In one of the dilapidated buildings, the same twisting bodies seemed to be embedded in the walls. It reminded Michael of the Pirates of the Caribbean movie, where Davy Jones' crewmates became part of the ship.
Walking out without hesitation, he found another closed door, probably the way out of this place.
Without any other alternatives, he slowly returned to the 'plaza' where the wolf was still waiting quietly for him.
"Forgive my lack of manners, but who are you?"
[An admirer of sorts. I saved you in the mountains. You'd lost your horse and crawled into that cave -- would've frozen to death if not for me.](Bloodied Wolf)
Sure enough, the creature admitted to being the one he dreamed about in the snowstorm. Remembering the demonic whispering that scared his horse into running away and eventually dying at the claws and fangs of the wolves, Michael couldn't bring himself to trust the creature.
There was something wrong about it, as well as this realm he was brought by it in.
"Why would you help me?"
[Oh, it's very simple. You want to stop Lilith, and I want you to succeed. But you'll never do that by following the Horadrim.](Bloodied Wolf)
"And why's that? I heard pretty good things about them."
[Because their path always ends in fire and death. As you can see around you...](Bloodied Wolf)
Watching the creature stand up and slowly head toward the closed gate, Michael hesitated to follow it. Looking around after hearing the words 'fire and death,' he knew that this place wasn't simple, nor was the creature.
His worries wouldn't help him much, as the creature sat like a watchdog near the gate, seemingly grinning at him.
[Seen enough? If so, hurry up and open the door.](Bloodied Wolf)
[ Main Quest update - Shroud of the Horadrim
Objective: Open the Living Gate. ]
Michael almost blurted out the name of the doors but fortunately held it in. He couldn't have known its name without the help of the Sanctuary and wasn't sure if revealing that to the creature in front of him was a good idea.
He walked to the Living Gate and pushed it open without saying anything. Nothing happened for a moment until a couple of seconds later, it began tearing itself, similar to how skin on the human body would.
Blood fell onto the ground at Michael's feet, making him nauseous. The wolf calmly walked through, stepping over the small blood puddle created beneath the gate.
'No matter how I look at it, the scenery is something that you'd find only in the deepest parts of hell...'
Walking behind the creature, Michael took in his surroundings and saw the end of the cliff, where another portal stood.
Being prompted by the Sanctuary to talk with the Bloodied Wolf again, he took a deep breath and almost choked on smoke and the metallic smell of blood and decay.
"*Cough* *Cough* You don't seem to like the Horadrim very much. Any particular reason for telling me all this?"
[To warn you. A day will come when the Horadrim stumble. Don't be there when they do.](Bloodied Wolf)
"How... ominous. How do I get out of this place?"
[The portal will lead you to that little girl you're looking for.](Bloodied Wolf)
"I see. Speaking of, what is this place?"
[Tristram.](Bloodied Wolf)
"WHAT!?"
He remembered the name of that city, which fell into ruins very well. In ancient times, Jered Cain and his fellow Horadrim slew Diablo during the Dark Exile and sealed him within one of the three soulstones. Jered then hid the soulstone in the Horadric monastery. Over the course of many generations, the Horadrim Order began to dissipate, with the three Prime Evils bound within the soulstones. As their numbers dwindled, the monastery fell into ruin. Over time, villages were established in the surrounding area, the residents unaware of the terror that lurked in the labyrinth beneath. Tristram was a case in point.
As time passed and with some external influence, Diablo managed to get out, and the end result was almost catastrophic, even for the High Heavens. Tristram fell into ruins almost immediately after, becoming associated with the undead, demons, and the tale of King Leoric, who was driven mad.
[The Horadrim of old imprisoned Diablo, the Lord of Terror, beneath the earth, and they build this town nearby. *Chuckle* You can see around you how that turned out.](Bloodied Wolf)
"This..."
To say he was speechless was an understatement. Even if it was only lore back on Earth, it was a place of history in the Sanctuary.
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Furthermore, this wolf's knowledge was too much to only consider it an 'admirer.' Michael wasn't stupid, nor did he have a hero complex.
If he could live his life in this place without being dragged into any mess, he would gladly do so, even if he had to clear Dungeons every now and then. But this creature mentioned wanting him to stop Lilith. Judging from the certainty when he mentioned that, he didn't think much of Inarius's ability to complete the mission instead.
As for Michael being more capable than that mass of angelic might, once more, he didn't have a hero complex. If Inarius couldn't do it, he wouldn't be able either.
Furthermore, he needed more intel from this creature. Its origins were sketchy at best...
"Why do you want to stop Lilith?"
[I like the world the way it was -- without Lilith. Her little game of rebellion will only lead to chaos. You've already seen visions of the damage she can do.](Bloodied Wolf)
'The hell!? Rebellion? As in her leaving with Inarius to create the Sanctuary. She did save him from his imprisonment there. But with the way this wolf talks, it sounds like he's a Burning Hell minion. Also, how the fuck does he know about my visions?'
[Yes. I know you were fed her blood. Do you feel it changing you? Perhaps not yet, but as long as Lilith walks in your world, it is only a matter of time.](Bloodied Wolf)
"What do you..."
Seeing the wolf disappear as randomly as he appeared, Michael was flummoxed.
[ Main Quest update - Shroud of the Horadrim
Objective: Use the Fiery Portal to return to the Darkened Holt. ]
Annoyed, he scratched his helm and decisively stepped into the portal. After hearing about Tristram, he now had an extra goal in mind.
Finding out the history of this world, which he missed because of not playing the second and the third game.
Stepping out of the portal, he returned to a very familiar place and watched as his way here dimmed and disappeared.
"Back in the Horadrim's illusion, huh? Well... let's find Neyrelle."
