I Have a Task Log
Chapter 291 - 290: A Bloody Secret
Colin and the others had previously explored the interior of the monastery, and some of the locations with the lead boxes had shown no signs of trouble.
After ruling out these problem-free locations, not too many places remained.
Additionally, the White Dove Monastery had alarm spells set up in certain areas to detect intruders. However, Orelia knew where most of them were, so they could simply follow the planned route to bypass them.
Once he was sure he had seared the map’s details into his memory, Colin carefully reviewed his Spellbook, then began to cast See Invisibility on himself.
The moment he began the incantation, he noticed the sensation of casting was completely different from before.
Colin knew that Armor affected casting.
But he had never actually tried casting without his Armor on. After all, he needed to be armored for combat, so it was best to get used to casting that way.
But now, casting without his Armor, Colin felt as if he were running unencumbered. His whole body felt much lighter. He could manipulate the surrounding Magic Net with his gestures and incantations with surprising ease—it felt similar to casting Tier One Magic while fully armored.
Once the spell was successfully cast, Colin looked around curiously.
However, his vision hadn’t changed in the slightest. It felt as if he hadn’t cast the spell at all.
’If a spell fails, you’re supposed to get dizzy or explode or something, so this one must have worked...’ As he thought this, Colin unfurled a scroll and began another incantation.
A moment later, the spell took hold.
The scene before his eyes began to blur from the edges, the haze slowly spreading toward the center of his vision.
By the time Colin realized he was zoning out, he also felt the "weight" of his body disappear. He looked back to see that the tree branch where he had been sitting was now empty.
He had indeed transformed into a cloud of mist.
With a mere thought, he could move slowly forward.
Colin quickly adapted to the sensation and slowly flew up toward the sky above the monastery.
As time passed, Colin arrived in the sky above the monastery.
As the surrounding area was quite safe, the White Dove Monastery didn’t actually have many guards.
This was true for most other churches and monasteries as well. After all, the abbots and most priests were Priests capable of casting Divine Arts. Armed, they represented a considerable force, more than capable of handling a dozen petty thieves.
Of course, there were also churches like Father John’s, which lacked martial strength due to being situated in peaceful, remote regions.
Colin flew over the bell tower.
He slipped through the gaps in the windows and into several scriptoriums.
He didn’t fly too close to the lead boxes, however, merely observing them from a distance. If he couldn’t find anything out of the ordinary, he would come back for a closer look later.
The spell would only last for an hour, so time was tight.
After checking the lead boxes on the surface level, Colin left the main building and moved toward the cemetery in a corner of the monastery grounds.
Like any cemetery, this one was filled with tombstones of various kinds. In one corner stood a marble mausoleum, about the size of a small shed, adorned with exquisite carvings.
Colin didn’t head that way. Instead, he went to another corner and found a small well, about the width of an arm, hidden in a small thicket. The opening was covered by a perforated stone grate.
This was the air vent for the Bone Repository Hall.
Judging by its size, it was absolutely impossible for an Imp to hide inside.
Colin drifted down through the vent.
A moment later, he arrived in the underground Bone Repository Hall.
Waves of a putrid stench wafted up, strong enough to make one’s head spin.
The hall was quite spacious and supported by several thick stone pillars.
Most of the hall was filled with broken, rotting wooden coffins. Opposite the stacked coffins was an area for housing mortal bones.
Piles of skulls, tibias, and other bones were all stacked together neatly.
It was a macabre sight, but ’it’s all to honor the dead.’ Thinking of it that way made him feel slightly better.
The area was very dark, but thankfully, some sunlight filtered in from the vents. After his eyes adjusted for a moment, he could see clearly.
With the aid of See Invisibility, Colin could spot two Imps clinging to the hall’s stone pillars.
The two creatures remained invisible, plastered motionlessly to the ceiling, only occasionally scratching an itch.
’So there is something foul here...’ Colin thought.
He could have turned back now, but with plenty of time left on his Gaseous Form spell, he decided to press on.
Avoiding them as best he could, Colin flew toward a small door on the far side of the hall.
Beyond the small door was a long corridor lined with many niches, each housing a divine statue.
Perhaps due to the passage of time, most of the statues were damaged, missing arms or legs.
At the end of the corridor was a spiral staircase leading downward.
He floated down another level and arrived at a cruciform hallway. The other three exits were blocked by locked, iron-barred gates.
Upon arriving, Colin caught the faint whiff of a stench. The smell was very similar to the one from the cult’s sacrificial chamber beneath Three Bays City. He could also hear a faint rustling sound.
There was little light down here, and the poor visibility was unnerving.
The spiral staircase continued down another level.
Colin considered for a moment.
He slowly floated forward, passing effortlessly through the iron-barred gate.
However, as Colin drifted around the corner past the gate, he was suddenly grateful he was made of mist—it meant he couldn’t vomit.
All Colin could do was stare at the scene around him.
The back of the room was filled with many "things." Various materials had been fixed into all sorts of shapes and arranged in all sorts of poses.
A few white candles had been thoughtfully placed among these things, allowing one to see the scene clearly.
’These "artworks" must be the missing refugees,’ Colin thought.
Suppressing his revulsion, he drifted around the room, carefully observing the scene.
The room was quite large.
This must have been the tomb of an abbot or a noble. Exquisite stone sarcophagi lined both sides of the room, their heads facing the walls. Behind them, the walls held niches with carved divine statues.
Now, however, those sarcophagi were laden with blasphemous objects too vile to look at directly. A narrow path for one to walk through had been cleared between these sickening displays.
As he drifted to the center of the room, he came upon a small, clear space on the floor.
By the dim candlelight, Colin saw that a strange circular pattern had been drawn in this clearing with some kind of red substance. The edge of the circle was inscribed with nauseating Purgatorian script that made him feel sick just by looking at it.
His heart sank at the sight.
’The demons have even drawn a ritual array. And this is only the second sublevel. There’s still a third one below. Who knows what kind of monstrosity the demons are cooking up down here?’
Just then, a series of heavy footsteps echoed from behind him.