Chapter 114
After their first night on the Third Floor, which could be called a predestined encounter.
We were still staying in Grove City.
If asked why we hadn't departed immediately, I'd answer it was because we hadn't confirmed our destination yet.
"How about the Tree Hollow of Repentance? Where Philon went last time."
"Why bother? Wouldn't the Hero's Stone be better?"
While Leaf and Rei bickered over their differing opinions, Mea, sitting beside them, took advantage of their weakened guard to subtly shift closer.
"Roman. Is it okay to leave them like this?"
"Hmm, they'll figure it out."
"No. That's not what I mean."
Shouldn't we hurry?
Mea's eyes seem to say.
This Abyss trip was an expedition with an already determined destination.
Mea knew this too.
Unlike Leaf and Rei, Mea was there with me before, leading to this destination.
Having clearly seen others come first and take everything, it was understandable for Mea to worry.
Though we secured the journal, there was no rule saying there was only one.
If copies existed, there was a real possibility those who secured Cordelia's ruins first might move ahead.
Though Hecate and Costin, two top-tier personnel, decoded it, it was highly unlikely the other side lacked such talent.
After all, they were the ones who discovered the ruins that started all this.
However, it wasn’t like I was being completely leisurely either.
"We still have time, right?"
"Being there first is better. First-mover advantage is big, Roman."
"I know that. But being second has its advantages too."
And I value the latter more.
Getting there first would be nice.
But that was no different from allowing potential enemies at our back.
Detecting enemies' arrival with barrier techniques?
Well…
That probably won't work as well as we'd hope.
Our team's barrier techniques aren't that exceptional.
Even Mea, who could set up proper barriers, was just average from a specialist's perspective.
She was even below my classmate Holson, a true barrier specialist.
Considering Holson was still Regular rank, the gap between specialized and non-specialized magic was quite significant.
"We can supplement with Devil Magic."
"It still has to borrow barrier technique frameworks. It’ll be meaningless if they're dismantled."
Even strengthening barriers with Devil Magic became useless if they completely dismantled the barrier itself.
"In that case, better to arrive exactly on time."
If there were traces of those who came first, we just moved assuming enemies were present.
It’d be perfect if we could gauge the enemy's scale.
"Even better if they clear the inside traps for us."
"Hmm..."
"If they clear the path, we just need to 'jump' in at the end."
My victory plan was based on experience.
We actually did swallow up ruins that Bong-sik had worked so hard to find and excavate.
Though with some arrangements.
While then we firmly subdued Bong-sik before leisurely picking the fruit, this time we'd steal without fighting.
Though I said our primary goal was revenge, honestly it's still too much right now.
Just imagine if someone like the Professor was there.
Even with Mea and Svetlana joining, it might only extend our lifespan by a few minutes.
The Professor who could mark Viola.
It was better for our well-being to assume the Abyss Worshippers and Cult of the End were that dangerous.
"I understand."
Mea still seemed to have doubts.
Indeed, Mea had good instincts.
My insistence on cutting it close with timing had another reason besides what I mentioned.
Namely, Svetlana's presence.
Traveling with Mea was fine.
She learned about Cordelia's legacy before Rei and Leaf.
If Mea wasn’t allowed, neither were Rei and Leaf.
But Svetlana was different.
Her role was an advisory dispatch sent by Conquerors to evaluate and monitor us.
Same team, different guild.
Strictly speaking, Svetlana was an outsider.
How much of our information could we safely share with her?
I still hadn't found a clear answer to that.
Obviously, we couldn't tell everything.
Any clues suggesting Cordelia were strictly forbidden.
That name carried enormous weight that could move the entire city.
Even bound by a contract, we couldn't know how Conquerors would react.
It was fortunate that Costin and Hecate, our fate-sharing community, were organization heads hard to move and had suitable proxies.
Otherwise, they would have definitely found a way to follow.
Now we really should decide.
My mind spun rapidly while having this brief conversation with Mea.
Finally, I called Svetlana, "Svetlana, I have something to say."
"...Lana is fine."
I wondered how the incident with Blobel affected her mindset.
Though her stiff, businesslike tone remained unchanged, she offered permission to use her nickname.
"Let's do that, Lana. Please speak comfortably with me too."
"Understood, Roman."
"First, about our destination."
At my opening, Lana showed slightly tense signs.
Rather than actual tension, it was probably a gesture showing how intently she was listening.
Her small consideration made the next words easier to say.
"It's a kind of ruin."
"Ruins? You mean undiscovered?"
"That's right."
The Third Floor was still unexplored land whose boundaries weren't fully known.
New ruins and artifacts were still being discovered.
So my mention of undiscovered ruins, unlike on the First Floor, wasn't such a shocking event, but it was far from unremarkable.
"We learned about it through various connections."
"...I heard you had connections with Hand Shadow."
Wonder where she heard that from.
No, I did move quite openly. Conquerors probably figured out the general situation even if they didn't know all the details.
Not just Conquerors, but other major powers or organizations with excellent intelligence too.
"Let's skip that story. However, there's one problem with the ruins we're heading to."
Strictly speaking, there were two, but one was just the usual threat present in any ruins, so excluding that.
Then only one remains.
"There are competitors."
Like a veteran, Lana immediately hit the correct answer.
"That's right."
"Who is it? Paragon? Mistral? Rosenfeld? Whichever it is, you can face them, Roman."
Lana confidently listed the names of the Five Major Guilds and Three Great Clans.
Pride without any pretense.
As Conquerors' purebred and next-generation core, she had the right to such confidence.
But unfortunately, our enemies weren't those who responded to such peaceful means.
"They're Abyss Worshippers."
Perhaps, even the Cult of the End.
§
Splash. Splash.
While Grove City was wrapped in darkness, enjoying night's comfort.
Outside the city remained covered in forest shadows, light and darkness intermingled.
But night came to the forest too.
Specific areas.
Though just a small part of the entire forest, places dense with trees that adjusted their light emission following time obeid the flow of time.
And there, Blobel was waiting for her promised visitor.
"You were here."
"Precise. Annoyingly punctual."
"Wasting time is a sin."
"Ah, is that so."
Blobel spoke with mixed sarcasm, "Well aren't you special."
Rather rough talk for a collaborator or trading partner.
But the other party asked about something else, seemingly unconcerned.
"Just you alone?"
"Yes."
"Hmm... Gauron didn't come himself. He couldn't have misunderstood the importance, so you cut him out."
"...So?"
Is there a problem with that?
Blobel narrowed her already sharp eyes even more as she asked back.
Dark fur that couldn't possibly be human began sprouting one by one on the back of her hand hidden in her sleeve.
The speed of that fur's growth would change depending on the other's answer.
"As long as you can interpret it, it doesn't matter. But don't forget. I'm only responsible for your safety until entry. After that, you're on your own."
Even if you, the Naturalis Branch Head's disciple, die, I won't get involved.
Though the other party's words were beyond cold to the point of heartlessness, Blobel preferred it that way.
"I know. I'm prepared."
"With escorts, you probably won't die. Follow me."
As the man passed by Blobel, she signaled to those following her and followed behind.
No further conversation continued.
There wasn't particularly anything to say, and more than anything, Blobel was more tense now than at any other moment.
Call it experience, or stubbornness.
Though she somehow managed to keep it from showing outwardly, her inner state was completely different.
Because Blobel herself clearly recognized the danger of what she was about to do.
What she was about to do was a taboo breaking the city's laws.
Because it was collaboration with Abyss Worshippers.