Fire Mage-Chapter 643: Three Passages

Chapter 643: Three Passages

"Oh? So the little guy has some backbone," the Cardinal said, his smile fading into a glacial stare.

He raised his hand, about to cast Luminous Bind, a powerful Light Spell—

—but froze mid-gesture.

The red-haired boy stepped forward and blocked him.

"What’s wrong, Lord Jamie?" the Cardinal asked sharply.

"He’s not who he appears to be. I don’t think I could beat him one-on-one," Jamie said, his eyes fixed on Charles. He bowed politely.

"May I ask your name, sir? And why you’re assisting a Hawthorne?"

Charles opened his mouth—and spoke in English.

"That’s none of your business."

A hush fell over the group. Even the Cardinal stiffened.

"An otherworldly human?" Zoe said, eyes narrowing in curiosity. "But didn’t the Amber Church claim they only appear in the Fifth Layer?"

"He’s speaking a completely alien tongue," Ruby muttered.

Jamie nodded. "Unlike before, anomalies are growing. It’s not impossible for one to show up in the First Layer now."

Frustration flickered across the Cardinal’s face. He turned to Jamie, voice tight. "What now?"

Jamie glanced at Victor, thoughtful. "Why not work together? We split the reward fifty-fifty. I heard from your elder that this ’Graveyard of Stealers’ is a nest for Corpse Devourers. Better to ally than fight. If you doubt us, we’re willing to seal it with a Divine Oath."

It was a bold proposal.

"Tell them to swear an oath in the name of the ’God of Order’—that they won’t harm you or me during the exploration. Also, make it clear: whoever finds an artifact or item first gets to keep it," Charles said telepathically to Victor.

Archbishop Victor gave a subtle nod and spoke aloud, his voice firm.

"All of you must swear a Divine Oath in the name of the God of Order. You are to promise that no harm will come to either of us during this exploration. Also, whoever finds a new artifact or treasure will be its rightful owner. No one is to demand a share."

Cardinal Luke narrowed his eyes and asked, "What if we find it at the same time?"

"Then it naturally belongs to us," Victor replied without missing a beat.

Veins twitched on the Cardinal’s forehead, his patience thinning.

"Enough, Luke," said a red-haired boy, raising a hand. "We’ll accept your terms. But once inside, we split up and proceed independently."

"Agreed." Victor nodded. "This isn’t a ruin—it’s a cavern entrance."

With the terms settled, five members of the Order Church sat cross-legged and began a short ritual. Though nothing visibly changed when the ritual ended, Charles felt a strange mark imprint itself onto each participant’s soul.

Only then did Victor lower his guard and approach them.

"So," Cardinal Luke asked impatiently, "where’s the entrance to this so-called cavern?"

Victor scanned the surroundings, then pointed. "That way. Follow me."

Their unified group moved with caution but purpose, heading toward the unknown. After nearly an hour, the wind began to howl, swirling up clouds of dusky sand that veiled the withered trees around them.

Suddenly, an invisible force blocked their scanning attempts.

"Your wisdom power won’t work past this point," Victor warned, glancing around and marking nearby trees with strange symbols. "From now on, follow closely. It’s easy to get lost in this storm."

As they trudged deeper into the storm’s grip, a colossal structure emerged on their left. It resembled a pyramid—no, a mountain cloaked in myth.

"A pyramid?" the Holy Maiden asked, frowning. "Then why are we heading elsewhere?"

"This land is a vast magical array," Victor explained. "Trying to approach the pyramid only takes you farther. During my last visit, my companions got lost in the storm. I alone stumbled upon a cavern... and entered the Graveyard of Stealers."

"What does it look like?" the Holy Maiden asked, her interest piqued.

"You’ll see soon enough," Victor replied curtly, ending the conversation.

Pressing forward, they soon arrived at a dark, jagged cavern. It loomed like a monstrous maw, roughly four meters tall and cloaked in shadow.

"This is the entrance to the Graveyard of Stealers," Victor said. "Be ready for ambushes."

He retrieved a magical lamp from his space ring. The moment it flared to life, the cavern lit up with a warm yellow glow, revealing uneven rocky walls.

One by one, the group stepped inside, their footsteps echoing in the gloom. The air grew thick with tension. The deeper they ventured, the more the cave transformed—its walls turning to clay and stone, etched with symbols and ancient hieroglyphs whispering tales from a forgotten era.

Victor took the lead, pausing now and then to study the markings, clearly familiar with the terrain.

"You understand this language?" Radiant Knight Ruby asked, brushing her fingers over the worn inscriptions.

