Chapter 171: The Source Below
Morning came too quickly.
Before the sun had fully risen over Blackwood, the courtyard outside Blackwood Manor was already alive with movement.
Weapons were being checked.
Armor tightened.
Horses prepared.
Supplies loaded.
Grom Ironfang stood near the center of the courtyard with his spear resting across one shoulder.
Despite the injuries from yesterday, the old goblin looked ready to fight again.
Darius Valen walked along the line of Black Dragon soldiers.
He inspected every man personally.
Kael watched from the manor steps.
Fifty soldiers.
That was still the entirety of the Black Dragon.
It wasn’t an army.
Not yet.
But these fifty were becoming something different from the soldiers who had originally arrived in Blackwood.
Darius had trained them.
Grom had tested them.
They had fought together.
And more importantly, they were beginning to understand what the Black Dragon was supposed to represent.
Kael descended the steps.
Darius approached him.
Twenty.
Kael looked at him.
Twenty?
That’s how many I’m allowing you to take.
Allowing?
Darius ignored the question.
Twenty Black Dragon soldiers. Grom. Galahad. You. Me.
Kael frowned.
You said most should remain behind.
Thirty will.
Darius pointed toward several soldiers.
Captain Roland will command Blackwood’s defense until we return.
Kael nodded.
Good.
Darius continued.
The western villages have already been warned. Patrols have doubled. Nobody enters the forest without authorization.
And the displaced families?
Edwin is handling them.
Kael glanced toward the settlement.
Thirty-nine refugees had arrived first.
Eleven more had been rescued.
Fifty people.
Fifty lives that had been completely uprooted.
If they wanted to remain in Blackwood, Kael would find somewhere for them.
But that came later.
First he needed to make sure whatever destroyed their home couldn’t follow them here.
Galahad Charney approached.
Unlike yesterday, he wore proper equipment.
Leather armor reinforced with metal plates covered his torso. A longsword hung at his waist, while a smaller blade was strapped behind him.
Kael looked at him.
You look different.
Yesterday I was building a guild.
Galahad tightened one glove.
Today I’m going underground.
Fair enough.
Kael glanced around.
Only Galahad?
Where are the other adventurers?
Recovering.
Good.
Galahad looked surprised.
I expected you to complain about needing more people.
Kael shook his head.
They’re provisional adventurers. They completed their first mission and several were injured.
They earned their rest.
Galahad smiled.
You’re learning how a guild works already.
Don’t get comfortable.
Before leaving, Kael opened his System.
The information from last night remained.
Regional Quest
Source of Corruption
Threat Level: Unknown
Current Estimated Depth: 41 meters
Kael’s expression changed.
Forty-one.
Last night it had been fifty-two.
Whatever was happening beneath the cave had continued through the night.
But something else bothered him.
The System had already stated the source wasn’t alive.
Yet it was moving.
Kael dismissed the notification.
Let’s go.
They reached the abandoned village several hours later.
Nobody spoke much along the way.
The forest felt different.
Kael couldn’t explain why.
Perhaps it was because he knew what was underneath it now.
Or perhaps there really was something changing.
Birds were scarce.
Small animals were almost nonexistent.
Even insects seemed quieter.
Galahad noticed it too.
The forest shouldn’t be this silent.
Grom looked around.
The beasts scared everything away.
Maybe.
Galahad crouched beside a tree.
He examined several claw marks.
Or something else did.
Kael placed his hand against the trunk.
Nothing.
Then he crouched and touched the soil.
Ice mana moved through his fingers.
Cold spread beneath the surface.
The System appeared.
Frost Sense Activated
Mastery: 1%
At first, Kael felt nothing but moisture.
Roots.
Stone.
Small insects underground.
Then farther ahead—
Movement.
Kael opened his eyes.
Three.
Darius immediately reached for his sword.
Where?
East.
Approximately eighty meters.
Grom smiled.
More wolves?
Kael shook his head.
Smaller.
Galahad looked toward the trees.
