Chapter 38 - 36: The Forgotten Warden
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The sharp, measured sound of footsteps reverberated against the shattered stone corridor, piercing the heavy silence that followed Garrick’s departure.
Instantly, the party dropped into high-alert combat stances. Despite the severe mana backfire throbbing in his chest, Victor shifted his stance forward, his pitch-black eyes fixed on the gloom ahead. Beside him, Lyra drew her silver rapier in a single fluid motion, her blade humming with dark, frost-infused aura. Kael instinctively crossed his arms and stepped in front of Elena, his forearms still smoking from his earlier exertion.
The rhythmic footsteps suddenly ceased.
From the deep shadows beyond the shattered archway, a calm, melodic female voice echoed softly through the damp air:
"You don’t need to raise your weapons."
A figure stepped into the dim, pale light cast by the luminous cave moss.
She was undeniably a Dryad. Her long, flowing hair was interwoven with delicate vines and vibrant leaves, framing a pale, ethereal face marked by subtle emerald lines that pulsed along her jawline. Her pale-green eyes held an ancient, unbothered tranquility as her bare feet rested silently against the cold, cracked granite.
Despite staring directly down the drawn blades of four armed humans, her expression remained entirely serene.
Lyra didn’t lower her rapier by a single millimeter. Her icy blue eyes narrowed dangerously, dark mana swirling around her wrists. "That’s exactly what someone dangerous would say."
The Dryad offered a slight, amused smile. "Perhaps."
Standing slightly behind them, Victor stared at the mysterious woman, his mind working with cold, rapid precision.
The Forgotten Warden... Victor realized, his Fate-Shattering Perception dissecting the smooth, nature-attuned mana flowing through her body. She isn’t supposed to appear here. In the original novel, Lucas encounters her much later, after barely surviving the Golems in the lower labyrinth.
Victor’s jaw tightened imperceptibly. My actions in the capital and bringing Garrick down here ahead of schedule have caused the timeline to diverge even further.
"Master, don’t trust her," Lyra whispered, her voice laced with sharp hostility as she kept her rapier pointed at the woman’s throat. "She is an anomaly in this place."
"Lower your weapon, Lyra," Victor commanded quietly.
Lyra hesitated, glancing back at him with a flicker of genuine confusion. "You know her?"
"I know enough," Victor replied smoothly, stepping forward to draw the Dryad’s attention away from his party.
The Dryad turned her pale-green eyes toward Victor, evaluating his posture and the dark, suppressed mana lingering near his core. "You know more than you should... human."
Victor’s expression remained entirely neutral. "Is that a problem?"
"Not yet," she murmured softly.
She bowed her head slightly, offering a traditional greeting of ancient wardens. "I am Elaria, Warden of the Verdant Ruin. I was created by the architects of these stone halls centuries ago. My purpose was to preserve the forest above and guide those deemed worthy who stepped beyond the threshold."
She gestured vaguely toward the crumbling stone pillars around them. "My creators vanished into history long ago, leaving me behind. Over the centuries, the automated guardians of the lower levels have ceased recognizing my authority... but my duty remains."
"So you’re the dungeon’s boss?" Kael asked suspiciously, keeping his shield arm raised.
"No," Elaria corrected gently. "I am not the dungeon’s guardian. I am merely the warden of the forest surrounding it."
Her eyes shifted toward the gaping, ruined crater torn into the stone wall the deep, jagged tunnel created by Garrick’s catastrophic Tier 8 attack.
"The crimson warrior broke the seal," Elaria observed, stepping toward the shattered fissure.
"Garrick," Victor said coldly.
Elaria nodded. "His attack tore open a path that was sealed long before my creators vanished. What you believed was a mere wall was, in truth, an ancient door."
Victor stared at the gaping tunnel. Garrick’s near-Tier-8 strike didn’t just damage the dungeon structure... it opened a hidden shortcut. He accidentally handed us the fastest route deeper into the ruins.
"Where does it lead?" Victor asked directly.
"To the Blood Trial," Elaria answered.
Victor’s eyes narrowed. In the original novel, navigating to the core vault required clearing three tedious layers of Golem-infested corridors. Garrick’s destructive rampage had sliced directly through the labyrinth’s spatial framework, bypassing hours of combat.
As they spoke, Elaria suddenly paused. Her calm, green eyes locked directly onto Kael.
Within Kael’s chest, the dormant, volatile crimson aura buried inside his core began to pulse violently in response to her gaze. Kael gasped slightly, clutching his sternum as his skin flushed hot. "What... why does my body feel like it’s burning?"
Elaria glided forward, stopping a few paces from Kael. She raised a hand, hovering her fingers near his chest without making physical contact.
"The Blood Trial has recognized you," Elaria declared softly.
The air grew dead silent.
Elena stepped forward nervously, pulling on her brother’s arm. "Recognized him? What does that mean?"
Elaria looked into Kael’s eyes. "Your blood remembers this place."
She turned her attention back to the group, her voice carrying the weight of ancient history. "The Blood Trial was never designed for ordinary adventurers seeking fortune or glory. It was constructed exclusively for specific, ancient bloodlines. The Berserker Trait sleeping inside your brother originates from the very legacy bound to this vault."
Elena stood stunned, her hands trembling. "The public academy records... they called it the Killing Trait. A defective, cursed mutation."
"The academy’s records are ignorant," Elaria said calmly. "Your family is distinctly related to the man who was the true legend behind that trait. In his era, his enemies called him a killing machine, his allies called him a monster, while some called him a savior."
