We have a few more minutes till we approach. It's almost been 40 minutes, and the guards haven't changed shifts yet. I can't tell what's beyond that door from where we are at, it could be a singular tunnel that leads into the city, or it can be an underground system that has rooms and little areas to gather. I'd like not to murder so many people, but that's all up to the guards at the door. If they don't let us in, then they'll be the first ones to die. "These minutes have passed extremely slowly, and the longer we wait here, the more anxious I get. Do you have any plans if they don't let us in? Violence isn't the only way. You could always bribe them." Sally has a good point, and I'll try that if not getting in doesn't work. If they won't accept bribes, then killing them all is the only option I see.
I keep watching the guards, and they are starting to look tired. A shift change might be coming soon. "We'll give your idea a try. I have a decent amount of gold left. I'd prefer not to have to use the rest of it. We'll approach in a minute. I still want to watch for just a little longer." As I say those final words, the door opens, and two new guards come out. I get a good look inside, and it's a long tunnel that turns off. "Good news is I don't see anything akin to an underground town, which means this probably leads directly into the city that isn't guarded and is easily accessible." I have many more ideas of what this could be, but they aren't relevant to this situation. The guards finish changing shifts, and the door closes.
We sneak in the dark and make a loop back to the path that the man on the horse used. The guards see us approaching but make no move to stop us. Only when we get into the underground path to the door, do they stop us. "You don't look, familiar boy. I'd remember a face like yours, and the fact you have an elf companion is strange enough..." I tense my body just slightly, getting ready for combat. However, he sighs. "I don't get paid enough to ask questions. I'm just going to assume your some slave trader. Be careful in the city. We have some pretty big names in town right now." I nod my head, and he lets us pass. Big names in town, huh... I wonder if I can get some help from said big names.
We start walking down the path, and torches light it every 25 feet or so. "Put your hood on. The fewer people know you're an elf, the better. I don't like being called a slaver either. Once we are inside the city, we head to an inn to have some delicious food and a comfortable bed. We have been traveling around huge distances for a while now, and the last time I saw a bed was in the fairies kingdom." Sally chuckles slightly. As a human from a modern time, with modern technology. Sleeping outside isn't something I and many more aren't used to. Deforestation on earth caused many camping to die out 80 years before I was born. I really do hope earth heals itself in our absence. We took it for granted.
We stay quiet as we walk the long singular hallway. I look around, and I don't see any discernable details. This place is only used for getting in and out of the city undetected. We walk for a good 30 minutes, and we are coming up to another door. It doesn't have guards on this side. We make it up to the door and open it. It reveals a giant underground market. There aren't many people walking the streets of this underground town. I bet most are out committing crimes. Now that it's been dark for a while now all the thieves and robbers are out. The big-time criminals aren't going to be out, though. So that leaves an opportunity. "There are no guards at this door, so that must mean there is no need for security. Pretty trusting for a hive of criminals." I even see inns and bars that have noise coming from them.
Sally hears this too and looks slightly rattled. She probably isn't going to go along with the idea of staying in an inn that is full of bad men and women. "We can find a way up to the surface if you want, Sally. I can see the hesitation on your face." She nods her head, and I nod mine. Guess we are going to have to find a way out of this place tonight. "Let's see where the main roads down here lead. Most roads lead somewhere, and the ones most traveled probably lead to the surface." We begin to follow the only main road around, it right off of the entrance we can in through. We walk around and notice more bars and inns full of people partying. Some have even had their spill out onto the streets.
We have to stop our walk as we come across a party that has taken up the road in front of us. Some people are in a circle fighting, and others are dancing around merrily. "For a literal underground criminal network, they sure do love to party." Sally looks at the crowd we have to go through, and I can tell she is nervous. "Stay close to me. Who knows what pervert will try to pull something. If violence does break out, leave it to me." She grabs the bottom of my leather chest piece, and we start to make our way through the crowd. However, we are stopped as someone decides to get handsy with Sally. Before she can even scream, I ball my fist and punch a hole the size of my fist into his fast. I pull my fist out of his skull, and everyone backs away from us.
They make a circle and look at the gruesome scene. Blood drips from my hand onto the ground. We hear shouting coming from inside the outside party's bar. A tall man with three others comes out, bearing their weapons. "You know that was one of my best friend's brothers. He isn't so happy right now." Another man comes charging out with a long sword as he says that. The tall man stops him. "You have quite a lot of power. The man you killed was a level 85 tier 1. You put a hole through his skull with your bare hand. So you can see why I'm hesitant to let him attack you. Mind telling me who you are so I don't have to inspect you." I squint my eyes and ponder my next response. If he inspects me, he'll see my name, and the cat will be out of the bag.
My other option is to kill all these people and get out of here. "This is my only warning. Let us pass and leave us alone, or die a death like your man here." I tilt my head towards the dead body with a hole in its face. The brother of the dead man looks at me in a fury. I can see where this is going. I draw my sword, and everyone cringes and shakes at the feeling The Witness gives off. A true legendary weapon will have effects like this, and I'm glad it does. The tall man stares at my sword for a long period of time. I roll my eyes, and I watch him turn his head to Sally. He grins perversely. Before I can even react, Sally launches ice spears and kills two men behind the tall man. He barely jumped out of the way.
I look at Sally, and I can see the determination on her face. Now that she has the power to defend herself, she will. I watch her create a beautiful ice sword. "Leave these guys to me. I need this." I nod my head at Sally's words. She jumps at them and starts to attack. She uses her ice sword and does a very good job keeping them on the ropes, but she can't really do any damage since their coordination is so good. As I watch this, someone inspects me, and I hear a gasp. I sigh and toggle my wings on. Many try to run and hide, but I use my divine mana pressure exertion before any of them can get out of sight. Everyone, including Sally, hits the ground hard and begins to breathe heavily under pressure. I flex my wings and bare my sword. I move at speeds they can't perceive or react to.
I kill everyone other than the tall man and his crew. Everyone in the immediate vicinity is now dead, not everyone in the small town, but they were affected too. I know it, so was the surface, I bet. I let up on the pressure exertion, and Sally gets up. "What was that for?" I wave my hand for her to continue her fight. She gets back into position and looks at the tall man and the brother of the man I killed. They are looking at me, though, in total and absolute fear. "Great, you broke them before I could punish them." She sounds genuinely disappointed too. I hope I'm not a bad influence on her. We need to get out of here before anyone shows up. Sally kills the paralyzed men in fear and comes back to me. "Let's get out of this cesspool." I chuckle, and we keep walking the road.
I have a slight problem, though. I'm covered in blood once again. It's a good thing it's dark on the surface.