Chapter 137

Chapter 137 – Chapter 24: Torrent #3

The ruin Silvan discovered was located deep inside a dense forest . Karamis, the area Silvan defended, was located to the south-east of the Demon World and was in contact with the Great Desert, one of the buffer zones to the Human World .

As the name suggested, the Great Desert was an incredibly large desert area . Despite its proximity to the desert, Karamis was a land rich in green vegetation due to the abnormal climate caused by the unique magic lines in the Demon World .

The Black Flame Dragon flew slowly for an hour or two before landing in an open area in the middle of the forest . The arrangement of the trees looked unnatural, like it was an artificially created landing point .

“Beyond that is the entrance to the ruins . It was so well hidden that I wouldn’t have found it if it wasn’t for a coincidence . ”

Sepira said as she spread out the stairs for descending from the Black Flame Dragon . Silvan had already jumped down .

“How did you find it?”

Felicia asked while gazing at Silvan’s back .

Sepira laughed awkwardly .

“Someone was hit by a creature and fell to the entrance of the ruins . It was a deep well-like entrance . ”

It was a fun story, but Felicia thought otherwise . She frowned and asked,

“That person, are they okay?”

“Yes, relatively . Their shoulders and neck are stiff though . ”

Sepira laughed awkwardly again, and Felicia understood why Sepira’s ears were red throughout the story .

‘No, she didn’t want to talk about this in the first place . ’

When she thought about it, the story shouldn’t be amusing, and any desire to laugh soon disappeared .

At that moment, the staircase was opened completely . Felicia was already jumping down and hurried to catch up with Silvan . Once she arrived at the entrance, she understood why Sepira emphasized it had been an accident .

The entrance to the ruin was hidden very well . No, if she had come across it, she would have thought it was just a deep pit .

A circular passage with a diameter of approximately 1 . 5 meters was drilled vertically akin to a well . The earth was bumpy, like it had been formed naturally, and clumps of bushes were surrounding the entrance .

Felicia knelt on the edge and looked inside the hole while sniffing it . There was a faint but clear scent . A place where magic power was concentrated gave off a good smell .

“It is true . There is the scent of magic power . ”

That wasn’t all . There was a soft glow inside the deep hole, and the light was leaking from the inside .

As Felicia looked carefully, Silvan quickly held out a hand .

“Now, Felicia . Please embrace Oppa . I will jump in . ”

Silvan laughed while Felicia, who pulled back reflexively, cast a magic spell .

“Levitation . ”

Felicia dropped down slowly into the hole, while Silvan’s shoulders sagged with disappointment . After falling almost 12 meters, a large passage was visible . It was a very old passage, but it gave off an artificial feel .

After the two of them went down, Sepira, Delia and the five crew members went down as well . Felicia preferred exploring ruins with a small, elite group since large numbers was just cumbersome .

There were two lights in the passage . One was a dim light which seemed to leak from deep inside, while the other was a pale light coming from little stones embedded in the ceiling .

It was very pretty, but it was hard to proceed with the exploration with this lighting . Felicia pulled out a stick with a brilliant light at the end of it which she had prepared in advance . They were in a large crypt which reminded her of the ones she had seen during the Red Lightning tribe subjugation .

Silvan’s group had already explored the first floor, so they hurried on . After arriving at a place which was like a central hall, the unknown characters Sepira had mentioned were revealed for the first time .

“Indeed, they really are like the characters I saw . Maybe… the legend might be true?”

Felicia said as she looked at the letters carved on the high ceilings, floor and walls . The confused Sepira asked,

“Your Highness, the legend?”

As always, curious questions pleased Felicia, and she responded by spreading her knowledge .

“After going to Kaltein’s lair last time, I did some research . However, I didn’t have time to study a lot since the departure time was so tight . ”

It wasn’t just Shutra who had investigated after returning to the Demon King’s Palace .

Felicia looked at the characters and said again,

“In fact, this wasn’t something I found out through research . It is a story I picked up while investigating ruins . ”

There was a question mark above Sepira’s head . Felicia laughed and asked Sepira a new question,

“Sepira, how much do you know about the history of the Demon King’s Palace?”

“I know it was created 500 years ago . ”

This year was obviously Year 512 .

Felicia stretched and said,

“Yes, only 500 years . Before that, the Era of Struggle was only approximately 3,000 years . ”

The Era of Struggle referred to the time before the demon king, when all species had been at war with each other . The Demon World of that time was no different than what was beyond the limit line . Every day, a cruel war occurred .

“Then what type of civilization was there in the old days?”

