Elydes

Chapter 220 – The Den

Even without the sun as guidance, his grumbling stomach didn’t forget to remind him it was dinner time. They wandered the underground maze to chart the site. They found no more traces of the basilisk than claw marks and ripped weeds.

Kai had lost count of the number of mana herbs they passed by. None were higher than Red, giving credit to the Earth shaper—Nelynna.

I can’t believe that lizard got even more evil. How can it eat my money as a snack? Does the King have no shame?

Kai had nicked the most interesting plants with an affinity, he recognized a few from Dora’s book. By chance or planning, the entire mana flora of the archipelago appeared to grow in these tunnels. He liked to imagine his teacher had come shopping inside these ruins with the basilisk grumbling in the corner.

At the red tier, rare herbs weren’t worth more than a handful of silver. They belonged to the Republic, and that was enough of a reason to pick them. Makyn gave him a disapproving frown each time he swiped one, but he did nothing to stop him.

How much longer do we need to go?

The ruins extended on multiple levels and buried passages complicated things. Kai had long abandoned any attempt to create a mental map and only had a vague idea of their relative position.

Though there hadn’t been much action, it was exhausting to move in the basilisk’s shadow. Hallowed Intuition required constant attention, Kai could never release the hold on his skills in case the King chose to strike.

The other mages looked fatigued, but their yellow race granted them a considerable attribute advantage. They threw him cool glances, hoping he would speak up and offer them an excuse to go back.

I can keep going another day.

Kai went back to his current riddle. The mana density tended to grow towards the center with many inconsistencies and fluctuations. Streams of essence twisted on themselves to create higher areas in random spots that never stopped shifting.

It was a cheating puzzle that changed as he solved it. More than once, the streams presented a new configuration when the team backtracked from a blocked tunnel. It would have taken days to make sense of it without his evolved skill.

Mana Observer had a very broad definition of target. It could be a chamber, a field of weeds, a patch of land or just a current of mana. The only limit was how far he could stretch his focus. The area and number of details would increase with his Mind stat, allowing him to cast a wider net and reducing his blind spots.

It was the best pick.

Nature and Water were the easiest motes to track through the winding paths. Kai was still awed by how bright and sharp everything looked, using the chance to refill a small stash of Space mana.

They were closing in to the center when a rotten stench wafted over them, strong enough to make his eyes water. Kai watched the passage for an ambush, breathing through his mouth. No whispers came.

“What’s this smell?” Nelynna pulled a white handkerchief over her nose, quickly imitated by her fellow mages. The soldiers grimaced and held their weapons steady.

“A little smell won’t kill you.” Bert scoffed, adding a line to the map he was drawing. “Let’s move, we must have found its den.”

Crossing into a tunnel covered in pale thorny vines, Kai noticed Space mana thrumming ahead of them - he had found the summoning chamber. They entered a large room with a vaulted ceiling. The passage to the upper level was buried by debris, and the only source of light was their enchanted crystals.

A dozen carcasses were strewn at the edges of the room in messy orders. Some were piles of bones and scales, others had shreds of blackened meat and fur hanging from their skeletons. The air was choked with the stench of rot and decay and the droning of flies.

With a retch, one of the mages bent to vomit, causing a chain reaction through the ranks. Kai covered his nose and looked away. The sounds of gagging were enough to make him feel sick. He could taste acrid stomach acid in his mouth.

Take a deep breath. Wait, no! Focus on the iridescent lights.

Only half the soldiers maintained their position with pale faces. If the basilisk had picked that moment to attack, Kai couldn’t say how many would have survived. He slowly managed to calm his stomach, grateful his only meal had been a dried ration.

“Form up, you fools!” Bert sucked his teeth and spat on the grimy ground. “We’re in the den of a beast.”

Fear pulled the formation back together. The vomit could hardly ruin the putrid air of the chamber.

“Does your skill pick up anything, boy?”

