209 - Beyond the River Kingdom

The expedition left Kharad shortly after sunrise, accompanied by two Kharan guides who would lead them through the underground river passages to Underpass. The settlement had changed noticeably since their arrival. Hunting parties were preparing to return to the western grounds, workers were repairing the damaged station, and the river watch had begun reopening crossings that had been abandoned during the insect colony's expansion.

Subin watched the activity from the back of the departing group. They had spent several days dealing with a threat that had been dangerous primarily because of its proximity to a settlement. With the Matriarch defeated, the immediate crisis was over, and there was little reason to remain while the Kharan handled the remaining nests.

Jae-hyun walked beside him, carrying a bundle of recovered insect plates. "I asked Maresh about these. Apparently, the outer shells can be processed into lightweight armor. Their smiths want to test a few pieces before we decide what to do with the rest."

"Keep some for us," Subin said. "If they can produce useful equipment, we should know how."

"Already arranged. You think I would leave without negotiating something?"

"Yes."

Jae-hyun gave him an offended look. Liu Wei laughed from behind them, while Yerin shook her head and continued along the riverbank.

The route north followed a natural stone channel wide enough for several people to walk abreast. Water flowed through its center, reflecting pale mineral formations overhead. The Kharan guides explained that the channel eventually divided, with one branch returning toward the older mining districts and another continuing into territory their hunters rarely visited.

Ara checked the map on her device. "The northern branch connects to a passage marked on the old Underpass survey. If the route is still open, we could reach the settlement without going back through the abandoned mines."

"How far?" Rafael asked.

"According to the old measurements, half a day's travel. The map is incomplete, though."

"Then we'll find out how incomplete."

They followed the northern branch.

The passage gradually widened, and the river descended into a series of shallow terraces. Their surroundings changed with it. The rough cavern walls gave way to dark stone columns, some naturally formed and others clearly shaped by tools. Old bridges crossed the water at intervals, their supports worn smooth by centuries of mineral deposits.

At the first bridge, the group found a collection of abandoned carts. Most had collapsed beneath the weight of the stone roofs, but one still held sealed containers bearing the same markings used by Underpass merchants. Ara examined the labels and found that the cargo consisted of metal fittings and preserved food.

"These aren't ancient," she said. "The containers are old, but the markings match the current trade system."

One of the Kharan guides, a broad-shouldered hunter named Dorek, crouched beside the cart. "A transport party disappeared here several months ago. We assumed they had taken the southern road."

"Did anyone search this passage?" Yerin asked.

Dorek shook his head. "The river rose after heavy mana fluctuations. The crossing was considered unsafe."

Rafael inspected the bridge supports. "It looks stable now, but I wouldn't send a loaded wagon over it without checking the foundations."

Subin looked beyond the bridge. Footprints marked the damp ground near the far bank, partially obscured by dust and mineral growth. They were too large to belong to the Kharan, and the deep impressions suggested a heavy creature had crossed recently.

The tracks continued north.

They left the abandoned cargo untouched and followed the prints at a measured pace. After roughly an hour, the river entered a cavern whose ceiling disappeared into darkness. Clusters of pale fungi illuminated the lower walls, revealing a collapsed watchtower and a row of stone buildings built against the western cliff.

A handful of figures emerged from the ruins.

They were not Kharan. Their bodies were covered in layered clothing reinforced with metal plates, and their faces were hidden behind narrow visors. Each carried a compact weapon that resembled a crossbow but lacked a conventional bowstring.

The leading figure raised a hand.

"Stop there. This passage is under the jurisdiction of the Hollow March."

The Kharan guides exchanged uneasy looks.

Dorek stepped forward. "We are traveling to Underpass. We have no intention of entering your settlement."

"You are already inside our outer boundary."

Subin studied the newcomers. Their equipment was well maintained, but several carried visible injuries, and their formation suggested a small patrol rather than a military force. The leader's attention shifted to the weapons at Subin's waist and then to the group behind him.

"Surface-born?" the leader asked.

