Hwarba Ancient Ruins (4)
“Dinner is served.”
When evening fell, rations were brought around. Naturally, none of us touched them. Aside from the obvious risks, the food didn't look particularly appetizing anyway. Not that it mattered to us—I kept plenty of proper meals stocked inside my subspace.
“Thank you kindly,” Dr. Felime said, accepting a bowl as if nothing were amiss. His assistant reached for one as well, prompting me to step in immediately.
“You should eat what we brought instead.”
“Whatever for?”
“Because something might be wrong with that food.”
“Nonsense. These are people I hired myself,” the doctor replied smoothly. “There hasn't been the slightest trouble so far.”
Even if he had picked up on the awkward tension between the camps earlier, was he simply naive because he was an academic? The doctor brushed off the warning far too easily.
“Has it not crossed your mind that there might be a traitor among your hires?”
“A traitor? Impossible... These are men I brought personally. They even prepare our meals separately.”
“And they could have been swayed or bribed once they arrived here. Can you trust them one hundred percent?”
“Hmm.”
Seeing him hesitate, I shrugged and pressed the point.
“You said you uncovered something in the ruins today, didn't you? If trouble is going to brew, it starts now.”
“That...” The doctor flinched.
“Even if your men are clean, another faction could have easily tampered with the supplies.”
The Gate had allotted us three days. A crisis was guaranteed to unfold regardless of our presence, which meant information had leaked somewhere along the line. Of course, the catastrophe might only trigger after the doctor cracked open the site, but caution never hurt anyone.
“W-Wait a minute,” the assistant stammered, his face blanching. “Does that mean they already know about today's discovery?”
“If there's a mole. How many people saw what you found, Doctor?”
“Myself and two laborers. Trustworthy men, both of them.”
“Are you certain?”
“...Well, they have worked for me for years, but...” The doctor's voice trailed off. That meant he wasn't certain at all. Typical sheltered scholar.
“We'd better operate under the assumption that they know.”
At my words, both the doctor and his assistant turned grave.
“About the site you discovered,” I asked. “Can it be deciphered and opened without you?”
“W-Well, now. I only glanced at the exterior before covering it right back up. I intended to head in only after Gerom's help—after you all arrived.”
So nobody knows for sure yet.
If the other side moved first, things would get messy. I pondered for a brief moment before speaking.
“Then how about we go tonight?”
“Tonight?”
“Dawn, to be precise. Before they can make their move.”
Tomorrow afternoon versus the crack of dawn—the latter was clearly superior. Letting the other faction beat us inside was something we had to avoid at all costs. The noble's knights—I wasn't sure of their exact strength, but the glimpse I'd caught earlier proved they were no pushovers.
If they came rushing in later, I could always block them off using my subspace, but getting surrounded in an unfamiliar place would be a royal headache. Moreover, if they entered first and trashed the ruins, who knew what would happen to our gate clear rewards? Slipping in unnoticed would buy us substantial time.
Hm?
A subtle disturbance caught my attention. More specifically, my spatial perception flared.
Outside, someone from one of the other camps was stealthily creeping toward our tent. They didn't seem intent on attacking—more like sneaking close to eavesdrop on our conversation.
That skyrocketed the chances that the doctor's discovery was already known. Even if it was routine surveillance, the timing was suspicious.
“Looks like word has already spread,” I whispered. “Someone's approaching. You need to decide right now. And drop the soundproofing.”
“...Let us do as you say.”
Tossing aside his doubts, the doctor nodded hastily.
“Understood. We move at dawn. I'll give you the signal.”
I signaled the assistant to dispel the soundproofing ward. The magic faded just as the prowler reached the perimeter of our tent.
“So we're starting our escort duty tomorrow afternoon, correct?” I asked aloud, perfectly casual.
“Y-Yes, that is correct,” Dr. Felime chimed in.
His face was as stiff as cardboard—if the spy had seen him, he'd have called out the terrible acting in a heartbeat—but at least his voice carried reasonably well.
Dawn broke.
Before making our move, one chore needed attending to: the eavesdropper from the evening before was still lingering nearby.
