Chapter 36 - 35. Where Strange Things Happened
"This is..."
They found the ruin. And it was...well, in ruin. Obviously, the structure of the complex itself was already cracked and collapsed in some places, but more than that, it was also half buried beneath the earth.
Honestly, it wasn't that surprising, when they thought about how the Deathzone had been swarmed with monsters and miasma since the age of the apocalypse. How many hundred years ago was that? During that time, multiple landslides had plagued the area surrounding the ruin and buried the complex in stones and dirt.
"From the look of it, the shard is underneath all of that," Zein spread out his hand, to the two third of the ruin section that got buried beneath the hardened soil.
"Again?" Han Shin groaned. Damp, underground places usually filled with bug-type mutant beasts like those disgusting giant worms he loathed so much.
Bassena tapped on his chin and lips, darkness fleeting around the ruin complex from every side. But the esper frowned, tilting his head here and there as if scrutinizing an imaginary map.
"I can't find any entry point..." he swatted his hand, and Zein saw shadows dispersing from the faraway ruin. "It means the entrance is buried beneath...that."
Again, Han Shin groaned.
But it made sense that the shard was buried underground, since they couldn't see any sign of a safe zone being established on the surface of the ruin.
"We have to look for it, then," Bassena shrugged and was about to signal for them to get back in formation, when he saw the researchers crouching in exhaustion. "Tomorrow."
Han Shin stretched his body in relief. He might not get as tired as the two civilians, but as a support type, he lacked the stamina that the combat esper had. They had been walking nonstop ever since the tree fortress, and while it only took half a day to reach this point, the stress they got from being surrounded by miasma again after two days of purified environment was taking a toll on everyone's spirit.