Inside the cave that Joey fell into was surrounded by ancient rock walls eroded by time. There was no way out except the hole he fell through, which was ten meters off the ground, making climbing up it an almost impossible task. Meanwhile, Joey was staring at the mysterious inscriptions on the walls intently, trying to decipher them. But he soon realized that there was no point in trying to read it if he did not understand the language in which it was written. He said to himself wearily: “Oh my God, maybe I should think about how to get out of here first. Haha, I’m really in an unenviable position.”

He took his phone out of his pocket to check the watch, but the phone did not respond. Whenever he pressed the power button, the screen showed nothing but pitch black. Joey took a deep breath and said with a frustrated face, "I think it's because I fell into the puddle. Hey, wait! This place is bigger than I thought."

Joey began to explore the surrounding area, examining every corner carefully. He touched the patterned walls with apprehensive fingers, then slowly advanced towards the large wall in front of him. He was not only amazed by the enormity of the wall, but also by the painting on it. The painting was covered with a lot of moss and cracks, making its details completely unclear.

Joey approached her, staring in amazement and wonder. The image looked like something between a giant fire or thick fog, which did not give him any feeling of comfort. Joey tried to explain what he was seeing, but the mystery surrounding the engravings made him feel more confused and surprised.

After paying close attention to the wall in front of him, Joey realized that it was nothing but an ancient stone gate that was tightly closed. Joey wondered what could be behind this gate, and he did not hesitate.

He gathered all his strength and pushed his arms with all his might. He heard the sound of rocks rubbing against the ground as a result of his strong push. Joey paused for a moment, sweat dripping from his forehead and panting with exhaustion.

When he looked at the wall again, he realized that it was slowly starting to open. He then understood that this was not a wall, but a door made of solid rock. Joey came back again with greater force, pushing the wall step by step. A cool breeze began to seep through the narrow opening he had created, motivating him to continue. After some effort and trouble, the door opened enough for Joey to pass through. As he caught his breath and entered, he was surprised by the long corridor extending in front of him and branching off into several other entrances. Joey was puzzled by the sheer size of the place, but he couldn't resist his curiosity to see what was inside, so he started forward again.

Joey stepped forward, looking to his right, where there were several aisles on the right and left sides. “Oh God,” he said to himself, “if I lose sight of my directions even a little, I'll definitely get lost here.” The corridors were very similar and dimly lit.

As he moved forward, he noticed that the walls were almost completely covered in dark green moss, with patches of luminous blue moss between them. Joey took out his expensive notebook and remembered a page containing information about plants and flowers growing inside the caves. “Sure,” he said, “this is some kind of luminous algae. At least this stuff helps me see and move in the dark.” Joey suddenly stopped talking and walking, remembering that he had to find Chris and Rodri. If he didn't find them, he wouldn't be able to get out of here even if he got out of this place. “There's no need to think about this now,” he said to himself. “If I get out of here quickly, the probability of finding them outside this place will be much higher. Also, I shouldn't waste time thinking about what time it is or what will happen when we get home.” Joey remained silent and continued on his way, taking a right turn while muttering song lyrics, not caring about going deeper into the place.

In the silence of the cave, Joey moved, humming a song to relieve his stress. Joey came to a crossroads where there were three lanes: one in the middle and the other two in both directions.

Joey did not think much and immediately headed to the right, not knowing whether this decision was hasty or not, but he did not care. As Joey advanced, the moisture in the ground increased, and with it the small rocks that obstructed his steps increased.

Joey felt the cold dampness seep into his shoes, making him feel even more uncomfortable. The air inside the cave was heavy with the smell of wet moss and muddy earth, making breathing even more difficult.

Suddenly, an unexpected sound broke the silence of the cave. The sound was coming from the front, like a scream or someone speaking loudly and being very angry and indifferent. Joey stopped moving forward, and the feeling of tension and fear returned to him. As he progressed further, the sound became clearer. Until it reached a point where the voice started to sound like someone angrily arguing with themselves. Joey couldn't hear everything the person was saying clearly, because he was still so far away from him. All he picked up was: “Can't you hear me? We've been here in this maze for four hours and we haven't found anything.

It makes me feel frustrated." The person didn't seem to be aware of Joey's presence near him. Joey whispered to himself in a light, quiet voice: "So, there's someone else here besides me... But in the end, I'm confused. This is neither a bad nor a good thing at the same time. "It may be a dangerous unknown."

The first person continued loudly: “What? Should we really continue searching in this maze?” Another voice interrupted him, speaking calmly and balancedly: “It seems that you have not yet understood that this purpose has great value that the president needs, so we have no choice but to search until we get a result.”

Joey was listening hard to their conversation, trying to catch every word. He began to move very slowly towards them, trying to get closer to hear better.

