The Flower Is Finished

After remembering, I realized that what I meant was a sentence that pointed toward the orchid flower I once took and searched for to heal Arvan.

Just as I was about to write the sentence, Farrrel suddenly shouted. I turned to the front. He was looking at me anxiously because one of the snakes was about to bite my back, so he yelled for me to turn around.

"Xanders!"

I turned and only had a little time left. Without thinking any further, I immediately grabbed my sword and slashed the snake.

My sword swung briefly, and blood splattered instantly.

Crashh.

I was breathing heavily. Farel gave a faint smile and continued killing the snakes in front of us. He was wearing armor, so the snakes could not bite him, while I, who was still not properly dressed, attracted several of them.

The cold air pierced my skin, but the heat inside my body kept me from feeling the chill in a situation like this.

I tried to enter several letters I remembered earlier, but just as I was about to press them, the sound of snakes grew closer. I looked down at my feet and saw a snake about to bite my leg. I immediately pressed the last letter. At that same moment, the snake lunged at me, but Farel, as if he could not stand seeing me in trouble, rushed forward. His body fell to the ground. I kicked the snake away in a clumsy motion.

I swallowed, making sure that this was indeed the correct sentence.

Suddenly, sand—or perhaps soil—began falling from above. I could not tell which it was, but it kept pouring down.

The snakes slowly retreated through cracks we had not noticed before.

The vibration felt very strong; even our legs were shaking. I looked down at Farel, who was injured.

"Were you bitten by a snake?" I asked worriedly.

He looked at me and shook his head.

The trembling felt like an earthquake, growing clearer. He quickly asked me to help him, and I hurriedly reached out my hand to check what was really happening.

However, even after a while, the door still did not open.

"Did you enter the wrong word again?" Farel asked.

I shook my head. Wasn't the main point I read about the orchid flower? Then why was this door still locked? I tried to make sure of what I remembered. It matched my memory, so I shook my head at him, confused about what to say.

"No. I've seen it before. Professor Dion once said that sentence using ancient script. I also know that this is the ancient script we studied in school." I paused when thinking about the contents of the letter. I hesitated to talk about Professor Dion.

Then the ground cracked suddenly and quickly, and at that moment one of the doors opened.

"Let's go inside!" Farel urged.

I grabbed his hand as he was about to step in. "Wait," I said, asking him to stop for a moment. He was already worried, and I held him back because I was certain it couldn't be just a single sentence about orchids after such a long explanation.

"Hurry! The ground is moving. If we stay here, we'll sink again."

I shook my head. Then the real door slowly opened, and the cracks began to slow down.

"How did you know?" he asked.

I shrugged indifferently and slowly stepped inside. For the last time, I looked back. There were many carcasses scattered around, the smell of rotten blood filled the suffocating air, and my sword was still stained with snake blood.

When we entered, the door suddenly closed behind us. Slowly, flames lit up on their own, surprising both Farel and me as the surroundings illuminated by themselves.

"Why are the candles lighting up by themselves?" Farel asked as he moved closer to me, while I kept staring straight ahead.

"How much longer will these traps continue? When will we reach the place?" I was confused. If this person had set so many traps, did they already know someone would come? Judging from the structure and surface, this building seemed old and designed like a treasure chamber. Some of the stones were damp and worn. I did not even recognize the patterns carved on them. It was possible that this place had been intentionally built as a trap to confuse enemies. I continued observing the surroundings.

This trap made me more cautious. It felt strange, as if there were no traps at all.

This room was small, but in front of me stood a fairly large chest.

I stared at it blankly. Farel stepped closer and looked at me as if asking for an answer about the chest in front of us.

"Isn't that a mummy coffin or maybe a jewelry chest?" Farel said, ending his sentence with a laugh that I understood well.

I did not know how to answer because I could not guarantee whether it was a coffin or a chest filled with jewels.

"Should we open it?" Farel asked, his voice trembling slightly.

I nodded, thinking that something important would not be placed in the middle of the room without reason.

I stepped forward and approached the chest, examining it even though the lighting was still dim. Both of my hands felt along its surface. The chest had very ancient patterns, and I could not understand a single word carved into it. Thick dust covered it.

"Try opening it!" Farel urged.

I used both hands to open it, but it did not move at all. I searched for a gap but found nothing.

"Why are you just standing there?" Farel asked as he came closer.

I turned to him and shook my head.

"Aish… you can't open it?" he muttered, clicking his tongue as he pushed the chest. It did not move. He tried several times, but it remained firmly shut.

"I thought you were weak, but turns out we're the weak ones," he said with a faint smile, patting my shoulder lightly. I ignored him and kept staring at the chest.

"Wait… is this gold?" Farel suddenly widened his eyes.

I looked at him flatly. "If this is treasure, then what about the path leading us into the palace?" I sighed as he kept talking about gold and jewels, making me want to hit his head.

Now that the room was brighter, we could clearly see the patterns on the chest.

"There must be something that can open it," I said while touching its surface. I felt something unusual in the middle. My fingers searched carefully until I found a small gap.

"This looks like a locked door!" I muttered. Farel immediately came closer and felt around the area I was holding.

"Yes, it's like a door, and it has a small keyhole," he said while looking at me.

I quickly looked around the room, searching for a key or any object left behind, but found nothing. There was no metal or object attached to the walls.

"So where is the key?" Farel asked.

Above us, candles were burning, and there were several holders that might have hidden something inside. I hurriedly gestured for Farel to come closer. "Over here," I said.

Because the candles were positioned high, I decided to work together with Farel so I could check them one by one.

"Crouch down," I told him.

He looked confused, but I urged him again. He crouched, and I carefully stepped onto his shoulders. He was startled at first, but I reached into the candle holder bowls. They were large containers with covers to prevent the fire from falling, but inside there was nothing.

One by one we checked them. Farel complained several times about my weight. In the end, I sighed heavily when we found nothing.

"So where is the key? It can't possibly not have one," Farel said as he lay down on the floor, exhausted.

I looked at him, his eyes closed from fatigue. We did not have much time. I lifted my head and looked toward the ceiling.

At that moment, I saw something that made me smile faintly.

There, hanging from above, was something I had just noticed—a key dangling in the middle of the ceiling.

"We found it, Farel," I said without hesitation.

He immediately opened his eyes. "Where?" he asked curiously.

My gaze remained fixed on the ceiling, and his eyes followed the direction of mine.

I kept staring upward.