“The letters will disappear as you finish the words, so you
must remember them. If you can’t, then…”
“Seriously Ibel, can’t you
just explain things to me normally?” Kai mumbled as he slowly capture every
words. It was a chain of instruction written there:
Go down the ladder, you’ll see a passage below. After that,
follow the below sequence:
1 to the left, 1 to the right
2 to the left, 3 to the right,
5 to the left, 8 to the right,
13 to the left, 21 to the right.
If you’re on the right track, you’ll find yourself at a
dead end. Knock at the wall 3 times, a ladder will appear from above. Climb up
and you will reach the surface.
Remember: follow
that sequence no matter what.
“Simple? hey wait wai…!!!” The
letter turned all white just like Kai’s face.
“What’re those left and right,
the hell?” He asked himself, while trying to focus his mind as hard as he
could, in order not to let any of those words fall out. Strange enough, he
somehow managed to remember them all, which he found surprising and also spooky
at the same time. Normally, Kai wasn't the type of forgetful person, but his
memory also wasn't that good. His studying required a lot of remembering and
learning by heart, a reason for his constant struggle. But now, he felt weird
since he could remember exactly what was written in the letter without looking
at it the second time. Weird, and confident too.
“Alright, let’s see what’s in
store for us. Ready to go Thera?” He turned to the girl standing and watching
quietly behind.
She nodded. “Then here we go.
You’d better catch up with us, Ibel.” Kai moved the metal plate aside, revealed
a ladder leading deep down to the ground.
It took forever to climb down,
and darkness was all that surrounded them. They could only hear the sound of
their breathing, and the beating of Kai’s heart. It was obviously that he was
trying to remain calm, however the effect didn't look positive. Thera, on the
other hand, seemed to cope with the situation quite well. She followed the
instruction without questioning and still remained silent the whole time. When
Kai’s feet touched the ground, he let out a huge sigh.
“Here I thought we’re climbing
straight down to hell. You alright?” He tried to look at the direction where he
thought Thera was. He heard nothing, so he assumed that she nodded.
“What is this place anyway,
it’s too dark to see…” As Kai finished the sentence, the surrounding was lit by
a faint source of golden light. It was Thera’s doing.
“Ah thanks.” She should have
done that earlier, he thought.
The two companions stepped
forward, what awaited them are large and tall walls, arranged in no particular
order. Kai could hardly make sure they were still in the same building anymore.
If this was the basement, then it must be a huge one. Then, Kai ran back to the
ladder and started to climb up.
“Thera, could you raise the
light source a bit? I want to see the whole thing from above.”
The girl stood still, but the
light around her started to move.
Slowly, it rose up above the wall. And then Kai saw the structure they
were going to enter.
The labyrinth seemed to
stretch to infinity, or just the darkness made it look like that. Who on earth
could make this kind of maze underground? And how long did it take? No, the
matter was, what was that for? And while Kai was still dumbfound, he saw
another unlikely scene. The walls were
moving. They constantly moved, and thus the maze changed constantly. Fair
enough, not just a maze, but a shape-shifting maze. Obviously, the one who made
this wanted to trap whoever wandered inside forever. One wrong turn and this
could be your final destination. After reassuring himself by remembering the
instruction again, Kai took Thera to the entrance of the maze and they started
the exploration.
“Ibel, I hope you didn't mess up that instruction.” The two disappeared inside the labyrinth.
------------
Back in the bookstore, Ibel
had two strange customers. One was very tall, and his hair could make every
girls in this world jealous of. The other was quite short, just a little taller
than a middle school kid, but the aura
emitted from him made Ibel feel uncomfortable. Moreover, on his back, he
wielded a long and thin blade-like things, covered in white shreds. The two had
breached Ibel’s barrier and now standing in front of her shop, no hospitality
sensed from both men. Ibel knew who they were, and reason why they came here.
The only thing she couldn't predict was the time it took for them to find out
her hide out. Too fast, she thought. She had sealed off Thera’s power in her
chamber in order to keep them from tracking the girl’s trace. And she and Laa
had been hiding their identities like forever, and none had success in finding
them here. Except for that idiot.
“Right, that idiot. They must have sensed him instead.” She thought.
Then, one man started to talk.
“Well, this time will you
introduce yourself properly?” Zaire stepped forward.
Ibel remained silent; she was
ready for a fight. She had to buy more time for Kai and Thera to escape. But,
how long could she hold them off?
“I have to praise you for
snatching away our target last time. To be honest, to think there is people who
is dumb enough to stand in my way is kinda… amusing. It’s like a refreshing
change in our boring daily work you know?” Zaire chuckled.
“Hah, a middle school kid
talks about works? Don’t make me laugh shorty. And I didn't stand in your way,
it was you who was an incompetent idiot to be fooled by such a cheap trick.
Don’t you feel ashamed for yourself? Cause I do.” Ibel couldn't hold her tongue
anymore. She said it.
“A middle school kid? Who…
what… Ermmmm, enough of meaningless joke, hand the girl to us!” Zaire seemed to
be flustered. Looked like he was sensitive about his height.
“What? A kid tries to order adult around? Know your place you shrimp.” Ibel knew too well how to attack
the enemy weakness.
“Who are you calling a kid?
I’m 25 already, you old hag.” Zaire shouted back, losing his composed.
“Calm down Zaire, don’t lose
to enemy’s provocation.” Standing behind, Ray proved that he was the only
proper adult in the place.
“I repeat it once more: hand
over the girl, and we will leave you unharmed.” Ray said.
“I refuse. I have no intention
of letting that girl fall into the hand of the Elements.” Ibel answered.
“You know who we are, and yet
you stand against us? Do you aware of what is going to happen to you once you
do that? Or are you that confident of your skill?” Zaire asked.
“I’m well aware of it,
therefore I’m standing here, to stop you. And about my skill, you two will know
soon enough.” The moment Ibel had been waiting finally came.
“Honestly, you should
seriously consider Ray’s condition. He had even gone as far as overlook a
Nohigu. But…well, I guess that’s that. Prepare to be annihilated, Soul bearer.”
Murderous intent filled in Zaire words.
“Bring it, you damn
hunters.” Ibel clenched her fists,
flames started to burn out of nowhere around her.
-End chapter 15-
