25 – Mine (Part 3)
We continued along the road. The unpleasant noise was no longer audible.
Only heavy air and a suffocating silence remained.
Rubble rolled down. The seemingly endless railway was getting narrower.
Past the second temporary shelter, the third one.
“…Cough.”
Abakusa coughed. I understood why.
Even with a mask on, dust particles that made your eyes squint were flying around everywhere.
“…If it’s not here, then we can go up, right?”
“I’m checking all the possibilities.”
Tetis Libra carefully inspected the temporary lodging. Abacoussa cursed.
“If I follow that woman, it feels like we’re all going to die.”
“Shut up.”
“What.”
“Look up.”
Abacoussa looked up. His grumbling fell silent immediately.
“…Dammit.”
In the midst of all the dusty mess, there was one liquid that seemed sticky.
Tetis Libra fell silent. She gestured to Abacoussa.
“Take a sample. Abacoussa.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re the biggest. Do you intend to disobey orders?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
With a haughty expression, Abacoussa pried the liquid loose with the tip of a dagger.
A sample that went inside a transparent bag. Completely sealed, Tetis Libra grimaced.
“A liquid I’ve never seen before.”
“Judging from its stickiness… could it perhaps be a creature’s excrement?”
Most of my worldly knowledge is about dragons.
I didn’t know what this was, since I had no interest in it.
I was just guessing, like Abacoussa.
The sticky liquid was a dark green color. After staring at it for a while, Tetis Libra put the sample into her pocket.
“I’m going down.”
Abousa, who couldn’t hold back, lost his temper.
“Isn’t that enough after collecting it? Let’s just go back!”
“I’m following the orders given by the commander, Abacoussa.”
“…You damnhell! I’m not going! I’m turning back! Just what do you expect me to do with that, bastard? Hey! You have nothing to say?!”
“I raised the broken headlight. The only thing that helps to make our way through the darkness.
Only three of them remained.
Suddenly, the narrow passage led to an open space. Could only three of us cover such a place?
At least if the light were stronger.
If our equipment were a little better.
I raised the rifle. The basic armament of the punishment unit. The shooting power and the ammunition were not that great.
The firepower is weak. And we only had three spare magazine clips. There were no explosives, and the only unarmed weapon was a revolver.
If only I had armor, things would be different. I would have had confidence to move on despite the risks.
But…
“Sergeant.”
“What?”
“How about going back.”
Not now.
“Ha!”
Tetis Libra’s eyebrows curved.
“Both of you know that I have the right to execute for disobedience.”
“No. Just…!”
“Step back.”
The muzzle pointed at us. Abakusa cocked the hammer.
“It’s good to follow the rules, but… there should be some limits, right?”
“Shut up. Abakusa. I order, and you follow. That’s all.”
“You’re going to follow orders that might lead to a dangerous situation?”
“If you speak one more time, I’ll thrust the barrel into your throat.”
“Go ahead and try.”
It felt like we could shoot each other at any moment. A slight sound could trigger a bullet exchange.
But instead of trying to calm down Tetis Libra and Abakusa, I glanced at the ground.
There’s something.
To be more precise…
Something is coming.”
“…Captain Tetis.”
“Just shut up and follow my orders, Drakan.”
“It’s not too late. How about going up?”
“Don’t repeat the same thing over and over again. The Commander’s orders are absolute. Soldiers live and die by orders. If no one does it just because it looks dangerous, nobody will step forward when they themselves are in danger…”
Tetis Libra interrupted. The gun barrel subtly pointed to the side.
“…What’s going on?”
Avakusa squinted his eyes and cursed at the strange sound coming from below.
“Damn it.”
I looked down.
I saw it.
But…
Something black was moving.
And it was moving very quickly.
—Dozens of eyes merged together.
“Run!”
Avakusa ran. I ran after him immediately.
In an instant, I grabbed Tetis Libra’s collar.
“What are you doing?”
“I, what the hell is that…”
For a moment, Tetis Libra’s headlights revealed the identity of the monster.
A swarm.
A black compound eye spider with multiple legs, with another spider on top of it. This repeated, resembling a small mountain, as it wriggled closer.
Dozens of eyes that sent chills down the spine just by looking at them. Green liquid dripped, corroding the ground.
“Go!”
“Uh…uh…”
Even Tetis Libra, who was faltering, started running. We retraced our steps.
The terrain was even more treacherous when going up than going down.
Avakusa used his hands along with his feet to climb the terrain. I followed closely behind.
In an instant, an outer-eye spider sprang out from the hole on the left side, which I thought emitted gas.
“Damn it!”
Abakusa swung his fist. Direct hit. One compound eye spider burst weakly.
Green liquid splattered. Abakusa screamed. Some melted skin sizzled and charred with smoke.
“It’s venom! Ughhh!!!”
In all directions.
Without distinction of front or back, they started crawling out from every hole. Compound eye spiders crept out like ants.
The ceiling turned pitch black. The walls filled with noise.
Tetis Libra’s face turned pale.