The ground beneath his feet was becoming increasingly slippery, and the scent of luminous moss began to fill the air around him, adding an air of mystery and danger to the place.

With every step he felt the cold seeping into his bones, and his heartbeat increased, hesitating between curiosity and wariness of what he might face.

“Ah, well, let's continue our search. Even though I'm very tired, I'll continue with you,” she said in a loud voice with a clear tone of annoyance. “I think you're finally starting to understand. Let's move now, we don't have much time to waste,” the other replied in a firm tone.

“Well... I should have thought about going with Mars... It is true that he is annoying, but he is more entertaining than you.” The other was silent and did not say anything, moving his foot forward, but he was quickly interrupted by the sound of something falling on the wet rocks!!

Joey was on the ground, trying to catch his phone, which had fallen off, making a little noise. He hoped no one would hear him, but luck was not on his side.

He heard the sounds of feet moving quickly and steadily towards him.

He had no choice but to step back and walk away.

As the sounds of feet behind him increased, Joey increased his speed and began running towards where he came from. Joey ran with all his might, realizing that there was someone chasing him.

He did not slow down in his steps, and jumped steadily with every movement of his feet, avoiding the rocks scattered on the ground.

The air inside the cave was stifling, and the smell of dampness and moss filled the place, which increased his tension. His breathing was quickening, and sweat was pouring from his forehead. He could hear the sounds of feet approaching him with every step.

Despite his extreme caution, he was still aware that there was a person, or people, following him. Joey decided to take a left turn, and went up and down old stone stairs in an attempt to get away from them. “These unknown people are so stubborn,” he said to himself.

It's been a while that I've been running away from them, but I can still feel them approaching. At this rate, they're going to catch me sooner or later." He took another turn, leaning his head forward out of nervousness. As his steps stumbled across the ground, Joey glanced back. All he saw were black shadows quickly approaching him.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck! What do you want from me?!" Before Joey could finish his words, he realized he had made a mistake. Suddenly, he felt himself falling into a deep pit.

With air rushing in his face, Joey felt his hair blowing behind him as the wind blew. His face was facing downward like someone in free fall, as he realized that he had fallen from a high height the previous time, and that failure to act would lead to his end. When Joey opened his eyes, his attention was caught by giant plant roots clinging together along the wall from top to bottom. Joey didn't hesitate to grab one of the roots to hold on.

Although he succeeded in catching it, the roots were not attached to the wall strongly enough, and they soon came off the wall easily with Joey's weight as he fell. As it fell, the roots continued to separate gradually all the way from top to bottom.

While the roots acted as a rope to slow the speed of his fall, Joey inserted his left hand into the wall to slow the distance he fell. But in an unexpected moment, the root that Joey was holding on to before he reached Earth was cut off.

When Joey stood on the ground with difficulty, he felt dizzy and pain in his head, affected by the injuries caused by the fall. Then he quickly caught his eye at the large door open in front of him.

The door was large and made of stone like the previous door he passed through, but on the other hand, this door was open!?

"So, another door... I wonder what's behind it. Let's hope the exit is there." [Joey slowly moves towards the door. His movement was heavy due to his fall from a fatal height, but the roots he was holding on to softened the impact.]

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Joey arrived at the giant door, whose ancient decoration and carvings were covered in a layer of moss and mud. He didn't stop to look for long, but went through the door inside.

From the inside, the place seemed strangely spacious and bright, like a huge hall supported by high columns on the edges of the walls. In the middle of the place, there are stairs rising in a circular manner.

“Ha...this place is very strange, different from other places. I don’t know why, but I feel uncomfortable here.” [Joey takes a closer look around, holding his sore right shoulder and his face bearing some scratches.]

Joey noticed that at the top of the stairs there was a not very tall pillar, right in the middle of which was a huge box. When Joey saw this box, he had a look of confusion and worry on his face, remembering the discomfort he felt when he entered it.

“I feel really bad about this box, but...” [Joey walks up the stairs with heavy steps, his breath rising. The light in the room began to fade and he was trapped inside the box, which was now a few steps away from Joey. Extremely nervous, Joey reaches for the box, noticing the rusty chains on the floor.]

Joey puts his hand on the box and tries to open it, but he is unable to because of its heavy iron lid. He had no choice but to push it with both hands. With a serious attempt, he succeeded in opening it.

As the box was opened, the nightmare he had this morning came back to Joey, remembering those purple flames that burned him and woke him up. When he looked inside the box, his face tense and anxious, he did not find any treasure or jewelry, but rather a piece of ornate iron the size of a fist, with a tubular shape with two closed sides, a silvery-white color, and small, perfectly crafted decorations in a bright purple color.

Joey held the piece of iron in his hand, and the strange thing was that it was very heavy given its small size like a fist.

Joey was able to lift the item with difficulty, saying, "What the hell is this thing? It's so heavy... Is it a weightlifting device or something?" He lifted it with both of his scratched hands, trying to put it inside his bag.

