161 - The Road Beneath

The passage beneath the coastline was far narrower than the underground route they had explored earlier, forcing the group to move in a loose line rather than spreading out. The walls were not made of ordinary rock. Thin crystalline veins ran through them, giving off enough pale light to make torches unnecessary, while shallow channels of water flowed along both sides of the passage and disappeared into cracks in the floor. Every few minutes, the group felt a faint vibration beneath their feet, suggesting that something was moving through the larger network beyond the walls.

Subin walked near the front with Yerin and Jae-hyun while Diego followed behind with several local Awakeners. Ethan, Liu Wei, Min-seok, Ara, and Rafael remained in the middle of the group, constantly checking the surrounding passages. Nobody treated the journey as a conventional dungeon expedition. They had no intention of clearing every creature they encountered or searching every branch for treasure. Their objective was the city ahead, and everything they encountered would be judged according to whether it affected that objective.

After nearly twenty minutes, the passage widened into a cavern.

A shallow underground river crossed the chamber, flowing from one wall to another before disappearing beneath the floor. Several creatures stood near the water. They were large, unfamiliar beasts with thick bodies and curved horns, but none showed signs of aggression. When the Awakeners entered, the creatures simply watched them before moving deeper into the cavern.

Min-seok lowered his weapon.

"That's becoming normal."

Jae-hyun glanced at him. "Don't get comfortable."

"I'm not."

Subin studied the creatures as they disappeared into the darkness. "They're moving in the same direction."

Ara checked her map. "Toward the inland branch."

"Then we follow."

They crossed the river and entered another passage.

The deeper they went, the stronger the vibrations became. The walls occasionally trembled, and small fragments of crystal fell from above. The sound wasn't coming from one creature. It was a continuous movement traveling through the underground territory, almost like a current.

After another thirty minutes, the passage divided into three.

Ara stopped.

"The map has changed."

"How?"

"The route we detected from the surface isn't the only branch anymore. Two additional paths have formed."

Rafael frowned. "While we're inside?"

"Yes."

Subin looked at the three passages.

The left route carried a stronger water current. The middle route was dry, but the crystalline growth was much denser. The right passage had fresh tracks running through it.

Yerin examined the tracks.

"Those weren't here when we entered."

Subin crouched beside them.

They belonged to the same six-limbed creature they had seen near the coastal formation.

"It went right."

Jae-hyun looked toward the passage.

"Then that's probably the safest route."

"Not necessarily," Subin said.

He stood and looked at the three branches again.

"The creature wasn't moving toward the city."

Ara checked the map.

"How do you know?"

"The tracks came from the coast, crossed this point, and continued right. But the right passage bends away from the city."

He pointed toward the center.

"The middle route is heading directly inland."

Rafael understood.

"So something else is using the middle path."

"Exactly."

They chose the middle passage.

The decision proved correct almost immediately.

The further they went, the more signs of activity they found. Large claw marks covered sections of the walls, and several broken pieces of crystal lay scattered across the floor. Some of the marks were fresh.

Then they heard voices.

Everyone stopped.

They were not monster sounds.

They were human.

Subin raised one hand, and the group advanced quietly until the passage opened into another chamber.

A team of Awakeners stood on the opposite side.

They wore matching armor and carried equipment bearing the emblem of a regional guild.

The two groups stared at each other.

The guild leader stepped forward.

"You shouldn't be here."

Rafael's expression hardened.

"Neither should you."

The man looked at Subin.

"I recognize you. You're the S-rank swordsman."

"Subin Vans."

The guild leader nodded.

"Adrian Morales. South Ridge Guild."

Rafael immediately recognized the name.

"You were one of the guilds requesting exclusive access yesterday."

Adrian smiled faintly.

"We changed our request."

"To what?"

"First access."

Subin looked past him.

Several crates were stacked against the cavern wall.

"What did you take?"

"Nothing important."

Jae-hyun stepped closer.

"That's not an answer."

Adrian sighed.

"We found mineral deposits."

He pointed toward the rear of the chamber, where several crystalline formations had been partially broken.

"They're valuable."

Rafael's expression became cold.

"The temporary restriction was announced this morning."

"We received the notice."

"Then why are you here?"

Adrian looked toward Subin.

"Because if we waited for everyone else to finish arguing about regulations, someone else would have taken them."

The statement was blunt, but there was no attempt to hide his reasoning.

Subin walked toward the broken formation.

He examined the exposed crystal.

It was different from the ordinary mana crystals found in dungeons. Its surface was smooth, almost translucent, and faint lines ran through its interior.

Ara scanned it.

Her expression changed.

"This isn't a normal resource."

Adrian smiled.

"We reached the same conclusion."

"Then why did you break it?"

"We wanted to know what was inside."

Subin looked at the damaged structure.

"What happened?"

Adrian's smile disappeared.

"The moment we cut into it, every creature in the surrounding tunnels started moving."

The ground trembled.

Everyone became alert.

A deep rumble passed through the chamber.

Adrian's expression tightened.

