Chương 49: Dungeon Core

Edrin pressed his hand against his shoulder, trying to slow the bleeding. It felt like his shoulder was on fire. There was also the pain inside his chest, one he couldn't ignore. His core, he realized. The corruption was doing something to him, but everything in his body hurt, making it hard to tell what exactly. Still, he was certain the pain around his core came from the corruption. Physical wounds didn't injure the core. Only spells, curses, or things specifically capable of affecting it could do that.

He looked at Adolin, who stood on the other side of the platform while the general rushed toward him. The boy was something else. Yet Edrin still wasn't sure they were going to make it out of the dungeon alive. It all depended on the boy. If his most outrageous guesses were right, they would make it. The same guesses that had pushed him into going deeper into the dungeon. Soon, all of it would be over, and he would learn whether his decision had been flawed. Or even more flawed than he already thought it was.

Going deeper into the dungeon had been a dumb mistake. One he never should have made, but it was already done. There were four villages near the dungeon that would have been in danger, along with the caravans and travelers heading toward the capital. Leaving the dungeon alone could have led to their deaths. So he had made the poor choice of trying to deal with the threat himself. The guilt wasn't for his own life. It was for the boy. Adolin was far too powerful to be risked like this.

Well, Edrin still wasn't sure if he was truly a boy or some old Archmage turned young. An anomaly. That much was certain. He shook his head. It was already done, and there was nothing he could do about it now. Adolin appeared next to him, blood dripping onto the platform beside his hand. The general was charging toward them. Edrin's vision had gained a red tint, making it hard to see clearly. He had to do something to help the boy.

There weren't many choices left except pushing his core beyond its limits and unleashing one final attack. It would probably give the corruption access to his core afterward, but that didn't matter. They needed to survive first before they could deal with the corruption. He started the process as mana began flowing out of his core and into the channels in his arm. Now came the difficult part. Swinging his sword hard enough to unleash sword intent.

His hand tightened around the hilt of the sword, and slowly, painfully, he raised it with a grimace. Mana flowed through his arm and flooded into the sharp edge of the blade. The corrupted was only moments away. He didn't have much time. Gritting his teeth through the pain, he willed the mana to sharpen. Then his sword fell. A huge arc of sword intent shot forward as unbearable pain exploded through his chest. He clutched at it and collapsed onto the hot platform.

From where he lay, Edrin could only see the upper half of Adolin's body. The boy had a wide grin on his face as he raised his staff with the hand that had a hole through it. His expression didn't change in the slightest, as though he were immune to pain. Edrin knew he wasn't. He simply didn't react to it. Then the air inside the room changed. The temperature rose even higher. Mana poured out of Adolin, spreading before them. The air felt charged, as if the room itself was preparing to strike.

Wind exploded through the room, threatening to throw him off the platform. The ground shook violently, as though a giant were walking next to them. Then the sky... no, the ceiling— ignited with purple flames hot enough to melt steel. A crazed laugh echoed through the room before it felt like the sky itself was about to shatter. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Then— Everything fell toward the corrupted in the middle of the platform.

The fire descended upon it like a forming tornado. Wind fed the flames while blowing fast enough to tear flesh apart. The light grew so bright and the roar so deafening that Edrin lost most of his senses and had to shut his eyes. He wasn't sure how much time had passed before he managed to open them again. Bright light still burned in his vision, and his hearing had turned into a constant ringing. It took him some time before his eyes cleared enough for him to take in the sight before him.

More than half of the platform was gone. Erased. The illusion covering the room had shattered as well, revealing the melted rock hidden behind it. The air smelled of burned stone and… something else. And the general was nowhere to be seen. The platform was blackened and partially melted, yet the destruction stopped only a few steps away from them. As though something had prevented the spell from reaching any farther. Even though the rest of the room had been devastated. Edrin slowly turned his head toward Adolin.

The boy was on his knees, breathing unevenly as blood dripped from his wound onto the platform. The grin was still on his face, though now mixed with a slight grimace. A chuckle escaped him. The boy didn't react to it. He had likely lost his hearing as well, Edrin concluded. It took him some time to calm down. The spell Adolin had used was at least tenth tier spell. Probably even higher. An Archmage spell. His guess had been right. The realization made his mind spin. What kind of Archmage was he?

Some old monster that had left seclusion? Or could he truly be the youngest Archmage in history? His thoughts were still muddled as the sharp pain from his shoulder and core continued to spread through his body. Then he paused. The corruption. Could they even deal with it? He glanced at Adolin again. The boy—no, the Archmage—had already entered a meditative stance, his eyes closed. If anyone could do something about the corruption, it would be him. The more Edrin thought about it, the more obvious it became.

The boy's experience, his resistance to killing intent, his battle instincts, everything about him pointed toward the same conclusion. Adolin was an old Archmage. There was no chance a mere boy could do what he had done. He would figure it out later, once he was out of the dungeon. The next step was finding the dungeon core and destroying it before his wounds brought him down. He struggled, but eventually managed to stand. One hand remained pressed against the deeper wound on his chest.

He wasn't sure if he had ever lost that much blood before. And his vision was beginning to sway again.

"Edrin." The voice cut through the buzzing in his ears. Adolin had opened his eyes and was watching him.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah," Edrin managed to say.

"The core. We need to find it and destroy it." His footing betrayed him, and he almost collapsed, barely managing to keep himself upright. Adolin stood and walked toward him.

"Sit down," he said, helping him lower himself onto the platform.

"Give me some time to recover my mana." Edrin grimaced and nodded. The boy stared directly into his eyes, as though trying to see through him. His lips pressed into a thin line, and his eyes narrowed.

"Damn it, now I have to waste a potion," Adolin muttered. Waste a potion? A potion appeared in Adolin's hand, and he passed it to Edrin.

"Drink up," Adolin said with a sigh. Edrin didn't waste any time. He uncorked the potion and drank it down. His wounds quickly closed, though he still felt lightheaded. Potions could perform miracles, healing almost any wound. But they couldn't replace lost blood.

"What about you?" Edrin asked.

"I'll be fine." The boy shrugged, then grimaced from the movement.

"Where's the core now?" Adolin asked, looking around the ruined room. A moment later, he added, "What does it look like?"

"Every dungeon has a different core," Edrin said.

"But most of the time, it's an orb about the size of a fist."

"Is it red?"

"It could be. Dungeon cores can come in different colors. Like the colors of a rainbow."

"Hm," Adolin muttered.

"Does it have green veins on it?" Edrin shook his head.

"No."

"Well, this one does." Edrin turned toward where Adolin was looking. Embedded in the wall where the illusion had once been was an orb blazing red, like fire burning within crystal. Then came the unnatural part. Green veins pulsed through the flames inside it. The dungeon core was corrupted.