“Ah…ugh…”
A collapsed expression. Frantically running legs kept entangling. And in an instant, Tetis Libra fell over.
Abakusa screamed.
“Drop it!”
I also tried to drop it. Because I knew it was hopeless.
But at that moment, a strange sound came from inside the mine.
—Gooooooooooooooooooooooooooo…
A sound I had heard before.
Only this time, it didn’t end with just the sound. The whole corridor echoed. Shaking stones and falling ceilings.
The ceiling trembled as if it would collapse. Abakusa cursed.
Compound eye spiders, rushing like mad, swallowed Tetis Libra.
“aaah!!!”
I turned around to run away. But at that moment, the ground beneath me sank.
“Drakan!”
Abakusa, calling my name properly for the first time, reached out his hand towards me. But just before he could grab me, I fell down.
The light was disappearing. Headlights flickered.
Ping!
Something flew from the empty air where there was no place to dodge. The combat helmet I was wearing was completely stripped off.
Losing even the light, into the darkness.
I endlessly plummeted.
…
Splash.
The reason I could not die was solely because of water. It was a shock severe enough to injure a trained body, but not enough to lose consciousness.
I immediately crawled up onto the water. With my wet body, I lay on the unseen land.
“……”
Nothing was visible. A complete darkness that even the eyes of an exceptional dragonkin could not penetrate.
I sat down and took a deep breath. Anxiety surged, but I endured it quietly.
Calm down. To escape, I need to accurately perceive the surrounding situation.
I closed my eyes and felt the beating of my heart. The rapid palpitations gave me the illusion of beating twice.
Scarlet Peridot.
I felt like she was looking at me.
…So as not to disgrace myself in front of her. I’ll do my best.
“Phew…”
I took a breath. I opened my eyes again.
Since I couldn’t see, I focused on my enhanced hearing.
“……”
The sound of water reached my ears. No other sounds were heard. Faintly, I heard the sound of rocks cracking, but it was extremely small.
Scarce… Are there none left?
I patted my chest. The spare magazine clip had disappeared along with the impact. It seemed to have fallen somewhere in the water.
Fortunately, the rifle was still strapped to my shoulder. The unholstered sidearm inside the holster was the same.
Thankfully, the revolver rounds… remain intact, I suppose.
After confirming that I had the knife, I stood up.
“Phew!”
A voice pierced through the silence, coming from somewhere. A rustling sound. Amidst the sobbing, someone pleaded.
“Please… please save me…”
I couldn’t see their figure, but I understood.
The voice of Tethys Libra.
“Sergeant.”
“…Ye, yes…”
She stammered.
“Dra…Dracan… Dracan?”
“Yes. I’m here.”
＂Here… um…＂
He stuttered as if he were in a panic. Despite his intimidating appearance, he seemed weak in situations like this.
I didn’t approach his voice for fear of it exploding. I asked while crouching low.
＂Are you okay?＂
＂My body…? I’m fine. The… the… maybe… but it’s too cold…＂
＂I’ll go over there.＂
I quietly took a step forward, continually vigilant of my surroundings in case of unforeseen circumstances.
Tetis Libra was trembling.
＂Drakkan? Are you coming?＂
＂I’m coming.＂
＂D-don’t leave me. Pl-Please… don’t… I can’t die here… m-my leg is acting strange… I can’t move…＂
His voice was getting closer. Something touched my toe.
Cold water.
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It seemed like I had to cross. I slowly immersed myself in the water.
＂Drakkan! Drakkan! Are you there?!＂
Tetis Libra sobbed.
＂No… no… don’t leave me… please… don’t… don’t…＂
His voice was right in front of me. I reached out to the crying voice.
Tetis Libra froze in shock.
＂No… don’t… don’t… don’t come… don’t come… I-I don’t like it… don’t drown… don’t drownnnn!!!＂
Whoosh!
A fist flew towards me. I reflexively dodged it, feeling the air flow. The struggling elf.
I immediately pressed him down with my body. I whispered in Tetis Libra’s ear.
＂It’s Drakkan. Your Captain.＂
The resistance ceased.
＂D-Drakkan…? Is that you…? Really…?＂
＂I’ve come. Please calm down.＂
＂H-heavy… it’s heavy…＂
＂I’ll let you go once you calm down.＂
“Ah, I can’t see anything… Ahh… Ugh…”
Tetis Libra sobbed. First, I confirmed if it was her.
The sensation felt on my fingertips. There was no doubt that it resembled a human shape. Tetis Libra’s body twitched every time I touched her.
“Ah, it hurts…”
Around her leg.
There was definitely something abnormal that happened when she fell, just as she had mentioned. When I touched it with my hand, there was a protruding lump.
Rather than a broken bone…
It felt more like swelling.
“Can you move?”
“Yes, I’ll try.”
After supporting her, I took a step forward. Even though I didn’t know where this place was, I couldn’t just stand still.
We stumbled and walked towards the darkness.
How far have we fallen?
What is the distance from the surface… how much is it?