201 - The Abandoned Frontier

The report from the western mountains reached Crossroads before Subin's expedition returned, and by the time they entered the city, Sel had already reserved a room for a meeting with the regional representatives. News of the newly discovered underground civilization had spread faster than expected. Merchants wanted access to its mining routes, guild leaders were asking whether the northern territory contained unexplored resources, and several Earth teams had volunteered to investigate the abandoned mines.

Subin read the requests while Ara organized their findings into a single map.

"Everyone wants to go north," Jae-hyun remarked, looking over her shoulder. "We haven't even confirmed that the route is safe."

"They aren't interested in safety," Liu Wei replied. "They're interested in being first."

"Then they'll be disappointed," Subin said. "The Underpass people have lived there for generations. We don't get to treat their territory as an unclaimed dungeon."

That settled the immediate question. Sel would arrange a formal meeting with Commander Varik, while Crossroads would recognize the Underpass settlement's existing territory and require permission for expeditions entering its controlled routes. Beyond those borders, exploration would proceed under the same shared-access rules already agreed upon by the participating regions.

The decision frustrated some guild representatives, but none could reasonably challenge it. The new road had revealed a functioning civilization, not an empty hunting ground.

Ara brought up the northern channel discovered beneath the settlement. Its path extended beyond the abandoned mines, following a broad underground mana current toward a region absent from every available map. The flow had increased after the western road appeared, but its distribution remained steady enough that there was no immediate danger to the Underpass.

"We should follow the channel from the mining region," she explained. "If we enter through the surface, we'll spend days crossing unstable terrain without knowing where the route leads. The underground passage gives us a reliable starting point."

Subin agreed. They would return to the Underpass with a smaller expedition, map the abandoned mines, and determine whether the northern channel could support a permanent route. If the terrain proved too dangerous, they would withdraw rather than force their way through.

The next morning, Subin, Yerin, Jae-hyun, Liu Wei, Ara, and Rafael departed for Westfall. Sel remained at Crossroads to coordinate the agreement with Varik, while Ethan joined a separate survey team tasked with mapping the western road during daylight.

Their return journey was uneventful, and they reached Westfall before noon. Edrin welcomed them at the settlement gate, having already received word from Sel. He provided supplies and assigned two local guides, though both warned that they had never traveled beyond the old mining district.

"The mines were abandoned because the tunnels became unstable," one of them explained as they approached the mountain entrance. "Some passages collapsed, while others filled with crystal growth. Our people stopped trying to reopen them when the remaining ore became too expensive to extract."

"What about the northern channel?" Ara asked.

"We knew there was mana beneath the mines, but it was weak for as long as anyone remembers. If it has become stronger, something must have changed."

Subin glanced at the mountainside. "We'll inspect the route before deciding what to do with it."

Commander Varik met them at the Underpass entrance. The damage caused by the Deepstone Behemoth had been repaired, and workers were reinforcing the western channel with additional supports. Varik accompanied the expedition through the lower district, then led them to a sealed passage beyond the northern mining gate.

The gate had been closed for decades. Its hinges were fused with mineral deposits, and the stone around its frame had fractured under years of pressure. Varik's workers had cleared enough debris to create a narrow opening, but the passage beyond remained untouched.

Ara activated her scanner.

"The mana flow is stronger on the other side. There's also a steady pressure gradient, which suggests the channel continues through the mines rather than ending here."

Subin examined the gate's lower frame. The mineral buildup had spread across the opening, but the underlying structure remained sound. He removed the thickest deposits with a controlled series of cuts, allowing Varik's workers to pull the loosened material away without damaging the frame. Once the opening was wide enough, Rafael helped move a fallen slab, revealing a tunnel that sloped gradually into darkness.

The expedition entered with the local guides leading the way.

The first section of the mine contained abandoned carts, rusted tools, and narrow side passages where old support beams had rotted away. Crystal growth covered portions of the walls, but the main tunnel was stable. As they descended, Ara's readings became clearer: the northern mana channel ran beneath the mine floor, occasionally rising close enough to the surface to illuminate the mineral veins.

After roughly four kilometers, they reached a junction where the tunnel divided into three branches. The western branch had collapsed, and the southern passage returned toward the Underpass. The northern tunnel remained open, though deep grooves in its floor suggested that something heavy had traveled through it recently.

Rafael crouched beside one of the marks.

"Those are too wide for mining equipment."

The grooves continued into the northern passage, accompanied by broken crystals and patches of dark residue. Subin examined the marks before following them. Whatever had passed through had been heavy enough to scrape the stone, but there were no signs that it had attacked anything along the way.

The tunnel eventually opened into a cavern large enough to contain an entire city block. A subterranean river crossed its center, flowing between shelves of black rock, while clusters of pale crystals illuminated the ceiling. On the far side stood the remains of an old mining station, its platforms partly buried beneath fallen stone.

Ara stopped at the edge of the cavern.

"The channel is passing directly beneath the river."

She scanned the water, then checked the rock formations around it. The mana current was strongest near the riverbed, where several crystalline deposits had formed in a curved pattern. Unlike the blocked western channel, this one was carrying energy efficiently. The disturbance was farther north.

Subin looked across the water.

