The Ruins of Lashutku
Flutter.
I stared down at the scraps of paper scattered across the floor, my expression entirely calm.
The map showing the location of the Lashutku Ruins had been torn to shreds, but I remained utterly unfazed.
The Koshat siblings, however, looked on in absolute horror.
"W-what... in the world...!"
"..."
"H-how... We trusted you completely. Why would you do this...?"
Natalia Koshat choked on her words.
She glared at me with eyes full of resentment, but she couldn't bring herself to finish her sentence.
Even in her mounting fury, she knew exactly who she was dealing with.
A Sword Master.
And an ancient being.
Those two titles barely managed to keep her reason intact. No matter how angry or wronged she felt, she did not dare openly vent her rage.
"Ugh, grrr..."
Natalia's shoulders trembled violently.
She had a mountain of things to say, but the frustration of not being able to speak them showed clearly on her face.
On the other hand, Marcos...
"Ah."
Thud.
...lost all strength in his legs and collapsed onto the floor.
He stared blankly into space with hollow eyes, clearly unable to accept reality.
I can't blame them.
The only clue to the Lashutku Ruins had been shattered into pieces.
What's more, I was the only one who remembered the contents of the undeciphered map.
"Ah... We're doomed... completely doomed... The captain is going to kill us... Aaaargh..."
I had now become someone the Ruins Investigation Team could never touch.
I had secured the absolute upper hand; they could not refuse whatever demands I made.
At least, as long as they still harbored the desire to reach the Lashutku Ruins.
And there's no way the Ruins Investigation Team would ever give up on their lifelong dream.
I watched as that despairing realization slowly spread across the faces of the Koshat siblings.
The fear that if I kept my mouth shut, the Lashutku they had spent decades searching for would vanish back into the labyrinth of history.
And the cold reality that from now on, they had no choice but to rely entirely on me.
"W-we really... trusted you and handed over the map..."
"..."
"..."
Well, it seemed the Koshat siblings believed I had torn the map out of some malicious intent to gain leverage.
Of course, this was all a misunderstanding.
I didn't really tear the map for that reason, though?
The timing was just a bit coincidental.
I hadn't expected the Koshat siblings to arrive at this exact moment. That was why it looked like a dramatic performance of tearing the map right in front of them.
In truth, my action was merely a prerequisite to entering Lashutku—specifically, one of the steps to unlock the "Opener."
I quickly calmed Natalia Koshat down.
"Calm down and look around you, Koshat."
"...?"
Natalia paused and looked around.
Biorf, Selena, Targon, and Isaac Berylof.
Even Pean and Adelia.
Everyone was heavily armed and packed, looking ready to set off on an adventure at any second.
With backpacks, weapons, potions, and other gear, they were fully prepared.
Despite the map being torn to shreds, their expressions were perfectly calm. They had already heard the explanation from me.
"Huh...?"
Natalia seemed to finally notice the strangeness of the situation.
Why is everyone ready to leave? Her face asked the question.
"W-what is this?"
Natalia asked, looking bewildered.
And then...
"We are heading to the Lashutku Ruins now."
"...!"
The moment she heard my words, her eyes widened.
Marcos, who had been slumped on the floor, snapped his head up.
"W-we're leaving right now...?"
What is he talking about?
Natalia Koshat's mind went blank.
She couldn't understand Gaon's words at all.
Going to the Lashutku Ruins...?
She had expected help with deciphering the map, but she never imagined they would start a full-scale expedition right away.
Is it really okay to go on an expedition without the captain's permission?
The Ruins Investigation Team required headquarters' approval to conduct an expedition. This was especially true for a large-scale site like this.
No, wait... How is he going to find the way there when he just tore the map to pieces in the first place?
Did he memorize the entire complex layout and routes concealed by all those codes?
That wasn't something a human could do.
Countless other questions flooded her mind, but Natalia ultimately couldn't say a word. All because the man before her was an "ancient being."
Then, Gaon asked in a calm voice.
"Do you need more time?"
"What? Oh, no... It's not that."
Natalia shook her head.
She was a true explorer. The type who was always fully prepared to set off on an adventure at a moment's notice.
Therefore, leaving for the Lashutku Ruins right now wasn't an issue.
However...
"...If we leave so suddenly, what about the auction?"
The Lashutku Ruins were important, but the auction for the Heavenly Dragon Bird's carcass was just as crucial.
Missing that auction was unthinkable.
But hearing this, Gaon merely replied in his usual calm tone.
"There is no need to worry. We will return before the auction begins."
"...What?"
Marcos questioned.
