Chapter 31 "The Maze's Secret: A Desperate Search and the Colosseum of Corpses "

"Ugh, this is so frustrating! Where's the entrance to the next floor?" Van groaned, his frustration obvious.

The fifth floor stretched out before them, an enormous maze with winding, tangled paths. The walls loomed high, covered in moss that gave them an ancient, weathered look. Tower-like structures rose at each corner, their shapes adding to the labyrinth’s eerie feel.

The stone floor beneath their feet felt cold and uneven, while a faint, otherworldly light hovered above, casting long shadows and guiding their way through the twisting maze.

They had been wandering for what felt like hours, lost in the maze. The paths were so confusing, it was almost impossible to figure out which way led to the exit—or to the entrance of the next floor.

Geo sighed, trying to stay calm. "We’ll find it. We just need to keep going, stay patient."

"But we've been at this for so long!" Van snapped, his voice tinged with panic. "How are we supposed to find the next floor if we can’t even get out of this maze?"

The tension was palpable, but the group knew they had no choice but to keep moving forward.

The air in the maze carried the scent of lavender, yet instead of feeling calm, frustration gnawed at them. The towering walls of ivy and moss twisted unnaturally, warping their sense of direction. Every turn led them deeper into a labyrinth that seemed alive, shifting just out of reach of understanding.

Jason wiped his brow. “We’ve been at this for hours,” he muttered. “Every path looks the same.”

“Stay calm,” Caelan said, steady despite the unease creeping into his own mind. “Panicking won’t help us.” He glanced at the endless green corridor, searching for a clue, but didn’t notice anything.

Geo crouched, scanning the overgrown floor with sharp eyes. “No footprints. No signs of where we came from. It’s like the maze resets itself.”

“Don’t say that,” Mario muttered,"This place already feels alive, like it’s watching us.”

Hiddan, always ahead of the group, barely spared them a glance. His broadsword gleamed under the dim light filtering through the vines. “Enough talking. Standing still makes us easy targets.”

As if in response to his words, the ground rumbled beneath them. The walls groaned, ivy twisting like muscles contracting. A deep, guttural growl resonated through the air.

Then, it emerged.

A monstrous flower—its gaping maw lined with razor-sharp, tooth-like structures. Vibrant red and green petals pulsed, both a warning and a lure. Writhing vines tipped with barbed thorns slithered around it, moving with unnatural precision, as if sensing their prey. Vines bulged along its body, twitching like sinewy whips ready to strike.

"Scatter!" Geo shouted, diving away as a vine lashed the ground where he’d just stood.

The group split in different directions, dodging as the beast struck with unrelenting force. Jason swung his sword, severing one of the vines—only to watch in horror as it regenerated almost instantly.

"This thing heals too fast!" he yelled, stepping back.

Van hacked at another vine, frustration evident. “How do we kill something that won’t stay dead?”

Caelan’s mind raced. If this thing was anything like a normal plant, the roots would be its weak point—but this wasn’t an ordinary plant. Its core, the maw.

“The opening! Aim for its mouth!” he shouted, pointing to the glowing void at the flower’s center.

Niro readied his bow, losing an arrow at the core. But the creature reacted instantly, whipping a vine to intercept it mid-flight, snapping the arrow like a twig.

"Great. It’s smart, too," Niro muttered, backpedaling as another vine struck the ground near his feet.

Hiddan lunged in, swinging for the maw. The creature recoiled with a sharp hiss, but a tendril lashed out, striking him hard and knocking him off balance.

Geo charged, his broadsword raised high. "Then we hit it harder!" He swung with brute force, severing a vine in a spray of greenish sap. The beast let out a screech, petals bristling as even more vines erupted from the ground.

"It’s regenerating again!" Geo warned, slicing through the tendrils that tried to ensnare Hiddan. “We need to end this fast!”

Jason leaped forward, hacking at the vines, but there were too many. One tendril struck, wrapping around his arm, then another around his waist. Before he could react, he was yanked off his feet, dragged toward the monster’s gaping maw.

“Jason!”

Geo and Caelan moved in fast, slashing at the vines. The moment Jason was free, he scrambled back to his feet, gasping. He was still weak from the creature’s crushing grip, but there was no time to recover.

"We need to distract it!" Caelan called. "Keep the vines busy so we can get a clear shot!"

Mario and Niro loosed another volley of arrows, forcing the creature to use its vines defensively.

Hiddan and Van exchanged glances. They knew what they had to do.

"Now!" Caelan shouted.

Van and Hiddan hurled their spears with all their strength.

The monster sensed the attack, but it was too slow. One spear pierced the core. Then another.

A deafening screech tore through the air. The flower convulsed, its vines thrashing wildly before collapsing in a heap, its gaping maw frozen in its final, defeated snarl Leaving behind a glowing green magic stone on the ground.

