Chapter 62 – The Horror they Saw
Chapter 62
The Horror they Saw
Date : Day 3 of Grimleaf 1024 Aethellgard Concord Year.
Hyoren and Elise peeked at the hole. A dusty smell greeted them. Stale air that had been trapped for months. But they could smell other things too. A smell of stale decay—but faint. Underlying the dust.
Elise pinched her nose. Her eyebrows furrowed. Disgust flickered across her face.
Hyoren tried to look closer. The darkness was absolute. The light from above didn't penetrate far.
"It's too dark. We need a light source, Elise."
Elise nodded, then stood.
"Right, give me a moment. Let me pick our portable magic lamp from our camp."
Hyoren saw her off. Waiting patiently. His eyes moved back to the dark hole. The smell of decay lingered in his nostrils. Something was down there. Something that shouldn't be.
Elise left the warehouse to fetch the portable magic lamp from their camp to explore the basement.
Not long after, Elise returned holding a portable magic lamp. The device was small but sturdy—a crystal sphere encased in a metal frame with a handle.
"Sorry for the wait, Hyoren."
Hyoren shook his head. His eyes remained on the dark hole in the floor. The smell of decay still lingered—faint but unmistakable.
"I didn't wait too long. Now let's investigate the basement."
Elise then turned on the lamp. The light sprang forth—bright and steady—cutting through the darkness. She shone it through the hole. The beam descended into the depths, revealing a ladder that went down into a corridor. Around five meters down. The rungs were wooden but sturdy. Well-maintained despite the age of the building.
The basement looked empty. At least from what they could see from above. Just stone walls and a dusty floor.
Hyoren looked at Elise. His expression was serious. Cautious.
"Give me the lamp, Elise. Let me descend first."
Elise nodded and gave the lamp to him.
He took it and carefully descended through the ladder. He descended with one hand carrying the lamp—his other hand gripping the rungs tightly. One careful step at a time. The wood creaked under his weight but held firm. He hopped down on the ground. The dust on the ground scattered under his boots. A small cloud rose around his feet.
He then shone the light into the corridor. The beam cut through the darkness.
It was empty. And it was short. In just a few meters, he saw a locked door. The wood was old but solid. Iron bands reinforced the frame.
He looked upward and found Elise's worried face peeking through the hole. Her emerald eyes caught the light from above—glowing faintly in the darkness.
"Elise, it was safe down here!"
Elise nodded and started to descend. Her movements were graceful. Not long after, she hopped from the ladder and stood beside him. Her boots landed softly on the stone floor.
She waved her fingers. Trying to dispel the dust in the air without any effect. The particles hung stubbornly in the still air. She gave up with a small huff of annoyance.
They examined the corridor. The walls were made from weathered stones. There were cracks here and there—signs of age and settling.
"This basement seems to be an underground storehouse. Maybe for villagers to store their precious but rarely used tools."
Elise nodded in agreement. Her eyes scanned the walls. The ceiling. The door ahead.
Hyoren then stepped forward, examining the door. The light from the lamp revealed the details.
"But look at this door, Elise."
He pointed at the locks. The metal gleamed in the lamplight.
"The door is weathered. But the locks are clearly new. Someone definitely used this room recently. Considering the situation, our suspect definitely did it."
Elise moved to his side. Examining the locks. Her fingers traced the metal. The hinges. The keyhole.
"Right. It's brand new and not rusted, unlike the handle. And the hinges even seem oiled recently."
Hyoren looked at Elise. The question hung between them.
"How should we do it? We definitely don't have the keys. And I don't have any experience in picking locks."
Elise smiled. The expression was confident. A hint of mischief glinted in her eyes.
"Then brute force it is. Step back a bit, Hyoren."
Hyoren did as he was told by her and moved to the back. He hugged the ladder against his back. Putting distance between himself and the door.
Elise unslung her bow, nocked an arrow, then murmured. The words were soft but clear.
"Magic Arrow."