“No.” Kai tersely answered.

“Huh, I didn’t think basilisks could be such cowards.” The scout scowled out loud as if the beast could hear and understand him. “It can’t even defend its own home.”

It’s smart enough to pick its battles. Or it’s waiting for its wounds to heal.

“Can we head back?” The bearded mage—Kevyk—said what was on everyone’s mind. He patted his sweaty forehead and kept his nose high up to avoid looking at the graveyard around them. “We’ve already mapped most of the underground anyway.”

“Most is not everything.”

“The rest of the map can be deduced with what we have.” Nelynna agreed with Kevyk for the first time during this mission.

“We have our orders to—” Bert swept his gaze over the team, gauging the general mood. “We’ll return to camp after sweeping this den. Look around to see if you can find anything useful. There must be a reason why the basilisk built its den here.”

The soldiers guarded the only open entrance leading into the chamber while the mages spread to carry out the search. Kai felt the touch of multiple Mana Senses brush against his being.

He moved to examine the remains. Mana Observer spared him the need to touch them. Every carcass belonged to a yellow beast, eliminating any doubts about what happened. The King of Veeryd had turned the mana anomalies into a delivery service for fresh snacks.

There are way more beasts here than in the other ruins. Is it for the mana density or is this place special…?

Kai pitied the poor beasts that exchanged the Hidden Sanctuary for the waiting jaws of the basilisk. He turned to his porter. “Do you think the King let us find the first carcass on purpose?”

Makyn moved through the slaughter scene with the practical ease of someone used to such sights. “It’s unlikely. It’s possible the basilisk dragged it in our path when it noticed us coming, but we were too many miles away to be set up. That teleported beast must have escaped as we were nearing the Heart and ran in our direction by chance.”

So, it’s a Lucky lizard too. Probably why Hallowed Intuition has a hard time warning about it…

Kai analyzed the thick streams of mana congregating in the chamber. They shifted under his gaze, but he was pretty sure this room wasn’t the origin of the anomalous concentration. He looked at the blocked passage in the ceiling.

Maybe it’s outside. Zervathi said the Altar was on the highest peak. Or the streams might not have anything to do with it.

He turned back to the decomposing remains. Three presented the horned snout and scales of a draconic species. The others were harder to determine. There was the broken chitinous carapace of some monstrous insect and the curved fangs of a big cat.

The question is how many bones I can fit inside my ring.

Even in such poor conditions, he must be looking at several gold coins in value just lying around. Enough to touch the rotting carcasses.

Why do yellow beasts need to be so massive? It’s better to focus on mana herbs…

“I’m getting a strange reading on the spatial residue.” Across the chamber, Kevyk excitedly waved some kind of enchanted fan. “I think we’re in a summoning chamber.”

Who would have thought…

“Are you sure?” Bert strode up to him.

“Quite, the variation in the dimensional—”

“I found some glyphs,” Nelynna interrupted him. With a wave of her hand, she made a thick layer of dirt and moss fall to the ground. Another swipe revealed a pure ivory wall with a series of etched symbols. “They might be important since they’re in this chamber. Can anyone copy them?”

Makyn lightly cleared his throat.

Fine.

“I’ll do it.” Kai took out a small notebook and pen from his pocket and walked up to the glyphs. Several skeptical eyes followed him.

“These aren’t random wiggles.” Bert scowled. “You have to copy them precisely for the experts to examine.”

Somebody didn’t bother to read my file.

“I think I got it.” Kai refrained from mentioning this was his field of expertise, so they wouldn’t demand he translate the writings on the spot.

There were many lines of elegant glyphs. It wasn’t the usual prayer to an unknown god or the historical record, he had only seen around a third of those symbols before. He’d need to check the journals in case he forgot something. This might actually be the real deal.

“Are you sure that line is correct?” Nelynna peered over his shoulder. Apparently, the woman was unable to copy them herself but could drone over him while he worked.

