"And how exactly will we know if you die inside? " Corin asked.

"Mine watchers, that is how we will know. And yes I object. " Eugene said.

No, Eugene you are not supposed to object.

"And why is that, Eugene? " Marcus asked.

"Because we do not know enough about the tunnel or how long it is. The mines of Clianthra may have become treacherous, but they are a known quantity. There is a difference between reclaiming an old part of the mine and taking an unknown tunnel. For one the mines are person height. This tunnel is not. '' Eugene replied.

"I think we should stop talking and go in. The nobles will be catching up soon. And we just wasted half of our head start. If Marcus is willing to take a few people and test the mines then I will go with him. " Argus interrupted. "And so will my people. "

Eugene opened her mouth to once again protest, but was hushed by the crowd moving away to reveal a few people. It would seem that his squad had arrived.

“The mine watchers are ready, Marcus. If we hurry, we can have the tunnel done in three hours.” Larvis, his best friend said.

“Three hours!” Corrin yelled “The nobles will have caught up by then!”

“And that is why I think the tunnel is not the way. There is no time to test it. Not anymore. The meeting might have been a bad decision, I should have known that nothing would be decided. Either we all go, or none of us do. And now we don’t have time to try anything else.” Eugene stated.

“No. There is no way Mellisda can travel in her condition. There must be-” Marcus began protesting at that point before Argus interrupted him.

“I am sorry sir. I truly am, Lady Mellisda is like a mother to me, but she and her child will have to bear it. Thankfully she is not far enough in that it's not an option at all. Here,“ Argus held out a handful of pills- “These are the last of the Qi pills the Count gave us. Not the most effective, but eating one whenever she feels pain should allow her to keep the baby.”

“Aren’t those just a bit of lettuce with Qi pored in?” Eugene commented.

“Yes, but that doesn’t stop them from working. There is an old legend that my father used to tell me, about how the founder used Qi to grow the crops for the first time in the infertile lands of the Kingdom. Qi is versatile, the nobles are foolish to use it only to fight when it can do so much more.” Argus said. Ah, there was the naive enthusiasm that had earned him a seat at the table.

Marcus reluctantly took the pills, saying, “I shall find a way to pay you back.”

Argus’ face softened as he said, “A glass of milk for a glass of gold. Repayment is hundredfold. And that be the common man’s hoard. That is an old tale sir. I still remember how you took me in when my father died. It might have been just for a couple of months, but it has not been forgotten. What did you say then? That we’re all brothers that help each other? Then this is just a brother helping another out.”

Marcus nodded and gestured for Larvis to give him a mine watcher. “These are devices that the forward team shall wear on their wrist. If anyone of us dies then they will release a shrill sound, warning the ones behind. I’ll lead the way.”- he turned to his wife- “I think it's time for me to go.”

Mellisda just looked at him judging, “Oh, like I didn't know that. Please, I am used to you leaving to explore every mine that opens up. At least this time I am coming with you.” Mellisda replied. “Remember what I always tell you?”

“That you will always remember me and cry every day if I don’t come back. So if I don't want you to cry then I should come back.” Marcus replied dutifully.

“Now go, shoo.” Mellisda waved him away.

Marcus nodded and sped off towards the tunnel. This was something he had learned, faking enthusiasm could sometimes generate real enthusiasm. And what was more enthusiastic then running towards something? Behind him, Larvis followed suit. And neither of them even stopped for the tunnel, jumping in and using the ground to slow tier descent. This wasn’t their first stint in the underground. Not even their hundredth. The Cilanthria mines were hundreds of years old, there were entire sections of it that had been lost to time because its owners refused to spend money on it.

But after then the mines started running out. Immediately the Count had called for the opening of the old mines. It was a complicated mess, in some cases the mines ran up to two hundred feet deep, held together by Qi reinforced walls and in other places it was merely twenty feet deep and collapsing. It really depended on whom the Count was and what their mood was.

This tunnel? It was nothing.

Aswelth

Aswelth stood upright before the pass, summoning his Qi. Half of his total Qi pool. It was surreal, building this tunnel would have been some commoner’s job back in the heart of the Kingdom. No high ranked cultivator would ever think of doing it unless it was a part of some fancy strategy to win a battle.

But it made so much sense for him to do it. It would take commoners months of dangerous, backbreaking work to build a ten-foot wide tunnel. It would still be uneven, need constant maintenance and be a drain on the duchies' resources.

But him? All it would take was a few hours worth of Qi, and he would make a twenty-foot wide tunnel that was uniform, Qi reinforced and reliable. Of course, he was a peak Plant stage cultivator, on the same level as the Dukes of the Kingdom. And he would love to see one of those brats or their Generals build something.

And their fathers, Grand Dukes! A Treeling could probably make an entire cave system in a few minutes. The King’s late grandfather had supposedly built the great road that ran right down the center of the entire Kingdom in a single night. With a single spell. The power of a Tree.

But now Aswelth had something better to do, he had a tunnel to build. Qi pushed into the ground as it erupted before him, a twenty-foot wide tunnel forming before his eyes.

Marcus

Marcus had to admit, the tunnel had been both a better host and a worse one than he had thought. There hadn’t been any of the feared blocks or interruptions. Not even a place where the tunnel narrowed. Or widened. It was far too rocky to be man made and far too uniform to be a natural.

But Marcus couldn’t care less about who made it and why as long as it led him somewhere. At this point he would take the Jade Sect even if he was labelled a traitor. Sigh, he wondered what his wife was doing right now. Argus’ pills should be keeping her safe.

“Everything ok there Marcus?” Larvis said from behind him. Oops, Marcus might have forgotten that he was supposed to have been leading the way.

“Yes, just thinking.” Marcus replied as he resumed walking.

A step forward, one more, then another. It was monotonous, boring and even demotivating. There was no way to know where the end was, it could be just around the corner, or another hour's journey away. Eventually, the tunnel began curving. Slightly, unnoticeable to anyone that wasn’t an experienced miner, but Marcus was exactly that. But in the end it was just something he could do nothing about.

It was about twenty, maybe thirty minutes later that something changed. Small at first, but then growing bigger, the tunnel started shaking, a light rumble that you could feel below your feet. And then as they continued onward, it grew.

From an irritating hum to an unmistakable vibration that seemed to vibrate the very air before him. Knowing that going back was not an option, Marcus yelled. “Run forward! Be mindful of your neighbors!” As he ran forward as fast as he could.

After two minutes, the rumbling stopped and a huge thudd was heard. And then the tunnel was flooded with light. Blinding light that forced him to close his eyes and keep them shut. And then, Marcus panicked. The light devoured all of his thought, his breath quickened, his heart began running faster than it had ever before in his life.

Letting go of all control he stepped towards the source blindly, trying to find its source and SHUT IT DOWN. Except all he did was flail around in the air as he tried to find it. A part of him noted that he was standing straight, something that he had not been able to do just a few minutes ago, but the rest of him was still panicking.

Panicking that was, right up until he clashed against a tunnel wall and opened his eyes by mistake. And there before him was a wall, brown as it should be. But what was not normal was the gooey feeling on his leg. Hesitant, Marcus looked down at his leg to see that it was dipped in green blood. Green Blood that led to a large, very obviously dead mongoose.