It seemed as if the room had changed in an instant as soon as the intruders had stepped out. The ground at the lower-most part was visible now and it made Iris curious about what had happened here.
'Congratulations, hidden chamber of Isle found.
Exp +1000 (1100/2000).
Starting now, a new chapter in the journey had opened up for the user. Proceed to get your quest.'
A hidden chamber? But it had not even been hidden. They all had just walked inside freely and the place had allowed them to enter.
But maybe it was not about the chamber itself but the circumstances. The stairs had changed as soon as the other two had stepped outside the seal and left Iris here alone.
'System, what can you tell me about this place?' Iris often forgot that the system existed and only when it reappeared did she remember that she could use it.
Either that or under dire conditions when her life was in danger.
'The Chamber of a court is a special place only visible to its members. The contents of the chamber are available for the eyes of its members only…
….the user would have to uncover its secrets themselves and learn more about this place'
How unhelpful this interaction turned out to be. The system was telling Iris that she had to do this herself.
The stairs still felt neverending but now she had an ending point to her journey.
The deeper she descended, the denser the air felt. But this time it was not inside her head. The air was heavier this far below.
The end of the stairs led to a small but deep emerald pool with different doors surrounding the corridor. The doors seemed creepy and important…
…but it was the pool that held Iris's attention.
The emerald of its waters was bewitching and the only recipient of any natural light.
It should have been impossible for any natural light to fall this deep from the top and Iris had not seen any opening on the chamber's upside to indicate a light source.
But the light was still falling and illuminating the water beneath it.
"I need a manual to tell me what I need to do here. I don't even know why I am here" she knew she was here because the old prophet asked the sultan to lead her here.
But for what reason?
'User is advised to look around the place for clues' the system chipped with nothing new.
The corridor was deserted and looked to be of no use to her. The only place left to look was the rooms with those intimidating doors.
And there were a lot of doors inside the chamber. It was difficult to tell where she was supposed to go.
And the dense magic from the pool was not helping her senses. She could not even operate her medical vision because the magic from the pool burned her eyes, causing them to water.
It was a manual grind from here on.
The doors were not randomly arranged either. They held symbols on top of them but Iris had no idea how to read them. She needed a translation for those alphabets.
But the more she saw them, the more they seemed familiar. She was sure she had seen them before but they looked nothing like any language she had seen before.
Leaving that thing for later, she decided to open the first door but found herself looking at a distasteful display of tables. There were small items displayed on top of it which held no importance to Iris.
That room was not helpful so Iris needed to look for another. Ideally, a library would be the best place to start and she was hoping for something like that.
And after many more doors, she found the room with shelves and shelves full of books.
Finally, she could start to get somewhere.
But the problem did not magically solve itself. Instead, it was only the start since Iris found herself incapable of making out any word from that book. Everything inside the place was written in the same old language she could not real.
'System, help me out. Is there something here that can translate this book?'
'The system regrets to inform the user that the language function is not available till Lvl 10. The user is encouraged to do their best to level up'
Well, there went that idea. Not that Iris had been hopeful when she had asked.
The system had done nothing during the whole time so why would it start to help her out now?
Also, she should start to look at those clauses deeper and maybe they could help her out?
'The system advises the user to start heading back. Look back at the center point and observe to unlock the quest of the chamber'
That startled Iris.
She was not sure how long she had spent down here but it did not seem to have been long. But it did not feel wise to ignore the system's warning as well.
It might not be willing to help her out but it was never against her as well. Maybe she should start heading back.
But she would not leave here empty-handed. A few books were taken out of the vast collection and stuffed into her inventory before Iris felt ready to leave.
The whole quest had felt like nothing but a time waste but she could not help but look back at the pool as she walked up.
She did that a few times before her eyes started to wander at the edges of the pool and then further away from the water's allure.
The floor felt weird but maybe it was her mind playing tricks on her. The engravings on the ground were unusual but nothing extraordinary.
But once she reached the middle of the staircase it all seemed to change for her. The floor seemed familiar to her but she could not see anything from afar. She was not even sure the medical vision would help her out.
But she decided to change her. There was a chance that the pool might affect her eyes but it was a risk worth taking.
And it did burn, the magic from the pool. It made her almost regret doing that but it could not overcome the wonder she felt once she looked down.
The floor was not only carved beautifully, it was carved with a purpose. In front of her stood the map of Oreta with the pool representing the center zone and the floor carved up into sections.
Even the levels of the city were represented in the form of steps and they all flew seamlessly.
It was a masterpiece but it also gave away a lot of information to Iris and her medical vision. Especially the way the magic flowed through the chamber.
She had thought it had flown everywhere but there was a way to that flow. It flew from the small tubular carvings and connected the whole city. It was a protective circle but also served as a foundation.
But for what?
'The quest of the chamber unlocked…
Saving the screen as future evidence. Can be viewed under the 'clues' section.
Quest perimeters -
Uncover the secrets behind the language of Isle. Decipher the book to gain a deeper understanding.
Find the secret hidden under sight and the user may get to glimpse into the unknown'
It sounded ominous but felt inevitable. This also felt like her ticket home. Otherwise, it was too much of a coincidence.