Chapter 533: Repent!
I can’t even see myself in this darkness, but at the very least it seems to not be doing anything dangerous besides hindering my senses. I have two runes up so surprise attacks are not the most worrying, let’s stay in the dark for now. I’ll follow the wall on the left I guess…
Sofia walked cautiously in the darkness, her left hand gliding along the wall, feeling the uneven texture of the cold porous bricks and the disturbing shapes of carvings she couldn’t see. While everything right around her was plunged in pitch black darkness, she could sometimes see the outlines of things that were in between her and the zones of light. There were pillars with uneven borders, tall chairs, large furniture that Sofia couldn’t recognize with the shape alone, and plenty of unlit candelabra.
After going for about thirty meters without making any sound, Sofia reached the left wall of the room. On this side as well, a large group of zombies were facing the giant centerpiece statue of Sorrow, each holding a candle. From this angle, Sofia could see that they all held the candle in their left hand while their right hand was placed on their chest, the palm on their heart. Although they were clearly zombies, there were only light signs of decomposition, their dead gray skin being the most notable one. Perhaps they smelled like zombies usually did, but Sofia couldn’t tell, the smell of burning wax completely overpowering any putrid scent.
If not for the fact that they don’t breathe and are still like statues, someone less experienced might not even realize that they are undead until they come closer.
Now, following the left wall in the dark was not an option, as there were lit candelabras every few meters along the wall, letting one observe the wall’s statues and scriptures. This left only a few pockets of darkness where the candles were most distant, and a thin corridor of shadow in between the wall and the zombies.
Sofia followed the shadow slowly, doing her best to make even less noise than before, especially when she got to the level of the zombies. Even if they were facing away, the zombies most in the back of the group were almost at arm's reach, as their candles only lit a small area around each of them.
When she reached the halfway point of the room, Sofia saw a distant light in the pocket of shadow on the left wall.
There’s actually a corridor there! It’s completely in the dark, but since I can see the light all the way out there… I should be fine as long as I go in a straight line.
Sofia left the entrance room, stepping into the corridor felt strange, it was even darker in there, and the only specks of light Sofia could see were the zombies’ candles behind, and a lone candle on a small stand some fifty meters down the corridor’s long stretch of darkness.