“Yes.” Kai drew the last glyph and did another check, fixing a line—not the one she pointed out. There were several mentions of the Blessing he now knew indicated the Hidden Sanctuary. With the context from Zervathi, it was much easier to guess the meaning.

He doodled his rough ideas in English, making sure his writing was bad enough that not even someone from Earth could guess the meaning.

Blessed be [untranslated Vastaire name] for [untranslated piece] and to the shores (archipelago?). May his name always be honored and [untranslated piece].

We renew our pledge to Zervathi for sheltering the Vastaire from the enemy (Darkness?). We renew our gratitude for the bestowal of the key (Altar?) to lead the Vastaire to the Hidden Sanctuary. We renew our dedication to respect the vow (pact?) [untranslated piece]…

“Are you done?” Bert grabbed his notebook from his hands. He compared it to the glyphs on the wall and stored it in his pocket. “Uh, good enough. Okay soldiers, it is time to make our way back—”

Kai clenched his fists. There was a limit to the obnoxious behavior and to his patience.

I won’t feel guilty when I mistranslate the glyphs.

Holding back the knowledge acquired from Zervathi would be enough to delay the scholars, though the text contained some crucial pieces of information. It was only a matter of time before the Republic put things together.

“I’ll get your journal back when we return to camp,” Makyn said. “Did you find anything interesting?”

“I didn’t have time to finish.” Kai went to join the ranks. He’d need more time to check his journals, but he was reasonably sure the text spoke of the Altar. It meant he was in the right place.

Now I just need to find it.

Kai watched the swift flow of mana, the origin must be nearby. If only there wasn’t an evil lizard stalking the ruins, he could sneak out and find it tonight. It must have a link with the entrance to the Hidden Sanctuary.

I can wai—

“Look out!” Kai pointed at the tunnel the soldiers were entering. Scouring the ruins with no sign of the basilisk throughout the whole day, their formation had grown slack. Realization and dread fell on the young faces, spears and swords rising too late.

A scaled, emerald snout leaped out of the shadows, twisting around the weapons to chomp down on the extended arm of a soldier. Gleaming golden eyes gazed at him with glee. There was no sign of the wounds from the previous night. Mana bent around the basilisk as if it were the very source of the streams.

His elemental reserves responded readily. There wasn’t enough space to aim his ice spells without hitting the soldiers. Kai hurled his Nature mana at the thorny vines around the beast while an arrow whistled past his ear.

The greedy King was unwilling to release its prey, giving the pale creeper the chance to wrap around its body. In the instant the beast was slowed by the insignificant plant, the dart plunged into its triumphant eye.

A piercing hiss rattled the tunnels, the basilisk jerked its head back without releasing its bite. The soldier was pulled into the shadow without a sound, already paralyzed by the beast’s venom.

Swords and spears crashed on the empty ground; arrows and spells were equally useless. Soldiers screamed the name of the lost companion.

“Chase it!” Bert yelled already darting after it. He was fast, but the King was faster.

Kai focused Mana Observer on the fleeing presence. He pushed the skill till the basilisk was the only light in a world of shadows, he pierced its cloak to reveal its incandescent veins in frightening details.

Compared to the King, the soldiers were like flickering flames. The ichor leaking from its eye did little to slow it down as did the limp man in its jaws. The distance between the chasing party grew with each leap.

When it escaped their sight, the basilisk attempted to reassert its camouflage. Kai had to fight not to let the presence slip from his focus. Even after doubling his range, farther targets remained harder to observe.

If he couldn’t track it directly, he could track the mana it disturbed. Streams of essence flowed around the King. The more he watched, the more puzzled he became.

How is this possible?

Switching the skill focus on the streams, there was no denying it. Mana swayed around the basilisk to an unnatural degree, pulsing from a spot on its back in particular. A spot of absolute vacuum with not a speck of mana.

Spirits, tell me that’s not the Altar.