Chapter 996: You Reap What You Sow (3)

“We’re going to live forever until the light that descends on this land is restored.”

“...”

“Our bodies are vessels for our souls…”

‘I don’t… I don’t think… it was like this.’

“Someday… someday, the angel of sacrifice… will return. He’ll… return to the Underground Temple…again. He’ll return… someday, no matter what.”

“Is that all?” I[1] asked.

“No, there’s more to it… but I can’t read the rest. It’s badly damaged… and it’s not easy to interpret it. I don’t know what to tell you…”

“...”

“I think this place was used for religious ceremonies. I can’t say for sure… but seeing that there’s a soul jar—”

“It kind of… kind of changed,” I interrupted them.

“...”

“It kind of changed,” I repeated.

I wasn’t the only one who felt something strange. The Guild Master of the Black Swan Guild, the rangers, and even Park Yeon-Joo, who was in charge of the reconnaissance team, felt indescribably uncomfortable.

Before the strangely distorted spacetime, which headquarters called Spacetime Rift, had taken over this place, I was sure that…

‘I’m sure this place wasn’t like this.’

It was an easter egg hidden within the Underground Temple.

We only found this place upon discovering and chasing after Templar Simon.

Before the Spacetime Rift appeared, I was pretty sure that there was a huge altar here. I couldn’t remember it clearly… but items that looked like they were used for rituals were neatly organized here, and someone emitting light… kept going in and out…

‘That’s what I remember about this place…’

However, it suddenly became different.

It was extremely dark; there was no light in this place.

There was a nauseating stench, dark red stains, and old skeletons.

It looked like a temple, but it was dilapidated, which told me that no one had ever been here for a long time. There were items scattered around as if this place were a laboratory, and there were books everywhere, too.

It was different from any place I had investigated so far.

The only thing that was intact was the ceremonial altar in the middle. The indescribable discomfort made me sweep the dusty wall with my hands.

And that was when I heard a voice beside me.

“What’s that?”

“What?” I asked.

“Step aside for a moment,” they ordered.

“

Oh…

okay,” I said

I stepped back.

The most important thing when it came to investigations like this was preserving the scene, so I made a mistake by sweeping the wall with my hand.

‘Damn it.’

I couldn't believe that I somehow made such a rookie mistake. The talented rangers of the continent had gathered here, and the people here were all famous adventurers. It was particularly true for the rangers.

This was a rare unranked dungeon, making it one of the rarest dungeons in the continent. Rangers were extremely valuable here, and they'd receive a ton of rewards due to the nature of their job. Thus, the competent rangers of the Black Swan Guild were dispatched.

‘Damn it.’

I was just a freelancer who had responded to a major guild's request to earn more experience, so this mistake was truly devastating. The guild masters and people whose feats were written in books for rookies in the tutorial dungeon were part of the expedition team.

The rangers of the Blue Guild weren't here for some reason, and I was relieved, as they didn't see me make such a stupid blunder, but…

“What’s your name?”

I happened to be standing in front of Park Yeon-Joo of the Black Swan Guild…

‘One mistake will end my career…’

“My name is Jung Gap-Soo. Well… this is—”

“Which guild are you from?” she interrupted me.

“I’m a freelancer,” I replied.

“It’s strange that a ranger like you is a freelancer,” Park Yeon-Joo commented.

“Excuse me?” I asked.

And that was when a mage cast a spell at the part of the wall behind me...

A few more people gathered, and it looked as if they were taking apart the wall.

‘What the heck?’

“Speak confidently next time. Your contributions will reflect on your rewards. Thank you for your hard work,” Park Yeon-Joo said.

“What?

Oh…

I understand,” I said.

I wasn’t sure what was going on, but it felt like a blessing in disguise.

While I was trying to hide my smile, the door finally opened. Everyone went quiet and started using hand gestures to communicate. I could see them signaling to each other that there could be hostile units inside.

Those with detection-type skills walked inside before anyone else.

Soon afterward, the first group of vanguards walked inside with clenched fists.

“All clear.”

There was another altar inside. It seemed to be a temple that could only accommodate five people. Unlike the temple outside, this place was well-organized. No, it

was

well-organized. However, what caught my attention the most was the large mural.

“What’s this…” I mumbled.

It had to have been a long time since the mural was made, but it was decently maintained. An angel with a gold eye and several pairs of wings was praying with his hands raised up to the sky.

He resembled a certain someone.

I had a hard time recognizing him, but I felt like everyone reached the same conclusion as me. It wasn't an exact description, but there was only one person anyone would think of when it came to the keywords "golden eye" and "wings."

I turned to the right and saw another mural. An angel fighting a pitch-black demon. He covered his face with his wings and arm while walking toward the pitch-black demon, and there was a red-headed warrior on the ground, seemingly incapacitated.

I looked to my left and saw the red-headed warrior praying toward the angel with wings.

‘This is the first mural.’

“I think the pictures start from the left to right,” I said.

“This is probably an altar for that angel,” Park Yeon-Joo suggested.

