Chapter 58: The Core

“You know,” Diana said casually, “for someone who’s never done that before, you caught on pretty quickly.”

“Can we please not talk about it?” Grace begged.

“Why not? It was a legitimate healing technique, right?”

“I hate you.”

“Well, you did save me back there. That poison would have been… unpleasant.”

Grace huffed, looking away.

“You’re welcome.”

“And for what it’s worth,” Diana continued, “you’re not a bad kisser. With some practice—”

“We are NOT practicing that!”

Diana laughed.

The vegetation grew thicker as they progressed. The air became heavy and humid, filled with the scent of damp earth and decaying plants. Slime dripped from the ceiling in places, forming small, viscous puddles on the rocky floor.

“We must be getting close,” Diana whispered.

“Yeah, seems like it.” Grace shivered, feeling that same cold sensation she usually felt when demons were around.

The cavern slowly became narrower. As they moved and that cold sensation got worse, Grace brought out her rapier, which in turn made Diana bring out her sword. Grace quickly saw, however, that she wouldn’t need it.

“Whoa…” Grace’s eyes widened as she lowered her rapier.

The tunnel opened into an enormous chamber, so vast that the light from their weapons couldn’t reach the far walls. The ceiling soared overhead, dripping with thick, ropy vines that pulsed with an eerie green glow.

But what dominated the chamber—what made Grace’s breath catch in her throat—was the object at its center.

A massive spherical structure filled the middle of the chamber, easily twenty feet across. It looked like a giant knot of roots and vines all twisted together, but at its core, visible through gaps in the tangled vegetation, pulsed a dark purple-blue light. The light throbbed with a rhythm like a heartbeat, sending waves of cold through the chamber with each pulse.

“The Root,” Diana breathed. “It’s not a root at all. It’s a…”

“Corruption core,” Grace finished. “The biggest one I’ve ever seen.”

As Grace stared at the massive core, something flickered in her peripheral vision. She turned her head slightly and gasped.

Standing near the core was a figure bathed in golden light—a tall woman with flowing white hair and golden eyes. Eternia.

She wasn’t looking at Grace but at the core itself, her expression thoughtful. She reached toward it, then pulled her hand back, shaking her head slightly.

“Diana, do you see that?” Grace whispered.

“See what?” Diana asked, scanning the chamber.

“There’s…” Grace blinked, and Eternia was gone, as if she’d never been there at all. “Never mind.”

[Was that a vision? Or is Eternia actually here, somehow?]

Diana approached the core cautiously, her sword held at the ready.

“This thing is ancient. Look at how the roots have grown into the rock itself.”

Grace followed, fighting the urge to turn and flee from the bone-deep chill emanating from the core. It was like standing in a blizzard without clothes.

“This is why the plant-zombies exist,” Grace said, circling the structure. “This core is corrupting everything around it, turning plants and people into those monsters.”

“And Ivy tried to purify it,” Diana added, pointing to what looked like burn marks on several of the vines. “Didn’t go well for her.”

Grace examined the marks. They looked like handprints, as if someone had grabbed the vines and channeled energy through them until they burned.

“She must have been overwhelmed by the corruption,” Grace said. “That’s why she sealed herself in the tree back at the village—to contain whatever this thing did to her.”

Diana nodded.

“So what now? We can’t exactly carry this thing back to the surface.”

Grace bit her lip, thinking.

“Maybe we don’t have to.”

“What do you mean?”

“I purified Elias. Maybe I can purify this too.” Grace held up her hands, which had begun to glow faintly with golden light.

Diana’s eyes widened. “Are you insane? This thing corrupted an Earth-Tender—a specialist in purification. What makes you think you can handle it?”

“I don’t know if I can,” Grace admitted. “But I have to try. If we leave it here, it’ll just keep spreading.”

“And if it corrupts you too? What then?”

“Then you’ll have to drag me back to Mara,” Grace said with a confidence she didn’t feel. “But I don’t think that will happen.”

[At least, I hope not.]

Diana opened her mouth to argue further, then closed it with a sigh.

“Fine. But I’m pulling you away at the first sign of trouble.”

Grace nodded and approached the core. The cold intensified with each step, making her teeth chatter and her wings tremble. When she was within arm’s reach, she paused, steeling herself.

“Here goes nothing,” she muttered.

Grace placed both hands against the tangled vines covering the core. Immediately, a jolt of energy shot up her arms, making her gasp. It was like touching ice and fire simultaneously, a sensation so intense she nearly pulled away.

[Focus, Grace. You can do this.]

