Chapter 235: The Riddle – the Final Part.

“Correct,” the ancient voice announced with solemn finality.

Hearing this, a deep sigh of relief escaped from Thoren’s lips. He had gambled everything on that answer, and he was not entirely sure he was right.

But now, his desperate gamble had paid off in full.

Using his left arm, he wiped off the beads of sweat from his forehead and took a deep, calming breath.

’Let us just hope the last riddle will not be the end of me,’ he muttered under his breath with genuine concern.

Now, he was no longer feeling haughty or overconfident. He had thought nothing of the riddles at the beginning, but now he understood the danger.

He realized how naive and ignorant he had truly been to underestimate this trial.

“Human, you have proven yourself once again,” the ancient voice continued. “Now, prepare yourself for the final riddle.”

Thoren took a deep breath, and his expression turned grim and serious. He knew this would be the hardest of all the riddles, and that knowledge frightened him deeply.

“Two mothers and two daughters went out to eat together. Everyone ate one meal, yet only three meals were eaten in total. How is that possible?” the ancient voice challenged him.

“Two mothers and two daughters but only three meals?” Thoren creased his brow, and he began to think deeply about the puzzle.

Now that only the last riddle remained, he did not let his thoughts wander around aimlessly.

’Anyone can be a mother, and anyone can be a daughter,’ he thought carefully.

’If I keep thinking about the three meals, I will be led around by the nose and confuse myself.’

Thus, to solve the riddle as quickly as possible, he focused his entire attention on the two mothers and the two daughters.

’For there to be two mothers, then their roles must be overlapping with each other,’ he followed that train of logical thought.

’Let us assume there was a grandmother, then a mother, then a daughter,’ he thought, but his reasoning trailed off for a moment.

’Who will be the last person?’ he creased his brow in confusion.

’No, if I add the last person, that will be four people, but only three meals were eaten. That means there are only three people in total.’

’Hmm… wait,’ he widened his eyes with sudden realization.

’A grandmother is also a mother. That is absolutely right,’ he nodded, and his eyes shone as if he had found light at the end of a dark tunnel.

’Then, the mother is also a daughter to the grandmother and also a mother to her own daughter.’

“Hahaha, I see,” he laughed, and a pleased expression appeared on his face.

He never thought the last riddle would be solved so easily once he found the right perspective. A confident smirk appeared on his face as he raised his head, staring directly at the ancient door.

“The answer is that there are only three people,” he announced with absolute confidence. “The grandmother, the mother, and the daughter. The grandmother is also a mother. Adding the grandmother to the mother makes two mothers in total.”

“The daughter of the grandmother, who was also the mother of the youngest daughter, makes two daughters as well.”

When Thoren completed his detailed explanation, the cavern fell silent for a long moment.

The silence was absolutely deafening.

The silence crept up Thoren’s skin, sending a cold chill down his spine.

’Did I make a mistake?’ he could not help but doubt himself for a brief second.

’No, this is the only logical answer,’ he shook his head, refusing to believe he was wrong.

“Congratulations,” the ancient voice boomed through the cavern. “You have passed the three riddles, and you are allowed to pass through the door.”

Hearing this, Thoren could not help but breathe a massive sigh of relief. The hourglass on the door vanished immediately, and the strange markings returned to their dormant, inactive position.

Hmm?

Instantly, Thoren realized his hand was no longer stuck to the door any longer. Retracting his hand, a bright smile crept up his relieved face.

Suddenly, a deep rumbling echoed throughout the entire cavern. The ground trembled violently, and the walls shook with tremendous force.

Debris and small rocks fell from the ceiling above him.

“This…” Thoren was stunned by the sudden earthquake.

He did not expect the ancient door to cause such a huge vibration simply by opening.

His heart pounded heavily against his chest, filled with anticipation and nervous excitement.

’Now, I can finally leave this forsaken place,’ he thought, and the corner of his lips curled upward into a hopeful smile.

Slowly, the ancient door began to move. Each movement shook the cavern down to its very foundations.

Finally, the ancient door stopped moving, creating a small space that only a single person could pass through at a time.

Thoren stretched his neck to look and see what was on the other side of the door, but he found nothing visible.

Everything on the other side was covered in bright, glowing light and thick, swirling mist that moved and danced back and forth like living creatures.

For a moment, Thoren did not move forward. He was waiting for the ancient voice to speak again, but it never came.

Shaking his head, he took a deep breath and walked forward with steady determination.

Arriving at the entrance, he looked back at the cavern for one last time as he stepped into the light and swirling mist.

The moment he stepped into the swirling mist, his figure vanished completely from sight.

Slowly, the ancient door returned to its previous position and closed shut with a heavy thud. But then, something eerily strange happened.

All the corpses of the Purple Arachnes began to dissolve into the ground beneath them. The massive corpse of the broodmother sank slowly into the ground as if it was being devoured by the very earth itself.

In less than thirty seconds, all the Purple Arachnes corpses had vanished completely, and the cavern returned to a deep, terrifying darkness.

Burped.

From the deep, impenetrable darkness, a deep and satisfying burp echoed through the empty cavern.

****

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