187 Shadow
“Dammit!” Franca exclaimed with frustration, her voice filled with intensity.
She scanned her surroundings, her mind racing as she pondered and speculated.
“Did we stumble upon the same thing that the missing caravan encountered? Entering that tunnel transported us to another world, erasing the original footprints? Did we vanish into thin air in Fernandez’s eyes?”
Lumian had never faced such a situation before, nor had his sister Aurore written about anything similar in her novels. He couldn’t make sense of what was happening.
Lost in thought, his brows furrowed, Lumian suddenly heard Franca’s conjecture.
How imaginative… Lumian’s initial reaction was a deep sigh before he contemplated the possibilities.
The more he considered it, the more he realized that Franca’s words were eerily similar to their current predicament. He knelt down and examined the footprints once again.
“Indeed, the footprints suddenly appear with the weight of something heavy,” Lumian said, gesturing to a dozen steps behind him.
That was the same spot they had previously traversed, yet there were no traces of their passage.
Franca clenched her teeth and spoke up.
“It seems we truly have entered another world. Or rather, an underground realm…
“Dammit it! Why did this happen to us? Christo, Brignais, Simon, and Black encountered nothing and safely returned to the surface!”
Uh… Lumian suddenly felt a twinge of guilt at Red Boots’s questioning of destiny.
Crouched on the ground, he instinctively raised his hand and touched his left chest.
Was this somehow inevitable?
Yes, I can’t dismiss the possibility that it’s Franca’s doing. Her Sequence is higher than mine, and she carries a mystical item that may hold some secrets… Lumian quickly gathered himself.
Franca looked down at her companion and muttered to herself, “Could it be linked to one of our Sequences? Alternatively, it might be the adverse effect of your glasses.”
Lumian replied thoughtfully, “Hunter and Demoness are neighboring pathways.”
In other words, if this problem stemmed from the convergence of Beyonder attributes, the two of them couldn’t escape responsibility.
Of course, at Lumian and Franca’s level, the convergence of Beyonder attributes wouldn’t have such obvious effects. However, Lumian recalled encountering two Demonesses less than two weeks after arriving in Trier, and he was only a Sequence 8. He suspected that the power of Inevitability had transformed convergence into something fated to occur.
Hmm… Franca fell into deep thought.
After a few seconds, she clenched her teeth and spoke.
“Perhaps this encounter is truly a problem with our pathway, but why did Christo’s smuggling caravan enter this space and mysteriously vanish in reality? They’ve traversed this route countless times without any issues. Why is it different now? Dammit! That blasted rat must not have spilled all the beans! He wasn’t just smuggling alcohol and firearms this time. There’s something else, something linked to mysticism?”
Franca was reluctantly swayed. She exhaled and said, “Now is not the time to dissect the cause. What matters is finding a way out. Sigh, why is Underground Trier intertwined with the abnormalities of the Hunter and Demoness pathways? Uh…”
Franca fell silent abruptly, as if recalling something.
“Have you figured something out?” Lumian stood up.
Franca pondered before responding.
“I don’t know if your sister ever mentioned anything about the Fourth Epoch. Uh, she might not even be aware. In short, Trier during the Fourth Epoch served as the capital of the Tudor Dynasty, and the Blood Emperor who ruled the empire was likely a High Sequence Beyonder of the Hunter pathway. Furthermore, the Demoness family of that era shared a certain connection with one or several prominent nobles of the Tudor Dynasty. It’s reasonable for them to have left something behind in Trier.”
“Demoness family?” Lumian was taken aback by the term.
Franca pursed her lips.
“In the Fourth Epoch, the Demoness pathway was under the control of a specific family. Sigh, since I chose the Assassin pathway, I could only do my best to gather relevant information, but I still lack substantial knowledge.”
Lumian steered the conversation back on track.
“Do you suspect that this space is linked to the sunken Fourth Epoch Trier?”
“Yes,” Franca replied vaguely, not ruling out the possibility. She contemplated for a moment before adding, “The two Churches must have dealt with the ruins to some extent. If we can find the corresponding node, we should be able to escape.”
Carrying the carbide lamp, Lumian once again examined the ground.
“Should we press on or turn back?
“Christo’s smuggling caravan doesn’t seem to have noticed anything amiss. They’re still moving forward.”