After he put the piece of iron inside the bag, he was surprised that the weight of the bag did not change. He expected it to become heavy due to the weight of the piece, but he froze in place, trying to understand what was going on. He lifted the iron stick with his hands again, and found it as heavy as a weightlifting tool. But when he put it inside the bag, it seemed like it had almost no weight, as if the bag was empty.

Joey decided to take it with him to study and analyze it later. He closed his bag and put it on, then moved towards the door he entered through, realizing that this place had no exit. The walls surround it on all sides, and drops of water fall on it from cracks in the ceiling, with giant support columns adding to the awe of the place.

As he approached the door, Joey heard the same voice that had been following him before until he fell into the hole. He moved quickly to hide behind one of the huge pillars. “Damn, it's them again. I thought they weren't going down the hole, but now they're here and about to go in. I wonder, what exactly do they want?”

---

Sluggish footsteps echoed on the wet rocky floor, followed by an echo filling the vast space. Two people walk through a huge door separating two worlds. They stop for a moment, their eyes wandering between the ancient engravings that adorn the walls, as if they were telling stories from ancient times. Then they resumed walking, with determination and caution in their steps. The first is a woman with mysterious features who carries a deep secret, and the second is a man with a confident stature who appears to be the keeper of untold secrets. They both appear to be descendants of other descendants, not human but very similar to them, with bodies similar in composition to humans but with features that hide other worlds behind them.

The man stops, contemplates the place with a look that penetrates the darkness, and says in a voice that carries the dignity of years: “Here is the place that we searched for so long. The Shrine of the Conjoined Seal, the shelter of the fallen angel, in which the Nightmare of Existence was sealed. Here, where the lost knight deposited his last secret to prevent the return of the chaos he had spread between the sky and the stars. Isn't it, Venus? This is the promised place. Now, you can stop complaining and help me find the seal.”

Venus moved with hesitant steps, following him while trying to ignore the anxiety creeping into her heart. “Mercury,” she says in a shaky voice, “there’s something...something that’s been bothering me ever since I set foot in this place. “I feel as if someone is pulling my soul with a sharp hook by the throat.”

Mercury looks at her with eyes that hide a sea of secrets behind them, and answers her in a dry voice: “Perhaps you are tired, as our search here has gone on for too long.” But you have to be patient, as soon as we find the seal, we will leave this place immediately and hand it over to the leader. Just be a little patient.”

Venus turns to him, with a tear shining in her eyes that she is trying to hide: “It is not fatigue that is troubling me, but rather this place...there is something wrong here.”

"what do you mean?" Mercury asks, his tone carrying a hint of concern.

“Uh… the voices, the voices screaming in my head, as if they were calling for help, or perhaps warning us of imminent danger. “I can’t understand it.”

Mercury does not pay attention to her words, but rather steps forward with a firm step and says: “Ignore her and keep searching!”

“Okay…” Venus answers in a low voice, trying to suppress her emotions.

In the shadows, Joey stands hidden behind a pillar, contemplating the iron he carries in his bag, and silently thinks: “It's strange that her words resonate in my heart. I felt the same way when I entered this place. Isn't this strange?

---

Shadows dance with every whisper of the wind, Mercury moves with confident steps, scanning around with eyes searching for the secrets of time. He climbs the cold stone stairs, each step echoing in the emptiness. Upon reaching the top, all he finds is Joey's box left open, its lid revealing traces of the past. Mercury fumbles with the lid, feels the roughness of time on his skin, and whispers: "This hasn't been opened in a long time." He looks at the chains scattered on the ground, contemplates them deeply, notices how rust has eroded them, and says: “These chains have been broken by time, but the thing that was inside the box is the real reason for their corrosion.”

Down below, Joey is breathing hard, feeling suffocated by the tension surrounding him. He moved very cautiously, peeking out from behind a pillar, watching the exit through which he entered. He sees Venus, that mysterious figure, standing in front of the door as an obstacle that cannot be overcome. Joey mumbles anxiously, "Shit, how am I going to get out when she's standing like that?" He tries to think of a way to push her away, but she senses him, looks at him with piercing eyes, and Joey thinks, "There's no way she could have sensed me from this distance."

Venus moves, turns to Mercury and says in a confident voice: “Mercury, I have finally located him.” Mercury responds in amazement: “Really?” He heads towards the chains, grabbing the longest and largest of them. Joey wonders in confusion, "What's he going to do with this?"

Mercury pulls hard on the chain, removing it from the wall with ease, much to Joey's surprise. Mercury wraps the chains around his arm, twirling the end with his other hand, then turns to Joey and calls out in an even voice: "There you are, you who hide. Show yourself now or I'll come for you."

