Chapter 55: Into The Darkness

They moved quietly through the forest, feet crunching over leaves and snapping twigs, the trees standing taller the deeper they went.

Noah followed just behind Leo, his eyes scanning their surroundings. Arlo walked beside him, hands in his pockets, whistling softly.

It didn’t take long before they reached a wide clearing. There, in the open, a group of people waited.

They were rough-looking men and women, most of them bearing scars, patchy armor, and cloaks pulled low over their eyes.

A few had swords, while others carried crossbows or cudgels.

They were gang members. Smugglers. Criminals. All gathered under the leadership of a man with a jagged scar across his lips, one remaining good eye, and a gold tooth that caught the light of the sun.

Leo stepped forward and spoke to him. Words were exchanged, curt and quiet.

Then, Leo pulled a pouch from his coat and handed it over. The scar-lipped man weighed the pouch in his hand, nodded, and called out something to a man in the back, who was tall and wiry, with a grim face.

“That’s our guide.” Leo said, motioning for them to follow.

The man approached and tossed each of them a worn hooded cloak. “Put it on. You walk through these woods dressed as you are, and someone will question it. Don’t worry, the equipment you need will be waiting for you there.”

Noah caught the cloak and swung it over his shoulders. Beside him, Arlo made a face as if the cloak offended him.

“Smells like wet dog,” Arlo muttered.

“Be thankful it isn’t something worse,” Noah replied, adjusting the hood.

With that, they followed their guide deeper into the woods.

After more than fifteen minutes of walking, the trees finally thinned.

And there it was.

The monolith.

It stood above them like a forgotten monument, a pillar of dark stone veined with faintly glowing lines.

It was thick, uncarved and featureless except for the wide crack at its base, a gaping mouth exhaling a slow mist of darkness that curled along the ground.

The monolith didn’t stand alone.

Around it were soldiers in steel armor, halberds in their hands. The moment they saw the group, they stepped forward, but the guide raised a hand.

Another pouch exchanged hands. Heavier, this time.

The lead guard counted the coins, then stepped aside.

“Move along. You have five hours.”

And so, the hooded group entered the monolith one after the other, swallowed by its dark breath.

Noah stepped in last. The world outside faded behind him.

They had officially crossed the line.

[][][][][]

The group stepped through the darkness of the opening and into the hallway, then froze.

The walls around them glowed faintly with soft green and blue hues, veins of bioluminescent lines pulsing slowly through the dark stone like the heartbeat of a sleeping beast.

Noah tilted his head back, taking in the sheer scale of the corridor.

The air was cool, almost damp, and the silence inside the monolith felt ancient, like it had been waiting for them for centuries.

Then, they noticed what lined the hallway.

Weapons. Racks upon racks of weapons.

Swords, spears, bows, shields, axes, daggers, every weapon type they could imagine, neatly arranged and glinting under the glow of the walls.

The steel shimmered faintly, as if touched by magic. Some had jewels embedded in their hilts, others had runes etched across the blades.

“Is this… normal?” Galahad asked, stepping forward with caution, his red hair catching the blue light.

He reached for a sword, hesitating just before his fingers brushed the hilt. “Are monoliths usually this generous?”

Leo stepped past him, more confident. “No. But that’s what I paid extra for. Those gangsters left this armory here just for us.”

He walked down the aisle, running a gloved hand over a long, curved blade. “A little insurance. If we’re risking our lives, we might as well do it with good gear.”

Galahad gave him a skeptical look. “You really trust a bunch of criminals to leave behind enchanted weapons?”

“I paid enough,” Leo said, voice sharp. “They wouldn’t dare.”

Noah trailed after them, his eyes scanning the collection.

It was unlike anything he’d seen before. These weren’t just weapons. They were relics of war, used and worn but carefully maintained. Some of them buzzed faintly with lingering energy.

He stopped in front of a black sword, the blade simple in design, but something about it drew him in.

Its edge was curved like a dragon’s tooth, and the handle was wrapped in dark leather. He picked it up, feeling the weight. It was perfectly balanced.

“I’ll take this one,” Noah murmured.

Beside him, Arlo was already looking through the section with bows.

He finally selected one carved from dark wood, its limbs reinforced with metal bands etched in spiral designs.

A small quiver of arrows lay beside it, and he slung them over his shoulder.

“Old friend.” Arlo said, patting the bow like it was a pet. “Haven’t used one of these in a while.”

Bronn and Cal, Leo’s cronies, gravitated toward the shields.

One was rectangular, etched with a faint magical sigil, while the other was round and polished to a mirror sheen. Both looked like they could take a beating.

“Taking the safe route, huh?” Arlo quipped, watching them.

“Not everyone wants to die flashy,” Bronn muttered.

Leo and Galahad each claimed swords, different in style, but all deadly in appearance.

Leo’s was long and silver, with a jagged edge. Galahad’s was a thick broadsword, heavy and gleaming.

For a few minutes, they all moved in silence, checking the armory, testing weapons, and strapping gear in place.

Then Leo turned, sword sheathed, his voice echoing faintly down the glowing corridor.

“Alright. We’ve got what we need. Let’s keep moving.”

But Noah didn’t move just yet. He glanced at the walls again, at the strange light pulsing through them.

He could feel something in the air. The pressure. The weight of being inside a space not meant for mortals.

It felt like…

The monolith was watching.

[][][][][]

In the heart of the forest clearing, the gang waited for their member to return.

A few sat on crates or leaned against trees, weapons holstered, laughing and tossing dice.

Their leader stood apart, smoking from a long wooden pipe carved to resemble a snake curling down the stem.

His dark coat fluttered in the breeze, and his one good eye remained fixed in the direction the students had gone.

The sound of hurried footsteps snapped his attention away.

The guide finally emerged from the underbrush, panting lightly.

“Boss,” he called, breath catching, “I led them to the monolith, like you asked. Got them inside just fine.”

The leader gave a grunt, taking the pipe from his mouth. “Good. The E-rank monolith?”

The guide hesitated.

The leader’s eye narrowed. “Tell me you took them to the E-rank.”

The guide looked away. “I— I took them to the tall one… dark stone, with a flat top and spires along the sides. Glowed a little. That’s the one, right?”

The leader’s hand dropped from his mouth. The pipe fell to the ground.

“You idiot,” he whispered.

The clearing went quiet. Even the gamblers stopped their game, sensing a shift.

“That’s not the E-rank.” The leader’s voice was quiet, flat. “That’s the C-rank monolith.”

The guide blinked. “Wait, what? But… it was the only one out here. I thought—”

“Fuck!” The leader turned slowly, looking into the woods, jaw clenched. “You led a group of fresh mages, first years, into a C-rank monolith?”

The guide’s face paled.

“I… I thought it was the right one. They didn’t even know what to look for. I figured—”

The leader raised a hand, cutting him off. He turned his back, exhaling slowly. “Doesn’t matter now,” he muttered.

“What do we do?” one of the gang members asked, rising from the crate.

The leader shook his head. “We do nothing.”

“But they’re inside—”

“They’re already dead,” the leader said, voice hollow.

“The moment the darkness of the monolith swallowed them, their fates were sealed. There’s no pulling anyone out of a C-rank monolith without authorization or serious firepower.”

He retrieved his pipe, brushing off the dirt, and stuck it back between his lips.

“Those kids are gone,” he said quietly. “All we can do now is forget we ever saw them.”

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