Vol3 Chapter 44 Coincidence?

"...Wait."

Harold looked up.

"What?"

Amos frowned.

"Have we actually encountered any monsters recently?"

The others stopped for a moment, and Daren took a moment to think.

"...Now that you mention it."

Vena looked down the corridor.

"We haven't."

Tessa nodded.

"Not since you first meet us."

Amos slowly looked toward the passages.

He hadn’t realized it at first, too distracted by everything else. But they’d been walking for a while now. No monsters. No sounds. No movement. Nothing. In an S-rank ruin teeming with creatures that had attacked them again and again, the sudden stillness was unsettling. Very unsettling. Amos folded his arms.

"That's unusual."

Harold shrugged.

"Maybe we're lucky."

Amos stared at him.

"Do you really believe that?"

Harold thought about it.

"...No."

Amos sighed.

"Neither do I."

He glanced down the middle passage, the darkness staring back at him. Nothing moved, and not a single sound disturbed the stillness.

"It's almost like—"

A noise suddenly came from the corridor.

THUD.

Everyone froze.

Another.

THUD.

Then another.

THUD. THUD. THUD.

Amos slowly turned his head.

"...You have got to be kidding me."

Harold stood immediately.

"What is that?"

Amos stared into the darkness.

"I think we just got our answer."

The corridor burst to life as a swarm of creatures spilled from the darkness. Not one, not five—dozens. It was as if the very thing they’d been talking about had taken offense at being named.

Daren lifted his weapon.

"Where the hell did all these come from?!"

Tessa wasted no time in weaving a spell, while Vena took a cautious step back. Harold lifted his shield, ready for whatever came next. Amos just stood there, watching the horde advance for a moment before letting out a long, weary sigh.

"Of course."

The first monster lunged, and Amos stepped forward, his sword flashing as the creature split apart before it could touch him. Another rushed from the side, and he spun to face it.

SHING.

Another fell.

The corridor erupted into chaos. Monsters flooded the chamber, but the A-rank team had tangled with enough of them to know their patterns. Harold held the front line, Daren smashed anything that slipped through, Vena fired from the rear, and Amos darted wherever the formation needed him. Then came one monster.

Two.

Five.

Ten.

More.

Yet none managed to break through.

Amos cut down another creature and glanced toward the corridor.

"How many are there?"

"Too many!" Daren shouted.

"That's not a number!"

"I don't know!"

Fair enough.

He ducked under a claw and thrust his sword upward. The creature fell, the last of the monsters to go down. For a few tense seconds, no one moved. Daren panted, Vena lowered her weapon, and Tessa let the spell she’d been holding fade away. Harold glanced around at the bodies littering the chamber floor.

"...Are we done?"

Amos glanced at the corpses, then toward the corridors, and back at the worn-out team.

"Yes."

Daren immediately sat down.

"Good."

Amos couldn’t really blame him. They’d been walking for what felt like forever, and after everything that had gone down today, there was no point in pushing on any further.

"We're done for today."

Harold nodded.

"Agreed."

Vena let out a relieved breath as Tessa quietly leaned against the wall. Amos stepped into the center of the chamber, reaching into his coat until his fingers closed around something familiar—a small metal disc, the same artifact he’d used the day before. He set it gently on the cold stone floor, and Harold’s eyes flicked toward it.

"That thing again?"

"Yes."

Amos crouched down.

"It's useful."

He pressed his finger against the center.

The artifact activated.

VMMMM—

A pulse rippled through the chamber as shadowy energy swept outward, forming a clear barrier around the resting area. The boundary glimmered softly before fading to near invisibility. Amos rose, stepped to the edge, and tapped it with his finger.

Thump.

Nothing happened, and he simply nodded.

"This should hold."

Daren had already stretched himself out against the wall.

"Wake me when we're leaving."

Vena gave him a tired look.

"You say that like you're going to wake up easily."

"I won't."

Tessa let out a quiet laugh as Amos watched them settle in. The barrier’s gentle hum surrounded them, keeping the monsters at bay for now. Amos leaned back against the stone wall, his eyes drifting toward the three passages ahead.

He would figure it out tomorrow.

For now, he needed rest.

After all—

whatever strange answer this ruin had waiting for him...

it could wait until morning.

"At this point, I just want the last passage to behave normally."

He stared at the dark opening of the right passage, having no clue what lay beyond.

He allowed himself a small, hopeful smile.

"Please just be the exit."

That would be nice—almost suspiciously so. If the right passage led them out of the ruin, one problem would be solved. They could meet up with the Blue Wolfs, share what they’d discovered, and let someone else deal with the strange memories. And if it didn’t lead outside, maybe it would at least bring them closer to the Blue Wolfs.

That would work too.

Amos glanced toward the others.

Harold and the rest were sleeping or resting quietly now. None of them seemed particularly bothered by the contradictions. To them, there was no contradiction to begin with.

They recalled taking the middle path, crossing the underground stream, and discovering the statue. But Amos’s memory was entirely different.

He looked back at the right passage.

"So..."

His eyes narrowed.

"What are you hiding?"

For a moment, he wondered whether the right passage might somehow answer that question.

Then he shook his head.

"Getting ahead of myself."

There was no point imagining possibilities before they even saw what was down there.

Still...

Amos couldn't shake the feeling that the ruin had been deliberately forcing them down a path.

He wondered what would happen when they finally walked through the last one.

"Hopefully..." Amos thought, closing his eyes for a moment.

"It'll just lead us somewhere normal."

He paused.

Then added silently—

"For once."