Chapter 250: Problem Solved

“Fuck…!”

CRACK!

“Fuck…!”

CRACK!

“Fuck!”

CRACK!

Jayden hammered at the walls of the pit, each blow cratering its smooth, cylindrical surface. There was no way he could climb something like this, and no way he could teleport out.

Nyx’s presence was too overwhelming, completely short-circuiting his light magic whenever he tried to draw a formula.

“Those goddamn traitors! There was no way Lord Elion would permit this treachery!”

Jayden slammed his fist into the wall again, this time hard enough to send a thin crack snaking upward. If he couldn’t use magic, then he’d keep breaking the surface apart until he could carve out enough footholds to climb.

It was nearly impossible, but it was better than dying here.

***

“D-Damn it…”

After hours of carving footholds into the wall, he finally made it close to the surface, where the faint light spilling through the blasted gates could finally reach him.

A tiny glimpse of hope.

But…

CRACK!

Jayden’s hand slipped, but he caught himself on a dislodged piece of stone, managing to stop his fall before he crashed back to the ground.

He had stripped off all his armor, wearing only his undergarments to make himself lighter for the climb. It helped, but Nyx’s presence made sure it only helped a little.

“Come on…”

Jayden gritted his teeth and forced his hands against the surface, finding nothing to hold onto.

So he made something.

CRACK!

He gripped the smooth wall tightly, the stone giving way beneath his fingers as he carved out his own handhold.

The sheer danger of the situation lent him a burst of strength that bordered on the unnatural.

***

It took days—nearly a full week—before Jayden finally managed to reach the surface of the pit, his entire body malnourished and weak from lack of food. The only thing keeping him alive was the meager magic he could still force through his body.

At night, he pushed himself with every ounce of strength he had left, driving his hands into solid stone through sheer force and wedging them deep enough to keep himself from falling.

And then he slept.

He slept while dangling there, recovering what little strength he could.

After enduring that day after day, he looked less like a holy champion and more like a brute.

The youngest member of the circle, a candidate to become a high inquisitor, was now nothing more than a bloody mess.

“F-Finally!” Jayden gasped as he pulled himself out, laughing maniacally through ragged breaths. “L-Lord Elion… thank you for giving me your strength…”

Panting, Jayden turned to look back at the pit that had imprisoned him, then spat into it one last time before facing forward again.

This time, he headed toward the light spilling through the broken gates of the mining company.

But…

Someone was waiting for him.

An inquisitor.

The very same one who had trapped him there in the first place.

“You’re alive, huh? I wonder…” the inquisitor said with a laugh, his sword already unsheathed. “Why didn’t the aberration kill you? I didn’t even sense a disturbance in my memory.”

The inquisitor tilted his head.

“Did you kill it?”

“W-What are you talking about…?” Jayden barked.

“So that’s a no…”

The inquisitor sighed, then took a step forward, then another, slowly advancing toward Jayden.

“I was going to kill you by erasing your very existence. Guess I’ll just have to do it the old-fashioned way.”

Jayden clicked his tongue, looking around for anything to defend himself with, but even if he did find something. There was no way he could win.

“Let’s talk about this…”

Jayden said, slowly walking backwards, matching the pace of the killer in front of him. He was trying to corner him back to the pit, either to just push him back in or kill him and dispose of him that way.

Both weren’t a good option.

“Talk…? Jayden, my child… we both know you’re just buying time.”

“Listen to yourself, you bastard. You’re talking like some generic villain!”

“I don’t disagree with that. Unfortunately for you, I actually kind of like talking like this…”

After a few more seconds of pointless back-and-forth, Jayden found himself at the edge of the pit again, nearly slipping before the inquisitor in front of him even made a move.

“Would you like to fall on your own? Or would you prefer that I do it for you?”

The inquisitor pointed his blade straight at Jayden’s neck, the tip barely brushing his skin. Jayden knew he was a goner, but even then, he wanted to face death with some fight still left in him.

At least he’d die by the sword instead of starving in a dark pit.

“If you’re going to end it, then do it with your own hands.”

“Gladly.”

The inquisitor pulled back his sword, preparing to swing.

But before he could bring it down and end Jayden’s life once and for all—

A gunshot rang out.

BANG!

A high-powered rifle—something obviously not commercially available anywhere.

CLANG!

The bullet tore through the inquisitor’s sword hand. The blade slipped from his ruined grip as he clutched the mangled stump in agony.

“What the…?!”

The inquisitor turned to see what had attacked him, but the moment he did, he froze.

“F-Fuck.”

Five G-32s, each wielding a high-powered rifle.

They hadn’t even been ordered to come here. Their automated AI had simply stumbled across the incident through sheer luck.

And Jayden knew exactly what to do.

“H-Help, he’s trying to kill me!”

He shouted, and that was all the confirmation the G-32s needed. With both visual and auditory evidence, they swiftly decided to carry out the death penalty.

BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

Five gunshots thundered at once, each round tearing into the inquisitor’s face. The sheer force sent him ragdolling backward, narrowly missing Jayden before tumbling into the pit without even a scream.

“Are you okay, citizen?”

The G-32’s robotic voice rang out, noticeably more outdated than the voices of other models—a tradeoff for its overwhelming combat efficiency.

“Y-Yeah, I’m okay…”

“Please stand still while we administer healing magic and escort you out.”

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