Chapter 553: Bits and Pieces [2]

"Don’t move! Philantra!"

There was no time to hesitate.

The moment everything turned dark, I knew that there was no time for me to hesitate as I reached my hand forward, and a pair of sunglasses appeared in my grasp.

I slid them on.

The darkness peeled away instantly. The world shifted into shades of deep blue, outlines sharpening as hidden details surfaced.

After which, I reached for the knife in my pocket as I looked around, my breath colder as my entire body started to shiver.

’Where were you? Where the hell are you...!?’

I scanned the room hastily, hoping to find whatever had been responsible for all of this, but regardless of how much I looked, there didn’t seem to be anything around.

My heart sank.

’I can’t feel anything. What the hell is this thing?!’

Regardless of where I looked, I couldn’t see it all.

And yet...

I could still feel its breath lurking within the room. Watching.

Staring.

’No, I can’t stay here any longer. I’d be playing under its rules.’

I tore my attention away from the room and fixed it on the door.

There was no room for hesitation.

I activated

[Trait Transfer]

, and a dark film crept over my arm, spreading from my wrist to my shoulder rapidly. It clung tightly to my skin, pulsing faintly as strength gathered beneath it.

I tightened my grip around the knife, feeling the subtle shift in weight and balance as the ability settled into place.

Then—

CLANK!

I drove the blade straight into the hinges of the worn-out door.

"What’s going on!?"

"Hey, what’s happening!"

"It’s me! I’m... smashing the door open! Philantra!"

Metal shrieked against metal as I forced it in deeper, twisting hard. The old fittings cracked under the pressure, the metal groaning even harder.

CLANK! CLANK!

I struck again without pause, the reinforced strength in my arm creating deeper and deeper dents into the door.

Then, with a final wrenching smash, the hinges gave out completely.

BANG!

The door tore free and collapsed inward, crashing to the floor.

"Follow me, Philantra!"

I tried the torch again, pressing the switch with more force this time.

Still nothing.

I exhaled slowly and relied on my voice instead, calling out directions as I moved. The others followed the sound without hesitation, their footsteps splashing against the water beneath.

Thankfully, the darkness did not hinder them. They moved smoothly, trusting my commands without question. But I wasn’t surprised. This wasn’t the first time we had encountered a scenario like this during the time that we had tried together.

’Philantra’ was also the code that we used to let each other know that we weren’t impersonating anyone.

And of course...

"We’re close to the stairs. Ready to go up. Be as fast as possible. Siphim!"

Every three codes, there’d be a new one.

This was to prevent the anomaly from copying our words and tricking the team.

Clank—!

I smashed through the door at the base of the stairs and began climbing the twisting steps two at a time. The metal rang beneath my boots as I ascended, one hand trailing along the railing while I listened carefully for the others behind me.

Surprisingly, nothing followed us as we moved.

Even as I looked behind, there didn’t seem to be anything abnormal, but it was such normalness that made my heart feel heavy.

’What is it trying to do? Why is it not acting? Is it possible that it can’t act? No, if that was the case, it wouldn’t try to keep us in the room like that.’

There was little to no information.

Still, since it wasn’t doing anything, I took full advantage of it, pushing the door to the upper floor and rushing out, entering a familiar corridor.

"Everything is clear. Keep following me. Eilzy."

The collective sound of our boots striking the water beneath us echoed down the corridor, each step sending shallow splashes outward. The noise overlapped and bounced off the walls, turning into a steady rhythm that followed us as we passed door after door.

The hallway ahead seemed endless, stretching into dimness no matter how far we advanced. My eyes moved constantly, scanning every doorway, every corner, every single thing that could give away to anything.

But despite this...

Nothing.

The entire place was silent.

Not a single flicker of anything appeared in our view as we continued to move up ahead towards where the trapdoor was located.

’...The Realmwalker is waiting right outside the trapdoor. I can open it at any given moment. I’m not worried about leaving this place, but for some reason, I can’t get rid of the sense of danger that lurks around.’

The sensation was hard to describe.

But it felt as though I was swimming through the darkest part of the ocean, far below where any light could reach.

And somewhere behind me, just out of sight, an open maw lingered in the abyss. Silent. Teeth bared in the dark, waiting for the exact moment I slowed down.

Waiting to devour me at any given second.

I didn’t like this. I really didn’t like this feeling...

"Let’s go. Let’s—"

It came.

What I dreaded came.

"Hueek!"

CLANK!

Abruptly, a shriek echoed from behind me as one of the doors burst open, and Niel’s expression changed drastically, his entire body slamming towards the open door.

’Shit!’

I hastily stopped, extending my hand as I used

[Trait Transfer]

, and a dark wire extended from my hand, latching onto Niel’s body and yanking him back.

"Hukh!"

Thankfully, I reacted just in time and was able to pull him away.

But it wasn’t over.

CLANK! CLANK!

The doors around us burst open one by one.

The crashes overlapped and ricocheted through the darkened hall, heavy metal slamming against walls as the noise scattered in every direction. My expression tightened immediately, every instinct bracing for something to rush out.

But nothing came.

The open doorways revealed only darkness.

A darkness so deep that it felt unnatural.

"Quick! Quick! Quick!"

Dread pooled inside me the instant I caught sight of the darkness beyond those doorframes.

Every hair on my body stood on end, a sharp chill racing along my spine. The air seemed to drop several degrees in an instant, turning thin and frigid as it brushed against my skin.

"Quickly get out!!"

I didn’t even wait for the others to reply or do anything.

There was no time!

There was no time at all!!

I thrust my hand outward.

At once, several dark threads shot from my palm, thin and fluid like strands of living shadow. They whipped through the air and latched onto the others, wrapping tightly around their waists before they could even process what was happening.

There was no time to explain.

The same dark coating spread over my legs, sealing around muscle and bone. Power surged through me, compressing and then releasing in a violent burst.

"Huek!"

"W-what?!"

"Hieeek!"

I moved.

The corridor blurred as my speed multiplied several times over, dragging them with me as the threads pulled tight and we tore forward through the darkness. The distance between where we were and the trapdoor wasn’t very far. I knew that I’d be able to cover the distance in just a few minutes.

But—

BANG!

"Huek!"

It became painfully clear the moment something yanked me sideways that things wouldn’t be so easy.

One second, I was moving forward, the next, an overwhelming force tore me off balance.

My body slammed violently into the nearby wall, the impact knocking the air from my lungs and sending cracks spidering across the concrete.

"S-shit."