CHAPTER 259: THE ROOM OF DESTINY [PART 1]

"Is everyone alright?" Alex asked as he looked at his club members, who were still a little disoriented after entering the ancient dwarven ruin.

The space they found themselves in was illuminated by faintly glowing moss, giving off just enough light for them to see their surroundings.

"Just a little dizzy," Chuck replied. "But this place sure has a high concentration of mana. I feel like I can spam an infinite number of spells inside this place."

Nessia nodded in agreement. "You’re right. It’s like... the very air we breathe is mana."

Alex waited for everyone to regain their bearings. Meanwhile, Mark and Spencer were paying close attention to the dark tunnel in front of them.

It was too dark to see where the tunnel led to, but it was quite big, spanning at least ten meters in both width and height.

Big enough for giants to walk through it without problems.

Without any hesitation, Alex took out his Mimic Lantern from his storage ring.

This lantern was imbued with special properties, including the ability to detect invisible creatures, and traps as well as lighting up the footprints of beings that had passed by.

The moment the light illuminated his surroundings, Alex immediately saw many sets of footprints on the ground.

There were too many to count, serving as proof that once upon a time, this place had been a hub of activity when the Dwarves still lived on the Heracle Mountain.

"Senior Mark, you can hold this lantern to lead the way," Alex said as he handed the lantern to the Fourth Year. "It can see traps and invisible creatures."

"Isn’t this a Mimic Lantern?" Mark held the lantern with fascination. "How much did it cost you to add those magical enchantments on this thing?"

"No comment," Alex replied. "It’s a trade secret."

Alex didn’t want to admit that he had haggled with the alchemist who had created the Mimic Lantern because the others might laugh at him.

Chuck and Nessia summoned small orbs of light around them, helping to illuminate the surroundings.

Since the ruins were overflowing with mana, maintaining these light orbs wouldn’t pose any problem to them.

Mark and Spencer led the way. They were followed by Alex, Charles, and Renard.

Behind them were Princess Xenia, Mary, and Chuck.

Nessia was with Latifa, Lotte, and Lumi.

Lavinia stayed with Sir Alphonse at the back, guarding their rear.

Since Catkins had Darkvision, Lavinia was able to see within the darkness, allowing her to react if something crept up to them from behind.

Alex had asked her to guard the rear with Sir Alphonse because there was no telling what kind of creatures might attack them from the back as they headed deep inside the ruins.

The Knight protecting the Princess attached a small lantern to his hip, giving him enough light to see up to five meters around him.

He was already on high alert, holding a sword in his right hand.

The group traveled for nearly half an hour before they finally arrived at a spacious room with eight tunnels leading to different directions.

A rune in the ancient Dwarven language was inscribed above each tunnel.

"Seniors, how far did you explore the previous time?" Alex asked as everyone took a short break.

"Just up to here," Mark replied. "We stumbled upon the entrance of the ruins by accident and we were ill-equipped to explore it."

"Actually, both of us planned to explore this place after we graduated from the academy. We’ve told no one else about it," Spencer commented. "When you asked whether we knew about this place, I was very surprised. I’ve been meaning to ask you how you learnt about the ruins.

The young man then explained that he was a Seer and had seen the two of them exploring the ruins.

Renard snorted while Charles smiled lightly because it had been through these "visions" that led Alex to him in Briarwood Village.

It was a very convenient lie. In fact, it was the perfect answer to such questions!

"Then, did your visions tell you which path to take?" Spencer asked.

Alex didn’t respond right away.

Why?

Because all the paths were correct.

Depending on what route they took, they would face trials that represented that path.

"Duraz, Kharad, Azgral, Vundain, Zudrim, Thurak, Morgrim, and Skaldir," Nessia said softly as she read each of the runes above the entrances before them.

Alex wasn’t too surprised because Nessia was not only proficient in rune magic, she was also proficient in languages as well.

Aside from the common language of humans, she could also speak Elven, Dwarven, and the language of the Barbarians who dwelled in the west.

"Nessia, do you understand the meaning of those runes?" Princess Xenia asked.

Truth be told, she intended to recruit Nessia after they both graduated. It wouldn’t hurt to have such a talent under her employ.

Xenia could also endorse Nessia to her father so that the young lady would be given a position where she could use her abilities to the fullest.

The powers that be in Avalon were always looking for hidden gems, which they planned to nurture to become the foundation of their kingdom.

"I only know the meaning behind the words," Nessia replied. "But I don’t know how exactly they relate to the tunnels."

Alex originally planned to take everyone to the tunnel labelled Morgrim, which meant Oath in the Dwarven tongue.

However, after thinking about it, he thought that maybe he shouldn’t force the others to follow the same path as him.

In the game, the various tunnels had different rewards. After clearing a tunnel, a party member might gain some kind of enlightenment, a rare weapon, or even a bonus in their stats and abilities.

It didn’t seem fair to take the right to freely choose from them.

Just as he was pondering this line of thought, he saw Renard taking out a lantern from his storage ring.

The teenage boy then walked towards the tunnel with the word, Kharad, which meant War or Battle.

"Wait, Renard, where are you going?" Chuck asked. "It’s dangerous to explore this place alone."

Renard glanced at his club member and frowned, but not in impatience. He actually looked uncertain. "Something is calling out to me in this tunnel."

"Someone is calling you?" Chuck smirked. "Who is it? Mother Nature?"

Renard was very tempted to smack the living lights out of the troublemaker because anything related to "the call of nature" was taboo for him.

His experience with Dim Dim and Alex had left a deep scar inside his mind, so he didn’t like making a joke about it.

Seeing his reaction, Chuck hastily raised his hands in surrender and apologized.

"Sorry, my bad," Chuck said, knowing that if he didn’t apologize in time there was a chance Renard might punch him into pulp.

He knew he shouldn’t underestimate Renard’s strength. And he knew that he shouldn’t underestimate his other club members’ sadism either! They might just enjoy watching him get beaten up!

Renard scoffed before glancing at Alex.

"I’m going this way," Renard said firmly.

"I understand," Alex answered. "Don’t worry. If you get lost, Dim Dim and I will find you."

"Ahem!" Dim Dim stood straighter to back up Alex’s promise.

Just as Renard was about to enter the tunnel, someone else called out to him.

"Wait," Charles said as he walked up to Renard. "I’m going with you. I feel that this is the path I should take as well."

Renard nodded before taking a step toward the tunnel, not caring if Charles followed him or not.

"I guess this is where we part ways." Charles smiled apologetically at Alex. "See you guys later."

The teenage boy hurried to follow Renard, leaving the rest behind without a second glance.

This event happened in the game, so Alex had anticipated Renard’s reaction.

"Everyone, try to sense if any of these paths resonate with you," Alex said after careful consideration. "If you feel something, don’t hesitate to challenge that path. You might just find something when you reach the end of the tunnel."

This sounded far riskier than exploring a tunnel together, but the teenagers didn’t protest. Alex also asked Nessia to explain what each rune signified.

That way, those who were going to break off from the main group could have a hint about what they might encounter after exploring the path they had chosen.