Chapter 355 – Lurking in the Dark

Chapter 355 – Lurking in the Dark

Hanging off a stone ledge, Kai suppressed a curse. The cold bit into his stiff fingers and tested his hold. Darkness spread below.

He had snuffed out his torch to spare his last scraps of Fire mana, leaving the dense underground essence to guide him. Brown and dark-gray motes churned through the plummeting cavern, crossed by the occasional iridescent flicker—hardly the clarity he wanted for a three-meter jump.

The desire to throttle his familiar steadily rose. It turned out a knee-high, teleporting cat had a rather peculiar idea of an easy path, willfully ignorant of humans’ physical constraints.

This better not kill me. I swear, I’ll come back to haunt your fluffy ass.

“Are you sure on this path?” Alden’s voice echoed from above. “We can backtrack.”

“No, it’s okay.” Kai squeezed confidence into his tone. With a sharp exhale, he tasted dust on his lips. “I’ll go first.”

A pulse of Earth Magic showed him the jagged rocks beneath. Fixing the fleeing image in his mind, he arched his back and kicked the stone wall. At the height of his swing, he released the stone ledge and plunged into the dark. His body angled to avoid impaling himself on a stalagmite, boots skidding on the rock.

He landed on uneven ground. Unable to roll blindly, his legs bent to absorb the impact. The slippery gravel denied him purchase. He threw his arms out to steady himself. His hand found a grip at the price of two torn nails.

Shit.

With his balance secured, he slid onto the cavern floor. Blood dripped from his fingers—a wound more annoying than painful.

That’s what I get for conserving mana.

He delicately peeled the broken nails and rinsed the dirt off with a Water spell. Searching his pockets, he found a handkerchief to wrap them.

More training for Nature Healing, I guess.

Deeper into the cave, bluish moss clung to the walls, thick with mana yet casting a darker glow than what he’d seen above. He was about to investigate the tunnel when a silver flash caught his eye.

“Meeow.”

A furball rubbed against his leg. Violet eyes glinted at him, full of concern.

Kai held off for three heartbeats before running his hale fingers through Hobbes’ silky fur. Why punish himself to make a point to his familiar?

Don’t think I’ll let you off so easily. You knew that path wasn’t easy. You just wanted to get away from those sticky tunnels, you vain fluffball.

Though short, the downward route led through narrow fissures and several steep drops.

The fluffy tail tickled his arm. “Mew.”

It may not be your fault humans move in such crude ways, but you could have warned us.

A sprinkling of pebbles announced Alden’s descent.

“Wait! There—” Kai spread his senses, Earth mana at his fingertips, ready to jolt him. His worries proved unnecessary. “How are you…”

Alden stepped on the jutting rock as if he were climbing down a set of stairs. He slightly faltered on the last stone, but quickly regained his balance. Mana flickered beneath his clothes’ cloaking. Firmly landing on a mossy rock, he dusted off his legs and joined him.

Does he see in this dark? Hmm… I could have done it too if I weren’t rationing my mana.

“That looks like a path.” Alden peered into the moss-covered tunnel. His quiet demeanor made it easy to forget that his roommate had recently reached Yellow ★★★. “Seems you were right.”

Careful with the praise. I might think you have faith in my skills.

“It beats trekking through a maze of spider-infested tunnels.” Kai gave him an easy shrug. Away from the webs and chittering monstrosities, he could finally stop channeling Water mana over his boots and refill his reserves.

“Did you hear that noise earlier?” Alden asked. “It sounded almost like meowing?”

“Meowing down here? Uhm… maybe.”

“What does that mean?”

“Well…”

It means someone should be more careful. I know you heard me, Mr. Fluffball! What am I supposed to tell him now?

Hobbes scoffed at his worries, having already blinked away, warning that there were no arrays peeping on them.

How do you know that? Huh… Well, if it’s obvious, why don’t you explain how? No… that doesn’t help. And what does this have to do with me being a human?

Kai did the mental equivalent of hurling a shoe at his smug familiar, receiving the impression of Hobbes’ silver hindquarters vanishing in a graceful blink—the clumsy shot missing.

You won’t always get away!

Before he could find a fitting reply, he noticed Alden watched him, still waiting for an answer.

“Uhm, so…” Kai gave a side glance at the walls. How could they know who might be monitoring them? “Remember the deal for three questions. You can ask me when we’re outside.”

“Yes… I think I will.”

Why does that sound like a threat?

His attempted smile did little to dent his roommate’s stare. “Want to lead the way?” Kai waved at the single path out of the cavern.

Alden studied him for a long moment, then strode toward the dim tunnel, the passage just wide enough for two people.

Kai used the glowing lines of his bracelet to illuminate his steps. About five hours must have passed since they woke up underground—at least, twelve since he’d last eaten. Once more, he reached for his ring for his snack stash, only to find his hand bare.

Next time, I’ll swallow it.

Only nine months since he escaped the Sanctuary, they felt like years. He hadn’t missed sleeping on stone beds—much less going hungry.

Trudging through the cave system, he thought he caught faint echoes of scratching or howling, though the sounds vanished whenever he tried to listen closely.

Great, now I’m imagining things.

“What do they expect us to eat for three days? We can’t forge moss and granite.” Kai muttered, not expecting an answer.

“The academy must have placed supplies and weapons on the main path. We missed them when we took the hidden entrance,” Alden said. “The spiders’ cave was too dangerous for a second challenge.”

“Uh… you sure?” Kai scratched his ear sheepishly. “We cleared the colony by ourselves. Aside from the boss, they seemed quite weak for their grade. Most students would travel in larger teams than us.”

Alden silently regarded him. “Those spiders would rank as a C-tier threat in their nest. The poison on their silk would disrupt the mana of anyone who touches them. Once you get entangled or bitten, it’s a near-certain elimination. If not for the dean’s safeguards, I doubt they’d have been allowed in a first-year Trial.”

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Hmm, you could have warned me that their web was poisoned…

“So just don’t touch their threads,” Kai said. The only challenge had been swiftly dispatching the nest without using too much mana. “Not getting stuck in a spider’s web seems like an obvious strategy.”

“Knowing and doing aren’t the same when you’re assaulted in every direction.”

“You didn’t seem to have problems.”

Alden let out a quiet huff from his nose. “I’m above average. Most students would lack the skills and control to deal with the webs. You’re the one who strolled inside as if it were nothing.”

“I see…” Kai said, pretending not to hear the implied question.

Their steps grew cautious as the cavern split around a widening pit, plunging beyond his senses. He picked up a pebble to gauge its depth when an ominous whisper kept his hand.

Perhaps not…

A tuft of night-blue moss marked the path on the right. Kai skirted away from the chasm, hugging the wall of the cavern. His breath fogged. Even his enchanted winter attire couldn’t entirely shield him from the deepening cold.

“Should we talk strategy?” He eagerly followed the moss into another passage. According to his resident expert, the path had remarkably few surveillance arrays. “You know, in case we meet other teams. Or if we get trapped in another chamber.”

“Why? Is getting trapped a common occurrence for you?” Alden asked. The darkness did no favors to his unreadable expression, though his voice carried a note of genuine mirth and curiosity.

“I… No. But that’s why they’re unexpected situations. You can never be too prepared. Better we agree on what to do now when we have the time.”