Slowly Aethell began coalescing on her arrow. It shone bright—a point of light in the darkness. The energy gathered.
"Charged Magic Arrow."
Then she unleashed her skill. The arrow flew straight and true. With a loud bang, the arrow struck the locks. The sound was deafening in the enclosed space. Dust and splinters were thrown around. The impact echoed off the stone walls.
After the dust settled, the door was not only unlocked. The whole lock mechanism and the handle were gone. A wide gaping hole remained where the locking mechanism had been. The wood around it was splintered and blackened.
Elise slung back her bow on her shoulder, turned around to face Hyoren, and smiled. Looking proud. The expression was almost smug.
"See? No need to look for the keys or try to pick the lock."
Hyoren chuckled. Amused with how the veteran ranger solved the problem. Sometimes, they didn't need finesse. Sometimes, brute force could solve the problem efficiently.
He stepped forward holding the lamp. The door creaked when he opened it. The sound was loud in the silence—a groan of old wood protesting against movement.
"Let's see the inside, Elise."
Inside, there was a room which was not small, but not big either. Maybe around a quarter of the warehouse on top. The air was stale. Thick with dust and something else. Something that made his stomach turn.
He scanned the room, using the lamp to shine the surroundings. On the far back, there was a desk with scattered documents. Papers were strewn across the surface. Some had fallen to the floor. He then shone the light to his left. It was a wall with shelves. There were few books left alone but most were empty. Dust covered everything.
He then shone to his right. And froze.
His body locked in place. His breath caught in his throat. The lamp trembled in his hand.
Elise peeked beside him, her gaze also wandering to the right. She had noticed his reaction.
"What happened, Hyoren? Why did you stand still?"
Her emerald eyes then caught the view, and instantly widened. Breath caught under her nose. Her lips were slightly apart. A gasp that never came.
On the right side of the room, there was a makeshift cage made from hard wood, rusted irons, and wire. It was crudely made—hastily constructed—but enough to imprison humans. The cage occupied around a quarter of the room. But it was not the cage which made them hold their breath. It was the occupant.
There were four figures scattered and chained inside the cage. The figures sat slumped against the cold stone wall, unmoving. Their positions were unnatural.
At first glance, it could have been mistaken for a person resting—until the details settled in. The skin had drawn tight against the bones, darkened and hardened by time, leaving the body thin and unnatural—almost mummified. What remained of the face was hollow, the features sunken and still, as if they had been quietly erased. Eye sockets were empty. Mouths hung open in silent screams.
The figures definitely wore girls' clothing. Simple dresses. Tattered and stained. Some of the hair still stuck to the almost peeled scalp. And most of them had long hair—once carefully tended—now matted and dull.
Elise finally breathed again. She covered her mouth with her hands. Words caught in her throat. A sound escaped—something between a gasp and a sob.
Hyoren also finally moved, averting his eyes from the horrible sight. His stomach churned. His heart ached.
"These are horrible... these four are definitely the four missing girls, Elise..."
Elise faced Hyoren. Nodded weakly. Her eyes were wet. Her face was pale.
The silence of the basement pressed down on them. The four girls had been here for months. Abandoned. Forgotten. Their final moments preserved in this horrible tableau. The evidence of the ritual magic's cost.
***
Elise took a deep breath. The dust caught on her nose. But she needed the air. The stale atmosphere of the basement was thick with decay and sorrow. She then stepped forward, getting closer to the cage. Her footsteps were slow. Deliberate. Each step carried the weight of what they had discovered.
Hyoren followed beside her. The lamp cast long shadows on the walls. The light shone through the four figures. Illuminating the horror in stark detail. The mummified remains. The tattered clothing. The chains that had bound them in their final moments. He saw Elise standing still, her arms reaching forward. Her fingers trembled slightly.
She stilled her hand. Then made an unknown gesture for Hyoren. Both of her hands were opened upward, fingers separated. She put them in front of her face. A frame around her features. She then closed her eyes. And prayed. Her lips moved silently. The words were soft. Reverent.