It didn't take him long to spot the figure of a girl curiously inspecting her surroundings.
"Neyrelle!"
[There you are! I've been waiting for you.](Neyrelle)
"Not too long, I hope."
[No. I came here this morning. I think I've lost my way. The same thing happened to my mother and me earlier on. The trail to the vault ends here, so it should be somewhere around in these woods.](Neyrelle)
"Let's find it then. Stick around me."
[ Main Quest update - Shroud of the Horadrim
Objective: Find the way to the Horadric Vault. ]
Seeing the Sanctuary approve of her plans, Michael took the lead by sending his minions forward to scout, as they followed behind.
Judging by how quiet Neyrelle was, she was very affected by her mother's death. And rightly so... As awkward as the silence was, he didn't know what topics to use to break the ice, so he kept quiet as well.
Not too later, they both reach a surprising place. The clearing where the Necromancer saw the three-faced statue.
[Is someone toying with us? This place is a maze. And now this. What's that supposed to be?](Neyrelle)
"It's an illusion cast by the Horadrim. Hmm? Stay back! Elite Phantoms."
Two Elite monsters appeared out of nowhere. Both were archers, so it took Michael a while to get them down, even after Neyrelle stepped in to help.
Surprisingly, there was no loot or experience gained.
"Illusions... Let's see what's with the statue. There's something wrong about it."
It wasn't a hut feeling or anything like that. It was only that the Sanctuary updated the Quest, asking him to do it, and the statue itself was glowing in his eyes.
The darkness around them disappeared after moving in front of the statue, and they returned to the clearing.
"This..."
[ Main Quest complete - Shroud of the Horadrim
Reward 1: 11,220 experience points
Reward 2: 1,850 gold coins. ]
[ Main Quest issued - Fledgling Scholar
Objective: Travel to the Horadric Vault. ]
As Michael leveled up in the process, Neyrelle ignored him and inspected the previous path, leading to the illusion they were in.
Now, it looked more... normal.
[Oh, I see. The path is different now. The statue was the source of the illusion we were in. Let's go! We must be close.](Neyrelle)
Smiling, Michael followed behind the excited girl, happy to see her show some positive emotions again.
Some minutes and Demonic Bats later, they reached a tall building sculpted from the mountain itself.
[Finally! The Horadric Vault!](Neyrelle)
"Looks like it. Though, it's in a pretty shoddy state. Stay behind me and let my minions take point."
[Got it!](Neyrelle)
Once inside, if not for the lack of a film covering the entrance, Michael would've thought he entered a Dungeon. The building was old indeed, but even more so, it was crumbling from within.
There were spiderwebs and broken pillars everywhere.
"This is the place?"
[Not what I expected... but let's not give up hope. All we need is one book, one spell to help us cross the Black Lake and stop Lilith.](Neyrelle)
"I saw a door over there through my minion's senses. Let's go."
And indeed, there was a door, but the magic symbols on it didn't grant them access further in.
[Sealed shut...](Neyrelle)
"We'll find a way. Why were you and your mother looking for this place?"
[You assume we're treasure hunters, don't you?](Neyrelle)
Hearing the deprecating tone she was using, Michael felt bad for asking.
With how vulnerable and hurt she was at this point, it was unlikely that he would be capable of holding a proper conversation with her without digging deeper into her wounds.
"I am not assuming anything, Neyrelle. I just wanted some answers."
[Look.... ever since I can remember, my mother took me around looking for Horadric artifacts. It was an obsession. And when she learned of this vault and wanted to find it... I couldn't say no.](Neyrelle)
"Why not?"
[She was sick... Tried to hide it from me, but... I knew she didn't have long left. This sort of thing - the hunt - made her happy. It made me happy, too. You have the answers you wanted now?](Neyrelle)
"I'm sorry, Neyrelle..."
[*Sigh* I'm sorry too, Michael. It's not your fault any of this happened. Eh!? What of that passage over there?](Neyrelle)
The passage in question was also a closed door, but it lacked any magic symbols on it. Michael assumed it should be easier to open compared to the main one.
After asking her to stay behind as he searched ahead, he had Quarterback open the doors.
He found beds covered in dust, an old cooking pot lined with rust, and plenty of shelves filled to the brim with books. Remembering his conversation with the wolf about Tristram, Michael was incredibly tempted to learn the needed languages.
After all, learning of the hidden history that few in the Sanctuary knew sounded appealing in his mind. Then again, remembering how the Monk, who died after summoning Lilith to this world, died...
Among the books, he found a special one that didn't have a speck of dust on it, making Michael curious. Its name was identified as Lesser Verses and Incantations, making it obviously a Quest Item.
Returning to Neyrelle, Michael showed her the new acquisition.
[This is... I think it's written in the Horadric code. And here! The same symbol on the door...](Neyrelle)
"Is it of any help?"
[Let me try. You might want to take a step back.](Neyrelle)
After uttering some words Michael couldn't understand, the magic lock on the door vanished, and the doors opened.
"Impressive, Neyrelle!"
[Thank you... Let's keep on. I wish my mother was here to see this...](Neyrelle)
He patted her on the shoulder for comfort as his minions entered to explore the new room.
To nobody's surprise, the new room had even more books and manuscripts, as well as over ten desks on which the 'researchers' stood in the past. Curiously looking over some of them, Michael was shocked to see advanced mathematical formulae as well as celestial bodies being depicted through drawings, such as the sun, the moon, and the constellations.
Neyrelle was even able to find a journal mentioning a very interesting name.
The journal page read:
[Donan brought a book on his visit. The writing is ancient! A scroll from Vizjerei. Lorath will not be pleased. But if I am to fight by his side one day, I need to study everything. Lorath is wise, but he's too cautious. I'll prove myself to him yet.](?)