The Sky's Graveyard
Can they really be let go like this?
We stood overlooking the ground, watching Sung-i and the children as they descended from the flying gaori.
Originally a five-person squad, they had now dwindled to three.
Berk, who had taken a beating from Ray without mercy, and the nameless fellow who had been pierced straight through by Leaf’s water jet.
With Berk, there was a chance—barely. A potion could have saved him.
But what’s the point of saving someone who looks like trash?
I had no intention of using even the most expensive potion from the explorer’s supply just to play nurse.
If Seon had kept his mouth shut, maybe I wouldn’t have to worry about it.
Anyway, Ray clearly felt uneasy about just sending them away.
And Leaf was the same.
“We saw Roman-nim’s magic, right? Even if the branded Sung-i is another story, the other two… they’re a bit…”
“Hmm. In my opinion, neither of them will stay alright.”
Sung-i was a strong mage.
Senior rank, but according to him himself, he was one of the candidates for Expert promotion.
That explained why Berk had kept stressing he was a Senior candidate.
“He’ll either kill them or turn them into the same miserable bunch as himself.”
They had learned way too much about Sung-i.
The humiliation of being subdued by three Novice explorers.
And the secret research on ancient ruins they’d been hiding from their own Grave Diggers.
Sealing their lips had been more than necessary.
“Besides, they should have at least one servant to work for Sung-i.”
Finding Demonologists wasn’t easy.
Even in the city, where people hunted them with fire in their eyes, the Abyss Worshippers were slippery as hell.
If tracking Demonologists wasn’t enough, it would be faster to just keep an eye out for anyone who stumbled upon ruins.
“Speaking of which, I heard there was another massive search-and-destroy operation in the city after the training facility incident.”
I couldn’t remember the details while focusing on the license exam.
Those who dared touch the Grand Duchess—well, they must have been handled without a trace.
Anyway, let’s leave the fates of the two of them to Sung-i.
Ray and Leaf weren’t fully convinced, but they both gave the same look—okay, I guess.
Once the matter of Sung-i was settled, Ray brought up something else.
“But that brand thing is straight-up rigged. Why not just brand whoever’s a Demonologist and dump them on the next person?”
That was a one-dimensional way of thinking, Ray.
She had finally picked up a bit of the Demonologist vibe.
I laid out the basic knowledge I had learned from Mea.
“One week and you’ll be a Demonologist too.”
“The efficiency of branding isn’t one-to-one. There’s the risk of a reversal of master and servant.”
There’s no absolute in this world, just like there’s no guarantee that a brand will always protect the owner’s spot forever.
If a branded low-rank Demonologist ends up contracting with a higher-ranking demon than the actual master, the brand can trigger a reversal.
Of course the master will suppress the branded one thoroughly, but the chance of a surprise reversal always exists.
Chasing down the summoning circle of a high-ranking demon is as hard as finding a shooting star in the sky.
At the very least, a skilled Disenchanter might just rip the brand off.
Bottom line: branding isn’t perfect.
“So Sung-i is in danger too, right?”
“Yeah. We could go back to the city and get it removed.”
“Hmm…”
In theory, it was possible.
Theoretically speaking.
“If you can, go for it.”
That was a waste of time.
“Let’s drop the Sung-i talk.”
Time to get back to our own work.
Leaving the breathtaking view of the first layer of the Abyss beneath the flying gaori behind, we turned our eyes back to the ancient ruins we had left.
§
“Maybe… if we keep tapping this place, we’ll find something else.”
In the corridor where three glowing orbs scattered light of different sizes, we followed Leaf’s instructions and tapped the ceiling.
“Seriously? This simple?”
Doubt icon.
Don’t believe it. That’s how you get disappointed.
Ray-sensei’s signature question: if you never trust anything from the start, you never get disappointed.
“…When did I ever say that?”
“Didn’t you?”
I clearly remembered Ray saying it.
“I didn’t!”
“Oh, sorry. My bad.”
Must have been the other teacher’s teaching.
While I bickered with Ray, Leaf answered.
“It’s not that simple. The thickness means you need to put in a decent amount of mana to make it count.”
Our team had way too much mana, so we could afford the brute-force approach.
