It took Quinus five minutes before he could calm down from dealing with Mana Lust.

"Fueh... Fueeehh... Fueehhh!" Quinus was huffing and puffing as he tried catching his breath.

'Ah... Damn, being a pre-teen again is harder than I thought...'

"Fueh... Alright, no more fucking around, Quin. I have to find the other two and find a way out of here," Quinus muttered to himself as he could barely make out the outline of the dead Cyclops. Due to the last remnants of the magical bonfire burning out.

'Dammit, If I can get to my bag I can grab another magical torch.'

Quinus's eyes started adjusting to the darkness again as he slowly started to make out the layout of the cave and spotted his backpack about ten feet away from the dead Cyclops.

"There," Quinus quietly whispered to himself as he made his way over to his backpack. He blindly rummaged around until his hand found a glass container.

"Bingo," he said as he pulled the magical torch out of his backpack and twisted the crystal to the left.

*Tch*

*Flick*

"Haah, much better," Quinus was relieved that he could now see his surroundings. He got a better look at the dead Cyclops.

"I'm glad I didn't get reincarnated as a Cyclops... They are ugly bastards."

He then turned and faced the path he thought Thomas and Geralt had run off to. He could make out a light up ahead about 500 feet away.

"Well, hopefully, I’ll run into them," Quinus said out loud as he started walking down the tunnel.

***

Thomas and Geralt were stumbling through the cave. They were hiding as best as they could.

"G-Geralt! Do you think the prince is okay," Thomas was scared that Prince Quinus had gotten himself killed.

"I-I'm not sure," Geralt stuttered, "But I think the Cyclops is dead..."

"H-How can you tell?" Thomas asked.

"There was a bright explosion and then you heard that roar in pain. I think the Prince might have killed it," Geralt was confident that the monster was dead.

"B-But I think I heard some groaning. Maybe we should have gone back to see if he's okay," Thomas was worried about Quinus.

"W-We can't risk our lives. We don't know if the Cyclops is still alive," Geralt argued, "If we were to go back, then we would have to deal with the Cyclops..."

"But why would the prince be moaning?" Thomas didn't understand.

Geralt facepalmed and groaned, "Oh my god... You're stup-"

They could hear footsteps running down the tunnel. They tried to hide as the light started growing brighter and brighter.

"P-Prince?" Thomas whispered.

"SHHH!" Geralt hushed.

Quinus came walking down the path with his magical torch lighting up the way.

"Huh? Geralt? What are you hiding in?" Quinus asked as he spotted Geralt's foot sticking out.

"W-Wait? Your Highness?... YOU'RE ALIVE! OH, THANK THE GODDESS!" Thomas yelled and tackled the prince.

"Oof," Quinus grunted as Thomas hugged him.

"You're alive. I was worried you got eaten by the Cyclops," Thomas said as his eyes were getting watery.

"Yeah, I had a few close calls but Geralt? I think you're hiding behind... fecal matter? Are you hiding in Cyclops shit?"

Geralt was able to see what he was trying to hide behind. He could see bones and a large pile of poop.

"BY THE GODDESS! IT'S CYCLOPS'S SHIT!" Geralt shouted and was trying to get the fecal matter off of him. "Eww. Ew. EW! IT'S ON MY LEG!"

"Calm down! It's gross but it isn't poisonous. If we find some water you can wash yourself off," Quinus said.

"You sure it isn't poisonous," Thomas asked as he let go of Quinus and took a step back.

"Yes. I'm positive. The Cyclops has a large amount of ether stored up in its digestive tract and it can break down almost anything... Come on. Hopefully, we can find where we are in the labyrinth," Quinus said as he started walking.

"Hey, Prince Quinus? How did you kill the Cyclops? Was it hard?" Thomas asked.

"A bit, yes. It shot its laser eye at me one time and almost got me a second time. I was lucky to damage its eye and use a boulder to smash his head." Quinus lied to the ten-year-old.

"Wow, you're so strong, Prince Quinus!" Thomas complimented him.

'It wasn't me. Percy launched an arrow that damaged the eye and I had a special sword to end it. But it doesn't matter.'

"Why was there moaning after you killed the Cyclops?" Geralt asked.

"Um? Do you know about Mana Rush?"

"No. What is that?" Geralt asked.

"Uh? It's complicated but when you slay a monster that has loads of mana it causes your body to react," Quinus tried explaining it the best he could.

"Like what?" Thomas asked.

'Fuck! Now I know why Father was having such a hard time explaining it to me... So, how do I explain it to them?... Ah. Got it!'

"Well... It can cause someone's body to go number 1 or number 2 out of nowhere. And it needs to be taken care of or you'll be in pain," Quinus answered as he didn't want to tell ten-year-olds the real truth. Even though he is technically a ten-year-old himself.

"Ew. Why would that happen? Is it because of all the mana?" Geralt was disgusted by the idea.

