CHAPTER 94: IS THAT A BRIDGE?

The stairs spiraled down into darkness, each step groaning beneath their boots like the bones of an ancient beast creaking under weight it hadn’t felt in centuries.

The stone steps were slick with moisture, worn smooth by time, and lined with thin tendrils of moss that curled like green veins along the railings.

\The air thickened the deeper they went—dense, moist, and choked with the earthy scent of rot and mildew.

At the bottom, a biting chill slapped against their skin. It wasn’t just cold—it was the kind of chill that sank into the bones, the kind that made you feel like something was watching from the shadows.

The stillness was oppressive, as if the very walls were holding their breath.

Ethan stepped off the last stair and raised a hand to halt the group. "Don’t make too much sound," he said, voice a whisper edged with steel. "We don’t know what we may face in here. It could be anything... and maybe strong. Dangerous."

Daniel adjusted the strap of his sword and gave a wary nod. "Yeah... a random-ass bunker just under the city? Doesn’t feel right. This place is giving me the creeps."

A pale blue light flickered near Liora’s fingertips, illuminating her focused expression. Her eyes narrowed. "Ethan... I detect a large amount of mana. Not directly ahead, but close. It’s difficult to pinpoint—it’s flowing all over this place. Like... it’s alive."

Ethan’s brow creased. "Where exactly are you referring to?"

She extended her arm and slowly turned in place. "Everywhere," she said quietly. "It’s like the place is bleeding mana from its veins. Whatever this is, it isn’t natural."

He exchanged a quick glance with the others. "Then let’s start our journey here. Stay close, and stay sharp."

The team pressed forward, their boots sloshing softly through thin puddles that stretched across the uneven floor.

Water dripped steadily from the cracked ceiling above, plinking down into stagnant pools with irregular rhythm.

The sound echoed faintly in the long corridor, bouncing off the stone like whispers in the dark.

The walls were soaked and stained with the passage of time. Cracks spiderwebbed across them, and green-black mold festered in the seams.

Strange symbols long faded were barely visible beneath layers of grime, as if the place had once been sacred... or cursed.

Then the stench hit them.

"Ugh... it fucking stinks," Daniel muttered, pulling his scarf over his nose. "Like something crawled in here, died, and then came back to die all over again."

"It surely does," Liora added, swiping a sleeve across her face as she ducked under a veil of hanging fungus.

Ethan said nothing, eyes fixed ahead. "Let’s complete this as soon as possible."

As they moved deeper, the corridor widened abruptly, revealing a massive underground chamber. It opened like a throat swallowing them whole, the ceiling arched high and lost in darkness.

Stalactites dripped water into the chamber below, the soft drips echoing like the ticking of an ominous clock.

In the center lay a lake—if it could be called that. It wasn’t shimmering or reflective. It was still. Thick. Oily. The surface was black, absorbing light rather than reflecting it, and the scent rising from it was worse than anything they’d smelled yet—like decay and wet metal.

The walls surrounding the chamber were massive, curving in a semi-circle. They were cracked and worn, some portions collapsed entirely, leaving chunks of stone scattered across the floor.

These stones weren’t rounded or time-worn—they looked freshly broken, jagged edges still sharp as if something had struck them recently.

Daniel halted at the lake’s edge, nearly slipping on the slick stone. "What the fuck? A pond? Out of nowhere? Here?"

Ethan stepped forward beside him, narrowing his eyes. "I don’t think it’s just a pond."

He stared at the still water for a long moment before speaking silently in his mind.

"System. Scan the lake."

Yes, boss. Scanning initiated...Analysis complete. The lake is a trap. A stone bridge lies beneath the water. A mechanism must be triggered to raise it.

Ethan’s lips curled into a faint smirk. "Thanks, System. You’re basically a cheat code for me."

It’s my job to help you, host!

That made Ethan chuckle under his breath.

"Reyna," he said, pointing at a large chunk of broken stone leaning against a nearby pillar, "pick that up and throw it into the pond."

"Sure," she replied with a nod. She walked over, flexed her fingers, then lifted the stone easily with one hand. With a twist of her hips, she hurled it into the lake’s center.

Splash!

The sound that followed wasn’t normal. It was deeper than expected—hollow, almost metallic. It echoed from below the surface.

Liora blinked, tilting her head. "Wait. Didn’t that sound like it hit... something solid?"

"Yeah," Daniel said, stepping closer. "That rock didn’t take long to hit bottom either. You said this was twenty feet deep?"

"Give or take, based on the mana density," Liora said, eyes narrowing. "But that rock made contact in under five seconds. Either this lake is shallower than it looks, or..."

"Or something’s just beneath the surface," Ethan finished, his voice dropping as he turned to scan the chamber walls.

He moved closer to one of the cracked sections of wall. The damage here was different—too uniform, too intentional. Some of the stone looked like it had been cut, not eroded.

He crouched low, running his hand over the fractured surface. It was smooth—unnaturally smooth—compared to the rest of the wall.

"What are you looking at?" Reyna asked, watching him curiously.

Ethan didn’t answer right away. His fingers moved across the surface, feeling every groove and edge.

"There’s something about these walls," he murmured. "The bridge is below... sure. But how do we activate it?"

Liora stepped beside him. "Maybe the mana circuit has been disrupted. Or maybe there’s a seal carved into the stone. If someone used an enchantment to hide the mechanism—"

"Or maybe there’s something we were never supposed to find," Ethan muttered.

Something caught his eye near the base of the wall—a tiny symbol, half-buried under centuries of grime and dirt. He wiped it gently with his sleeve, revealing the sharp curve of a rune, glowing ever so faintly.

His eyes narrowed.

Daniel stepped closer. "You see something?"

But Ethan didn’t reply.

His gaze rose, tracing the other cracks in the walls. They weren’t natural. They weren’t from time or weather. They were precise, directional... as if someone had tried to destroy or seal something inside.

His pulse quickened. Whatever had been hidden here, it wasn’t meant to be found.

He stood slowly, his expression unreadable, eyes locked on the wall like it was about to speak.

"Everyone," he said softly, but with a weight that drew their attention instantly, "get ready. I think we’re just getting started."

Then, with a breath, Ethan reached out and pressed his palm against the fractured wall.

The cold stone pulsed beneath his hand.