Before Elle exits the lecture hall, she sneaks a peek at her wrist. The glowing number now reads 45.2, the highest it’s ever been. It shocks her frozen, and she stands there wracking her brain for any potential reason for the increase. Eventually, Serena pokes her head through the door in concern, so Elle puts her questions aside for now.

Besides the thick layer of dust covering the room, this recently discovered office looks like many of her professor’s offices back in her university days. However, the titles on the books around her resemble nothing she’s seen on Earth. They speak of ley lines and arcane mysteries, begging her to read them. However, they have a mission, so she forces the temptation to the back of her mind.

Elle starts to read the papers on the desk, her mind magically translating them. They contain stories of people spontaneously turning into elemental creatures when exposed to areas of high energy. As she flips through the pages, the rift diver figures out that these are research notes on the fluctuations of elemental mana. They go into a disturbing amount of detail on the possible ways to induce flashes of high energy to purposefully transform them.

Although she can’t understand the papers, Serena sees the growing horror on Elle’s face and squeezes her shoulder. The rift-diver touches her hand gently before returning back to the papers.

At the bottom of the pile, a paper describes lockdown and evacuation strategies if a breakdown occurs in Lab Obelian. The lack of detail frustrates her, but she can deduce that the lab worked with sensitive material which required extreme defence measures. If she had to guess, that’s probably where one would require a higher access pass like an administrative staff. Elle relays this information at a higher-level, dancing around the topic of the staff.

Serena frowns. “Does this really change anything though? Thermal’s arrow still points to the tree. There’s no point to looking for this place.”

Thermal hesitates. During their entire time in this abandoned college, his expression has stayed distant and unfocused. “...We do have a time limit on my spell, so I understand your concerns. However, I must admit my hesitation about heading into a situation with no further information.”

The half-nymph runs a hand through her short hair. “But what information would we be getting here? Elle’s the only one who can read any of these things, and there’s way too much for her to find anything on her own. If you’re worried about a fight, we can scout the tree first.”

Folding his arms, the wizard looks like he’s struggling to piece together an argument. “Can we be stealthy as a group? But I also do not think you will be safe by yourself…”

Elle awkwardly coughs, “Maybe we could go in pairs? Sanu and I can stay here while you and Serena can go check out the tree?”

“Not even if hell burst from the sewers,” Serena interjects immediately, leaving Elle blinking at the strange figure of speech. “There could be any number of monsters out there. Two people would get overrun easily, even if one of them is me.”

Elle can’t disagree with that. However, she does shove all the papers, notebook, and some random books into her inventory. For a second, she pauses as she thinks about how the Temple of Eurimas stole those sacred scrolls and refused to return them. Should she be taking these things?

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

The rest of the group watches her, staying quiet as she stops in her tracks. Elle takes a deep breath. She’ll give the materials back to Fort Kernstone after she reads them. It doesn’t completely get rid of her guilt, but she shoulders through it anyway.

When they creep back out onto the main campus streets, they can’t hear any monsters rustling nearby. Elle thinks she might hear growls in the distance, but it might be her own imagination clawing at the doors of her mind. They continue walking quietly, ignoring the stately buildings which made up the rest of the campus. She should hear the chatter of students walking between classes. It’s just silence.

She guides them along a more meandering path, avoiding the main road directly to the tree to be stealthy. Elle has to remind herself not to clench her javelin so tightly. Sanu and Thermal look increasingly nervous, and she can hear the healer mutter that he’s not being paid enough for this. As per usual, Serena moves confidently, and Elle bets she’s the likeliest to finish this mission alive.

A few blocks away form the tree, they sneak up to the fifth floor of an abandoned research facility. Elle stares through a dusty window at the tree which is white from a thick blanket of spider webs. Spilled from ruptures along the trunk, blue crystal coats the tree and provides the light for this cavern. White cocoons hang from the tree’s branches, uncomfortably human-sized. She fights the urge to gag.

At the base of the tree, seven giant spiders rest on its roots. They don’t seem to be moving at the moment. Each one looks to be roughly the size of a car with glowing blue eyes. Elle wonders if they eat the crystalline sap. Unless her team can set a fire or some explosives, those spiders will be the death of them.

Sanu grumbles, “I’m not fighting those things. Got hired for watch duty, not corpse retrieval. Let’s find a way out and report back to the guild.”

“Fine by me,” Serena agrees. “But it’s going to be tough looking for an exit with all these monsters about.”

Elle tugs at her collar, recalling their journey across the cavern. “I also don’t see any of those pipes that Tiami mentioned. We can’t even let the rest of the hunters know where we are. All we can do is try to find a way to escape.”

Thermal --who has been quiet since they found this campus-- lets out a sigh. “Very well, then we should scout the perimeter after a short rest. My sigil points towards that cocoon on the far left, so I assume our mission has been accomplished.”

All in agreement, they sit down for an hour-long break, waiting for their aura to slowly regenerate. Elle asks, “Sanu, how long have you been in Vinayre?”

“Since my wife died.”

There’s an awkward pause where Elle wonders if he’s looking for an invitation to vent about it.

Then Serena asks, “So there’s got to be another entrance if Bleck’s group ended up here, right? Seems kinda annoying to set off that trap every time.”

Elle purses her lips. “Maybe there’s another secret passageway. It could be along the walls or even inside one of these buildings. Either way, I should be able to sense it if we get close enough.”

Sanu snorts, “Then we better find it before all the monsters realise we’re here. This is the most monsters that I’ve seen this close to the Ice Shield, and I don’t plan on dying here.”

Thermal nods. “We should take it slow in order to reduce the risks.”

With a sinking heart, Elle understands they might be stuck in this chilly, dark cavern for longer than expected.