Chapter 78: The Guardian of the Crystal Pyramid
Now that the area was quiet and dark once more, with not a single mountain orc left in sight, Luna, Aria, Sheila, and Mei explored the city ruins as they headed toward the pyramid up ahead.
"Wow... this really is the ruined city of an ancient civilization that no one ever knew existed," Luna whispered, looking around in awe.
"Yeah... this is... unbelievable. And it’s definitely not a dungeon... even if it was serving as a nest for mountain orcs," Aria said.
"We need to find a way out. If the mountain orcs could get in here, that means there has to be an exit somewhere... proven by how they dragged the bodies of those adventurers, miners, and slaves down here," Sheila pointed out.
"True. I know all of this is amazing, but we can’t let our guard down," Mei added, scanning their surroundings.
"Where are Cleo and Dion?" Luna asked.
"Behind us," Aria answered.
They all turned back to see Cleo walking alongside Dion, with Gina perched on his head. Cleo’s eyes were sparkling as she took in the sight, while Dion looked lost in thought, staring with a dead serious expression at something in front of him.
"Just leave them be. One’s obsessed with legends and myths, and the other’s who-knows-where in his own head," Sheila sighed.
"Yeah... you’re right. Let them be," Luna agreed.
Meanwhile, Dion was focused intently on the holographic display floating in front of his face:
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Change Soul Persona:
Dion von Oswald [current] Black Knight rank SSSS [activate?] [yes] [no] (cooldown 1 day) Shadow Assassin rank SSSS (cooldown 14:24:01) Berserk Monk rank SSSS [activate?] [yes] [no] (cooldown 1 day) Mechanical Crafter and Gunner rank SSSS[activate?] [yes] [no] (cooldown 3 days) Ancient One rank SSSS (cooldown 83:10:22) NEW Calamity Supreme Monarch rank SSSS (cooldown 237:44:08) ???
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Dion read through his new persona profile and checked its details once more, his expression growing increasingly grave as he took it in.
"Hmm... a ten-day cooldown, and it only lasts for two hours. It really is powerful, though, it felt like I merged with Gina and gained all her strength... but... I can’t use it very often, and this persona of mine is clearly wrapped in mystery... not to mention, my entire class setup is full of unanswered questions. It’s making me pretty curious," Dion thought to himself.
"Kyuu?" Gina stretched her head out and hung upside down, staring right into Dion’s face.
"I’m fine, just thinking," Dion told Gina, who was upside down in front of him.
"Dion," Cleo called out.
"What?" Dion asked, turning to her.
"Do you know where we are?" Cleo asked.
"Hmm... ancient city ruins, right? What about it?" Dion replied.
Cleo examined Dion’s relaxed face, narrowing her eyes and leaning in close to inspect his expression. Dion backed up a bit.
"What’s your problem?" Dion asked, feeling uncomfortable.
"Sigh... you really have no idea, do you?" Cleo asked.
"I never lie. If I say I don’t know, I don’t know," Dion answered. "Still... this city... looks insanely similar to a modern city on Earth. Though it’s definitely not as huge as a real city on Earth... then again, maybe this is just one part of it... and that pyramid up ahead... looks just like a pyramid on Earth, even if it’s made of crystal," Dion muttered in his head, looking around.
"Whatever... I want to inspect everything here. How about we camp out here tonight?" Cleo asked.
"Hah... we’re trying to head home. I’m worried about things back at the house, we’ve been gone for over a week," Dion replied, glancing at Cleo as she took in the ruins.
"Ugh... fair point," Cleo said, looking slightly disappointed.
"We’re almost there," Dion said, pointing ahead.
Cleo looked forward. They were right next to the pyramid now, coming to a stop in front of two obelisks flanking the entry to the pyramid complex.
"Dion, these pillars look just like the ones back at our place, don’t they?" Sheila asked, pointing at one of the obelisks.
"Yeah, they do," Dion replied, looking up at it.
"They’re huge... the ones at your parents’ grave don’t seem this tall," Luna remarked, looking up at the obelisk.
"They are bigger, you’re only seeing the top half of the ones back home," Mei corrected.
"Once we get back, I want to head up the back hill. I’ve never been up there before," Aria added, also inspecting the pillar.
"Look at that," Cleo said, pointing at the wall of the obelisk.