"Last time, I found a stone inscribed with Runal and a more ancient language—’Fsech.’ I copied them and began deciphering back in Edhen. I’m only a beginner, but it’s enough to read these."

He squinted at one of the inscriptions and continued, "This one is a warning. After two thousand steps, we’ll come across three passages. This tells me to choose the right one—but we’ll go with the middle path, like before."

Everyone nodded. Clearly, it was the same route he had taken on his prior visit.

"What about the other two?" Jamie asked.

Victor examined the carvings again. "The left path leads to an underground city called Zarack. The right one leads to the Gate of Stardust."

"Underground city? Gate of Stardust? What are they?" the Holy Maiden asked, intrigued.

"I don’t know," Victor replied, shrugging. "But feel free to explore them if you want."

Annoyance flickered in the Holy Maiden’s eyes, but she exhaled softly and said nothing.

"Victor, show some respect to your superiors," Cardinal Luke chided, displeased.

"I mean no disrespect to the Holy Maiden or anyone," Victor said with a strained smile. "I truly don’t know anything more."

While they argued, Charles kept his senses sharp, alert to any hidden threats.

’My wisdom power isn’t blocked, but its range is limited. This divine pressure is restricting my strength...’ he thought, uneasy at the force capable of dampening his abilities so easily.

"Enough talk. Let’s move." Jamie’s voice cut through the tension.

Victor bit back a retort and took the lead once more.

The Cardinal, Jamie, and the Holy Maiden followed, their eyes wary, scanning for danger. Trained by the Order Church, they were no strangers to traps or ambushes.

Charles, Ruby, and the silent assassin-like man followed a few feet behind, guarding the rear.

Just as Victor had predicted, they reached a point where the path forked into three distinct tunnels.

"Which way, My Lord?" Cardinal Luke asked Jamie.

Jamie didn’t answer immediately. He stood still, contemplating.

"We’ll go down the middle path first, with Victor and the outsider. We’ll explore the other routes afterward."

Luke looked ready to argue but reconsidered and held his tongue.

"As you command, My Lord."

"Then don’t enter the Second Chamber. That one’s mine," Victor said quickly, picking up his pace.

The winding corridors twisted and turned endlessly. Then, at last, they emerged into a vast chamber.

Gasps echoed through the cavern.

The room was magnificent. Statues stood like ancient sentinels. Swords, shields, and rare artifacts shimmered in the lamplight, each a remnant of forgotten glory.

Gems glittered. Relics sparkled. The past lived in every corner.

For a moment, none of them spoke. Awe bound their tongues.

But that silence didn’t last.

From the shadows, a group emerged—dark figures, silent and still. Another party of explorers, perhaps... or something worse.

Tension crackled like lightning as both sides sized each other up.

"Who are you?" Victor asked, stepping forward.

Cardinal Luke, already tense, raised his staff, ready to strike.

Meanwhile, the opposing group consisted of two women in black robes, a tall human with a peculiar third eye on his forehead, a short young woman with wolf ears and a tail, and an elf with flowing blonde hair.

Noticing their presence, they tensed immediately and adopted battle stances.

As tension filled the air, Jamie frowned and sensed a strange divine power lingering around the area.

"An illusion spell?" he muttered. Raising his hand, he waved it once. A moment later, dense air-elemental energy gathered around his palm, forming a one-meter-long blade in an instant. The blade shot forward, slicing through the air at blinding speed.

Before the other group could react, the invisible blade passed through their bodies and shattered the illusion.

"H-How? They looked so real!" Victor muttered, eyes wide.

"That’s because our wisdom power is sealed," Jamie said calmly. "But unlike you guys, I can still use mine to some extent. I just checked whether they were physical entities." His gaze shifted to the indifferent-looking otherworldly human, and he shook his head.

"Let’s search this chamber for anything useful before we move on."

"May I go ahead to the Second Chamber?" Victor asked, sensing urgency. He suspected the others might change their minds at any moment.

Jamie opened his mouth to protest, but stopped when he saw Charles silently following Victor. He gave a small nod instead.

Receiving silent approval from the Order Church members, Victor wasted no time and headed toward the chamber’s other end.

Before long, he entered another rocky underground passage and pressed onward.

Charles followed closely, eyes scanning for danger. Soon, he spotted a faint light in the distance.

"So, how many chambers are there?" he asked in a low voice.

"I’m not sure, Your Excellency. But the Second Chamber should have four tall statues. Each one will teleport you to a different room. I suspect each holds a unique artifact like Dream Whisper." He glanced back to ensure no one was tailing them and whispered, "But once you enter, you can’t leave without taming the artifact. Last time, I was trapped for over twenty-five days... and returned to Edhen World empty-handed."