As the system message popped up, Ray couldn't help but think that he was onto something. There were two possible reasons why the system had triggered this response. Either the system had some kind of consciousness of its own, recognizing opportunities to assist him, or this entire situation was somehow linked to the system itself.
Was this door part of the answers he had been seeking? Where had the system come from? Why had he transformed into a human? Whatever the case, there was only one path forward.
As soon as Ray made his selection, a deep, mechanical grinding noise echoed through the chamber. The massive iron doors began to shift, gears clanking as they pulled apart, revealing the unknown darkness beyond.
"How did he…?" Jasmine whispered, awestruck as she watched the doors open.
Gary, however, grinned widely and pumped his fist into the air. "I knew you were special, Ray!"
Jasmine turned to him, still in disbelief. "What did you do?"
Ray hesitated for a moment before replying, "I don't know… I just touched it, and it started opening."
As the last of the doors groaned to a stop, a yawning abyss of pure blackness greeted them. Once again, Gary took the lead, holding the light crystal high. The group cautiously stepped forward into what appeared to be a massive cavern. The glow from the crystal barely reached its surroundings—its ceiling and walls were completely obscured by darkness.
They walked in a straight line for about fifteen minutes before Monk finally voiced what had been gnawing at all of them. "I think we should turn back. Something feels… wrong down here."
"Stop being a crybaby. We have to be close to finding something," Gary scolded.
"No, don't you feel it?" Monk insisted. "The deeper we go, the darker it feels."
Jasmine nodded, her voice laced with unease. "I agree. I think we've come far enough. We can always come back with more light crystals next time—it'll make exploring easier."
Gary let out a frustrated sigh. "Look, you two can go back if you want, but I'm moving forward. Whatever's down here has been calling to me."
As Gary continued ahead, the shifting shadows seemed to coil around Monk and Jasmine, as if urging them forward. Reluctantly, they followed him—without the light crystal, they would be swallowed whole by the darkness.
Then, a sharp cracking sound pierced the silence. One of them had stepped on something.
Everyone froze, their eyes darting downward. Under Monk's boot was a large, white object. He leaped back instantly, heart pounding.
"Is… is that a skull?" Monk stammered, shaking.
The object was massive, easily three times the size of a human skull. Age had left it brittle, cracks running across its surface like a web of fractures.
"I don't think it's human," Jasmine muttered, examining it. "It's too large. It must belong to a magical beast."
Monk swallowed hard. "Which means there were magical beasts down here. And if they were down here, they weren't basic-tier ones."
"Oh, will you guys relax?" Gary waved dismissively. "That thing looks ancient. Whatever was here is long gone. The only corpses we saw outside were probably from that exploration team. The knights have likely already cleared the whole area."
Ray remained silent. While Gary's reasoning made sense, the iron door nagged at him. If someone hadn't had access to the system like he did, how would they have gotten inside? Had the door always existed, or had it been built later to keep something in—or out?
Their journey continued until they arrived at an open, circular chamber. Numerous large openings tunneled into the rock like an enormous ant nest. Some of the tunnels were blocked by thick iron bars—bars that had been violently torn apart as if something had forced its way out.
"Do you see those bars?" Monk asked, his voice barely above a whisper. "That means something escaped."
Jasmine wiped sweat from her brow. "This is too much. We don't even know how deep we've gone. We should head back."
"Then just go!" Gary snapped, his frustration boiling over.
Jasmine turned on him. "Gary, don't you see? The bars are broken. That could mean criminals escaped… or something even worse."
Gary clenched his fists. "You think I don't know that? I might never get another chance to explore this place. We're risking everything just by being here. If the knights find out, we'll all be expelled from Avrion!"
"You're insane! Give me the light stone—I'm leaving!" Jasmine held out her hand.
"Ray, help us!" Monk pleaded, desperation in his voice.
Ray remained quiet. He didn't understand why Gary was so determined to push forward. He had already seen enough. It made sense to return later, when he was stronger. If they encountered something beyond their ability, it would be their end.
He took a step toward Gary. Jasmine and Monk did the same.
Gary noticed their movement and tightened his grip on the light crystal. "Ray, you too? You don't understand. We just need to go a little further—"
He backed away, stepping toward one of the tunnels. The crystal's light illuminated the darkness within.
All of them froze.
Their weapons were drawn in an instant.
Gary saw their expressions shift and, confused, raised his sword toward them. "I didn't think you guys would go this far!"
Then came the sound—a deep, guttural snort behind him.
Gary turned, the light crystal now revealing the monstrous figure standing just a few feet away.
A towering beast, nearly ten feet tall, with razor-sharp white teeth and two massive, curved horns protruding from its skull. Hoofed legs supported a muscular humanoid body, its massive arms tensed with sheer power.
A Minotaur.
A King-tier creature.
Ray's grip on his weapon tightened. The moment they had dreaded had finally arrived.
******
Monster Tier List (Lowest to Highest Seen So Far):
Basic Tier: Wolf, Fanged Boar, Sharp Worm, etc.
Intermediate Tier: Black Wolf, Giant Fanged Boar, etc.
Advanced Tier: Drop Bear King
King Tier: Minotaur
While they had seen a Super Tier crystal, no creatures of that rank had been encountered yet.
Note: The Shadow Plague can promote infected creatures by one or two ranks. For example, the Drop Bear King was originally Advanced Tier, but the infection raised its strength to King Tier.