The Secret Room (2)
"Whoa!!! This is it!"
"But how do we open this thing?"
"Priest!!"
The open secret room wasn't difficult to find thanks to the map. The problem was that while the map showed the location of the secret room, it didn't explain how to open it.
Realizing we had no clear method to open the secret room, we naturally turned our eyes to Melody.
"What do you think? Do you see anything?"
"It feels like some hidden space might suddenly appear like before."
Under everyone's expectant gazes, Melody examined the surroundings. However...
"It appears the door was designed with a mechanical device. The heretics didn't use any power here, so there is nothing I can do."
Contrary to our hopes, Melody delivered the answer that this was one task beyond her abilities.
"Tsk, I thought this would be easy too. What a shame."
"Can't be helped. Let's tear the place apart!"
It was disappointing that things wouldn't go smoothly. From here on, we'd have no choice but to probe around at random. Since this was a living space for heretics and connected to the secret room, it was filled with all sorts of miscellaneous furniture.
"Cough! Cough!"
And the dust was thick enough to choke on.
"Goodness, Priest. You don't need to do this rough work."
"Everyone's moving, so I can't be the only one sitting out."
"Look over there."
When I followed the team member's pointing finger, I saw someone calmly resting. It was...
"The mages are over there resting on their own, aren't they?"
"Ah."
It was the mages.
"You can rest like them, Priest. We can handle this area ourselves. Trust us and leave it to us."
"I'll poke around a bit and rest if it gets too tiring."
After making that promise, I was looking around again when...
Click—!
"Huh?"
I had been absentmindedly running my hand along the wall when I felt something give way beneath my fingers.
Grrrrrind—!
And sure enough, the room began to change.
"Huh? That statue just rotated, didn't it?"
"Who did that?"
"I think it was me."
I raised my hand at the leader's question.
"What exactly did you do?"
"I was just touching the wall while walking around and felt something click and press down. That's all. Shortly after, I heard the statue moving."
"Well, well. The priest really is doing everything himself."
"We couldn't get a feel for what we were supposed to find, but if it's mechanisms we need to activate, it looks like we have to touch things directly instead of just looking..."
"I'll examine the statues!"
The guides began identifying which statues had moved and which ones hadn't. And then...
"Found one!" Click—!
"Found another over here!" Click—!
It took a little longer, but one by one they started discovering the devices. Each time a mechanism was found, a statue moved, and we guessed this was the process of aligning the keys.
"It seems we need to find one device for each statue."
"Two statues left, so we just need to find two more."
We moved diligently to locate the remaining two. And finally...
"All done!"
Rumble— Rumble—
When all five statues had shown movement, they began to shift together at the same time. Their mouths opened wide, and smoke poured out from within.
Hiiiiisss—!
"Is it safe to breathe this?"
"Try not to touch it if possible."
"Whoa!"
The white smoke grew thicker and gathered at the center. By the time it became so dense the floor was invisible, the statues' eyes glowed green and their mouths finally closed. As the smoke slowly drifted outward and cleared, a staircase appeared before us.
"The ancestors from three hundred years ago were insanely advanced..."
Someone muttered upon seeing the staircase, which made everyone burst into laughter at once.
"If we'd known the heretics could develop and use devices like this, we could've made a fortune. Whether they utilized the Labyrinth's own mechanisms or possessed the technology themselves, we'll find out once we head down. Let's go."
"It's dark below the stairs, so I'll make a few more torches."
After preparing the torches, Melody and three team members descended first to check if it was safe. There weren't many steps, so the descent was quick.
"Whoa, everyone get down here fast! This is incredible!"
I'd been wondering what we'd see below, but the excited voice told me everything I needed to know.
"He says it's incredible?"
"Let's head down."
At the word "incredible," everyone descended to the basement with faces full of anticipation.
"Wow! What is all this?"
The people who had gone down first were lighting the candles hanging on the walls. Below the stairs, the exact sight we had hoped for was spread out before us.
"Just in case, I didn't touch anything."
"Right. We need confirmation that these things are safe."
"You did well. I'll check them."
Checking wasn't difficult. Cursing valuables wasn't something done easily. Unless these were offerings for the Evil God Altar, the chance of them being cursed was extremely low.