For a moment, the only sound was their heavy breathing. Then, slowly, Caelan lowered his sword.

The maze grew silent once more, save for the group’s ragged breathing.

The maze fell into an eerie silence, broken only by the group’s ragged breathing.

Geo nudged one of the withering vines with his boot, watching it crumble into lifeless strands. “I’ve had enough of man-eating plants to last a lifetime.”

Nearby, Niro sat on the cold stone floor, still catching his breath. Geo extended a hand, pulling him up with a small, tired smile. “Good work, everyone.”

He turned to Caelan, who was leaning against the moss-covered wall, inhaling deeply to steady himself.

Caelan gave a half-hearted shrug. “Just doing what I do best.”

Van let out a dry laugh, rubbing the soreness from his arms. “Well, next time, maybe we will find a fight that doesn’t involve nearly getting eaten.”

Jason groaned, slumping beside him. “Seconded.”

For a brief moment, exhaustion overtook them all. They let themselves sink into the quiet, resting against the ancient walls of the maze. Their breaths slowed, muscles ached, and for the first time in hours, they allowed themselves a fleeting moment of relief.

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But it didn’t last.

The maze loomed around them, silent but unyielding. The battle was over, but their trial wasn’t.

With no other choice, they forced themselves back to their feet and pressed on, navigating the twisting paths once more. The way ahead felt different—less chaotic, as if the maze itself was guiding them forward.

Unlike before, where every turn led to confusion and dead ends, the paths now seemed strangely straightforward. Whether it was luck or something else entirely, they didn’t know.

Before long, they reached what appeared to be the end of the maze.

But instead of an entrance to the next floor, all we found was a towering wall, cold and unyielding.

"You’ve got to be kidding me!" Van groaned, throwing his hands in the air. "We worked so hard to get here, and there’s no entrance? What a waste!"

Hiddan crossed his arms, his expression serious. "The entrance has to be somewhere in this maze. I’m sure of it."

Jason rubbed the back of his neck, his face tense with frustration. "This is going to take forever, isn’t it? If it’s hidden, who knows how long we’ll be searching?"

I took a deep breath, trying to think rationally. "What if we split up? Two people in each group, searching in different directions. We can cover more ground that way."

Hiddan’s brow furrowed, and he immediately shook his head. "That’s too risky, Caelan. What if someone runs into a monster? Splitting up will make us vulnerable."

"I know it’s risky, but it’s better than wandering aimlessly together. This maze is not just consuming our time but also our strength. If we continue to search as a group we need to walk altogether in this whole area until we find the entrance for the next floor ," I replied firmly. "If anyone encounters a monster, don’t engage—just retreat. We’re not here to fight. Let’s meet back here in two hours, whether we find the entrance or not."

"Caelan’s right," Geo said, nodding firmly. "We’ll waste too much time and strength if we don’t split up and search."

With Geo backing the idea, the rest of the group fell silent. His voice carried the most weight, and no one wanted to argue against him.

"Alright," Geo continued, taking charge. "Van and I will pair up. Hiddan and Niro, you’ll stick together. Jason, Caelan, and Mario, the three of you will form the last group."

Jason and I exchanged a glance as Geo assigned us to search the left side of the maze wall.

"Hiddan, Niro, you’ll take the right wall," Geo added, his tone steady but concerned. "Jason, Caelan, Mario—cover the inner sections of the maze we haven’t explored yet. Just be careful. If you go too far in, there’s a chance you could get lost."

"We’ll be fine," I said, a plan already forming in my mind. "I’ve got an idea to make sure we will find each other and still communicate

"We're here!" I shouted, my voice echoing through the maze."

"Good thinking," Hiddan said, giving me a nod of approval. "We can shout to get the attention of each other if things get tricky or dangerous just run and shout

Geo smirked, his expression lightening for a moment. "You’ve got a knack for coming up with solutions, Caelan. Keep it up."

"Alright, everyone," Geo said, his voice firm again. "Let’s get moving. The sooner we find that entrance, the sooner we can get out of this maze."

With a mix of determination and unease, we each headed toward our assigned paths, ready to face whatever the maze had hidden from us.

We went our separate ways, each group diving into the maze with a mix of determination and apprehension.

“Which part haven’t we checked yet?” Jason asked, his voice edged with frustration as we navigated another identical corridor.

Mario sighed, scanning the endless walls. “It’s hard to say. Every path looks exactly the same. For all we know, we’ve passed some areas twice.”

“We’ll keep looking,” I said, trying to keep my tone steady despite my own growing doubts. “We’ll find it sooner or later.”

An hour but we still not find the entrance

“Where should we try next?” Jason asked, his voice tense. “We’re running out of time—we need to head back soon.”

