The second level of the ziggurat—the guardian chamber—was built around a corridor that encircled a single central room with only one exit. However, several things were off about it, and Star was currently looking at one of those things.
It was a stairway that led down, positioned to the east of the ziggurat's guardian chamber. He gulped each time he stared at the shadows that swallowed the stairs, allowing him only a faint glimpse of the first weathered stone step.
I wanna get out of here fast.
This wasn't the first staircase he had seen. Two more circled the corridor—one went down to the east and another upwards to the south, to a level he was yet to see. And beyond that lay the inner sanctum.
They could have continued further upwards, but Katerina had decided to explore the second level instead. And now, they were about to begin descending the very stairs he had been looking at.
However, before their descent could begin, he took a glance at his outfit. It was still the same one he had been wearing earlier, but it was no longer stained with blood. Katerina had helped him change clothes after he came from the fifth room of the level beneath them.
And in a medium-sized pouch that hung on the side of his new outfit, the hilt of a dagger slightly stuck out. It was a stygian blade Katerina had given him after their arrival at the guardian chamber. It was a gift of sorts—one that made his blood rush each time he touched it.
Other than that, nothing much had really happened on a personal level between the two of them.
Shaking his head, Star looked up and took a step forward. He had more important things to do than worry about things he had no power over.
Katerina was ahead of him, and as soon as she stepped foot on the first step, blue light flared to life. The stairway was lit up in a radiant glow, a stark contrast to the other torches Star had seen.
But that wasn't the only thing different about the stairway.
It wasn't carved from the same golden-brown stone he had seen in other places. Rather, obsidian slabs stacked downward, creating a set of stairs while pale black walls curved around them.
However, he didn't have time to ponder any of it, as he had to rush to catch up with Katerina. Though not quite surprising, she always seemed to know where to go within the ziggurat—places to avoid, hidden traps, and even secret doors leading to concealed chambers.
She knew every inch of the temple, which suggested that she had come here before… proved it, rather.
He rushed down the stairs, uneven beneath his feet and worn by time. Soon they reached the end of the stairway, and before them lay a narrow path that led to a dead end a few meters away.
Katerina lingered for a moment before turning her gaze to him. She reached forward and calmly pointed to his hand, gesturing for him to stretch it out.
As soon as he did, she grabbed hold of it. Afterward, she turned her gaze to the wall in the distance and began using her ring finger to carve a strange pattern onto his palm.
She was so quick that he hadn't been able to react by the time she finished. When she was done, she stepped back, leaving him to stare at his now bleeding palm.
His hand was cold from her touch, and there was no pain from the shallow cuts. Now, he just had to wait for her to tell him what to do.
Katerina glanced at him one more time before continuing forward. He followed behind her, and in due time, they were standing in front of the wall.
Polished obsidian lined the surface like everything else around it, and so far, there was nothing strange he could see or notice about it.
Katerina pointed at the wall.
"Place your hand in the center of the door."
Star hesitated for a moment before slowly walking forward. He reached the black wall and bit down on his lip, a bit shaky as he raised his hand toward it.
His palm rested against the surface, but nothing happened… at least for the first few seconds.
Something was supposed to happen. Perhaps it was already happening. He couldn't feel any strange sensations within or around him.
His heart raced, a chill creeping up his spine.
A few seconds later, ancient chains rattled. The place trembled, and the wall began moving. Star flinched, but his hand remained where it was.
He only removed it after the wall pulled his arm too far upward. A few moments later, a door opened before him, leading into a room where a single chandelier hung from the ceiling.
Star's eyes widened as he gazed at the interior.
'What the… A study?'
But then he staggered backward, coughing slightly as the air around him thickened—warm, damp, and choking with incense. Shelves lined the walls, heaped with dusty tomes, scrolls tied with fraying cords, and jars that glimmered faintly with some inner light.
He coughed again and raised his head, gazing into the study once more while instinctively covering his mouth and nose.
The floor of the room was covered with a patchwork of rugs burned at the edges. A single table stood at the center, scattered with instruments and items that seemed to have been used long ago. At the very end of the table, a single candle continued to burn as though for eternity.
Star's gaze lingered on the candle as his mind wandered for a moment.
Every other place he had seen so far in the temple was dark, lined with torches that came to life with a pale blue light the moment he and Katerina entered. However, the study had been lit even before he opened the secret door, and the torches leading to it burned even brighter.
Something's not right.
His intuition was faint, but it was the best he could do given how uncanny and unsettling the room before him was.
From the ceiling, a chandelier hung low, casting shadows across walls etched with strange, intricately twisting runes. The stench of old parchment and a faint metallic tang assaulted his nose. Everything in the room seemed deliberately placed, organized in a chaotic manner—as if the room itself reflected the mind of whoever had studied here.
Every inch of it was riddled with secrets—secrets that would send a certain group of people—researchers, ruin scavengers, hoarders, or anyone with the slightest spark of curiosity—into a frenzy at the mere sight of it.
In a sense, Star and Katerina were ruin scavengers themselves, and perhaps potential hoarders as well. More than that, his heart was racing with curiosity. His fingers itched to reach out, yet his spine ran cold with dread.
His dread wasn't intuitive, but instinctive. Now that he was an Awakened, he could sense energy better—Aether, Vital Force, and Soul Essence—and he was sensing an insane amount of divine aura coming from within the room.
Something was inside there, waiting for them.
And he was going to see what it was soon.
As he stood at the entrance, Katerina walked forward and stopped beside him. She lingered for a moment before turning to face him.
"I assume your ability to sense energy has improved since your awakening?"
Star nodded, a grim expression settling on his face, but he said nothing.
Katerina continued.
"I thought as much. Then listen carefully. Our journey through this temple has been… unpleasant, and I have left you in the dark for far too long. So I will give you a brief explanation of why we are here—just enough for you to understand what awaits us beyond that door. If we are to continue deeper into this place, you deserve at least that much."