Ash held the stone in his palm, turning it over to examine the strange symbols from every angle.
The crescent moon and the abyss-like eye stared back at him, cold and silent.
Nothing happened. No sudden surge of power, no mystical whispers, not even a faint vibration. It felt like... just a stone.
'Why would a thing like this be kept in a place so heavily hidden?'
'It must be important. For now, I'll take it.'
Ash tucked the relic into his spatial bag.
The weight of his injuries finally caught up with him, and his legs felt heavy.
He decided to sit down on the stone pedestal for a moment to catch his breath.
He pulled out a dry piece of bread and a bottle of water.
As he ate, his mind continued to churn, analyzing the situation.
The Core was nowhere to be found in this strange cathedral. Which meant it had to be somewhere else in this vast, underground necropolis.
'But where?'
He couldn't afford to check every single house in a city that stretched for fifty kilometers.
It was an impossible task, a waste of precious time and remaining strength.
'Maybe the city center. There's an ancient castle standing there. If the Core exists, it's either there or I'll find a clue leading to it.'
Finished with his meager meal, Ash stood up.
He cast one last look at the mysterious room, leaving the silent, obsidian fissure behind.
He stepped out of the cathedral and began the long walk toward the heart of the city.
...
...
...
Meanwhile, far above.
The world on the surface was still choked by darkness.
The small hole Ash had vanished into was now being violently expanded.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Thunderous strikes hammered against the earth without pause.
The creature, a nightmare of pure black, used its single, elongated arm to dig into the soil with savage intensity.
Its claws, sharp as obsidian blades, tore through dirt and rock like paper.
It remembered that human's smile.
That defiant, mockery of a smile as he fell.
The memory made the creature's blood boil with a mindless rage.
It wouldn't just kill him.
It would rip him apart.
It would tear his flesh from his bones and lap up every drop of his blood. It was a promise of slaughter.
"KEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE---------------"
Its shriek tore through the night, a sound of pure malice.
...
...
...
ASHFEI POV:
Unaware that death was literally digging its way toward him, Ash continued his steady pace through the ruins.
The city felt like a labyrinth of echoes.
'I've been walking for quite a while, and the center is still far.'
The streets were a graveyard of grand architecture.
Every building was a testament to a glorious past, now reduced to rubble and choked by moss.
'To think a city this magnificent was completely ruined by war.' Ash let out a weary sigh.
Suddenly, a voice drifted out from the shadows of a nearby crumbling house.
"A real shame, isn't it?"
"Yes, it truly is," Ash replied instinctively.
He froze immediately.
His heart skipped a beat as his muscles tensed.
'Wait. Who said that?' Ash whirled around, his silver spear leveled at the source of the voice.
Tap--Tap--Tap--
The sound of footsteps on stone resonated through the empty street. From the thick darkness, a figure emerged.
No—it was something that looked like a person. Ash's eyes narrowed as he took in the being standing before him.
It was a humanoid creature, roughly 1.8 meters tall. Its entire body was composed of a swirling, dark mist—a mixture of obsidian black and deep purple. Its face was a smooth, featureless mask.
No eyes. No nose. No mouth. Ash hadn't expected to encounter another living thing down here, let alone something like this.
'It can talk?'
The humanoid entity spoke again, its voice carrying a playful, almost mocking tone.
"Oh? I didn't expect to find a human in this place."
"Tell me, how did you manage to get onto this island? And how did you end up down here?"
Silence. Ash didn't answer.
He stared at the creature, his mind racing through every possible combat scenario.
He didn't know what this thing was, and in this world, knowledge was survival.
Giving information away for free was a luxury he couldn't afford.
"Ho? Not talking? That's quite cold of you."
The creature shook its head, making a dramatic sighing motion despite having no face.
"So disrespectful."
"But then again, you don't really need to tell me. I can guess why you're here."
Ash raised an eyebrow, his grip on the spear tightening.
'Does this thing know I'm a Chosen?'
Internally, he was on high alert, but his expression remained as cold as stone, waiting for the creature to continue.
"I'd wager you got down here through that hole the rats dug to the surface, didn't you?"
'He knows about the rats...' Ash's mind sharpened.
That meant this creature had been here for a long time. It might even be connected to the events that led to the city's downfall.
"And as for why you're on this island... let me guess..."
The figure tilted its head slightly to the side, a gesture that felt unsettlingly human.
"You stumbled into a Forbidden Land and were teleported here, right?"
'Huh?' Ash blinked.
'He doesn't know I'm a Chosen?'
But then a deeper realization hit him.
How did this creature know how the founders of the village arrived here? This thing was not a simple monster.
His gaze became even sharper, piercing through the dark mist of the creature's form.
While Ash's mind was a storm of confusion and analysis, he remained perfectly still, his silence unbroken.
"Oh, still nothing? Then my deduction must be correct."
"Haizz, I really am a genius."
'Self-centered...' Ash noted mentally, assessing the creature's personality.
'Arrogant and talkative.'
"Well, I've rambled on enough, I suppose."
The creature's playful tone suddenly vanished, replaced by a fake, theatrical solemnity.
It placed its right hand over its left chest and bowed slowly.
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Cranel."
"A man who discarded his mortal flesh to achieve ascension."
"The sole living resident of this ancient city."
Cranel lifted his head, staring at Ash. His voice dropped to a low whisper, yet it was crystal clear in the silence.
"And I am one of the very first... the ones who were brought here thousands of years ago in the Great Displacement."