Judging by the pattern, they definitely suspect something.
It looked like they were keeping tabs on whether our tent showed any signs of movement. They had even swapped shifts once during the night. I waited patiently for the next rotation, which would ensure the longest possible delay before anyone realized the scout had gone missing.
And that moment was now.
Just as one scout left after the shift change and the replacement ducked into hiding near our tent, I made my move.
Quick and clean.
I set my hands to lock into a choke, drew a slow breath, and used Leap.
A Leap toward a stationary target was trivial to execute with pinpoint precision. My hands clamped around the observer's throat in an instant.
“Urgh...!”
My physical strength bordered on the superhuman. The opposing forces might have been formidable, but a mere scout was nowhere near my caliber. Before the man could even muster a decent scream, the lights went out, and he slumped unconscious.
That bought us some breathing room. Slipping back into our tent, I nudged my guildmates awake with light taps.
“Mmgh...”
“Is it time?”
“Yes.”
Hunters were trained to sleep whenever the opportunity arose, given the grueling nature of Gate environments. Everyone had fallen into a deep slumber through the night. As for me, I had rested comfortably inside my subspace before stepping out to wake them.
The perks of having a subspace.
Next, I Leaped straight into the doctor's tent.
“Eek!”
“Shh.”
Unlike us, Dr. Felime and his assistant hadn't slept a wink. To scholars, a situation like this must have been agonizing. Their faces were pale with exhaustion and nerves, and they jumped out of their skins when I popped into view.
“You should have gotten some rest.”
“I couldn't bring myself to sleep... A monumental discovery is right before my eyes, and enemies surround us.”
“Let's get moving first. It'll stay quiet for a while.”
Since the rival factions kept their distance, the tents were spread relatively far apart. We were able to slip into the excavation tunnel Dr. Felime had dug without drawing attention. The doctor navigated the subterranean passage without hesitation, leading us directly before a dark wall crusted in volcanic basalt.
“This is the place.”
“I don't see anything, though?” Uncle Chul-gi muttered, tilting his head.
Through my spatial perception, however, I could clearly sense the hollow chamber hidden beyond.
Dr. Felime gently pressed his hand against the lower section of the basalt.
With a sharp snap, a loose slab of volcanic rock came away, revealing ancient writing inscribed underneath. He had evidently pried it off during excavation and quickly patched it over to conceal it.
“It was hidden here. I read just a few lines before covering it right back up.”
Was that the part mentioning the Fire Knight and Magma Golem?
Dr. Felime gestured to his assistant. “Erect the soundproofing ward. We will need to uncover this entire section.”
Once the ward went up, the two scholars set to work against the basalt face, chipping away with practiced care. To an onlooker, their painstaking pace might have felt frustrating, tempting one to jump in and smash it open, but it was better not to risk damaging the inscription on the wall.
True to their expertise, it didn't take long before the full surface of the wall was laid bare. Dr. Felime's expression grew profoundly solemn.
“Oh!”
“Oh, heavens...!”
He had been murmuring in awe as he translated the lines during the excavation, but now his brow furrowed deeply.
“Is something wrong?” I asked.
“It is not a problem, per se. Allow me to read it aloud.”
Clearing his throat, the doctor began to translate the archaic script.
“To resist the Erosion of Mana, the great Hwarba unleashed raging flames—a blaze that incinerates magic power itself.”
Erosion of Mana? At that familiar phrase, my head snapped toward him.
“Erosion of Mana? What could that possibly mean?” Dr. Felime murmured, shaking his head. “It claims Hwarba fought against magic power, yet that makes little sense. Burning away magic power with fire?”
“Could it be a metaphor?”
“Perhaps. The legends claim he despised magic power, yet here it is inscribed as 'erosion.' It reads as though he were confronting an enemy. Treating magic power as a foe?”
The two academics looked perplexed, but Uncle Chul-gi and I exchanged knowing glances. We understood all too well.
This world, too, was one that had fallen victim to the Erosion of Mana.
