When Heinald looked into the passage, all he saw was a gate that looked like a mine entrance, and pitch black.
He came back without doing anything and went to inform the others. Soon everyone had gathered around the stone.
Galer came to the stone and, after examining it closely, extended his hand towards the stone. As his hand entered the stone, he nodded slightly and asked, "How did you notice that?"
"Look carefully at the stone. The stains and marks repeat one another, it's obviously unnatural." Heinald pointed to the tracks.
Ajna said, "Well caught."
"Well, now that we've found the entrance, it's time to make a Blood Agreement. The conditions are simple: If Azarb Serpent really exists and we manage to kill him, everyone will receive an equal share of his body. No one will make a hostile or malicious move towards each other during and after the fight."
Once everyone agreed to the terms, Galer began preparing the Blood Agreement. When the terms were written on the door and the Blood Seal was drawn, everyone dripped a drop of their blood on the seal and the Blood Agreement became active.
"Let's go." Galer moved slowly into the stone. The others entered the stone after him.
Galer created a fire in his palm and illuminated the surroundings. With the illumination of the fire, old stone stairs appeared that led down.
Everyone began to carefully descend the stairs. They were careful with every step they took in case of a trap.
In particular, Heinald was paying attention not only to the stairs he stepped on, but also to the stone walls and ceiling to the side. If there was a trap, it would come from where they least expected it.
After descending the stairs for several minutes, they came to a place that smelled musty. It was completely empty and there was a slight dampness on the ground. The environment was extremely quiet and the sound of water drops could be heard quite clearly.
After looking around for a while, they saw that there was a narrow corridor ahead. They started walking down the corridor in single file. The water level began to rise under their feet as they walked down the corridor.
"The water has reached such a level that we can't see the floor. I hope it's not hiding any traps." Heinald muttered softly.
"I don't think we'll find a trap here, although I'm not sure. After all, this isn't an ancient treasure dungeon. If we're lucky, all we'll find is an Azarb Serpent." Galer spoke uneasily.
Labas said, "The corridor we are passing through is very narrow. It is impossible for an Azarb Serpent to pass through."
When the corridor was finished, they went out into a wide area. The water under their feet had decreased in this area. However, the musty smell that was spreading all over the place was getting stronger.
"Which way do we go now?" ' Ajna asked.
"Look here!" Heinald pointed to the wall in front of their location.
"What is there?" ' asked Galer.
Heinald went to the wall and began to examine it closely. This wall looked like it was built here later. In fact, the place that looked like it was built afterwards was not the whole wall, but a part of it. It was as if it was built with large and small intertwined stones.
Heinald backed up a little and then rushed forward and kicked the wall. With the force of his increased kick, the stones on the masonry broke apart and rolled forward.
"You're pretty good at capturing details!" Galer pursed his lips.
"I guess I am." Heinald grinned.
A long corridor appeared before them again. They started to move forward in the corridor with a slight anxiety that swelled inside, although they did not show it very well. They knew they were going deeper and deeper. After all, they had come here because of an obscure note written on a note of uncertain timing. It could also be a malicious trap.
Heinald glanced at Galer walking beside him and asked, "Do you think the person who wrote the note you found built that wall?"
Galer was silent for a moment, and then said, "It's probably him or someone he knows."
After crossing the corridor, they came to a large hall. The fire in Galer's hand was not enough to illuminate the entire hall, so the others lit a fire as well.
There were various statues of creatures all over the great hall. Other than that, there was nothing. There was no corridor or passageway leading to another place.
"And now?" Ajna muttered.
Heinald examined his surroundings carefully and said, "There is no way to go anywhere else."
"Maybe it's hidden by a wall again?" Galer began to carefully look around.
Labas nodded and said, "The walls look exactly the same."
"Please let's not just come here to see the beast statues…" Aleinar spoke in a tearful tone.
"There must be something we overlooked." Heinald thought out loud.
"Maybe there's a hidden path and we haven't noticed it." Labas put forward an idea.
"We didn't go through very large areas, I don't think there was anything we overlooked." Galer shook his head.
"Wait!" Ajna stopped abruptly and pointed to the floor, "There is a line that separates the floor."
Heinald immediately began to examine the floor and realized that there was indeed a line separating the floor from one end to the other.
"Is this place open?" Galer scratched his chin, "There must be a mechanism."
"I don't think they put these statues here for the love of art. There must be a trick here." Heinald began to examine the statues carefully.
Everyone began to examine the statues.
Galer clapped his hands excitedly several minutes later. "Here it is!"
Ajna walked over to Galer and asked, "What did you find?"
There was a ledge behind a gigantic double-headed bat statue. As Galer pressed against the ledge, the floor they stepped on began to tremble.
"Be careful!"
The ground split in two with a loud noise, revealing a path that went downhill.
Galer took one look at everyone and said, "Let's go."
Together they began to advance on the downward path. This road could not be said to be wide, but it was not a narrow road either. There was not the slightest sound around except the sound of their footsteps and dripping water. So everyone was starting to get a little nervous.
"If Azarb Serpent really exists..." Heinald paused for a moment, then continued, "We can get over it, right?"
"It is said that the highest level of power an Azarb Serpent can reach a Level 2 Ainsar's power. Even if this serpent is so, we can overcome it if we attack all attack together."
Although Galer spoke his thoughts openly, he also had some questions in his mind. Azarb Serpent was a very dangerous creature, there was always the possibility that things could go wrong.
What would happen if things didn't go as planned?
He tried as best he could to prevent bad thoughts from appearing in his mind, but he was not very successful in this. He longed to hunt the Azarb Serpent, but he was also afraid to fight such a dangerous creature. It could be said that these feelings were valid for everyone there.
It was Heinald who felt the least fear of them all, because he felt that he was pretty confident with the advantage of the reaction speed his eyes gave him and the potion stock he had prepared before he got here.
Heinald glanced at Aleinar, who was walking beside him, as he continued on the road. This girl was the one who talked the least and she was the one who feared the most, though she tried not to show it. If Azarb Serpent existed, he hoped this girl wouldn't be paralyzed when she saw it. If this girl let fear take over her, she wouldn't be able to attack the Azarb Serpent in an organized fashion with the rest of the team, and it would do more harm than good to the team.
"I might stress her out more if I talk to her about it." Heinald thought of talking to her at first, but after thinking it might make her nervous, he gave up.
When the road was finished, they found themselves in a large round area, it was pitch dark. The fires they lit were not enough to illuminate the surroundings completely. Galer pulled a Light Sphere from his bag and hurled it upward.
When the Light Sphere reached the top, it hung there and completely illuminated the circular space. As the darkness dissipated, a huge coiled body began to appear beyond the area. There were various animal and human skeletons around.
"T-This is…" Aleinar's eyes widened.
-
"Azarb Serpent!" Heinald's expression was extremely serious. The body of this giant creature before him was more than a hundred meters long, and its black scales reflected back the light emanating from the Light Sphere like an impenetrable shield.
-
Azarb Serpent's twisted body began to move. The giant creature's eyes were still closed. When it lifted its head up, its length was about 20 meters. When it opened its eyes, green pupilless eyes began to appear, filling the hearts with fear.