“Even then, it’s too straightforward.”
“Maybe Sung-i’s team was only focusing on magic stuff?”
Sung-i’s team probably didn’t have as much mana as us, so instead of this dumb, physical search, they’d be better off just hunting for magical devices.
“That could be. They said they brought people in for trap removal.”
An Expert candidate making that kind of mistake?
“Exactly. Smart people focus on what they know and end up missing the important stuff.”
“Sounds plausible.”
After that, the only sounds were the tapping on the ceiling and walls, heavy silence.
A tedious loop of the same boring task.
Maybe that was why Ray had asked earlier if this was the right way.
Honestly, I had laughed on purpose after tiring myself out on the same ceiling, wall, floor routine from that prank.
I was proud of myself.
Leaf tapping the floor with her staff.
Ray punching the walls bare-handed.
And me hitting the ceiling with Axis.
All of us doing our roles perfectly.
And finally.
Effort paid off.
The resistance transmitted through Axis had changed for the first time.
“Leaf.”
“Huh? Ah! We found it!”
“What? Found it?”
While Leaf kept tapping the floor methodically as she walked, Ray shot forward like she’d been shot.
“As expected, Roman! You did it!!”
The shout made my ears ring.
This was a lion’s roar?
How long had she been holding it back?
Ray’s cheers were overflowing with pure joy, almost bordering on a scream.
“My ears are hurting.”
“Come here! Want a hug? Want me to pat your tail?”
“…No thanks. It’s not confirmed yet.”
I was dying to touch it but held back.
“No, just once…”
“I’ll check! Roman-nim, this way.”
Before I could refuse, Leaf blocked me.
“Just touch it when I say, okay? I’ll check!”
I followed her lead and carefully examined the spot where the strange sound had come from.
“This is it, right?”
“Yeah. When mana is infused, it reaches farther over here.”
There was resistance whenever mana was added to an object.
The level of resistance told you if there was empty space behind the wall.
“It looks pretty thick. I’ll try to cut it first.”
“No need. Stand back. I’ll smash it.”
“…Ray, you know we’re underground, right?”
If I just smashed it like that, the whole underground could collapse.
Ray stepped back with a cluck.
She was acting like she was retreating in front of a barrier.
“Undine, cut along my finger.”
Leaf carefully carved out the rock plug blocking the corridor with precise movements.
Her craftsmanship was flawless—angled just right so the lower side would be heavier once removed.
“Done!”
Rumble rumble—
Just as designed, the rock wall slid out cleanly.
The hidden corridor had finally revealed itself.
“Hehe, how is it?”
Undine had the skill, but Leaf had taught her the moves.
Leaf stood there proudly beside the fallen rock plug, like a sculptor showing off her masterpiece.
Ray fired a brutal review at her.
“You could have just had Roman move it.”
“Eh…?”
Leaf turned to me with wide, teary eyes, looking like a kicked puppy.
Feeling a little guilty, I replied hesitantly.
“Well, you started before I could say anything. And I might have stepped on a trap with Blink.”
We had confirmed no magical traps, but we had no guarantee against regular arrow traps.
“Good job, Leaf. It’s great.”
“…I’m not happy at all.”
Leaf puffed out her cheeks in clear dissatisfaction.
I poked her puffed-up cheeks to let out the air and gently pushed her back.
“Let’s go up. I’m already excited.”
Even with my or Leaf’s body enhancement, the height was no problem.
All three of us simply leaped into the ascending corridor above.
The ascending corridor was a simple straight path, just like the one below.
At the end stood a grand door.
“Kuuuuhhh! Open for meee!”
And of course, the door refused to allow the entrance of illegal intruders.
The door that wouldn’t budge no matter how hard Ray pushed with full body enhancement looked like it was solemnly declaring we didn’t have the right to enter.
I stared at that door silently.
No flashy decorations, but the plain, heavy structure itself created a crushing pressure.
I recognized it.
We were intruders.
Tomb robbers without comparison.
We had no way to open this door.
But.
“So what can you do?”
It would just let us pass through.
“Thanks for nothing.”
Pfft—
The door stayed closed, yet it allowed entry to the inside.
And beyond it, there really was.
A flying altar to the sky.