She closed her eyes and concentrated, channeling her purification energy into the core. Golden light spread from her palms, seeping into the vines and illuminating them from within. The purple-blue glow at the center pulsed faster, as if in response.

A notification appeared in her vision:

「Aura Cleanse Activated」

「Corruption Core Purification: 1/100」

[One percent? That’s it?]

Grace pushed harder, pouring more energy into the core. The golden light spread further, reaching deeper into the tangled mass. The chamber grew warmer as her energy fought against the core’s corruption.

「Corruption Core Purification: 2/100」

“It’s working!” Grace called to Diana. “Slowly, but it’s working!”

Diana remained vigilant, her sword at the ready as she scanned the chamber.

“Don’t get cocky. We’re in the heart of enemy territory here.”

Grace nodded and redoubled her efforts. Sweat beaded on her forehead despite the chill. The purification was draining her faster than she’d expected, like trying to fill an ocean with a teacup.

「Corruption Core Purification: 3/100」

The vines beneath her hands began to change, their sickly green color fading to a more natural brown. The pulse of the core slowed slightly, its rhythm becoming less erratic.

“I think it’s stabilizing,” Grace said, excitement creeping into her voice. “If I keep this up—”

A sharp crack echoed through the chamber, cutting her off. Diana whirled toward the sound, sword raised.

“We’ve got company,” she warned.

Grace didn’t dare take her hands off the core. “What is it?”

“Plant-zombies. A lot of them.” Diana’s voice was tight. “They’re coming from the tunnel we used.”

Grace risked a glance over her shoulder. In the dim light, she could make out shapes moving at the chamber entrance—dozens of them, crawling along the walls and floor like massive insects.

“I can’t stop now,” Grace said, turning back to the core. “Not when it’s finally working.”

「Corruption Core Purification: 4/100」

Diana moved to position herself between Grace and the approaching creatures.

“How much longer?”

“At this rate?” Grace did a quick calculation. “I dunno. Ten minutes? Maybe more?”

“… Shit.”

The first of the plant-zombies entered the chamber fully, its vine-limbs dragging it forward with unnatural speed. More followed behind it, a wave of twisted vegetation given horrible life.

Grace’s hands trembled with the effort of maintaining the purification. She couldn’t fight and purify at the same time, and stopping now would mean all her progress was wasted.

“Diana…”

“I know.” Diana rolled her shoulders and adjusted her grip on her sword. The golden blade gleamed in the dim light as she took up a fighting stance. “Keep working on that thing. I’ll handle our friends.”

“Be careful!”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll be fine.”

The lead plant-zombie lunged forward, and Diana met it with a devastating downward slash that bisected it neatly. Before the pieces hit the ground, she was already moving to meet the next attacker, her blade a blur of golden light.

Grace turned back to the core, focusing all her attention on the purification. The corruption fought against her, pushing back against her energy with a force that made her arms ache.

「Corruption Core Purification: 5/100」

Behind her, Diana sliced through another plant-zombie with a single clean cut. The creature fell apart, collapsing into a pile of twitching vegetation.

“Honestly, it was about time these things showed up,” Diana said, cutting down another one. “I was starting to think we came all this way for nothing.”

Grace kept her hands pressed firmly against the core.

“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”

“Me? Enjoy fighting corrupted plant monsters in a damp cave?” Diana kicked one creature into two others, knocking them down like bowling pins. “Maybe a little.”

「Corruption Core Purification: 6/100」

The plant-zombies kept coming, crawling through the tunnel entrance with unnatural, jerky movements. Diana met them head-on, her golden sword flashing. Green ichor splattered across the stone floor with each swing.

“Six!” Diana called out after dispatching another creature. “No, wait, seven!”

“Are you counting?” Grace asked without looking back.

“Keeping score helps me focus,” Diana replied, stabbing a plant-zombie through its core. “Eight!”

A larger creature lunged at Diana from the side. She sidestepped it easily, bringing her sword down through its bulbous head. “Nine! This one counts as two though, it was big.”

“That’s not how counting works!”

“My fight, my rules.”

「Corruption Core Purification: 7/100」

Grace pushed harder, feeling the corruption resist her efforts. At this rate, she’d be here for hours. Meanwhile, more plant-zombies were flooding into the chamber.

Diana whirled through them like a deadly dancer, each movement precise and efficient. Not a single wasted motion. For now, she was handling them without breaking a sweat, but eventually, the numbers would start to matter.

“Eleven! Twelve!” Diana called out, then glanced over her shoulder at Grace. “You planning on finishing anytime soon?”

“Working on it.”

Diana nodded, turning back to face the increasing horde with a confident grin.

“Alright, just saying.”

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