Chapter 227: Eternal Spire[R-18] (52)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 227: Eternal Spire[R-18] (52)
I headed for the northern ruins where Tia was waiting. This time, I was alone.
Along the way, I ran into Austin, Kang Hyun-woo, Yoon Jae-ho, and Baek I-jun, who had just finished their boss fight and made it to the 7th floor. They were a miserable sight. Their armor was torn in various places, and their faces were caked with a mixture of blood and dirt. Austin’s left arm was wrapped in a blood-soaked bandage, and Yoon Jae-ho had a cloth tied over one eye.
Among them, So-young stood relatively unscathed. She looked exhausted, but she didn't appear to be injured.
So-young is safe.
They spotted me and froze. I shot them a smirk.
"You all look like hell."
Baek I-jun's face contorted. I could feel the killing intent in his eyes.
"What's with the glare? You brought this on yourselves, didn't you? Why work so hard for nothing? You should've just hitched a ride and taken the easy loot."
My words made all their faces twist with rage. Baek I-jun, in particular, clenched his fists as if he couldn't hold back any longer.
"Shut up..." he growled through gritted teeth.
"Shut up? That's a bit harsh. You're hurting my feelings," I provoked him again. The air around us seemed to freeze.
Kang Hyun-woo stepped forward, blocking Baek I-jun. As always, he was trying to maintain a calm expression, but I could see the anger simmering in his eyes.
“Did you come here just to mock us?”
“Hey, don’t you think you’re making me out to be too much of a scumbag? I was just passing by.”
Austin placed a hand on Kang Hyun-woo’s shoulder and stepped forward.
"Jin Seo-yun... if you're not here to mock us, then just pass by."
"I'd love to, but you're blocking the way. Or should I force my way through?"
At my words, Austin's face stiffened slightly. He glared at me before speaking to his group behind him.
"Make way for him."
At his command, the members of the guild alliance slowly parted to either side. Baek I-jun and Yoon Jae-ho also reluctantly stepped aside.
As I walked past them, I said, "Oh, right. Night Bloom always welcomes beautiful women. Virgins get bonus points, so think it over."
The expressions of the female members from the various guilds turned complicated. Some didn't hide their disgust, but a few looked interested.
*
After sprinting for a while using my lightness skill, I reached my destination.
Dozens of half-crumbled ancient buildings stood tall over the wasteland, and at their center rose a massive spire that seemed to pierce the sky. The top of the spire was shrouded in clouds, its end out of sight.
Night Bloom guild members had already established a camp around the ruins. I was pleased by how efficiently they were moving. When word of my arrival spread, the guild members all bowed their heads in salute.
When I reached the spire's entrance, a set of massive double doors came into view. The doors were already open, and a faint blue light was seeping out from within. Tia was standing in front of them. Her long, sleek purple hair fluttered in the wind, and her violet eyes sparkled when she saw me.
"You're here."
"Any trouble?"
"I was waiting for you. We've made an important discovery."
"Sounds like you found something."
"Yes, I think it's best if you see it for yourself. Let's go inside the spire."
Tia led the way into the spire. The moment I crossed the threshold, a cool breeze brushed against my skin. In contrast to the scorching heat outside, the interior was surprisingly cool.
The spire's interior was much better preserved than I'd expected. The floor was made of smooth marble, and the walls were covered in intricate carvings. The high ceiling made the space feel overwhelmingly vast. A faint blue light emanated from the walls, dimly illuminating the interior.
"This way."
Tia led me deeper. The further we went down the corridor, the stronger the blue light became. Finally, we reached the end of the corridor, and a wide, circular hall was revealed. In the center of the hall was a huge, round device, and guild members were bustling around it.
"This is the central hall," Tia said. "That device in the middle is the key."
As I got closer, I saw that it wasn't a simple stone statue but an elaborate mechanical device. Several concentric circles were drawn on a round disk, and in the center was a crystal emitting a blue light.
So this is the Celestial Map from the original story.
"According to the characters written below it, this is called a Celestial Map," Tia continued to explain. "It wasn't working when we found it. But it was accidentally activated while we were investigating."
I slowly circled the Celestial Map, examining it. Symbols of the twelve zodiac signs were engraved on the concentric circles, with ancient characters written under each one.
"This represents the twelve signs of the zodiac."
As I muttered this, Tia asked with a surprised look, "You knew?"
"A little."
I pointed to each symbol on the Celestial Map as I continued.
"Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces."
Each time I pointed to a sign, that section glowed faintly. After I had pointed to all twelve, the crystal's light grew stronger.
"But there's something strange," Tia said, pointing to the edge of the map. There, separate from the twelve zodiac signs, was a symbol that looked like a thirteenth constellation.
"Ophiuchus. The serpent-bearer."
The moment I said the name, the thirteenth symbol shone with an intense light. Simultaneously, a powerful beam of light shot up from the crystal in the center of the Celestial Map toward the ceiling.
"What is this?"
The guild members stepped back in surprise. The beam of light hit the ceiling and spread out, transforming the entire ceiling into what looked like a night sky. Countless stars were embroidered across it, and they gradually began to move.
"It's amazing..." Tia murmured, looking up at the ceiling in awe. The stars moved to form the twelve zodiac signs and Ophiuchus.
Then, suddenly, the central crystal began to vibrate intensely. The vibrations grew stronger, and soon the entire Celestial Map began to rotate.
"Everyone, back away!"
At my command, all the guild members retreated to the walls. The rotating map spun faster and faster, and the blue light intensified. Then, in an instant, a pillar of blue light erupted from above the Celestial Map.
The pillar of light gradually widened, transforming into a massive circular portal. Beyond the portal, a completely different landscape was visible: a blue sky, a lush forest, and a majestic mountain range in the distance.
"Is this... a portal?" Tia asked in a shocked voice.
"Yes."
I slowly approached the portal. Up close, I could see the scenery beyond it in detail.
Tia also came closer to inspect the view beyond the portal and muttered, "That's... the Valpus Mountains on the 4th floor, isn't it?"
"That's right. This portal lets you travel between floors."
"Does that mean we can move between floors quickly without going through the boss rooms?"
I nodded, watching the portal as it stabilized. The symbols of the twelve zodiac signs and the thirteenth, Ophiuchus, were engraved around its border. I then noticed a small groove carved into the Ophiuchus symbol.
What's this?
I gently touched the groove on the Ophiuchus symbol with my finger. It looked like a slot for inserting something.
There was nothing in the original story about this...
Even as I wracked my brain, I couldn't recall any mention of inserting something into a slot on Ophiuchus. Something that deviated from the original story's setting existed here.
Tia came up beside me.
"What are you thinking so hard about?"
"Oh, just wondering what this groove is for."
"It looks like a slot for inserting something."
Tia examined the portal's border closely.
"Look, the other zodiac symbols have similar grooves. They're smaller, but..."
As she said, the symbols of the twelve zodiac signs also had small grooves. Aries, Taurus, Gemini... every single one had a groove carved into it.
"It seems the Celestial Map has a hidden function."
"I think so too."
"For now, let's investigate the map slowly. What about the other areas?"
Tia nodded and replied, "We've explored most of the other sections of the spire. The underground waterway, the eastern clock tower, and the western observatory. They're all in good condition, but we haven't found anything special."
"Are there any places you haven't explored yet?"
"The very top floor of the spire. The tower is so high that we haven't been able to go up yet."
"There must be a separate way to get to the top floor. Have you checked if there are any stairs or devices in this central hall that lead up?"
Tia nodded.
"We found a few staircases, but they were all collapsed or blocked off midway. But there is something over there we haven't checked yet."
"Lead the way."
Tia nodded and started walking. We moved through a corridor leading east from the central hall. The walls of the corridor were adorned with murals depicting constellations, and the ceiling was embedded with intricate star-shaped carvings.
"This way."
Tia entered a small room at the end of the corridor. Inside the room, a circular metal plate was installed on the floor. Intricate constellation symbols were engraved on the plate, and a small slot was carved in the center.
"We haven't confirmed its function yet, but we think it's some kind of lift device."
"That's right, it's a lift."
I took a magic stone from my inventory and inserted it into the slot.
As I did, a blue light began to emanate from around the metal plate. Once the magic stone fit perfectly into the slot, the entire lift began to vibrate, and the constellation symbols lit up one by one.
"It's working."
Energy radiated from the magic stone, and the lift began to ascend slowly. The walls rushed past us, and even in the darkness, I could see constellation symbols engraved on them.
She looked around in wonder and said, "It's mystical. I wonder who could have built this?"
"I don't know either."
I didn't know who built the spire either. It was never mentioned in the original story.
The lift gradually slowed down and finally came to a stop. A new space opened up before us.
"Looks like we've arrived."