"The Lashutku Ruins must be located somewhere in the uncharted territory beyond the Silk Road... Won't it take days just to travel out there?"
Most undiscovered ancient ruins lurked in perilous, uncharted lands.
After all, if they were in a safe place, they would have been found long ago.
The same went for the Lashutku Ruins, which had slept through the erosion of history for hundreds, if not thousands, of years.
Smirk.
But Gaon merely let out a faint, amused smile.
It was the look of someone who knew "something" the Koshat siblings did not.
"...?"
Seeing this, the Koshat siblings could only grow more bewildered.
Could the Lashutku Ruins be right next to Dawnguard? Or was he capable of teleportation?
"Seeing it with your own eyes will be faster than any explanation."
Rustle.
At that moment, Gaon gathered the torn pieces of the map and handed them to Selena.
Selena took them, scattered the fragments into the air, and chanted softly.
"...Flowing Fire."
Whoosh!
Flames rippled like waves, enveloping each scrap of paper as they burned.
Soon, smoke and ash intertwined, slowly forming the outline of something.
And then...
"W-what is that?"
Between the charred scraps of paper and the gray smoke, the shape of a keyhole slowly began to manifest.
"I assume everyone is ready."
Rustle.
Gaon reached into his coat and pulled out an old key.
Then, he quietly inserted it into the keyhole floating in midair.
Click!
A clear, sharp metallic sound echoed.
It sounded as if something that had been in a deep slumber was finally waking up.
Rumble!
The next moment, a rift began to tear open in the air.
As if reality itself were cracking, the world split in two, and a "gate" began to open.
Beyond the rift lay a landscape entirely different from the room.
Lush vines and massive leaves filled the view, accompanied by damp humidity and dense, dark greenery.
Past that, moss-covered stone steps, clearly part of an ancient ruin, led down into the darkness of the forest.
"What in the world..." Natalia Koshat muttered, her voice trembling in shock.
The others in the room were no different.
A look of sheer astonishment washed over everyone, including Selena.
This was not teleportation magic. It was the work of a far greater mystery—a supernatural phenomenon that literally warped space itself.
Then, Gaon spoke, his expression carrying a trace of solemnity.
"In the ancient era, when the great ones roamed the continent, mysteries and magic beyond modern imagination were commonplace."
"...!"
"What you see now is but a fraction of that greatness."
Everyone's eyes wavered. Their gazes were a mix of respect, awe, fear, and confusion.
"Now, let us go see the last remnant of the empire ourselves."
"..."
"..."
Step, step.
Gaon moved forward and stepped through the rift in the air.
An ancient wind blowing from the other side brushed past his hair.
Everyone watched his retreating figure in a daze. Then, as if possessed, they began to follow him one by one.
The Koshat siblings also crossed the mystical gateway with trembling hearts.
And the moment they finally crossed the rift...
"Wow..."
...the Lashutku Ruins, awakened after thousands of years of silence, revealed themselves before them.
You have entered the Lashutku Ruins: Entrance.
The system notification popped up the moment I crossed the rift. Glancing at it, I looked straight ahead again.
It looks exactly like it did in the game...
Steps made of worn stone stretched endlessly. The staircase rose so high it gave the illusion of climbing into the sky.
Step, step.
Without anyone saying a word, we began to climb the stairs.
As we walked in silence, Pean spoke up softly.
"How fascinating," he said, turning his head left and right.
"I cannot sense the breath of life anywhere in this forest. It seems we are the only living beings in the vicinity."
That was only natural.
These ruins were essentially a mirror world.
It was easiest to think of it as a different dimension—similar to entering a "Trial."
Perhaps it was best described as a dungeon replicating the ruins of the past.
"Wow."
"It's magnificent."
Before long, a vast, open space revealed a grand fortress.
Though it bore the rust and crumbling scars of time, it boasted a level of preservation hard to believe for a structure from the ancient era.
Everyone stood with their mouths agape, marveling at the sheer scale of the architecture.
"That must be the entrance."
Marcos was the first to snap out of it. He pointed toward a spot and began to move, and the group followed him toward the massive gate.
Before long, we stopped in front of the fortress gate.
The gate leading inside was tightly shut, its surface densely engraved with complex characters and various geometric patterns.
"This is..." Marcos muttered, adjusting his glasses.
"It looks like a riddle written in the ancient tongue. It seems we have to solve this to open the gate."
"..."
"The sentence structure is incredibly complex. Forget solving the riddle, just deciphering it would take at least a week..."
Turn.
Marcos trailed off, turning his gaze toward me.
At the same time, the others began to look at me as well.
"Lord Gaon...?"
Adelia called out softly.
Her expression was filled with anticipation.