Franca pondered for a few seconds and said, “Let’s go back to the spot where we entered this space and investigate. It’s just a few steps away. We won’t waste much time.”
“Alright.” Lumian walked toward the center of the tunnel.
Soon, he and Franca stood at the place where the smuggling caravan’s tracks had materialized out of thin air, attempting to take a step forward.
There was no trace of footprints ahead.
After walking another dozen steps, the darkness deepened. Only Lumian’s and Franca’s footprints remained on the path.
They had not returned to reality.
“Wait.” Franca raised her right hand, signaling to halt. “Let’s turn back and head to the quarry cave we came from. We need to see if Fernandez has entered this space.”
Lumian didn’t object.
It could help them further determine the nature of the problem.
Guided by the bluish glow of their carbide lamps, Lumian and Franca followed the tracks left by the smuggling caravan.
Before long, they reached the quarry cave.
A figure stood at the boundary of light and darkness, with its back turned towards them.
Franca exclaimed with delight, “Fernandez!”
It seemed that the smuggler had also entered this space. Perhaps the problem didn’t lie with her or Ciel!
However, Franca’s expression tightened as soon as she finished speaking.
Simultaneously, Lumian spoke in a deep voice, “Something’s off.”
Fernandez, the smuggler, had been carrying a carbide lamp. There was no way he would just stand there in the darkness!
In the next moment, the figure turned around.
Under the illumination of Lumian and Franca’s carbide lamps, a bloodied face came into view.
The man had short flaxen hair, thick brown eyebrows, and lake-blue eyes.
His lips were thin, and his appearance was unremarkable. Yet, his eyes radiated indescribable malice and hatred.
At that moment, sticky blood stained the man’s face, as if it might drip at any moment.
It’s not Fernandez! Why does he look familiar… Lumian assessed the situation as he reached for the black revolver concealed under his arm.
With a clang, Franca’s carbide lamp fell to the ground.
Startled by the noise and the flickering light, the figure darted into the darkness and disappeared into a tunnel connecting to the cavern.
“What’s wrong?” Lumian turned to Franca.
As a Sequence 7 Beyonder, a member of a secret organization, and an experienced combatant, she shouldn’t be displaying such abnormal behavior and exaggerated reactions!
Franca gazed into the darkness for a few seconds before speaking, “That… that was my past self…”
Your past self, when you were still a man? Lumian was alarmed.
An unsettling feeling crept over him as he asked in a low voice, “You mean, before you drank the Witch potion?”
“Yes.” Franca bent down and retrieved her carbide lamp, confusion and fear etched on her face. “I thought no one in this world would remember that face except for me… Why? Why am I seeing it here? Is it generated from my memories? Can’t our memories be kept secret in this space?”
Wouldn’t that be a good thing? Lumian’s initial reaction was one of excitement.
If this space could reveal the hidden memories of his subconscious, he could begin piecing together the truth of the Cordu disaster!
As for whether this space might intrude on something it shouldn’t and risk severe corruption and damage, he paid it no mind.
With his carbide lamp and revolver in hand, Lumian cautiously circled the empty quarry. He found no other figures or anything related to his past.
Disheartened, he expressed his disappointment to Franca, “I couldn’t find my past self.”
“Could it be that it’s not a memory from the past, but rather something from the future?” Franca suggested returning to the secondary well that had brought them to this level. By searching for more anomalies along the way, they might be able to infer the nature of this space and find a way to leave.
Side by side, they traversed the quarry cave, following the footprints left by the smuggling caravan, heading towards the edge of Quartier de l’Observatoire.
As time went on, Lumian and Franca noticed something on the ground almost simultaneously.
They were scattered droplets of blood, mingled with the disordered footprints of the smuggling caravan.
“Are the abnormalities starting to manifest?” Franca whispered.
Lumian nodded.
“If we proceed further, we might encounter those people.” He glanced at Franca and added, “Although they may no longer be human.”
Franca scoffed.
“Are you trying to frighten me? Do you think that will scare me? Whether they’re corpses or monsters, it’s within my expectations.
“Remember, the most terrifying thing in this world is the unknown.”
Just as Franca finished speaking, Lumian’s expression froze, illuminated by the glow of the carbide lamp.
“You’re still trying to frighten me…” Before Franca could finish her sentence, she felt something warm sliding from her nose and falling to the ground.
It was a drop of bright red blood.