Chapter 303 – Strings of Fate

Chapter 303 – Strings of Fate

Kai breathed out the cold air of the underground. Channeling mana to enhance his hearing, a discordant chorus of sobs, rattling chains and pained moans filled the tunnel. At a glance, he counted more than twenty auras in three cells—the dungeon continued past the range of Mana Observer, likely hiding more.

Seeing people alive gave him hope to find Niel, though he wondered just how many had been taken.

“Are they…” Flynn caught up with him, Rain’s unconscious head on his shoulder. He studied the cells in gloomy silence. The same calculations of risk and mercy ran on his face—there would be a price to help the imprisoned.

“We must save them,” Mari whispered. She rested her arm on the rocky wall, weak on her feet. Despite her usual detached attitude, her firm expression looked determined.

“We can’t abandon Niel,” Kea said, moving toward the first cell.

At least she’s being more realistic.

“Wait.” Kai held onto Kea’s arm and lowered his tone. “I want to find him too, but we can’t carry everyone out of here.” It was doubtful if they could even save themselves. “If they see us and start shouting, the guards could swarm us.”

“What do you mean?” Mari turned to him, incredulous. “We can’t leave them here.”

“Lower your voice.” Kai ground his teeth. He couldn’t let emotion cloud his judgment. “I don’t like this either, but it’s our only choice. We can’t sneak out of here with everyone, and we can’t fight an army of cultists. The best shot to save these people is to send for help after we escape.”

“But—”

“He’s right, Mari…” Kea bit her lip, her face scrunched up in reluctance. “We’re wounded and without a clear way out. I want to free everyone, but what good does that do if nobody makes it out?” She gave him a curt nod. “We’ll follow your plan.”

Kai glanced at the cells, wary that their argument had alerted them. Ten seconds later, there was no change in the murmurs and cries. “I’ll check if Niel’s here with Mana Sense. Just give me a few seconds.”

“Is that really possible—”

“Yes. I need to focus.” He gestured for silence and expanded his senses to analyze the glowing auras. Most captives were between the peak of Orange and early-to-mid Yellow. Each person’s mana veins possessed tiny differences even at the same grade and profession.

Is he not here? Or am I missing him…

It had been over a month since he had last seen Niel. To complicate matters further, the prisoners’ flows showed varying degrees of impairment and uneven circulation—signs of starvation, blood loss, injuries and clusters of twisted channels Kai couldn’t diagnose.

What did they do to them?

Time was tight. Feeling Kea and Mari’s stares, he identified three individuals who fit Niel’s grade and rough physique. None were a perfect match from his memories, but he had spent a month of imprisonment.

“Have you found him…?” Kea asked with cautious optimism.

“I have to check the cells.” Kai kept his tone terse to not give her false hope. “Stay back.”

Before they could question him, he cloaked himself in a veil of Shadow and crept toward the metal door on his right. The smell hit him first, a mix of blood, sweat and human waste. From the sharp angles of the stone cell, it had been carved into the cavern wall with magic. Behind the enchanted bars, seven shadows huddled in the darkness, a grimy bucket abandoned in the corner.

The only light came from a crystal in a chamber they crossed twenty meters back. Kai might have thought the people dead if not for the sluggish mana flow.

He channeled Body Augmentation toward his eyes, spotting the gleam of familiar shackles. Mercifully—if it could be called that—these people hadn’t been chained to the walls.

Could they even stand or run? The shackles are already overkill.

All seven captives had cuts on their chest and abdomen; from the shape and repeated pattern, the wounds had been inflicted with purpose. Slumped on the wall adjacent to the door, a woman groaned weakly. She seemed young, though he couldn’t tell her exact age under the layers of grime and blood. She held a swollen wound on her side, probably infected.

How much longer could she last? How many daughters and sisters had gone missing in Limgrell? Had he met with her family while looking for clues? Did he know her name?

Focus.

His nails dug into his palms till the pain cleared his thoughts. Kai forced his gaze away—he couldn’t carry her out of here, not now. The choice was between saving himself or getting them both killed.

I’ll bring help, I swear.

Even if he had to drag the Republic’s clerks here by their hair, he’d make them listen. He rolled a healing vial beside her leg with Earth Magic so she would find it when she stirred.

That’s the best I can do for now. I must find Niel.

Kai squinted at a man who matched his friend’s height and grade. Crouched in the corner opposite the door, the darkness was too dense to see his face.

C’mon…

His eyes started watering from the amount of mana he channeled. Any further and he risked hurting himself. Frustrated, he took out a light crystal wrapped in a woolen scarf; just the slightest glow to pierce the darkness.

Kai leaned on the bars to see better—none of the prisoners reacted to the new source of light.