"That's what happened."

Subin turned toward the passage behind the guild.

"How many?"

"Too many to count."

The first creature emerged from the darkness.

It was a massive quadruped with dark gray armor covering its shoulders and back. It looked similar to the migrating creatures from the previous day, but this one was considerably larger.

A second appeared behind it.

Then a third.

The guild members raised their weapons.

Subin didn't draw his sword.

The creatures weren't charging.

They were moving past the chamber.

The first one stopped near the damaged crystal.

It lowered its head.

The pale light within the formation flickered.

The creature touched the broken section with its horn.

A pulse traveled through the chamber.

Every crystalline vein in the walls illuminated.

Ara stared at her equipment.

"The whole network just activated."

Adrian looked at Subin.

"What did we trigger?"

Subin didn't answer immediately.

The creatures began moving again.

But this time, they weren't heading deeper into the territory.

They were moving toward the surface.

Toward the city.

Subin understood the problem.

The guild hadn't simply disturbed a resource.

They had disturbed part of the territory's network.

The creatures weren't attacking the humans.

They were evacuating.

"Everyone move," Subin said.

Adrian frowned.

"Where?"

"Back toward the surface."

"Why?"

"Because this chamber is no longer safe."

The first tremor hit before anyone could argue.

The floor split.

Water burst through the crack.

Several guild members lost their footing as the cavern began flooding.

Subin moved immediately.

He drove Simple Edge into the ground and released a controlled wave of Sword Intent through the floor, stabilizing the section beneath the group long enough for everyone to reach the passage.

Yerin grabbed one of the guild members who had fallen and pulled him upright.

"Move!"

The group rushed through the passage as water began filling the chamber behind them.

Adrian stayed near the rear, directing his guild members.

"Don't leave anyone!"

A second collapse blocked part of the passage.

One of the guild members became trapped beneath a fallen section of crystal.

Adrian turned back.

Subin was already there.

He cut through the obstruction with a precise strike, severing the crystal without damaging the person underneath.

"Get him out."

Adrian helped pull the injured man free.

For the first time since their meeting, his expression showed genuine respect.

"You could have left us."

Subin looked at him.

"We don't leave people behind."

They continued upward.

The deeper vibrations had become stronger, but the movement was no longer random. Everything was heading in one direction.

The surface.

When the group finally emerged, the sky had darkened.

Emergency teams were waiting near the entrance.

Kang's voice immediately came through the communication network.

"Subin, report."

"One of the guilds entered the underground network without authorization."

There was silence.

Adrian looked uncomfortable.

Subin continued.

"They damaged one of the crystalline structures."

Kang's voice became sharper.

"Consequences?"

"The network reacted. Several passages flooded, and a large group of creatures is moving toward the surface."

"Toward the city?"

"Yes."

The command center became silent.

Then Ara spoke.

"There's more."

Everyone looked at her.

She held up her device.

"The inland branch has accelerated."

Subin walked toward her.

"How much?"

"Twenty kilometers."

Rafael stared at the screen.

"In a few minutes?"

Ara nodded.

The route beneath the ground was extending rapidly toward the city.

Then another alert appeared.

The predicted endpoint had changed.

The route was no longer approaching the city's outskirts.

It was heading toward the underground water system beneath the city itself.

Jae-hyun's expression hardened.

"If that reaches the city's water network..."

"It won't just affect the surface," Yerin said.

Subin looked toward the distant city.

Millions of people lived there.

He turned to the assembled Awakeners.

"We don't have time to evacuate the entire city."

Kang responded immediately.

"Then what do you propose?"

Subin studied the map.

The network had created three branches.

One followed the river.

One approached the city.

The third connected back toward the coast.

The pattern finally made sense.

"It isn't trying to enter the city."

Ara looked at him.

"Then what is it doing?"

"It's following water."

Subin pointed toward the underground map.

"The territory is expanding through connected water systems. The city happens to be sitting on top of one."

Rafael understood.

"So if we block the route..."

"We might redirect it."

"But where?"

Subin looked at the map.

There was an abandoned industrial zone several kilometers outside the city, built around an old underground reservoir that had not been used for years.

The water network beneath it connected to the same underground river.

Subin pointed toward it.

"There."

Kang immediately understood.

"We could redirect the expansion toward the abandoned reservoir."

"It might work."

"And if it doesn't?"

Subin picked up Simple Edge.

"Then we'll deal with whatever comes through."

Yerin stepped beside him.

"You'll need someone to hold the western route."

Subin nodded.

"I know."

Jae-hyun immediately stepped forward.

"I'll take it."

Min-seok joined him.

"So will I."

Ethan, Liu Wei, Rafael, Diego, and the others began organizing into smaller teams.

The conflict had changed again.

They were no longer trying to stop the territory from expanding.

They were trying to guide its expansion away from millions of civilians.

Subin looked once more toward the distant city.

The first boundary had already failed.

Now they had to build another one before the underground frontier reached civilization.

And this time, they would have to do it while the territory itself continued moving beneath their feet.