Joey freezes, not knowing how they were able to locate him. Mercury approaches him, threatening him with chains, but Venus interrupts him worriedly: "You're not going to do this, are you?" "I wouldn't joke about something like that," Mercury replies seriously.

Joey, behind the pillar, is deep in thought, wondering if he should get out or think of an escape plan. He gets a headache from thinking too much, but he decides he has no choice but to go out and confront them.

---

From behind the huge pillar, Joey began to appear little by little, like a shadow creeping into existence. Mercury was faintly counting to seven, and when he reached it, Joey spotted him. Mercury was holding an iron chain, spinning it at great speed, cutting through the air, causing a whistle that split the silence.

When their eyes met, Joey felt tension running through his veins, and he began to speak in a broken voice: “Yes, here I am... What do you want from me?”

Joey had not finished his sentence before Mercury shot the end of the iron chain towards his head without warning. The wind blew strongly with a sharp sound that cut through the air, but Joey dodged the blow with a sudden jump to the left, and the chain on the pillar he was hiding behind fell, turning into rubble under the weight of the violent blow, and dust rose, concealing what was around him.

Joey stood stunned, looking at the devastation left by the chain, with fear mixed with admiration at Mercury's power in his heart.

Mercury pulled the chain back to him, stepping forward confidently, then opened his mouth and said: “As expected from an iron chain made of a rare metal...” He paused for a moment, catching his breath, then continued: “But I never expected a human teenager to survive in... [The Unknown Knight]'s Labyrinth.”

Joey interrupted sharply, "Why are you throwing the chain at me? What do you want, man?"

Mercury looked at him with a surprised look and replied, "Wasn't my intention clear? I wanted to hurt you, but I made a mistake. Next time I won't make a mistake."

But Joey interrupted him angrily: "You won't miss me next time? What are you talking about? Are you sick? Why are you following me? I've done nothing but run away from you."

"Yes, you have done nothing for us," Mercury replied in a calm, focused tone, "but we are following a mission, and my job is to accomplish it without hindrance."

Joey interrupted again: "Do you think I'm an obstacle to your mission? I didn't interfere in your affairs other than escaping to this place."

At this moment, Venus who had been silent until now intervened: “We are here for a specific thing. We came to take it with us... and it is the same thing that is in your bag. Will you hand it over to us?”

Joey gripped his bag tightly, thinking to himself: Should he hand it to them or take it with him? He found it first, and he deserves it. But after thinking, he concluded that handing over the item was the best solution.

“Yes, I have the item you want. I will deliver it to you without any problems.” Venus nodded approvingly from afar.

Joey walked towards them while opening his bag, and when he approached Mercury to hand it over, he noticed a look of sternness on his face that concealed a murderous intent. Joey stepped back, feeling danger approaching him. Mercury moved towards him and said, "You must hand me the seal." But Joey remained standing there, watching Mercury's behavior and his anger seemed to grow.

Mercury looked at him and said in a sly tone, "You noticed my intention, didn't you? You seemed to know that I was going to hurt you." Then he laughed lightly and launched the chain forcefully at him at high speed, but Joey dodged it at the last moment.

Mercury took three quick steps towards Joey and aimed his chain-covered fist at Joey's stomach, but Joey blocked him with his briefcase, which he used as a shield. The hit was so strong that the bag exploded into pieces, flinging Joey far into the sky, and then he fell to the ground.

Mercury looked at the remains of the bag, where he found Joey's notebook with two pens next to it, and Gary's notebook. He was surprised that the seal was not among them.

And here Joey is gathering his strength, trying to get up with a body wracked by exhaustion and pain. Mercury had no intention of giving him a chance to recover; The strong crushes the weak in the laws of life that he has learned. With a quick movement, he shot the chain at Joey again, but this time, Joey was faster, getting up and skillfully dodging the blow, moving lightly as he dodged the chain that followed him like a shadow, crushing whatever it touched.

With a series of graceful movements, Joey dodged successive blows, as if dancing with danger, defying the laws of gravity and death. With every calculated deviation, the support pillars collapse one after another, under the weight of Mercury's violent blows.

---

Joey runs on the wet rocky floor, with water covering most of the ground. The dim light reflects on the sparkling pools, adding an air of mystery. But he notices something strange - the water level suddenly increases inside the room, as if the sea is breathing beneath them.

Joey narrowly dodges another blow aimed at him, and after pausing to catch his breath, he looks up at the ceiling. He sees the cracks widening, and drops of water falling as if they were a bad omen. The air smells of musty and damp, and Joey knows the room will soon be flooded. He must act quickly before the situation turns into a disaster.

Venus also looks at the ceiling and notices the water leak that is increasing. “This place is going to flood soon,” she whispers to herself anxiously. She feels the cold creeping into her bones, and the musty smell fills her nostrils. He knows that we must come out with the final seal before it is too late.

To be continued in the next chapter