“New entrance discovered…”
Johanna reviewed the latest report that had just come in.
The report stated that a new entrance had been identified in the cracks of the ground caused by an earthquake. While no thorough investigation of this entrance had yet been conducted, it was presumed that the interior would not be intact. Advancing inside would likely result in being halted by collapsed passages due to the quake.
One positive piece of information was that wind was flowing out from within the entrance. This indicated that the interior was not a completely sealed chamber. Even if some sections of the passage had collapsed, there might still be gaps through which wind flowed, potentially allowing for expansion and progress.
After assessing the situation roughly, Johanna reached a conclusion: “…We need to go check it out ourselves.”
Johanna didn’t have time to hesitate. Currently, while the Empire and Sacred Country were cooperating solely to counteract the demons, they remained in a competitive relationship in all other aspects. Johanna needed to secure the artifact before the Sacred Country did, hence moving as quickly as possible before the information leaked was crucial.
Unfortunately, the internal information security of the Imperial Investigation Team wasn’t entirely reliable due to the inclusion of numerous clerics involved in the research regarding artifacts of evil deities. These clerics, regardless of their official allegiance to the Empire, were fundamentally sympathetic to the Sacred Country. Many of them, especially the more capable ones, hadn’t fully abandoned this tendency, even after being carefully selected by the Empire.
Thus, these clerics indirectly assisted the movements of the Sacred Country, and it was possible that the information about the “new entrance” had already leaked to their side.
For this reason, Johanna swiftly made her decision.
Delun expressed his agreement with Johanna’s choice but voiced concerns: “Sister, isn’t it dangerous? If we rush forward and the passage collapses…”
“We’ll go in with a small elite team. We can handle it.”
Had the passage been hundreds of meters underground, she might have been more cautious, as getting buried at such a depth could lead to serious injuries or prolonged rescue times. However, since the passage was merely about ten meters underground, any collapse during exploration could still be managed. In the worst case, they could simply dig upwards and escape.
“Let’s move before the information leaks.”
Johanna’s judgment was reasonable enough. Delun and Jusephin prepared to follow her orders without further objection.
*
The Imperial Investigation Team moved.
High-ranking members of the investigation team, led by Johanna, prepared to enter the cracked ground after reaching the fissure.
Soon, the members of the Imperial Investigation Team disappeared one by one into the crack.
This scene was observed quietly from a distance by Speira.
“…”
Johanna, aware of the Sacred Country, judged the situation quickly and decided to investigate the new entrance personally. However, despite this, Speira had already obtained information about the new entrance. Since Johanna’s actions matched Speira’s expectations, Speira watched the Imperial Investigation Team calmly without tension… until she suddenly narrowed her eyes.
Ssshh!
A red ring enveloped Speira’s golden irises.
With her awakened eyes, Speira turned her head to look behind her.
“…”
In the direction Speira gazed, nothing existed. Despite using her awakened vision, no meaningful anomaly was detected.
Nevertheless, Speira muttered confidently:
“A familiar scent… ”
Speira gently touched her neck, recalling the intense killing intent that had once brushed against her. Rising from her seat and tilting her head slightly, she said:
“It doesn’t seem like they’ve taken complete control yet… What brings them here?”
The emergence of an intriguing variable caused Speira to twist her lips into a smirk.
*
“Hmm…”
Upon entering the newly discovered entrance, Johanna took a deep breath.
The Imperial Investigation Team consisted of twelve elite members, including Johanna: five knights, three mages, three templars, and one researcher. Losing even one or two members could jeopardize the mission, so mutual protection was essential.
Everyone took a moment to steady their breathing before beginning the exploration.
Johanna floated a luminous artifact in mid-air to illuminate their path and warned her team: “Avoid using large-scale techniques as much as possible.”
There were two reasons for this. First, powerful techniques used underground could trigger a collapse of the passage. Second, to avoid detection by representatives of the Sacred Country, they needed to move stealthily, meaning that even if they felt safe, they should refrain from using techniques detectable from outside.
Acknowledging Johanna’s caution, everyone nodded.
Pointing her finger towards the interior of the entrance, Johanna initiated the formal exploration.
“…”
The interior was silent. Strange patterns and shapes were carved into the walls of the passage, but due to extensive fading over time and damage from the earthquake, they were difficult to discern clearly.
Every step they took caused dust to fall from the cracked ceiling and walls, creating an atmosphere where any wrong touch could cause a collapse. Everyone moved cautiously, their nerves on edge.
Among the tense group, the templars were particularly vigilant. Johanna briefly asked one of them:
“How’s it looking?”
“Not the worst.”
Given the operational nature of their mission, the templar responded bluntly:
“Erosion is progressing, and ominous energy abounds, but this area does not appear to be the source of the erosion.”