"I don't know the alchemy behind it, but yes. It is the mana that causes your body to act out. All I can say is take care of it as soon as possible or you'll be in hell."

"Ew, okay," Thomas said.

They walked for another twenty minutes before they found a tight tunnel that was barely 3 feet tall and 3 feet wide.

"Well, I can feel air flowing through here so there's a high chance we'll get out," Quinus said.

"I hope we don't crawl into something gross," Geralt said.

"We'll cross that bridge if we get there. Thomas, you go first, I'll be in the rear. Geralt, you're in the middle. Don't want the two of you getting lost," Quinus said as he gestured his arm to the tight tunnel.

***

The small tunnel went on for 45 minutes before it widened out and they could see a light at the end.

"Thank the goddess," Geralt said.

"I'm thirsty. Do you guys have any water?" Thomas asked.

"I don't have much. I'll give you some once I can stand up straight," Quinus said.

"Okay."

The three boys were finally out of the small tunnel and they found themselves on a small plateau overlooking a vast chasm.

"By the Goddess, that's one heck of a drop," Geralt said as he peeked over the edge.

"Yeah, don't fall down there, Geralt," Thomas joked.

Quinus was looking around. "I can see the surface from here... Hold on? Is that... Johnathan?"

"What?! Where is that son of a bitch?" Geralt was pissed that John tried to kill them.

"Over there," Quinus pointed over to the right.

They could see the silhouette of a young boy running down a tunnel.

"So, we must be on the first floor. I wonder if there's an easier way down," Quinus was muttering to himself.

"So, now what?" Thomas asked.

"First. We should figure out how to get down to the next level. Do you guys have anything we can use as a rope? We can lower ourselves to the ground," Quinus suggested.

"Oh. Thomas. You brought a rope right?" Geralt said.

"Here," Thomas looked through his backpack and handed Quinus a 30-foot-long rope.

'I think we are 45 feet up... Well, it's been years since I repelled down a rope... Let's not die this time.'

"Thomas, Geralt. Do either of you know how to repel down a rope?"

"I don't know what you're talking about. Can't we just climb down the rope?" Thomas was confused.

"No. It's a term for controlling your speed when descending a rope. There are a few different methods and I think we can reach that ledge before we need to repeat the process. It's about 20 feet below us," Quinus said.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

"Uh, I'll try," Thomas volunteered.

"Hmm, okay, I'll teach you," Quinus said, "Here's what you need to do..."

Quinus showed Thomas and Geralt a technique for safely descending a rope.

"Now, the key is not to rush and keep your hands on the rope at all times. You want to slowly feed the rope through your belt. If you aren't paying attention you could repeal right off the end of the rope and you'll have about a 30-foot deck. So, avoid that."

"Um? C-Can you go first? I don't know if I can do it," Thomas asked.

"Sure, I'll go first," Quinus said as he started to loop the rope around a rock pillar that was sticking out from the side of the cliff. He then tossed both ends of the rope over the edge.

"Okay, it looks like the line is close to the second ledge. I'll see if we need to jump for the ledge."

"We'll watch you closely," Geralt said.

Quinus put his hand on the rope and slowly descended down.

He stopped after ten feet and said, "Okay, here is where you need to feed the rope through your belt. Make sure you guys do the same or you'll get burned."

"Got it," Thomas and Geralt shouted.

"I'm going to continue," Quinus shouted back.

He slowly went down the last five feet before he made it to the ledge.

"It's safe!" Quinus yelled, "Thomas, it's your turn."

"O-Okay... I'll try."

Thomas grabbed the rope and slowly lowered himself down. He did the same as Quinus did.

"Okay, I think I'm doing everything correctly."

Quinus watched as Thomas fed the rope through his belt and he continued. He didn't notice if Thomas was doing anything incorrectly. He wasn't as smooth as Quinus but he slowly made his way down the rope.

After a minute, Thomas made it to the second ledge, "Alright, Geralt... It's your turn."

He nodded his head before taking a deep breath and grabbing the rope. He slipped a few times as he was repealing down the rope. He was moving quicker than Thomas but he was not as controlled as Quinus.

"Ah!" Geralt yelled as he was halfway down the rope.

"Just relax, Geralt... Deep breaths," Quinus advised him.

"G-Got it," Geralt slowed down his descent.

Geralt made it down the last ten feet with no problem as Quinus grabbed him and pulled him to the ledge, "I-I did it! I thought I was going to poop myself"

"Luckily, we wouldn't notice," Thomas joked.

"Shut up..."

"Hey... Good job, man. But we aren't out of the woods yet... Here's the tricky part. I think the distance from this ledge to the ground floor is 35 feet."

"But we have a 30-foot rope. Can't we just drop the rest of the way?"