"Earth," Ara answered. "We're traveling with Underpass guides."

The leader lowered the weapon slightly. "Earth. We have heard of your gates, though we have not seen many of your people. I am Captain Mirel of the Hollow March. What brings you through our territory?"

"Exploration," Subin said. "We discovered this route while investigating an abandoned mining district."

Mirel's expression tightened at the mention of the mines.

"Then you may have walked into a problem that belongs to us."

She explained that a large creature had emerged from the lower passages three days earlier, destroying part of the watchtower and driving several workers from their homes. The patrol had been tracking it since then, but its movements were difficult to predict. It had already killed two pack animals and damaged a water-storage structure.

"Have you identified it?" Rafael asked.

"We call it a Riftback Stalker. Level 231, A-rank. It usually hunts alone, but it has started approaching the settlement during daylight."

Ara consulted the local data Mirel provided. The creature's recorded abilities included rapid movement through narrow terrain and a hardened dorsal shell that could deflect ordinary weapons. It was a dangerous predator, but nothing in the report suggested that it was directing other monsters or threatening the wider region.

Subin looked at the tracks leading toward the ruined watchtower. "Where did it come from?"

"The lower passage. We believe its usual hunting grounds have become unsuitable."

"Then killing it may not solve the problem," Yerin said. "Another creature could take its place if the territory remains disturbed."

Mirel regarded her carefully. "We cannot leave it alone while it hunts inside our settlement."

"Agreed," Subin said. "Show us the damage. We'll help you locate it, and then we can decide how to handle it."

Mirel accepted the offer, though she made it clear that the Hollow March would retain control of its territory. Subin had no objection. Their purpose was to explore the Great Passage, not to claim every region they entered.

The patrol led them through the ruined district to the water-storage structure. Its outer wall had been torn apart, exposing a network of pipes and mineral-lined channels. Most of the stored water had drained into the lower ground, leaving the settlement with only a few days of reserve supplies.

Ara examined the damaged pipes. "This wasn't a random strike. The creature broke through the wall directly above the main intake."

"Could it have been trying to reach the water?" Jae-hyun asked.

"Possibly. Or it was chasing prey that fled through the structure."

Mirel pointed toward a narrow opening beneath the damaged wall. Fresh tracks disappeared into it, leading to a lower tunnel.

Subin crouched near the entrance and studied the marks. The creature's claws had cut deep grooves into the stone, but the impressions changed direction near the opening. It had entered the tunnel, turned around, and returned toward the settlement several times.

"It knows this area," he said. "And it keeps coming back."

Mirel nodded. "That is what concerns us."

The tunnel was too narrow for the entire group, so Subin, Yerin, Rafael, and Mirel went inside while the others remained at the entrance. The passage descended sharply, opening into a chamber filled with broken stone and the remains of small animals. At the far end lay a mound of dark mineral fragments.

Ara's voice came through the communication device. "The fragments contain concentrated mana. The deposits in that chamber may be attracting local predators."

Mirel looked toward the mound. "We stopped mining there because the lower rock became unstable. We thought the remaining deposits were worthless."

Subin approached the fragments. Beneath them, a narrow fissure released a steady stream of warm air carrying a metallic smell. Mana shimmered faintly along its edges.

The Riftback Stalker had not simply chosen to invade the settlement. Something in the lower passage had changed, making the old hunting ground more attractive—or forcing the creature to compete for territory elsewhere.

A scrape sounded from the tunnel behind them.

The Stalker emerged from the darkness, its low body covered in overlapping black plates. Four powerful limbs supported a broad torso, while a wedge-shaped head and short hooked tail gave it a compact, armored appearance. Its level was higher than the ordinary predators Subin had encountered in the region, and its gaze remained fixed on the mineral mound.

Mirel raised her weapon.

The creature lunged toward the chamber, but Subin stepped between it and the patrol. He recognized the difference between a predator defending its feeding ground and one pursuing a target without hesitation. This creature was dangerous, yet its attention kept returning to the fissure.

Subin drew Simple Edge.