“At any rate, it says he could not overcome the erosion in the end, despite summoning every ounce of his remaining strength to burn away the magic.”
An unsurprising outcome. I didn't know the exact disparity between an Elemental King and a deity, but even worlds watched over by gods and Evil Gods had fallen. Why would an Elemental King fare any differently?
“Hmm. Truly incomprehensible. Magic power clearly still exists, so what could 'erosion' possibly signify? Did magic not exist in their era?” The doctor rubbed his chin in confusion before continuing. “Regardless, the catastrophic eruption and the blazing inferno that engulfed Mount Hwarba eventually subsided, condensing into an essence.”
“An essence?”
“The Essence of Hwarba. The Fire Spirit King... pure elemental flame, perhaps? Or that, too, might be figurative. But to think he truly existed!”
“Doctor!” the assistant whispered sharply.
Ah. So the part he kept hidden from us was this essence.
Dr. Felime waved a dismissive hand. “It is fine. If Gerom sent them, they are far more trustworthy than hired laborers.”
The essence of an Elemental King.
That had to be the hidden—no, not hidden. It had to be the main reward of this Gate.
The Essence of the Fire Spirit King.
Now it made sense why this volcano had violently erupted. If an essence of that magnitude was disturbed or removed, a cataclysm was practically a foregone conclusion.
“It says those who revered Hwarba sealed his exhausted essence deep within this sanctuary to protect it.”
“Does it say anything else?”
“A stern warning for any future arrivals to turn back.”
Dr. Felime pointed toward the lower section—the very piece he had first uncovered.
“The path ahead is guarded by Fire Knights, Magma Golems, and Flame Spirits.”
“Dire shall be the fate of any who trespass.”
“...”
Yeah. I doubted I was the only one who guessed that "dire fate" referred to a cataclysmic volcanic eruption.
Regardless of any explosion, however, our objective was clear: we had to claim that essence.
It's an ancient ruins Gate. We can't walk away without something like the essence of an Elemental King.
There was only one nagging worry: could we survive after taking it? Grabbing the Flame Jade had spawned a Flame Sentinel. Who knew if taking this would summon an avatar of the Spirit King himself?
“What do you wish to do, Doctor? It says it's perilous.”
“We proceed, of course! Ancient knowledge awaits beyond this threshold. Warnings of curses are commonplace in ruins. Though, admittedly, some ruins do harbor genuine curses...”
I had asked just in case, but he was committed. Well, if that was his choice, we'd play along with the story gate's flow.
Even if worst comes to worst...
My guildmates still had their Escape Talismans to warp out if things went south. As for me, I could just hole up inside my subspace until the dust settled. I didn't know the exact grade of the Elemental King's essence, but if it was valuable enough, it was well worth the gamble.
“How do we breach this?”
“It states that we must offer the power of a mighty flame to the center, but...”
Sure enough, a hollow indentation was visible amidst the ancient script. Dr. Felime, who had sounded so resolute moments ago, scratched the back of his head sheepishly.
“Must we capture a Flame Spirit from somewhere?”
“I don't think that'll be necessary.”
I didn't know what the standard Gate solution was supposed to be, but I had two perfectly viable methods on hand. One was to Leap across the barrier alone; the other was simply to bring out Yongyong.
“Yongyong.”
“Krr!”
Having been stashed in the subspace when we met the expedition camp, Yongyong burst out with pure draconic delight.
“A-A Red Dragon?!”
Dr. Felime and his assistant nearly stumbled backward in sheer terror. Apparently, dragons were extraordinarily rare in this world as well.
“He's our companion. Don't worry, he won't bite.”
“Good heavens above... Gerom, just whom did you send to me?!”
Even after my reassurance, the doctor flung his hands toward the ceiling in dramatic disbelief. Well, marveling was all well and good, but we had a job to do.
“Yongyong-ah. Give that spot a little puff of fire.”
“Krr!”
Yongyong unleashed a stream of crimson breath.
With a heavy, grinding rumble, the ancient stone door slid open with ridiculous ease.
Haha.
See that? Our kid's incredible.