Could be normal animals.
Maybe.
Kael stood.
But at least Frost Sense works.
Darius looked at him.
How far?
Not enough.
Kael glanced toward his hand.
Eighty meters is near my current limit.
Darius nodded.
Then don’t rely on it too heavily.
Kael agreed.
A new ability could be useful.
It could also get him killed if he trusted it more than his own senses.
They reached the cave before noon.
The clearing still carried evidence of yesterday’s battle.
Broken trees.
Blood.
Deep claw marks.
Several dead mutated beasts remained where they had fallen.
Galahad walked toward one.
The bodies are changing.
Kael approached.
He immediately saw what Galahad meant.
Yesterday, dark veins had been visible beneath the creature’s skin.
Now they were fading.
The beast almost looked like an unusually large wolf again.
Kael crouched.
That’s strange.
Grom poked the corpse with the end of his spear.
Maybe whatever changed them disappears when they die.
Kael’s eyes narrowed.
That was possible.
Darius looked toward the cave.
Or when they’re too far from the source.
Kael stood.
Good point.
He turned toward two soldiers.
Take one corpse back to Blackwood.
Grom raised an eyebrow.
You’re bringing that thing home?
I want it examined.
By who?
Kael paused.
That was another weakness.
Blackwood had craftsmen.
Soldiers.
Farmers.
Builders.
But they didn’t have anyone who specialized in magical creatures.
Not yet.
Store it somewhere isolated.
Kael continued.
Nobody touches it without permission.
The soldiers nodded.
Yes, Your Highness.
They began preparing the corpse.
Kael looked toward Galahad.
Add another position to your guild plans.
Galahad already understood.
Monster specialist?
Monster researcher.
Someone who understands anatomy, mana cores, mutations, poisons, materials.
Galahad nodded.
Useful.
Grom looked at the corpse.
And probably strange.
Kael looked at him.
You’re a seventy-four-year-old goblin called the former Spear King.
Grom stared at him.
What’s strange about that?
Kael walked away.
Exactly.
They entered the cave.
Darius went first.
Kael immediately noticed the difference between watching Darius command soldiers and watching him enter an unknown threat zone.
Everything changed.
His breathing.
His steps.
His eyes.
One of the Four Imperial Shields wasn’t simply a title.
Darius moved like someone who had survived more battles than most people had ever seen.
His sword remained sheathed.
Yet Kael could feel the Aura surrounding him.
Controlled.
Quiet.
Heavy.
Kael’s System reacted.
Powerful Aura Detected
Analysis Limited
Kael almost laughed.
Even the System wasn’t giving him much.
Darius looked back.
Something amusing?
Nothing.
Then pay attention.
Kael followed.
Grom came behind him.
Galahad followed.
The Black Dragon soldiers moved in pairs.
Torches illuminated the walls.
The cave descended gradually.
They passed the chamber where the villagers had been held.
It was empty.
Bones remained scattered across the ground.
Kael stopped.
He looked toward Galahad.
Mark this location.
Why?
We’ll recover the remains later.
Galahad understood.
Families deserved to know what happened.
Even if the bodies were old.
They continued downward.
After twenty minutes, the natural cave changed.
Darius stopped.
Kael nearly walked into him.
What?
Darius pointed toward the wall.
Kael lifted his torch.
At first, he didn’t understand.
Then he saw it.
The stone was smooth.
Too smooth.
Galahad approached.
Tools made this.
Grom touched the wall.
Old.
Very old.
Kael moved the torch higher.
Faded carvings appeared.
Not Imperial.
At least not any Imperial writing Kael recognized.
The System appeared.
Unknown Written Language Detected
Attempting Analysis
Nothing happened.
Kael waited.
Still nothing.
Then—
Language Classification Failed
Grom looked at him.
System?
Kael nodded.
Can’t read it.
Galahad frowned.
Your System can identify ancient sites but can’t read this?
Apparently.
Darius looked farther down the passage.
That tells us something.
Kael nodded.