“It also looks like a clue to clear the dungeon… There are some things that are a bit puzzling, but there’s a chance that we're close to discovering a hidden boss like Spirit Gelk,” I said.

“We’ll have to investigate more. First of all, let’s check to see if there are other devices installed in here,” Park Yeon-Joo ordered.

“Okay.”

I turned my gaze again and saw another demon on the same mural that depicted the fight between the angel and the pitch-black demon.

The demon was orange and was different from the pitch-black demon. Unlike the pitch-black demon, who was depicted as a large-framed demon, the orange demon wasn't that huge. They had a large horn and several bat wings. He was a typical-looking demon, and he was fighting the pitch-black demon for some reason.

Meanwhile, the angel was trembling amidst the fight.

‘Is it trying to depict that they fought over this angel?’

The orange demon won the battle. The pitch-black demon spread a cloud of nauseating mist and fled. The red-headed warrior ran in to protect the angel.

“...”

The red-headed warrior collapsed in a daze, and the orange demon grabbed the angel.

It was an extremely scary and frightening depiction to the point that I thought the orange demon could be the boss of this dungeon. It was a bizarre mural. In the next mural, the angel disappeared, and there were no more images.

“Does the mural end here?” Park Yeon-Joo asked.

“No, there’s more over here. It’s another passage,” I answered.

“Any traps?” Park Yeon-Joo asked.

“No. I didn’t feel any reactions,” I replied.

The rangers were on the move once again, and we eventually saw the next mural.

Indeed. The mural depicted what had happened next.

It was the story of the red-headed warrior who was left by himself upon the departure of the angel and the orange demon.

The warrior raised their hand toward the sky. Those in the heavens were depicted as holy beings, but none of them stretched their hand out toward the red-headed warrior.

We started walking again.

The warrior from earlier stretched their hand toward the pitch-black demon, but the pitch-black demon didn’t take the warrior’s hand, either.

I saw a mural of the warrior talking to the pitch-black demon as if they were criticizing them, but the pitch-black demon simply lowered their head and remained quiet.

The red-headed warrior cried, and the continent was collapsing in the background. The doors of the Underground Temple were closed, and it looked like the continent was welcoming a new era.

And then, a long-haired angel with black wings reached out toward the warrior.

I couldn’t see anything after that, so I walked deeper inside.

“A mimic?” Park Yeon-Joo asked.

“No, it’s not a trap either… It looks like a chest to store important items,” I replied.

“Open it,” Park Yeon-Joo ordered.

“Okay. It’s a feather,” I said.

“What?”

“It’s a feather that unleashes light. There’s no information on this item… so it’s probably—”

And that was when we heard a loud voice...

“It’s Templar Simon!”

“Did he come here on his own? Prepare for battle!" the others exclaimed.

“Looks like we’re at the right place, Miss Park Yeon-Joo,” I said.

“Miss Park Yeon-Joo? What should we—”

“W-What do you think you guys are doing?” Templar Simon questioned.

“What?”

“I asked what the hell you guys are doing!” yelled Templar Simon.

The rangers rushed out and surrounded Templar Simon.

The reconnaissance team was full of rangers, but it didn't mean that we couldn’t raid a dungeon.

If our opponent was just a lone Templar, we'd probably be more efficient at it than others. Rangers weren’t as efficient as mages and priests, but there were mages and priests with ranger skills.

They were all trained to fight during an emergency.

I wasn’t sure what had happened, but Templar Simon wasn’t in the best condition.

He was gasping for breath while grabbing his head. He looked… frightened.

“I remember… I remember it all… all of it…” Templar Simon muttered.

I had no idea what he was saying.

“What the hell are you guys doing?!” Templar Simon shouted.

‘Has he always been like that? I heard he's more rational…’

“Come out now! Right now! Don’t touch that feather!” Templar Simon shouted.

“...”

“Bahamut is coming.

Ahhh… Sob! AAAAHH!

Bahamut is coming!” Templar Simon yelled.

“...”

“I’m sorry, Bahamut! I’m sorry…

Ahh… ahhhhh!

” Templar Simon added.

He was swaying while embracing himself. Something fast pierced him, and he started transforming. He grew in size, and he no longer looked like a human. He looked more like a spider now.

‘A demon…!’

“Bahamut is cooooming!!” Templar Simon shouted.

“Demon…” I mumbled.

“Bahamut… won’t forgive… you guys… Bahamut…

AAAAHHH!

Bahamut is coming!” Templar Simon yelled.

“Retreat! Retreat!” Park Yeon-Joo shouted.

“

AAAAAHHH!

”

After transforming into a beast, Templar Simon's four feet stuck to the ceiling. Long legs burst out of his back, and he thrust it toward the nearby rangers.

“Give it back! Give that feather back! Be forgiven… with your… death!

Keke…

Bahamut is coming! Bahamut is coming!” Templar Simon shouted.

The last thing I saw was his long legs…

1. Jung Gap-Soo POV ☜