The Stalker charged, using the narrow tunnel to limit the space available for movement. Subin's first cut struck the outer shell and slid away, leaving only a shallow groove. Instead of repeating the attack, he adjusted his angle and waited for the creature to turn. When it shifted its weight, he cut through the softer joint behind its front limb.

The Stalker stumbled. Rafael seized the opening and drove it away from Mirel, giving Subin enough room to move into the chamber.

The fight ended when Subin redirected the creature's next charge toward a fractured stone column. Its armored head struck the weakened support, and the resulting collapse pinned one side of its body. Before it could free itself, Subin delivered a precise thrust beneath the jaw, ending the struggle.

Mirel lowered her weapon. "You could have killed it at the entrance."

"And left us wondering why it kept returning?"

He wiped Simple Edge clean and examined the mineral fissure. The creature's behavior now made more sense. Its hunting territory had likely been disrupted by the concentrated mana beneath the chamber, and the settlement stood between the Stalker and the source it wanted to reach.

Ara joined them after the tunnel was declared safe. She confirmed that the fissure connected to a deeper mineral deposit, one that had begun releasing mana into the surrounding passages. It was not a massive disturbance, but the concentration was sufficient to attract predators and alter their usual routes.

Mirel called for a work crew to inspect the deposit. The Hollow March would need to reinforce the lower chamber and determine whether the fissure could be sealed without destabilizing the water channels. Meanwhile, the damaged storage wall could be repaired, and the immediate threat to the settlement had been removed.

The captain offered the expedition access to the Hollow March archives in exchange for their help. Subin accepted, and Ara spent the next hour reviewing the local maps with Mirel's surveyor.

The archives revealed that the Hollow March occupied a chain of inhabited caverns between Underpass and a broad region known as the Grey Expanse. Several trade routes crossed the area, but many had been abandoned after shifts in the underground rivers and the appearance of dangerous predators. The northern passages were still used by a few experienced traders, though none had surveyed their full length in years.

One map caught Subin's attention. It showed a long road running beyond the Grey Expanse toward a distant settlement identified as Ironvein. The route passed through a region of unusually dense mineral deposits, and its final section was marked with warnings about unstable ground.

"How old is this survey?" he asked.

"Seven years," Mirel replied. "The road was active then. Ironvein traded metalwork and weapons with several settlements, but caravans stopped arriving after the lower route collapsed."

"Do you know whether the settlement still exists?"

"No reliable reports. A few travelers claim to have seen lights beyond the Grey Expanse, but no one has returned with confirmation."

Subin studied the map for a moment before handing it to Ara.

"Can we reach it?"

"Not directly," she said. "We would need to cross the Grey Expanse and find out whether the old road is still passable. It could take several days, possibly longer."

"Then we'll explore the route."

Jae-hyun leaned over her shoulder. "You say that as though we haven't just finished dealing with an underground monster colony."

"We finished that problem."

"And found another."

"Not yet. We found a road."

Yerin gave Subin an amused look. "For you, those are apparently the same thing."

The group spent the remainder of the day preparing for the next stage of the expedition. The Hollow March supplied preserved food, fresh water, and a local guide familiar with the first section of the Grey Expanse. In return, Ara provided copies of the surveyed river routes and notes on the mana disturbance near the settlement.

By evening, the expedition had a new destination and a clearer understanding of the territory connecting it to Underpass. The Hollow March would repair its water system, the lower mineral deposit would be examined, and the Stalker's death would give the settlement time to address the conditions that had drawn it there.

Subin stood outside the archive building while the others completed their preparations. Beyond the settlement, the underground river vanished into a wide passage whose distant walls glimmered with dark metallic veins. Somewhere along that route lay Ironvein, a settlement that had dropped out of the region's trade network.

He had come underground to explore unfamiliar territory and improve his swordsmanship. So far, both goals had brought him into contact with people whose lives depended on the roads and rivers connecting their homes.

The next morning, they would leave for the Grey Expanse.

This time, they had a destination—but no reliable information about what awaited them along the way.