Chapter 14 : Hidden Entrance

Shraaak!

“Kieeek!”

As the dazzling sword of light traced a horizontal arc, several gargoyles that had spread their wings to attack simultaneously plummeted to the ground.

Chiiii-

Unlike when struck by ordinary weapons, their stone-like skin didn’t crack or scatter into fragments; instead, they disintegrated as if being corroded.

‘As expected, since they are dark creatures, they’re weak against light.’

Among the many elemental affinities in Holy Crusader Bryden NX, the most prominent were light and darkness.

The two attributes were so effective against each other that even the slightest contact could be fatal.

However, players rarely had access to either.

Darkness was primarily associated with enemies, while light was reserved for a select few priests or saints among allies, leaving most players to only admire it from afar.

That’s why, when I first obtained the Codex of Radiance at that cursed goblin camp, I was convinced that I had reached a higher level.

Light-based skills possessed immense power, and if the affinity was right, they could completely incinerate monsters.

Gargoyles, one of the most common dark-attribute monsters, were a prime example of ideal prey.

Since their very existence was sustained by dark magic, my one and only—but powerful—light-based skill, Lightsaber, caused them to disintegrate completely upon impact.

If they had been truly powerful dark creatures, they might have been able to snuff out my Lightsaber instead.

But gargoyles weren’t quite at that level.

Though dozens of them filled my field of vision, they couldn’t even approach me properly because of the Lightsaber.

Had I been wielding a regular iron sword, I would have been torn into as many pieces as the number of gargoyles.

But hey, luck or not, the one who survives is the strong one.

More than ten gargoyles had already perished before my Lightsaber, but as mindless dark creatures, they had no concept of fear.

Like moths to a flame, they kept charging in.

Shraaak!

Chiiii-

And then, they simply disintegrated again.

After about ten minutes of battle, all the gargoyles had vanished.

Right on cue, Ravi and Elfin approached me.

“There he is! Alvis!”

“Hey, Alvis! You bastard! You left us to deal with the gargoyles and ran off on your own?!”

Elfin, thinking I had abandoned them as bait, exploded in fury as soon as he saw me.

But then, he noticed something in my hands and gradually fell silent.

“Hey… that thing in your hand… what is it?”

“As expected, Elfin, your intuition is too sharp.”

“Spare me the nonsense. That doesn’t look like an ordinary rock.”

“Huh? Don’t tell me…?”

“Yeah, your guess is right. This is the Barrier Stone that forms the boundary of the mid-levels of Mount Presia. It was already in this state when I got here.”

Ravi and Elfin took the shattered barrier stone from my hands and examined it, their expressions growing darker.

“Most of its mana has already leaked out, leaving only a faint trace, but this stone must have contained an enormous amount of magical energy. Even though only fragments remain, we can still sense it, which means it wasn’t destroyed too long ago. It’s clear that this is the direct cause of the gargoyle outbreak and their descent to the lower levels of the mountain.”

“And… there’s also a rotten stench lingering here. Several of them, actually. Could it have been the work of cultists?”

At Ravi’s speculation, Elfin furrowed his brows slightly.

“Cultists…? Are you telling me those scum crawled all the way up here just to destroy a barrier stone and leave? Instead of sneaking into villages for sacrifices or acts of terrorism?”

“It does seem strange. But nothing else reeks quite like this. The smell has mostly faded with time, but the barrier stone still carries an undeniable trace of it.”

Having witnessed the truth firsthand, I knew they were both correct.

The figures I had seen wore deep hoods and long robes, making it impossible to determine their identities.

But if they were cultists, it all made sense.

In Holy Crusader Bryden NX, cultists were the main antagonistic force behind nearly every evil act.

In fact, compared to the atrocities they committed in the game, merely destroying the barrier stone of Mount Presia was relatively mild and harmless.

I had no way of knowing what their true objective was.

“What should we do? We can’t just create a new barrier stone ourselves. And there’s no guarantee that this is the only one they destroyed. Searching for each one would be endless…”

“For now, we should head back with the evidence we’ve gathered. Now that we’re certain someone is destroying the barriers, the two nations might start discussing countermeasures. If we inform the Empire, this could also serve as a valuable card in negotiations—”

“No, we should deal with the root of the problem while we’re here.”

I cut off Elfin’s suggestion with my objection.

If the ones responsible for the Cursed Goblin Camp were the same figures I had seen in my visions, then this meant they were still carrying out some strange schemes.

When I tried to flee from the dark spirit at that goblin camp, I suffered severe backlash damage.