A stone bridge connected the cavern to the abandoned station, but its central section had collapsed. Beyond it, a second tunnel opened behind a wall of crystal.

"We'll need another crossing," Yerin said.

Subin studied the remaining bridge supports. The gap was too wide for an ordinary jump, and the unstable mana field made aerial movement unreliable. He could create a temporary path with sword intent, but the others would still need time to cross safely.

Instead, Ara found a maintenance platform built into the cavern wall. Its lifting mechanism had seized, yet its support cables were intact. Rafael and Jae-hyun helped free the counterweight while Liu Wei used his weapon to secure the platform against the wall. After several minutes of work, they managed to lower it to the riverbank and bring it across the gap.

The crossing took time, but it held.

On the far side, the expedition inspected the mining station. Most of its equipment was useless, although Ara recovered a damaged survey plate that recorded the old tunnel network. The map showed a fourth passage extending north beyond the station, terminating at a marked chamber called the Deep Survey Hall.

"The miners knew about it," Ara said. "But the map doesn't show any route beyond that chamber."

One of the local guides studied the inscription.

"My grandfather mentioned the Deep Survey Hall. He said the miners heard heavy impacts behind its northern wall and sealed the approach."

"Did they see what was making the noise?" Yerin asked.

"No. They abandoned the section before anyone investigated."

Subin examined the map again. "We'll reach the hall, inspect the passage, and return if it's blocked. We aren't going to tear open an unstable tunnel just to satisfy our curiosity."

The fourth passage descended more steeply than the others. The air grew warmer, and the crystals embedded in the walls changed from pale blue to a deep amber. Their light revealed additional grooves across the floor, much wider than those near the first junction. The marks continued in the same direction as the mana channel, occasionally disappearing beneath fallen rock.

When they reached the Deep Survey Hall, they found a large circular chamber supported by stone pillars. Mining equipment had been stacked against the walls, and a crude barrier blocked the northern exit. Unlike the natural cave formations, the barrier had been built deliberately, using metal braces and heavy stone blocks.

Ara examined the nearest pillar. "This chamber was designed to monitor the channel. Look at the markings—they measure pressure and flow."

Several instruments remained embedded in the wall, though their displays had long since failed. Ara could still read the engraved scales and compare them with her current measurements. The old miners had recorded substantial fluctuations in the northern flow shortly before abandoning the site.

Then she found the final entry.

"The last recorded pressure was almost three times the level we're measuring now."

Jae-hyun glanced at the barrier. "So they sealed the passage because something happened beyond it."

"Or because the pressure made the mine unsafe," Subin replied. "We shouldn't assume they encountered a monster."

He approached the barrier and inspected its supports. The metal braces were corroded, but the stone blocks had been arranged carefully enough to hold back loose material. Removing them could cause the tunnel behind to collapse into the hall, so Subin decided against opening the passage immediately.

Instead, Ara deployed a compact sensor through a narrow gap between two blocks. The device transmitted a short-range scan of the space beyond.

The results appeared on her screen.

There was another cavern on the other side, followed by a tunnel extending north. The mana current was strong but stable, and the scan detected no immediate movement. However, the floor contained a broad depression filled with crystal deposits, suggesting that a large quantity of material had accumulated there.

Ara enlarged the image.

"There's something else. The northern tunnel doesn't continue in a straight line. It curves around a massive underground structure."

"Natural formation?" Rafael asked.

"I can't tell from this scan."

Subin studied the image. The structure was too large to map through the narrow gap, but its outline suggested a substantial chamber built into the rock. It might have been an old mining complex, a natural cavern, or another piece of infrastructure. There wasn't enough evidence to decide.

"We'll report what we've found and return with proper equipment," he said. "The channel is stable for now, and the barrier is still holding. There's no reason to risk the entire passage today."

The others agreed. Ara recorded the coordinates, the pressure measurements, and the survey plate's contents before they began the return journey. They crossed the cavern without incident and reached the Underpass settlement before evening.

Varik listened to their report with increasing concern, particularly when Ara showed him the old pressure records.

"Our miners abandoned that section because the tunnels were becoming dangerous," he said. "If the channel has strengthened again, we need to know whether the mines can be reopened safely."

"We'll help map it," Subin replied. "But the northern passage should remain closed until we understand the structure beyond the barrier."

Varik agreed to restrict access and assign engineers to inspect the old supports. In return, Crossroads would provide survey equipment and trained personnel, while the Underpass would retain authority over the mining district and any future excavation.

When Subin's team finally left the underground settlement, the immediate problem had been contained. They had mapped the first section of the abandoned mines, confirmed that the northern channel remained stable, and located a sealed passage leading toward an enormous underground structure.

Back at Crossroads, Ara added the new route to the regional map. The western mountains were no longer a blank space: Westfall and the Underpass settlement had been recorded, along with the old mining district and the newly surveyed northern passage.

Subin reviewed the map before closing it.

Their next expedition would require engineers, better equipment, and permission to reopen the sealed tunnel. Until then, the northern region would remain unexplored.

For the first time since the western road appeared, they had a clear objective that did not depend on chasing a moving creature or reacting to a collapsing regulator. They would return prepared, open the Deep Survey Hall's northern passage safely, and determine what lay beyond it.

That was enough for now.