Mario gestured ahead, his expression thoughtful. “Let’s go back . If it’s not here, we should return. Maybe Geo or Hiddan’s group had better luck.”

We returned, hoping the others had found the entrance, but like us, they had failed.

Van let out a frustrated groan. “We’ve searched every damn corner of this maze, and we still can’t find the entrance!”

He wasn’t wrong. We had checked every path, every dead end, and every possible route—but nothing.

I clenched my fists, thinking. Then, it hit me.

“Wait…” I said, my voice steady with newfound confidence. “There’s one place we haven’t searched yet.”

Everyone turned to look at me, their exhaustion momentarily replaced by curiosity.

“The center,” I continued. “Think about it. From the moment we entered this floor, we assumed the exit was on the far side of the maze. That’s why we kept pushing forward, trying to reach the other end. But when we got here … there was nothing. No entrance. No staircase. Just a dead end.”

Their eyes widened as the realization sank in.

“We searched every direction, every corner, every possible path,” I went on. “But we never thought to check the middle. What if the entrance was never meant to be on the edges at all? What if it’s been in the very center of the maze this whole time?”

Geo’s eyes lit up with understanding. “That actually makes sense.”

Niro let out a relieved sigh. “Finally. I was starting to think we’d be stuck here forever.”

Hiddan crossed his arms, his posture relaxing slightly. “Good. The sooner we get out of this place, the better.”

Geo nodded firmly. “Alright. If the entrance is in the center, let’s find it and finish this.”

Van’s frustration turned to excitement. “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go!”

With renewed determination, we pressed forward, retracing our steps toward the heart of the maze. The deeper we went, the heavier the air felt, thick with an unspoken anticipation.

Then, we saw it.

A circular opening, carved into the stone floor. Spiral stairs twisted downward, disappearing into the darkness below. Cracks spiderwebbed across the entrance, with thick roots weaving in and out of the stone like grasping fingers. Faint light filtered from above, casting eerie shadows along the jagged edges.

I exhaled, a small, triumphant smile breaking through my exhaustion.

“Looks like we found it.”

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As we stepped onto the fifth floor ,the air grew heavy with a scent of blood and decay.The circular colosseum, carved deep within the underground labyrinth, stood eerily silent, illuminated only by flickering torches mounted along the Stone walls. Shadows danced across the jagged ceiling ,where stalactites hung like fangs.casting an ominous glow over the scene

The arena floor was littered with lifeless bodies-adventurers who had met their end here .Their broken weapons,shredded armor,and bloodied remains painted a grim story of a battle fought with desperation. The ground was scarred with deep claw marks,as if something monstrous had torn through the battlefield.

Jason froze, his breath caught in his throat. His grip on his sword tightened, knuckles white.

Niro took a step back, eyes wide. "This... this isn't right." His voice was barely above a whisper.

Van swallowed hard, his face pale. "What do we do now?"

At the far end of the arena stood a heavy iron door, its edges faintly glowing with an unnatural light. it was the only way forward

The atmosphere was heavy with fear and tension, each step forward testing our resolve.

We had already passed too many corpses on the fourth floor—adventurers who had entered this dungeon but never made it out. The sight of their lifeless bodies was a grim reminder of the dangers ahead.

“This is just an E-rank dungeon,” Hiddan muttered, his voice filled with unease. “How many adventurers could still be alive in here?” He glanced around as if expecting to find more bodies just out of sight.

“We’re already on the sixth floor,” Geo said, his tone steady but strained. “The last floor isn’t far. Are we really going to quit now? Stay strong. Don’t let fear get the better of you.” Despite his attempt to encourage us, the flicker of worry in his eyes was impossible to miss.

"Mario scanned the area cautiously. 'If this dungeon really has eight floors, like most dungeons, we're getting closer to the end. But something feels… off. It’s too quiet.'"

Hiddan crouched down, inspecting the walls. Deep claw marks had gouged into the stone, as if some massive creature had raked its claws in a frenzy. “There was a fight here,”he said grimly. “Judging by the marks the monster had huge, razor sharp claws.”

Mario swallowed hard, his throat dry. "But… just how many of our fellow adventurers ended up like this? Whatever happened here—it wasn’t an ordinary battle.”

Geo let out a slow breath, his grip tightening around his weapon. “We need to be more careful from now on. No more letting our guard down,” he said, his voice firm. His gaze shifted to the iron door at the far end of the arena. “Let’s move forward.”

There was no turning back now.

We had come too far. If we turned back, everything we had endured to get here would have been for nothing. Fear gnawed at the edges of my thoughts, cold and persistent—but stopping here wasn’t an option. Whatever awaited us ahead, we had to face it.

I tightened my grip on my sword and followed my comrades toward the iron door.