Irene realised that title of [First Kingdom] was severely insufficient.
"It's like an entire world of its own." She said in awe, flying over a hundred kilometres in an hour.
Everywhere she went, the distance between the ground and the ceiling averaged at around ten kilometres. Behemoth-sized pillars of bedrock looked like trees holding up a dark sky wherein gems and metals shimmered like stars. Irene herself looked like a chunk of moving, glowing gold as she flew with great haste.
Monsters roamed the land below her, at least that was what the angel on her shoulder had reported. Bioluminescent plants and beasts were commonplace, but the monsters thrived in the thick shadows. Such a relationship made it difficult for her human eyes to discern which is which.
Roars and howls echoed in the distance, as if those monsters and beasts had engaged in a conversation that spanned thousands of metres. Bubbling streams of lava were a rare entity that served as an oasis for the sunlight-deprived ecosystems. Plantlife bloomed around these warm areas, utilizing the geothermal nature of the energies present.
After some more looking around, the sound of running water consumed the area they were in. The sudden biome change had caught Irene by surprise as she went over to take a look.
"Highly sulfuric," Athelei reported from the side of a wide and violent underwater river. A waterfall cascaded down from the distant ceiling and blasted the rocks beneath it with droplets falling at terminal velocity.
"...What does sulfuric mean?" Irene asked, still not used to the variety of new terms she had heard over the course of their exploration.
Athelei's fog shifted as if in slight discomfort. "I'm not sure. But from what I can surmise, sulfur should be some kind of material mixed with the waters here. Sulfuric just means that the waters are... infected..? I'm not sure if I used the right word, but you should get the point."
Irene wrinkled her nose, "I see... Is it safe to drink?"
"At this concentration... No. Maybe when it smells less horrid, it should be safe enough. Do note that we're deep in unfamiliar territory right now and I can only make educated guesses. Of course, if you would like to be my test subject, then I would not dare decline your generosity~" Athelei manifested on Irene's shoulder and shrugged with badly hidden excitement and joy.
He felt like he was in heaven as he explored this new world called the [First Kingdom]. A new structure had even appeared in his mental library. It was a long, stone bookshelf dedicated only to this home of beasts and monsters.
[]-[]-[]-[]-[]-[]
Trinity Analysis Skill: Inspect (Level 7/10) -> (Level 8/10)
Cooldown per target: 16 Hours -> 14 Hours
Surveillance Targets: 3 -> 4
Appraisal: +1 Level
Judgement: +1 Level
Examine: +1 Level
[]-[]-[]-[]-[]-[]
The angelic duo continued throughout the [First Kingdom]. They flew through the thick underground atmosphere as they circled back.
When they did so, they arrived before what could definitely pass for a kingdom. Built on top of a gently-sloped hill, the kingdom's walls looked stunning despite the many damaged areas.
Some parts of walls had been toppled, while many areas had signs of being besieged not by human weapons but by the monsters of the underground. A melted battlement, a burned gate, a crushed building. The remnants of battle littered the entire kingdom.
And the only reason why Irene could see all this was because of the light that shone onto the entire area. Torches the size of the kingdom's towers blazed with a yellow flame, allowing her measly human eyes to witness it all.
"Could this be where those Adventurers had fallen into?" Irene voiced out the questions in her mind.
"Perhaps," Athelei replied. "This place is called [Lioxus] and it seems quite special... A pathway deeper into the underground should be present here."
He manipulated his grey fog into a circle that lay in front of Irene's eyes. "See that tall, cylindrical tower? It's half-destroyed now, but I believe that in the past, it might've been connected to the labyrinth above. Nonetheless, if you wish to head deeper, you can go through there."
Irene saw what the angel was trying to show her. Beyond the circle of grey fog was a ruined plaza with a slim tower at the centre. Rocks and rubble populated the place, bringing about an allusion to the events of the past.
"Shall we have a look-see?" Athelei created a smile inside the circle of his fog, eliciting a chuckle from Irene.
"Let us quench your curiosities then, Angel. If you spot anything nice, don't hesitate to tell me, alright? Crystals, rare monster cores, and the like." answered Irene.
"I will."
The duo then descended from the dark sky. They flew into the yellow, aura-like torchlight and felt the air suddenly grow thinner. Flying suddenly felt different. While in the darkness, Irene expended less energy to stay afloat, but more energy to move forward. Now, it was reversed.
She had to flap her wings more often to stay in the air, but her entire being felt freer.
In her words, "Without the light, it felt like I was trying to fly in some Rank 1's Tangible Will."
Athelei nodded when he heard this. He also felt the change in pressure. "The darkness we were just flying through has a connection to the liquid darkness that you fought inside the Shrouded Hall. This might be a thinner type, perhaps because those peculiar monsters weren't present."
Tap. Tap.
A warm breeze blew through Irene's long, golden hair the moment she landed. Her wings folded up and disappeared. Now she totally felt like she wasn't underground at all. The sky was bright and clear, glowing like a late afternoon. There was a pleasant breeze blowing all throughout the area.
A beast had suddenly walked by, almost forcing Irene into battle mode, but she realised that there was no sign of hostility in the rhinoceros-like beast's demeanour. It just passed her by as if she was but another living obstacle in its path.
"These beasts have been tamed," Athelei noted from the side.
It made Irene raise an eyebrow, "Tamed? Like the way humans do on the surface? Could it be..."
"There's a great possibility for that. Those green-skinned monsters we saw from above could be their owners. Greater Goblins were what the Cosmic Interface called them. Are you confident in keeping yourself alive?" Athelei asked as he appeared in humanoid form, holding Irene's hand at her side.
"I have your wings, Angel. If I can't kill them, I can always flee." Irene smiled, her tone full of confidence.
She then proceeded on foot as she entered through one of the kingdom's gates. Inside, she was met by many unique lifeforms.
Beasts aplenty who didn't seem keen on striking her down walked with surprising civility through the many streets. There were no random scuffles, as all of the beasts seemed to mind their own business.
She even watched a few of them communicate with one another through roars and growls that sounded nothing like words of a language. Every beast had their own unique type of vocal cords and subsequently brought forth different sounds. But it seemed like none of them had difficulties understanding each other at all. It was a wonder on its own.
"A Greater Goblin is looking at you." Athelei suddenly tugged at her arm. "I wonder what it wants."