If I tried to leave this site, which also seemed to be their doing, I’d likely experience the same effect.

Following this reasoning, I rejected Elfin’s suggestion—and when the backlash damage didn’t come, it proved my theory correct.

Of course, Ravi and Elfin, who knew nothing of my reasoning, simply stared at me with expressions of utter disbelief.

“Alvis… Don’t tell me… you’re suggesting we go to the mid-levels?”

“Are you out of your mind? Ravi and I barely managed to handle those gargoyles just now—it was insanely dangerous! If we enter the mid-levels, where all these anomalies are happening, we have no idea how many more will appear. And it’s just the three of us! Bryden, Celine, and Lenis aren’t even here!”

“There’s no need to worry about that.”

I pocketed the fragments of the shattered barrier stone and began heading toward the mountain’s mid-levels.

“Because I’m here.”

“Hah?”

Elfin’s face was filled with disbelief.

But unlike her, Ravi, who had witnessed me obliterate the mysterious dark spirit back at the goblin camp, was hesitant but ultimately chose to follow.

“Elfin, honestly, I still find it hard to believe, but I did see Alvis destroy some kind of strange, unidentified monster last time. He’s definitely strong. Umm… probably.”

“Hey, Ravi, you always have to add that one unnecessary comment, don’t you?”

“So, what about you, Elfin? Even Ravi is saying this. If you’re scared, you can go back down first.”

That remark struck a nerve.

“Hah? Scared? Scaaared? Are you seriously telling me, the proud granddaughter of an elven elder, to go back down alone because I’m scared? Hey, I haven’t seen you for a few weeks, and suddenly you’re acting like some veteran grand knight? You’re the one who’d run away first!”

“Then I’ll take that as a yes. I’ll take the lead, so if you’re scared, just hide behind me.”

“Y-You…!”

Elfin was about to explode, but Ravi barely managed to hold her back as we made our way toward the weakened barrier of Mount Presia’s mid-levels.

Contrary to our expectations, the mid-levels weren’t swarming with gargoyles. In fact, there were fewer than in the lower levels.

No, this wasn’t just fewer…

“Why… are there no gargoyles?”

“This is strange. They appeared where they shouldn’t have, but now they’re gone from where they should be? There were so many of them that even Carrot Principality heard about it…”

“Could it have been just a false rumor?”

I shook my head at Ravi’s question.

“No, it wasn’t a false rumor. If it were, then at the very least, we should be seeing some griffons in broad daylight. But we’re not seeing any of those either, are we?”

“Oh! Now that you mention it…”

“The griffons abandoned this area because of the gargoyles. But now, even though the gargoyles appeared all the way down in the lower levels during the day, they’re completely absent from their home territory. That means… they must all be hiding somewhere.”

“And where exactly is ‘somewhere’?”

Where else? The Gargoyle Cave located in the mid-levels of Mount Presia.

This dungeon was unique in that it contained only gargoyles—perfect for farming gargoyle materials when needed.

The strange part was that, even though I knew the location was around here, I couldn’t see an entrance anywhere.

‘Which means…’

▶ Activating “Eye That Pierces Through Truth.”

Duration: 3 minutes.

You will be able to see the truth of what has transpired in this area.

0/34

I activated my last use of Eye That Pierces Through Truth for the day.

The world around me blurred as if covered in a fog.

But in one spot—the rock wall of the mountain—something stood out. Unlike the rest of the scenery, it glowed a vivid red, drawing my gaze like a beacon.

At first glance, it appeared to be just an ordinary rock wall.

“I think I’ve got a lead.”

With that, I led Ravi and Elfin to the wall.

“Hey, why are we stopping here?”

“Elfin. Can you bring this down?”

“…What?”

“With your abilities, you should be able to do it quickly. Think you can handle it?”

“Of course I can. But why the hell do you want me to bring this down?”

“Just trust me and do it.”

“…That makes me trust you even less.”

Despite her grumbling, Elfin had no other leads and decided to use her powers.

Among elves, who could manipulate earth and vegetation, she was particularly gifted.

Drawing the soil together, she compacted it before collapsing the wall from below.

Rumble! BOOM!

A loud vibration rang out as cracks formed in the wall.

Moments later, with a great crash, the wall crumbled, sending dust billowing into the air.

But the dust didn’t linger for long.

Whoooosh—

A gust of wind blew from inside, quickly clearing the debris.

“This… this is…”

“No way… Was this place always here? Alvis, how did you even know about this?”

“I told you—I had a hunch.”

For a moment, Elfin’s gaze toward me changed.

Grinning smugly, I stepped inside the cave/