She paused, watching the shock settle over the siblings. "His descendants are lost to time, but from time to time, one of his descendants may be born with the trait of the berserker."
Elena’s face turned pale. "A savior?"
Victor stood quietly in the background, his mind racing. A savior? Who was this legendary warrior?
Victor stepped closer to the Dryad, his Fate-Shattering Perception locked onto her ancient aura. "Who was he? What was his name?"
Elaria turned her pale-green eyes to Victor, her expression remaining entirely smooth and unbothered.
"I cannot reveal that yet," she stated calmly, her voice carrying a soft yet unyielding weight. "You are far too weak to learn that truth right now. You will learn in time... if you survive long enough."
Victor’s pitch-black eyes narrowed imperceptibly, but he absorbed the warning without argument, turning his focus back to Kael. I’ll have to look into who was the man of legends, who this berserker truly was, once we return to the capital.
"Only the bearer of the trait may enter," Elaria continued, gesturing toward the altar glowing deep within the newly revealed chamber. "The trial belongs to him alone."
"Then nobody is taking it," Elena interjected fiercely, stepping entirely in front of Kael and facing Elaria with defiance.
Kael blinked. "Elena.."
"No!" Elena snapped, her eyes brimming with tears. "I won’t let you do this! I watched you lose your mind against Garrick! I watched your blood boil until you couldn’t even recognize me! I am not going to stand here and watch you walk into a trap that turns you into a monster!"
Kael stood torn, looking from his frantic sister to the glowing red altar beyond the archway.
"You need to go, Kael," Victor’s voice cut through the emotional standoff like a steel blade.
Elena whipped around, glaring at Victor with pure fury. "Are you insane?! You want him to risk his life after everything that just happened?!"
"No," Victor replied coldly, meeting Elena’s angry glare without flinching. "I want him to make sure that the next time that trait awakens, he still knows who he is. He lost control once today. If that trait triggers again without a proper seal or mastery, the consequences will be far worse. He might find a way to harness its power in there after all, someone with the exact same trait made this place."
Elena opened her mouth to argue, but Kael placed a heavy, steady hand on her shoulder.
He looked at Victor, then down at his own trembling, scarred hands. "What... what is actually inside this trial?"
Elaria raised three fingers. "The trial consists of three stages. First: The Hunt you must survive while resisting the instinct to surrender yourself to the Berserker Trait. Second: The Blood your own physical injuries will become part of the trial, forcing you to fight as your rage grows progressively stronger. Third: The Beast you will stand face-to-face with the manifestation of what the Killing Trait could eventually turn you into."
Kael swallowed hard, his throat dry. "And if I fail?"
Elaria looked at him with eerie stillness. "You will either die... or leave this place as something that is no longer your sister’s brother."
A heavy, suffocating silence settled over the room.
Kael closed his eyes, taking a single, deep breath. When he opened them, the doubt was gone, replaced by a quiet, burning resolve. "I’ll do it."
"Kael, please..." Elena whimpered, her grip on his sleeve tightening.
As Kael stepped toward the altar, Victor walked alongside him, speaking in a low tone that only Kael could hear. "By the way... whatever you find in there, we are going to split fifty-fifty as a verdict."
Kael offered a faint, dry smirk, nodding without arguing. After all, without Victor dragging him into this dungeon, he never would have found an opportunity to learn the truth about his berserker constitution.
Before Kael reached the threshold, Lyra stepped forward, blocking his path for a brief second.
She gave him a sharp, stiff nod. "Come back alive."
Kael smiled faintly. "I’ll try."
Lyra’s eyes flashed with icy intensity. "Don’t try." She looked him directly in the eyes. "Do it."
Kael nodded, surprised by her sudden, blunt support, before turning back to his weeping sister. Elena reached out, grabbing his arm one last time.
"You promised me," Elena whispered, her voice cracking.
"What?" Kael asked softly.
"That you’d come back."
Kael looked at her for a long moment, then gently pried her fingers free. "I will."
As Kael stepped up to the glowing stone altar, Victor glided over to Elaria, standing beside the Dryad as the altar’s ancient mechanisms began to hum.
"Why are you helping us?" Victor asked softly, his eyes fixed on the glowing runes.
"I am not helping you," Elaria replied without looking at him.
"Then what are you doing?"
"The Trial called him," she said simply.
"And if it kills him?" Victor pressed.
"Then he wasn’t ready."
Victor’s pitch-black eyes narrowed. "You sound very comfortable with people dying."
Elaria turned her head slightly, her pale-green eyes meeting his abyss-like gaze. "You sound very uncomfortable with fate."
Victor said nothing, his mind briefly flashing to his Fate-Shattering Perception.
Suddenly, the entire chamber vibrated with ancient power. Deep crimson runes ignited along the stone floor, tracing intricate pathways toward the giant stone door at the end of the shortcut.
An ancient, booming voice echoed throughout the cavernous space:
[Blood Recognized.]
[Bearer of the Killing Trait Recognized.]
[Trial of Blood Commencing.]
The heavy crimson door slowly ground open, revealing an endless, blood-red void within.
Kael walked steadily toward the threshold. Just before stepping through, he stopped and looked back one last time.
Victor stood among the lingering dust, simply offering a firm nod.
Kael entered.
BOOM!
The massive crimson doors slammed shut with absolute finality, sealing the chamber.
Silence returned to the subterranean cavern. Victor stared at the sealed entrance with a cold, calculating gleam in his eyes.
Let’s see what you’re really capable of, Kael.