Chapter 272: The Door That Answered

The strange device had barely left Arthur’s hand when the entire chamber trembled, a deep vibration rolling through the stone beneath his feet, so low that at first it felt more like pressure in his bones than a sound.

He looked down. The dark-gold object in his palm was glowing, not brightly, pulsing with a steady golden light, almost like a heartbeat.

Once. Twice. Then—

BOOM.

A shockwave traveled through the floor, and everyone immediately tensed. Kong grabbed his staff. Mithra shifted her stance. Vedas stepped in front of Arthur, golden spear already in his hand.

Luna stared at the enormous door. "The Earth symbol..."

The symbol carved into the center of the door had begun glowing, but that wasn’t the strangest part. The four other circular spaces surrounding it were glowing as well, and for a brief moment all five symbols shone together before the light from four of them faded.

Only Earth remained.

Arthur slowly raised the strange device. The golden lines running through it had changed, moving now, like tiny rivers of light flowing toward the crystalline center.

Athena stepped closer, her eyes fixed on it. "Don’t move."

He stopped. "Why?"

"Because I want to see what it does."

He looked at the device. "That’s usually when something explodes."

Sun immediately nodded. "He’s right."

Athena ignored them.

The device suddenly released another pulse, and this time the entire underground city answered, a thunderous rumble coming from somewhere beyond the chamber, then another, and another. Arthur turned toward the doorway behind them. Golden light was spreading across the ancient city, thin lines buried beneath centuries of dust illuminating one after another, running along the roads and between the ruined buildings, stretching toward the chamber from every direction.

Mithra looked over the balcony. "It’s lighting up."

Luna walked toward the edge and stared down. The ancient roads below were glowing, the roots covering the buildings beginning to move, slowly pulling away from the stone walls to reveal sections of architecture hidden for who knew how long. Ancient mechanisms emerged from beneath the streets. Stone platforms rotated. Massive rings turned inside ruined towers. Somewhere far below them, something metallic groaned as gears that had been motionless for thousands of years began moving again.

Athena’s expression changed. She looked from the city to the door, then to the device in Arthur’s hand. "This entire city was part of the mechanism."

He glanced around. "So the city was the key?"

She shook her head. "No." She looked at the ancient streets beneath them, then pointed toward the device. "The city was the lock."

His eyes widened slightly. "So this..." He raised the device. "...is the key."

She nodded. "I believe so."

Sun looked around at the enormous underground city. "You’re telling me someone built an entire city just to keep one door closed?"

Athena corrected him. "Not one door." Her gaze settled on the glowing Earth symbol. "One Mirror."

The chamber fell quiet. Arthur looked back at the door. For the first time since they’d entered the underground city, it no longer felt like they were exploring a ruin. It felt like they had reached something that had been waiting for them.

The Earth symbol pulsed, and his King Mark responded, golden light spreading across his hand.

Mithra glanced at him. "It likes you."

He looked at his glowing palm. "Apparently."

Sun sighed. "That’s becoming a problem."

Arthur smiled. "Maybe it just has good taste."

"I wouldn’t encourage it."

Before he could answer, a tremendous grinding sound came from the door. The five circular spaces began rotating, the Earth symbol moving into the center, stone shifting, a crack appearing down the middle. Then the enormous door began to open, slowly, very slowly, dust pouring from the edges, a deep darkness appearing beyond it.

Arthur instinctively raised his spear, everyone else following suit, and the opening continued widening until the ground beneath them shook hard enough to make several pieces of stone fall from the ceiling.

Kong looked into the darkness. "Grrr..."

Eden immediately moved closer to him. "I don’t think he likes what’s inside."

Sun stared into the opening. "You know what?"

Arthur glanced at him. "What?"

"We found the Earth Mirror."

He nodded. "Not yet."

Sun pointed toward the darkness. "Exactly. Which means we have to go in there."

"We’re going in there."

Sun’s expression fell. "We’re not going in there."

He started walking. "We are."

"I knew you were going to say that," Sun called after him.