In short, if the artifact of the evil deity located somewhere nearby in the underground could be successfully recovered, the erosion in the vicinity could be restored.
Relieved by this positive news, a few team members let out slight sighs of relief.
Continuing to advance through the artificially illuminated darkness, the team eventually reached a dead end.
“…”
There were two entrances discovered in the cracks of the ground.
Since one tunnel had broken open, revealing two entrances, this was expected. They were respectively named Entrance A and Entrance B. No airflow was detected from Entrance A, whereas airflow was present in Entrance B. The entrance Johanna chose was Entrance B, but it too was blocked due to the earthquake.
‘Airflow from the opposite side… can be felt.’
Though part of the passage had collapsed, it was not entirely blocked.
Johanna flicked her finger.
“Clear it.”
“Please wait a moment.”
The high-level mage, Phlio, approached the collapsed passage.
If the opposite side was open, the team had sufficient firepower to clear the blockage, provided they avoided triggering a larger collapse. Thus, the mage first needed to create a magical structure to reduce the load on the passage.
Once this was done, the knights could use the cutting power of sword auras or sword energies to break through the blocked passage.
Tzzz!
Phlio began generating magical structures based on ice magic.
If the newly sprouted ice pillars could effectively distribute the load, there would be no further concern about the passage collapsing.
Just as Phlio was about to complete the ice pillar considering the surrounding terrain, Johanna abruptly grabbed him by the collar and pulled him back.
Kwaak!
“?!!”
Chaaak!!!
A black stream of energy emerging from the opposite side of the collapsed passage instantly formed the shape of a blade and slashed at the space where Phlio had been standing just moments ago.
While Phlio was shocked, the failed ambush attempt transformed the black blade back into smoke, trying to vanish through the gap in the blocked passage.
Most of the team members were startled by this sudden event.
However, veterans like Delun and Jusephin remained calm and reacted appropriately.
Zzzk!!!
Jusephin thrust her sword with blinding speed toward the black stream. Skilled in fast-paced swordplay, Jusephin struck the black stream before it escaped.
However, her attack only momentarily hindered its movement without inflicting significant damage.
At that moment, Delun swung his sword, which emitted a concentrated sword aura that shone brilliantly.
Grrd!
Delun’s sword aura possessed the property of drawing in and condensing any material or energy it touched.
The escaping black stream was caught and drawn in by Delun’s sword aura.
Taking advantage of the delay provided by Jusephin and Delun, the mages assessed the situation and activated their magic.
Since they had encountered a demon, hiding their strength was no longer an option. Without hesitation, the mages activated their circles, creating dozens of ice pillars around the passage in an instant.
Udddrk!!
Thanks to the ice pillars, there was no longer any immediate worry about the passage collapsing if powerful force was used.
As soon as the ice pillars were completed, Johanna unleashed a deep blue sword energy, slashing toward the black stream.
Kwagagak!!!!!!
Johanna’s blow was utterly destructive.
The blocked passage shattered, and along with it, the black stream began to disintegrate, losing its form.
Psss…!!
The threatening presence that had ambushed the team was neutralized, and the blocked path was now open.
However, no one on the team could bring themselves to smile.
“Demons…?”
“Is this a demon’s trap?”
Even the team members, including Johanna, frowned deeply.
‘Why are demons here…?’
Could the information gathered by the Imperial Investigation Team have leaked to followers of the evil deity instead of the Sacred Country? That seemed implausible within such a short timeframe.
Rather, it made more sense that the demons had discovered this passage first and set up a trap.
Being creatures accustomed to and sensitive to negative energies, they might have found such passages faster than the investigative teams from the continent or the Sacred Country, even with fewer numbers.
Perhaps they entered through another route and prepared a trap here.
“…”
Johanna sighed.
Regardless of the exact circumstances, having been outmaneuvered by the followers of the evil deity was far from good news. There might be more traps inside, and the likelihood of them finding the artifact first was high.
If the followers of the evil deity had already discovered the artifact, they needed to be eliminated before they could enact any schemes.
Abandoning their stealthy approach, Johanna activated the dormant artifacts in her possession and gave the order:
“Follow me. Whatever it is, we’re breaking through.”
Johanna’s choice was a forced breakthrough.
The team members followed her command without objection, preparing for battle.
Just before Johanna advanced to the front,
An unpleasant laughter echoed briefly in their ears.
[Kekekekekekekekek]
“…”
The demon that had just been dealt with by Johanna must have somehow survived the destruction of its physical form.
The eerie laughter faded away shortly thereafter.
Irritated by the persistent strangeness of the demons, Johanna forcefully kicked off the ground.