"May Sylvana's winds guide your souls towards the vast nature."
Hyoren nodded. It was a gesture of prayer — perhaps elven custom, or Sylvana's teaching. The gesture didn't matter. What mattered was the intention. The respect for the dead. The acknowledgment of their suffering.
He then put the lamp on the floor. The light flickered slightly. The shadows danced.
He was not pious. He never really prayed before. He only knew Luminara and Noctynara among the Gods of this world. He didn't understand their gestures and prayers either. So he did what he always did on Earth. What his old world had taught him to do in the presence of death.
He clasped his hands in front of his chest. Bowed slightly. And closed his eyes.
"May Luminara and Noctynara guide your poor souls."
The words were simple. Sincere. A wish for peace in the afterlife. For rest after suffering. For justice for the wronged.
Both of them stepped backward. Done with prayer. The moment of silence had passed. Hyoren took the lamp again. And faced Elise. Her expression was still grim. The horror of what they had witnessed lingered in her eyes.
"Elise, we now know what happened to the missing girls. Now we need to investigate who is the true culprit."
Elise's grim face turned to him, and weakly nodded. The motion was small. Exhausted.
"Yeah... we can't do anything for them now. We will report to the guild, and church officials would be notified and they would perform the burial later."
She shook her head, trying to dispel the lingering dread. Her silver hair swayed with the motion. The gesture was automatic. A physical rejection of the horror.
Hyoren then looked around the room. To the bookshelves. And to the desk. The lamp's light revealed scattered papers. Discarded items. Evidence of hasty departure.
"Okay, Elise. Let's finish our investigation."
Elise nodded. Then both of them moved with quick motion. Purpose replaced grief. Determination pushed aside horror. They had a job to do.
Elise went to the bookshelves. Checking the books. Her fingers traced the spines. Most of the shelves were empty. Dust outlined where books had once been. There were only two books left. One was a basic spellbook of dark magic. The symbol of Dark Magic was drawn on the cover—a circle with a solid circle in the middle. The other was an empty journal. Pages blank. Unused. She put back the journal, and took the spellbook. The cover was worn but intact.
Hyoren moved to the desk. Picked up the scattered papers. Most were empty. Yellowed and blank. The others only scribbled with unknown symbols. Might be part of the Runic Array formation above. Calculations. Diagrams. Fragments of a larger design. There were no documents left. No names. No addresses. No clear evidence of identity.
No clues to be gathered. Or so it seemed.
But as he wanted to give up, he noticed something. There were folded small stacks of paper, stuck under the table desk. Hidden. Deliberately concealed. But forgotten. He crouched, lifted the desk slightly, and took the paper. The wood was heavy. The paper was dusty.
On his hands, there were two pieces of paper. And both were the clues they needed. His heart quickened.
Elise crossed over the room to approach him. Holding the spellbook. Her footsteps were quick. Eager.
"Found some clues, Hyoren? I only found this single spellbook. Basic dark magic. Want to keep it?"
Hyoren turned his face to Elise.
"Oh. Neat. Basic dark magic. Can I learn magic with that, Elise?"
He felt a strong feeling toward Noctynara, so he was very interested in learning dark magic. Her domain. His connection to the goddess was still mysterious. But the pull was undeniable.
Elise shook her head. Her expression was patient. Teacher-like.
"With this alone? It's hard. This spellbook only contains the list of Dark Magic. Without a good foundation, you will have a very hard time understanding the runes and theory. Unless you are a prodigy, you still need to learn the proper way to wield elemental magic first. And you need a teacher or mentor for that."
She tapped the spellbook. The cover made a soft sound under her finger.
"Dark Magic spellbooks are very rare circulating in the Kingdom of Altaria though, so you might want to keep this when you can learn from it later."
She then gave the spellbook to Hyoren. He took it. Feeling grateful. The weight of the book was substantial in his hands.
"Thanks, Elise..."