Either the writing was extremely old...
Or it didn’t belong to any civilization the System recognized.
Neither possibility made Kael comfortable.
The passage widened.
Then they found the first door.
It was enormous.
Nearly fifteen feet tall.
Black stone.
No handles.
No hinges.
A symbol had been carved into its center.
A circle divided vertically.
One half resembled a sun.
The other looked like—
Kael stepped closer.
A wing.
Galahad looked at him.
Recognize it?
No.
Kael reached toward the symbol.
Darius grabbed his wrist.
Kael looked at him.
Really?
You have an unfortunate habit of touching ancient objects.
That’s how we learn things.
That’s how curses happen.
Grom laughed.
He’s right.
Kael looked between them.
Neither of you are helpful.
Kael withdrew his hand.
Instead, he activated Frost Sense.
Cold spread across the door.
The moment his mana touched it—
The symbol illuminated.
Everyone stepped backward.
Kael drew his sword.
Darius’s sword was already in his hand.
Grom lowered his spear.
The circle glowed.
Blue.
Then white.
Then suddenly—
Gold.
Kael froze.
The light resembled his own Light magic.
Not exactly.
But close enough.
The System appeared.
Unknown Energy Detected
Comparison in Progress
Kael waited.
Similarity to User Light Affinity: 61%
His eyes narrowed.
Sixty-one percent?
Darius looked toward him.
What?
It’s reacting to my Light.
Galahad looked at the glowing door.
Can you open it?
Kael didn’t answer.
He summoned Light into his palm.
White-gold energy appeared.
The door reacted immediately.
The ancient symbol became brighter.
Then—
BOOM.
The enormous door moved.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Black Dragon soldiers raised their weapons.
Slowly...
The ancient stone separated.
A passage appeared.
Cold air escaped from somewhere below.
But Kael felt something else mixed with it.
Mana.
Enormous amounts of mana.
Purple light flickered far beneath them.
The System appeared.
Path Discovered
Estimated Mana Source Depth
36 meters.
Kael frowned.
It was closer again.
They continued.
Nobody spoke.
The carved passage descended through a massive spiral staircase.
Kael counted the levels.
One.
Two.
Three.
The deeper they traveled, the more ancient architecture appeared.
Columns.
Collapsed rooms.
Broken statues.
Several statues depicted armored warriors.
But their armor wasn’t Imperial.
Some carried swords.
Others spears.
One held what looked like a staff.
Galahad stopped near another statue.
Kael.
Kael turned.
Galahad pointed toward its chest.
The same symbol.
Sun.
Wing.
Kael stared at it.
Who were these people?
Nobody answered.
They continued.
Then the System suddenly flashed.
Warning
Mana Source: 28 meters
Another step.
27 meters
Kael stopped.
Darius looked at him.
It’s still moving?
Yes.
Toward us?
Kael watched.
Twenty-six.
Twenty-five.
Yes.
Darius immediately turned.
Defensive formation.
The Black Dragon soldiers moved.
Shields forward.
Weapons ready.
Grom stepped beside Kael.
Galahad moved behind the first line.
The staircase trembled.
Dust fell.
Purple light became brighter below.
Then they heard something.
Metal.
Dragging against stone.
Grom tightened his grip.
That doesn’t sound like a wolf.
Kael drew his sword.
Ice formed along the blade.
Darius glanced toward him.
Magic already?
Kael looked at him.
I’m a Magic Swordsman.
Darius almost smiled.
At least you’re finally accepting it.
Kael’s Ice spread farther along the weapon.
Light gathered around his other hand.
Aura circulated through his body.
Three different forces.
Ice.
Light.
Aura.
Each required control.
That was the weakness of a Magic Swordsman.
Darius only needed to master his sword and Aura.
Kael had more possibilities.
But possibilities meant nothing without mastery.
The sound grew louder.
Scrape.
Scrape.
Scrape.
Something emerged from below.
The Black Dragon soldiers raised their weapons.
A figure stepped into the purple light.
