In front of each of the three tombstones in the ground, three ethereal hands, formed by a celestial and brilliant substance, took shape, terrorizing Yoichi and Shioko.

As the two tamers retreated in fear, the three arms rose from the ground, resting their hands on the hard rock and helping the rest of their bodies out of their underground captivity. ​​

Three celestial spirits reached the surface and, each of them sat on their own gravestone, looking down. When Enatsu also turned his eyes to the other end of the room, his screams froze in his throat, unable to get out due to the chills that ran through his back.

The bold Shioko, in front of that scene, could not speak. The bow still clenched between her hands trembled fragilely. As Enatsu predicted, being a speedrunner didn't make it easy in that case, and even a low-level dungeon like that could become a problem without the right experience.

Thanks to the three shining spirits, the room's interior changed colour and darkness dissolved, consumed by the light of Nobu added to that of those three unknown beings.

They were three men, very similar to each other. The first eye-popping detail was their work clothes: heavy and durable fabric trousers ended in bulky boots with iron-reinforced toes.

The upper clothing was more inadequate, consisting of a simple yellowish linen tank top, totally covered in dirt and mud. Studying the details of the three spirits up close, Yoichi and Shioko immediately noticed that the bodies of those three men suffered severe injuries.

One of them did not have an arm, and the tank top on his chest was utterly torn in the middle. Under it, a deep gash showed his internal organs, partly hanging from the wound, as if they were about to fall.

The spirit on the second tomb, on the other hand, had lost both his legs. Standing in balance on the tombstone with his sturdy arms, he raised his eyes towards the two adventurers in front of him. His hands were big and callous, and his nails were dirty with earth and blood.

Finally, the last of the three men was the one with the most terrifying appearance: his body was not damaged like that of the other two spirits, but, on the other hand, his neck interrupted abruptly, severed. Between his large scratched and clawed fingers, the long hair of his head, supported by the palms of his hands.

Despite seeing giant man-eating demons and villagers mauled and blown out through the rubble of Blackborough in recent days, that unexpected vision froze the blood in the veins of the three adventurers.

Unlike Shioko, it was the first time Yoichi and Enatsu witnessed ethereal bodies like those. The merchant, feeling abandoned on the other side of the cave, approached his companions without making any noise.

"What's going on?" Yoichi whispered, trying to direct the sound of his words towards Shioko, with one hand in front of his mouth. Kenji and Rokuro looked curiously at the three spirits without breathing.

"If they had been evil presences, our Oracles would have surely reacted someway. Something tells me that these spirits want..." Shioko's whispered words were suddenly interrupted by a sound.

*GASP*huff* - the head in the hands of the third spirit come to life, opening its eyes and mouth, taking a deep and suffocated breath. At the same time, the other two spirits also seemed to have woken up.

The one sitting on the first tombstone, looking up at the tamers, revealed a hidden detail of his face: part of his head was missing as if crushed by a boulder. The only eye left looked damaged and injected with blood.

The breath of the third spirit lasted for a few seconds. Soon after, absolute silence preceded his words. "Travelers..." the long-haired man's head uttered, still supported by his hands.

"Aaagh! He has spoken! That head had spoken!" Enatsu jumped in fear, hiding behind Shioko and seeking protection.

Yoichi tried to regularize his breath and keep calm. As his archer companion told him, the three spirits of the headstones did not seem to be hostile. The young tamer knelt before them, showing genuine respect. "Yes, we are travellers from the capital. Who are you, spirits of the cave?" he asked, trying to interact peacefully.

"Aaaah..." the severed head sighed. With two fingers, one of his hands moved the tuft of hair that covered its eyes. "I am Ysai, the eldest of my brothers. Aaah... they are Asai and Osai!" the spirit answered.

Three brothers? What are they doing buried down here? Maybe they were miners? Yoichi thought. Somehow, he tried to explain that strange phenomenon.

"The boundary between life and death is a very, very thin thread in the world of Lumya... aaah... the demonic power of this place has prevented our spirits from ascending, forcing us between these narrow walls... aah..." – the words of the greatest of the three deceased brothers echoed in the room, rumbling.

"Are you... are you dead?" Yoichi inquired who was the only one interacting.

"We are no longer in the world of the living. This is a sure thing," Asai intervened, the leftmost spirit. "However, our soul is trapped here, in these bleak, dark mines", Osai added, the one without legs.

"Now that the cave door has been sealed, there is only one way to get out and continue the dungeon. It requires great wit and intelligence. Aaah... every tamer feels strong next to his demon... but the real question is... aaah... will you be able to pass the test with the only use of your psyche?" Ysai spoke.

The hands of the spirit turned his head from side to side, carefully looking at the travellers who reached his everlasting dwelling.

"T... test? What kind of test?" Enatsu stammered. Shioko pushed him away, annoyed by his presence behind her back.

The merchant's question generated a profound silence. Suddenly, the square rocks of the wall behind the tombstones began to move like the tiles of a puzzle, rotating and crawling on each other.