He then put it in his own storage bag. The void sucked in the spellbook. The magic of spatial storage was convenient.
Elise then noticed the papers he held. Her eyes narrowed with interest.
"Are those documents our clues?"
Hyoren nodded. Then showed the papers to her. Both of them read the documents together. The lamplight illuminated the faded ink.
The first paper was a ripped journal. From the culprit. The handwriting was hurried. Uneven. The ink was faded but legible.
Day 10 Bloomtide, 2023 AY. I successfully infiltrated this village two months ago. Everyone accepts me. Time to start the plan. Tomorrow I will start preparing the sacrifice. I will write to the Head after I get enough.
Day 11 Bloomtide, 2023 AY. Two young girls secured. I need two more.
Day 23 Bloomtide, 2023 AY. Finally got another two. Thanks to the first two disappearances the villagers started to be cautious.
Day 30 Bloomtide, 2023 AY. A letter from the Head arrived this morning. Tonight is the time.
Elise and Hyoren looked up at the same time, exchanging glances. The horror was fresh again. The calculated cruelty of the words.
"Elise... this is irrefutable proof..."
Elise nodded. Her jaw was tight. Her eyes were hard.
"Yes. Now if only there is a clue about who they are... Hyoren, what about the second paper?"
Hyoren then opened the second paper. It was a letter. The paper was finer. Higher quality. The handwriting was elegant. Professional.
Both of them read it. It was a letter from someone called "Head" to the culprit in the village.
Flawless work. I already sent our men disguised as merchant convoys. They will converge on the forest near the village tonight. After Ritual Magic Curse of Nightmare is done. Carry everyone out of the village. Hundreds of brand new specimens for us to work on.
Then the letter was stamped with an unknown symbol for Hyoren. It was an open eye—similar to the eye on Noctynara's symbol—but there were no open books and there were no three moons orbiting the eye.
Instead, the eye was inside a dark circle—like a void. And there was red liquid dripping from the eye—blood. The symbol was drawn with precision.
The symbol was eerie. Made his shoulder shudder. A chill ran down his spine.
Elise beside him grimaced. She seemed to recognize the symbol.
She spat. The sound was sharp with disgust.
"As expected. It's them. Only they have the resources and guts to do this kind of ritual in the middle of this kingdom."
Hyoren turned his face to Elise. The question burned in his mind.
"Elise, you know this symbol? And the true culprit behind this case?"
Elise nodded. Her eyes were still locked on the symbol. Hatred flickered in her emerald eyes.
"Yes. This is the symbol of the Voided Covenant."
Hyoren's lips were slightly apart. The name meant nothing to him. But her tone suggested it should.
"Voided Covenant?"
He parroted the name. Testing it on his tongue.
Elise then added. Her voice was low. Heavy with the weight of knowledge.
"They are the most infamous, most widespread, and most dangerous out of all Noctynara Heretics. They are the cause of why Goddess Noctynara is really hated and Dark Magic is feared in the Kingdom of Altaria."
The revelation shocked Hyoren. His mouth was parted. Breath caught. The words settled in his mind like stones in water. Noctynara Heretics. The goddess he felt drawn to. The deity that had called to him. And her followers were responsible for this horror.
Elise finally looked up from the letter. The letter seemed to burn in her memory. A stain on her thoughts.
"Hyoren, let's head up to discuss more about this."
Hyoren nodded. The air felt heavy in his lungs. Thick with decay.
"I agree. The air is suffocating here."
His eyes then wandered towards the cage. Toward the poor figures inside. Their silent forms pressed against his mind. Before landing on the exit.
"Let's head back to our camp in the chief's house first."
Hyoren put the two papers—the clues—in his storage bag. Securing it. The void of the storage bag was cold against his fingers. A brief sensation before the items disappeared.
Both of them then quickly moved. They bowed slightly to the four figures in the cage—a final gesture of respect. Before exiting the room. They climbed the ladder, one after the other. Wooden rungs groaning under their weight.