Chapter 137: Eternal Spire (23)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 137: Eternal Spire (23)
After entering the Northern Ruins, the party scanned their surroundings.
"Tia, where’s the large monster?"
"I don't know. It was definitely here, but it suddenly vanished without a trace."
"Everyone, use your Presence Detection skills and stay on guard."
At my command, the party moved as one. I closed my eyes and focused my senses. I could feel something massive approaching us from underground, accompanied by faint vibrations.
"It's underground."
At my words, everyone drew their weapons. The twenty of them quickly formed a battle formation.
A low rumble echoed from beneath the ground. Moments later, the earth split open, and a giant snake with smooth, dark red scales lunged at the party, its maw wide open.
[Gatekeeper Sirpense Lv. 60]
"─── Chains of Pitch Black!"
Following Tia's high-speed chant, black chains materialized in the air and bound the giant snake's body.
A volley of attacks rained down on the restrained snake.
The snake's scales were tougher than expected, deflecting most of the attacks.
Lauren leaped onto the snake's body, running up it and raising her axe toward its neck.
-Rumble!
The giant snake thrashed, pulling Tia's chains taut. Lauren, maintaining her balance, dug her feet into its scales and launched herself upward.
"Haaap!"
With a sharp cry, her axe flashed through the air. But at that moment, the snake's tail whipped through the air, aiming for Lauren's torso.
"Luminous Arrow───!"
At Isia's shout, an arrow of white light shot from her bow. The glowing arrow shattered the snake's tail to pieces.
Seizing the opening, Lauren's axe sliced down, plunging into the snake's neck.
-Sliiiice!
Sirpense's head was severed by Lauren's axe and fell to the ground.
-Thud─!
The giant snake's corpse crashed to the ground, shaking it. But the joy of victory was short-lived; black smoke erupted from the severed neck.
"Fall back!"
At my shout, everyone retreated. The energy spewing from Sirpense's corpse flowed toward the dungeon entrance.
The moment the black energy was sucked into the dungeon entrance, it formed a glowing sigil. Then, the dungeon doors began to slowly open.
-Creeeeak!
The heavy, dark red doors opened slowly, revealing the dungeon's interior. The structure resembled an ancient temple. Snake sigils were carved into every pillar, and hundreds of snake statues lined the walls.
Tia moved close to my side.
"Should I scout ahead?"
"Please do."
Tia nodded and raised her hand. Black mist rose, forming several snakes that quickly vanished inside.
"There's nothing ahead except for a temple and some statues. I can also see something like a stone monument inside the temple."
A moment later, Tia replied in a panicked voice.
"Seo-yun… something's wrong. My summoned snakes suddenly aren't obeying my commands."
'Just as I thought. This dungeon is related to Tiamat.'
The snake statues, the sigil on the door... everything was similar to the Tiamat-related dungeons that appeared on the 10th and 15th floors in the original story.
'The only thing that bothers me... is the presence of this temple.'
This was a different layout from the Tiamat dungeons on the 10th and 15th floors. The only comfort was that this dungeon appeared on the 6th floor.
'If it's on the 6th floor, the bosses should be weaker than the ones on the 10th and 15th floors.'
Having finished my thoughts, I addressed the party.
"We're starting the dungeon raid now. No one let their guard down."
The guild members nodded. We slowly made our way inside the dungeon.
As we stepped inside, ominous, dark red flames flared to life, illuminating the dungeon's interior.
I scanned our surroundings. There was nothing but the snake statues, lined up in rows facing the temple.
"Tia, are your summoned snakes still not responding?"
"Yes. They're not even responding to my summons."
Hearing her answer, I slowly took the lead and walked toward the temple. The party followed behind me.
Upon entering the temple, I saw a large stone monument in the center. It was surrounded by even larger snake statues than the ones we'd seen outside.
I approached the monument to read the inscription carved on it.
[In the distant past, the great serpent's─────]
The rest of the inscription was broken off, making it impossible to read.
'This is a phrase I've never seen in the original story.'
Reading the unfamiliar inscription on the monument, my thoughts grew complicated.
Just then, Tia, who was standing beside me, placed her hand on the monument without a word.
"Tia?"
I called out to her, but there was no response. Sensing something was wrong, I quickly grabbed her arm to pull it away from the stone.
-Thrum!
Suddenly, a massive tremor spread throughout the dungeon. At the same time, a powerful shockwave erupted from Tia's body, knocking me back.
"Ugh..."
I barely managed to right myself after being thrown back and looked toward Tia. She was floating in the air, limp as if she had lost consciousness.