"None. They're clean."
"Ooh!"
"These must be gold coins from three hundred years ago, right?"
"Yes. They probably are."
Beyond the gold coins, the various items demanded more attention. Living inside the Labyrinth would have required substantial supplies.
"It's a warehouse the heretics used."
"There are plenty of monster byproducts too."
"I heard they possessed a lot of expensive things, but this is beyond what I imagined."
"They earned all this through their wicked deeds, right? They're truly evil."
Fortunately, the team members didn't lose their heads over the treasure. Understanding how the heretics had obtained these riches was what mattered.
"I'm not sure we'll be able to take everything. There are more items than gold coins..."
"Princess Reciel asked me to tell you she won't concern herself with what we take from here. Feel free to take whatever you want."
"We don't have to return any of it?"
"Correct. Each person should focus on the most valuable items possible. Take as much as your greed desires, but there is one rule. Do not take so much that it interferes with combat. Also, no disputes while collecting items."
At Princess Reciel's decisive ruling, everyone cheered. Even for royalty, willingly giving up such wealth right before their eyes couldn't have been easy. But this bold decision sent the team's morale soaring.
"Priest, shouldn't you take some things too?"
While the team members scattered around collecting items, I sat roughly on a rock to rest.
"I'm fine."
I already had enough saved money to last a lifetime. There was no need to get greedy.
"After everyone else has taken their share, you can look around and pick something that catches your eye. What about you, Melody?"
"I'm not particularly interested. The Church provides my operating expenses."
The one who had zero interest in personal wealth sat down beside me.
"Aren't you interested in any of the items, Priest?"
"I plan to look after everyone else has taken what they want."
"Your help was the greatest in getting us this far, yet you're not taking anything for yourself. That won't do. I'll have to find something that suits you, Priest."
"Ah..."
Before I could stop her, Princess Reciel had already gone off to find something for me. Given how grateful I was for her kindness, I probably wouldn't be able to refuse whatever she brought back.
"I can't imagine what she'll choose."
"Priest."
"Yes?"
"If this is the heretics' warehouse, wouldn't a high-ranking heretic have prepared a personal vault as well?"
"!!"
I gaped in surprise at Melody's words.
"Do you know where it might be?"
"There are a few places I suspect."
"Then we should search for it immediately."
"I don't think that place can be shown to just anyone."
"Pardon?"
"The energy feels wrong."
A high-ranking heretic's secret vault. The value of what lay before us now was already considerable. If they had gathered the real prizes here, they would have ensured no ordinary person could enter.
"And..."
"And?"
"There may be a Holy Relic."
"Why would a holy relic be in a high-ranking heretic's secret vault..."
"There are records from the past. Information that was kept strictly secret."
If it became widely known that heretics had stolen holy relics, it would be a tremendous disgrace to the Holy Empire. They would have done everything possible to hide it. That was likely why they were concealing the search for the secret vault even now.
"It won't be easy to search for the vault while keeping it secret from the team members."
"Even so, the fact that the holy relic is located in a high-ranking heretic's personal vault must be hidden as much as possible."
"Do you have a plan?"
"We'll likely sleep here tonight. I intend to move at dawn."
"Can I assist?"
"Just be aware of the situation, Priest. It must be done in secret, so I should go alone. What I ask of you is that if the holy relic has been corrupted, I hope you will purify it."
She seemed to assume the heretics wouldn't have simply stolen the holy relic and left it on display. They must have tampered with it somehow.
"I'll need to see its condition first, but I will do everything I can."
"Thank you."
If purification hadn't been necessary, she probably would have found the holy relic alone without even mentioning it to me. I'd heard countless times that heretic inquisitors must be respected and honored. Yet until I actually met one, I had never given them serious thought.
Even after hearing they hid things because they weren't good to be known, I had thought, do they really need to be that cautious?
But now I understood how wrong that indifferent attitude had been. Living alongside her made it impossible not to see. On the contrary, the respect I was showing now felt far from enough compared to the work they did. Without the heretic inquisitors, the world would likely not be this peaceful. Those who sacrifice their lives in complete secrecy deserve far better treatment, I believe.