Chapter 76: Adventure Times (II)
Ember put his full weight into pushing the stone door, pouring in all twenty-six points of Might. Even empowering his strength with mana augmentation did no good. The door just wouldn't budge. Standing over twenty-five feet tall, his cumulative Might was barely anything against its sheer weight.
The door appeared to be made of black granite, adorned with lines of runes formed into various shapes as decoration. Still unwilling to give up, he flung a few mana bolts at it, only to find they left not even a single dent.
Considering the lair of the basilisk was nearby, the Great Serpents had likely tried to smash their way through on a few occasions to find out what was on the other side of the door. But looking at the polished, immaculately crafted stone gate, whose structural integrity seemed to have stood the test of time, he doubted they had managed to do anything to it at all.
"It's the runes, isn't it?" he asked, turning towards Dawn.
She looked at him with mild amusement before joining him. "Leave it to the professionals, will you?"
She didn't press with all her Might as he had. Instead, she traced a dainty finger over the rune symbols etched on the stone. Her eyes cast a silver glow, as though piercing through the mysteries concealed within the ancient gate.
"It's not the most complicated thing I've seen," she muttered, "but—"
"Please tell me you can open this," Ember pleaded.
"I probably can," she said, a little uncertain, as she turned towards him. "Sit down, rest. It might take a while."