Chapter 27…………………………………………
“Those glowing stones on the ceiling too… it really is strange. How can such a wide space exist beneath the desert? For what reason, exactly?”
“Seriously. What kind of place was this supposed to be?”
There is no such thing as a useless space. Clearly, there was a secret here they still hadn’t uncovered.
Thinking that, Adamas absently ran her fingers over the silver sword hanging at her side.
The silver sword at her waist had originally been the prize for winning the martial tournament.
If Privetina had been declared the official victor, it naturally would have ended up in her hands.
And if Pantheon had only been a little slower in moving his luggage out of the inn, it would have been his.
Before they set out to explore the desert, the Marquis had bestowed the sword upon Adamas.
As she quietly stroked the blade and glanced once at Privetina, then once at Pantheon, Saphairos noticed her gaze and stepped closer.
“It’s okay. This is fate too, in a way. Honestly, there’s no one who suits that silver sword better than you.”
“You really think so?”
“Of course. It’s a sword made with Mano’s very first magic stone.”
A sword embedded with the first magic stone Mano had ever created—made with the grand intention of “rebuilding the Marquisate,” as Saphairos and Adamas had envisioned.
Adamas remembered the moment she had received it, and the words the Marquis had spoken as he gently brushed her hand.
‘I have very high expectations for you, Lady Adamas.’
She wanted to bring something back from the desert.
Not something as grand as repaying faith—just something that would let the Marquis smile with a little more ease.
“Still, there really should’ve been a winner. It’s a tournament held only once a year.”
“That’s true.”
“Is it greedy of me to want to return with some kind of achievement?”
Adamas spoke quietly. Right now, her bag contained only two stones.
One was a desert rose. The other was a glowing stone she had mined from the dungeon wall, just in case.
“But we have the glowing stone. We can explain the existence of a desert dungeon. We can always come back after preparing properly.”
Saphairos said it like that, but he knew just as well that returning wouldn’t be easy.
The Marquisate always had problems piling up, and both he and Adamas were needed there. It wasn’t a situation where they could easily promise “next time.”
“Maybe we should search more thoroughly—”
Just as Adamas forced a smile and was about to speak to the group, Privetina’s high voice rang out.
“Oh, there’s a strange-looking scorpion here. Could it be a venomous one?”
Kwa. KWAANG!
Before she even finished speaking, a deafening roar shook the entire cavern, drowning out her voice.
“W-What are you doing?! That’s dangerous! Are you insane?!”
Pantheon’s blade was embedded in the wall just centimeters away from Privetina.
Everyone stared at him in shock.
“What is this, brother?!”
Stefan, the most startled of all, rushed over, anxiously checking Pantheon’s face.
“Stefanos. Remove that immediately!”
Pantheon shouted. He recoiled with a shriek and tried to run toward the entrance.
“I’m leaving right now.”
It wasn’t just determination—it sounded like an outright command.
Adamas and the others frowned at him.
What does he think his little brother is? A servant?
“Well… it’s just that my brother really hates bugs…”
Stefan glanced nervously between the sword and the group, making an awkward excuse.
“I’m sorry, Lady Privetina.”
He hurried to her side, checking if she was hurt.
Ugh. Stefan treats him like that because he’s his brother, and this obnoxious man won’t even apologize himself!
Saphairos kept staring at the sword and the wall, while Adamas looked at Pantheon in disbelief.
“Pantheon. You threw your sword at a scorpion? And even used sylph power? And you won’t even apologize to Tina?”
Where had the image of the mysterious spirit mage gone?
“It’s fine, Adamas. More importantly… pfft.”
As if the shock had already passed, Privetina was smiling faintly.
“I guess you could hate scorpions. But it was only the size of a pinky nail.”
Tina, that’s making it worse. He looks furious.
“What if it was venomous?”
Pantheon snapped.
“Well, still… throwing your sword is a bit much, isn’t it? Right, Mas?”
Privetina shrugged, looking at Adamas.
Pantheon snorted coldly.
“You’re all careless. Maybe once you’re poisoned and hovering between life and death, you’ll finally realize how little attention you’ve paid to safety.”
Adamas sighed.
“So you’re not afraid of an unknown dungeon, but you’re afraid of scorpions?”
“Of course I should be. With this party composition—two pure swordsmen, one spear-swordsman, and one mage—what happens if we get hit by scorpion venom?”
“H-Hey!”
“Can you use healing magic? Detoxification magic? Of course you can’t.”
Does he think words don’t cut?
Stefan stepped in quickly, stopping Adamas before she could lash back.
“That’s enough, brother. I’m sorry. Lady Privetina, Lady Adamas.”
Adamas bit her lip, gently rubbing Privetina’s back.
If Stefan hadn’t stopped it, Pantheon’s criticism wouldn’t have ended. But…
As unpleasant as it was, Pantheon had struck a painful truth—his judgment was too accurate.