"You saw me wrapping it around a rock pillar, right? It halved the length when we did that... It makes the rope stronger when you hold onto two lines. I can tie it off on its end but we need to hope that the knot can hold all of our weight."

"O-Oh," Geralt said.

Quinus looked down again trying to estimate the distance to the ground, "Yeah, I think the bottom is about 35 feet... So, there will be a five-foot drop off the end of the rope. It's not bad but it's solid rock... Watch your landing, guys."

Quinus looked around trying to find the best rock pillar to tie the rope off to.

"This one should do. Watch yourselves," Quinus kicked the pillar just to make sure it wouldn't break off and fall.

'Seems strong enough.'

He tied the rope off before letting the other end fall off the ledge.

"Alright, It's not caught on anything, so we should be good to go... I'll go first... I'll holler up to you once I get to the ground. Okay?"

"Got it."

"Sure."

Quinus grabbed the rope and fed it through his belt. He then stepped off the ledge and waited to see if the pillar was going to crack. Once things seemed safe Quinus started lowering himself down the rope.

'I hope the rope doesn't fray and snap under our weight. I didn't check it for damage.'

Quinus reached the end and let go, dropping the last five feet and landing on the ground.

He felt the impact on the bottom of his feet but wasn't too bad.

'I'm glad my body is young again. Or that might have hurt.'

Quinus looked up, "Everything's good! Who's next?"

Thomas nodded his head as he grabbed the rope. He did all the same things Quinus did before he started his descent. Quinus watched as Thomas slowly made his way down the rope.

"You're doing good, Thomas," Quinus said encouragingly.

Thomas was nervous and was sweating. His hands were becoming clammy and he couldn't focus.

"O-Okay," Thomas stuttered.

Suddenly his hands slipped and he started falling.

"AHH!" Thomas screamed.

"Shit!" Quinus cursed.

He moved below and held out his arms to catch Thomas. They both tumbled to the ground but they were okay.

"Oof! Damn, Thomas... you're lucky that I know how to strengthen my body with mana. Or that would have sucked," Quinus grunted.

Thomas was in shock. He didn't say anything as he was staring blankly at the ground.

"I thought I was done for," Thomas muttered.

"I don't think this is any scarier than the Cyclops. But I guess that doesn't make it any less scary."

"H-Huh? Yeah... Yeah, you're right. Sorry," Thomas said as he stood up.

"It happens, man. Don't worry about it... Hey, Geralt! You're up!"

"A-Alright," Geralt said as he did his safety checks before repelling down the rope.

Thomas and Quinus were ready to spot him as he was coming closer to the end of the rope.

"Almost there, Geralt," Quinus shouted.

Geralt nodded as he readied himself to jump.

Once he was about 10 feet above them he jumped and landed safely.

"Good job, guys, we are finally out of that hell," Quinus said.

"Yeah... I'm done with labyrinths," Geralt sighed.

"Can't agree with you more," Thomas said.

Quinus could see the daylight peaking through the entrance to the Labyrinth which was over a thousand feet away.

"Come on. Let's head to the surface," Quinus said.

The boys started walking and a few minutes later they exited the Labyrinth.

***

They breathed a sigh of relief, once the three of them made their way out of the Labyrinth and felt the fresh air blowing across their faces.

"Thank the Goddess," Geralt sighed.

"It feels nice to see the sun again," Thomas commented.

"Yeah it wasn't so—what happened out here?" Quinus paused his sentence as he noticed signs of a battle in the distance.

"Did the knights fight a monster or something?" Thomas asked.

"No, this is something different. Let's go and—"

"You three came out not so bad... *Sniff* Well... Except for you... Why do you have monster poop all over you," Rolf asked as he popped up out of nowhere.

"Gah!... Where did the Keeper come from?" Geralt asked as he jumped away for the old man.

"From behind you of course... So, did you three finish the trials and collect your ether crystal? If you didn't, I guess I'll have to kick you out."

"We have done as you asked, Keeper. We have passed the trial, and acquired the crystal," Quinus said as he grabbed a pouch and pulled out a bright yellow crystal the size of a six-sided dice.

Rolf was surprised by this, "Well, that's a bright one! How about you two? You got one also, right?"

Thomas and Geralt pulled out a dull-colored crystal.

"Excellent! Now, who would like to receive their reward first?"

"How about Prince Quinus," Thomas suggested.

"Yeah, he did most of the work," Geralt agreed.

"Um... Sure. I don't mind," Quinus said as he was caught off guard by this.

The Eternal shook his head.

"The Quinus is going to go last... Mainly because I want to savor his crystal," Rolf chuckled.

"Why me?" Quinus asked in surprise.

"Because it's a big secret... So, which one of you two would like to go first?" Rolf asked.

"Geralt can go first," Thomas said.

"Sure. What's my prize?"

"Hand me your crystal and you will find out," Rolf smiled.

