A loud noise erupted the moment Rose finished speaking.
He startled and turned towards the town, now a fiery red.
Dark shadows streaked across the sky. In the air, three Entity warships appeared, their prows shaped like fire-breathing dragons.
"How is this possible…?" Ethan stammered, utterly astonished by the scene.
It was only 9 AM, and the period of high supernatural activity caused by Entities was typically from 6 PM to 3 AM. Their sudden appearance at this hour was extremely unusual.
He immediately grabbed the voice recorder from his breast pocket and pulled his camera from his backpack, then ran towards the unfolding battle, his journalistic instincts urging him to quickly capture the coming moments.
But before he could take three steps, Rose grabbed him firmly.
"Rose, you should stay here. I need to…"
"You don't need to go anywhere."Rose didn't lessen her grip. "Because they're heading this way."
She pointed towards the town. The three Entity warships began moving towards the abandoned high-rise area, the very spot where they were standing.
A streak of fire blazed along their path, and Ethan heard the sounds of battle drawing nearer.
At the same time, they both heard the urgent thud of approaching footsteps.
The two of them quickly pulled each other into the cover of the nearby tall buildings.
They navigated through ancient ruins, dilapidated old buildings threatening to collapse on their small figures at any moment, and dark alleys intersecting like a maze with no exit.
Overgrown trees cast a gloomy pallor, enough to make even the bravest hesitate. A bizarre atmosphere enveloped everything, making them afraid to even breathe heavily.
The path ahead remained a dim, dark gray under the moonlight, like a flickering lamp too small to illuminate a large room.
Suddenly, Rose signaled him to stop. They hid in a crevice between two old buildings.
She nodded her head forward, indicating for him to look. Ethan craned his neck to see where she pointed and saw two dark figures, one behind the other, pass by them and enter the ancient local shrine. Their coats hung down, blending with the dark night, making it impossible for him to discern their faces or gender.
One of the two carried a large bag on their back, easily as wide as a person, which he guessed was a large broadsword.
He swallowed hard. They didn't look like Holy Knights, Strike team operatives, or any figures he had ever seen before.
Based on their attire, Rose told him they were outsiders who had come to this town, perhaps with similar intentions to the Entities, The Divine Order, or O440.
One of the mysterious figures glanced around before disappearing into the pitch-black darkness of the ancient shrine. Ethan quickly ducked back behind the wall, looking at her as if asking whether to continue.Rose nodded, and they both quietly followed the direction the two mysterious figures had taken.
Inside the ancient shrine, it was profoundly dark. Its space was larger than he had imagined, although from the outside, the shrine looked no bigger than a 40-square-meter apartment.
After fumbling in the darkness for a long time, they suddenly heard voices. Rose turned to look at him, then pointed forward. The two of them tiptoed and pressed themselves into a corner behind a large, crumbling pillar nearby.
Although they were hiding far from where the voices originated, in this empty and quiet space, he could still hear the conversation of the two mysterious figures.
"What on earth are you planning to do, Master?"
A voice, tinged with impatience, echoed in the darkness.
Based on the tone, it belonged to a young man not yet thirty.
"Foolish."
Another voice, deeper and alarmingly calm, rang out.
The moment it spoke, even just those two words were enough to send a chill down Ethan's spine. Sweat beaded on his forehead; that deep, trầm voice seemed to carry a magical power that oppressed others, making them feel as if frozen in place.
"I really don't understand those old geezers. Leaving a sacred text in a shrine of a different religion like this. Go find the way, brat."
His voice sounded irritated. Hearing the sound of hurried footsteps departing, Ethan stepped forward, slipping through a gap in the rubble and gently moving ahead.
"Ethan…"Rose called softly, still unsure if the other two had truly left. His actions were too risky.
But before Rose could pull Ethan back, she suddenly felt her vision drop; the tiled floor beneath her feet abruptly shattered, dragging her down into the deep, dark abyss below.
Startled, Ethan spun around and grabbed her flailing hands, only to be pulled down as well by the collapsing stone and tile floor. Their screams were swallowed by the deafening roar of the cave-in.
The loud noise startled the two mysterious figures, who turned back. The young man, his face obscured by his bangs, quickly ran to where the sound originated, then stood stunned, looking at the large hole in the floor near where he had been standing moments before, a shiver running through him.
The other man was slightly taller, his hair already streaked with gray, but his bright eyes showed he had never intended to succumb to time.
His old, gray trench coat was covered in dust. He brushed off its lapel, then leaned over to look down into the pitch-black hole below, muttering softly.
"This way seems faster."
The young man turned pale upon hearing that.
Having traveled with his crazy yet stern master for so long, he knew exactly what he was planning.
