Chapter 104: Demons

Chapter 104: Chapter 104: Demons

"The only constant in life is change." — Heraclitus

The upper tier of the dungeon was nothing like the suffocating depths of the abyss.

The air was cool and damp, carrying the earthy scent of wet stone and wild fern. Pale blue clusters of luminescent moss clung to the cavern ceiling, casting a soft glow across the winding corridors.

For the first time in nearly a year, Riven could breathe without tasting death.

He moved silently through the ancient stone passage.

His steps were light enough that even the loose gravel beneath his boots barely made a sound. His body moved with a fluidity that had not existed before his descent into the abyss.

Beside him, Nyx prowled through the darkness.

The wyvern’s scales blended almost perfectly with the surrounding gloom. Her luminous violet eyes constantly shifted from one corner of the cavern to another, tracking every vibration and movement around them.

A sudden scraping sound came from ahead.

Riven stopped.

Nyx froze beside him.

A moment later, a chattering swarm of creatures rushed around the corner.

A dozen Goblins charged toward them.

They carried crude iron cleavers, rusty spears, and battered shields. Their yellow eyes immediately locked onto Riven and Nyx.

One of them screamed.

The others followed.

Riven didn’t draw his sword.

He simply raised one hand.

A dozen thin needles of pitch black void mana materialized in the air around his shoulders.

They hovered motionless for half a second.

Then Riven’s fingers twitched.

Thwip.

The first needle disappeared.

Thwip. Thwip. Thwip.

The remaining needles followed.

They moved so quickly that the goblins didn’t even have time to react.

Each needle found its target with surgical precision.

One pierced a throat.

Another entered an eye.

Several struck directly through the heart.

Within a single second, all twelve goblins collapsed.

Their bodies dissolved into clouds of dust before they even reached the ground.

Riven lowered his hand.

He didn’t slow down.

Nyx simply stepped over the remains and continued beside him.

The two walked through the corridor as though nothing had happened.

After several minutes, the passage widened.

Ancient marble ruins appeared along the walls, their surfaces covered in faded carvings and partially destroyed statues.

Then Riven heard something.

Steel.

Magic.

Roaring beasts.

He immediately stopped.

Nyx lowered her head.

Riven crouched and activated Acoustic Dampening.

The sounds around him faded.

He moved toward the noise without making a sound and slipped behind a collapsed marble pillar.

Beyond it was a large chamber.

Three adventurers were fighting a pack of Stone Hounds.

Riven narrowed his eyes.

They looked surprisingly young.

Around his own age.

The first was a boy wielding an enormous greatsword.

He had an athletic build and short, vibrant blue hair.

Two obsidian horns curled backward from his forehead.

He swung his greatsword with little tecnhique, driving back two Stone Hounds.

Beside him stood a girl with long purple hair.

Two slender white horns emerged from her hair, sweeping backward along her head.

Her crimson eyes moved across the battlefield as she fired arrows from a darkwood bow.

Each arrow carried an elemental enchantment.

The third adventurer was a girl wearing silver embroidered robes.

Her hair was a striking emerald green.

Unlike the other two, she had no horns.

Instead, a glowing violet gem was embedded in the center of her forehead.

A long demon tail moved slowly behind her as she maintained several protective barriers around the others.

"Fen, watch your left flank!"

The purple haired archer released another arrow.

"On it, Sera!"

The blue haired swordsman grinned.

He spun his greatsword through a clumsy horizontal arc.

BOOM.

The final Stone Hound shattered beneath the impact.

Pieces of stone scattered across the chamber.

Fen rested the massive weapon over his shoulder.

"That’s the last of them."

Riven remained hidden.

He observed the three carefully.

They spoke.

They laughed.

They protected one another.

They fought like ordinary adventurers.

Riven stepped out from behind the collapsed marble.

Nyx followed him.

The three demons immediately shifted into defensive positions.

Fen raised his greatsword.

Sera drew another arrow.

The green haired mage raised one hand.

But their expressions quickly changed when they realized how young Riven was.

Fen slowly lowered his sword.

"A human?"

His eyes widened.

"Down here?"

His gaze moved toward Nyx.

"And you’re not alone."

Sera stared at the wyvern.

Her expression shifted from caution to disbelief.

"That’s a Wyvern."

Nyx’s violet eyes narrowed.