"Tia!"
I shouted, but Tia's eyes were already unfocused. Her violet eyes were slowly turning gold.
"Sir Seo-yun! Something is coming from the monument...!"
As Lauren cried out, the monument cracked and black mist surged forth. The mist writhed like a living creature as it was absorbed into Tia's body, and a dark red jewel appeared on her forehead.
"Everyone, get back!"
At my shout, the guild members quickly retreated. But the dark red energy pouring from Tia's body was shaking the entire dungeon.
"Dammit…"
I bit my lip hard.
"Sir Seo-yun… your orders…"
Lauren stood beside me, ready for battle.
'I can't lose Tia like this.'
The slightest misjudgment could mean losing her forever.
"Everyone, stay on guard for any sudden developments. Defensive stances only."
"Yes, sir!"
Following my command, the guild members fell back and maintained their defensive formation.
[The Fallen Fragment has recognized the remnants of Tiamat possessed by Yekaterina Oleg.]
[Dungeon difficulty is being adjusted.]
[Dungeon Boss is changing from Weakened Leviathan to Tiamat's Fragment.]
Suddenly, a flood of system messages appeared. Tia's body began to tremble more violently.
"Kyaaaah!"
Tia's scream echoed through the dungeon. Something like a snake's tail began to grow from her back.
[The Fallen Fragment, the Serpent Empress, awakens.]
The system message vanished, and the being that had taken over Tia's body slowly opened its eyes.
Golden eyes scanned the surroundings.
"Huhu… This fresh air, it's been so long... You have no idea how long I've waited."
The moment her voice spread, the air in the dungeon grew heavy and sank.
[Tiamat's Fragment Lv. 99]
'A fragment? If this is just a fragment... then what in the world is the main body like?'
The pressure felt like it was crushing my entire body, but I couldn't back down. Then, the floating woman slowly swept her golden eyes over each of us.
Her gaze was like that of a predator, slowly savoring the sight of its prey.
"Huhu… Pathetic humans. To dare set foot in this place... I suppose I should commend your recklessness."
She slowly tilted her head and smiled. It was a smile mixed with ridicule and contempt, radiating an overwhelming presence.
Clutching my sword tightly, I had to ask.
"What happened to Tia...?"
Hearing my words, she tilted her head slightly, the corners of her lips curling up.
"Tia?"
She chuckled lowly, her voice soft yet sharp.
"Ah, are you perhaps referring to that weak child who dared to harbor my power?"
She continued in a leisurely tone.
"Soon, that child will have the honor of becoming a part of me. This body and soul are no longer hers."
At her words, I gripped my sword and stepped forward.
I gritted my teeth, tightened my grip on my sword, and took another step forward.
"So she's still alive."
Hearing this, she let out a deeper laugh.
"Huhu… How foolish. No matter how you struggle, a fate already decided cannot be changed. It is that child's destiny to fall under my dominion."
"We'll see about that."
At my firm tone, she tilted her head as if intrigued.
"Pathetic human. I shall watch and see just how long that dull will of yours can last."
She smiled, making an elegant gesture with her hand. At the same time, the surrounding snake statues began to crack and tremble.
-Crack! Crack!
The statues shattered, revealing giant snakes with dark red scales inside.
"I shall grant you a test."
Her voice echoed throughout the temple, and the snakes began to move toward us, letting out sharp hisses.
I raised my sword high and shouted.
"Everyone, maintain battle formation! Don't let your guard down for a second!"
The guild members quickly formed up at my command. I took a step forward, glaring at her.
"I look forward to seeing how pathetic your struggles will be. Do try to entertain me."
She lifted her hand lightly, and the snakes charged at us in unison, screeching sharply.
-Krrrrrrk!
Six giant snakes attacked from different directions. The eyes of the dark-red-scaled snakes glowed crimson.
"Isia, ranged support! Lauren, take one! The rest of you, support Lauren and Isia!"
I issued my commands as I raised my sword. The guild members moved swiftly, taking their positions.
First, Isia's arrow of light flew through the air. It aimed for a snake's head, but the arrow was blocked by the hard scales and scattered in midair.
"Master! The scales are too hard!"
"Aim for the eyes!"
At my shout, Isia's arrow flew toward a snake's eye, but despite its massive size, it swiftly turned its head and dodged.
"Haaap!"
Lauren's axe struck a snake's scales, but the hard surface was unscathed. If anything, the axe blade seemed to have dulled.
"Dammit, what kind of monster is this..."
Lauren gritted her teeth and fell back.