Chapter 118: The Correct Path

Chapter 118: Chapter 118: The Correct Path

"Your idiotic nonsense is more aggravating than that ghostly wailing."

Seraphina Sinclair’s voice was still steady, but to the others, it sounded completely different.

Setting aside the burst of Speed she’d just shown, one look at Magnus Barrett’s condition was enough to tell the story. This woman wasn’t someone who wouldn’t fight back!

But that was precisely the issue. Magnus Barrett had tried to fight back, but Seraphina Sinclair had shut him down instantly. The moment that slap landed, he was all but out of Combat Ability. It was terrifying.

But Seraphina Sinclair’s warning wasn’t over. "If you can’t control your mouth and your impulses, next time it won’t be as simple as a couple of slaps."

She leaned down, close to Magnus Barrett’s ear, and added in a hushed voice only the two of them could hear, "Don’t forget, the system only said to cooperate. It never said we couldn’t eliminate a nuisance who’s dragging us down. If I want you to disappear, I have plenty of ways."

With that, she straightened up, not sparing another glance at the pathetic Magnus Barrett on the floor. Her gaze shifted to Hannah Morgan and Milo Shaw, her tone returning to its previous calmness. "Now, it’s quiet. Let’s get back to studying this lock."

She turned back to face the giant door and its suspended lock as if nothing had happened, leaving behind nothing but a cold, powerful back and a trembling Magnus Barrett on the floor, shaking from a mix of pain and fear.

But things had changed now. In the most direct and brutal way possible, she had instantly established who held the absolute authority in this small team.

Milo Shaw looked at Magnus Barrett, then exchanged a quick glance with Hannah Morgan. They both saw the shock, lingering fear, and a hint of relief in each other’s eyes—relief that they weren’t the one who had provoked Seraphina Sinclair.

As if nothing had happened, the two of them followed Seraphina Sinclair with a silent, mutual understanding to examine the lock.

It’s common knowledge that opening a lock can be tricky, but locking one should be simple enough.

Hannah Morgan carefully observed the shackle. It was currently in the raised position, disengaged from the lock body’s clasp.

"We should be able to lock it just by pushing the shackle back down," she said in a low voice, though her tone was hesitant. "But... this lock looks very unusual. Could it be dangerous to touch it directly?"

"Try this." Milo Shaw pulled a piece of cloth from his backpack’s side pocket. "Using this as a buffer is better than using your bare hands."

Hannah Morgan was a bit confused; it was strange to bring something like basic cloth into a dungeon.

Milo Shaw raised a hand to rub his head and explained with a smile, "I use it as a handkerchief, that’s why I have it on me."

Seraphina Sinclair nodded. She took the cloth but didn’t make a move herself. Instead, her gaze fell on Magnus Barrett, who was struggling to get up from the floor.

"You." Her voice wasn’t loud, but it carried an undeniable, commanding tone. "Get over here."

Magnus Barrett’s whole body stiffened. The sharp pain in his gut and the burning sting on the back of his neck were stark reminders of what had just happened.

He met Seraphina Sinclair’s cold, emotionless eyes, and fear instantly overwhelmed his anger and pain. He didn’t dare hesitate for a second. Stumbling to his feet, he walked over with his head bowed, not even daring to meet her gaze.

"Use this. Push the shackle back down." Seraphina Sinclair handed him the cloth, her tone flat, like a final ultimatum. "If you open the door instead, I’ll kill you before anything else happens."

This wasn’t just a threat. To the astonishment of the others, she drew a longsword from thin air, and its Blade, naturally, was placed right against Magnus Barrett’s neck.

It wasn’t that Seraphina Sinclair was being overly cautious. With someone like Magnus Barrett, he wouldn’t listen unless there was a blade at his throat.

And the longsword that had appeared from nowhere left everyone completely stunned.

Milo Shaw was dumbfounded, his understanding of common sense shattered. He looked around in disbelief, trying to find a reason for this violation of the laws of physics. His gaze toward Seraphina Sinclair was filled with utter horror.

Hannah Morgan’s shock was more restrained but no less intense. Her breath caught, and her pupils constricted.

’She instantly ruled out all conventional possibilities. Her mind raced with paranormal explanations—spatial storage, special abilities... This damn place was full of bizarre phenomena. Thinking about it that way, a sword materializing from nothing wasn’t so strange.’

But this paradigm-shifting moment elevated her perception of Seraphina Sinclair from ’ruthless companion’ to ’an anomalous being with unknown aces up her sleeve’.

’I absolutely cannot get on her bad side.’

Magnus Barrett swallowed hard and took the cloth with a trembling hand. He now understood completely: in front of this woman, his strength and ferocity were useless. He didn’t dare entertain any other ideas. All he wanted was to obey, lest he suffer an even more terrifying fate.

He carefully placed the cloth over the lock, took a deep breath, and then, with all his might, slammed his weight down on it!

"CLICK."

A crisp yet unusually heavy sound of a mechanism locking into place echoed, completely different from the sound of a normal lock. It was as if some long-dormant contraption had been reactivated.

The instant the lock clicked shut, the hexagram on the door and all the surrounding runes pulsed with a dim, dark light, flashing once like a breath before vanishing!

The incessant, bewitching, and mournful female voice was abruptly cut off, as if strangled by an invisible hand. It let out one final, piercing shriek before falling silent!

The corridor plunged into a true, deathly silence.

The sudden quiet was disorienting for everyone. The only sounds were their own ragged breaths and pounding hearts.

But in the midst of this silence, a new, even more heart-stopping sound came from within the heavy door!

"GRIND... GRIND..."

It sounded like some massive, ancient gears were beginning to slowly turn, or perhaps heavy chains dragging against a stone wall.

Then, under their shocked and uncertain gazes, the section of the stone wall next to the door—which had previously looked seamless—began to emit a low grinding sound. It slowly receded inward and rotated, revealing a dark, narrow staircase leading down, just wide enough for one person to pass through!

"A new path!" Milo Shaw exclaimed in a low, pleased voice, a look of relief washing over his face.

Hannah Morgan also let out a long sigh, her taut nerves relaxing slightly. "It looks like we did the right thing! Reinforcing the seal to stop whatever’s inside from getting out was the correct choice."

Seraphina Sinclair made her longsword disappear. Before she could say anything, the sound of crunching and clicking, like joints snapping together, reached her ears.

"Ah!" Chloe Reed suddenly let out a short scream.

Everyone snapped their heads up to see Chloe Reed staggering back two steps in terror, pointing at the scattered skeletons.

The skeleton that Magnus Barrett had kicked apart began to tremble. Then, with a series of grating scrapes that set their teeth on edge, its scattered bones wobbled, reassembled themselves, and it stood up!

The black, empty sockets where its eyes should have been stared fixedly at Chloe Reed, who was closest to it!