Geralt handed over his dull crystal. And without hesitation, Rolf took the ether crystal and ate it.

"Ahh, such a wonderful taste... Here's your prize," Rolf said as he leaned over to Geralt's ear and whispered something.

Geralt's face had confusion written all over it as Rolf continued to whisper. Thomas wanted to know what the Keeper was saying and started creeping forward before Quinus grabbed his shoulder.

"What?" Thomas asked.

"It's for Geralt's ears only," Quinus said.

Thomas has a dissatisfied expression on his face, but he knows that there is no point in arguing against Quinus. Soon they heard Geralt say, "R-Really?"

"Yep. Congratulations on passing the trial... Next... the Thomas," Rolf said with excitement.

Geralt was lost in thought as he walked over to Quinus. Thomas walked over and gave the dull-colored ether crystal to Rolf. The Eternal once again ate the crystal.

"Hmm, I think this one will go well with diamonds..." Rolf said as he was chewing the ether crystal like some type of hard candy. Making lip-smacking sounds before he swallowed it with a satisfied smile.

"Oh! That hit the spot... I wish more of you humans took the trials, then I wouldn't have to eat cheap rocks to survive."

"Uh... Thanks," Thomas was confused by Rolf's comment.

"Here's your prize," Rolf leaned in and whispered into Thomas' ear.

Thomas was excited and surprised, "Wait! R-Really!?"

"Indeed. You have passed the trial. Congratulations. Now, let's see what your prize is," Rolf smiled at Quinus.

"These prizes seem like fortune telling... Why do you need the ether crystals? I heard from the scholars that these ether crystals are worthless to humans since they are impure," Quinus was curious.

"You worry too much... All I can say is the ether crystal makes it easier for me to see your prize."

"Hmm..." Quinus didn't seem convinced, but he didn't have any proof to argue against it. So he walked over while Thomas looked overjoyed and Geralt was still deep in thought.

'Well... Let's see if it was worth all this trouble...'

"Here," Quinus handed over his bright yellow ether crystal.

Rolf's eyes sparkled as he stared at the crystal and licked his lips.

"It's been a long time since I have had a gemstone of this color. Usually, people have the duller ones," Rolf commented.

"Um. That's good?"

"Very good," Rolf's mouth was drooling, "I will be savoring this."

The Eternal ate the ether crystal and his eyes rolled up as if he was in heaven. He hummed with delight as he stood there. Not chewing it at all.

"It's been a long time. Since I had something like this... I could stay here for weeks and be happy... Oh, right," Rolf remembered that Quinus was waiting. He then quickly chewed it up before swallowing.

"Hmm... Well... Well... Well... You have a very interesting prize. More interesting than these two," Rolf commented.

'What the hell is that supposed to mean?'

"Here's your prize," Rolf said as he leaned over to Quinus's ear and whispered.

"You are one of those who are special to the gods... And there are four others that have traveled to this world like you... In the future, you will find one of them, and they can bring peace to all the races if you and only you accept them into your heart." Rolf whispered into Quinus's ear.

'What the fuck does that mean?'

"But seeing your taste... I don't see that being a problem... That's all," Rolf leaned back and smiled.

Quinus had an uneasy feeling and was trying to decipher what he was told.

'There are four others like me? Does he know that I'm reincarnated or is there something I'm missing... And what does the part about them bringing peace to all races have to do with me?'

Quinus didn't realize that he was standing there for a couple of minutes. Trying to make sense of his fortune.

"Um... Thanks, Rolf. It was a pleasure meeting you. But I'm afraid we must be going," Quinus bowed to the Eternal.

"No! Thank you... Prince Quinus. It was an honor having you and the rest of your party enter the Labyrinth. Feel free to come back any time."

"Of course. And please take care of the Labyrinth." Quinus said

"Ugh... I wish... But she won't let me in there," Rolf pointed at the entrance to the Labyrinth.

"Huh?" Geralt heard the Keeper and was curious.

"Who are you talking about, Rolf?" Thomas asked.

"What? Oh! I have to go... May you find your path," Rolf yelled out as he ran around a corner and disappeared.

"W-Wait!" Thomas yelled.

"What just happened?" Geralt questioned.

Quinus wasn't paying attention as he was still lost in thought. Usually, he was good at deciphering riddles. But he was having trouble with this one.

"Prince Quinus... Your Highness!? Are you okay?" Thomas asked.

"H-Huh? Yeah, I'm fine... I'm trying to figure out what the Keeper meant."

"About what?" Geralt asked.

"Don't worry about it. It would confuse you more than it did me."

"Um, okay," Thomas responded as he wasn't convinced, but he didn't want to push Quinus.

"Let's go. We need to find out what happened out here and find Johnathan," Quinus said as he started heading back.

"Oh yeah! That jerk has some explaining to do," Geralt said.

"Yes he does," Thomas agreed.