Armor.
Ancient black armor covered its entire body.
A broken sword dragged behind it.
There was no skin beneath the helmet.
No eyes.
No breathing.
Nothing.
Kael’s System reacted.
Unknown Construct Detected
Living Status
None.
Kael’s eyes widened.
Not alive.
The System hadn’t been detecting the beasts moving toward the surface.
It had been detecting this.
The armored figure raised its head.
Purple light ignited inside the empty helmet.
Then another figure stepped from below.
Then another.
Five.
Ten.
Twenty.
Darius slowly raised his sword.
Kael stared down the staircase.
Ancient armored constructs continued emerging.
Thirty.
Forty.
The System flashed red.
WARNING
Ancient Defense System Activated
Detected Units
50.
56.
The number continued climbing.
Grom grinned.
Kael looked at him.
Why are you smiling?
Grom lowered his spear.
Because now we know why the monsters were running away.
Kael looked toward the approaching constructs.
Grom was right.
The beasts hadn’t been called back.
They had been fleeing.
The first construct charged.
Darius moved.
Kael barely saw him draw his sword.
One slash.
The construct stopped.
A thin line appeared across its chest.
Then its entire body separated.
The upper half crashed against the stairs.
Silence.
Kael stared.
Darius calmly lowered his sword.
Kael had seen powerful swordsmen before.
But this was different.
There had been no spell.
No Ice.
No Light.
Just swordsmanship.
And Aura.
The System appeared.
Combat Technique Analysis Failed
Kael stared at Darius.
Darius glanced at him.
Later.
Another construct charged.
Then ten.
Grom laughed.
Black Dragon!
The soldiers braced.
Kael raised his sword.
Ice covered the ground.
The first constructs slipped.
Kael accelerated.
Night Frost Step
His body shot forward.
Dark Aura mixed with freezing mana.
Kael appeared beside the first construct.
His sword struck.
Ice exploded across its armor.
But the blade didn’t cut through.
Kael’s eyes widened.
Hard.
The construct swung.
Kael ducked.
He released Light through his sword.
The blade glowed.
He attacked again.
This time—
CRACK.
The armor split.
Purple energy leaked from inside.
Kael jumped backward.
The System reacted.
Magic Swordsman Combat Integration Detected
Ice + Aura + Light
Synchronization: 14%
Current Combat Classification
Magic Swordsman
Kael smiled.
Finally.
But the System continued.
Warning
Mana consumption significantly higher than conventional Swordsman combat.
Darius cut through another construct.
See?
Kael looked at him.
See what?
That’s why Magic Swordsmen die young.
Kael frowned.
That’s encouraging.
They try to use everything at once.
Darius parried another attack.
They exhaust themselves before the real fight begins.
Kael blocked a broken sword.
Then what am I supposed to do?
Choose.
Darius kicked the construct backward.
Sword when sword is enough.
Aura when Aura is enough.
Magic when magic gives you an advantage.
Darius’s blade flashed.
Another construct fell.
A Magic Swordsman isn’t someone who throws every power into every attack.
He looked directly at Kael.
It’s someone who knows which one to use.
Kael froze for half a second.
Then another construct attacked.
This time Kael didn’t use Light.
He reinforced his sword with Aura.
Parried.
Turned.
Cut through the damaged joint.
The construct fell.
Less mana.
Less effort.
Kael smiled.
That lesson mattered.
The battle continued.
Black Dragon soldiers fought in formation.
Grom destroyed constructs with precise spear thrusts.
Galahad targeted damaged joints.
Darius moved through them like they were training dummies.
Kael watched.
Learned.
Adjusted.
Sword.
Aura.
Ice only when necessary.
Light against the purple energy.
Night Frost Step only for movement when positioning mattered.
His fighting became cleaner.
The System appeared repeatedly.
Magic Swordsman Synchronization: 16%
18%
21%
Then—
Everything stopped.
The remaining constructs froze.
Purple light disappeared from their helmets.
