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Okay before I get over myself and do something stupid, I need all the information I can get… need to sort to map the area
In the center of the cavern, rising like some twisted monument, was a massive, pulsing pillar. Its surface gleamed with veins of crimson and dark, inky blue, the colors swirling in patterns that seemed almost alive, writhing and shifting with each heavy pulse of energy.
Even from where I crouched in the shadows, a good distance away, I could feel the raw, untamed power radiating from it, each pulse sending a faint, prickling sensation across my skin. It was like standing near a storm, close enough to feel the crackle of lightning, the charge in the air just before it strikes.
The sheer quantity of energy was staggering. I could barely imagine the strength it would take to control that kind of power, to harness it, and the thought alone made me uneasy.
And that’s when I saw it—the creature coiled around the pillar.
It was impossible to miss, a monstrous behemoth curled protectively around the pulsing stone, its scales glistening in the faint light like polished obsidian. The creature was massive, easily the size of a school bus, its body thick and muscular, wrapped tightly around the pillar in an almost possessive embrace. Thick ridges of bone protruded along its spine, each one ending in a razor-sharp edge that gleamed faintly, a natural armor that spoke to the countless battles it must have survived. Its head was lowered, resting near the base of the pillar, its massive jaws parted slightly to reveal rows of jagged, uneven teeth, each one honed to a deadly point.
My chest tightened, my breath catching as I took in the sight. There was no mistaking it—this was not just a boss type, I’m sure that’s an Overlord class of this species.
The aura around it was unmistakable, an oppressive force that made the air feel thick, and heavy, as if I were wading through water rather than breathing. Even from this distance, I could feel the weight of its presence pressing down on me, a silent reminder of the power it held, of the absolute authority it commanded over everything in this cavern.
No other monsters dared to come close to the Overlord. In the immediate vicinity around the pillar, the ground was bare, as if marked by an invisible boundary that none of the lesser creatures dared to cross.
Hmmm…this could be very helpful
But beyond that line, scattered a few meters away, I could see clusters of other monsters, each one smaller, hunched, and focused intently on the pillar, their faces tilted upward, their eyes half-lidded in a strange, almost trance-like state. They were absorbing the leftover energy radiating from the pillar, drinking it in like starving animals. And these weren’t ordinary creatures either—These were elites, easier to identify since they were so diverse in looks.
The elites shifted restlessly, their eyes occasionally flicking toward the Overlord as if checking for any sign of movement. But the behemoth remained still, its massive body coiled around the pillar like a dragon guarding a hoard, utterly unbothered by the lesser creatures around it.
It was as if the Overlord had sunk into a state of deep, meditative stillness, resting, recharging—waiting.
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It's almost in a trance-like state… I doubt it is meditating then…evolution…
A shiver crawled up my spine. Every instinct in my body screamed to turn back, to put as much distance as possible between me and that thing. But I forced myself to stay focused, scanning the cavern for any sign of the exit El had mentioned.
My gaze shifted to the right, to where El had said the exit would be hidden. I pulled out my spyglass, pressing it to my eye as I scanned the wall, searching for any hint of an opening, any sign of an escape route. I zoomed in, adjusting the focus carefully, my eyes tracing the rough, uneven stone, each crack and crevice in the dim glow. But no matter how hard I looked, there was nothing there—just a stretch of bare rock, with water trickling down from a small fissure near the top, creating a thin, continuous stream that pooled at the base of the wall.
I frowned, adjusting the spyglass again, focusing on the water. This can’t be right. El had been clear about the location, about where the exit would be. But all I could see was a solid wall of stone, and just the water, seeping out in a slow, steady trickle.
“Damn it,” I muttered under my breath, lowering the spyglass. I scanned the area one more time, my mind racing through the possibilities.
Is it a hidden passage? Some kind of illusion? Or did El get it wrong? The last thought was unsettling, a cold twist of doubt settling in my gut. If the exit wasn’t here, if El’s information was wrong, then I was trapped—trapped in a cavern full of monsters, with an Overlord that could tear me apart if I so much as breathed too loudly.
Wait… water.
The thought snapped into place, an uncomfortable certainty settling in the pit of my stomach. I pulled out El’s drawing, squinting at the rough lines in the dim light, focusing on the marks he’d left on the right side of the cavern wall. A thick cross marked the area near the trickling water, the lines dark and jagged, with crisscrossed shading scribbled around it. I’d glossed over it before, assuming it was just another of El’s erratic notes, but now… the pieces started to click together in my mind.
I pulled out the previous maps, laying them side by side, comparing the paths, the symbols, and the scribbled notes. As I scanned them, a realization dawned on me, creeping in with cold finality. I gritted my teeth, a low curse slipping from my lips as I pieced it together.
“Fuck.”
The exit wasn’t a hidden passage or a concealed door. It was water. An underwater exit.
My stomach twisted as the implications sank in. We were deep underground, trapped in a network of caverns buried beneath the weight of a mountain. And if El’s map was accurate—and it was beginning to look like it was—the level I was on sat below sea level.
Which meant that to escape, I’d have to dive into those waters and somehow navigate my way through a submerged passage, potentially stretching far beneath the surface.
A wave of frustration surged through me. I’d been using the mask nonstop, relying on it to filter the air, unaware of the actual oxygen levels down here. For all I knew, the cavern’s air could be dangerously thin, or worse—saturated with toxins. If I was going to dive into those waters, I’d have to be prepared, both mentally and physically. This wasn’t something I could just rush into; one mistake, one miscalculation, and I’d be dead, drowned in the cold, black depths with nothing but darkness for company.
I glanced back at the cavern, watching the swarm of creatures milling around, the elites scattered in their trance-like state near the Overlord’s pulsing pillar.
For a moment, the absurdity of it all hit me. Here I was, standing in the heart of a monster-infested cavern, with no idea how to proceed…
No choice, I reminded myself, exhaling sharply. But if I’m going to survive this, I need a plan.
Slowly, I began to back away, careful to keep my movements silent, my presence cloaked as I retreated back into the shadows of the passage. I’d need time to rest, to think, to prepare for what lay ahead.
And if I was going to face it, I’d need to be ready.
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