And at the same time, his real personality was finally showing.
Pantheon had already calculated the group’s abilities with frightening coldness. And Stefan had clearly been acting all along.
A little rough. A little immature. A little spiteful…
“I’m leaving now.”
Pantheon flicked his hand. The sword that had been stuck in the wall flew back to him.
An oddly elegant display of irritation.
Adamas and Privetina exchanged a silent look.
Mas, that man’s personality is seriously rotten.
You noticed too, Tina. Not “kind of”—it’s genuinely rotten.
“Could you stop cursing with your eyes? Now, let’s go. Lead the way, Stefan.”
“…Wait!”
Just then, Saphairos shouted with a frown.
“I think the bug is still alive.”
He pointed at the wall.
“No way. Even if it was a grandpa scorpion, it’d be dead by now.”
Even at Adamas’s joke, Saphairos shook his head.
“Look. It’s moving.”
“Huh?”
Everyone’s gaze snapped toward the wall where Pantheon’s sword had struck.
Beneath the hole, stone fragments were trembling.
“Were you too startled to throw properly?”
“What are you saying? Are you implying I missed at this distance?”
“Stop calling me ‘Lady’ already!”
“Can you two stop fighting?”
Stefan sighed quietly as the argument continued. Meanwhile, Saphairos slowly drew his longsword.
“What is it now?! Why is everyone drawing swords over one scorpion?!”
Stefan cried out in disbelief.
But Saphairos only stared intently at the rubble.
Adamas stepped closer.
“Ros? What is it?”
“It’s a golem.”
“…What?”
“That. Right there.”
From between the shifting stones crawled out a stone scorpion, no bigger than Adamas’s pinky finger.
The others immediately gathered around it.
The first to act boldly was Adamas. She lifted the stone scorpion onto her palm.
“Gasp—Mas, that’s a golem!”
Privetina fidgeted anxiously.
She was from the Marquisate too. Normal scorpions weren’t scary, but golems were different.
“You can’t examine it properly unless you hold it. Hmm… It doesn’t seem to have a ruby core like the Marquisate’s golems.”
Adamas grabbed its tail and shook it. Instantly, the stone scorpion struggled wildly and bit her hand with its pincers.
“Aah!”
“Are you okay, Mas?”
Saphairos quickly took her hand.
Adamas felt embarrassed at how carefully he inspected it, and she pulled back slightly.
“I-I’m fine. It didn’t really bite me—I was just startled.”
Are you trying a little too hard to play fiancé?
She swallowed the thought and quickly searched for the scorpion.
The stone scorpion had fallen to the ground and scurried toward a corner, tail twitching rapidly.
Then it spun in place three times—
And vanished.
“What? Ros, did you see that?”
“Yes. I definitely saw it.”
Adamas and Saphairos nodded at each other.
“We don’t know what’s inside, so shouldn’t we split up, like with the dungeon entrance?”
Adamas suggested.
Before she even finished, Pantheon looked straight at Stefan.
Of course. Those brothers would move together.
“Then Tina, will you come with us?”
“No, Lady Adamas. I believe she should come with us as well.”
Stefan stepped in front of Privetina.
The tallest member of the party met the gaze of the smallest.
“Come with us, Lady Privetina.”
“Uh… um… I mean…”
Privetina’s face reddened as she looked at Adamas.
I get it, Tina.
A man that tall lowering himself, golden eyes shining as he urges you to come with him—what woman wouldn’t waver?
I understand, but…
“Still, Tina should come with us.”
Adamas said.
But Saphairos stopped her, turning to Stefan.
“Can you protect Lady Privetina no matter what happens?”
“Of course.”
Stefan shrugged lightly.
“Alright. Then we’ll go first. Come on, Mas.”
Saphairos nodded to Stefan, then held out his hand to Adamas.
“Ugh, fine. Just wait a second.”
Adamas pulled the glowing stone from her bag.
“Take this, Tina. If something happens, please deliver it to the Marquis.”
“What? But…”
Privetina was currently a runaway. Showing her face in the Marquisate was burdensome.
“Don’t worry. I’ll do my best not to put you in an awkward position. This is only for the worst-case scenario.”
“…Okay. I understand, Mas.”
“We don’t know what might happen. Let’s follow after about ten minutes.”
Pantheon spoke with his usual cold voice, arms crossed.
“Alright. Then we’ll go first.”
Adamas swallowed hard and clasped Saphairos’s hand.
The two exchanged one last determined look.
Just like the scorpion, they spun three times in place—
The scenery wavered.
And in an instant—
Everything went dark.
The ground seemed to sway beneath them. Just as Adamas felt her knees weaken—
The wide cavern was replaced by a narrow staircase, barely wide enough for two adults to stand side by side.