Before the Era of Struggle—

The distant past before the Thunderdoom Fortress was built…

“We don’t know . No matter how far back the records of the dark elves go, it is only up to 6,000~7,000 years . It isn’t an exaggeration to say we don’t know much about the civilizations and how the species lived before that time . ”

7,000 years was indeed a long time for the dark elves . Sepira counted in her head for a while before her long ears extended .

“Your Highness, if it was 7,000 years ago… wouldn’t it have been hard to have a proper civilization?”

The dark elves had also been different 7,000 years ago, and they had been primitive in many ways .

Felicia nodded .

“The majority of people think like that . They think it was a time without a proper country, where the species just fought in tribal units . But I don’t think so . If there hadn’t been a flourishing civilization in those days, we shouldn’t be able to find their traces after they have long since perished . ”

It was much older than 7,000 years ago . Maybe it was a past that went back even more years .

“We call this legend the indigenous species . Although there is little evidence, I think it makes sense . ”

Felicia said with a smile . Sepira looked at the characters engraved on the floor .

“Your Highness, do these characters belong to the indigenous species?”

“Let’s see, should we find out from now on?”

Felicia responded with a laugh .

&

From the north, he headed to the south .

His steps were slow but steady .

Day and night passed, until he reached a place where the greenery was thick—a land called Karamis in the Demon World .

&

Felicia finished her survey of the first floor and headed to the second underground floor . The second floor was significantly different from the first floor . As the crypt continued, spaces appeared which could be thought of as rooms, but they had no special structure .

The smell of magic power leaking from deep within the dungeon became stronger, and the ceiling light was brighter than the first floor’s .

Like the first floor, the second floor had a simple structure, so the exploration time was quick .

Felicia headed toward the third floor .

&

He stepped into Karamis, and his footsteps became a little bit faster .

&

The structure of the third floor was simpler than the second floor’s . It was just a large room with high ceilings and stairs leading to the fourth floor .

The ceiling light became brighter and the scent of magic power stronger .

Felicia was deep in thought as she copied all the characters on the wall .

It had been quite a while since they entered the ruin . Even if they hurried, it would be completely dark by the time they left the ruin .

So, it would be good to return to a safe place on the second floor and take a break .

However, there was still a little bit more time . Every time they went down the stairs, the structure became simpler .

They could continue going downward .

Silvan said he would follow Felicia’s will as always . After a short moment of agonizing, Felicia descended the stairs leading to the fourth underground floor .

&

It was late at night .

Silvan’s crew members, who were guarding the entrance of the ruin, set up fires and strengthened the perimeter .

Strong magic power had a strong attraction for creatures . They didn’t know if the magic power leaking from the entrance of the ruins would tempt any creatures .

Since Silvan and Sepira were away, the first officer, Tirion, was in charge of security . He watched the darkness with a cigarette in his mouth . Then the sound of rustling disturbed his ears .

Tirion turned his eyes toward the sound .

&

The third and fourth floors were completely different . It was clearly a more complex space than the first floor . The ruin was enormous .

Why did this site exist? And why was there nothing in such a huge space? Despite the rich magic power, even the smallest creature couldn’t be seen .

Thanks to the light from the ceiling, the inside of the ruin was like daylight, and Felicia was determined to go deeper .

&

The clouds hid the moon, and in the darkness, he moved forward . There were clear signs of his passing .

All those who guarded the entrance to the ruin had disappeared .

The process by which the crew members died had been different, but the result was the same . Tirion’s body was deprived of life and his body crushed .

Everything in his path turned to dust . He took a step forward . Recalling the memories from 1,000 years ago, He took a deep breath, and the fragrance of magic power hit his nose .

“Drain . ”

The man said .

He ordered it as the Famine Knight .

&

The ceiling light weakened momentarily .

Felicia looked up at the ceiling reflexively .

Silvan turned around . His uncovered left eye narrowed as he stared in a certain direction .

The air had changed . It was something which couldn’t be expressed .

Felicia sensed it as well . It was a gut instinct .

Someone was approaching from afar .

“Shutra . ”

Felicia looked at the Tears of a Dark Elf on her finger as darkness swallowed up the ruin .

&

In-gong opened his eyes . He raised his upper body, gasping for air like he’d had a nightmare . He looked reflexively at the Tears of a Dark Elf hanging on his neck and stood up suddenly .

The purple Tears of a Dark Elf had lost its light . There was no glimmer left at all .

Why?

In-gong didn’t think any further and called out to White Eagle .

&

Coincidence and inevitability—

They were a tangled mess .

The Death Knight looked toward the south .

The War Knight felt the tide of conflict .

Too far away…

There wasn’t much time .

The Famine Knight raised his foot at the entrance of the ruin .

He took a step inside .