They looked at a relief carved into the stone, depicting a small, stiffly drawn dragon, resembling a hieroglyph, breathing a tiny flame from its mouth. Except for Dion, everyone instantly turned to look at Gina, who was perched on Dion’s head, clinging tight. Gina tilted her head, thoroughly confused. They turned their attention back to the carving.
"Yep... no doubt about it, that’s Gina in the relief," Aria said.
"It looks like Gina... but I’m pretty sure it’s not her," Sheila replied.
"Hmm... maybe," Mei muttered, studying it.
"Maybe back then, Gemmeth was as small as Gina... who knows," Cleo suggested.
"Whatever... Gina is Gina. She’s not Gemmeth or some evil dragon. She’s our friend and our baby, right?" Luna asked.
Now Aria, Sheila, Mei, Cleo, and even Dion turned to stare at Luna, who gave a puzzled smile.
"Am I wrong? She’s still a baby," Luna insisted.
"Yep... you’re right. No need to overthink it. Let me lead us inside," Dion agreed.
"Sigh... you guys take legendary things way too lightly. But... whatever," Cleo sighed.
"Haha... don’t overthink it so much, Cleo, or you’ll age faster," Sheila teased.
"Exactly. Life’s meant to be enjoyed. I agree that Gina is just Gina, even if her scales are worth a fortune," Aria said, giving Gina a sharp look.
"Kyuuuuu?"
Gina hid behind Dion’s head to dodge Aria’s glare. Mei picked Gina up off Dion’s head and held her close.
"Aria, stop scaring her," Mei chided.
"Haha... relax, Gina, I’m just joking," Aria said, though her eyes remained intense.
Gina trembled even more, turning her face into Mei’s chest. Mei could only sigh.
"Your face looks serious even if your words aren’t. Terrible joke," Mei shot back.
"Let’s head inside. No sense lingering out here," Dion said.
They stepped into the pyramid complex. Scattered across the courtyard were the mangled remains of several mountain orcs. Reaching the front of the pyramid, they walked through an open entryway that had looked narrow from a distance. Once inside, their eyes widened, the interior was nothing like what they had expected.
Every wall was covered in relief carvings, with sections of the wall recessed to reveal complex gear mechanisms inside. A circular, slightly elevated podium sat in front of them, with a short stone pillar resembling a console standing before the steps leading up to the platform.
"Huh... this room... why is it packed with Earth-like technology... though... it looks even more advanced than Earth... or is it? I can’t tell," Dion thought to himself, scanning the room.
"This is... incredible," Cleo gasped, looking up at the high, pointed ceiling.
"Agreed... I’ve never seen a room like this... not even in any of the ruins I’ve explored before," Aria added.
"Breathtaking," Mei said.
"Watch out... from above!" Sheila yelled, immediately dropping into a stance.
Everyone looked up to see something plummeting down. BOOM! A thick cloud of dust erupted, filling the entire room. Cough! Cough! They choked on the flying dust. As the fog cleared, a massive, muscular figure stood before them.
"GROAAAAAR!"
A deafening roar reverberated through the hall. Mei, Sheila, Luna, Aria, and Cleo drew their weapons. Dion narrowed his eyes, taking in the beast: a bipedal creature with the lower body of a bull, a massive, ripped torso, large horns, and a bull’s face, wearing iron armor that made it look half-golem. Its glowing yellow eyes locked onto them. As the dust settled further, their eyes widened, the monster was wielding a massive greatsword in each hand.
"Be careful, everyone... looks like he’s the chief of this mountain orc settlement, an S-rank Minotaur Knight, and it seems he’s also the guardian of this building," Sheila warned.
"Ugh... we just got out of danger and now we’re dropping right back into it," Aria grumbled.
"That’s how it goes. Welcome to the team, airhead princess," Luna chirped.
"Shut up, you idiot princess," Aria snapped back.
"We can beat this thing if we work together. Don’t lose focus, everyone," Cleo instructed.
"Here he comes," Mei warned.
"Alright... let me handle this real quick," Dion offered.
"DON’T!" all five girls screamed in unison. "Kyuuuu!" Gina cried out, meaning the exact same thing.
"Huh... why not?" Dion asked, bewildered.
"Don’t wreck this building!" the five girls yelled together, with Cleo and Luna shouting the loudest.
"Ugh... fine," Dion sighed in defeat.
"Kyuuu!"
"Don’t you join in," Dion scolded Gina.
With that, they braced themselves to face the towering beast that glared down at them with pure ferocity.