're wasting ti."
Lorelei narrowed her eyes at . I thought she would continue to argue. However, she just nodded instead.
"I'm sorry." She said. "I let my… Agitation get the better of ."
"I understand," I said, "You're worried about your ho. However, we're not ready to handle sothing of this magnitude. At least, not by ourselves. The sooner we warn Icefall City, the better."
Lorelei hesitated, before she nodded.
"Let's go." I said. "Aurora, can you keep watch over our tunnel? If anyone or anything finds it, let us know."
Aurora nodded, before she dove into the stone and disappeared from sight. The rest of us headed out. We took the left tunnel, the one with the noises. The closer we drew, the louder and clearer they beca. I heard snarls and growls, interspersed with the occasional roar. However, underneath all that, I heard the chittering of imps as they spoke in their strange tongue.
And then there was the sll. Foul didn't even begin to describe it. It was the single most unpleasant stench I had ever had the misfortune of encountering. The further along the left tunnel we went, the stronger it beca. It took all my willpower to keep from gagging. I heard Leroy and Lorelei heave behind , overwheld by the stench.
When we reached the end of the left tunnel, we found ourselves in a large chamber. Unlike the obviously artificial tunnels, this place looked like a natural cavern. Dozens of glowstone lamps lit up the chamber, illuminating everything inside.
Cages made of black tal filled the chamber. Inside these cages were all kinds of Tier One and Two monsters, each one with an affinity for Fire. Not just any monsters either. These ones had been turned into fiends. They looked feral and ferocious, ready to tear everything around them into shreds. A few tried to break free by slamming against their cages. However, no matter how hard they tried, their efforts failed.
About a dozen red-skinned and long-eared imps tended to the fiends. Each one carried a whip made of black tal. Whenever one of the fiends acted up, an imp would whip it into submission. The fiend would grow docile for a ti, before it started acting up again.
"By the gods." Lorelei whispered.
I grimaced and nodded. The imps and fiends in this single chamber constituted a serious threat to the Icefall region. They were strong enough to destroy the nearby settlents and then so. Worst of all, this was just one small part of a much larger incursion. According to Aurora, there were hundreds of demons in these tunnels.
"I think this should suffice." I said, glancing at the others. "Let's get out of here."
Leroy and Lorelei nodded, while Anna gave my hand a brief squeeze.
Together, the five of us backed away from the chamber and started making our way back to our tunnel. I think everyone was glad to get away from the source of the foul stench. However, when we reached the T-section, Aurora appeared again.
"A patrol of demons is heading towards the tunnel entrance!" She said in an urgent voice.
I bit back a curse. We hadn't been in here for long, but things were already going to shit. At this point, it was just a matter of ti before our enemies realized that soone had found their hideout. We needed to get out of this place.
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