Mithra giggled as she followed. "You knew before he said it?"

"I’ve known him long enough."

Vedas walked beside Arthur, spear resting against his shoulder. "If something is protecting the Mirror, we should expect resistance."

He nodded. "I know."

He looked toward the passage, the darkness beyond the door seeming almost endless. But now that the door was open, they could see something else, the passage descending, and it was enormous, not a staircase, not a simple tunnel, a massive underground route carved directly through the earth. The walls were covered with ancient stone supports, though many had collapsed, roots hanging from the ceiling, some as thick as trees, others broken through the stone and spread across the walls like veins.

But what caught his attention were the marks. Deep grooves had been carved into the stone. Three. Four. Sometimes five lines together.

Athena moved closer. "Those aren’t construction marks."

He looked at them. "What are they?"

She crouched and examined one. "Claw marks."

Everyone went quiet. He followed the marks with his eyes, stretching down the passage, some fresh enough that loose pieces of stone still surrounded them, others ancient, but all of them pointing in the same direction.

Down.

Sun swallowed. "How large?"

Athena looked at the grooves. "Based on the distance between them..." She paused. "...large."

Sun immediately stepped backward. "I vote we go back."

Kong shook his head. "Grh!"

Eden nodded. "Kong says we should keep going."

Sun looked offended. "Of course he does."

Arthur started down the passage. Vedas followed, then Mithra, Melo floating after them, her tails gently swaying, Athy flying overhead, Eden staying near Arthur while Athena and Luna brought up the middle.

Sun sighed before following. "One day," he muttered, "I’m going to learn to stop following Arthur."

Mithra glanced back. "Will you?"

He thought about it. "No."

They descended, the air growing warmer the deeper they went, the glow from the city behind them gradually disappearing until only the golden light from Arthur’s King Mark and the faint illumination from the ancient markings remained.

Arthur occasionally looked back. The underground city was still visible from the upper part of the passage, golden lines continuing to spread through it, looking almost alive. He stopped for a moment, simply staring. The city that had been dead for thousands of years was glowing again, ancient roads illuminating, mechanisms turning, the ruins waking. He couldn’t help smiling. "This place is incredible."

Athena heard him. "You’ve said that several times."

"I keep finding new reasons."

She smiled faintly. "Fair enough."

They continued downward, the passage narrowing, then widening, then narrowing again. At one point they passed a collapsed section where enormous pieces of stone had been torn apart. Arthur crouched beside it. The damage wasn’t from age, the stone ripped open, and he ran his fingers along one edge. Something had passed through here. Recently.

He stood. "We’re not alone."

Vedas immediately tightened his grip on his spear. "Something is ahead."

He nodded, and they continued.

A few minutes later, the passage suddenly opened into a massive cavern. Arthur stopped, everyone behind him stopping as well. Ancient pillars rose from the ground, supporting a ceiling that disappeared into darkness, large patches of earth collapsed from the walls, roots twisting through the cavern.

And in the center—

something moved.

A huge silhouette slowly rose from beneath the earth. Stone cracked. Sand poured down its body. Two massive eyes opened, and then the Beast emerged, its body covered in thick black stone armor, large plates overlapping across its back and chest, each one looking like a piece of volcanic rock, its four legs thick enough to crush a person beneath a single step, two enormous tusks curving upward from its lower jaw.

The Beast opened its mouth. A low growl shook the cavern.

Kong immediately stepped forward. "Grrr!"

Arthur raised a hand. "Wait."

Kong looked back.

Arthur stared at the Beast. Something about it was strange. It wasn’t charging. It was watching them, its massive claws digging into the ground.

He took one careful step forward, and the Beast’s eyes followed him. His curiosity won, and he moved closer.

Vedas immediately stepped forward. "Arthur."

"I’m fine."

"You’re approaching a Chief Beast."

"I know."

Mithra smiled. "He’s going to touch it."

He looked at her. "How did you know?"

"You always do that."

He paused. "...Fair."

