Ruinxen's Pit
Ruinxen's Pit. It was a place no one who had settled here could possibly be unaware of. Of course, there wasn't actually a pit inside the city. The term referred to the alleys deep within the urban sprawl. People called it the Pit for two reasons. First, because it was pitch-black with not a single light, and second, because once you went in, no one ever came back out.
[Smells bad. The stench of death. Blood, rotting corpses... I've seen plenty of human cities, but this is the worst one yet.]
Kalderet, following behind Adel into the alley, tilted his head side to side as he spoke.
"Yeah?"
Unlike him, Adel deeply inhaled the nose-stinging foul odor as if it were familiar.
"Definitely... the worst spot around. But just as gods exist even among those wallowing in shit, this place is still home to people all the same."
Adel stepped forward without hesitation.
"Just because something looks clean doesn't mean it's free of bloodstains. Royals and nobles... those so-called noble folk? Their lives can reek even worse than this."
[You sound like you've had it with them.]
"Something like that. Not sick of them exactly... more like bored. The desert's simpler by comparison. Kill or be killed. Eat or be eaten."
Adel shrugged at that, ending the thought.
Kalderet knew exactly what that gesture meant. He'd seen it often in their conversations. It was a signal to drop it.
[I'm a god, but I can't foresee the future. Even gods can't have that power, or human lives would be set in stone.]
"True enough."
[But you can make guesses. In the end, the center will be the survivors, right?]
Adel gave a wry smile at the question.
He hadn't shared much about his previous life. Especially not about the continent's future.
"Who knows. It's the future, like you said."
The previous life and this one were clearly different. Even if history had unfolded that way before his regression, it wouldn't repeat exactly. That's why he'd come back.
To stand at the center, not the sidelines.
Adel steeled himself once more and pressed deeper into the Pit's alleys.
"Hmm. Should be around here."
Navigating the narrow, twisting paths—perfect for getting lost without a single streetlamp—Adel felt along the wall.
"Here it is."
He confirmed an old rusted ring embedded in the wall, then touched the ground. Unlike the dirt-covered floor, his hand met cold metal.
Without hesitation, he gripped the manhole cover's handles on both sides and twisted.
Clunk.
The lock released.
[A high-tier blessing seal. Only those with a blessing can enter. Clever. Putting a barrier on a manhole cover like this.]
"Means it's that important."
[Humans are so unpredictable.]
Whoosh—!!
Garon's fireball plunged into the passage below like a torch, illuminating the surroundings. Strangely, its light seemed absorbed by the darkness, barely lighting more than its immediate area.
[What's this? It's not just the cover—the whole tunnel's sealed. Who the hell pulled off something this insane?]
Fwoosh...!Crackle...
Garon ramped up his divine power, offended that the darkness had swallowed his flame. The shadows hissed as if trying to snuff it out.
"Better stop. The barrier spans the entire underground waterway. Even you can't break it."
Adel eyed Garon wrestling with the dark.
[What kind of barrier is this? Even if your body's not fully formed yet, to suppress divine power... Does something like this exist? Unless it's a priest's restraint.]
"That's exactly it."
[...Huh?]
"The barrier was made by priests."
Adel stared at the black mist roiling like unleashed poison gu.
"Not the current church, though. Much older ones."
[Ancient times...? Back when the Arun Asar lived?]
"Right. Rumor has it this was one of the temples that worshipped ancient gods."
[Remnants of the Arun Asar... I didn't know any survived.]
Garon sounded startled.
[Now that you mention it, there's a faint whiff of eternal water—the kind only they used.]
[What're you smelling, mid god? Eternal water evaporated ages ago. All I smell is the rotten stink from the barrier.]
Grrr...
Kalderet swatted at the clinging darkness with a front paw, annoyed.
[This musty reek? Anyone can tell it's Rune'r's. That bastard lived up to his epithet of God of Cessation about as much as a saint—spreading his filth everywhere. Everything's tangled up with him.]
The God of Cessation, Rune'r. Another ancient god, worshipped by the Forgotten Ones.
"Heresy is sweet and easy to fall into. Austerity's hard, grace is fierce. Even those not on death's doorstep like the Forgotten Ones—plenty believe in Rune'r."
Adel agreed.