It’s not him.

Their builds were similar, but the man had coppery red hair.

Disappointment swelled.

Kai shook his head at Kea and Mari, and moved to the next cell. The people inside had cleaner clothes and fewer wounds—probably kidnapped more recently.

Hmm… where have I seen them?

Their builds and faces reminded him of adventurers he had seen in the Hall of Seekers. He couldn’t remember exactly who or when, too many teams had passed by Limgrell in the last weeks.

The cult really is abducting adventurers.

Confirming his theory did not comfort him. A man resembling Niel lay near the door. He had a missing eye and skin too pale for a native of the isles.

There is one more.

The third cell hosted nine captives, their condition somewhere between the previous two groups. Chains rattled and soft whispers echoed from inside. Peering in, Kai sighed—another miss.

Is Niel dead…?

In grim relief, his senses found three more cells in an adjacent tunnel. He gestured to Kea to follow. Past a corner, the cavernous walls flattened with the telltale signs of spellcraft. The prisoners here had fewer wounds and strange auras, their veins tangled and tainted as if ink had been mixed through the glowing channels.

What are they trying to accomplish?

Compared to the backdrop of murmurs and rattling behind them, only soft breathing was audible here. Humans in tattered clothes sprawled on the icy stone, their faces catatonic and empty.

“What’s wrong with them?” Mari asked. Her footsteps scraped the rock to keep up with him. “Their mana is… weird.”

“Is Niel here?” Kea pressed with a barely contained whisper.

“I’m looking,” Kai replied for both and focused on his task to not let his mind wallow in misery. No one matched Niel in the first and second cells. Guts wrenching, he finally spotted a young man in the last one.

Please, be alive.

He held the veiled crystal in his hand and squinted inside. A man with dirty blond hair and sharp features sat just beyond the door.

Damn it…

For a brief moment he had truly believed they’d find Niel and mend past mistakes. Reality wasn’t so merciful. The cultists might keep more captives in another part of the sprawling tunnels, but he had no way or time to find them.

He’s probably dead.

It was the most logical conclusion.

From his sagging shoulders, Kea guessed the result without needing words. “Are you sure you didn’t miss him? You barely gave them a glance. I could—”

“I didn’t make mistakes. He’s not here.” His tone was gentle but firm. “We must move. Hobbes has found a potential—”

“Uh… Are— are you real?” A slurred whisper sounded behind his back.

Shit!

Kai expanded his Shadow veil to muffle the words and pivoted toward the source of the noise. The young man with Niel’s build stared up at him with a tilted head. A large grin split his face upon meeting his gaze.

“Yes, you! I— I can see you. I’m not crazy.” He giggled, pulling on his matted blond hair. His speech mumbled with frantic speed, though it remained blessedly quiet.

Rotten Luck.

He had let the captives’ apparent stillness lower his guard.

A stream of water wrapped around the man’s mouth to cut off his ramblings. Normally, a person’s aura would hinder magic close to their body, but Kai felt no resistance whatsoever. It was like touching a piece of driftwood.

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Is it an effect of the manacles? Or their tainted mana…?

Pressed for time, he archived the disturbing discovery. Thankfully, the other captives gave no signs of stirring, their expression still vacuous. Only the blond man moved, clawing the water on his face as he struggled to breathe through his nose.

Water and Shadow couldn’t perfectly cover sounds. If the man alerted the guards, Kea and Flynn could suffer a fate worse than death.

Should I kill him?

His thoughts slid down the path with cold pragmatism. By the time anyone noticed the body, they would be long gone. Given the state of the captives, the cultists might not even suspect foul play until they found the bodies of the guards.

What am I thinking?

Detachment turned to disgust. Killing someone out of convenience—there was no justification. He was a victim too.

If I knock him out, it’ll earn us a few minutes headstart.

It would be his first time putting someone unconscious with a spell. He had to cut off the blood supply to the brain just long enough. The spell played in his mind, ready to—

“Urghh,” The blond guy bit on the shackles cuffing his wrists.

Has he lost it…?

Kai frowned. His confusion turned to surprise when the enchanted manacles disrupted his Water spell.

“It… actually worked…” The guy stared at his cuffs with a triumphant grin, water dripping down his chin.

Uh, that was kind of smart… Kai admired his ingenuity as he prepared to send him to dreamland. Kea and Mari had wisely retreated into the shadows of the tunnel to let him handle the situation.

“Wait.” The guy held his open palms up. “I’m Derrell.”

Nice to meet you, Derrell. Time for a nap.

“Don’t worry, Derrell. You won’t die,” Kai tried to sound reassuring—as much as someone about to cast spells on you could. “It’ll be as if we never met.”