Bodies collapsed.
Silence returned.
Grom looked around.
That’s disappointing.
Several Black Dragon soldiers stared at him.
Kael breathed heavily.
Darius wasn’t even sweating.
Kael noticed.
He hated that.
Then the ground shook.
Everyone turned toward the staircase.
The purple light below vanished.
Completely.
The System appeared.
Mana Source Movement Stopped
Current Depth
18 meters.
Kael looked down.
Something had changed.
They continued carefully.
The staircase ended.
And what waited beneath it made everyone stop.
An enormous underground chamber stretched before them.
Bigger than the Hall of Dragons.
Ancient pillars disappeared into darkness.
Broken weapons covered the floor.
Hundreds of armored constructs stood motionless along the walls.
But nobody looked at them.
They looked at the center.
A massive object floated above a circular platform.
A crystal.
Purple.
Nearly twenty feet tall.
Cracks covered its surface.
Energy moved inside it like liquid.
Kael’s System reacted immediately.
Unknown Artifact Detected
Analysis
Foreign Mana Storage Device
Age
Unknown.
Current Stability
12%.
Kael’s eyes widened.
Twelve?
Then another notification appeared.
Warning
Catastrophic Mana Release Possible
Galahad looked at Kael.
What does it say?
Kael stared at the enormous crystal.
We have a bigger problem than monsters.
Darius approached.
How big?
Kael looked toward the ceiling.
We’re standing underneath an unstable mana device.
Grom frowned.
Explosion?
Possibly.
How large?
The System processed.
Then the answer appeared.
Estimated Destruction Radius
Minimum: 31 kilometers
Nobody spoke.
Thirty-one kilometers.
That wasn’t a cave problem.
That wasn’t a village problem.
That was Blackwood.
Kael stared at the crystal.
Then something caught his attention.
Behind it stood another wall.
And carved into that wall...
Was the same ancient sun-and-wing symbol.
But beneath it was something else.
Writing.
Kael couldn’t read it.
The System couldn’t either.
Yet one symbol was unmistakable.
A horned figure.
Standing beneath a black sun.
Around it...
Armies.
Kael stepped closer.
Darius immediately noticed.
Kael?
Kael stared at the ancient carving.
He didn’t know what it meant.
He didn’t know who created this place.
And he didn’t know why an energy similar to his Light had opened its doors.
But somewhere far beyond Blackwood...
In a white city Kael had never visited...
A bell rang.
Once.
Then twice.
Then thirteen times.
Deep beneath the central sanctuary of Solmara, an elderly man opened his eyes.
White-gold Radiance illuminated the chamber.
A woman wearing pale robes knelt before him.
High Keeper.
The old man’s gaze shifted toward the east.
Toward Aurelia.
Toward Blackwood.
For generations, they had waited.
Watched.
Searched.
And now an ancient seal had responded.
The High Keeper slowly stood.
His voice remained calm.
The Light has touched one of the old doors.
The woman looked up.
Who?
The High Keeper remained silent.
A second figure emerged from the shadows.
A sealed report rested in his hands.
The report had been compiled over months.
The development of Blackwood.
The Tenth Prince.
His unusual abilities.
His investigations into the First Emperor.
And most importantly...
His Light.
The observer placed the report before the High Keeper.
The old man’s eyes settled on one name.
Kael Asterion.
For the first time in centuries...
The Sanctum of the First Light stopped merely watching the Imperial family.
The High Keeper looked toward his kneeling agents.
Do not approach him.
Not yet.
Find out what he opened.
And tell our people in Aurelia to remain silent.
The woman hesitated.
What if the Empire discovers us?
The High Keeper’s expression hardened.
Then they will do what they have always done.
Hide the truth.
He looked again at Kael’s name.
But this prince...
This one may be different.
Far beneath Blackwood, Kael placed his hand near the ancient wall.
The carving glowed faintly.
White-gold light answered him.
And for reasons Kael could not yet understand...
Someone hundreds of miles away already knew.