He quickly backed away, getting as far from his master's reach as possible.
The man, as if seeing his thoughts, turned and smirked slyly, half his face hidden under a wide-brimmed hat.
"Let's go."
"Wait?! M—Aaaaargh..."
Before he could finish his protest, his master grabbed his collar and threw him forcefully into the black hole in the floor. His helpless scream echoed throughout the ancient shrine, shaking the surrounding night.
.
.
.
When Rose regained consciousness, she found herself lying next to a large section of the floor. The ground beneath was very soft, preventing her bones from shattering from the fall.
She touched the ground and discovered it was a thick patch of moss. It seemed the dampness here had allowed the moss to grow exceptionally, making each patch as thick and wide as a cotton bed.
Squinting to see in the darkness, it took her a while to make things out clearly. The first thing she did once she could see was to fumble around for Ethan, who was probably unconscious somewhere nearby.
"Ethan…?!"Rose called softly, her hands searching in the dimness, her eyes gradually adjusting to the dark, trying to find Ethan.
When she touched something that wasn't brick or moss, she gently picked it up and found it was Ethan's camera. He must have fallen nearby.Rose continued searching with the camera in hand, hoping to find him quickly. If Ethan hadn't turned back to try and save her, he would likely still be safe.
She squinted, trying to see clearly in the darkness, until she found Ethan lying unconscious beside a large, fallen stone pillar. She let out a soft sigh of relief.
She felt very lucky – lucky not to have been harmed in the fall, and even luckier that this man hadn't lost his life trying to save her.Rose reached out and touched Ethan's face, trying to determine if he was still alive.Rose felt her hand become wet; she discovered he had a rather long cut on his forehead, causing blood to soak one side of his cheek.
Touched on his injury, Ethan let out a soft groan and tried to open his eyes, a sharp pain making him wince tightly.
"Ethan, it's me."
She spoke softly, as if afraid that speaking too loudly would cause the wound on his head to burst open.
"Do you recognize me? It's Rose."Rose whispered each word very softly and helped Ethan, who was trying to sit up. He raised his hand to his forehead, his hand becoming drenched in blood and sweat.
He looked at Rose, repeatedly asking about his wound, and nodded slightly as if to reassure her.
After regaining his composure and looking around, Ethan felt a little panicked. It seemed he had strayed too far from his original purpose.
He squinted, looking around, and fumbled in his jacket pocket for the lighter he often carried during interviews, handy for lighting cigarettes for his interviewees. He flicked it on, producing a small flame.
They were surrounded by a dense layer of moss stretching into the darkness. The old ruins in this vast chamber were interspersed with fallen bricks and stones from the earlier collapse.Ethan held the lighter a little higher to better illuminate his surroundings. He fumbled in his backpack for a small pack of tissues, then used them to dab the blood around his forehead, trying to stand up to get a better view.
Suddenly, from beneath their feet, patches of dark green moss began to glow with a strange phosphorescence, nearly scaring both Ethan and Rose to death.
The light emanating from the green moss began to spread from where they stood, extending endlessly, making him wonder if a structure this vast could have been built under a building half a century old.
The glowing green moss, like nature's lamps, gradually illuminated the vast chamber, allowing them both to see every detail of this room.
Under the pale green light of the reflective moss, the secret chamber gradually appeared before their eyes.
It looked like an ancient laboratory, but most of the equipment was heavily damaged. Along the dark, stained patches on the walls were pictures made of animal hide, looking very old but still retaining some of their content. Rose and Ethan carefully approached to examine them and discovered they resembled an ancient document.
On the ancient pictures with rather bizarre drawings were ancient scripts, the strokes so faded they were difficult to read without a magnifying glass.
They walked along the numbered series of pictures on the wall until the last one, where they only saw a large recess in the wall. Inside was a wooden bookshelf, almost rotted by termites and dampness. On top of it lay an ancient-style book, its silver-engraved cover still showing exquisite craftsmanship despite the trials of time. Ethan reached out, took the book, and gently blew off the thick layer of dust clinging to it. The weight of the book in his
hands felt unreal; it had been a long time since he had held such a book.
The book was quite heavy with its metal cover, intricately engraved with patterns and a large, beautifully flowing script, clear enough for him to read.
"Logbook"Ethan tried to open the book, but it seemed to be locked. When he examined it again, he found the right edge was secured by a small silver lock, upon which a faded ancient character was engraved.Ethan lifted the lock to look at it, fiddled with it for a moment, then wondered why someone would lock such an ordinary-looking book.Rose, standing beside him looking at the old book, gently touched its surface then turned to ask him:
"This book… should we return it to its place?"Ethan was about to reply when a low voice sounded from behind.
"You should. Return that book at once. And give it to me."