She gave a quiet growl.

Riven placed one hand against her neck.

"Relax."

Nyx immediately quieted.

Fen stared at the scene.

"That’s impressive."

Riven looked at him.

"My name is Riven."

His voice was calm and mature.

"I ended up in these ruins through a spatial anomaly. I’m trying to reach the surface."

The three exchanged glances.

Fen was the first to relax completely.

He walked forward and extended his hand.

"Well met, Riven. I’m Fen."

He pointed toward the purple haired archer.

"This is Sera."

Sera gave Riven a polite nod.

"And that’s Mira."

The green haired mage smiled warmly.

Riven looked at her forehead gem.

She noticed.

She tapped the gem lightly.

"It helps me detect magic signatures."

Riven nodded.

Mira smiled.

Fen laughed.

"Where exactly are we?"

Fen’s expression became slightly confused.

"You don’t know?"

"No."

Fen scratched the back of his head.

"Then you really did come through a strange rift."

He gestured toward the passage ahead.

"You’re currently in the southern territory of the Demon Empire."

Riven’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"The Demon Empire?"

"Specifically Ashen Ridge Province."

Riven looked toward the distant passage.

The information settled heavily in his mind.

He wasn’t anywhere near the Human Empire.

He wasn’t even on the same side of the continent.

Fen continued.

"We’re doing a dungeon survey. The surface exit is only about twenty minutes from here."

Riven looked at him.

"You would allow me to accompany you?"

Fen laughed.

"Why wouldn’t we?"

Sera glanced at Nyx.

"Although I’m still trying to understand how a human ended up with a Shadow Wyvern."

Nyx stared directly back at her.

Sera raised both hands.

"Okay. I’m not asking."

Riven almost smiled.

Almost.

Fen turned and started walking.

"Come on. If you’re trying to reach the surface, there’s no reason to stand around."

Riven looked at Nyx.

She gave a small chirp.

He followed.

The four adventurers moved through the ancient dungeon together.

As they walked, Fen began explaining the surrounding region.

The Demon Empire was enormous.

It stretched across several provinces, with countless races living within its borders.

Demons were the dominant population, but they weren’t the only inhabitants.

Beastkin, elves, dwarves, humans, and several other races lived throughout the empire.

The border territories were especially diverse.

Riven listened quietly.

Every new piece of information forced him to reevaluate what he thought he knew about the world.

Eventually, the passage began to slope upward.

The air changed.

Riven noticed it immediately.

There was something beyond the dungeon.

Something warm.

Something he hadn’t felt in nearly a year.

Wind.

He stopped walking.

Fen looked back.

"What is it?"

Riven didn’t answer.

He simply stared ahead.

At the end of the stone passage was an enormous opening.

Beyond it was light.

Not the faint blue glow of underground moss.

Not the sickly bioluminescence of abyssal creatures.

Real light.

Golden sunlight.

Riven’s breathing stopped.

For a moment, he couldn’t move.

His eyes slowly widened.

The sunlight spilled through the dungeon entrance and illuminated the stone floor.

Dust floated through the golden rays.

Riven stared at it.

He had seen sunlight before.

He remembered the royal gardens.

He remembered warm afternoons beneath open skies.

He remembered Lyra.

He remembered Elora.

He remembered the promise he had made.

For twelve months, the world above had existed only as a memory.

Now it was directly in front of him.

Nyx stepped beside him.

Her violet eyes reflected the golden light.

Riven slowly reached out his hand.

Warmth touched his skin.

He closed his eyes.

For the first time since falling into the abyss, he felt the sun.

He stood there silently for several seconds.

Then he opened his eyes.

The darkness was still inside him.

The scars were still there.

The memories of the abyss would never disappear.

Neither would the people he had left behind.

But he was no longer trapped.

Riven stepped forward.

One foot crossed the threshold.

Then the other.

Golden sunlight washed over his face.

He tilted his head upward.

Above him stretched an enormous blue sky.

For nearly a year, Riven had believed the sky was something he might never see again.

Now it was waiting for him.

He took a slow breath.

The air smelled of grass, distant trees, and freedom.

Nyx stepped into the sunlight beside him.

Riven looked toward the unfamiliar horizon.

His journey through the abyss was over.

But his journey through this unfamiliar land had only just begun.