He approached the Beast, and it suddenly lunged. He moved sideways, the massive jaws snapping shut where his head had been, the cavern shaking. He slid backward. "Okay." He tightened his grip on Dusk. "It doesn’t like being touched."

The Beast charged, and this time he didn’t attack, only waited, and at the last possible moment he stepped forward, his hand touching the Beast’s stone-covered shoulder.

His vision changed. The world disappeared, golden information appearing before his eyes.

[Species: Obsidian Burrowfang]

[Evolution Path: Obsidian Burrowfang → Blackstone Devourer → Abyssal Earth Tyrant]

His eyes widened. Another piece of information appeared.

[Physical Trait: Obsidian Carapace]

His gaze returned to the Beast. So that’s why its armor felt different. The outer plates weren’t simply hard. They were incredibly dense, ordinary attacks having difficulty penetrating them.

He immediately stepped away. The Beast roared, and this time everyone moved.

Vedas charged first, his golden spear striking the Beast’s side.

[Armor Piercing]

The attack connected, but instead of penetrating deeply, the spear only cracked the outer layer. He frowned. "It’s harder than it looks."

Arthur raised his spear. "Don’t attack the armor."

The Beast swung its massive tail, and Kong jumped over it. "Now!" He descended with both fists.

[Nova Burst]

The impact slammed into the Beast’s back, cracks spreading through several plates. It roared and turned, but Mithra was already moving, her body blurring, appearing beside its hind leg, then the other, then behind it, a series of strikes landing almost simultaneously. The Beast tried to turn. She was already gone. "It can’t turn fast enough!"

Arthur understood immediately. "Keep it facing away from everyone else!"

Vedas moved, stepping directly in front of the Beast and shouting.

[War Shout]

Its attention snapped toward him. He charged, and the Obsidian Burrowfang lowered its head and rushed forward. He didn’t retreat, thrusting his spear.

[Blazing Spear]

Golden-red energy exploded against the Beast’s forehead, the impact forcing it backward. At the same time Sun struck the ground.

[Point Shockwave]

The earth beneath the Beast’s front legs exploded upward, its balance breaking. Arthur saw the opening. "Now!"

Athy dove from above.

[Brave Light]

Golden light struck the cracked armor, and the weakened plate shattered. Melo’s dream mist spread across the cavern, the Beast’s movements slowing, its massive head shaking as it tried to clear its senses. Eden immediately shared her vision with everyone, and Arthur suddenly saw the Beast from several different angles, where its weight was shifting, where its legs were positioned, where its armor had already cracked. "Left side!"

Vedas understood immediately and moved. Mithra struck the exposed joint. Kong hit the damaged armor. Sun’s shockwave slammed into its opposite leg. The Beast staggered.

Arthur rushed forward, its head swinging toward him, and he ducked beneath the tusk, driving Dusk upward.

[Guardian Strike]

Golden light erupted, the spectral Guardian appearing behind him, his spear driving into the already weakened chest plate. The impact sent the Beast crashing backward, stone armor shattering, the enormous body hitting the ground.

For a moment, everything was still. Then the Beast stopped moving.

Arthur lowered his spear, the cavern going quiet again.

A notification appeared.

[Chief Beast Defeated.]

He looked at Vedas, breathing heavily. Then his body began glowing.

[Vedas — Level 27 → Level 28]

Vedas stared at the notification.

Mithra smiled. "Congratulations."

He looked at Arthur, who grinned. "Level twenty-eight."

Vedas smiled back. "We’re getting there."

Arthur glanced toward the enormous passage beyond the cavern. He could feel it. Something deeper. Something ancient. And somewhere beyond all of this was the Earth Mirror.

He looked back toward the city one final time. From this depth, only a faint golden glow was visible, the ancient city still waking behind them.

He turned forward. "I think we’re finally getting close."

Sun sighed. "Why does that sentence always mean we’re about to have a terrible day?"

He smiled. "Because we’re getting close."

Sun stared at him. "That wasn’t reassuring."

He started walking, and the others followed, descending deeper into the earth beneath the ancient city.