"They operate in the shadows, but sheer numbers? Might be the biggest faith around."
[Same ancient god rank, yet how different. Some don't even have a single church.]
[Shut it?]
[Heh. But Adel, how do you know all this? Ancient history isn't well-preserved.]
"I know a bigmouth who loves bragging. Heard it from him."
Continental history split into two eras. The gods' golden age, when the Arun Asar lived alongside them—called the Age of Vanishment, when they all disappeared. Then, the prophet known as the Liberator broke the seals, freeing the gods back into the world. That was now.
In short, Ruinxen had been built atop an ancient temple site.
The greatest land to serve gods now hosts the continent's most lawless city. Ironic, in its way.
Adel thought that as he looked ahead.
"Anyway, it's just hearsay."
[From who?]
"That's..."
Adel glanced at Kalderet beside him.
[Enough chit-chat. Let's get out of this creepy dump.]
Kalderet spoke in a slightly irritated tone.
The hero who freed the gods from their prison. Worthy of praise from countless divinities—except one, to whom he was an arch-enemy.
I didn't know the Liberator was Ulan tribe's founder, Ghost Commander Alkan Temir.
He shrugged at Kalderet's back.
"Hey. Who the hell are you, barging into the Pit? Never seen your face before."
That was when it happened.
Adel, striding fearlessly through the impenetrable dark, looked up at the voice from the opposite side. The moment he heard it, he knew he'd cleared the alley.
Gatekeepers.
The darkness lifted. The sticky sensation wrapping his body vanished.
[Barrier's gone.]
Kalderet shook himself lightly, as if finally relieved.
[Using the ancient city's ley lines, but still—to erect a barrier this strong? Rare talent on the continent. Wonder who owns this place.]
"You'll meet them soon."
Two massive men emerged from the shadows. They loomed over Adel, gripping huge halberds. Their faces were hidden by crude iron masks pieced from metal scraps, but the eyes glinting within burned an unnatural red—not quite human.
"Hey. How'd you get here? This ain't a place you just stroll into. Lucky bastard—making it to the maze's end."
"Don't call it luck."
"...Hm?"
The gatekeeper eyed him at Adel's words.
"Whatever. You're here, so no need for explanations. That's the rule, right? I'm looking for something. Want to meet the Queen Spider."
"Looking for what?"
"A person. And a few other things."
"Sounds like the 'few other things' are your real goal, not the person."
"None of your business."
Adel tried to walk between the hulking masked men.
Clang—!!!
Their halberds crossed in an X, blocking his path.
"What's your connection to the Queen Spider?"
"Hm. And you?"
"...What?"
Adel glanced at them.
"I didn't come here to chit-chat with small fry like you. Don't make this annoying."
"Stop. Can't just let you in. Even if you cleared the maze, no identity check, no entry."
"...Identity?"
Adel looked up.
"I'm the king of Azal Kingdom."
"What bullshit..."
"Or maybe a grand duke of a duchy?"
The gatekeeper looked baffled.
"That get me in?"
Adel flashed a cold smile.
"Since when do Pit gatekeepers check status? Without the Queen Spider's permission, you shouldn't let anyone in."
"...What?"
"Even a grand hunter or imperial guardian—without her say-so, no entry. You were gonna let me in once I proved my status?"
Their faces twisted despite—or because of—Adel scolding them with blades at his throat.
"Means if she permits it, I can enter."
"Haven't heard a word from the Queen Spider. You're not authorized."
"Yeah. But that cuts both ways—if no one's stopping me, I can go in."
"...What?"
Shing.
Adel drew his sword. Or rather, it was already drawn. The sound wasn't just steel leaving its sheath.
"...Guh!"
Blood sprayed from the throat of the gatekeeper blocking him, a red arc in the air.
"Leaving one alive. You're coming with me to get the Queen Spider's permission. Hands up if you wanna live."
"You bastard...!!"
"...Kill him!!!"
The gatekeepers charged Adel in unison.
"Haa, what a pain. Maybe just decapitate and carry the heads."
Adel shook his head at them.
Changing the future was harder than expected. Come to think of it, this was how it went in his previous life too. In Ruinxen, fists spoke louder than words.
"That's why I like it here."
Thud—!!Smack!!!
After his low mutter, dull thuds began filling the Pit.